Kids Read Comics 2015: Kids Comics Revolution Live! Podcast

It takes writers, cartoonists, colorists, and letterers to make a comic, but it takes an editor to pull all of these pieces together. Dave Roman and Jerzy Drozd discuss with Chris Duffy (editor of Spongebob Comics, Nursery Rhyme Comics, Fairy Tale Comics, and more) how an editor works with talent from all over the world to get the comics to the presses!

Kids Read Comics 2015: McDuffie Award Presentation

The first annual Dwayne McDuffie Award for Kids’ Comics was announced at the 2015 Kids Read Comics Celebration. Named for the highly respected comic book and animation writer and co-founder of Milestone Media who passed away in 2011, the award honors Dwayne McDuffie’s values and his legacy as a champion for meaningful, top-quality, and broadly inclusive comics for young people.

Kids Read Comics 2015: The Secret History of Comics Readers

In November 1953, Ople Noble sent a letter to forensic psychiatrist Fredric Wertham. Noble, who was secretary of her eighth grade class in Bisbee, Arizona, and her classmates had read and discussed Wertham’s article in Ladies’ Home Journal, “What Parents Don’t Know about Comic Books.” She wrote to share her and her classmates’ insights on juvenile delinquency and comics with the psychiatrist, as they disagreed with many of his conclusions. Encouraged by Wertham’s reply, which was accompanied by a box of chocolates from Macy’s Department Store, Noble wrote at least two more letters to Wertham, one of which outlined the results of a class discussion on the comic character Green Arrow.

In this talk, Professor Carol Tilley shares more about Ople, as well as young fanzine creators, letter writers, amateur cartoonists, and more, who read, wrote, and played with comics during the mid-20th century. Don’t miss these secret and seldom-told stories of some of the kids who helped make comics the most important print media of the 20th century and remind us why comics matter.

Nerd Nite #23 – Knowing is Half the Battle: What 80s Cartoons REALLY Teach Us

80s cartoons were nothing more than half-hour toy commercials with a sprinkle of moralistic preaching to sweeten the pill for parents, right? Cartoonist Jerzy Drozd explores 5 writing tips one can glean from a closer examination of the cartoons of our youth. Jerzy was one of the speaker's at the March, 2015 Nerd Nite

About Jerzy Drozd:
Jerzy Drozd is one of the artists of The Warren Commission Report. He leads cartooning workshops for children and teens in libraries and schools; podcasts prolifically about comics and how to make them at ComicsAreGreat.com, KidsComicsRevolution.com, and LeanIntoArt.com. He wrote and drew the graphic novel The Front, has worked on Antarctic Press’s Ninja High School and PPV: Pay- Per-View (which he cocreated with Tom Root, writer of Cartoon Network’s Robot Chicken), and has drawn special projects for Marvel Comics, Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, VIZ Media, and others. He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife and two cats.

Comics Are Great! 109

Photographers got it easy, right? All they have to do to tell their stories is point their magic box at their subject and hit click. Cartoonists, on the other hand, have to create the reality of their work from scratch. Surely photographers have zero insights to offer cartoonists.

Of course we know that’s a bunch of troll talk. So this time I’ll be joined by photographer and designer Peter Baker. Together we’ll talk about how cartoonists might benefit from looking at how photographers tell stories through their medium.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Book Recommendations:

Live streams at Comicsaregreat.tv and on Google+!

This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

Comics Are Great! 108

Annabelle Gurwitch Discusses Her New Book 'I See You Made An Effort: Compliments, Indignities, and Survival Stories from the Edge of 50'

Actress/comedienne/author Annabelle Gurwitch gained a loyal comedic following during her years hosting Dinner & A Movie on TBS. She has been a regular commentator on NPR and contributor to The Nation, More, Glamour, Marie Claire and a number of other national publications. Gurwitch is also the author of You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up which is now a play receiving its third national tour, and which became an acclaimed documentary and Showtime Comedy Special.

Every 7.5 seconds, someone in America turns 50. While some people like to say that “50 is the new 40,” Annabelle Gurwitch believes “50 is still F-ing 50.” In her wickedly funny new collection of essays, I See You Made an Effort, Gurwitch explores the hazards of reaching the half-century mark, aging out of your wardrobe, outsourcing your endocrine system, and falling in lust at the Genius bar. From the woman the Washington Post calls “hilarious,” this new book is the ultimate coming-of-middle-age story.

This event was co-sponsored by the AADL and the Jewish Community Center of Greater Ann Arbor a part of the 2014 Jewish Book Festival.