Comic Book Resources

Video of the day: Will Elder documentary

Taking the name from the Fantagraphics book, Will Elder, The Mad Playboy of Art is a 20-minute documentary on the famous cartoonist and Mad artist. Part one is above, part two is below the jump. (via)

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The Variants, Ep. 4: Can they survive the night of the living 'Passholes'?

I've meant to link to this a few times -- three, to be exact -- but haven't, for one reason or another: It's The Variants, the web comedy series created by Richard Neal, owner of Zeus Comics in Dallas, and produced by Neal, Joe Cucinotti and Ken Lowery.

If you haven't caught any of the three monthly previous episodes, The Variants is set, unsurprisingly, in a comic-book store, and focuses on the frequently dysfunctional staff and customers. What's pleasantly surprising perhaps, given the sheer number of people with access to a video-recording device and access to YouTube (but who shouldn't be allowed near either), the writing, acting and production are pretty good. (I'm a fan of the smoking, snippy, customer-unfriendly Barry.)

The fourth episode ("Passholes"), which features a zombie-like horde of customers lining up for free movie passes, just went live. You can get caught up on the previous episodes here.

Your video link of the day: Drawing Fire

Paul Conrad: Drawing Fire, is a 2006 documentary about the three time Pulitzer-Prize winning editorial cartoonist. Now the whole thing is available online for you to enjoy. It's also available on YouTube if you can't use Hulu for whatever reason. (via)

Your video link of the day: Tom Gammill meets Mell Lazarus

Doozies comic strip creator Tom Gammill does a video series entitled Learn to Draw. In this latest episode, he comes across Miss Peach cartoonist Mell Lazarus and gets to see the latter's famous piano, signed by folks like Charles Schulz, Gary Trudeau, Mort Drucker and Sergio Aragones. Then Gammill breaks stuff.

Your video of the day: Alexa Kitchen talks cartoons

Here's a cute video/commercial for 12-year-old Alexa Kitchen's newest book, Grown Ups Art Dumb! (No Offense) (found via boing boing)

Bob Mankoff thinks big

Thinking Big With Robert Mankoff is a series of video interviews with the New Yorker Cartoon Editor in which he talks about the role and history of humor in society. In the one below he talks about how he became a cartoonist and what makes things funny. (found via Drawn)

Video of the day: Cameron Stewart drawing Catwoman

Show of hands please! Who's interested in seeing the award-winning Cameron Stewart draw a picture of Catwoman using Manga Studio? Ah, I thought so.

There's another video of him drawing the Prince of Persia at this link. A you can see the final version of the Catwoman piece here.

Next week: Ivan Brunetti chats with T-Pain

Well here's a celebrity meet-up I never in my most drug-induced haze ever thought of before: Chris Ware and Fall Out Boy bassist/lyricist Pete Wentz talking about comics, music and art against an LA backdrop. Apparently they have more in common than you think. For one thing, both agree that they're embarrassed by most of their output. The first video is below, but you'll want to go here to see several more, including some outtakes. (found via CR)

Your video of the day: A trailer for Kyle Baker's 'Dexter'

Remember when I mentioned the other week that Kyle Baker was going to be doing a cartoon based on the popular Showtime series Dexter? Well, here's the first trailer, found via Beaucoup Kevin.

Your YouTube video of the day: An intro to Larry Gonick

You may not be aware of it, but the final volume in Larry Gonick's Cartoon History of the Universe -- The Cartoon History of the Modern World Vol. 2 --  is coming out in a few weeks. It's the cap stone on a really wonderful series that underscores how well comics can educate as well as entertain readers. In this swell YouTube promotional video, Gonick talks about his work and process.

Found via Forbidden Planet.

Go look: 'Stitches' promotional videos

I had the distinct pleasure this past weekend of finally getting around to reading David Small's chilling memoir Stitches and It's definitely deserving a lot, if not all, of the praise that it's been getting. To help promote the book, publisher WW Norton has created six Vimeo videos excerpting the book, all narrated by Small. The first one's below; the other five can be found here.

Momma had her little cough (from David Small's Stitches) from Stitches: A Memoir... on Vimeo.

GL and Deadpool discuss Ryan Reynolds

The gentleman responsible for the Marvel vs. DC videos is back once again. This time Green Lantern and Deadpool fight it out (or should that be sing it out) to see whom Ryan Reynolds should portray first. Leave it to Rorschach to ruin it for everyone. (Found via Topless Robot)

You either die a hero or live to breakdance

Here's a fun time-waster -- an interactive YouTube game where a click of the mouse lets you decide who busts the better move: The Joker or Batman? (via Topless Robot)

Tony Millionaire is God

Well, I don't know what he's really like, but in this YouTube video at least, the Maakies cartoonist plays a rather annoyed, and somewhat oddly garbed, deity, frustrated at trying to make a lesser being quaff a bottle of booze. Thank goodness for George Washington. (via Flog)

Take a tour of the Schulz Library

Shelf porn-hound that I am, I can't stop looking at this tour of the Center for Cartoon Studies' library. Dig those Punch volumes! (via Spurgeon)