CDNComix

Air Pirates (unauthorized UK mini) Published by: Pirate Parrot; Contributors: Bobby London; Gary Hallgren; Date: 1986; Price: 2.50 pounds; Page count: 28 pages; Size: mini; (4.25 x 5.5); Kennedy #: none; Print information: 500 copies; This (presumed) unauthorized UK mini features excepts from the US Air Pirates comics. Bootlegs and fakes are often maligned by some members of the collecting community, including some members calling for outright destruction, limiting on-line selling or certification by the CGC. In my opinion, this book has high production quality wise and should be considered collecting because it is part of the history of the original publication. When I consulted with a friend about this particular book, he was quick to point out that the publisher was responsible for several other unauthorized, UK-market releases including: Weird Woodwork (Wally Wood); at least three Bode publications and a Jeffery Jones respective.

Jerry the Polar Bear Published by: Polar Bear Print Plant; Contributors: George Erling; Greg Spagnola; Doug Hansen; Reed Waller; Joe Tracey; Date: 1978; Price: no cover price; Page count: 24 pages; Size: magazine; (8.25 x 11.0); Kennedy #: 1062; Print information: one printing; number of copies unknown; Erling, Hansen and Spagnola team-up again within a year of producing (with some other contributors) a better known underground called Bestiality.

Top Comedy and Bottom Burlesque Published by: self-published; Contributor: Bruce N. Duncan; Date: 1980; Price: four dollars; Page count: 104 pages; Size: small comic; (6.75 x 8.5); Kennedy number: 2039; Print information: one printing of 1000 copies; Top Comedy seems to be a lot scarcer than its stated 1,000 copy print copy. Maybe its high price and niche subject matter drove potential customers away and relegated unsold copies to the bin. I am not a fan of its content because I cannot detect any intended satire. Lots of spankings and other forms of juvenile/humiliating/degrading S&M - 12 year-old Eric Stanton on bath salts.

And/Or Comics Published by: self-published; Contributors: Clark Allen Dissmeyer; James Vukos is credited with the naming the title; Date: 1981; Price: no cover price; Page count: 20 pages; Size: magazine; (8.50 x 11.0); Kennedy number: 0076; Print information: one printing of 175 copies; I thought that I has purchased a mini and was surprised when a full sized arrived instead. As far as I am aware, And/Or Comics is Clark Dissmeyer's only foray into the magazine format.

Hello GAMP, thanks for your input. But there's one obvious thing that you did not consider: the moira to which you are referring to is coming from my scanner, when I scanned the front cover. Most of the screens images look nothing like the actual comic, because of the moira caused by my scanning. That's the difficulty with post and compare. I posted those particular 5 side-by-sides just to illustrate that CGC certified copies can have nice clean (and also dirty) black print on the front cover. That's what was bothering Stronguy about my copy, my blacks were not dirty enough. But CGC certified signed Sim file copies also have a nice clean print, as do some other certified examples sold on Heritage. I did not intend to compare the gray screens between the 5 issues or I would not have used a scanner. My copy is definitely 100% real: matte IFC, gray screened aardvarks vs very dark ones in the inner artwork, no red trapping. I will eventually get this graded by the CGC, maybe sometime this year. I will post the results regardless of the outcome.

Pencil Comix #1 and #2 Published by: Stray Cat Studios = George Erling; Contributor: George Erling; Dates: 1981 (#1); 1983 (#2); Price: no cover price; Page Counts: 12 pages (#1); 16 pages (#2); Sizes: mini; (#1, 3.75 x 6.50); (#2, 3.0 x 4.25); Kennedy number: 1501 (#1); post Kennedy (#2); Print information: one printing; 20 initialed and dated copies (#1); 42 initialed and dated copies (#2); I believe that Pencil Comix is the only sole-contribution mini that George Erling published a reprise issue for. The first issue celebrates that it was entirely drawn with a pencil and second issue celebrates the pencil as a potential source of artistic inspiration.

Our Animal Friends Published by: self-published; Contributor: Ken Brown; Date: 1975; Price: no cover price; Page count: 16 pages; Size: mini; (4.25 x 5.5); Kennedy number: 1466; Print information: one printing; 500 copies (Kennedy); 100 copies (Ken Brown) The creator of Our Animal Friends, Ken Brown, also published a three issue series of minis called Pentracks in 1976. Kennedy cites an identical print run of 500 copies for each of the four titles. That seems strange to me because similar publications with similar print runs (or less) appear on the market much more regularly. Post -script: Ken Brown was kind enough get in touch with me after this original post. He states that all four of Kennedy listed minis had a print run that was closer to 100 copies.

Nemesis #7 (aka Penny Arcade Comix) Published by: self-published; Contributors: Michael Roden; Frodo; Date: 1980; Price: no cover price; Page count: 12 pages; Size: small comic; (7.0 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 1354; Print information: one printing of 100 copies; Michael Roden considered Nemesis #7 to be his first comic (sized) publication. One of half of the small print run were given away to the membership of the Esoteric Order of Dagan APA, leaving only 50 copies available for sale to the general public. Besides #8, the entire Nemesis series is on the endangered list and individual copies are extremely difficult to track down.

Cerebus the Aardvark #1 Published by: Aardvark-Anaheim Press; Contributors: Dave Sim; Denis Loubart; Date: 1977; Price: one dollar; Page Count: 28 pages; Size: magazine; (7.75 x 10.0 inches); Kennedy #: above ground #22; Print information: 2000 copies; I have recently posted most of this information on another thread and have decided to recycle some of it here. Cerebus #1 is one of the more valuable Bronze Age and Kennedy listed books in the marketplace, although its position seems to be softening with time. About a year ago I was searching for an example of what Kennedy described as "sizable number of counterfeit copies peddled across the country in April 1982". I managed to find a seller who had copies of the real and fake for sale and decided to purchase his fake. When I received my order I was surprised to learn that I received the real copy instead of the fake. When I attempted to exchange the item with the seller, they would not because they were convinced no mistake was made and suggested that I was trying to scam them. What I believe happened is that the seller probably relied on a "false tell" as their criteria for determining a real from a fake. One "false tell" that keeps circulating around is that real examples: always have poor black print quality on the front cover. This is false. Yes, the fakes generally have more consistant higher print quality around the "S"; "$1" and "red soldier's head" on the front cover, but there's a wide range of black print quality in these arounds with the real examples. Please compare an example of my copy compared to 3 other CGC Certified "real" copies that I borrowed from Heritage Auctions: There's quite a range in quality and this criteria should never be relied upon. Potential purchasers of raw copies should instead check the: gloss of the inner front cover (should be matte not glossy); the appearance of Cerebus on the inner pages (should appear as a gray-screen image, not dark) and the registration of red print to black print on the front cover especially on the white soldier (there should be no red bleed into the lighter sections):

Its not, it's real. The scan is probably throwing you off. It has non-glossy IFC. Cerebus is gray screen through out, not black. Any page and/or close-up, you want to see? The only non-match with your comparison is my "$1" and front soldier are pretty clean. I posted an image of gray-screened, non-blackish Cerebus; a close-up of a soldier without any trapping of red ink (an older wider known tell); and a comparison of the gloss of the front cover to the non-glossy IFC. The criteria of "real" examples having a dirtier black opposed to a crisp in the "S", "$1" and on the "red solider", as stated by Stronguy SHOULD NOT BE USED. Why? Because it is inconsistant within the print run. Some examples of "real #1s" are dirty, likes Stronguy's and some examples are not like mine. What's my proof? There are many examples of CGC Certified Cerebus #1 on Heritage Auctions, both real and fake. You can enlarge these images up and see for yourself. Although the fakes are consistently crisper, there is a wide range of quality with regard to the black print on the fronts of real Cerebus #1s. I am 100% positive that my find is real.

About a year ago, a comic collector (that I purchased many items from before and chatted with many times) contacted me because he knew that I was Canadian and an underground collector. He wanted to know if I was interested in the real and fake versions of Cerebus #1 that he recently bought from someone else. At the time I did not have the funds to purchase the legitimate copy, but managed to strike a deal (under $100) for the counterfeit. This is what I had received from the seller: I contacted the seller to let me know that I thought that they had made a mistake and had mixed-up the real copy with the counterfeit, but they stated that I was wrong and were 100% certain I received the correct item. There was a slight suggestion that I was trying to scam them. The bag in which I received my item was tagged with "Cerebus Counterfeit" and I only could assume the seller or the original owner inadvertently switched the comics and the bags.

Pipkin Papers Published by: self-published; Contributors: John F. Weldon; Rhad Gmal; Date: 1969; Price: no cover price; Page count: 44 pages with 5 blank pages; Size: comic; (7.0 x 10.5); Kennedy #: 1534; Print information: one printing; 600 copies according to a citation from comixjoint.com; Canadians of a certain age may recognize Weldon's artwork from his body of animated shorts produced while working for the National Film Board of Canada, including Special Delivery which won an Oscar in 1973. Although Pipkin Papers is not representative of the higher caliber of Weldon's animated work, however it is signifiant because of the early period in which it was published. It is also worth noting that Weldon is from Montreal which has a rich artistic history from around that period including the sad stories of the brillant Andre Montpetit and Ryan Larkin.

Bob Vojtko's Playstocker #1-4 Published by: self-published; Contributors: Bob Vojtko (all issues); George Erling (#3); Date: 1975-1976; Price: 50 cents; Page count: single sheet folded twice; Size: #1-2 (8.5 x 14.0 sheet folded into a 3.5 x 8.5 booklet); #3-4 (8.5 x 14.0 sheet folded into a 4.25 x 7.0 digest); Kennedy #: 1552-1555; Print information: one printing of 100 copies each; It seemed that Bob Vojko had his hands pretty full in the mid 70s. An aspiring cartoonist who had to: develop his craft, collaborate with other similarly minded artists, promote his work and feed himself and his family by working at the local Pick-N-Play grocery. What better way to save time and to maximize your efforts than by combining everything into one publication - the Playstocker.

Okupant X Published by: Diana's Bimonthly Press; Contributor: Gary Panter; Date: 1979; Price: two dollars; Page count: 40 pages Size: small comic; (5.5 x 8.5); Kennedy #: 1447; Print information: one printing of 750 copies Although Panter was responsible for few more works prior to the publication of Okupant X, I believe that Kennedy only cited this and one other of his publications (As*hole) the guide. Panter includes a few concepts from some of those earlier publications and some ideas that were yet-to-be published within the storyline of Okupant X.

San Diego Funnies Published by: self-published; Contributors: Douglas Bryson; Eric Vincent; Larry Weir; Brad Foster; Tucker Petertil; Joel Milke; Doug Hansen; Date: 1978; Price: no cover price; Page count: 12 pages, guts unbound to cover; Size: small comic; (5.50 x 8.50); Kennedy #: 1721; Print information: one printing of 100 copies; I must admit that San Diego Funnies flew under my radar for a number of years, basically because it's a Bryson collaborative one-shot and an issue within one of his better known series. I would assume it was produced as 1978 San Diego Comic Convention giveaway.

Thanks BrotherJ! But I cannot access the page and its info. Is it current?

Nasty Monster and Paper P*ssy Published by: self-published; Contributor: Richard K. "Bob" Lewis; Date: 1984; Price: 50 cents; Page Count: 8 pages; Size: mini; (4.25 x 5.50); Kennedy #: post guide; Print information: unknown Bob Lewis created these 2 minis as a spoof commentary regarding printed hard-core pornography of the early 80s. The harsh art-brut style does a perfect job with expressing the revulsion that Lewis seems to have had for the industry. I still surprises me how often people misunderstood and still misunderstand the actual context and messaging behind this type of underground publication.

I have thought about myself and I really cannot see money being the primary motivation. I believe that these were sold in comic shops around the time of the publication of the original. If that's the case then I would presume the knockoffs would have priced close to cover price value ($1). You pay and get the stock and ink, make the plates and other prepress, print, staple and cut. If you printed a 1,000 copies, then you would be looking at a $1000 minus the comic shop's overhead. All that time and effort and expensive for $500/1,000 copies?

Farm-Life Published by: IFC: Children's Grafiks; Distributed by Constant Cause; BC: National Headquarters, Selective Service System; Contributors: unknown; Date: 1980; Price: no cover price; Page Count: 16 pages; Size: mini; (4.25 x 5.50); Kennedy #: 712; Print Information: unknown Earlier in this thread, I has posted another Kennedy-listed mini that was also distributed by Constant Cause: The Thought Occurs to Me, Julian Kernes, 1982. Farm-Life sarcastically laments the plight of the small farmer in a series of one-panels, five years before Willie Nelson's Farm Aid concert. Oddly the back cover identifies a second publisher that is different from the inner front cover creditation, which Kennedy seems to have also missed.

Extra! Commix Published By: the Extra Box; Contributors: Mad Peck; Justin Green; Zero Easter; Spain; Robert Crumb; Gilbert Shelton; Tony Bell; Joe Brown; Date: 1969: Price: 20 cents; Page Count: single sheet folded into 4 pages; Size: tabloid; (11.5 x 17.5); Kennedy #: 691; Print Information: unknown Some "big names" appear in this early Rhode Island underground comix tabloid, but sometimes I find the lessor known (to me at least) people are just as interesting. Tony Bell seems to have an association with Shelton because they appear have contributed to the mid 60s publication Drag Cartoons, Radical America Komiks (v.3, i.1), Rip--Off magazine and various Wonder Wart-Hog publications. He also contributed to the first issue of Bacchanal by in 1962. Its seems that Joe Brown was also invited to contribute to Wonder Wart-Hog and to some issues of Rip-Off magazine.

The Black Book II Published by: Thru Black Holes Comix; Contributor: Michael Roden; John Thompson: Roman Scott; Ed Dorn; T. Hutchinson; Tom Brinkmann; Date: 2006; Price: 5 dollars; Page Count: 20 pages; Size: digest; (5.5 x 8.75); Kennedy #: post guide; Print information: one printing unknown copies Yes, I know that the sequel to the first Black Book was published 20 years post bronze age. But if you were going to discuss the first issue, then how could you not also comment on its more contemporary counterpart? Nice one-two-punch, Mr. Roden.

The Black Book Published by: Thru Black Holes Comix; Contributor: Michael Roden; roman scott; Date: 1984; Price: 75 cents; Page Count: 8 pages; Size: digest; (4.5 x 7.0 ); Kennedy #: post guide; Print information: one printing of 100 signed copies I am personally a Michael Roden addict and like most addictions, my supply does not meet my demand. Over the span of his 30 year comix career, Roden has been responsible for around 50 self-published titles and numerous collaborations with others. Black Book is a nice example of his work from around the time of his first production peak in 1983-1984. Hand-made and pasted, you would be hard pressed to name another title that demonstrates a creator's love of self-publishing.

Bob Vojtko's Self-Promotional Funnies Published by: self published; Contributor: Bob Vojtko; Date: 1976; Price: 15 cents Page Count: single sheet folded into 4 pages Size: small comic; (5.5 x 7.5 when folded); Kennedy #: 1761 Print information: one printing of 100 copies, two colour variants Around the same time that Bob Vojtko created his two issue series of Comix Convention (see earlier posting in this thread), created and handed out Self-Promotional Funnies at the 76' Berkeley Underground Con.

Snatch Comics #1 (first printing) Published by: Apex Novelties; Contributors: Don Donahue; Robert crumb; S. Clay Wilson; Date: 1968; Price: 25 cents; Page Count: 36 pages; Size: digest, (5.0 x 7.0); Kennedy #: post publication of the guide; Print information: six known printings, 250-800 copies for the first printing The first printing of Snatch Comics #1 is the rarest of all of "underground keys". There is a debate among the "people were involved" on how many actual copies were produced. Kennedy states 800 copies in his guide and the responsible printer Don Donahue,has stated that only about 250 copies were eventually produced because there was a technical difficultly with the alignment of pages 10 and 11 (more to follow). Copies have the hallmarks of an early Apex Novelties run: uneven cuts, rough trimming and thin plate lines on some of the lower pages. Someone earlier in this thread had felt that they may have unknowingly cheaply sold a copy of the first printing. Besides the 25 cent cover price of the first three printings, one would have to locate S. Clay Wilson's "A Few Good Mates" (see below) to be definitive. The story (in a first printing) appears continuously across pages 10 and 11. Because the Apex crew were having difficulties with its alignment, the story was reduced to a single page for all later printings.

Blast the Rats Comix (Bud Plant Catalog #11) Published by: self published; Contributors: Bud Plant; Jim Vadebonocoeur; Al Davorean; Date: 1975; Price: no cover price; Page Count: 40 pages; Size: small comic, (5.5 x 8.75); Kennedy #: not listed; Print information: unknown If Kennedy can include Gary Arlington's catalog (Eric Fromm Comics) and merchandise catalogs from underground artists in his guide, then I should be able to post Blast the Rats Comix. I do feel that underground catalogs sometimes contain important information and original art and should be collected to support wider underground collection, especially those with a comix theme. Besides its comix-based format this catalog does hold some interesting tidbits of information. Its the last catalog issue that Bud Plant published as a student and before going full-time in the publishing/mail order business. Plant in about a year's time, would take over publication of Jack Katz's First Kingdom series from Comics and Comix. Also if you notice the lower right corner of the third image, there is an ad for Zoot, a Kennedy listed underground that never seems to appear on the market.