Incoming! Dave sent stuff... so much stuff...

Hi, Everybody!

Well, here we go:

I did.

Eddie was.

Speaking of Steve, he sent me this:

Anyway,

Don't worry, I let Gerhard know.

Alright, that's my evening...

Next Time: The Monday Report. That'll be fun...

From the murky depths of Time: "FACE IT TIGER..." ("New" Dave Sim Art!)

Hi, Everybody!

Finished Please Hold For Dave Sim 12/2024 yet?

Really?

It's over two hours of videos. It was a nice day out. Why did you sit in your room listening to those two idiots?

You're giving your mother a complex...

Anyway, cleaning  out my inbox, I found a thing from 2019 that slipped through the cracks.

In July 2019, Eddie visited Dave. And as he got ready to leave:

While waiting to leave Kitchener, my train was delayed, so Dave and I headed over to the nearby "Smile Tiger" Coffee Shop. Sitting on the patio, enjoying the sun and our respective beverages, I ran in, got some sheets of paper, and folded them into 4 squares per sheet, and began to doodle on one of the panels. Then, inspiration struck. "Say, Dave, why don't you do Cerebus tree sketches on the pages?" Which he did, and then started numbering them. Then, when he got to the last sheet, he did a "Cerebus Tree In Hell" 1 page strip with the remaining 4 tree sketches.


So then I had to run in and get a bag to put them in, where upon he began to letter on the bag 'SMILE TIGER." So then I had to run in and get a bag for the bag. Which he then proceeded to do a Cerebus head sketch on. So...I ran and got another bag to put that one in, and some "Smile Tiger" postcards they had. He suggested I draw Elrod Bunnies next to the Cerebus tree sketches, which I did.


(It was turning into a competition, I think. I could see him thinking, "How many times will he go in and ask them for a new bag if I draw on the one he just got?" To which he could see me going "As many times as you keep doing it." I even told him I could sense Cerebus fandom yelling behind me, "GET HIM AS MANY BAGS AND ITEMS TO DRAW ON AS YOU CAN!!"

Eddie was gonna auction these off, but last I checked with him, he had bigger fish to fry, so you can look, but ya can't touch...

Rigamarole:

The AMOC TeePublic Shoppe

35% off December 8-18 and 25-31.*

*Sale dates are not final and therefore subject to change.

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Got a message from my friends at the Waverly Press. They're doing Holiday Bundles for 2024. There are limited to 50 bundles. Available until December 31 or they sell out. Whichever comes first. Get 'em while they're hot. https://waverlycomics.com

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Since it's Holiday time, Twomorrows publishing is having their annual sale. Comic Book Creator magazine has done interviews with Dave adjacent creators like Steve Bissette, Bob Burden, (I haven't read it, so I can neither confirm or deny if Dave is mentioned) Rick Veitch, among others. And Cerebus is covered in Back Issue #75, and the X-Men crossover is talked about in #118. And Margaret has a photo printed in issue #31. If you search for "Dave Sim", they have a bunch of issues. Anyway, just letting people know. Sale ends December 9th. That's tomorrow.

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In other news, since Twitter is a dumpster-fire and most people are skipping out of there, AMOC has joined BlueSky. Follow along. Or don't. No skin of my nuts either way...

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The Cerebus Humble Bundle is over, you can STILL get all 16 volumes for $99CANADIAN at CerebusDownloads.com (More if you want the Remastered Cerebus Guide to Self-Publishing...)

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Heritage has this. Buy it for Dave. Come on, it's Christmas!

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The Help Out Bill Messner-Loebs Go Fund Me, or buy Rodney Schroeter's book with proceeds going to Bill. 

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The Last Day Without nothing.

   "      "     "        "  Dave's signature.

   "      "     "        "  an Old Cerebus Remarque

   "      "     "     Auction catalog for the Panoramic Remarques. 

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Oliver' Simonsen's Cerebus movie: The Absurd, Surreal, Metaphysical, and Fractured Destiny of Cerebus the Aardvark it's currently available on "Plex", "Xumo", "Vimeo On Demand", "Tubi". If you're in Brazil..., "Mometu", "Nuclear Home Video".

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Next Time: Mondays!

Checkin' in on Ger! And weird computer McFarlaneization.

Hi, Everybody!

So I've been posting the AV Family Photos, and Heir to the Throne, Eddie Khanna sent me the beginnings of a list of where some of the photos have appeared:

I asked Ger if he wanted copies of the raw scans:

Ger!

How's it going?
How ya doin'?

Dave's been scanning the photos from the Cerebus Archive and sending them to me.

I'll make a set and get 'em to you.

And he said:

Matt!!!

It's going... faster all the time.
I'm doing as well as can be expected under the circumstances (see above).
Been spending time away from the drawing board and the computer, enjoying the last of the summer (see below).

Hope you are doing well

Thanks for the offer to send me the photos

that's very considerate of you.

No windows were broken during this game. That's our story and we're stickin' to it.

So more photos as I get the time to format them.

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So I did this to Dave's Sparkybus during Please Hold (not sure what I did, but I couldn't replicate it, so all I got is the result):

It looks like McFarlane to me. YOU can get the original as part of Steve Peters' new Kickstarter. I might see if Steve wants THIS one as a bonus microprint. The original is:

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CEREBUS IN HELL?:

CiH? Presents Spore Batvark #1 & CiH? Presents Spore Batvark #1 SIGNED by Dave

Speaking of which, since Spore Batvark is available to order, it's time for the Merch! NANANANANANANANANANA Batvark Logo:

There's more stuff in the AMOC TeePublic shoppee:

Up to 35% off site-wide:  

September 16-17 

and September 28-30

Tell your fans! Remind them that everything will be up to 35% off 

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Heritage

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The AMOC Rummage Sale

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The Strange Death of Alex Raymond Go Fund Me

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The Help Out Bill Messner-Loebs Go Fund Me and Rodney Schroeter's book with proceeds going to Bill

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The Last Day Without nothing.

   "      "     "        "  Dave's signature.

   "      "     "        "  an Old Cerebus Remarque

   "      "     "     Auction catalog for the Panoramic Remarques. 

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Oliver's Cerebus movie: The Absurd, Surreal, Metaphysical, and Fractured Destiny of Cerebus the Aardvark it's currently available on "Plex", "Xumo", "Vimeo On Demand", "Tubi". If you're in Brazil..., "Mometu", "Nuclear Home Video". 

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Next Time: Photos from "Back In The Day"

Please Hold For Dave Sim 10/2022

Hi, Everybody!

Please Hold For Dave Sim 10/2022.

Audio:

And the Video:

Part one:

Steve Peters who has a crowdfunder for his new comic, remembers Jeff Seiler:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 2: Dave talks about two bits of Strange Death of Alex Raymond ephemera that crossed my desk:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part third: A "Mike-a-palooza" as MJ "Mike" Sewall and Michael R. of  Easton, PA each get a question in:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part four: Ian wants a Cerebus "Aardvarkrypha". Listen Ian, EVERYBODY wants a Cerebus "Aardvarkrypha"... And Dave discusses the future projects with The Waverly Press:

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part fifth: Margaret has a question about a notebook page.

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Part 6: Rick Norwood of the Comics Revue has a question, that leads into a question Dave got in the mail from Travis H. Then I mention this auction I'm trying to win. And Dave explains what it is. And then we talk about Dave as local celebrity, and how Dennis Kitchen was thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiissssssssssssss close to being my daddy...

Problems viewing this video? Watch directly on YouTube...

Next Time: Jesus, that's like a week and a half's worth of content. And you want more?!?

Any excuse to just run six consecutive pages of art...

Hi, Everybody!

Got this from Eddie:

Hey Matt
Synchronistcally / Comic-Art Metaphysically) I JUST came across this Star Trek illustration by Alden McWilliams (TWIN EARTHS) of Kirk and Spock on HA.com while searching for some TWIN EARTHS art after reading the AMOC post with Dave's Star Trek cover

You remember Alden McWilliams from The Strange Death of Alex Raymond:

Yeah, him.

Anyway, Sean via Living the Line sent out:

PLAZA printed and shipping, Abolition of Man #1 cutoff on Thursday, and more! Hello everyone! This has been a busy summer over at Living the Line, so I wanted to check in with a few updates on current and upcoming projects.

First off, after a long week of fulfillment, PLAZA has shipped to (almost) all our Kickstarter backers. And it is a gorgeous book! (If you needed definitive proof, I’ve seen at least one Instagram reel of a cat licking the cover.) We couldn’t be more pleased with the overall package, and to be able to bring such an incredible book to an audience. PLAZA will be in comic stores in a week or two, and book stores a few weeks after that, but if you can’t wait, and you don’t have your copy yet, you can always order direct from us at LivingtheLineBooks.com. (The Kickstarter packages that haven’t shipped yet are the Canadian ones, which are likely being fulfilled by our Canadian compatriot in the next day or two, and the ones for whom we haven’t received addresses. If you’re in that latter category, then send me your address as soon as you’re able :) )

Secondly we wanted to let you know that if you want a copy of Abolition of Man #1, the first issue of Carson Grubaugh’s chilling AI-illustrated miniseries, your last chance to get your order to your comic store is THIS Thursday! And yes, these are exclusive to comic stores. Above you’ll see a preview image of the first three issue covers along with some interior art, to give you an idea of what you’re in store for. But why take my word for it, when you can hear it from the mouth of Mr. Dave McKean himself? “The Abolition of Man is a thorough test drive of AI image making, and the results are extraordinary, appalling, compelling, cold, hot, beautiful, repellent, and should be abolished.” — Dave McKean We just released a press release with Diamond Comics that will give you some more info on the series (copied below). We hope that you’ll reach out to your local comic store and ask them to order you a copy or three! Lastly, thank you all for your patience and your kind words during the fulfillment process for PLAZA by Yokoyama Yuichi. We’re thrilled to get the book in your hands. All the best, Sean Robinson Living the Line Books

And the press release:

The Abolition of Man, World's First A.I. Illustrated Comic Series
Gets 5th Issue, Written by Oxford Philosopher of Information ORDERS DUE THURSDAY, AUGUST 25
(BALTIMORE, MD) -- (August 2022) -- Living the Line Books and Diamond Comic Distributors are proud to announce that The Abolition of Man, the first comic series entirely illustrated by a computer, has been expanded to include a fifth issue.

World renowned Philosopher of Information, Luciano Floridi has contributed an essay that will form this special final issue of the series.

Award-winning oil painter turned Eisner-nominated cartoonist Carson Grubaugh opened the five-issue comic book series, The Abolition of Man, by supplying the Midjourney A.I. with lines from C.S. Lewis' groundbreaking lecture, “The Abolition of Man." Similarly, Floridi's words have been fed to the same A.I. to create this capstone to the series.

Floridi holds a double appointment as Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at the University of Oxford, Oxford Internet Institute and as Professor of Sociology of Culture and Communication at the University of Bologna and is deeply engaged with emerging policy regarding the implications of digital technologies. He has worked closely on digital ethics (including the ethics of algorithms and AI) with the European Commission, the German Ethics Council, and, in the UK, with the House of Lords, the Cabinet Office, and the Information Commissioner’s Office, as well as with multinational corporations (e.g. Cisco, Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Tencent).

Regarding his involvement in The Abolition of Man, Floridi says, "The evocative illustration of ideas by the latest technology: this is the amazing encounter between the medium of comics, the content of philosophy, and AI as a new form of agency, all supervised by the mind of the artist. The result is remarkable, and it is a unique privilege to be part of such an exciting experiment so significantly coherent with our digital age."

The Folridi penned issue #5 follows issues #2 and #3 (co-scripted by Grubaugh and LTL publisher Sean Robinson), which tell a satirical story of a dystopian future where automation has left humankind devoid of dignity, and issue #4, which is both written and illustrated by A.I. Floridi counters the bleak outlook of the first four issues with a hopeful note that explains how the concept of human dignity can help us design a future worth building.

Abolition of Man is on the leading edge of a wave of discussion regarding the potentials of AI technologies, both utopian and dire. Grubaugh and Robinson discussed these possibilities with the legendary artist Dave McKean, who had this to say about the Abolition of Man miniseries. “The Abolition of Man is a thorough test drive of AI image making, and the results are extraordinary, appalling, compelling, cold, hot, beautiful, repellent, and should be abolished," said McKean.

The Abolition of Man #1 will be available in English-language comic book shops worldwide in October of 2022, distributed exclusively by Diamond Comic Distributors. It is available for pre-order at comic shops using item code APR228727.

Retailers interested in placing wholesale orders for these PREVIEWS Exclusive items are encouraged to place their orders online. Business owners interested in opening an account should contact Diamond Comic Distributors’ New Accounts Department at newaccounts@diamondcomics.com.

The solicitation text follows.THE ABOLITION OF MAN #1 (OF 5) (MR)
48 pages • $6.99
What do you get when you take a groundbreaking philosophical essay and feed it into an AI image generator, one line at a time? The world's first (and only) entirely-computer-illustrated comic book, The Abolition of Man #1, by oil painter turned Eisner-nominated cartoonist Carson Grubaugh (Strange Death of Alex Raymond). Alternately hilarious and terrifying, Abolition gives a chilling peek into the world of the future, where humans and their most treasured passions have lost all purpose. Part 1 of a 5 issue miniseries.



Order Online or via Email by August 25!
ABOUT DIAMOND COMIC DISTRIBUTORS (DCD) -- Diamond is at the nexus of comics and pop culture merchandise. Based in Baltimore, MD, DCD is the world’s largest distributor of English-language comic books and pop-culture related merchandise, servicing thousands of specialty retailers worldwide. For more information, visit Diamond on the web at www.diamondcomics.com.

ABOUT LIVING THE LINE -- Living the Line Books is a publisher of dynamic, visually-striking comics and graphic novels, founded in 2020 by writer/illustrator Sean Michael Robinson. Living the Line's graphic novel debut, The Strange Death of Alex Raymond (Dave Sim and Carson Grubaugh) was recently nominated for an Eisner Award, for "Best Reality-Based Work." Visit Living the Line at LivingtheLineBooks.com

©2022 Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. All rights reserved. Diamond, the Diamond logo, Diamond Book Distrbutors logo, and PREVIEWS are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Diamond Comic Distributors in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective copyright owners.

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CRBS N HLL?

BTVRK

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The Waverly Press has an Instagram. And will be posting updates and teasers for upcoming projects with Dave. Like the 1982 Tour book.

So does Carson. He and Sean got the YouTubes too. Order their book The Abolition of Man #1. Hey look they got a second one: The Abolition of Man #2! HEY WAIT A MINUTE...

Eddie doesn't have an Instagram OR a YouTube. But he's got his Strange Death of Alex Raymond annotations. (I mean, I assume. Maybe he's ALL over the 'gram and just not telling me...)

Hobbs had a Kickstarter. You should have your surveys in by now. 

My buddy James Windsor-Smith has a Kickstarter too. Get your surveys out James!

Oliver's got an Instagram and a Cerebus movie: The Absurd, Surreal, Metaphysical, and Fractured Destiny of Cerebus the Aardvark it's currently available on "Plex", "Xumo", "Vimeo On Demand", "Tubi".  And if you're in Brazil...

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The AMOC TeePublic Shoppe

Up to 35% off site-wide:

August 24-28

Tell your fans! Remind them that everything will be up to 35% off -- that means $13 tees, $20 phone cases, $30 hoodies, and way more!

Next Time: I think Dave and Hobbs have been faxing...