The comics page has no shortage of Old Fart gags, but Alex brought me up short today with one that poked fun at my own slice of the demographic pie with a sense of pop culture history and a touch of insight.
Rare commodities in such humor.
Plus the strip features a man-bun without that being the point of the joke, or even mentioned, which is not simply rare but I think unprecedented.
The Great Switchover was one of my first Old Man Rants, and I'm still kind of angry that the record stores -- remember them? -- quit stocking vinyl, and, worse, that the record companies began to quit pressing it. Because people weren't buying it. Because they couldn't freaking find it in the stores.
Especially now that the hipsters are buying vinyl, damn their eyes.
I didn't replace my entire collection using my Gold Amex card because it was just after my divorce and I was living on a predatory Visa Card which I only had because credit card companies in those days assumed that men were the breadwinners.
So they sent the solicitation to the freelance writer instead of the public relations professional, and, realizing that they were sleazeballs but knowing that we were headed for the rocks, I returned that puppy post-haste, while her numbers were still being attributed to my name.
But I digress.
What I did about my music collection (once I had a better job, not while I was still kiting checks to squeeze by) was to join the Columbia House Music Club and take advantage of their 11 CDs for a penny -- Just for joining! -- and then we'll send you postcards which you will forget to return and then we'll send you music you didn't want at inflated prices!
Obviously, 11 CDs didn't replace my entire vinyl collection, but, then, they weren't re-issuing most of what I had. C'est dommage.
However, I did buy a few new things to try to re-assert myself as a hip, happenin' person, and not all of them because I forgot to return the card.
Not "Never Mind the Bollocks," but the joke still works.
Going back further
I commented on the current/vintage Buz Sawyer the other day, and now -- with a hat tip to Matt Bors -- here's a New Republic article by Jeet Heer on how that miraculously timed story arc came about.
There's nothing in the article that blows my mind: I recognized the arc as a puff-piece and one man's puff-piece is another man's propaganda.
For my part, I've long thought that, if we had put a tenth of the money and effort into sinking wells and building clinics that we've put into blowing shit up, we'd be the most popular nation that ever trod someone else's soil.
But I meant "instead of" not "in addition to."
Anyway, I figured Roy Crane was getting his information from the gummint, but not to the extent, or on the level, that Heer documents.
There are lines to be drawn. Any film using Navy ships or Air Force planes goes through some kind of vetting, while J. Edgar Hoover was noted for exploiting the willing cooperation of Efrem Zimbalist Jr. in making the FBI tv series. (By contrast, Hoover had been no fan of "The Untouchables.")
Heer notes that, during WWII, Disney had produced patriotic cartoons and Frank Capra had done the "Why We Fight" series of short films, but that Roy Crane's Buz Sawyer pieces continued after the war was over and won.
I mentioned the hot spots in the Iranian situation the other day, and it turns out that, to some extent at least, he was getting sucked in by his State Department briefer who, Heer reports, suggested for instance, “It would be best to avoid any reference to OIL in discussing Iran.”
Heer also notes, as I did, that, a year later, the CIA would stage a coup in Iran, the main difference in our takes being that, while I sensed that Crane was reproducing a brochure, Heer has gone into his archives and correspondence and has the smoking guns.
It's fascinating stuff and you really should read it, because Heer does a nice job of backing up his points and not over-stating the ramifications. This is journalism as it should be done.
A Modest Proposal
Here's a Kickstarter that seems worth backing: A credible group of professionals, including Terry Laban and Box Brown, who just need some front money to cover the initial costs of running a one-day workshop for aspiring cartoonists.
They're only seeking to raise $1,500 for the space and to provide art supplies for the attendees, whose modest ticket prices will provide compensation for the instructors. (I say this to emphasize that it's not a please-make-us-rich plan -- please don't take it to mean that other people will surely make it happen.)
I like this sort of grassroots local piece: If people can't travel to Philly to attend this, maybe -- if it works and the idea catches on -- someone closer will do something similar.
And their rewards are worthwhile: For a modest contribution, you can get some comix that would probably have cost you about that much anyway. So I ponied up.
Go have a look and see if it's something you can also support.
This is what crowd-sourcing should be doing.
(Update: They've cancelled for the moment. When they regroup, I'll say something.)
Now here's your moment of well why not?
(Historic note: The CD version of "Woodstock" was seriously screwed up. And counted as 2 of my 11.)
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