highbrow (and "highbrow") types who love comics

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

Umberto Eco - into Corto Maltese, and "Maus" of course.

Salman Rushdie loves Silver Age Justice League.

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Saturday, 14 January 2006 00:14 (twenty years ago)

Joyce, Picasso, Hemingway, Mencken and I think Stein were all Krazy Kat fans.

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Saturday, 14 January 2006 00:15 (twenty years ago)

I hear Delbert Wilkins is quite into Jaka's Story/.

― Chuck_Tatum (Chuck_Tatum), Saturday, 14 January 2006 00:24 (twenty years ago)

Yes to all those Krazy Kat fans, but there was also Kerouac, Cummings, De Kooning, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Woodrow Wilson and Eco again, among others.

Sam Delany has written some excellent essays on comics.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Saturday, 14 January 2006 00:24 (twenty years ago)

Delany's written an autobio GN about rooting a homeless guy, too.

― kit brash (kit brash), Saturday, 14 January 2006 01:13 (twenty years ago)

Are these essays collected anywhere?

― Chris F. (servoret), Saturday, 14 January 2006 02:31 (twenty years ago)

They're in either "Shorter Essays" or "Longer Essays" -- I'm pretty sure it's Shorter, but perhaps I will think to check at some point.

I don't think his GN is terribly easy to find (or perhaps I haven't been looking hard enough) (not that I've been looking so very hard).

― Casuistry (Chris P), Saturday, 14 January 2006 12:56 (twenty years ago)

Eco wrote a fab essay on Peanuts in the first italian collection of schulz's work

― i am not a nugget (stevie), Saturday, 14 January 2006 16:19 (twenty years ago)

eco also wrote a fantastic semiotic analysis of the v. first 'steve canyon' newspaper strip by milton caniff

american lit crit gilbert seldes was another krazy kat fan - i think it was seldes who called comics 'the seventh lively art', or somesuch highminded hogwash, back in the 30s/40s?

i once attended an 'illustrated lecture' by Dick (subculture) Hebdige that included lotsa pages from the watchmen projected on a big screen behind DH

john updike famously aspired to be a cartoonist as a young man, and was a big afficiando of newspaper strips

norman mailer 'blurbed' the sandman, the schmuck

― Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Saturday, 14 January 2006 18:48 (twenty years ago)

Jeet Heer!

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Saturday, 14 January 2006 19:40 (twenty years ago)

Seldes' Seven Lively Arts book was in the '20s, and did indeed include comics as one (with jazz, movies and so on), and pretty much that whole section was about Krazy Kat. And yes, Updike has written about comics.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Saturday, 14 January 2006 21:27 (twenty years ago)

i think of him as dick "yes i'm a dick" hebdige, and that anecdote reminds me why

― mark s (mark s), Sunday, 15 January 2006 00:21 (twenty years ago)

Eco seems to be king here - just read about him incorporating Disney comics into his work as well.

Eco wrote a fab essay on Peanuts in the first italian collection of schulz's work

Surely there must be more high-kulcher Peanuts lovers?

norman mailer 'blurbed' the sandman, the schmuck

This is pretty wtf. I'd thought of him as more of a "Transmetropolitan" kinda guy.

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Sunday, 15 January 2006 01:16 (twenty years ago)

(btw chris, i have TWO copies of mad man, one unread: if you want one, email yr address)

― mark s (mark s), Sunday, 15 January 2006 11:02 (twenty years ago)

highbrow art crit robert hughes has often expressed his admiration for r. crumb.

another big krazy kat fan - philip guston.

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Sunday, 15 January 2006 12:18 (twenty years ago)

http://www.cas.buffalo.edu/classes/eng/willbern/BestSellers/Images/Lichten17.3.jpg

― mark s (mark s), Sunday, 15 January 2006 13:24 (twenty years ago)

If we're talking that kind of love, we should mention Murakami too.

Also, I have read enough old Marvel lettercolumns to have learnt that if Shakespeare and Michaelangelo were alive today, they'd undoubtedly be collaborating on superhero comics.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Sunday, 15 January 2006 14:28 (twenty years ago)

Maddie just ordered a bunch of out-of-print Delany stuff from Alibris, incl. the graphic novel.

― Jordan (Jordan), Sunday, 15 January 2006 15:44 (twenty years ago)

Also, I have read enough old Marvel lettercolumns to have learnt that if Shakespeare and Michaelangelo were alive today, they'd undoubtedly be collaborating on superhero comics.

I'm suprised no comic writer has done a fake superhero comic that Shakespeare/Da Vinci/whoever would have done had he been alive to do it. If you get what I mean.

(Or maybe they have.)

(Whenever someone says something along these lines - If Milton was alive today he'd be writing soap powder commercials etc. - I think "Oh well, no need to read him then, I can just watch some adverts instead. Cool.")

― Raw Patrick (Raw Patrick), Sunday, 15 January 2006 16:34 (twenty years ago)

if einstein wee alive today he'd be helping me sort my taxes!

― mark s (mark s), Sunday, 15 January 2006 16:43 (twenty years ago)

Uh... Lenny Henry?

― chap who would dare to work for the man (chap), Sunday, 15 January 2006 16:55 (twenty years ago)

― Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Sunday, 15 January 2006 18:03 (twenty years ago)

Just kidding.

― chap who would dare to work for the man (chap), Sunday, 15 January 2006 18:25 (twenty years ago)

Thomas Pynchon probably, though i can't think of much actual evidence off the top of my head - though there is the bit in Gravitys Rainbow where Slothrop runs around in a superhero costume for a bit

― Mark C (Markco), Sunday, 15 January 2006 18:48 (twenty years ago)

He talks specifically about the old Plastic Man comics in GR.

― c(''c) (Leee), Sunday, 15 January 2006 19:32 (twenty years ago)

oh oh leslie fiedler on superman

― Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Sunday, 15 January 2006 19:33 (twenty years ago)

Me.

― Ray (Ray), Sunday, 15 January 2006 19:53 (twenty years ago)

I'm pretty sure Pynchon also talks about The Fantastic Four in that section of GR.

― The Yellow Kid, Monday, 16 January 2006 08:37 (twenty years ago)

Ray wins.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Monday, 16 January 2006 09:03 (twenty years ago)

I just can't believe no-one else had got there first.

― Ray (Ray), Monday, 16 January 2006 12:03 (twenty years ago)

http://www.jimnolt.com/Graphics/seinfld1.jpg

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 16 January 2006 15:02 (twenty years ago)

I don't know how "highbrow" he's considered (he certainly wouldn't have wanted to be called that) but Mordecai Richler, in one of his columns somewhere, somewhen, defended Superman from some claim of anti-semitism by pointing out not only his origins, and arguing that Superman actually is Jewish, but also that why else pick a ur-WASPy name lik"Clark Kent"?

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 16 January 2006 15:18 (twenty years ago)

Has anyone seen Jerry Seinfeld's Superman childrens book? It's very creepy.

― Chuck_Tatum (Chuck_Tatum), Monday, 16 January 2006 15:24 (twenty years ago)

I saw some Jerry Seinfeld Halloween kids book that looked really creepy.

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 16 January 2006 15:34 (twenty years ago)

I take it back. That is not at all creepy.

http://www.diesel-ebooks.com/mas_assets/full/parent-0316706256.jpg

There's that Ariel Dorfman book on Carl Barks, How to Read Donald Duck: Imperialist Ideology in the Disney Comic, which was pretty de rigeur to be assigned for every university introduction to cultural studies course (and may well still be). Pretty good, iirc.

― Chuck_Tatum (Chuck_Tatum), Monday, 16 January 2006 15:55 (twenty years ago)

my recent sleepiness extended to not realising that the delany GN mentioned above was a comic not a novel -- i have two copies of MAD MAN the novel but none of the GN

― mark s (mark s), Monday, 16 January 2006 16:35 (twenty years ago)

Ray wins.

Ah, but is he highbrow or "highbrow"?

― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Monday, 16 January 2006 17:08 (twenty years ago)

There was a great bit in Goodness Gracious Me where a regular character would claim anything good or successful as Indian. My favourite was Superman. "Bad suit, national health glasses, works two jobs - Indian! And what is the only country in the world where you can run faster than a speeding train? India!"

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Monday, 16 January 2006 18:30 (twenty years ago)

Ha ha, awesome!

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Monday, 16 January 2006 18:33 (twenty years ago)

I love that Goodness Gracious Me sketch, Martin.
Midnight's Children is a superhero novel, complete with evil reverse-self (I can't think of the specific term right now) archvillian. I don't think Rushdie ever hid that fact either.

― jocelyn (Jocelyn), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 01:57 (twenty years ago)

I'm highbrow. But I only love "comics".

― Ray (Ray), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 12:12 (twenty years ago)

Superman Recites Selections from 'The Bell Jar' and Other Works by Sylvia Plath

I saw this a while back-- completely hilarious.

― Chris F. (servoret), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 13:37 (twenty years ago)

Rick Moody, Jonathan Letham - although how hibrow the latter is in doubt now that he's ACTUALLY WRITING FOR MARVEL COMICS.

― Litwack, Tuesday, 17 January 2006 19:43 (twenty years ago)

MF Doom

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:02 (twenty years ago)

bonus question: Is MF Doom and Rick Moody the same guy?

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:02 (twenty years ago)

doctor doom and rick moody might be the same person

― j blount (papa la bas), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:03 (twenty years ago)

y doom/moody

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:11 (twenty years ago)

http://www.mobileunderground.com/images/specialherbs3_200.jpg vs (my god! where are all the scans of the early 90s R. Moody comicstrip from Details mag illo'ed by Steve Dillon?)

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:13 (twenty years ago)

(p.s. I'm totally guessing as to Steve Dillon, I just have a memory of the strip and the style in my memory is Steve Dillon)

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:16 (twenty years ago)

doctor doom owns a country, presumably rich ancestry, fantastic four obsession vs rick moody owns an island, presumably rich ancestry, fantastic four obsession. o and nip/tuck dude played doom in the movie vs rick moody could use some plastic surgery.

― j blount (papa la bas), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:23 (twenty years ago)

jocelyn -- nemesis?

― c(''c) (Leee), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:27 (twenty years ago)

huk are you talking about wild palms? that wasn't rick moody (bruce wagner i think). i really liked that strip and esp the tv mini that came out of it, it was one of those pop cult phenomena that wasn't really a hit or even a culthit really (i remember the tv thing seemed very clearly to be whatever network's attempt to replicate some twin peaks hysteria)(alot of nets were doing that at the time - x-files was a twin peaks reaction) but it really really colors my memories of the time.

― j blount (papa la bas), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:28 (twenty years ago)

No no, circa Wild Palms, I remember the WP strip (especially since I just watched the Jiminy Glick movie last night which features a boffo David Lynch running gag thing, terrible, terrible movie, with lots of wickedly funny moments). The Rick Moody strip came after it, I think.

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:42 (twenty years ago)

In the strip Moody hired some doppelganger to do a book tour for him and the doppleganger caused much havoc.

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:45 (twenty years ago)

Of all places, this has the most online info about: http://www.med-articles.com/med/marticles/zoloft/zoloft-article-5149-8.html

The persistence of a market for literary fiction exerts a useful discipline on writers, reminding us of our duty to entertain. But if the academy is a rock to ambitious novelists, then the nature of the modern American market--its triage of artists into Superstars, Stars, and Nobodies; its clear-eyed recognition that nothing moves a product like a personality--is a hard place indeed. Amy Tan, the young novelist, sings backup in the Rock Bottom Remainders, the pro-literacy rock-and-roll group. Michael Chabon, an even younger novelist, gives readers his e-mail address on the dust jacket of Wonder Boys, his novel of a novelist in the academy. Donna Tartt (whose first book was likewise set in the academy) dons a suit of armor and poses as Joan of Arc in the New York Times for Halloween. The subject of Mark Leyner's fiction is the self-promotion of Mark Leyner, the young writer; he's been on Letterman twice. Rick Moody, the young author of The Ice Storm, has written a comic strip for Details magazine in which a young author named Rick Moody hires a body double to do his bookstore readings for him. In the strip, Moody is making art of the torment that many young novelists feel at the pressure to market the innately private experience of reading by means of a public persona--on book tours, on radio talk shows, on Barnes & Noble shopping bags and coffee mugs. The writer for whom nothing matters but the printed word is, ipso facto, an untelevisable personality, and it's instructive to recall how many of our critically esteemed older novelists have Chosen, in a country where publicity is otherwise sought like the Grail, to guard their privacy. Roth, McCarthy, Don DeLillo, William Gaddis, Anne Tyler, J. D. Salinger, Thomas Pynchon, Cynthia Ozick, and Denis Johnson all give few or no interviews, do little if any teaching or touring, and in some cases decline even to be photographed. Various Heathian dramas of social isolation are no doubt being played out here. But for some of these writers, reticence is integral to their artistic creed.

― Huk-L (Huk-L), Tuesday, 17 January 2006 20:46 (twenty years ago)

There have been plenty of Krazy Kat related litr'y books, including "Krazy Kat and other short stories" by Fielding Dawson and "Krazy Kat" by Jay Cantor (although I don't know how litr'y that one is supposed to be).

― Casuistry (Chris P), Wednesday, 18 January 2006 01:50 (twenty years ago)

the cantor novel is super-literary, full of lots of self-conscious pomo stuff and sub-roth sexual hi-jinks. it's a reasonably entertaining read but not very herriman-like at all.

― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Wednesday, 18 January 2006 08:47 (twenty years ago)

Wow, and I thought David Lee Roth's sexual hijinks were about as low as you could go.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Saturday, 21 January 2006 05:00 (twenty years ago)

I've been reading Richard Ellman's bio on Joyce, and he sez that Joyce liked "Gasoline Alley" as well.

― c(''c) (Leee), Tuesday, 31 January 2006 20:00 (twenty years ago)

Oh yeah. I think it gets referenced, along with everything else in the universe, at some point in Finnegans Wake.

― Casuistry (Chris P), Wednesday, 1 February 2006 06:09 (twenty years ago)

alain resnais
chris marker

― The Man Without Shadow (Enrique), Wednesday, 1 February 2006 12:44 (twenty years ago)

two months pass...

Ph!1 E1vurum of M!cr0ph0nes/Mt. Eer!e fame likes indie comics!

― c(''c) (Leee), Thursday, 27 April 2006 18:25 (nineteen years ago)

Action Camus!!?

― Jay Vee's Return (Manon_69), Thursday, 27 April 2006 19:41 (nineteen years ago)

So THAT'S the guy who did the Peanuts/Metamorphosis mashup I remember so fondly and vaguely from an old issue of RAW!

― Austin Still (Austin, Still), Thursday, 27 April 2006 19:55 (nineteen years ago)

Yeah, that's him! I'd like to read that Dostoyevsky/Detective Comics one he did for Drawn & Quarterly.

Here are larger versions of two of the Action Camus covers:

Mother

Guillotine

― Jay Vee's Return (Manon_69), Thursday, 27 April 2006 20:19 (nineteen years ago)

"Good Ol' Gregor Brown"

― kit brash (kit brash), Friday, 28 April 2006 05:20 (nineteen years ago)

I should have looked at the link before being helpful

― kit brash (kit brash), Friday, 28 April 2006 05:22 (nineteen years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.