MoCCA Thursdays
MoCCA Thursdays are a regularly scheduled series of lectures, conversations, and presentations with comic and cartoon art creators, critics and publishers.

July 16th, 7 p.m. 2009
MoCCA Thursday:
David Mazzucchelli and Dan Nadel in Conversation
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.




July 21st, 7 p.m. 2009
Scarlett Takes Manhattan Book Release with Molly Crabapple and John Leavitt
Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members
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 and 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.

RECENT EVENTS

June 18, 7pm
MoCCA Thursday: Typhon Carousel
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.

Thursday, May 7, 7PM
Cartoonist Roundtable with Arie Kaplan
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.

Thursday, April 30, 2009 7-9PM
World War 3 Illustrated #39 Release Party
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 it's 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

Wednesday, April 29th, 7pm
Wolverine: Inside the World of the Living Weapon with Chris Claremont and Matthew K. Manning
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.

Thursday, April 23rd, 7pm
Chuck Jones Memories of Childhood screening and discussion with filmmakers Peggy Stern and John Canemaker
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.

Friday, April 17th, 6:30pm
FROM SCREEN TO SCREAM: How Paramount Pictures Famous Cartoons became Harvey Comics Classics
Jerry Beck on the History of Harvey Comics
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.

Thursday, April 16th, 7pm
Cecil's Quest by František Skála
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.

Thursday, March 26th, 7pm
Tales of the Black Freighter Viewing and Discussion
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.

Thursday, March 19th, 7pm
Watchmen in Context

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.

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.
Admission: $5 | Free for members

Friday - Sunday, February 6, 7, & 8
New York Comic Con
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!

Sunday, Feb. 8, 1:30pm at NYCC
Comics and the Language of Visual Symbolism
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

Thursday, January 22nd 7pm
From Batman to Gandhi: Comics from Super Heroes to the Nonviolent
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.

Admission: $5 | Free for MoCCA Members

Saturday, January 24th 1-4pm
Workshop: Making Comics in Adobe Flash

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.

Martin Luther King Day, Monday, January 19th 2-4pm
Urban Empathy: Living with Compassion in the Big Apple
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.

January 8, 7 pm
Cartoonist Roundtable with Stan Goldberg
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.

November 20, 6:30 pm
Graphic Novels from Europe
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

November 13, 7 pm
Kim Deitch Q & A with curator Bill Kartalopoulos
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.

October 30, 7 pm
Cartoon Movie Night with Kim Deitch
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.

October 29, 10 am – 5 pm one day only!
MAD Contemporary Art Treasures:
The Most Classic Original Art from MAD Magazine