Jan 12, 1997
[for Evan] Who influences your work the most? (this was probably in an interview,
but I don't read interviews.) -- Evan Billingsley, Shaft99367@aol.com
Evan: Quite honestly, these days my work is often as influenced or more influenced by my friends and by my own life as from other sources like films or books or comics. A lot of ideas for Hectic Planet and my strips, even the humor and gag strips, usually come out of a conversation or an experience I've had with Sarah or friends that triggers an idea in me. Sarah is a major influence on me for several reasons, she introduced computers into my life, we co-write all our tv work and some comics work, and our relationship is reflected in my work in many ways. Nowadays my comics influences aren't as strong on me as they were growing up, as I've discovered I'm more of a writer than an artist, and most comics writing isn't as strong as the visuals, so there's little to take there as an inspiration. I think film, humor comics and sketch comedy writing I liked as a kid -- SCTV, Pythoin, early Sat Nite Live, Mad magazine and the reprint comics, Peanuts -- have had more of an effect on my work, or as much, as the superhero and monster stuff I liked as a kid. I didn't realize that until I realized much of my recent work was blackout, parody and sketch-style material, on Space Ghost, in M&C and Dork etc. I hope that answers the question somewhat -- my influences change a lot, you forget what had a hold on you at times and what shapes your material -- but again, lately it's been the sum of everything, I've never gone though a "period" where I was wrapped up in Kirby's style or German expressionism or the writings of Oscar Wilde if you know what I mean.
Jan 13, 1997
[For both] You guys have done a lot of different things: comics, zines, tv
writing, album covers, etc. Is there any creative medium that you haven't
tried yet, but would like to? -- J. Kevin Carrier, jkcarrier@aol.com
Sarah: Hmmm, I don't know. There's stuff I would like to do more of that I used to do -- painting, sculpting and so on. But nothing "professionally" comes to mind. A book I guess.
Evan: I 'd love to do a children's book, with honest-to-god production values and everything. And I would like to develop something of ours into animation, but with an active participation, not as a licensing deal or option we're not part of -- that's why we haven't sold any of our properties. I doubt either will ever happen, but I've toyed with the idea of making my own short animated films. Then I realize I can hardly get my static comics work done and chuck the idea. I wish I could paint, or write a full screenplay for something as well. But I also wish I could juggle, play a musical instrument, tap-dance, do sleight-of-hand card tricks, etc etc -- as it is, I'm lucky I can do anything.
Jan 14, 1997
[For both] What comics if any do you both read at the moment? -- Tim Wright,
tright@cub.ulsop.ac.uk
Sarah: As far as on-the-racks stuff goes, not much. I read the Adventures of Batman & Robin book pretty faithfully -- it's probably my favorite "mainstream" book. Actually, it's probably my favorite book coming out these days. I read a lot of older comics (60s and some 70s) and I've been reading the Sailor Moon manga with the help of a translation. I'm sure there's more, but that's all I've picked up in the last couple months, I think. I do read a lot of the stuff Evan picks up, but I might not buy it on my own.
Evan: Man -- Sarah just answers and gets out -- she's a pro. I'm a babbler. The comics I've picked up recently -- when they come out -- have been New Love, Whoa Nellie!, Tug and Buster, Batman and Robin Adventures, Eightball, Land of Nod, Atomic City Tales, Skeleton Key (tho' I'm way behind on 'em), Stray Bullets, Palookaville, Black Hole, Pickle, Jim Woodring's stuff, Java Town...there must be others but I'm drawing a blank. I liked Hummingbird #1, Stuck Rubber Baby -- hmmm, I like much of Chris Ware's stuff, Jessica Abel's Artbabe is neat, so's Sam Henderson's Magic Whistle mini. I honestly enjoy Action Girl Comics, not everything all the time or equally (which is true of any anthology), but I really like most everything in it. I usually don't read most of the material until after it sees print so I can enjoy it more. Kane is really good, and I actually was surprised to find I liked Hellboy. Can't think of anything else, tho' I know I'm forgetting ctuff I like. Mostly I've enjoyed the Jack Kirby comics I've been finding, mainly his 70's Fourth World material (not the god-awful hack job Fourth World "comic book" John Byrne just spat out that I saw in the shop today) and the Demon and some older stuff, and the Little Lulu libraries that Sarah and I picked up a while ago. There's not much in comics knocking me out nowadays that comes out regularly, not to mean my stuff is so big-time terrific and everything, that's just how I see it.
Jan 15, 1997
[For both] What kind of movies do you like, and have you ever considered
doing a hectic planet movie? They say Daniel Clowes is going to do a ghost
world movie based on those stories in eightball, and that it will be made
by Terry Zwigoff (the guy who made Crumb). Hectic Planet (the movie) could
be made on a nice modest budget and fit in with today's finest indie films.
What do you think? -- Matt Wilson
Sarah: I like all kinds of movies, although I don't see a lot of new ones. We're pretty into TCM and AMC, trying to catch movies by people we like that are hard to see (Deanna Durbin, Myrna Loy and Ida Lupino just to name a few) or wacky films like the old Nancy Drew series. Of course we watch lots of Japanese monster movies. I like 'em too, maybe not quite as much as some people around here. We both like movies a lot, but are usually disappointed by them. Some stuff we saw recently that we really liked: Heavenly Creatures, Big Night, Bottle Rocket...hmm, I'm sure there's more. And I'm sure Evan can think of them!
Evan: I'll try to be brief (yeah, right) -- films are probably my biggest influence, that and certain aspects of television -- even moreso than comics. Growing up as an insomniac semi-loner type like many cartoonists I know, I was a TV junkie (now recovering) -- and I watched a lot of NYC late-might movie fare. I like practically all kinds of films, like music, no genre is 100% awful. As a kid I was of course mainly into monsters, action and science-fiction (horror films scared me too much, I didn't start liking them until later). Off the top of my head, I like filmmakers such as Billy Wilder, Hitchcock, Jean Renoir, Kurasawa, pre-pedophile era Woody Allen (he just started to stink around then, go figure), John Huston, some Orson Welles, Kubrick, early Coppola, early Spielberg, Buster Keaton, Chaplin, George Cukor -- I really like much of the old Hollywood system fare -- even the B-films are more substantial than modern American mainstream films. I like the 30's-40's, parts of the silent era, many foreign films, noir, screwball comedy, all the typical genre junk both good and bad, the 70's anti-hero stuff, Hong Kong action and fantasy films -- I'll watch most anything if I have the time -- Sarah and I rarely get to go to the movies, and we have less time for cable nowadays. Even though I'm a film school graduate, I haven't seen a lot of "classic" or important films, domestic or foreign -- I tend to always catch junk when I can spare the time -- Staten Island also doesn't have the best theaters or rental joints, unfortunately. A list of films I like would take forever, some favorites, again off the top of my brain and for various reasons: The Sweet Smell of Success, Ace in the Hole, Rashomon, Godzilla, Pinocchio, The Bride of Frankenstein, Forbidden Zone, A Christmas Story, Dawn of the Dead, Wizard of Oz, Citizen kane, The Rules of the Game, King Kong, Sullivan's Travels, practically all of the Marx Brothers early films, blah blah blah, and many more.. As far as a Hectic Planet film goes, one can dream. A friend of mine used to tell me he'd want to make issue #3 into a film, expanding the gigantic supermarket story into a small film, limiting the SF material. Sounded good to me. I don't think HP would light a fire under any producer's ass, to be honest, but of all my material, it is the most story- and character-driven, and probably the most convertible to film. It's just not a real filmable comic, meaning, why would anybody want to film it. Most of my comics exist as comics, not as optionable material, they work best as comics, and would be diluted for the most part in another form. Not that I'm out and out opposed to adapting my work to film, it's just not something I worry about too much. How's that for "brief"?
Jan 16, 1997
[For both] Hey,I wanted to know if you named the House of Fun after that
Madness song and what ska bands you are currently listening to. I just saw
Skavoovie and the Epitones with MU330 and they were great.By the way I'm
the same wacky kid that invited you to my high school graduation recently.Thank
you for the very nice letter of response, I was indescribably thrilled when
it came. It's nice to see you care enough to write back. You guys are not
just my favorite comics duo, but my heroes. Thank you, and I look forward
to any new material. -- Dan Vergakis
Evan: Yeah, the House of Fun was taken long ago from the Madness song, my fave 80's band and one of my favorites of all time. I'm not really listening to a lot of current ska to be honest, we don't buy much new music and most new bands leave me cold, they all either seem to do the frat-punk-ska-kitchen sink thing, or the roots-traditional thing, without doing their own thing. Too many lame band names featuring "ska" in the name, too many lame lead singers, huffing horn sections and dull songs --or worse, songs about ska itself. Kinda gets repetitive, especially in the smallish world of ska. We used to get more stuff thru mailings when Sarah and I were more involved with music, she with her Mad Planet zine and me with local band art and steadier issues of Pirate Corp$! I'm sure there's good new stuff out there --I'm not a Two-Tone or Jamaican purist by any means --but I don't listen to a lot of new music at all, and ska is hard to find on the whole. So I hear drips and drabs, stuff on comps we've done cover art for, stuff on college radio or WFMU, or that friends have gotten. I know of the MTV variety stuff that Goldfinger didn't do it for me, nor did the newer No Doubt or Dance Hall Crashers material -- I liked the Rancid ska songs I've heard. Mainly I play my older Cds and albums, Madness, older Dance Hall Crashers, Op Ivy, Specials, Bim Skala Bim, Mephiskafales, Bosstones, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, Scofflaws...a lot of roots stuff gets played on certain WFMU shows. What can I tell you, I'm out of touch, another guy getting older and busier. I can't pick it up like I used to -- it's too expensive, and I'm too tired.
Jan 22, 1997
[For both] As a big movie hound, I was glad someone asked about your tastes
in movies. But as an even bigger Hong Kong movie hound, I was disappointed
to not see any in your reply when I've seen them mentioned in your strips.
So what's the scoop? You watch 'em? Like 'em? And which ones? (Whew! I feel
like Sam Donaldson now!) -- Jeff, jlester@earthlink.net
Sarah: Silly us! I knew I was forgetting stuff. We do in fact watch a lot of HK movies. I personally got into them through a friend (a devout Jackie Chan fan) who was showing me all of Jackie's stuff 80s -- of course when I got up to NYC, I got to see much more, between the film festivals and the theaters in Chinatown. Some of my personal favorites: Heroic Trio, Wing Chun, (anything with Michelle Khan, in fact) Iron Monkey, Hardboiled...there's been a lot of goofy stuff I liked too, like Here Comes the Judge. Shaolin Popeye was stupidly funny.
Evan: I love a lot of HK films, but I guess I just didn't think of any as "my favorite" at the time. I mean, I also left out Dr Strangelove (I think) and a few others I really like (Cool Hand Luke, The Last Emperor, etc etc), it always happens when you're asked to come up with a list. Sarah's HK faves pretty much speak for me as well, add Drunken Master 2 to the list, as well as Bride With White Hair and The East Is Red which I know Sarah loved as well. I also like the Chinese Ghost Story stuff, Once Upon a Time In China series, Magic Cop, hopping vampires and all that junk as well as the old Run Run Shaw crap like Return of the Flying Guillotine, Master Killer, Return of the18 Bronze Men (return from where?) when it was shown on local station WNEW in NYC when I was a kid. We don't have much time to rent videos or to trek to Chinatown to the Music Palace (which is where we saw a lot of films )-- or attend the occasional HK festivals like we used to. We did see High Risk with Jet Li a few months back, and a showing of Hard Boiled where Chow Yun Fat spoke (and hugged Sarah! Yikes! [and kissed me, hahaha -- sarah]). We rented Butterfly and Sword a while back at our Blockbuster, that was neat. I like the period action films a lot, the magic swordplay and kung fu that borders on comic book more than the gunplay stuff. Although I do like John Woo's stuff, where the action is so over the top it creates it's own reality.
Feb 26, 1997
[For both] I love all your work! Just wanted to write and say that I think
you both are the greatest!! -- Karen Deeter
Sarah: Uh...hi mom!! (no kidding, that's my mom -- she was on the internet before we were!)
Evan: I guess this means Sarah's mom knows we're living together now.
Mar 7, 1997
[For evan] I was really curious if you read Acme Comic Novelty Library and
what your thoughts on it were? (p.s.supported you for years, I have every
M & C, and the book....keep up the grand work...) -- Sam Lofi,
alcoff@brick.purchase.edu
Evan: Uh oh --a specific question about a specific book. Hot seat. Actually, I don't really know if I can give you a definite answer -- Acme Novelty Library isn't your average comic, and my mind's not totally made up on it yet -- I love the design and production, of course, that almost goes without saying. The art is terrific, the storytelling sometimes masterful, but sometimes the writing escapes me, sometimes it has an almost inhuman quality and I can't tell if I'm supposed to care about what's happening or laugh or just look at the typeography or wish I had time to build the robot figure in the back inside cover. Sometimes it just feels like design, style over content, to me at least. And then there are times when a strip is just plain creepy, or funny, or works on some level I don't know how to describe, I mean, Chris Ware pretty much is unlike anyone out there, this is his world -- sometimes it becomes very seductive, and sometimes it just leaves me flat. It's a unique book -- I'm certainly glad it's around, but sometimes it just doesn't work for me, which is perfectly fine, I think. At least these are comics, like Jim Woodring's, that I can go back to after some time and see if I get a different impression from them, whereas most comics, my own included, are more straightforward, for good or bad. I guess my mind kind of is made up on the book, just not every individual issue or strip. (Now you know why I don't review comics for fun or profit.)
Mar 19, 1997
[For evan] how is your hand? -- ron, lilgorgor@hotmail.com
Evan: It's okay, it's better than it was a few years ago for some reason. For those who are wondering, about eight years ago or so I was working in a comics shop on Staten Island when a stuck sliding glass door on a back-issue display shattered and a chunk of glass was imbedded in the back of my drawing hand. (My boss at the time insisted I shook the door and shattered it, okay, whatever. It's not like I was going to sue or anything.) Anyway, I was bleeding pretty badly but a moronic aversion to doctors and hospitals kept me from getting medical treatment for it. Upon leaving work my car battery was dead, getting it jumped tore open my wound and it started bleeding again. It stopped but when I woke up the next day it had opened again. My boss convinced me days later to finally get my hand looked at. There was no glass in it, no infection and no loss of circulation, but my drawing hand has been in constant pain ever since the accident. For several years my hand would cramp up after a long drawing or writing session, and I'd have to stop working, sometimes I couldn't even hold a pencil. Nowadays my hand still bothers me constantly, but for some reason it doesn't hamper me that much anymore. Bad weather can affect it and long work sessions will cause it to cramp up, but it's not so bad that I give it much thought anymore. Not much of a horror story but I've lived a soft life, what can I tell you? Thanks for asking, by the way. I guess I could've just said "better" and spared you all the details.
Apr 18, 1997
[For both] you two collaborate on a lot of stuff, and are friends as well,
but are you two involved more than professionally and as friends? I guess
what I want to know is, ARE YOU TWO GOIN' OUT? -- orangie S
Sarah: Are you being a smartass? I hate Evan.
Evan: Girls are ickie. I like comics. When I grow up I want to be a pirate.
Apr 20, 1997
[For both] What do you guys think of the sudden popularity of ska? Do you
agree with the bands that are getting all the credit for it? -- Andy Cushman,
acushman@erols.com
Sarah: Well, ska seems to get "popular" every year or two for a brief moment, so who knows if this little wave of press will stick. If it does, great, we'd be happy to hear more ska on the radio. As far as bands getting credit for it -- we're not too up on music mags so I don't really know who's being given credit for it or if that's fair.
Evan: As Sarah said, if something gets
popular, or at least gets pushed, it's easier to find that material both
new and old. If the trend dies, who cares, everything's back to normal and
for a year or so you could find ska reissues and new bands. And it's nice
that some bands make some money after kicking around for years playing music
that wasn't in favor at MtV. Some new turks will cahs in on the craze without
proving themsleves or perhaps not even "deserving" the attention or dough,
but that's how life and showbiz works. Maybe a bunch of people will discover
60's jamaican material or 2-Tone and keep it alive even if it doesn't become
grunge. And who the hell wants anything shovced that far and fast down your
throats anyway?
Anyway, the ska trend is most likely on it's way out, I saw a 2-Tone guy
on a beer ad in Manhattan months ago and Fruitopia ads now feature that
"pick-it-up" skank backbeat. Sounds like a death-knell to me.
Apr 20, 1997
[For evan] First off, I don't really have any legitimate questions to ask,
I'm just asking for the sake of speaking, (You can't really call this "speaking"
can you?), to the great Evan Dorkin. In the process of typing all that I
came up with a question. Did you know their is a band signed with Lookout
Records called Furious George? My buddies saw 'em at a punk show a few weeks
ago and sang some Ramones tunes with them. How did you ever conceptualize
Milk & Cheese? I'd think it would be quite impossible to materialize
somethin' that abstract, for the lack of a better word, in your head. That's
all I got to ask now. Bring on the beers 'cause here comes The Queers!!!!!!
(I just hadta give my fave surf-punk band a little free advertisin' their.)
While I'm on the topic of music what bands do you like? I like The Queers,
The Ramones, True Sounds of Liberty (TSOL), The Germs, The Sex Pistols, KMFDM,
They Might Be Giants, The Doors, Chumbawamba, Black Flag, and pretty much
anything original excludin' country and rap. This was way too long. I must
be pretty bored today. -- Jason Cataldo, Ashpunk1@hotmail.com
Evan: Jason -- yeah, I've seen the ads
in zines for Furious George, I felt a little weird about it, not that the
pun is so original, anyone could and should have thought of it -- but the
drawing on their album of the monkey in a leather jacket hit a bit close
to home to the George I drew in the Fun strips. Most likely it's a full
coincidence, but, whatever. A friend also told me a Furious George parody
was done for Mad TV. So, no more Furious George strips for me, that's pretty
tapped out. It's kind of annoying, as while FG was not a major concept I
would have done anythng with, it just frustrates me sometimes that comics
are so low-profile you could tinker with a joke or idea years before anyone
else and have it obliterated once something similar gets done on tv or in
a film or video. Oh well, at least it wasn't Milk and Cookies or anything.
Speaking of M&C, I don't rightly know where they came from, I think I
replied elsewhere about where they came from. It basically just happened,
no real reason behind it. Alcohol did play a part.
As for my musical tastes, without listing a kajillion bands, composers and
artists, if you look at the bands I've mentioned in my editorials and strips
in Dork! and Hectic Planet you can get an idea of what I listen
to. I like just about everything, including country (old down and out country,
not "today's country") and some rap (again, almost no new stuff, which all
sounds so dull and lame to me, head nodding boring R&B 70's-soaked blase
music). I like almost anything with energy, heart, spirit, true intelligence
and wit -- or at least a stubborn and willful lack of intelligence if you
know what I mean.
Apr 22, 1997
[For evan] I hate to ask such a general question, but here goes. What Ska
albums (any wave) do you consider essential classics or destined to be. I've
been hooked ever since I heard the "This are Two-Tone" comp in the summer
of '87. I've seen Bim Skala Bim at the old 930 Club, always caught locals
Burma Jam (Richmond, VA) before they split, & recently saw Easy Big Fella
open for the Skatalites at the Fenix in Seattle (4/19/97). I've even done
a little digging & found the "Club Ska" comps put out by Island Records
way back. If you could give some insight as to what your favorites are, I
would appreciate it. Finding out bands by word of mouth is still the best
way. Oh yeah, check out Kid Chango, a band that mixes Salsa & Ska to
good effect. -- Esskay, cinneide@ix.netcom.com
Evan: Off the top of my head, most of the 2-Tone material done around 79-81 or 82, The two Specials albums (Specials/More Specials), The first three or four Madness albums (One Step Beyond, Absolutely, Seven, Rise and Fall), the first two Selecter albums (can't recall the first, the second is Celebrate the Bullet), the early Bad manners albums (I don't have many of them), the entire (English) Beat catalogue. There's a ton of great original Jamaican ska compilations, the heavy hitters on them are Laurel Aitken, the Skatalites, Don Drummond, and other names escape me at the moment. I'm no expert, by the way, I just like the genre. As for more recent "third wave" material, I like early Toasters (Ska-Boom esp), early BimSkalaBim (as well as later, mellower Bim), the first batch of Fishbone albums (Fishbone, Truth and Soul, etc) The Mighty Mighty Bosstomes (More Noise and Other Disturbances is my favorite), Dance Hall Crashers 89-92 comp, everything by Operation Ivy, Hoodlum Empires' Loooking Good Cd, the first Steady Earnest album, old Donkey Show material, all Scofflaws, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, first Let's Go Bowling -- there's a ton of compilations available that are all full of good bands, there's a hit or miss quality on them like most comps, but the American Skathic, Mash it Up, Skarmageddon, NY Beat comps are all decent. I haven't heard everything, and going through my collection would take forever, there's plenty of other bands worth listening to besides the ones I remembered to mention, so have fun looking and I hope you like what you hear.
Apr 23, 1997
[For both] Hey, wait a minute, your cats are named after cartoon mice? What's
with that? Nutty! I have rats named after the very same characters. Eerie.
Anyhow, Still working on Space Ghost? Enjoy it? -- Monster Truck Kamio,
kamio@pacbell.net
Sarah: Hey! Mr Jinks was a cat!! And technically, our cats aren't named after anyone since one is "Jinx"-with-an-"x", not the same as the cartoon cat, and the other's name is really Pixel, we just call him Pixie. Ahem.
Evan: Nice try, Sarah. I named my cat Jinx after I got him from David Mazzuccelli and Richmond Lewis (nice name drop, huh?). I always thought it was great name. When we got Pix we couldn't decide on a name, Sarah called him Pixel and Pixie's what we really call him and yeah, what a lame anecdote and man are we geeks. The cats are cute as hell, though. If you're into cats. Some folks like dogs. Reptiles. Guns. Anyway, we're still working on Space Ghost, and we still enjoy it. In fact, we're committed to another ten episodes in the next year. We're working on a lot of show angles to differentiate the episodes we're doing as the format can be limited at times. Somehow it usually works out all right, and hopefully people will like the new season of shows starting in July (I believe). Right now we have three in various stages of production, and one on the runway.
May 1, 1997
[For both] Who would win in a fight between The Brady Bunch and The Partridge
Family? Also what bands do you two like? -- Jason Cataldo,
Ashpunk1@hotmail.com
Sarah: Probably the Brady Bunch, there's more of them. See band lists here and on the All about us page.
Evan: Uhhhh...that's a tough and stupid question. If the Brady Bunch starts beating up the Partridges, Mr. Kincaid might get involved...but then Sam the Butcher would jump in. Hmmm. I say the Brady Bunch because as Sarah points out, there's eight of them (plus Alice and that dog), and there's only what -- five Partridges, six if you count the freaky replaced little drummer boy. Of course, if Danny is on drugs at the time, he could even things out...
My favorite bands are the Partridge Family and the Brady Kids.
May 6, 1997
[For both] How can you two stand living on Staten Island w/o going insane?
I mean, it's the redneck boondock from hell, and the rents arent even that
decent out there. It seems like every single time I'm there, I spend every
waking moment thinking about escape.What in hell encourages you to live in
the armpit of the universe? -- Neal, sed@interport.net
Sarah: Well, it all depends on where you are on the island, every neighborhood is really different. Where we are is calm, serene, full of trees and plants, our rent is incredibly cheap -- for the space we have we'd be paying at least 5x more in any other borough -- and since we work at home, the other neighborhoods don't really matter. And I have to say, I always think of Staten Islanders as being incredibly conservative and kind of scary, but in reality they tend to keep to themselves and are more tolerant than in any other borough. When my hair was fuschia, I got yelled at and harassed every time I went into Manhattan. I walked around Staten Island like that for a couple years and not once did anyone say a word to me.
Evan: In my high school yearbook I wrote that I wanted to "become an artist and get off Staten Island. Or at least get off Staten Island". So far, neither wish has come true, but it's turned out okay anyway. Seriously, I don't like the overall Staten Island mentality or the borough's politics, but we have a great situation here, my friends are here, I know the town, crime is virtually non-existant for a borough of NYC, and we're close to Manhattan. Works for me.
May 14, 1997
[For sarah] So I keep reading on the AG bio page that you are "...transplant
to New York." Perhaps it comes up elsewhere and I missed it, but where are
you a transplant from? My three guesses are Washington, California, or Japan...
-- Peter Araujo, irulan@earthlink.net
Sarah: Actually, Florida, although not anyplace anyone thinks of when you say "Florida". I lived most of my life in Gainesville, which is dead center in the middle of the state and a seriously academic town, along with a major college town. While it's no NYC, it's amazingly cosmopolitan for a smallish town. It used to be called the "Berkeley of the South", and while I've never been to Berkeley, I hear it's a fair comparison.
May 17, 1997
[For evan] Evan -- first off, I think MILK & CHEESE is probably THE greatest
comic of the 20th century, and dammit, I think there should be a shrine to
it. OK, well, my question is this: what the hell are your comedic influences?
I know that, in one of your strips, you dissed a hell of a lot of comedy
(including one of my faves, the Kids in the Hall). So, what comedy do YOU
consider to be the funniest. (Yeah, it's a dumb ass fanboy question, and
I fully expect M & C at my house with large power saws any moment now...)
-- Gordon Dymowski, G_Dymowski@prodigy.net
Evan: I'm sure I covered this elsewhere, so the quickie rundown of what makes me laugh, or at least made me laugh at a time it could be influential in some way, your mileage may vary:
The Marx Bros, Ernie Kovacs, early Mel Brooks, Steve Martin, Woody Allen, Jean Shepard, Your Show of Shows, the Dick van Dyke show, early SNL (dunno if it would make me laugh today, but was influential when I was a kid), Mad magazine in the 70's and the comic from the 50's/60's, Pete Bagge's Neat Stuff, Dan Clowes Lloyd Llewellyn, Peanuts, Popeye by Segar, SCTV, Monty Python, the Goodies (haven't seen it since I was a teen), Billy Wilder comedies, Animal House, Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, WC Fields, It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, World, Warner Bros cartoons, Fleischer Bros cartoons, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd and various silent comedians/shorts, Our Gang comedies, Jerry Lewis to a small degree, the Beatles films, the Monkees show, earlier MST3K, and other stuff I can't recall. My main influences are probably my friends though, because you never laugh as much as when you're with your friends, and mine are generally smart and cruel.
May 18, 1997
[For both] Hey, Someone had to ask... Dear Sarah & Evan...I first became
interested In you two(while I was aware of the work you had done) through
the Mash It UP series. What Are your opinions on the recent "Cashing in"
of the ska, and ska related genres? And how come there's no information on
Mad Planet on the house of fun website? -- Cheesesteak Mike,
banksh0t1@aol.com
Sarah: I have no real opinion on the latest ska "trend" -- if it gets more people to try the good stuff, then great. As far as Mad Planet being online, well, as soon as I figure out how to get 36 hours into a day I'll take care of it.
Evan: I commented on the new ska revival in an earlier reply, but as far as the "cashing in" goes, I don't care really one way or the other. It's the way the entertainment world works, they get around to everything eventually nowadays, it'll be Klezmer bands next, who knows. It is nice that some bands that have worked their asses off in obscurity for years (like Bimskalabim) are getting some kind of reward (their catalogue is being used by MtV as backing music for shows and whatnot). It's a shame some less talented new bands are making a killing at the same time, but that's life. So far I don't know of any bands who have done ska as a way to cash in (though some say Less than Jake played fast and loose with the ska scene to get places, but I could care less, I don't like 'em much anyway) or of any ska bands that have drastically changed their sound to cash in further (if you've heard first No Doubt album, Tragic Kingdom actually sounds like their next step, even if it kinda stinks). If the trend gets some people into ska that's cool, hopefully people will still listen to it when the trend is over, and discover the older and more obscure material that doesn't all sound like a frathouse party. A lot of the older stuff has been getting re-released, especially the Jamaican material, and that's a very good side-effect.
May 20, 1997
[For evan] hi, this is kinda music related, and I don't know if it's too
un-comic realated to be discussed, BUT...I wanted to know what you listen
to while you draw and/or write, if any at all. Also, I was kinda wondering
when you discovered op ivy, and what you thought of them when you first heard
them (don't ask why I ask these things, I'm obessed with them and it tears
at me that Jessse seems to have just become another dead-beat guy doing nothing
creative with all that potential...that's like Will Eisner doing a cuple
comics and then stoping) -- el Ryan Brown, el spudooboy@aol.com
Evan: Let sleeping creators lie, that's what I say. Better than putting out garbage because they felt they had to, and if you loved what they already did, then feel thankful they did it. There's a director named Terence Malick, his first film was called Badlands, which is a personal favorite of mine. He's done one film since Badlands came out in the late sixties /early seventies or so (Days of Heaven), and that's it. But at least he made Badlands.
I really liked Operation Ivy after discovering the LP in (bad memory time) 1985? !986? 87? I was in college, I think...could it be that long ago? Anyway, it should have been close to when the LP came out if that helps. Whatever, a while back. Anyway, I thought they were awesome, stripped down ska/punk with memorable songs and high energy and a nice change from stupid jock hardcore or carbon-copy two-tone. I musta played "Bombshell" and "Bankshot" a million times. I was glad I took a chance on picking up the album in Bleeker Bobs (the plastic "inventory" sleeve had a clerk's markered recommendation on it) -- I still like it, and it was a kick to see friends of mine get into them a few yrs ago because of Rancid.
As for what I listen to, I think I've discussed this before (love that ol' memory of mine), but I mainly listen to WFMU, 91.1 E. Orange NJ, the best station in the world. Free-form, listener supported, plays everything you can think of and things you haven't (ranging from rockabilly to opera to hillbilly to surf instrumental to old radio broadcasts and dramas to soundtracks, ska, punk, hardcore, electronic, drum and bass, rap, pop, blues, show tunes, german disco, the whole gamut of recorded sounds) -- unlike commercial radio (or even most college stations these days) the dj's have total freedom, no "new bin", no asses to kiss, and the results can be either exhilerating or headache-inducing, but always interesting. If FMU is trying my patience (every DJ has a different style, some are a bit too avante-garde/pretentious for my tastes) I have my CDs and tapes, which run along the lines of the material I plug in Dork! Lately I've been listening to Katie McCarty's Dead Dog's Eyeball (her renditions of Daniel Johnston songs), Stereolab's Mars Audio Quintet and mixed tapes.
May 31, 1997
[For both] Hey there...just dropping you a line to let you know I love your
work...first thing I saw (unusually, I imagine) was Evan's illos for "Generation
Ecch"...then a friend showed me M&C#3...which got me totally hooked.
Anyway...here's my question...(mainly for sarah, though i'd like to hear
evan's answer too)...you mentioned that you read a lot of manga in an interview
about Action Girl...just wondering what titles you've read/enjoyed? -- Scott
Ellerman
Sarah: Mostly I've obviously read the stuff that's been tranlated -- I loved Nausicaa, I really liked Ghost in the Shell, I like the Ah! My Goddess series(es?), Gunsmith Cats, You're Under Arrest, Mai the Psychic Girl, I just read Baoh and 2001 Nights and thought they both were great. Loved What's Michael, of course! In the original Japanese manga (read with the help of translations) I've read the Sailor V and Sailor Moon series, and my current favorite manga (in English or Japanese) is Card Captor Sakura, which is a new series by Clamp.
Evan: I can't remember what I read last night...uhhhh...I read Gen of Hiroshima about a decade ago, I think that was the first manga I read. It was a survivor's tale of the bombing of Hiroshima in the war, pretty amazing comic. I haven't read a ton of manga, I like it, but I'm just not reading much in the way of comics these days, not enough time. I enjoyed What's Michael a lot, I liked Mai the Psychic Girl when Eclipse put it out, I started reading Appleseed but lost track...I have the Adolf series sitting around which I plan to read someday, along with Nausicaa and some other books like Ranma 1/2. I read one of the Gon books, which I liked. I'm familiar with a lot of manga from keeping my eyes and ears open and through the Manga! Manga! book, but haven't actually read very much of it unfortunately.
Jun 1, 1997
[For both] Hello boys and girls (or should that be boy and girl?), just two
rather frivilous questions, but things I'm interested in hearing your responces
to. First of all, to Sarah, when I read the Kikizine part of the Action Girl
section, I saw that the name came from Kiki's Delivery Service. I was wondering
what you thik of Miyazaki's other films like Nausicaa of the Valley of the
Wind or Porco Rosso. While Miyazaki is big on the strong heroine in most
films, Nausicaa is the only one to feature a strong female lead. Laputa (his
second film) has the feeling of one of those 50's-60's boys-own adventure
novels from England, and Porco Rosso was created for men in their 40's (or
so says the creator.) Secondly, to Evan, a slightly more frivilous question,
what did you think of the most recent Specials album (Today's Specials),
which I believe was all covers. I'm not that up on the old Two-Tone scene
as I should be, so I'm not sure where these stuff fit in to their oveure
(li if they'd been released before.) Anyway, sorry for being so long winded,
and congrats on all the recent success. -- Jess Harvell,
JHAnarchy@aol.com
Sarah: I love Nausicaa, it's one of my favorite films. That and Kiki are the Miyazaki films I really love. I enjoyed Porco Rosso a lot -- the female characters are cool, although I wouldn't put it in a pro-girl film fest or anything. I've never seen Laputa, or the newer stuff.
Evan: I'm not up on the really current "third wave" ska scene (like, just where did Goldfinger and Reel Big Fish come from, anyway?), to be honest, including the Two-Tone "revivals" like that "Specials" release. I've heard it's terrible, though. For the real deal, check out the incredible Specials release (produced by Elvis Costello) and the great More Specials, the live material on Dance Craze, and the other 2- tone bands: the Selecter, Madness (One Step Beyond, Absolutely, Seven, much of Rise and Fall -- then they get more "pop" oriented, not that I dislike the later stuff), Bad Manners, (the English) Beat, the Bodysnatchers (on Dance Craze). Find the This are Two Tone compilation for a good introduction, If you like that, it's a good bridge between original ska (Jamaican 60's ska, rocksteady et al) and the current "ska-punk" that's getting the push with the youth market these days.
For the record, because I'm getting asked this a lot lately , I like some of the new, MtV approved 3rd wave ska, but a lot of it just plain stinks -- too many of these younger bands have a by the book horn section, a working-hard-but-still-not-that-funky whiteboy lead singer with an unremarkable voice, antiseptic and soulless production, pointless lyrics, and oh them cliched "whacky" hi-jinks. And they just sound too darn alike (a problem with many post 2-Tone bands, really, and the genre at times) And don't misunderstand me as an "old fogey", I'm not upset ska is "popular" or think I know the "good" old obscure bands, what have you, a lot of the obscure mid-eighties to early nineties 3rd wave bands stunk too. Most bands tend to stink, and most bands pushed by the record companies tend to really stink, ska or otherwise. End of ska sermon.
Jun 2, 1997
[For both] I had the pleasure of meeting both of you at the Chicago Con last
summer (Evan's not even half the ass he's made himself out to be. Damn.)
and I was wondering if you two are planning on coming back this year. I also
wanted to know if there was any way of getting my hands on any original artwork,
like some PC$!/HP stuff or possibly even one of the "Generation Ecchh" pages
(I feel a big 'yeah, right!' coming on that last one). Thanx in advance for
the info... -- Bob McLennan, lepenguin@ameritech.net
Sarah: As you know, we didn't make it to Chicago -- there are just too many cons, and we don't have much time to allocate to doing them. I'm sure we'll be back in Chicago eventually, but we're not planning on it for the next year or two, at least.
Evan: Yeah, unless something weird or wonderful happens, we don't have solid plans for attending Chicago in the near-future, but who knows? We didn't know we were doing Atlanta until fairly last-minute. But it's not something we're planning to do. As for artwork, the list of what's available is on our web site somewhere (me am computer genius). There's not much available these days, I've sold most everyhting I had available at shows or through the mail. Currently, none of my recent interior pages are for sale, I'm holding onto the pages from HP, Dork, M&C etc. Anyway, thanks for the interest in my doodles!
Jun 16, 1997
[For evan] Mr. Dorkin who does your hair? -- Jamie Abromowitz,
pmiller@con2.com
Evan: Just to annoy you, I'll answer truthfully (and dully). Sarah does. Alert the media!
Jul 27, 1997
[For both] This is a followup to a long-ago rant by Evan about how MAD magazine
has slipped in quality since the "good o'l days" (I.e., when WE were reading
it as kids). Specifically, I'm wondering what you guys think about the quality
of satire these days--seems to me that we've got too damn much of it, aimed
at too damned little--as the kids in the "Homerpalooza" episode of The Simpsons
said, "Are you being sarcastic?" Man, I don't even KNOW anymore." (Wait,
there really is a question in here...) What I'm wondering is whether you
think that irony has become just one more PRODUCT--and if so, how's a satirist
able to keep her/his edge? As Evan had Milk & Cheese say it, "packaging
youth rebellion is big-ass fun! Whee! I feel like MTV!" (a phrase I was using
in my .sig file for awhile...with attribution, of course. And how does M&C
fit into ththis weird-ass amorphous question of mine? One of the things I
love about AG, Sarah, is the willingness of many of the artists to bother
being earnest about something! -- Marty Kelley, mkelley@u.arizona.edu
Sarah: Thanks! I think this is one I'll let Evan go on about, I'll just say that I think a lot of the problem is that most of this pop "irony" isn't actually ironic -- no wit, no cleverness, no good writing. I think that Alanis Morissette song pretty much covers things -- a huge hit song called "Isn't It Ironic" that, as far as I can tell, had not one single example of irony in the lyrics. Alhough, perhaps that in itself is pretty damn ironic!!
Evan: I'm pretty bored with practically all humor being done these days, and I'm really I'm tired of the "irony" and hipsterism inherent in most comedy material being done for the past few years. I don't sit and analyze comedy or humor to be honest, my own or others -- when I write something I can't say I always have a message or a strong need to say something or satirize something, but I do try to do more with my strips than compile pop-cultural references and slather them with hip attitude. There's a deliberate structure to my strips that I feel a lot of humor is lacking these days, a skeletal underpinning to the jokes, so they don't seem to be a stand-up routine done in the guise of a skit or tv show. I think this is from too much tv as a kid, watching public tv reruns of Python, Your Show of Shows, Kovacs, and early SNL and all of SCTV. I liked the writing, I liked the fact that the jokes sprung from ideas and not just a Johnny Carson series of one-liners strung around a thin premise. As far as my work goes, Eltingville is as much about obsessiveness, fantasy lives, social awkwardness, unhealthy relationships and the effects of pop-culture overload as it is about uber-comic book and sf fans. Maybe that doesn't come across to everyone, I don't know, but that's the gist of what I'm going for. I don't have enough of a critical background to know where my work stands as satire, as post-modern humor, as whatever -- I just try for an honest laugh as often as possible, sometimes an honest dig-- and I try to put as much solid material into everything I do. I want the gags to hold up in future readings, I try not to insult the intelligence of my audience, I try not to pander and I honestly don't set out to merely offend or shock, just be as honest and imaginative as I can be about a subject, or at least be as creatively ridiculous as possible when doing something like Milk and Cheese or the Fun strips. I'm just trying to be funny, not hip, and I think there's a big difference there. If you know what it is, by all means let me know -- all I can figure out is that being "hip" makes you rich, and being funny gets people mad at you.
Did I make any sense here?