R CRUMB letter and RIP Gary Leib
When I was a young man , in the early 80s, my friend Ben and I published an underground comic called watermelon. It’s hard to remember the timing of cultural developments , but I think it was just before zines took of in a big way, as we had to use a real printer that made metal plates ect . I guess it was the 90s when there was this , what I would describe, as a 2nd wave of underground comics . Before that , I had read zap comics, and a few others . Robert Crumb, like a lot of people, was a favorite of mine . His style of drawing had an accessibility that was combined with a very psychedelic sensibility. When the comics of the 90s appeared , there was a lot of great works . They were cheap ( ish ) beautiful works of art , my favorite was weirdo, stickboy, idiotland , trailer trash , eightball , Ed the happy clown . I didn’t really know who these people where , and it never seemed to matter . I never got into the nitty gritty of comics , I didn’t read the comics journal , ect , I just liked the comics themselves. I liked them more than any artwork you could see at the beautiful art galleries in London. I liked that there was no real hierarchy I could figure out .
After some time, I had a great deal of personal problems, ending in drug addiction, homelessness, prison , stuff like that , and I kinda lost touch with most things like that . I would read a lot ( I compulsively stole books ) I would switch between crime novels , philosophy, and esoteric literature. I would read these books on the street corner with a sign that read , I will draw anything for any amount of money you like . I mostly got a lot of freaks wanting me to draw bizarre sex fantasies, or themselves as being a rich rock star. I didn’t get that many customers. I looked a mess , mostly people would just drop some spare change in the paper cup I had placed in front of me .
Eventually I cleaned up , and through a series of totally unexpected and somewhat troubling circumstances, I ended up having to move to Cambodia. I sold all those great comics and books I had stored here and there , and with a few 100 bucks moved to Phnom Penh. It was to be near my daughter, who was only a little kid at the time. It was the only way I would be able to see her as she grew up , be around for her .
I managed to survive as an “ artist “ in Cambodia, somehow. That was around 16 years ago now . In Cambodia, I completely lost touch with any cultural developments in the west . From what I could figure out , comics had become a big thing, and , well , it was all graphic novels now . Some of the comics I read , the artists , I guess , had become a big deal . I wasn’t really sure . When I started my own underground comic again here , headache , I , somehow having acquired his Address , wrote crumb a letter , asking if I could reprint some of his stuff.
I had never worked out where I fit into to anything, where in any hierarchy I was , I always assumed, no where . Of no significance. I was ok with that . Maybe that why I thought I could write one of the most famous cartoonist in the world of underground comics a letter , I don’t know. Anyway, he wrote a few back , and , indeed did allow me to reprint his drawings. He is , apparently, quite well known for being very generous with his support of artists. A nice quality I think. I share one of his letters here , because, I know people find him interesting.
On another note , I heard Gary lieb died . He did a comic book I loved , called idiotland , back in the 90s. I know nothing about the guy , but that comic was great.
Yes , I know , people die all the time, and it’s sad for those that loved them,and it’s kinda odd to single out people you have never meet or know nothing about, but , I have a idiotland framed on my wall with a few other comics. So, I glad he did them, I grateful for him for that . Who knows what it all means.
