Al Columbia

Al Columbia
Born	1970
Nationality	American
Area(s)	Cartoonist Illustrator Writer Inker Colorist Photographer
Pseudonym(s)	Lucien Orange Sunshine Jack Lazy
Notable works	The Biologic Show "I Was Killing When Killing Wasn't Cool" "The Trumpets They Play!" Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days

Al Columbia (born 1970) is an American cartoonist, illustrator, writer, photographer, musician, and filmmaker.

Career

Big Numbers controversy

Main article: Big Numbers (comics)

At the age of 19 Columbia was hired to work as an assistant to Bill Sienkiewicz on Alan Moore's Big Numbers series. When Sienkiewicz withdrew from the project in 1990 after completing the first two issues, Moore and his backers at Tundra Publishing asked the young Columbia to become the series' sole artist. In 1992 Columbia himself left the project under a cloud of rumors and accusations, including claims that he received payment for work that he never delivered and that he destroyed his own unpublished artwork for the fourth issue of the series.^[1][2][3] Columbia himself did not address the topic publicly for several years, stating in a 1998 letter to The Comics Journal that "I could easily launch into a tirade about the extensive horror of my Tundra experience, but I much prefer the very entertaining and conflicting accounts already in circulation."^[4] In 2000 he posted a semi-facetious "definitive statement" on the subject to The Comics Journal's online message board (reprinted here ^[5]), confirming that he destroyed his artwork for the series but disputing other aspects of the published accounts of the fiasco. He elaborated on this statement in a 2004 article published in The Comics Interpreter detailing the personal and professional turmoil surrounding the project.^[6]

1990s

Columbia's first solo comic book, Doghead, was released by Tundra Publishing in 1992. He contributed to three issues of the horror anthology From Beyonde^[7] in the early nineties, initially under the pen name "Lucien" and then under his own name. His stories "The Biologic Show" and "Tar Frogs" also appeared in the British magazine Deadline. In these works, which focused on visceral and disturbing subject matter including mutilation, incest, and the occult, he moved away from the painterly photorealism of his time with Sienkiewicz towards a scabrous but virtuosic pen-and-ink style that emphasized grotesque physiognomic details such as grinning mouths full of teeth and leering, reptilian eyes.^[8]

In 1994 Fantagraphics Books published Columbia's comic The Biologic Show #0. It contained redrawn versions of his stories from Deadline along with new works. It received mostly enthusiastic reviews and accolades from other cartoonists including Mike Allred and Jim Woodring.^{[citation needed]} The Biologic Show #1 followed in 1995, featuring the first installment of a never-completed graphic novel, Peloria; an issue #2 was advertised but never appeared. Also in 1995, "I Was Killing When Killing Wasn't Cool" became the first of a series of two-color short stories by Columbia to appear in the Fantagraphics anthology Zero Zero. In these works, noted^[9][10] for their striking visual rhythms and their vivid atmosphere of dread, he adopted a more streamlined drawing style evocative of early animated cartoons, particularly the works of Fleischer Studios. In later stories such as "Amnesia" and "Alfred the Great" Columbia combined cel animation-influenced drawings of characters with minutely detailed chiaroscuro backgrounds and some use of digital illustration techniques and photo manipulation. "The Trumpets They Play!", a widely praised ^{[11][12][13][14]} work in this style based on the Book of Revelation, appeared in BLAB! #10 in 1998.

During the 1990s Columbia did ancillary tasks such as color separation for the publications of other cartoonists including Chris Ware and Archer Prewitt. He also created artwork for the set design of comedian David Cross's 1999 television special The Pride is Back. Although he gave short interviews to several zines including Velour^[15] and Ain't Nothin' Like Fuckin' Moonshine^[16] during this period, the small quantity of his published output and the cancellation of several previously announced titles and anthology contributions, compounded with lingering questions about the fate of Big Numbers, made him an object of much speculation. "Whatever happened to Al Columbia?" became a perennial question on comics websites and message boards.^[17][18]

2000s

On November 19, 2001 The New York Times ran one of Columbia's illustrations.^[19] In 2003 he wrote two issues of The Pogostick, an unfinished comic book series illustrated by Ethan Persoff that was nominated for a Harvey Award.^[20] He created the artwork for The Postal Service's 2003 album Give Up.^[21]

After a three-year delay, Columbia's website went online in late 2006. The Flash-based site features a changing assortment of illustrations, photographs, music videos, and other multimedia content.

Columbia's comics and illustrations have been featured in anthologies including Mome, The Best American Comics, and Ashley Wood's Swallow series. His work has also appeared in the Seattle newspaper The Stranger and in magazines such as The Believer and Arthur.

Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days, a book collection of previously unpublished work, was released in November 2009 to widespread acclaim.

Recurring characters

From The Biologic Show onwards Columbia's comics have featured a number of recurring characters. Like other traditional cartoon characters, some of them have continued to appear after being killed multiple times.

Seymour Sunshine

The most frequent protagonist in Columbia's early work, Seymour Sunshine is a passive nebbish menaced by bizarre threats. He first appeared in the story "No Tomorrow If I Must Return" in The Biologic Show #0. In most of his stories, including "I Was Killing When Killing Wasn't Cool" and "The Trumpets They Play!", Seymour is portrayed as being nearly mute, although in "Amnesia" he is more voluble.

Pim and Francie

A pair of mischievous waifs whose antics get them into horrific trouble, Pim and Francie first appeared in the story "Tar Frogs" and are the protagonists in "Peloria Part One" and Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days. The two have a loosely-defined sibling relationship. According to Columbia, they originated as an attempt to draw himself and his former girlfriend as cartoon characters.^[22]

Knishkebibble the Monkey-Boy

Described in the story "Amnesia" as a "childish icon for mischievous and filthy pleasures," Knishkebibble was first introduced in "Peloria Part One". In later appearances he acted as Seymour Sunshine's sidekick, serving mostly to drag both of them into dangerous situations. He is portrayed as greedy, conniving, and vulgar, and usually speaks with a hillbilly accent.

Ruthie and Lucy

A pair of malevolent conjoined twins who appear as antagonists in several of Columbia's works, including "The Biologic Show", "Peloria Part 1", and Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days. They were first identified by name in the story "The Blood-Clot Boy".

Alfred the Great

Alfred the Great is a dwarf with an enormous prehensile tongue. In his eponymous story he rises to fame and fortune as a circus sideshow performer before his decadent lifestyle and bad temper precipitate a fall from grace. Alfred also appears on the cover of Dirty Stories 3.

Cheapy the Guinea Pig

Cheapy the Guinea Pig is an experimental subject who is used by genetic researchers in a variety of pointlessly cruel tests, such as one intended "to determine the length of time Cheapy can endure being struck repeatedly about the head and face with a ball-peen hammer before he expires."

An animated cartoon character named Cheapy The Guinea Pig is mentioned in Vladimir Nabokov's 1932 Russian language novel Kamera Obskura, in a passage that was deleted from Laughter in the Dark, Nabokov's 1938 English language translation/adaptation of that book. Introducing his own Cheapy the Guinea Pig in the story "Vladimir Nabokov's Cheapy the Guinea Pig", Columbia described the character's origin in Nabokov's work, and emphasized that his Cheapy was "inspired by the [Nabokov character's] name alone and the many uses that a Guinea pig has to offer to the world of cartoons."

Music and film

Columbia was a founding member of The Action Suits, whose other members have included fellow cartoonists Peter Bagge and Eric Reynolds.^[23] His more recent musical activities, including songs and music videos recorded with his partner under the name The Francies, have been sporadically documented on his website.

In 2009 he directed and appeared in the music video for the song "These Wounds Never Heal" by the American heavy metal band Unholy.

Influence

Gerard Way, the lead singer of the band My Chemical Romance and author of the comic book series The Umbrella Academy, described his exposure to Columbia's work as "a turning point" in his aesthetic development.^[24][25] Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio has also cited Columbia as an inspiration.^[26]

In a 2009 interview with Juxtapoz magazine, professional illustrator Aaron Horkey asserted that "countless successful artists continue to pillage [Columbia's] back catalog, propping up their half-baked careers on the well-worn spines of second hand copies of Biologic Show."^[27]

Published works

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Solo publications

• Doghead (1992, Tundra Publishing)
• The Biologic Show #0 (1994, Fantagraphics Books)
• 23 Skidoo, minicomic (1994, Wow Cool)
• The Biologic Show #1 (1995)
• Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days (2009, Fantagraphics Books)

Works in anthologies and serial publications

• "The Virus", 8 pages (artwork only); front cover and various illustrations, From Beyonde #1 (February 1991, Studio Insidio) [as Lucien]
• "Clara Mutilarés", 11 pages; front cover and various illustrations, From Beyonde #2 (May 1991)
• "Untitled", 4 pages; back cover, From Beyonde #3 (September 1991)
• Untitled cover, Deadline #51 (May 1993, Deadline Publications)
• [Unknown contribution], Madman Adventures #2 (June 1993, Tundra Publishing)
• "Johnny 23", 4 pages, Taboo #8 (1995, Kitchen Sink Press); also published as a minicomic (n.d., Wow Cool)
• "I Was Killing When Killing Wasn't Cool", 8 pages, Zero Zero #4 (August 1995, Fantagraphics Books)
• "Jack never woke up", 1 page (inside front cover), Zero Zero #8 (March/April 1996)
• Untitled front cover, Newbies Eclectica #6 (1997, The Graphic Cartel)
• "Walpurgischnacht '97", 1 page (back cover), Zero Zero #15 (March 1997)
• "The Blood-Clot Boy", 6 pages, Zero Zero #16 (April/May 1997)
• "Amnesia", 8 pages, Zero Zero #20 (September/October 1997)
• "The Trumpets They Play!", 8 pages, BLAB! #10 (1998, Fantagraphics Books)
• "Alfred the Great", 5 pages, Zero Zero #26 (July/August 1999)
• "Movie Magic", 1 page, and front cover, The Stranger, March 16, 2000 [as Jack Lazy]
• "Vladimir Nabokov's Cheapy the Guinea Pig" (back cover) and untitled front cover, Zero Zero #27 (August 2000)
• "Pim & Francie", 1 page, The Stranger, March 22, 2001; reprinted in color in Mome #9 (Fall 2007, Fantagraphics Books)
• Drawing for the letter "As the Taliban Flee, Time to Send In Fido", The New York Times, November 14, 2001
• "See no evil", front cover, Hanging Like a Hex #16 (n.d. (published between 2001–2003), Hanging Like a Hex/Ryan Canavan)
• Untitled wraparound cover, Dirty Stories Volume 3 (Spring 2002, Eros Comix/Fantagraphics Books)
• [Unknown contribution], Madman Picture Exhibition #3 (June 2002, AAA Pop Comics)
• "Chopped Up People", 9 pages, Mome #7 (Spring 2007, Fantagraphics Books)
• "Fucking Felix", 9 pages, Mome #8 (Summer 2007)
• "Cheapy the Guinea Pig in Morning Glory", 1 page, Awesome: The Indie Spinner Rack Anthology (October 2007, Evil Twin Comics)
• [Unknown contribution], The Evil Dead #1 (January 2008, Dark Horse Comics)
• Untitled front and back covers, Mome #10 (Winter/Spring 2008)
• "5:45", 4 pages, Mome #11 (Summer 2008); reprinted in The Best American Comics 2009 (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
• "Blue Apples", Arthur #29 (May 2008), #30 (June 2008), #31 (September 2008)
• "Invasion", 3 pages, Mome #12 (Fall 2008)
• Untitled, 16 pages, Swallow Volume 1, #5 (December 2008, IDW Publishing)
• "Toyland", 2 pages, Diamond Comics #4 (October 2009, Floating World Comics)
• "The Happy Prick", The Believer Volume 7, #9 (November/December 2009)
• Untitled, 9 pages and back cover, GO FOR THE GOLD! 3 (December 2009, Meathaus)
• "The Happy Prick", The Believer Volume 8, #1 (January 2010)

Comics with Ethan Persoff (writing only)

• The Pogostick #1 (February 2003, Fantagraphics Books)
• The Pogostick #2 (December 2003)

Other works

• Sleeve art and label, "Glazed Donuts" b/w "Andy the Android", 7" vinyl single by The Action Suits (1997, Spot On! Records)
• Stage set, The Pride is Back, television special by David Cross (1999, HBO)
• Album art, Canada, CD album by Loraxx (2000, The Orchard)
• Portrait of Nick Cave, Book of Changes: Interviews by Kristine McKenna (2001, Fantagraphics Books)
• Album art, Give Up, CD album by The Postal Service (2003, Sub Pop)
• Illustration of the song "Toy Boy", 2 pages, Songs For Sorrow, EP by Mika (2009, Casablanca Records)
• Cover art, This Side of Jordan, novel by Monte Schulz (2009, Fantagraphics Books)

References

1. ^ Kavanagh, Barry (17 October 2000). "The Alan Moore Interview: Malcolm McLaren and Big Numbers". Blather.net. http://blather.net/articles/amoore/big-numbers.html. Retrieved Dec. 18, 2009. 
2. ^ Eastman, Kevin. Interview by Gary Groth, The Comics Journal #202, March 1998, 38-99.
3. ^ Campbell, Eddie. Alec: How to Be an Artist (Marietta, GA: Top Shelf Productions, 2001), 112-116.
4. ^ Columbia, Al. Letter to the editor. "Kevin Eastman Is a Big, Fat, Fucking Liar!", The Comics Journal #205, June 1998, 5.
5. ^ http://www.alanmooresenhordocaos.hpg.ig.com.br/artigos112.htm
6. ^ Young, Robert. "Zero Sum Masterpiece: The Division of Big Numbers (AKA Searching for Al Columbia)", The Comics Interpreter Vol. 2 #3, 2004, 8-18.
7. ^ http://www.cbgxtra.com/Default.aspx?tabid=42&view=topic&forumid=55&postid=52817
8. ^ http://lambiek.net/artists/c/columbia_al.htm
9. ^ Pryor, Marshall. "Young Cartoonist Profiles: Al Columbia", The Comics Journal #205, June 1998, 80.
10. ^ "CR's Halloween Special: Brief Notes on Horror Comics, Art Comics, and Their Intersection". The Comics Reporter. Retrieved October 13, 2007.
11. ^ http://www.fantagraphics.com/blog/labels/Al%20Columbia.html
12. ^ http://www.yaleherald.com/archive/xxviii/1999.12.03/ae/p11design.html
13. ^ http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/briefings/commentary/1148/
14. ^ http://www.paulgravett.com/articles/045_columbia/045_columbia.htm
15. ^ "A chat with ol' Al Columbia", interview by Ian Lynam, Velour #1 (Berkeley, CA: Migraine, n.d.).
16. ^ Ain't Nothin' Like Fuckin' Moonshine #10 (Portland, OR: Bwana Spoons)
17. ^ http://www.tfaw.com/blog/2009/09/08/pim-francie-answers-whatever-happened-to-al-columbia/
18. ^ http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/whatever_happened_to_al_columbia/
19. ^ "As the Taliban Flee, Time to Send In Fido". The New York Times. November 19, 2001. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/19/opinion/l-as-the-taliban-flee-time-to-send-in-fido-237108.html. 
20. ^ http://www.harveyawards.org/awards_2004nom.html
21. ^ http://ogami.subpop.com/bands/postalservice/album.php
22. ^ http://thedailycrosshatch.com/2009/12/07/interview-al-columbia-pt-2-of-4/
23. ^ http://www.comicartcollective.com/detail.cfm?page=41FA95A0-A39C-4D7D-AAF86C174319556F
24. ^ http://www.mychemicalfreak.com/2008/07/14/gerard-way-interview-with-igncom/
25. ^ http://g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/692850/Fresh-Ink-Online-With-Gerard-Way.html
26. ^ http://www.straight.com/article-76788/tv-on-the-radio-revels-in-the-moment
27. ^ http://www.juxtapoz.com/auction/2009/09/aaron-horkey/

Further reading

• Owens, Annie. "Al Columbia", Hi-Fructose Magazine Vol. 15, April 2010, 92-103.

External links

• AlColumbia.com
• A 2007 interview from inkstuds.com (MP3 format)
• A 2009 interview from The Daily Crosshatch
• A 2010 interview from Comics Comics — Childhood traumas, going in and out of psych wards, and other biographical items.
• Silverlimbo #2, a 2004 online magazine with an Al Columbia article and interview starting on page 136
• "Al Columbia's Voyage of Discovery", a 2002 essay by Paul Gravett
• A Pim and Francie strip that ran in The Stranger
• Art by Al Columbia at the Comic Art Collective
• Lambiek Comiclopedia page on Al Columbia
• Photos from a 2007 exhibit and signing in Portland, OR

Persondata
Name	Columbia, Al
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1970
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death