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
We've got technological wonders around us, and we've used them to abrogate all responsibility for everything in our lives.
Harlan Ellison (1934-2018)
This timely observation comes from our pipe pic model of the week: Harlan Ellison, the prolific enfant terrible of science fiction (a term he hated).
It was recommended by field correspondent Glenn G., as well as Kent, a regular blog reader and commenter.
Glenn also provided some background for those who aren't familiar with Ellison's work:
I thought I'd submit for your approval a pipe pic of my favorite author, Harlan Ellison. I don't know if you are familiar with his stories (mostly in sci-fi short stories) or his many columns of movie and/or television criticism. He wrote a number of memorable TV episodes for The Outer Limits, and one for Star Trek (which is considered by many to be the best ever of the original series), and other short story collections.
I became enamored of the man and his writing in the '70s. A couple of his most often repeated quotes are: "The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity," and my favorite, "You are not entitled to your opinion. You are entitled to your informed opinion. No one is entitled to be ignorant."You can see many of his short videos of commentary from the '80s on YouTube. Check out Harlan Ellison's Watching.
This is Ellison's second pipe pic to appear on the ol' blogeroo. A little over a year ago, we featured a shot of him writing while on exhibit in a bookshop window.
Big Bizarro thanks to Glenn and Kent for the suggestion, which reminds me, I still haven't read The Last Dangerous Visions, the third and final mammoth volume of the anthology series that Ellison launched in 1967. It's on the pile, and I hope to get to it soon.
I have only myself to blame for the latest batch of Bizarro gags, and am planning to keep it that way. No abrogation of responsibility for us!
Tropical shredding is the training program for aspiring air guitarists.
I decided on a vertical strip layout to showcase the full effect of this misunderstood musical art form.
If you'd like to see the reference photo I used to draw this one, check out my free Substack newsletter.
Who doesn't love tablesside sserivce?
I drew the cacti as accurately as I could, but their relative sizes are all over the place.
I drew the cacti as accurately as I could, but their relative sizes are all over the place.
Over the years, what begins as a curricula transport system eventually becomes an adorable fashion accessory.
Thursday's panel imagines a theater where some patrons never have to miss a minute of the performance. Culture plus convenience!
We are all frogs in the skillet.
The book cover in the comic is an homage to Milton Glaser's 1961 cover for the Signet paperback edition. The first time I read 1984, it was this version, and Glaser's simple, effective design is burned into my mind's eye.
As more people return to the office, you can't be too careful.
Our Latest Bizarro Fashion Plate
Sheila H. of Tucson models one of the new "Eye Heart" T-shirts available in the Comics Kingdom Bizarro Shop. These comfy garments come in five different designs and an array of colors.
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That's the latest nuttiness from my Little Shop of Humor. Stop by again next week if you'd like to see more of this stuff.
Bonus Video
Roy Smeck: "Tiger Rag"
Unknown film source, circa 1920s-1930s
Unknown film source, circa 1920s-1930s
Roy Smeck was a Vaudeville performer who became widely known when Warner Brothers featured him in their first "sync-sound" film in 1926. He made numerous other film appearances and had endorsement deals for guitars, as well as selling sheet music and music instruction books.
Smeck played Hawaiian guitar, banjo, ukulele, and guitar, as evidenced by this Yazoo LP/CD cover:
A Glut of Bizarro Giddiness
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Glad to see Harlan Ellison featured as your pipe pic this week! I have been a fan since I was a teenager.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading Dangerous Visions when it came out in paperback in the late '60s, I think, and I was blown away by stories. Ellison was also involved in Babylon 5, my all-time favorite SciFi TV show. He was not everybody's cup of tea, but I loved his stuff.
ReplyDeleteThe Roy Smeck video led me to another showing him playing uke in the '20s using the right hand tapping technique, later popularized by Van Halen, which is amazing on a ululele!
I just recently re-read 1984 and Animal Farm and I have to agree with your cartoon - I just wish it were funny instead of scary.