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Underground/Newave Comix: Post Your Obscure, Undocumented or Rarely Discussed
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534 posts in this topic

Real Assassin Thrills (double signature)

Published by: self published; Contributors: Jim Valentino; Rick Geary; Date: 1979; Price: no cover price; Page Count: 12 pages; unbound;

Size: small comic (5.5 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 1661; Print information: one printing; 100 signed (and numbered copies ?);

Similar to Joint Effort (see page 8 of this thread), Jim Valentino teams up with another artist (Rick Geary) to produce a jam comic. Kennedy reports that 100 signed and numbered copies were produced,where only Valentino signed some copies on the left-side of the back cover and with another variant having only Geary signing the left-side of the back cover. The copy posted here is unnumbered and signed by both artists on the back cover using what appears to be the same ink/pen.

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The New Gravity #1

Published by: San Francisco Comic Book Company; Apex Novelties;  Contributor: Kent Robertson; Date: 1969; Price: one dollar; Page Count: 76 pages;

Size: comic (6.5 x 9.5); Kennedy #: 1361; Print information: one printing; number of copies unknown;

I would have thought that Mirrors of Time (see page 17 of this thread) would be the only quasi-science, underground-related title. No, there are more of strangest-of-the-strange titles to be had. The New Gravity #1 attempts to explain the 4th dimension and it's relation to Einstein's Theory of Relatively. Correction: I am not too sure what this publication is actually attempting to explain. It's a pile of nonsense to me. However, I am interested in learning more about: why Gary Arlington and Don Donahue decided to published it; and more about Kent Robertson.

I did not list the underground artists who contributed ads with artwork for publication in the New Gravity #1. I really feel that listing these artists would be false advertising to potential collectors. 

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The New Gravity #2

Published by: San Francisco Comic Book Company;  Contributor: Kent Robertson; Kalman Ben Abraham; Date: 1970; Price: one dollar; Page Count: 108 pages;

Size: magazine (7.75 x 10.5); Kennedy #: 1362; Print information: one printing; number of copies unknown;

I guess that New Gravity #1 was successful enough to merit another issue and further exploration into the connection between gravity and space time field. This book hardly comes up for sale but the few issues that I have personally seen always have weird condition issues - ink streaks, brown cover stains.

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New Gravity (mini)

Published by: self-published; Contributors: Kalman Ben Abraham; Kent Robertson; Date: 1971; Price: one dollar; Page count: 16 pages;

Size: mini; (4.5 x 5.5); Kennedy #: not cited; Print information: unknown;

The New Gravity mini was submitted to the Gravity Research Foundation as an entry for its 1971 Awards for Essays on Gravity.

 I not sure if Kennedy was unaware of the third installment of New Gravity prior to the 1982 publication of his guide, but if it was known he made the decision to not reference it. Perhaps this is because any references to the San Francisco Comic Book Company, Apex Novelties, Don Donahue, Gary Arlington and the one-page ads by underground artists are not present unlike the first two issues of the series.

 An important note is that the New Gravity (mini) pre-dates Justin Green’s Spare Comics by about a year. Green is credited with producing the first “7 cent mini” underground title in 1972. Was Green aware of the New Gravity and its new format/production direction prior to publishing Spare Comics? Maybe the New Gravity could be credited with contributing to an important development within the underground movement instead of its intended premise to change our understanding of gravitational physics and extra-dimensional space.

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Manfurd P. The Wurm in "Deuteronomy"

Published by: self published; Contributors: John Valandingham; Date: 1978; Price: no cover price; Page Count: 10 pages;

Size: landscape mini (3.25 x 6.5); Kennedy #: 1220; Print information: one printing; 500 copies; several cover colour variants;

This is one of the few comix titles that John Valandingham contributed to and his only solo effort (that I know of).  The artwork is great and I wish Valandingham had produced more titles. If you have wondered what a worm would look like when doing a Macintosh apple then this is for you. It's rumoured that another another variant exists. One with a front cover that has different title captions. Keep your eyes open or post it if you should be so lucky.

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A Fun Day at Pick-n-Pay

Published by: unknown; Contributors: Bob Vojtko; Date: 1976; Price: store giveaway; Page Count: 16 pages;

Size: magazine (8.25 x 10.5); Kennedy #: not cited; Print information: one printing; number of copiesunknown;

A peripheral item documenting a busy period in the life of newaver Bob Vojtko. Any one who has read Bob Vojko's minis are probably also aware that he was employed by the Pick-n-Pay grocery store. I contacted Bob Vojtko and this is what he has to say:

"I was working at the Pick-N-Pay grocery store at around 1975 when I started there. PNP at the time had around 60 stores in Northern Ohio area. I was working at the store in Lorain, Ohio as a stock clerk. PNP knew that I drew cartoons and they published a few in their in-house newsletters. Their advertising department contacted me about doing a coloring book about PNP for all their stores that each store would have a Santa Claus and pass out a coloring book to kids at Christmas in 1976. As far as numbers go, I never knew. I drew the book up and gave it to the main office and they took it from there. I did get paid for doing it, but I can't remember how much I paid. I was hoping it would lead to other things. But I only had the 15 minutes of fame. I ended up working full time in the grocery business for 42 years until I retired in 2017."

I was lucky to have purchased a copy that had a letter (March 1979) that was composed by "Ms. Vojtko" to someone named "Jim" inserted in to it. The letter explains how busy Vojtko was during this period - working full at the supermarket until the evening and then working on his "gag cartooning" for some upcoming publications.

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17 hours ago, comixbible said:

Stop! Comix #1
Publisher: Stop Comix Press, Date of Publication: May 1979, Place of Publication: Sherwood, Oregon, Cover Price: $0.40, Size: 4-1/4" x 5-1/2", Page Count: 8, Contributor(s): Jim Harris
 

 

Thanks V. I have never seen or heard of this comix. It's new to me.

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Weirdo #1-3

Published by: self-published; Contributors: Rodney Schroeter; Date: 1977; 1979; 1980; Price: no cover price; Page Count: unfolded single sheet; 84 pages; 44 pages;

Size: magazine (7.0 x 11.0); Kennedy #: 2179, 2180, 2181Print information: #1 (one printing; number unknown); #2 (one printing; 1,000 signed and numbered copies); #3 (one printing; 1,500 signed and numbered copies);

Prior to the Weirdo series, Rodney Schroeter also published Bat Comix #1 and Pick Pocket. Its in Bat Comix #1 (1974) that the Weirdo character was first introduced. I recently responded to the "Which Comic Started the Bronze Age?". My answer (of course) was Zap Comix #1. A harder question to answer would be "Which Comic Started the Alternative Comic Movement?". Whatever your answer, it should certainly include something with an alternative weirdness that is at least as strong as Weirdo.

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The Mad Cartoonist Guild #1

Publisher: unknown, Date of Publication: 1981, Place of Publication: Amherst, New York, Cover Price: Free, Size: 5-1/2" x 8-1/2", Page Count: 20, Contributor(s): Barry Fitzgerald, Joseph R. Thiel, Dan Weig, Freddy Whitehead

Note(s): There's mention of the WNY education system, which I assume to be what is now WNY College Connection, being that this was published in Amherst, New York. If that's true, this is likely the work of college students. In addition to the strips, there are some illustrated ads for local businesses, including a radio station. I doubt many copies were printed. I also doubt many copies traveled too far from the place of publication if they were distributed to students on campus (i.e., not typically collectors), making this a somewhat ephemeral item, as many of the student comics are.

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Collected Iggy and Snurt #1

Published by: BOA Producrtions; Contributors: Dan Taylor; Date: 1980; Price: 50 cents; Page Count: 8 pages;

Size: landscape mini (2.75 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 476Print information: one printing of 100 signed and numbered copies;

Sometimes the odd forum member asks the underground "experts" if they can assist with the identification of an artist on an unsigned piece of underground original art. I rarely ever have an idea. The best I can do is "that work looks familiar but the actual artist escapes me". Dan Taylor is one of few artists that I should be able to identify from across the room. Like his work or not, it's certainly distinctive.

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M.L.F. (Mouse Liberation Front) Communique #2 (first, second and third printings)

Published by: Roger May; Contributors: 1: Victor Moscoso; 2: Larry Rippee; 3: Denis Kitchen; 4: Larry Todd; 5: ?; 6: Scott Shaw; 7: Roger May; 8 and 9: (Jerry Weist, Clay Wilson, Melinda Gebbie, Clay Geerdes, Alex Toth, Frank Brunner, Steve Leialoha); 10: Al Gordon; 11: Artie Romero; 12: George DiCaprio; 13: Spain; 14: John Pound; 15: Greg Irons; 16: Bill Stout; Date: 1979; Price: first and second printings (no cover price) third printing (one dollar); Page Count: 16 pages;

Size: mini (4.25 x 5.5); Kennedy #: 1276Print information: first printing (150 copies); second and third printings (number of copies unknown);

To me, M.L.F. Communique #2 is one of the most important and interesting mini comix ever published. Communique #1 was published by Dan O'Neill in CoEvolution magazine in response to Disney's Air Pirates lawsuit. I have seen Communique #1 listed in some archived underground collections as a standalone and found one blurry on-line image of an example that sold over 10 years ago. It's possible that O"Neill also published it outside the magazine edition.

The second Communique was produced and published by Roger May at the 1979 San Diego Comic Con. It's the first installment of the series that Roger May would produce on an annually basis while at the convention (refer to page #1 of this thread to view the second issue of the series Horrible Misunderstandings #1). Various artists/comic notables were enlisted, given secret agent numbers to protect their identifies from reprisal by Disney and asked to produce a Mickey related drawing for the mini. As mentioned in my previous posting, I am not great at identifying artists from their work, but fortunately Jay Kennedy was able to learn the identify of each (except for page #5) which he then published in his guide. Its possible that the artist behind page 5 is actually Dan O'Neill and that Kennedy withheld his name to avoid more legal consequences - see agent 00571's work below. It's a practice tool for learning how to distinguish the some of the greats in the underground/newave just by their work. 

The second printing was produced in the same year by Artie Romero (Everyman Studios). It can be distinguished from the first printing by its superior print quality: all the blacks appear solid opposed to some the artwork in the first printing appears splotchy (regular office Xerox). I have inadvertently purchased the wrong printing over the years, so I have provided a side-by-side comparison (first printing top, second printing on the bottom).

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I can only add thing beyond Kennedy's citation. The third printing has cover art that is noticeably different than the first two printings. This is because Moscoso had sold the original artwork to a collector when Roger may had requested it for the third printing. The artwork was redone and a $1 price added by May.

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Great thread; I don't know how I missed it before. My middle school & high school comic book buddy was really into undergrounds at the time, so I remember him having some of these books you posted  One I haven't seen in this thread, but do remember fondly, is the self-published mini-books of Matt Feazell such as Anti-social man, Ant-boy and Cynical Man. Cynical Man was ultimately collected as an Eclipse publication, IIRC.  

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On 10/9/2019 at 8:25 AM, CDNComix said:

Pontiac Tempura

Published by: self published; Contributors: Carol Lay; Byron Werner; Joel Milke; Date: 1980; Price: one dollar; Page Count: 12 pages;

Size: magazine (8.25 x 10.75); Kennedy #: 1559; Print information: one printing; 450 signed copies;

Carol Lay (Japanese Monster) and Byron Werner (Famous Potatoes, see page 3 of this thread) team-up to produce this delightfully strange "comic". Their mutual friend, Joel Milke (Heebie Jeebie Funnies and Hollywood Fats) was enlisted to handle production and printing.

It's pretty rare (for whatever reason) for a 500 copies book and has a surprising on-line sales interval of about only once every five years. Kennedy had cited in his guide that copies were signed. My copy is not and the other two examples from on-line sales also aren't. I emailed Carol Lay about this and received the following non-committal "I don’t remember if we signed and numbered any of them — it sounds like something we might have done". 

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My copy is not signed, and I don't recall any organized signing. I printed it on an AB 360, which is amazing, considering the heavy ink coverage on Carol's cover. It's a beautiful work though.

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On 11/22/2019 at 2:00 PM, Hekla said:

Great thread; I don't know how I missed it before. My middle school & high school comic book buddy was really into undergrounds at the time, so I remember him having some of these books you posted  One I haven't seen in this thread, but do remember fondly, is the self-published mini-books of Matt Feazell such as Anti-social man, Ant-boy and Cynical Man. Cynical Man was ultimately collected as an Eclipse publication, IIRC.  

I am glad that you enjoy it. Thank you. I really try to stop collecting before and past certain dates or my never-ending hobby will be really be never-ending. I do some some of Feazell's stuff but I really try to focus on his "early" stuff from the very late 70s and very early 80s. Basically the stuff that was listed in the Kennedy Guide. Pretty rare and hard to come by. Welcome aboard and keep an eye open.

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On 11/23/2019 at 2:02 PM, Textwrapper said:

My copy is not signed, and I don't recall any organized signing. I printed it on an AB 360, which is amazing, considering the heavy ink coverage on Carol's cover. It's a beautiful work though.

I take it that this comment is from Joel Milke? Nice job its a beautiful effort and a stand-out. Thank you for adding weight to the copies-were-not-signed-and-numbered part of its history.

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Amazon Tales

Published by: Third Coast Printing and Art Press; Contributor: Scarlett Moon; Date: 1978; Price: 45 cents; Page Count: 8 pages;

Size: digest (4.5 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 56Print information: one printing of 250 copies;

On page 4 of this thread, I had posted another similar work by Scarlett Moon - Hash Slinger. It only had a single printing of 100 copies, but I have seen more copies of it for sale than Amazon Tales which according to Kennedy had a run that was 2.5 times larger.

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Worm Magazine #1-1/2

Published by: Clandestine Comic Company; Contributors: Tom Hosier; Ed Henderson; Hulk; Dave Micloskey; Brian Kamens; Date: 1973; Price: 15 cents; Page Count: 12 pages;

Size: mini (4.25 x 5.5); Kennedy #: 2244Print information: one printing; number of copies is unknown;

Worm Magazine 1-1/2 is the second edition of a Xeroxed, magazine sized student-zine that Hosier and some friends created in high school. I would love to get my fat greedy hands on a copy of the first edition. The same gang went on to create or contribute to other series including Purple Warp and Modern Correspondence.

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Worm Magazine #2

Published by: Clandestine Comic Company; Contributors: Tom Hosier; Ed Henderson; Justin Green; Dave Micloskey; Danny Martin; Laurie Divine; Al Greenier; Bill Griffith; Rick Schwab; David Zack; Paul Gervais; Date: 1973; Price: 50 cents; Page Count: 40 pages;

Size: comic (7.0 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 2245Print information: one printing; number of copies is unknown;

More friends, more pages and more colour.

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Bird Brains #1-3

Published by: Old Hat Productions; Contributor: Raymond H. AllardDate: 1976; 1978; 1979; Price: one dollar; Page Count: 36 pages (#1); 32 pages (#2 and #3);

Size: magazine (8.5 x 11.0); Kennedy #: 276-278Print information: one printing; 200 copies (#1); 100 copies (#2 and #3);

A DIY anthropomorphic that Kennedy described as being "fanzine-ish". I am never sure if the term within the guide is meant to be apologetic, dismissive or code for "not a true underground".

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