This is the weekly dispatch from Bizarro Studios North, where I have been writing and drawing the Monday through Saturday Bizarro comics since 2018. My partner and friend, Dan Piraro, created Bizarro in the late twentieth century and continues to do the Sunday comic from Rancho Bizarro in Mexico.
Wayno
There is nothing so fretting and vexatious, nothing so justly TERRIBLE to tyrants, and their tools and abettors, as a FREE PRESS.
Samuel Adams (Boston Gazette, 1768)
Samuel Adams knew what he was talking about. The poor chap would be appalled by today's consolidation of print media, broadcast, and electronic news and opinion outlets by insanely rich abettors of tyranny who are scheming to silence free speech in favor of regime-approved propaganda.
A recent reminder of this warning was Stephen Colbert's Late Show coming to an end under shady circumstances that I needn't detail here. Colbert is a sharp and influential political commentator and, by all accounts, a genuinely decent human being. In short, exactly the kind of person thin-skinned tyrants hate and fear more than anything.
As the American Experiment approaches the 250-year mark, I ask those with the means to support independent, public, and community TV and radio stations, print/online publications, and other news sources not controlled by oligarchs, tyrants, or their bootlicking enablers.
Here endeth the PSA. We return to our regular cartoon programming.
When I first saw today's pipe pic, I thought it might be American actor Art Carney, but it's actually Georges Brassens (1921-1981), a French poet and singer-songwriter.
International Bizarro fiend correspondent Vince C. of Vancouver, British Columbia, discovered the photo on the "Le temps d'une chanson" Facebook page, described as "a radio program dedicated to French-language songs from the 1930s to the 1970s, hosted by Catherine Pépin."
Brassens recorded from the early 1950s through the late 70s. He was apparently a lifelong smoker, having frequently been photographed with a pipe emerging from his bushy mustache. I've been enjoying listening to his early recordings, despite the language barrier.
Thanks to Vince for the photo and for turning me on to Georges Brassens. Anyone who likes cartoons and music is my kind of reader.
Cartoons are another (albeit humbler) form of free speech, and here are my latest blatherings.
They're plugged in but disconnected.
Tuesday's panel imagines a new approach to counseling, which could be termed "couples regression therapy."
It's as easy as tapping your credit card on the Collection Plate app.
"Why in the world would you feel insecure, FretBot?"
(Screen grab courtesy of our pal Eric S.)
Have I exhausted the topic with the fourth installment? Who knows?
Ol' Punchy was bursting with pride to receive his city's medal of humor.
You Gotta Look Sharp
You can become an icon of befuddling fashion by grabbing one (or more?) of the large selection of T-shirts and other doo-dads available in the King Features Bizarro Shop. We'd love to share more photos of readers modeling the tees.
That's it for the last post of May. We'll be back with a fresh post the first week of next month, as soon as Google lets me know if next month is Dectober or Junuary.
Bonus Track
Ben Vaughn Quintet: "Pièce de Résistance"
from Pièce de Résistance
Many Moods Records (2016)
Ben talks about this song and performs a solo acoustic version on a recent episode of his excellent new podcast, Straight From The Hat.
Oh man, that began as a list. I started keeping a list of French phrases that we use in America a lot, and then at one point decided to set up the music, and it came out sounding a little something like this.
I recommend checking out the podcast, mes amis!
A Mess of Bizarro Matériel
If you like what we do and appreciate that it's still free, we encourage you to explore the following links.
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