Caricature Books

This 160 page book features the art and sketches of Stephen Silver, a masterful illustrator and character designer. I purchased the book to glean insights into his work and style. One of the things that most amazed me in flipping through the book was in the diversity of his subject matter. Whether its aliens, realistic portraits, cartoon characters, or caricatures Stephen Silver demonstrates his complete command of form, appeal and rhythm within his work. He also demonstrates a versatility in medium, whether its water color, charcoal, colored pencils or 100% digital.

The introduction portion briefly covers his professional career from mall caricaturist to character designer for the big studios. The first two pages show us Stephen's earliest works, to encourage the reader that no matter where they are at - they can improve with due diligence and practice.

"Passion" is a word that Stephen Silver uses in his book - and it exemplifies the work we're seeing within it. I highly recommend "The Art of Silver" for students young and old who are interested in illustration and drawing. Make no mistake, this isn't a how-to book - think of it as an album of great artwork collected over the years, fit for admiration and further study.

This book would have received a 5 star rating - but I detracted one star for the book's binding. Handle this book with care, as the binding is incredibly weak. (The first copy had its binding split, and the replacement copy I received is also showing similar signs...)

I am a Character Animator that really wants to get back into drawing. Oh my days when I visited Stephen Silvers website I was so Inspired. It took me a while to get this book, but I had to get it. This guy is amazing. The Art of Silver is a must for all Charater art lovers. Taking you on a journey with Mr Silver. Great work, wonderful diverse styles, yet all have that Silver signature. Add this to your Library now!!!

This book is well worth the $40 bucks. There's not too many art books out there that contain the rough and unfinished sketches. A very valuable asset to any artist who whats to observe the artist's thought process. It's the next best thing to actually seeing the artist sketch in person. Much like a "best of" sketchbooks type of compilation. The book also shows Stephen Silver's artwork in various mediums: pastel, inkwork and airbrush. I was also glad to see the words Vol. 1 on the spine of the book. I'm very anxious too see other volumes.

Steve Silver's book is a stunning display of artwork from a master of cartooning. A must-have for any serious student of animation, character design, and caricature. I myself have written a book "Let's Toon CARICATURES" that is available on Amazon, and I have to say that Steve Silver is one of my biggest modern day influences and inspirations. Buy this book, and be prepared to draw. You WILL be inspired!

Stephen Silver's book is a great find and a must for any budding cartoonist. This book is automatically in my top ten of sketch/art of books on cartooning ( I have over 200 books). I believe we will be hearing more from Mr. Silver.

If you love cats, you will love this book. Would make a whimsical gift for a cat lover that you know or yourself.

Whimsical drawings which made me laugh so hard I had to use my Kitty Litter Box!

not actualy, i liked it and it made me laugh.

This book is so vivid. Absolutely no words in the comic strips are needed to understand exactly what the cat in each comic strip is doing. They're SO funny! One comic strip has two cats playing tennis with a mouse as a "tennisball." Another comic strip has an owner of a cat holding a bill from a delivery guy for MANY boxes of tuna that she obviously didn't order and her cat nearby looking on innocently. The feline humor just keeps PURRING along! Buy it with confidence for that absolutely FELINE laugh!

this book is irresistible

Barefoot Gen Volume Two picks up where volume one leaves Gen just after the explosion of the atomic bomb over Hiroshima. It a gripping and very painful story of survival in the fist terrible time after the bomb devastated Hiroshima. For those that survived the bomb and the deadly radiation, life has now become a desperate fight for survival in a harsh and brutal world. If you have read Volume One, you cannot skip this one, just as you have to read Volume three and four too.

Volume 1 & 2 of Nakazawa's famous comic series about a boy called 'Gen' and his life in Hiroshima during the WWII and soon after the atomic bomb. The first two volumes of this series are probably the most important ones. After I read the first two volumes, I just had to lend them to everyone I knew. If you read this story, you'll realise how silly to hear some popular opiniton 'Dropping two atomic bombs in Japan was necessary to end the war'. Nakazawa says that each and every event is true. You'll see, for example, that two young brothers fight against each other for a little grain of rice. The bombs were dropped onto civilians in the middle of the two cities, and, in Hiroshima alone, 100,000 people, including western prisoners of war, were killed instantly, and the pain they suffered from afterwords was tremendous. The way some of Gen's family members, including a new born baby sister, were slowly dying is simply too sad to look at. But the reality is that it actually took place and was caused by human hands.
I sincerely hope that many people will find an opportunity to read this book at least once in their life-time, and I strongly believe that this book will enlighten the whole world with its message: 'what really happens when a nuclear bomb is dropped onto humanity', which hasn't really been talked about in history books for some reason. But I think it's time to face reality.

Keiji Nakazawa, Barefoot Gen: The Day After (New Society, 1988)

The story of Barefoot Gen, spunky atomic bomb survivor, continues in this second volume of the four-part series. It's not a stretch to predict that how you feel about The Day After will probably reflect how you felt about Barefoot Gen, without much variance.

The Day After (which, in fact, covers the next two days) opens just after the end of Barefoot Gen, and is concerned entirely with the survival of Gen, his mother, and his baby sister Tomoko. Gen's task during this time is to find food for the family, and this quest takes him on a number of small side adventures the present a much larger picture of the greater Hiroshima area after the bomb than the first book provided of Hiroshima before the bomb. Gen meets a number of different people, helps some, and learns that even after the bomb, when everyone around him is shrouded in misery and horror, the banality and prejudice around him doesn't disappear-- in fact, people are worse than they were beforehand. Nakazawa, as is his wont, tells us all this in his stories, and never allows his messages to get in the way of his storytelling. Ironically, Barbara Reynolds' introduction to this edition is a perfect contrast to Nakazawa's story; it's awfully-written, ham-handed, flat-out wrong (Reynolds harps on about American denial of responsibility for Hiroshima, and she's writing ten years or more after the release, and vast popularity, of John Hersey's Hiroshima) polemic whose sole purpose in inclusion, it seems, is to highlight how subtle Nakazawa is. Skip the introduction. Or, if you're a completist, read the book first and come back to the introduction afterwards, so it won't taint you.

This is very good stuff. Well worth your time. *** ½

Barefoot Gen: The Day After is volume two of a four part series. It tells the story of the day after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima as seen through the eyes of seven year old Gen Nakaoka. Based on the real-life experiences of the author, Gen, his mother, and his newborn sister face the horrors of the day after the bomb. They have no food or shelter and are surrounded by the dead and dying. Even the soldiers sent in to gather and burn the dead bodies are succumbing to the radiation sickness and dying. No one understands what is happening and there is no one to turn to. Gen goes in search of food for his mother whose breast milk has dried up from malnutrition. Alone he faces the horror of the devastation and the destitution of the people of Hiroshima. This the hardest of the four books to read because the carnage of the day after the bomb is almost beyond belief. Gen's compassion, humanity, and determination makes this an inspiring book about the strength of the human spirit. Although the graphic scenes may turn some people off, this is still an important book for its message on the dangers of nuclear war.

The work has been wonderfully translated from the Japanese original: Hadashi no Gen. It was originally published in serial form in 1972 and 1973 in Shukan Shonen Jampu, the largest weekly comic magazine in Japan, with a circulation of over two million. The drawings are all in black and white. This US edition was published as part of a movement to translate the book into other languages and spread its message. It is a wonderful testimony to the strength of the human spirit and the horrors of nuclear war. There are a few introductory essays at the front of the book that help to put this book into perspective. It is a powerful and tragic story that I highly recommend for anyone interested in the topic.

I stumbled across this graphic novel in a used bookstore, not having any idea the impression it would make on me. This is an incredibly powerful story, very effectively told through the medium of comic art. It is an affirmation of the power of visual media, and an example of how comics can be used for much more than funnies and fantasies. It is also probably the most effective anti-nuclear material I have ever come across.

You may think, that the world we live in makes no sense. You may desperate to find poetry, pure joy and deep understanding of the true nature of things. Then please, take a wonderful moment of freedom and happyness and browse through "the Dao of Zhuangzi". The art of Tsai Chih Chung is unique and the message is enlightning.

This is an excellent introdution to Daoist thought, as well as thourough review.I am a fan of C.C.Tsai's other works and this is one of my favorites.

I have became interested in this book after reading "The Tao Speaks" by the same author. Previously, I have read the Tao Te Ching years ago, and found it a mostly unintelligible and illogical document. For years I have given up on trying to understand anything because it made little sense. That is, until I met this wonderful cartoon series by Zhizhong Cai. Here I found even some of the most complicated and esoteric principles of Taoism explained using brilliant flowing art and very simple examples from ordinary experience. The Zhuangzi is the perhaps lesser known of the two masterpieces of Taoist literature. I actually like it more than the Tao Te Ching. [Zhuangzi is the one who dreamed about a butterfly, and woke up wondering whether he's really Zhuangzi who dreamed of a butterfly, or whether he's really a butterfly who's now dreaming he's Zhuangzi]. I find the cartoon panels very illuminating and hilariously funny at the same time. It makes the principles of Zhuangzi much more lucid and vivid, and easier to remember and understand.

This book is a little bigger than the Dao speaks, containing almost 125 pages each having roughly 6 panels per page. The art is very beautiful and interesting. Further, the edition I have (which is square in shape) has a side panel in every page containing the text of the Zhuangzi in Chinese (reading top to bottom the traditional way). I found that very interesting and adds an artistic touch to the volume. It is also useful to me since I am currently learning Chinese. Note that (1) there are two books about Zhuangzi: this one and another called "The Zhuangzi Speaks", and that (2) there is an older edition of this series which omits this panel (so the book has a more rectangular aspect ratio). What I don't like is that they changes the titles of the books between the two series (used to be "The Sayings of Zhuangzi" Books 1 and 2). So once I bought Book 2 thinking it corresponds to the book I don't have ("The Zhuangzi Speaks"), and ended up with the same book I possess. So be careful. In any case it wasn't such a big mistake, as the price was right and I ended up giving the second book as a gift.

Modern language and ancient wisdom juxtapose nicely with simple, fun graphic illustrations.

Just getting started on your desire to understand eastern philosophies? Have you stood at the bookstore for hours pouring over where to start and what to buy?

Any of this authors books are a wonderful place to start. The reason? Because these books are all about the title subject in a nutshell, easy to read as a comic book, the story lines and illustrations are wonderful, and after you read this as well as all the other books by Tsai, you will have a great, well rounded start on your path and will know what you want to study more deeply!

To add, when others ask you about your interest in eastern philosophy, you can get them started here as well, because these books are fun, consise, and you know they will enjoy them over and over again!

This man knows no limits, and lets you know it. His biting social commentary gives you no choice but to laugh and think - a winning combination for the best of authors, let alone a cartoonist.

John Callahan is nothing shy of brilliant. The title "Digesting the Child Within" demonstrates in itself the amazing sense of humor of the author. He has the keen ability to take issues and situations that seem humorless, and with his witt, make them really funny. Not unlike Larson he has the remarkable ability to think of the most absurd things and makes them hysterical. Everyone I have shown his books to has enjoyed them. Bar none.

I've shown this book to many friends. Watching as they look through it, I have yet to find one person who does not laugh out loud, usually within the first few pages, and then it gets louder. Callahan spoofs holy cows others dare not touch.

. . .when you first open this book. Be especially careful not to
eat or drink as danger of choking during a laugh spasm increases.
Also, if you find yourself cutting cartoons out of this book to
send (pointedly) to friends, try not to cut yourself. In fact,
sharp instruments aren't such a good idea either, so maybe it's
best to just send them their own copies which are, heaven
knows, cheap enough.

What makes Callahan so ridiculously funny is that he apparently
spends a lot of time thinking and not very much drawing. What
he thinks about are things like dogs reserving their seats in
the movies by urinating around them, the exotic dancer vomiting
up cake at the bulimia convention and of course the sherrif's
posse that finds the fugitive's abandoned wheel chair in the desert
and is told 'don't worry, he won't get far on foot'.

The best way to use this book is to leave it in the bathroom
when you have guests and listen for the howls of laughter
followed by the gasping sounds as your company struggles to
catch its breath.

--Lynn Hoffman, author of THE NEW SHORT COURSE IN WINE and
the forthcoming novel bang BANG from Kunati Books. ISBN 9781601640005

"Do Not Disturb Any Further" is a collection of one-panel cartoons by John Callahan. In a cover blurb, "Far Side" cartoonist Gary Larson says of Callahan, "[H]e makes my own work look normal."

Callahan may be the ultimate politically incorrect cartoonist. Nothing is taboo in this book. He mines humor from the following subject matter: AIDS, blindness, obesity, hell, baldness, suicide, anal sex, eating disorders, demonic possession, crucifixion, homelessness, and evolution, among others.

Callahan's subject matter is well served by his ultra-crude drawing style. His grotesque human figures are ugly and misshapen (but oddly endearing!).

I'll describe two typical cartoons from this book. A female Grim Reaper, accompanied by two Reaper children, encounters a man giving away free puppies. The little Reapers excitedly ask, "Mommy! Mommy! Can we kill the puppies?" In another equally warped cartoon, a man is confronting his topless wife, one of whose breasts has been replaced by a pirate hook. He exclaims, "You're going back to that surgeon and demanding a more attractive prosthetic device!"

Is Callahan the most depraved and offensive cartoonist of all time? I don't know, but I do think he's one of the funniest. If you've got a strong stomach and a thick skin, enjoy!

Now in a newly revised and expanded edition, Einstein Simplified: Cartoons On Science by Sidney Harris (easily one of America's most acclaimed science cartoonists) brings originality, insight, and appreciation for the oddities, quirks, eccentricities, and occasional culture shocks that the contemporary sciences so often inject into our ordinary (and often extraordinary) daily life. Demonstrably doing for science what Scott Adams' "Dilbert" cartoons have done for business, Einstein Simplified will delight scientists, academicians, and non-specialist general readers alike!

... it would be necessary to invent him.

It's not just that his comics are really funny. They certainly are, but they also use real issues in science and public perception of it to make real points. Like that counter in a department store selling "Pheromones: Lanvin, Dior, Chanel, ..." Or that general telling that scientist "All we want is something new that will incapacitate the enemy without giving us bad press." Some strike just a bit close to home for me, like the labs labeled "Research" and "Development," with the lab labelled "Bottlenecks" standing between them.

The most remarkable thing is how current so many of these issues are: genetic engineering, environmental pollution, chemical hazards, and more. These comics were originally printed between 1971 and 1986, 20-35 years ago now, and the only thing dated about them is occasional bell-bottoms! They're still as pertinent (and sometimes impertinent) as ever.

Maybe what makes these comics last so well is that, even if the science changes, the scientists don't. They just as human and just a fallible now as two thousand years ago, and they're the real subjects of Harris's affectionate gibes.

-- wiredweird

this book is for the science enthusiast. i bought the book 3 years ago and i still enjoy leafing through and reading the cartoons. i highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys intelligent humor because you will get a good laugh.

I'm not a scientist and don't pretend or intend to be. Nevertheless, I thought this book was hilarious. Harris does for science and technology what Scott Adams (who created the *Dilbert* cartoon) does for the business world. He illustrates the funny sides of the scientific and technological environments in such a simple and funny way that just about everyone can enjoy it.

If you have even the remotest interest in science and/or technology . . . or even if you just think that some of what goes on in those environments can be a little wacky or bizarre at times, then this book will definitely make you laugh out loud.

This one's hard to write a review on -- you kinda have to see the cartoons yourself, and you'll either laugh or you won't. My bet is if you're even considering buying the book, you'll laugh at 'em. And you'll find at least a few worth passing around or pasting on your office door. They cover the gamut of science and engineering topics.

promt delivery. recommended by one of my tutors at university. frank easy to read, some of the illustrations made me smile but i found them easy to remember.

The pictures were fun (especially pg. 79) and the text clear and informative. This book has explained some Freudian concepts better than some of my classes in college have! Fun and stimulating at the same time... what more could someone ask for?

The 'xxx for beginners' are marvellous not just because they give you a valuable grounding in forbidding subjects, allowing you to approach primary texts with more confidence, but because they are so entertaining, even in subjects you have little interest in. Though this book is a much-needed introduction to and exposition of Freud's basic theories, making you feel clever as you join the dots you always knew were there but for the intimidating jargon, the real joy is in the irreverent presentation, especially the illustrations. These are full of in-jokes about Freud's life and times which are not always treated explicitely in the text, as well as being technically expert, imaginative and, sometimes, bracingly shocking. So while it is pleasing, in these anti-Freudian times, to be reminded of the man's incalculable importance and influence, the illustrations offer an in-built critique that puts everything in perspective. Great fun.

This book is just a book, but a better book than its successor of the same title by Richard Osborne. Mostly because it does not hang onto the relationship between Jung and Freud as long and focuses more on the theories of Freud. In fact, what I really enjoyed about this book is that gave a good round about summary of most of Freuds theories inside each book. Certainly acts a good stepping stone for those who need to know Freud in a hurry and wants the gist of his work. Richard Appignanesi displays good understanding of Freuds work and summarizes it well and concise. Reccomended for the prodigal psychologist.

(See page 79 for explanation and a very funny illustration of the second stage of psychosexual development). This book, in addition to being very informative, is also incredibly funny. Very well written and drawn; though in the form of a comic book, it is nevertheless a splendid introduction to Freud's life and work. The author and illustrator are quite witty as well as knowledgeable, and in this book they have succeeded at what should be the goal of all beginners' book writers: piqued my interest in the subject and made me want to learn more. Would be a great supplementary text in a course on Freud or on psychology/psychoanalysis in general. Highly recommended!

What a great follow up to WARTS AND ALL and ANY SIMILARITIES TO PERSONS... Friedman is a lot of fun to look at and a lot of fun to marvel at his craftsmanship. I only wish there were less portriats and more of the comic work he's so good at, especially when his brother is writing it!

I guess I've been following Drew Friedman's work for about 25 years now. I think it just gets better.

Drew's pioneering use of his hand-made halftone technique was really amazing right from the get-go. Now that he's moved into other media and color (!), it's easy to see that there's an extremely talented artist at work here in addition to an innovative craftsman. Nobody draws better likenesses and Drew's are simulataneously accurate and satirical. Without the gross exaggeration you find in most caricature work, Drew captures the image of these famous and semi-famous people, and adds something indefinable to it. The result is an almost photographic portrait, a satirical comment and an outlandish cartoon all rolled into one.

The book begins with a long biography which I found fascinating. Even as a kid, Drew was extraordinary. (I won't spoil it for you.)

The artwork (and there's lots of it) is dazzling. The comic strips and illustrations are funny, poignant, silly, sad, disturbing, wonderful and puzzling, sometimes all in one piece.

If you're a fan of Drew's work this is a must-have. If you're new to Drew Friedman, this is a good introduction. Cheap at twice the price.

This writer is somewhat bemused by the review submitted by one called Gagoon.
In any overview of Mr. Friedman's work nothing less than pure compassion shines through in his portraits of has been B-Movie bit players, forgotten TV stars, et. al.
Even a casual perusal of this artist's masterpiece, "Old Jewish Comedians" will vefify this:
The look of sad desperation on old Bud Abbott's eyes, a forgotten Mousey Gardner wrapped in an electric blanket, reveal nothing less than an emphatic heart.
As Mr. Clowes points out in his insightful forward to this tome:
"How can you look at the box of Uncle Sam Cereal on Red the Bartender's
table and not feel a twinge?"
And so we question the mindset of "Gagoon" (if that IS his real name) and the nonsense he presents.
Sit back with this latest collection from Mr. Friedman and savor it like a fine meal.
He's a G'boy.

The Fun may never stop, but, alas, this collection terminates after page 144 leaving the reader crying for more.

Whether Friedman loves or loathes humanity is irrelevant. He understands the power of schtick to be able cloud men's minds so that they actually believe that a child/man screeching, "Wanna buy a duck?" is a knee-slapping riot.

He also understands how to use a brush.

By the way, this book contains one of the greatest one-page comics of all time.

Get out your credit card.

Drew Friedman's distaste of humanity is equaled in intensity only by his loving devotion to the myriad design flaws of the packages that it arrives in.
Friedman has logged more honest man-hours toiling in the dermal pleats, gorges and buboes of the rich and famous than any Beverly Hills cosmetic surgeon that ever lived.
His celebrity topographies should be a compulsory cultural vaccination for every American citizen within striking range of People magazine!

I LIKED THIS BOOK - I ORDERED IT FOR MY SEVEN YEAR OLD AND READ IT TO HIM. THE CARTOON FORMAT IS FUN AND THE TEXT IS TRUE TO THE ORIGINAL MYTHS. SOME OF THE HUMOUR WAS OVER HIS HEAD, BUT IF YOU STICK TO THE TEXT AND LEAVE OUT THE DIALOGUE "BUBBLES" THE STORIES ARE WELL TOLD.

My daughter is 10, and loves this book. Her Grandmother gave it to her when she was about 5. She reads it with her Grandmother whenever possible. I notice it has helped with her reading a great deal. She will "act" out the characters while they read and gets very into the stories. Her favorite is Pandora's Box. The stories are a great educational tool, she is learning lessons and doesn't even realize it. She will ask questions and want to know more about different subjects brought up in the stories.
I recommend this book highly!

Does your child look at you blankly when you mention "Pandora's Box"? Do they think that "Hercules" is a Disney-originated character? Even the most stubborn young reader will get a kick out of this comic book version of some of the Greek myths, and you will too when you read the hilarious little speech boxes of the cartoon drawings.

This book introduces the following myths in a very basic bare-bones format, but without sparing the gory bits:

Pandora's Box - starring Prometheus, Zeus, Epimetheus and Pandora

Arion and the Dolphins - starring Periander and Arion, with a cast of a couple dozen extras and some dolphins

Orpheus and Eurydice - otherwise known as "Don't Look Back", featuring Orpheus and Eurydice of course, plus Charon, Cerberus, Pluto and Persephone

The Twelve tasks of Heracles (also known as Hercules) - this story also has Hera, Eurystheus, some Amazons, and a lot of beasts and monsters. Some animals were reportedly injured during the making of this story.

Daedalus and Icarus - also with Athene and King Minos

Perseus and the Gorgon's Head - Acrisius, Danae, Perseus, Dictys, Polydectes, Athene, Hermes, plus the all-girl groups of Gorgons, Grey Ones and Ocean Nymphs.

Theseus and the Minotaur - King Minos, Theseus, Aegeus, Ariadne, and a Minotaur in a labyrinth

Arachne versus Athene - A weave-off to end all weave-offs

Illustrated in vivid color and injected with humor, this book may not have all the myths, but will be enough to develop your child's interest in mythology. You can also make a note to try the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (young adult fiction), which also introduces Greek mythology.



Amanda Richards, July 2, 2006

This book was very funny. I liked the comic strips. My favorite story was the one about Perseus and the Gorgon head. My five year old sister loved this book too. Her favorite story was the one about Arachne.

When I first saw this book, before giving it to my son, I didn't think he would care for the format of it. Boy, was I wrong. I guess 5 year old boys have different tastes than their moms. We had to read this every night for months! Some of the comic strips are kind of gross, but of course, he loved that too. If your child is interested in Hercules, he or she will probably LOVE learning about all the other heroes (and villains) in Greek mythology. I highly recommend this book.

The publisher here has given us a pretty good overview of this work in their synopsis and our one reviewer has given us a wonderful history of this great good. I will refrain from doing a book report here. I will say though, that this is one of the most delightful works I have had the pleasure of reading over the years. I first encountered this work in the early 1960s and have off and on over the years read it again and again. As the author so well puts it "The Great American Novel Told Without Words." Ths illustrations are of course pure Gross and there is humor in every frame, from the first to the last. This is certainly a work that proves that a picture is worth a thousand word, although in this case, the pictures cover many more words than the saying goes. I am delighted to see that this one is in print again and hopefully some of the author's other work will be also reprinted soon. We will be much richer for it. I highly recommend this one.

This is one of the greatest books ever written! Milt Gross is right up there with George Herriman and Bill Watterson. He's truly one of the best cartoonists of all time, and this is his "wordless novel", not unlike the comic strip in the Nickelodeon magazine: "Scene But Not Heard/ by Sam Henderson". Why aren't they coming out with a book of Gross' comic strips? (Nize Baby, Banana Oil, That's My Pop, Count Screwloose etc.) Well, this is a great book, nonetheless.

Everything the publisher says about "He done her wrong" is true, though it omits Goss's own description: "The Great American Novel. And not a word in it--no music, too."

All I can hope is that someone will start reprinting Gross's words, too. He was as adept at dialect humor as he was at cartooning and was a famous man in his day--my father still recalls the opening of "Hiawatta wit no odder pomes". Search the used book shelves for the non-adventures of his Lower East Side narrators in books like "Nize baby" and "Dunt Esk!"--they're guaranteed to make you like the Keeng in "Nize Baby's" version of Romplesealskin: "extrimmingly jubilious, wot he robbed gliffully de hends."

Gross was one of the geniuses of American cartooning. This satire of the then popular novel-in-wood-cuts is a masterpiece of inspired silliness, one of the first graphic novels. Under the title "Hearts of Gold" it was reprinted in an expurgated paperback version. Presumably this Dover edition restores the censored sequence in a Harlem night club

I'm not sure what Milt Gross would have made of contemporary critics - and their claim that he was the father of the modern graphic novel. I'm guessing his reaction would have been akin to A HARD DAY'S NIGHT director Richard Lester's famous reply to MTV. (When the music network hailed him as the 'Father of Music Videos', Lester responded by insisting on a blood test!)

One of the great American humorists of the 20th Century, Gross was a brilliant New York-based newspaper cartoonist whose creations include DAVE'S DELICATESSEN, BANANA OIL, THAT'S MY POP, PETE THE POOCH, OTTO AND BLOTTO, COUNT SCREWLOOSE FROM TOOLOOSE, and GROSS EXAGGERATIONS - classics, all. His original, wildly cartoony drawing style and hilarious "Yinglish" dialogue, still funny after three quarters of a century, held not a hint of modern-day pretentiousness. Comparing him to Frank Miller and Art Spiegelman can only demean him. (Sorry, fanboys.)

HE DONE HER WRONG is a bona fide classic, like all Gross' books - and one that seems impervious to time, since it was deliberately anachronistic from the git-go. Originally a burlesque of Lynd Ward's wordless woodcut novels of the 1920's, that point of reference is lost on modern readers because, like Lewis Carroll's song parodies, the spoof has become more famous than the original! A felicitous turn of events.

This book was notoriously censored (and re-titled HEARTS OF GOLD) when it was re-issued in 1983, further indication - as if we needed any more - of America's contempt for its own cultural legacy.
The wise folks at Fantagraphics, however, have promised to present the restored, uncut version - rather than dignify all the self-appointed p.c. Thought Police out there. (You KNOW who you are!)

Hopefully - although it's a facsimile of the first edition from 1930 - they'll find a way to include Al Capp's affectionate tribute to Gross from his introduction to the 1963 edition.
Also, hopefully, it'll pave the way for the wholesale republication of other Gross classics - like NIZE BABY, DUN'T ESK, FAMOUS FIMMALES, I SHOULDA ATE THE ECLAIR, HIAWATTA WITT NO ODDER POEMS, DEAR DOLLINK and DE NIGHT IN DE FRONT FROM CHREESMAS - all of which have been too long out-of-print.

A definitive, coffee table art book on Gross and his contributions to American comic strips and animated cartoons is long, long overdue. For more on Milt Gross, visit Shane Glines' excellent website: Cartoon Retro, and the ASIFA Animation Archive.