Past Events  


(c) Thomas Baehr


(c) Tony Murphy


(c) Rina Piccolo

 


(c) Bill Roundy


(c) Kevin Kobasic

(c) Ruben Bolling

Thursday August 12, 7 PM
The Future of the Traditional Comic Strip in the Era of Dying Newspapers 
Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

 A panel discussion with Rina Piccolo, Tony Murphy, Leroy Brown, Kevin Kobasic and Bill Roundy. Moderated by Thomas Baehr.

  More and more newspapers are in financial trouble. Some have been forced to shut down completely, while others have gone digital. What does this mean for the beloved comic strip format? Are there any possibilities for the (daily) strip to exist outside printed syndication? How would such an option work?

About the Panelists
Rina Piccolo
Tina’s Groove http://www.rinapiccolo.com/
Rina Piccolo’s cartoons have appeared in numerous magazines including The New Yorker, Glamour, The Reader’s Digest, Parade Magazine, and more. Her daily comic strip Tina’s Groove, is syndicated in newspapers and websites worldwide. She also draws the Wednesday cartoon for the newspaper panel Six Chix. Rina’s web-comic Velia, Dear runs every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at veliadear.com. Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, she now lives in New York with her husband and a canary named Olive.
 
Tony Murphy
It’s All About You  http://itsallaboutyouweb.com
Tony Murphy’s It’s All About You started life in New York’s commuter newspaper Metro before being pcked up by the Boston Edition and then The Washington Post Writers Group. Murphy, who has experience with caffeine addiction – having quit many times – is a proofreader for DC Comics in New York. He grew up in San Francisco and now lives with his wife Sina in Brooklyn.

Kevin Kobasic 
Beanbots http://www.act-i-vate.com/creators?id=46
Kevin Kobasic started life as a Marvel hack in the early 90's, and managed to singlehandedly bury Deathlok, Rai, and Magnus Robot Fighter all in the space of a few years. Since then he's done animation design for Cartoon Network and a ton of storyboards for Madison Avenue. With Beanbots he hopes to prove conclusively that kids really do say the darndest things. He lives in New York with his wife and two daughters, who really need to stop feeding him so much material so he can get back to his paying work. Kevin is a member of the web-comic collective Act-I-vate.
 
Bill Roundy 
The Amazing Adventures of Bill www.billroundy.com/comics.html
Bill Roundy is a Brooklyn editor and cartoonist. His journal comic The Amazing Adventures of Bill has been online since 2003, and in Coffee Talk since July. His bar-review strip Bar Scrawl will soon be appearing in the Brooklyn Paper, and the gay romance/fantasy strip Little Emo in Slumberland will be published in Pink Mince Magazine this fall.

Ruben Bolling is the author of the weekly comic strip, "Tom the Dancing Bug," distributed by Universal/Uclick Syndicate to many newspapers, and appearing on Boing Boing. The comic strip is a five-time winner of the AAN Best Comic Strip Award (including 2009), and it has been compiled in three books, most recently Thrilling Tom the Dancing Bug Stories. His website is www.tomthedancingbug.com.

Thomas Baehr
Pole – The Comic Strip with Penguins http://penguinsforfree.com
Born and raised in Germany, Thomas Baehr currently lives in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and a pet rabbit. He is a published comic artist, illustrator and cartoonist whose work has appeared in Europe and the US. Thomas created Pole – The Comic Strip with Penguins in 2005, which is
published regularly in various magazines and newspapers. Thomas’ first graphic novel, The End is Here is based on his comic strip Pole. He is also the creator of the comic strip Dangling Diaries and a member of the web-comic collective Act-I-vate.

MoCCA Thursdays are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.
Earthsea MoCCA Members Ony Special Event!
TALES FROM EARTHSEA

Monday, August 9th at 7PM
Angelika Film Center, 18 West Houston St., New York, NY

MoCCA has 50 pairs of tickets to give away for this special screening, courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures.

To claim your complimentary tickets, come to MoCCA Tuesday through Sunday, 12-5 PM.
Passes can not be held, and will be given out whike supplies last on a first come, first served basis. Membership must be current to particpate.

About TALES FROM EARTHSEA

From famed Japanese animators Studio Ghibli comes “Tales from Earthsea,” a sweeping adventure set in a mythical world filled with magic and bewitchment. An epic tale of redemption and self-discovery, the story follows the journey of Lord Archmage Sparrowhawk (voice of Timothy Dalton), the master wizard, as he searches for the force behind a mysterious disturbance that has caused an imbalance in the land of Earthsea—suddenly crops and livestock are dwindling, dragons have reappeared and humanity is giving way to chaos. Along the way he rescues Arren (voice of Matt Levin), a troubled young prince who has fled his home and is being pursued by an enigmatic shadow. Arren joins Sparrowhawk on the quest and, moving closer to their intertwined destinies, they cross paths with Tenar (voice of Mariska Hargitay), a former priestess, and her disfigured adopted daughter, Therru. With Sparrowhawk’s magical powers dissipating, all of them must band together to defeat the evil Cob (voice of Willem Dafoe) and his henchman Hare (voice of Cheech Marin) before Cob’s mania to find immortality destroys Earthsea.
 

(c) NBCUni/SNL

Thursday July 29, 7 PM
Interview with an Animator: J.J. Sedelmaier
hosted by Joe Strike

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

 You may not be familiar with the name, but if you’ve seen MTV’s Beavis and Butthead, Saturday Night Live’s “Saturday TV Funhouse,” [adult swim’s] Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law or Stephen Colbert’s Tek Jansen/Alpha Squad Seven, you’ve seen the work of J.J. Sedelmaier.

Since opening up his White Plains animation studio in 1990, J.J. and his studio have created hundreds of TV productions in an amazing variety of animation styles, from retro-1950’s TV commercials to transforming Garry Trudeau, Don Martin or Al Hirschfeld’s art into animated film form.

After screening samples of his studio’s work, J.J. and animation journalist and author Joe Strike will discuss his influences, career anecdotes and some of his best known and high-profile cartoons. In addition, J.J. talks about the forgotten history of the animation industry’s early 20th century New York origins.
 
For more about J.J. Sedelmaier. please visit www.jjsedelmaier.com/

For moreabout Joe Strike please visit www.joestrike.com and www.animatorinterviews.com


(c) Spartina Productions

Typographic Comics!

Thursday July 22, 7 PM
Typographic Comics
with James Pannafino

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA and James Pannafino for a presentation about Typographic Comics!

Type (or typographic) Comics are comic books that use typography in place of imagery as the primary method of storytelling. Most traditional comics are sequential art based with letters and sound effects as supporting devices. Type Comics use design principles, typographic layout, and careful page composition to create a unique narrative experience. www.typecomics.com

About James Pannafino
James Pannafino is a faculty member at Millersville University, Pennsylvania in the Art and Design Department where he teaches graphic and interactive design courses. His research interests include information design, visualization, sequential art, digital narrative forms, and visual storytelling. His first book "Common College Sense" uses visual diagrams in a sequential order to communicate common-sense tasks. www.commoncollegesense.com

 
Sikoryak  Talk

Thursday July 15, 7 PM
R. Sikoryak and Bill Kartalopoulos in Conversation

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA for a special conversation between Masterpiece Comics author R. Sikoryak, and Bill Kartalopoulos, curator of the current exhibit R. Sikoryak: How Classics and Cartoons Collide. Sikoryak will reveal his intensive working process and will discuss the history of parody and adaptation in comics.

This live conversation, illustrated with slides, will be followed by a reception to celebrate the exhibit. R. Sikoryak: How Classics and Cartoons Collide runs through August 29, 2010.

About R. Sikoryak
R. Sikoryak is the author of Masterpiece Comics (Drawn & Quarterly). His cartoons and illustrations have appeared in The Onion, The New Yorker, Nickelodeon Magazine, Mad, Fortune, and many other publications; he's drawn for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and Ugly Americans. Sikoryak teaches in the illustration department at Parsons The New School for Design. Since 1997, he has presented his cartoon slide show series, Carousel, around the United States and Canada.

About Bill KartalopoulosBill Kartalopoulos teaches classes about comics and illustration at Parsons The New School for Design. He is a frequent public speaker and is the programming coordinator for SPX: The Small Press Expo and the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival. He writes about comics for Print Magazine, where he is a contributing editor, and reviews comics for Publishers Weekly. He is a member of the Executive Committee for the International Comic Arts Forum (ICAF), an annual academic conference devoted to comics. In 2008 he curated Kim Deitch: A Retrospective at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York, NY. He lives in Brooklyn.

 

Thursday, June 17, 7 PM
To Teach: The Journey, in Comics
William Ayers and Ryan Alexander-Tanner in conversation with Calvin Reid

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA for a conversation with William Ayers and Ryan Alexander-Tanner moderated by Calvin Reid of Publisher's Weekly.

To Teach: The Journey in Comics brings to life William Ayers’s bestselling memoir To Teach: The Journey of a Teacher, Third Edition. From Ayers’s early days teaching kindergarten, readers follow this renowned educational theorist on his “voyage of discovery and surprise.” We meet fellow travelers from schools across the country and watch students grow across a year and a lifetime. To Teach is a vivid, honest portrayal of the everyday magic of teaching, and what it means to be a “good” teacher—debunking myths perpetuated on film and other starry-eyed hero/teacher fictions. Illuminated by the evocative and wry drawings of Ryan Alexander-Tanner, this graphic version of To Teach will engage while it instructs. It is a much-needed reminder of how curiosity, a sense of adventure, and a healthy dose of reflection can guide us all to learn the most from this world as we educate the next generation. Teacher educators and professional developers will want to use this dynamic graphic novel alongside the traditional text for a unique teaching and learning experience.

More about To Teach:
To Teach video trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2Uwcw2DzaY

More info / purchase: http://bit.ly/ToTeachComic
Join To Teach fanpage -- http://facebook.com/ToTeach

William Ayers is Distinguished Professor of Education and Senior University Scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), and founder of both the Small Schools Workshop and the Center for Youth and Society. A graduate of the University of Michigan, the Bank Street College of Education, Bennington College, and Teachers College, Columbia University, Ayers has written extensively about social justice, democracy and education, the cultural contexts of schooling, and teaching as an essentially intellectual, ethical, and political enterprise. He is currently the vice-president of the curriculum division of the American Educational Research Association, and a member of the executive committee of the UIC Faculty Senate.

Ayers’ articles have appeared in many journals including the Harvard Educational Review, the Journal of Teacher Education, Teachers College Record, Rethinking Schools, The Nation, Educational Leadership, the New York Times and the Cambridge Journal of Education.  His latest book To Teach: The Journey, In Comics (May 2010, Teachers College Press) is co-authored with the artist Ryan Alexander-Tanner; this full-length graphic novel is an adaptation of Ayers’ bestselling textbook To Teach: The Journey of a Teacher.

Ryan Alexander-Tanner is a Brooklyn-based artist and educator. He specializes in writing and drawing comics, teaching kids how to make them, and teaching grown-ups how to teach them. He received a Xeric grant in 2007 to publish his independent comic book, Television.  He is online at ohyesverynice.com.

Calvin Reid is senior news editor at Publishers Weekly and coeditor of PW Comics Week.

 
Sons of Liberty

Thursday June 10, 7 PM
Sons of Liberty
presentation and signing with the creators:
Alexander Lagos, Joseph Lagos, Steve Walker and Oren Kramek.

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA for a presentation about the new graphic novel from Random House Sons of Liberty followed by a signing with the creators Alexander Lagos, Joseph Lagos, Steve Walker and Oren Kramek.

About the book
In Colonial America, Graham and Brody are slaves on the run-but then the two young runaways gain extraordinary powers. As they test the limits of their new abilities, they come under the care and protection of two very different mentors. One is Benjamin Franklin, who urges the boys to keep a low profile. The other is Benjamin Lay, an eccentric abolitionist who has another idea-one that involves the African martial art Dambe . . . and masks.

But by escaping to freedom, Graham and Brody have made more enemies than allies. A plantation owner wants them captured. A slave hunter wants them dead. And Benjamin Franklin’s son William has the wickedest ambitions of all.

Visual and visceral, this is a tale that could only be told as a graphic novel. With its vile villains, electrifying action, and riveting suspense, The Sons of Liberty casts new light on the faces and events of pre-Revolution America, including Ben Franklin and the French and Indian War. American history has rarely been this compelling-and it's never looked this good.

Alexander Lagos and Joseph Lagos are as different as two brothers can be. Alexander spent his twenties touring with a rock band. Eventually he settled down in Park Slope, Brooklyn where he worked as a manager for his local Barnes & Noble. Meanwhile, Joseph inherited the family woodcarving business and lives in Texas. They are both now married with children. This is their first book.
 
Steve Walker (Pencils and Inks) has done work for Image Comics and has been featured in Dr. Sketchy’s Rainy Day Coloring Book. He attends several comic conventions a year, where he sells commissioned drawings of superheroes.

Oren Kramek (Colors) is a freelance graphic artist. He was born in Israel and lives in Brooklyn.

Presented with the support of Random House.

 

Thursday, June 3, 7 PM
City of Spies
reception and signing with Susan Kim, Laurence Klavan and Pascal Dizin
Admission is Free for this event

Join MoCCA for this reception and signing for City of Spies, the new graphic novel from First Second Books!

1942. The height of World War Two. New York City is crawling with Nazi spies. Over one incredible summer, ten-year-old Evelyn Weiss will grow up, find a new family, and, in the process, save the world.The creators of “City of Spies,” writers Susan Kim and Laurence Klavan and illustrator Pascal Dizin, will sign copies of the graphic novel critics are calling “Tintin directed by Hitchcock” (Kirkus Reviews) and “rip-roaring fun” (Publishers Weekly).

Refreshments will be available. Spies and heroes welcome.

about the creators
SUSAN KIM has written for more than three dozen children’s TV series, including “Wonder Pets!”, “Arthur,” “Are You Afraid of the Dark?,” and “Speed Racer,” and has been nominated for both the Emmy and Writers Guild award four times. She has also written and produced documentaries for PBS, National Geographic, HBO and AMC. Her stage plays have been produced in LA and NYC and are published by Dramatists Play Service and Smith & Krauss. She co-wrote the non-fiction book, “Flow: The Cultural Story of Menstruation” (St. Martins Griffin) with Elissa Stein. “City of Spies” is her first graphic novel.

LAURENCE KLAVAN wrote the novels “The Cutting Room” and “The Shooting Script,” both published by Ballantine Books. He won the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for the novel, “Mrs. White,” co-written under a pseudonym. He received two Drama Desk nominations for the book and lyrics of the musical, “Bed and Sofa,” which was produced by the Vineyard Theater in New York. His short work has been published in The Alaska Quarterly, Conjunctions, The Literary Review, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, and elsewhere. This is his first graphic novel, as well. His website is LaurenceKlavan.com.

PASCAL DIZIN studied cartooning at the School of Visual Arts, where on graduating he received the Rhodes Family Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cartooning. He continues to draw comics and you can find him on the web at dizin-art.com. “City of Spies” is his first book.

 
 

Dash Shaw

image by Dash Shaw

installation view of Keith Mayerson
Good Leaders, Endangered Species, Ships at Sea, Part II
  at Derek Eller Gallery, New York

 

Tuesday, May 25, 7 PM
Dash Shaw and Keith Mayerson in Conversation

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA for a conversation between Dash Shaw and artist Keith Mayerson about their art, working methods and more.

Dash Shaw is the focus of MoCCA's current exhibition Making The Abyss and is the creator of BodyWorld, Bottomless Belly Button  and The Unclothed Man in the 35h Century.

Shaw's recent works connect an interest with the human body, informed by figure drawing, with humorous character-driven narratives.

Keith Mayerson is a painter who has exhibited widely throughout the world. He is the Cartooning Coordinator at the School of Visual Arts and teaches fine art at New York University. Mayerson is curator of the current MoCCA exhibition NeoIntegrity: Comics Edition and is on MoCCA's Board of Trustees. He is the co-creator with Dennis Cooper of the graphic novel Horror Hospital Unplugged to be pulished next year by Harper-Perennial.

 

 

Thursday, April 29, 7 PM
Puppet Masters of the Macabre:
a night of spooky stop-motion animation
 
presented by MoCCA and Small and Creepy Films
Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Hosted by Aurelio Voltaire. Presented by Small And Creepy Films and The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art.

Stop-motion animation has been around since the very beginning of film and is still around today. The art of manipulating rubber puppets and bringing them to life by posing them one frame at a time on film has seen something of a renaissance in recent history with the release of such films as Coraline, The Fantastic Mr. Fox and A Town Called Panic.  Unlike it's shiny and new cousin, computer animation, stop-motion has always had a home-made and somewhat surreal quality to it.  Perhaps it is for that reason that it is often the technique of choice for filmmakers like Tim Burton and Henry Selick, looking to  create a strange and spooky world (Nightmare Before Christmas, Corpse Bride, James and the Giant Peach).

Aurelio Voltaire, a filmmaker firmly entrenched in the world of dark, puppet animation takes us on a little tour of the  genre on April 29th during "Puppet Masters of the Macabre: A Night of Spooky Stop-Motion Animation".  Voltaire will screen excerpts from his reel (including station IDs created in the early days of MTV and The Sy Fy channel as well as a few of his award-winning shorts) as well as the work of  other colleagues and luminaries of macabre animation.  The screening will be immediately followed by a panel discussion lead by Voltaire.  On the panel will be Micah Van Hove of Small and Creepy films, Marc Lougee, Patrick Dorian, and Matthew Amonson and Jeremy Bronson of Studio Nos.

This presentation will take place at MoCCA- The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art and is in association with Small and Creepy Films ( www.smallandcreepy.com ) a destination for whimsically dark shorts on the internet.

For a glimpse at Voltaire's work visit:  www.youtube.com/voltairenyc

www.smallandcreepy.com is the website of Caroline Thompson.
(Screenwriter of Edward Scissorhands, Corpse Bride, The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Adams Family and others)

 

Venture Bros.

(c) 2010 Cartoon Network

The Brothers' Keeper:
An Evening with Jackson Publick and The Venture Bros.

Thursday, April 22, 7 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Animation journalist Joe Strike sits down with Jackson Publick III, creator of Cartoon Network’s hit [adult swim] series The Venture Bros. for the first in a series of "Interview with an Animator" conversations. After screening scenes from the show, Joe and Jackson discuss Venture’s creation and evolution, Jackson’s career, and his perspective on alternative/adult animation, followed by an audience Q&A session.

 

Hotwire 3

Hotwire Carousel

Thursday, March 25, 7 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Get ready for the Hotwire comics slide show! That’s right, the Eisner and Harvey nominated anthology comic is about to chew up the scenery live. Presented by Hotwire editor Glenn Head and Carousel host R. Sikoryak.

Featuring these great artists performing their comics for your delectation: Danny Hellman, Sam Henderson, Michael Kupperman, Tim Lane, Jayr Pulga, David Sandlin, Chadwick Whitehead, plus Head and Sikoryak. This show is sure to offer both spontaneous cartoon funk and the slickest of production values. Live comic entertainment at its best!

 


 
Feiffer

Jules Feiffer in conversation with Danny Fingeroth

Wednesday, March 24, 6:30 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Join MoCCA for a conversation with cartooning legend Jules Feiffer in conversation with Danny Fingeroth. Feiffer will be discussing his new autobiography Backing Into Forward: A Memoir.

About Backing Into Forward: A Memoir.
The award-winning cartoonist, playwright, and author delivers a witty illustrated rendition of his life, from his childhood as a wimpy kid in the Bronx, to his legendary career in the arts.

A gifted storyteller who has delighted readers and theater audiences for decades, Jules Feiffer now turns his talents to the tale of his own life.

Plagued by learning problems, a controlling mother, and a debilitating sense of fear, Feiffer embarked on his first cartoon apprenticeship at the age of seventeen, emboldened only by a passion for success and an aptitude for failure. He vividly recalls those transformative years working under the legendary Will Eisner, and, later, after he was drafted into the army, his evolution from "smart-ass kid into an enraged satirist.” Backing into Forward also traces Feiffer's love life, from a doomed hitchhiking trip, to reclaim his high-school sweetheart, to losing his virginity in Greenwich Village, and his road to marriage and fatherhood.

At the center of this journey is Feiffer's prolific creativity. In dazzling detail, he recounts the birth of his subversive graphic novella Munro, his entrée into New York's literary salons, collaborations with film greats Mike Nichols, Robert Altman, and Jack Nicholson, and other major turning points.

Brimming with wry punch lines, slices of Americana, and pithy social commentary, Backing into Forward charts Feiffer's rise as an unlikely and incisive provocateur during the conformist '50s, the Vietnam and Civil Rights, '60s and '70s.

 


 


Ralph Bakshi The Streets 

Friday, March 19, 2010 @ 6 PM

Opening Reception at Animazing Gallery
54 Greene Street
New York, NY

Join MoCCA as we present a Life-Time Achievement award on the occasion of his exhibition at Animazing Gallery. For more information please visit

www.animazing.com/gallery/emails/bakshi_streets.html

 

 

Archie Comics and
Writers Panel

Thursday, February 25th, 2010 @ 7 PM

With Paul Castiglia, Angelo DeCesare, Dan Parent, Fernando Ruiz, Alex Simmons, and moderated by Jim Salicrup

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Join Papercutz editor-in-chief and MoCCA Trustee Jim Salicrup for a lively discussion with Archie Comics writers and artists about what it is like to work with America's most popular teenager!

Paul Castiglia has been associated with Archie Comics for 20 years. He’s written for the flagship Archie title, Little Archie, Archie’s Superteens, Archie 3000, various digests, licensed titles and enjoyed a three year, 34 issue run on “Archie’s Weird Mysteries.” He is also an Archie Comics archivist and Compilation Editor for the “Archie Americana Series” of classic Archie reprints.

Angelo DeCesare writes "My sister Martha and I grew up reading Archie comics. I loved the humor and inventiveness of the writers, especially in the Jughead stories. My favorite Archie comic was "Archie's Madhouse", which I tried to imitate in my early attempts to create a comic book. I wrote and storyboarded my first Archie story about 15 years ago. An editor, Daryl Edelman, hired me to write a Little Archie story. Victor Gorelick must have liked my work and gave me more assignments. Over the years I've written stories involving all the major Archie characters, and I also wrote Sonic for a few years. My proudest moment was when Victor allowed me to write Archie's 500th issue. Inside, I'm still the same kid, reading Archie comics with my sister, except now some of the stories are mine! I'm honored to be a part of the Archie family and to participate in MoCCA's celebration of a great comic."

Dan Parent's professional career began in 1987, when he graduated from the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. He was hired by Archie Comics soon thereafter, where he worked on all phases of comic book production and licensing, which included designing toys, apparel and varied collectibles. His first big comic book project was Veronica’s first solo comic. He then went on to write, draw, ( and even co-edit) various Archie titles. Going freelance in 1996, he continued to work on titles like Cheryl Blossom, Betty & Veronica Spectacular and Archie & Friends. Dan continues to work on various Archie titles, updating the looks of the Archie characters, especially Betty and Veronica . He also keeps busy doing web design, children’s book illustrations and spot illustrations for various publications.

Fernando Ruiz is graduate of the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon And Graphic Art. While in school Fernando showed his work to Victor Gorelick and was hired right out of the school. "I was very lucky. I graduated from school and the next week I was working on my first Archie story." Fernando has been with Archie comics for the last 16 years and has also been a teacher at the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon And Graphic Art since 1995.

Alex Simmons is a professional freelance writer, teaching artist, and public speaker, as well as an arts & education consultant. As a writer of comics and graphic novels, Simmons has created and written a critically acclaimed adventure series, BLACKJACK, about an African-American soldier of fortune in the 1930s. He co-created an African-American hero for DC Comics in their Batman books, authored several other comic book stories, including tales of Scooby Doo, and several mini series for Archie Comics. Simmons also created 12 interactive mysteries for the Tiger Toys electronic game WHO DONE IT (which received three educational awards). Simmons is the founder and co producer of the KIDS’ COMIC CON (an age appropriate comic book convention for children and families), as well as the curator of the COLOR OF COMICS art exhibition (containing images from artists around the globe representing the portrayal of people of color in comics).

Please join MoCCA in congratualting Alex Simmons' 2010 Glyph Award nomination for Best Writer, Archie & Friends! Way to go Alex!

Archie Logos and Characters TM & © 2010, Archie Comic Publications, Inc.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.

 


 

Spider-Man: 25 Years of Amazing

Thursday, February 11th, 2010 @ 7 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

With Axel Alonso, Tom Brevoort, Danny Fingeroth, Jim Salicrup, and Stephen Wacker. Moderated by Fred Van Lente.

In honor of our exhibition of original art from the entire issue of Amazing Spider-Man #50 by J. Michael Straczynski, John Romita Jr. and Scott Hanna, MoCCA presents an unprecedented roundtable discussion of the past quarter-century of all things Peter Parker with the editors who have helmed the title since the Reagan Administration! Axel Alonso (editor of ASM #50), Tom Brevoort, Danny Fingeroth, and MoCCA Trustee Jim Salicrup join current AMAZING editor Steve Wacker for the panel chat and audience Q&A. Moderated by MoCCA Trustee and current Spidey scribe Fred Van Lente.

Axel Alonso is Vice President, Executive Editor at Marvel Comics. He has been the editor on Amazing Spider-Man, X-Men, Punisher and DC's Vertigo imprint.

Tom Brevoort has been a part of Marvel Comics since 1989, when he started out as an intern. He served as an assistant editor, associate editor and editor before being promoted to his current position as Executive Editor in 2007. Over the past decade, Tom has overseen the revitalization of the Avengers franchise, presided over major crossover events including Civil War and Secret Invasion, and served as editor on titles including New Avengers, Captain America, Fantastic Four and many others.

Danny Fingeroth (Sr. VP of Education at MoCCA) was the editor of the Spider-Man line 1983-84 and its Group Editor 1990-95. He wrote Web of Spider-Man and several Spider-Man limited series. Danny was a consultant to the FoxKids Spider-Man: The Animated Series and to James Cameron's early version of what would become the 2002 Spider-Man movie. He's the author of Superman On The Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves And Our Society; Disguised As Clark Kent: Jews, Comics, And The Creation Of The Superhero; and The Rough Guide To Graphic Novels.

Jim Salicrup is the current Papercutz Editor-in-Chief. Salicrup edited the Spider-Man titles in the late '80s early '90s, and is remembered for Kraven's Last Hunt (which ran through all the Spider-Man titles, The Wedding of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson, the introductions of Tombstone and Venom, and launching Spider-Man #1 by Todd McFarlane, the best-selling Spider-Man comic ever. Jim also wrote Spidey Super-Stories for many years, and the Child Abuse Prevention comic starring Spider-Man.

Fred Van Lente is The New York Times bestselling author of Incredible Hercules (with Greg Pak) and Marvel Zombies3 & 4, as well as the American Library Association award-winning Action Philosophers. His other comics include Comic Book Comics, Modok's 11, X-Men Noir and Amazing Spider-Man.

Stephen Wacker started editing comics for DC Comics in 2000. Currently he is a Senior Editor at Marvel editing Amazing Spider-Man and Daredevil.

 


 

Animation Development: From Pitch to Production

Thursday, February 18th, 2010 @ 7 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

With David Levy and Brown Johnson.

There's so many misconceptions, myths, and madness clouding up the reality of what it really takes to develop, pitch, and sell an animated project. Utilizing his own ten year experience in the pitching world, along with candid advice from successful creators and leading development executives alike, author and animation director David B. Levy has put together a useful book on the subject, Animation Development: From Pitch to Production (Allworth Press). Join us for an intimate industry panel on the ins-and-outs of pitching today and be sure to bring your questions too. Followed immediately by a book signing event.

David B. Levy is the creator of Fiona Finds Out, a preschool series optioned for development by the Disney Channel. He is currently under contract with Classic Media and Garan, Inc. to write and develop animated properties. Levy is the author of Your Career in Animation: How to Survive and Thrive (Allworth Press, 2006). Levy's second book Animation Development: From Pitch To Production,, was published in September 2009. Levy has directed Nickelodeon's Blue's Clues, the Noggin Channel's Pinky Dinky Doo, and Cartoon Network's Adult Swim series, Assy McGee. Levy has lectured and taught at Parsons School of Design, School of Visual Arts, NYU and Pratt, and is president of the New York chapter of Association International du Film d'Animation (ASIFA.)

Brown Johnson is the President of Animation for Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group.

 

 

Archie Comics Conversation with Victor Gorelick and Arie Kaplan

Thursday January 21st, 7 PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA is pleased to present an evening of Archie Comics with Archie Co-President/Editor-in-Chief Victor Gorelick and Archie writer Arie Kaplan!

Victor Gorelick (born in Brooklyn) is an American comic book editor and executive. Currently the Editor-in-Chief and Co-President of Archie Comics, the oldest humor comics company in the United States, he has worked for the company for over fifty years in a wide variety of roles.
Victor Gorelick joined Archie Comics as an art assistant, and has served as production coordinator, art director and now as Archie Comic's Editor-in-Chief and Co-President. Mr. Gorelick has unique knowledge of every facet of the editorial process required to create and publish successful comics. He has done it all from writing to coloring, and everything in between. He has highly regarded artistic skills and an eye for meticulous detail. He also has a well honed sense of the wholesome content of Archie Comics that has been the basis for the bond of trust built with readers by Archie Comics down through th e years. He has worked closely with numerous companies designing various custom comic books. For example, he has overseen collaborations between Archie Comics and Kraft General Foods, Radio Shack and even the F.B.I.! He is a moving force on the Comic Magazine Association of America's Code Authority Guidelines Committee, a member of the Board of Advisors of the Joe Kubert School where many of today's comic artists first learned their craft, and he has taught cartooning as an instructor at the Kingsborough Community College in New York City.

Arie Kaplan is a comedian, MAD Magazine writer, and author of the book From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books (JPS). He also wrote the comic book miniseries Speed Racer: Chronicles of the Racer (IDW Publishing), and he's written for MTV, Cartoon Network, and PBS Kids. Other comic book credits include the DC title Cartoon Network Action Pack, the Bongo Comics anthology Simpsons Winter Wingding, the Archie Comics title Archie & Friends, and the Papercutz series Tales From the Crypt.

Arie Kaplan will be signing copies of his award-winning book From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books after the talk.

 


 

The Year of Loving Dangerously reading and book signing with Ted Rall 

Thursday, December 3, 7 p.m. 2009 

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA invite you to join us for a discussion with Tedd Rall about his new book The Year of Loving Dangerously.

About The Year of Loving Dangerously
Here's a new turn for the controversial cartoonist and commentator Ted Rall. Not only is this autobiographical but he has paired up with the acclaimed artist of Bluesman and The Castaways for fully painted art.

It's the eighties and Ted is in college in New York City and slipping. His pranks, lack of focus and restlessness get him kicked out of school. Unable to find a job, rejected by his parents, he's on the verge of suicide. Instead he finds comfort in the arms of many women he meets casually and puts up a front for. Hey, better than being homeless and begging, but then... is it? It may sound like an ideal grift but the toll is much higher than one may imagine.

Between acidly funny and disturbingly real, Rall, a cartoonist whose work has alienated half the world, pours out his guts on a hard turning point in his life. Callejo adopts a new fully painted color style for this work, showing his versatility.

The Year of Loving Dangerously is published by NBM Publishing.

 


 

Looking for Calvin and Hobbes

Thursday, Oct. 22, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA invite you to join us for a discussion with Nevin Martell, author of Looking for Calvin and Hobbes, and cartoonist Ruben Bolling (Tom the Dancing Bug ) about the life and art of Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Waterson.
In
Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and His Revolutionary Comic Strip, writer Nevin Martell traces the life and career of the extraordinary, influential, and intensely private man behind Calvin and Hobbes. With input from a wide range of artists and writers (including Dave Barry, Harvey Pekar, Jonathan Lethem, and Brad Bird) as well as some of Watterson's closest friends and professional colleagues, this is as close as we're ever likely to get to one of America's most ingenious and intriguing figures - and a fascinating detective story, at the same time.

Only 3,160 Calvin & Hobbes strips were ever produced, but Watterson has left behind an impressive legacy. Calvin & Hobbes references litter the pop culture landscape and his fans are as varied as they are numerable. Looking for Calvin and Hobbes is an affectionate and revealing book about uncovering the story behind this most uncommon trio - a man, a boy, and his tiger.

Nevin Martell is the author of Dave Matthews Band: Music for the People (Pocket, 2004) and Beck: The Art of Mutation (Pocket, 2001). He is a Contributing Editor at Filter magazine and his music journalism has appeared in Paste, Giant, Men's Health, High Times, and Flaunt as well as online at RollingStone.com. Currently, he lives with his wife outside Washington, DC, where he develops documentaries and non-fiction television.

Ruben Bolling is the author of the weekly comic strip, "Tom the Dancing Bug," distributed by Universal/Uclick Syndicate to many newspapers, and appearing in Salon.com. The comic strip is a five-time winner of the AAN Best Comic Strip Award (including 2009), and it has been compiled in three books, most recently Thrilling Tom the Dancing Bug Stories. His website is www.tomthedancingbug.com.

 

 

 

The Yes Men and artist Rebecca Migdal 

Wednesday, Oct. 7, 5 - 6 p.m. 2009

Admission: $5

In celebration of the release of the new comic Judgement Day and the new film The Yes Men Fix The World come meet The Yes Men and Rebecca Migdal at MoCCA and then go see the film at the Film Forum!

About the comic
Rebecca Migdal draws the The Yes Men in Judgement Day! When Mike and Andy set sail to fix the world while going green, their paths cross with pirates, wildlife crusader Paul Watson and the bloodthirsty Great White Whaler.

Read their adventures online at www.worldwar3illustrated.net

The comic will be availabe for free at the signing!





 

 

The Comics Press: a panel discussion

Thursday, Oct. 1, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA members

Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA invite you to join us for a conversation about the comics press. What is the role of comic reportage today? What gets covered and why? Find out at this discussion with comics critics and reporters Heidi MacDonald, Aaron McQuade and Evie Nagy, and Douglas Wolk and find out the answers. 

Heidi MacDonald has edited award-winning comics for Disney, Warner Bros., and Fox. She is currently the editor and main writer for The Beat, a blog covering comics as they relate to pop culture. It was named one of the "100 Greatest Websites" by Entertainment Weekly.

Aaron McQuade and Evie Nagy are husband and wife co-hosts of the weekly podcast and pseudo-awards show Awesomed By Comics. In addition to writing about comics for Publishers Weekly and other publications, Evie is a music journalist and editor at Billboard Magazine; Aaron can be heard hourly as a radio news anchor and producer on Sirius XM.

Douglas Wolk writes about comics for The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, the Washington Post, the Believer and elsewhere. He's the author of the Eisner- and Harvey-winning "Reading Comics," as well as "Live at the Apollo." He lives in Portland, Oregon.

 


 

The Art of Harvey Kurtzman

Thursday, Sept. 24, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: Free

Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA and Abrams ComicArts invite you to join us for an evening in celebration of the new book, The Art of Harvey Kurtzman: The Mad Genius of Comics. Discussion featuring co-author Denis Kitchen and Harvey’s daughter, Nellie Kurtzman; moderated by Abrams ComicArts editor, Charles Kochman.

Reception and signing with refreshments to follow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peter Kuper: Diario de Oaxaca: A Sketchbook Journal of Two years in Mexico

Thursday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: Free

Join MoCCA for the opening reception and artist talk by Peter Kuper for our new exhibition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

Abstract Comics Panel Discussion

Saturday, Sept. 12, 4 p.m. 2009

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art
594 Broadway, suite 401

Featuring
Derik Badman

Richard Hahn
Patrick McDonnell
Andrei Molotiu
Anders Pearson
Henrik Rehr
Alexey Sokolin

Join MoCCA for a discussion about Abstract Comics: what they are, who is making them and why. Abstract Comics explores what is essential to the medium of comics - panel rhythm, page layout, the sequential arrangement of formal elements - and tells us how comics function and where they can go. This talk is held in conjunction with the exhibition Silent Pictures at James Gallery, CUNY and the new book from Fantagraphics Books.

 


 

Walt & El Grupo

August 27th, 7:30 p.m. 2009

The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art and Walt Disney Pictures invite Members of MoCCA to a special advance screening of the film Walt & El Grupo. 

Q&A with Writer/Director Ted Thomas and Producer Kuniko Okubo, moderated by John Canemaker to follow!

BAM Cinema 4
Brooklyn Academy of Music
30 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217

Admission is free and just for Members of MoCCA only. (Membership must be current).* To RSVP please call 212-254-3511, Tuesday-Sunday, 12 - 5 PM.

Reserve your space now, seating is limited!

About Walt & El Grupo

The year was 1941, and the world was on the brink of war. In an effort to improve relations between the Americas, the Roosevelt administration called upon one of Hollywood’s most influential filmmakers to embark on a special goodwill tour. Written and directed by Theodore Thomas (Frank and Ollie) and produced by Kuniko Okubo, the documentary Walt & El Grupo chronicles the amazing ten-week trip that Walt Disney and his hand-picked group of artists and filmmaking talent (later known as “El Grupo”) took to South America at the behest of the U.S. government as part of the Good Neighbor Policy. Shot on film in five countries, Walt & El Grupo is a tale that still resonates on both sides of the equator. The film time travels in Walt Disney’s footsteps through the use of personal letters and stunning artwork from the trip, remembrances by descendants and survivors, and extraordinary never-before-seen footage. Walt & El Grupo brings together an intertwined story of art and politics, the poignancy of a bygone age, and a legendary artist during one of his most trying times.

A Walt Disney Pictures release presented by The Walt Disney Family Foundation Films, in association with Theodore Thomas Productions, Walt & El Grupo was written and directed by Theodore Thomas, produced by Kuniko Okubo and executive produced by Walter E.D. Miller.

The film is slated for a special engagement release in LA and NY on September 11th. For more information, see www.waltandelgrupo.com.

To view the trailer click here: Walt & El Grupo

*not yet a member? Join today!


 

Meanwhile... at 594 Broadway Reception and artist presentations

July 29th, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: Free

Please join MoCCA for a reception in celebration of Meanwhile... at 594 Broadway: The Art of MoCCA's Volunteers with presentations by participating artists.


 

MoCCA Thursday: David Mazzucchelli and Dan Nadel in Conversation

July 16th, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Artist David Mazzucchelli and exhibition curator Dan Nadel (publisher of Picture Box) will discuss Mazzucchelli's work and the exhibition, including Mazzucchelli's new graphic novel Asterios Polyp.

 


 

Scarlett Takes Manhattan Book Release with Molly Crabapple and John Leavitt

July 21st, 7 p.m. 2009

Admission: Free

Please join MoCCA for a reading and slide show of Scarlett Takes Manhattan by Molly Crabapple and John Leavitt!

Plus, there will be a screening of Randy Gentle’s new documentary The Art of Molly Crabapple.

About Scarlett Takes Manhattan
Scarlett O'Herring: Dancer, fire-breather, courtesan, and the star of Molly Crabapple's first graphic novel from Fugu Press.

Written by long-time collaborator John Leavitt, Scarlett follows the rise of Miss O'Herring from tragedy (her mother crushed by copulating circus elephants) through her grand entrance on the stage (accidental and sans costume) to her triumph as the fire-breathing queen of burlesque. It's a sexy, decadent romp through the slums and palaces of New York's Gilded Age.

Scarlett Takes Manhattan brings to life a character from Molly and John's long-running web comic Backstage from the collective Act-i-vate.

As Molly says, "It has Tammany Hall and bad politics and early-lesbian culture in it. And it's very dirty."

About the Authors
Molly Crabapple (illustrator) is an award-winning artist, author, and the founder of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, a globe-spamming chain of alternative drawing salons. She learned to draw in a Parisian bookstore, and once sketched her way into a Turkish jail. Her art has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Marvel Comics, and on theatrical curtains, parade installations, and flyers littering the city of New York. In her free time, she likes coffee.

John Leavitt (writer) is a cartoonist, writer, illustrator, and Libra. His cartoons and illustrations have appeared in: The New Yorker, The Chronicle Review, The New York Press, The Common Review, The Journal of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and many other really, really impressive places. He lives in New York City.

About Fugu Press
Founded in 2008, FUGU PRESS publishes books and comics for grown-ups. Scarlett Takes Manhattan is their first graphic novel.

 


 

MoCCA Thursday: Typhon Carousel

June 18, 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Please join the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA for an evening of dazzling cartoon slide shows featuring work from the critically-acclaimed comics anthology Typhon Volume One.*

This exclusive event is brought to you by Typhon editor, Danny Hellman, and Carousel host R. Sikoryak.

A select group of Typhon contributors will be on hand to present their strips, including:

Gregory Benton
Rupert Bottenberg
Victor "Bald Eagles" Cayro
Nick Gazin
Hawk Krall
Hugo
Pshaw
Hans Rickheit
plus Hellman and Sikoryak.

Come meet the artists whose cutting-edge artwork brings the pages of Typhon to life!

(*For Mature Audiences, please)

 

 

 
Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art Festival 2009

 

June 6th & 7th 2009 at the 69th

Regiment Armory at Lexington Avenue and 25th Street in New York City.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

Cartoonist Roundtable with
Arie Kaplan
 

Thursday, May 7, 7PM

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

 

Join the Cartoonist Roundtable and MoCCA with special guest speaker Arie Kaplan. Arie is a comedian, Mad magazine writer, and author of the book From Krakow to Krypton: Jews and Comic Books (JPS). He also wrote the comic book miniseries Speed Racer: Chronicles of the Racer (IDW Publishing), and he's written for MTV, Cartoon Network, and PBS Kids. Other comic book credits include the DC title Cartoon Network Action Pack, the Bongo Comics anthology Simpsons Winter Wingding, the Archie Comics title Archie & Friends, and the Papercutz series Tales From the Crypt. Arie will discuss his work as a comic book writer, nonfiction author, and animation scribe. The evening will conclude with a signing of Arie's book From Krakow to Krypton.

The Cartoonist Roundtable meetings are held at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art. They feature guest speakers that address the crowd over snacks and drinks. The meetings are FREE for MoCCA members and a $5 donation for non-MoCCA members. All proceeds will go to the MoCCA operations and programming. To join the Cartoonist Roundtable's bi-monthly newsletter, "THE SQUIB!"? Please send an e-mail to Margo & Chari at: CartoonistRoundtable@gmail.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

World War 3 Illustrated #39 Release Party

Thursday, April 30, 2009 7-9PM

Admission: Donation Suggested
Free for MoCCA Members

The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA presents the release party for the new issue of World War 3 Illustrated, now in its 28th year of publication!

Join us to celebrate the publication of the new issue with live performances by contributors, featuring multi-media presentation of art by:
Peter Kuper
Mac McGill
Paula Hewitt Amram
Sabrina Jones
Eric Drooker
Kevin Pyle
Chuck Sperry
and many others.

With an animated film by Onur Tukel

Live music by Eric Blitz, Steve Wishnia, Andy Laties, Breeze and others.

World War 3 Illustrated #39
Edited by Peter Kuper and Kevin Pyle

With all this talk about a picture being worth a thousand words and so much chatter in the news, but little being said, World War 3 illustrated presents our first wordless comics issue.

With comics and illustrations by Eric Drooker, Mats!?, Geoffrey Grahn, Rebecca Migdal, Matt Mahurin, Carlo Quispe, Ryan Inzana, Seth Tobocman, Peter Kuper, Felipe Galindo, Mac McGill, David Sandlin, Barron Storey, Onur Tukel, Sabrina Jones, Andy Singer, Santiago Cohen, Kevin Pyle, Gerard Conte, Paula Hewitt , Edwin Vasquez, Terry Laban, and an article on picture novels by scholar David Berona.

This new issue leaps beyond language barriers -- sort of a Tower of a Babel, minus the babble. 

All of us speaking one language again -- through pictures.

To see more art, animation and info about World War 3 illustrated visit: http://www.worldwar3illustrated.org

 

 

 

 

Wolverine: Inside the World of the Living Weapon with
Chris Claremont and
Matthew K. Manning
 

Wednesday, April 29th, 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

In anticipation of the May 1 theatrical release of X-Men Origins: Wolverine, join us as Chris Claremont, best known for his work on Marvel Comics X-Men series, leads a discussion with Matthew K. Manning, author of DK Publishings newly-released Wolverine: Inside the World of the Living Weapon, a comprehensive guide to the savage world of the X-Men's most popular Super Hero.

First appearing in a cameo role in the pages of an Incredible Hulk comic in October 1974, Wolverine has evolved into a headlining superstar. The clawed mutant-fighting machine with a heart as strong as his adamantium-enhanced skeleton is not only the most popular member of the X-Men but, to many, the finest hero in the Marvel Universe.

Chris Claremont has encountered more success than most writers ever dream of. Although best known for his work on the X-Men series, he has written other seminal characters as Batman and Superman; originated several creator-owned series such as The Black Dragon and Marada, the She-Wolf (artist: John Bolton), and the contemporary superhero series, Sovereign Seven; is published throughout the world in many different languages; authored nine novels including the science fiction series First Flight, Grounded!, and Sundowner, and the contemporary dark fantasy Dragon Moon; and even had his first video game premiere in Spring 2006.

Matthew K. Manning has written numerous comics for a variety of publishers, including Marvel and DC. His work has appeared in the pages of The Batman Strikes!, Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century, Justice League Adventures, Spider-Man Unlimited, Looney Tunes, and Marvel Romance Redux. For DK, he has penned the updated versions of Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide and Hulk: The Incredible Guide, the childrens title Marvel Heroes: Greatest Battles, and contributed to the Marvel Chronicle.

 

 

 

Chuck Jones Memories of Childhood screening and discussion with filmmakers Peggy Stern and John Canemaker

Thursday, April 23rd, 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

In one of his last filmed interviews before his death in 2002, animator Chuck Jones speaks candidly about life in 1920s Los Angeles, and his family’s itinerant and sometimes hardscrabble existence. John Canemaker and Peggy Stern, who each earned Oscar Awards for the animated short The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation, collaborated on the project for Turner Classic Movies. Stern produced and directed the special, and with Canemaker, conducted the interviews. In addition, Canemaker created original animation of Jones' childhood memories, which include revealing anecdotes about the events and personalities who influenced his early creative life and long career in cartoons. Chuck Jones: Memories of Childhood interweaves these new animated segments with vintage family photographs and clips from classic cartoons, to reveal Chuck Jones in a new light. 

About the Film-makers
Peggy Stern is the Academy Award-winning producer, with renowned animator John Canemaker, of The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation, which won the 78th Annual Academy Award for Best Animated Short in 2006. As an independent producer/director, she has made more than 15 films focusing on children, educational and social issues, which have been shown at festivals and on television around the world. 

John Canemaker is an Academy Award-winning independent animator, animation historian, teacher and author. His personal films are in the permanent collection of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and are distributed by Milestone Film & Video (John Canemaker: Marching to a Different Toon). He is a full professor and director of Animation Studies at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts Kanbar Institute of Film & Television. 

 

 

 

From Screen to Scream:
How Paramount Pictures Famous Cartoons became Harvey Comics Classics
Jerry Beck on the History of Harvey Comics

Friday, April 17th, 6:30pm
Admission: $5

Free for MoCCA Members

Animation Historian Jerry Beck (Cartoon Brew) will speak about the connection of Harvey Comics to the Paramount cartoon studio, and the creation of Casper the Friendly Ghost, Baby Huey, Little Audrey, Buzzy Crow, and Herman & Katnip. He will show clips from the classic cartoons, and discuss the relationship between the comic book company and the animation studio, which was located in Times Square. Beck will also sign copies of The Harvey Comics Library, a series of reprint volumes which he co-curates for Dark Horse Books.

 


 

Cecil's Quest by František Skála

Thursday, April 16th, 7pm

Admission is free and is sponsored by Czech Center New York.

Versatile Czech artist František Skála in his new comic book, Cecil’s Quest, depicts in a unique form of 322 photographs the adventurous wandering of easy-going fellow Cecil, who one summer morning decides to visit his friend – anchoress Lída. He has no idea that he will not return before the land is covered with snow, enriched with experiences and new friendships.

Skála employed a complex technique of taking photographs of puppets in the outdoor environment using the cine-film resembling the process of animated film production, however, without the comfort of studio facilities and technical equipment. It was similar to the classical feature film production except that Skála accomplished the work of the whole film crew by himself. The technical realization of making each scene into a comic book style shot took almost year and was finished with a very sophisticated method of printing.

The Czech Center New York promotes the Czech Republic in the areas of culture, education, business, and tourism.

 

 

 

Tales of the Black Freighter Viewing and Discussion

Thursday, March 26th, 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

The Art of Watchmen co-curator, comics historian Peter Sanderson, will lead a screening and discussion of the two new short films Watchmen: Tales of the Black Freighter and Under the Hood. Sanderson will discuss the role of the two books within the acclaimed Watchmen graphic novel from DC Comics. 

About Tales of the Black Freighter and Under the Hood
Executive Produced by Zack Snyder, the Director of Watchmen and 300, comes two tales from the celebrated graphic novel that do not appear in the extraordinary Watchmen Theatrical Feature. Tales of the Black Freighter (featuring the voice of 300's Gerard Butler) brings to strikingly animated life the graphic novels richly layered story-within-a-story, a daring pirate saga whose turbulent events may mirror those in the Watchmen's world. Stars from the Watchmen movie team in the amazing live-action/CGI Under the Hood, based on Nite Owl's powerful first-hand account of how the hooded adventurers came into existence. 

Peter Sanderson is a comics historian and critic who has taught "Comics as Literature" at New York University's School of Continuing and Professional Studies. He regularly writes about graphic novels for Publishers Weekly's online Comics Week and has authored and co-authored numerous books, most recently Marvel Chronicle for DK Publishing. He also co-curated Stan Lee: A Retrospective at MoCCA in 2007 and was Marvel Comics first (and only) archivist. He will be teaching a course in comics and film at New York University's SCPS this summer. Sanderson did his undergraduate and graduate work in English literature at Columbia University, and lives in New York City.

WATCHMEN and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © DC Comics.

 

 

 
 

Watchmen in Context

Thursday, March 19th, 7pm

The Art of Watchmen co-curator, comics historian Peter Sanderson, will deliver a lecture that will serve as a guided tour through all twelve issues of the original Watchmen comics series. Sanderson will reveal how Watchmen's creators take character types and storylines from traditional superhero stories and adapt them to convey the book's themes. Pointing out Watchmen's allusions to real world events, Sanderson will show how Watchmen requires the readers to rexamine the proper role of the superhero in fiction--and of America as a real world superpower. Watchmen in Context will explore how this classic graphic novel juxtaposes different ways of viewing existence and asks the readers to choose among them. 

 


 

A Special Benefit Screening of 
WATCHMEN
Plus a VIP reception and Watchmen Portraits book signing event

Thursday, March 5th, 7pm

This once-in-a-lifetime evening begins with a reception at MoCCA for The Art of Watchmen exhibition, continues with an advance screening of Watchmen at AMC 19th St., and concludes with an author signing of Watchmen: Portraits by Clay Enos.

WATCHMEN and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © DC Comics.

Smiley Face Logo: ™ Smileyworld, Ltd.

 

 

 
 

Drawing Words, Writing Pictures

Thursday, February 12th, 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Members and educators reception: 6:30pm

Matt Madden, co-creator of the textbook Drawing Words and Writing Pictures, talks to teachers about creating and reading graphic novels in the classroom. This in-depth discussion explores ways that students can creatively use graphic novels to engage with other media, including novels, film, visual art and more. Three comic-making activities will be shared that cover a variety of ways of incorporating comics into the class room.

 

 

 
 

New York Comic Con

Friday - Sunday, February 6, 7, & 8

Join us at the New York Comic Con and meet your favorite artists and writers, including: Reilly Brown, Dennis Calero, Frank Camuso, Ryan Dunlavey, Josh Elder, Jim Gownley, Leonard Kirk, David Lloyd, Greg Pak, Jeff Parker, Rick Parker, Khoi Pham, Dave Roman, Dan Slott, and Fred Van Lente!

 

 

 
 

Comics and the Language of
Visual Symbolism

Sunday, Feb. 8, 1:30pm at NYCC

Comics are able to communicate dense layers of narrative, emotion, and action in a manner that no other media is able. This panel will explore the way the cartoonists use pictures to tell their stories in a way that is unique to comics.

Panelists: Becky Cloonan, Ryan Dunlavey, Paul Karasik, Danica Novgorodoff, and Alex Robinson, moderated by MoCCA Director Karl Erickson

 

 

 

From Batman to Gandhi: Comics from Super Heroes to the Nonviolent

Thursday, January 22nd 7pm

Admission: $5
Free for MoCCA Members

Discussion with Mark Badger and Dian Killian, moderated by Keith Mayerson

No other city can boast as many super heroes as New York---Superman, Batman, and Spiderman all play out their larger-than-life adventures in the Big Apple. Yet what happens when the action figure genre is applied to a different kind of risk and adventure--every day interactions between New Yorkers? And rather than using physical force or finesse--like Superman and Spiderman--it’s communication skills to the rescue?

On January 22nd, a moderated discussion will take place featuring Mark Badger and Dian Killian, co-creators of a new graphic novel (being launched that night at MoCCA), Urban Empathy: True Life Adventures of Compassion on the Streets of New York. The discussion will be moderated by Keith Myerson, who teaches cartoon art at the School of Visual Arts, with members of the audience invited to comment and ask questions. The presentation will include a slide show on the history of super hero comics. It will be preceded at 6:30pm by a “Meet and Greet” with the authors for MoCCA members. Both authors will be available after the discussion to sign books. 

 

 

 

Workshop: Making Comics in Adobe Flash

Saturday, January 24th 1-4pm

On Saturday January 24th from 1-4 pm, Mark Badger, the illustrator of Urban Empathy, will offer a workshop on Making Comics in Adobe Flash. The workshop will address drawing and storytelling for print and the web using Flash to turn print into comics. 

Particpants will learn:

A basic introduction to doing interactive comics with Flash, including: how to structure a story or any project in Flash; An introduction to the MovieClip; Simple interactivity creating a button to move forward and backwards through your story; an introduction to ActionScript the language which controls Flash; and Animating panels as one approach to doing comics.This introduces Masking, layers and the animation timeline and curves in Flash.

Sponsored by Adobe.

 

 

 

Urban Empathy: Living with Compassion in the Big Apple

Martin Luther King Day, Monday, January 19th 2-4pm

In honor of MLK, MoCCA is participating with Arts Policy Now "A Day of Dreams" series of events and programs.

What do you do in challenging situations where someone says something you don't like, find offensive, or disagree with? In this fun, interactive workshop you'll get to explore challenging situations you've found yourself in and see how the outcome can be different when we listen for what really matters to the other person---and yourself. This workshop will be led by Dian Killian, co-author of the new graphic novel, Urban Empathy: True Life Adventures Of Compassion On The Streets Of NY.

 

 

 

Cartoonist Roundtable
with Stan Goldberg

January 8, 7 pm

Join the Cartoonist Roundtable and MoCCA as we kick off 2009 with special guest speaker Stan Goldberg. "Stan has been a legend in the comic book business. His career spans generations and he has worked among the giants of the comic world." Stan will share samples of his work and speak about his 50+ years in the industry, which includes a longstanding freelance career with Archie Comics, working with Stan Lee at Marvel, and freelancing for such companies/publications as DC Comics, National Lampoon, Child, Redbook, Seventeen, Working Woman, and many others. Bring questions to ask and snacks to share for this casual evening with a wonderful cartoonist and delightful individual.

The Cartoonist Roundtable meetings are held at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art. They feature guest speakers that address the crowd over snacks and drinks. The meetings are FREE for MoCCA members and a $5 donation for non-MoCCA members. All proceeds will go to the MoCCA operations and programming. To join the Cartoonist Roundtable's bi-monthly newsletter, "THE SQUIB!"? Please send an e-mail to Margo & Chari at: CartoonistRoundtable@gmail.com.

 

 

 

Graphic Novels from Europe

November 20, 6:30 pm

The Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art - MoCCA - is pleased to present an evening of art, books and signings by the artists of Graphic Novels from Europe. Please join us for talks, presentations, questions, and a glass of wine.

With David B (Epileptic), Nicolas de Crécy (GlacialPeriod), Igort (Five is the Perfect Number and Baobab), Jaromír 99 and Jaroslav Rudiš (Alois Nebel), Isabel Kreitz (Die Sache mit Sorge), and Max (Bardin the Superrealist).

Graphic Novels from Europe: New Literature from Europe 2008 is organized by the Goethe-Institut New York, Istituto Italiano di Cultura, the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, Instituto Cervantes, and the Czech Center New York. 

Graphic Novels from Europe is part of the New Literature from Europe series celebrating an emblematic European form of literature and art this year: the graphic novel. The Graphic Novels from Europe festival will take place from November 17-21 with seven of Europe’s most famous contemporary graphic novelists (David B., Nicolas de Crécy, Igort, Jaromír 99, Isabel Kreitz, Max and Jaroslav Rudiš), who will participate in a series of free events throughout New York City. The five-day festival will include discussions, book signings and an exhibit of 60 original pages at the French Cultural Services. 

Every year since 2004, the cultural institutions of the Czech Republic (Czech Center New York), France (The Cultural Services of the French Embassy), Germany (Goethe-Institut New York), Italy (Istituto Italiano di Cultura), and Spain (Instituto Cervantes) come together to celebrate European literature through a common prism. This year they chose to focus on graphic novels, which have always attracted a wide, devoted readership in Europe and are increasingly being recognized as a genuine form of literature in the United States as well. At the intersection of art and literature, graphic novels are also fascinating works of visual art, with powerful imagery that plays a key role in their story-telling.

The festival, though far from exhaustive, will nevertheless present a wide-ranging panorama of contemporary European creation. Indeed, the works of the seven selected graphic novelists vary enormously in style and subject manner, from the hyper-realist to the cartoonish, giving a taste of just how rich and diverse the European graphic novel scene is. Original works from all seven artists—10 panels from each—will be on display at the French Cultural Services from November 19 to December 12 during a free exhibit (open weekdays, 12-5pm). France is also hosting this exhibit to mark its current presidency of the European Union.

Related Events:
November 17 6pm: Discussion with Igort about his book 5 is the Perfect Number and exhibition of his work: Baobab.
RSVP required: 212 879 4242 ext. 375 
Istituto Italiano di Cultura, 686 Park Avenue, New York, NY www.iicnewyork.esteri.it/IIC_Newyork 

November 19 –December 12, 12pm – 5pm weekdays: Exhibition of works by the artists in Graphic Novels from Europe
Cultural Services of the French Embassy, 972 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY www.frenchculture.org

November 19, 6:30pm: Discussion with all the authors, moderated by David Mazzucchelli 
School of Visual Arts, 209 East 23 Street, New York, NY www.sva.edu

November 21, 4pm: Discussion with Nicolas de Crécy
Maison française / NYU, 16 Washington Mews, New York, NY www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/french/Maison.html 

November 21 –December 19, 12pm-7pm Tues-Saturday: Exhibition of the two Czech authors of Alois Nebel
Prague Kolektiv, 143 Front Street, Brooklyn, NY www.praguekolektiv.com 

 

 

 
 

Kim Deitch Q & A
with curator Bill Kartalopoulos

November 13, 7 pm

A Q & A session with Deitch and exhibit curator Bill Kartalopoulos. In a unique and wide-ranging conversation, the two will discuss Deitch’s work and career to date. Deitch will present examples of recent work and will also preview images from his current works in progress.

 

 

 
 

Cartoon Movie Night with
Kim Deitch

October 30, 7 pm

Kim Deitch will host a Cartoon Movie Night featuring rarely seen animated cartoons from the 1920s and 1930s hand-picked for the occasion from Deitch’s own personal collection. This period of animation inspired Deitch’s signature character Waldo the Cat and is the subject of his acclaimed graphic novel The Boulevard of Broken Dreams, which is featured in the exhibit. As a special Halloween treat, MoCCA will also display for one night only selected specimens from Deitch and spouse Pam Butler’s extensive collection of antique toy cats. The blurring of fact, fiction and autobiography in Deitch’s work is a major focus of Kim Deitch: A Retrospective, and this display will present a rare opportunity to see the historical artifacts that motivate the fictional narrative in Deitch’s graphic novel Alias the Cat.

 

 

 
 

MAD Contemporary Art Treasures:
The Most Classic Original Art
from MAD Magazine

October 29, 10 am – 5 pm one day only!