Since the Bulletin was kind enough to list me in their 'Book Blogs', it behooves me to speak of books.

Stephen King was on NPR the other day, talking about the second series of "Dark Tower" comics; and he was asked about other titles. He mentioned, "Y-The Last Man", and fifteen minutes later, it was bought.

We creep, ever so slowly, to validation.

There's a movie coming next year, and I believe the drumbeat will be strong, called the "Watchmen." When Time Magazine assembled it's Best 100 Books, low and behold, there was the "Watchmen" at #100. Which is kind of funny, in a throw a dog a bone way, but also...well, at least they noticed.

"Watchmen", by Alan Moore, is usually counted, along with "Maus" by Art Speigleman, which won the Pulitzer, as one of the best graphic novels ever created. It's actually a 'deconstruction' of the superhero mythology.

In my novels section, I've decided that as long as I'm going to carry classics, I may as well carry the Penguin Classics Deluxe, which have covers illustrated by the best graphic artists in the field.

I just keep purposely blurring the lines between literature and entertainment, art and illustration, books with lots of words, and books with no words but lots of pictures; blurring the lines between children's and mainstream.

And everything in-between.

To me, it's all story. Either told well or told badly, but the fact that it's fiction or non-fiction, illustrated or not illustrated doesn't decide whether its told well or told badly.

The quality of the content is what counts, not the form.




I never talk about writers or artists who have passed away; which is happening with great frequency now that the 'golden age' of cartoons and illustration and comics recedes into the past.
But I was sad to hear of the passing of Dave Stevens, who was probably one of my favorite all-time artists, who wrote and drew the Rocketeer comic.

There were probably only a dozen short stories altogether. But they were exquisite -- and maddeningly, currently unavailable. He also did lots of covers, which I wish someone would assemble in a book.

A bit of a funny story, at least to me and Linda. I'm reading this comic set in the 1940's, starring a young guy who finds a rocket pack, and who is being chased by mobsters, and fighting Nazi spies, and he has a girlfriend, named Betty.

Betty is a gorgeous creature -- Dave Stevens could do pin-up's like no one's business -- and she's in danger of being led astray, posing in little or no clothes, for nefarious photographers.

I just about fell in love with Bettie. I told Linda, "This is the only woman in the entire world that I would leave you for." When they went to make a movie with a young and beautiful Jennifer Connolly, they chose in their Hollywood wisdom, to call her something else and to not give her the classic Bettie haircut. I thought the movie was pretty good, but it wasn't a hit.

So a year or so passes, and along comes a pin-up artbook by Olivia, and there's Bettie in all her Glory. And I'm talking to a customer about it and he says, "Oh, didn't you know? Bettie Page was a real person!"

Of course, I went and tracked down the magazine that was devoted to her, The Bettie Pages, and everything else I could find. For those few of you who don't know history, Bettie was the premier pin-up model of the 50's, she had an astoundingly long career (of a few years, but most models wore out in a few months) which went from the heights of the second Playboy Pin-up (or cover?) and went down the scale to some tawdry and rather silly bondage movies which wouldn't offend anyone these days.

Then she disappeared. To become a bit of a myth. And a free lunch, since no one had to pay her to use her images.

She popped up a few years back, didn't let anyone take pictures of her, and it turns out she'd had a bit of a hard life. They even made a movie out of her life.

Anyway, I went home and told Linda. "Bad news is....Bettie Page exists. Good news....she's exactly my mother's age."

My wife tolerates my Bettie obsession, even letting my put her cut-out magnet dress (in her case, undress) set on the fridge for a few years. I still get the Bettie Calendar every year, and other assorted Bettie stuff.

All thanks to the Rocketeer.

R.I.P Dave Stevens.