Subject: Library of Congress exhibit, part 1 From: [R--O--E] at [email.afip.osd.mil] Author: RHODE at AFIP01 Date: 5/8/95 11:57 AM Well, I was almost totally wrong in Friday's post. There is a catalog as Ron pointed out. And I did go to the opening and symposium. (Ron - where you at the symposium too? We've almost got enough DC people to rival the NY crowd) Some notes follow: The show is called Featuring the Funnies. There's some great stuff including original Winsor McCay art. With 120 pieces, I'm not going to list them all. The opening was from 6-8 on Friday, May 5th. The exhibit is in the ground floor of the Madison building and that's where the opening was as well. A deputy librarian made a short speech and was followed by one of the exhibit's sponsors, Ron Patel, President of the Newspaper Features Council, Inc.. Patel pointed out several of the creators who came including Mike Peters (Mother Goose & Grimm), Jeff McNelly (Shoe), Jerry Robinson (Batman), Fred Laswell (Barney Google & Snuffy Smith) and Dale Messik (Brenda Starr). Also in attendence were Ron Goulart (comic book historian and writer), Thomas Inge (comic book historian), Mort Walker (Beetle Bailey & Hi & Lois). Art Wood of the new Washington museum was there and was quite nice about inviting people to see his collection. At some time during the day Dick Locher (Dick Tracy) and Bo Grace (Ernie) were there because their sketches were done on a sketching mural in a corner of the exhibit. Everyone was quite nice and willing to sign autographs. Robinson mentioned that he's writing another history of the comics. Ms. Messik (who looks great for her age - she's in her 90s) pointed out that she's the only one honored on the stamps who's left alive. This year is Brenda Starr's 50th anniversary. Mike Peters is totally wired and rushed over after signing my program to get Messik's autograph. There's a pamphlet that goes with the show that's 8 pages long and then there's a 24 page catalog which sells for $7.95. I'll post on the symposium later today. ==== Symposium on May 6th The session opened with some remarks by Harry Katz, the exhibit curator. He talked about the two collections that form the core of the Library's collection. Ron Patel then made some remarks and introduced Robb Armstrong, creator of Jump Start. Armstrong had driven down from Philadelphia for the talk. He introduced his wife and baby and then explained that Jump Start is in many ways an autobiographical strip. When he had a baby, so did his characters. He said that he had been cartooning since being a child. It was a way for him to fit in and make friends. He'd draw Charlie Brown or Fred Flintstone and have an instant buddy who'd overlook his stutter. His mother encouraged him by taking his drawings to work and hanging them all over the shop. When he was in college his mother died and he started a cynical strip called "Hector" for the Univ. of Syracuse newspaper. It was a hit and helped him meet his wife. The strip got lighter and more autobiographical as it went on. A friend submitted it to a syndicate for him which rejected it while asking for something like it. He came up with Jump Start featuring Joe the cop and Marcy the nurse and their busy lives (although the syndicate picked the name.) He now talks frequently at schools to present a black role model who's not a basketball player, but doesn't consider himself a "black" cartoonist. He hadn't thought of himself in those terms although it does provide a good hook for newspaper publicity. Seemed like a nice guy and was pretty funny. After Patel introduced the famous people in the audience, Mike Peters & Jeff McNelly did an Abbott & Costello routine. They both showed slides or transparencies of their work. Both avoided saying anything very substantial but they were funny. Peters interrupted McNelly when Dale Messik joined the audience to introduce her. Peters also said he had a stutter and was sort of a star's kid (his mother had a variety show in St. Louis) so cartooning was a way to meet people. The editorial panel came last. On it were Jack Loftis, Houston Chronicle; Kim Marcum, Baltimore Sun; Ron Patel, Philadelphia Inquirer; and Phyllis Singer, Newsday. Loftis began by saying comics readers are the newspapers dream readers because they're so loyal. He catagorizes strips types as 1. contemporary strips, 2. classics, 3. family or kid-oriented, 4. continuity - adventures & soaps and 5. boffo (catagory breakers like Calvin and Hobbes apparently.) He feels that newspapers when changing shouldn't cancel a strip with the syndicate; they should drop it for a few days and see who complains. When the Houston Post collapsed, the Chronicle picked up all their strips. Kim Marcum spoke of the "hunch" about when to kill a strip. Hunches can lead to mistakes though - Atlanta ? pulled "Baby Blues" and got 100,000 phone calls. The Sun is having to cut back strips but is factoring in "intensity" factor like "Zippy" or "Love Is" fans. Singer talked about pulling a controversial strip. Doonesbury's Sinatra strips were pulled when Mafia ties were implicated. Trudeau had used a photograph which moved the strip closer to journalism and so it must follow stricter standards. The man in the strip's photo was not charged with murder but conspiracy to murder and was also acquitted so the strip was inaccurate. Also people can view strips differently so BC and Wizard of Id's overt Christian messages on Easter got complaints about bashing religion and others thanking them for promoting religion. Patel pointed out that strips have a 100 year history of being circulation builders. Newspapers have territories they don't want outsiders like USA Today coming in to. After all the strips started in Heart and Pulitzer's paper wars. Q&A session produced some interesting points. A strip may cost a newspaper $45/week so there's an economy of scale compared to producing your own strips. Editors also wouldn't invest enough time. Many decisions are made by the newspaper's editors personal preference although reader reaction is taken into account. Someone questioned Doonesbury and Calvin & Hobbes' size requirements - they were all negative. "We have to bump something for them" Did they all look for replacement strips for Larson's Far Side. Yes, "Close to Home" and "Non Sequiter" were picked by most of the panel. Overall it was a lot of fun and for the unreconstructed among us, both of the sessions were videotaped. Hope this was interesting to you; I enjoyed it. Mike Rhode