Springtime for Batman No.1

This drawing of Lewis Wilson as the first live-action Batman in the 1943 Columbia Pictures serial was originally done in 2015 for an installment of Prince Street News about the history of the Caped Crusader's outfits, newly hand-colored in non-traditional hues. 

Barcade Boards IV

Hey, here's another batch of random chalkboard scrawlings done over the past few years at various Barcade locations (two of which I also sling drinks for a living)... I'll get to do this again soon as they/we open the seventh location in downtown Newark NJ (where I also happen to live, so this will be a quick commute). The photo at the top is me doing my most frequent update, redoing the draft list in Jersey City (my primary location). Also, there's an embarrassing typo in one of the photos, in which I screw up our slogan, "The Original Arcade Bar" by adding the company's "B" in front of "Arcade," making it kind of superfluous. I later fixed it.  There are a few repeated themes in this gallery from the previous three, but heck, it's been a while, you probably don't remember.

Prince Street News: Four Color Traditions!

Jeez Louise, was I jazzed to do this installment of Prince Street News. BACK ISSUE! #85 is dedicated to Christmas comic books of the Bronze Age, a merging of passions that makes my black little heart (like that of a certain Seussian Scrooge) grow three sizes. I can still remember finding the first DC and Marvel treasuries (and the Archie digest I'm holding in the final panel) at the newsstand that gave this comic strip its name back in 1973-74, and I still pull them out and read them every year. While there have been some collections of holiday comic book stories, I still feel like the definitive anthologies have yet to be compiled. Now THAT would be a dream job.

In the meantime, as the song says, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. See you next year.

Prince Street News: The Sartorial Story of the Sundry Supergirls!

It's PSN time again, kidlets, and this one was super-fun to do (SUPER-fun! Get it?). As I posted last, I (along with a gaggle of swell cartoonists) got to provide the cover for BACK ISSUE! #84, spotlighting Kara Zor-El's Bronze Age adventures in the comics and onscreen. This installment of Prince Street News focuses on the outfits that not just Kara, but other Supergirls have worn over the years in DC Comics.

In another case of bad timing (similar to what happened with the installment about The Flash and Green Lantern), I turned this strip in literally one day before CBS released its first image of Melissa Benoist in her Supergirl costume from the new TV show. I quickly drew another panel and tried to figure out a way to insert it into the strip, but it just felt like what it was: a forced add-on. My editor Michael Eury was kind enough to add the panel as a coda in the letters page of this issue.

Next issue features another PSN dealing with a topic near and dear to my little black heart: Christmas comics!

Adventure Comics 397 Redux!

I love comic book cover redux projects (the late, great COVERED blog was one of my favorites). I also enjoy costume redesigns (see PROJECT: ROOFTOP for many examples, both pro and fan). I wanted to marry the two concepts by doing a version of ADVENTURE COMICS #397 from 1970. The cover (by Mike Sekowsky and Dick Giordano) depicts Superman's cousin, Kara trying to select a new outfit. In that issue, Supergirl's costume (the same one she'd worn since her debut in 1959) was destroyed, and for the next few years, she embarked on a fashion adventure that woulda' made Katy Keene proud, donning new outfits until finally settling on a puffy sleeved hot pants number.

So, here's a project that I undertook over two years ago, but have been waiting to post because it turned into something much bigger than I originally intended. Rather than do all the costume redesigns myself, I enlisted a bunch of artists (some pals, some just people whose work I like) to jam with me on this redux, and I was more than thrilled with the results.

From left to right, the contributing artists are Jon Morris (whose new book, THE LEAGUE OF REGRETTABLE SUPERHEROES is a must for any fanboy's shelf), Dean Haspiel (one of the few cartoonists whose breadth spans Harvey Pekar and the Fantastic Four, among many others), Stephen DeStefano (who bounces between working in animation, comics, and drawing Popeye for licensing), Kristen McCabe (gape in awe here and here), Bob Fingerman (he of MINIMUM WAGE fame, among other great graphic novels), and Jackson Publick (creator of the always genius THE VENTURE BROS.). My huge thanks to all of these talented folks for indulging me in this project.

In fact, I was so happy with the finished product that I offered it to my editor at BACK ISSUE! Magazine, Michael Eury, thinking that maybe he'd squeeze it into an appropriate issue somewhere. Instead, Michael decided to dedicate an entire issue to the Girl of Steel (or Maid of Might, as she's sometimes known), and used the jam piece for the cover of BI! #84 (on sale now)!

And yes, there's a PRINCE STREET NEWS about Supergirl's sartorial history inside the issue as well, which I will post in a few weeks... but for now, here's the ADVENTURE 397 redo, a closer look at my designs (one of which went unused), and the BI! cover alongside Sekowsky's original comic book cover.

Barcade Blackboards III

Yeesh, it's been a long time since I've posted more work from my day job as a bartender at Barcade (Jersey City and Chelsea). This year, I was invited by the owners to redo the blackboards at the Brooklyn and St. Marks locations in addition to the two where I pull the taps (with more to come!). I was quite excited about the expansion of my addition to the brand... too excited, actually. The hanging board near the bottom of the gallery is located at the original Brooklyn Barcade, opened in 2004. The day the bar opened, owner Paul Kermizian climbed up on a ladder and wrote, "Tonight only: Good Times!" on it. And thus it remained, for over a decade. When Paul and I were discussing my redoing the boards, he asked me to leave this particular one untouched, as it was an historical artifact for the Barcade chain.

And then I got to Brooklyn, took out the chalk... and forgot. I grabbed a ladder, climbed up with my trusty wet bar rag, and wiped out the Good Times, replacing it with Pinty's admonitions. The next morning, going through the e-mails with Paul, I re-read his edict, and felt my stomach drop to my ankles. I e-mailed him immediately, and while he wasn't happy, luckily for me, Paul's an accommodating (and forgiving) guy, and we worked out a compromise to bring back the message of the original board (if not the actual writing). 

Please note that all of the events listed below have come and gone! But download that Barcade app and check out the upcoming events at all locations. Mayhaps I'll even be the one filling your glass.

Jersey City sandwich board

light up sign hanging by the kitchen window at our Jersey City location

New Jersey's best brewery, if yez ask me. 

Two different Nosferatu from JC and Chelsea locations

Get it? Wolverine likes DuClaw. Because, claws. 

That's Charlie Brown, and his pal, "Lionel" (according to my boss, Drew)

Another mighty fine New Jersey brewery. 

This was the board I was asked to leave untouched. It was also the only thing I'd signed up till that point. Whoops.

The "new" version, approximating the original message. I'll still always be the guy who erased "Good Times!"