Strip Search, Episode 12 - Live at MICE with Keith Knight

Keith Knight, left, who clearly had no idea what he was getting himself into, sat down to chat with Dave and Pete during a short break at the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo.

Last month Shelli Paroline and Braden Lamb were here to give us a preview of the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE) -- and this past weekend, we got to see how their hard work paid off in person. Spoiler alert: Boy, did it ever.

We hit the Expo Sunday afternoon, Oct. 21, and even after a day and a half University Hall at Lesley University was jam-packed, with lots of smiling comics fans perusing the wares of more than 200 cartoonists and illustrators and taking part in the workshops and panels. (At least part of the reason they were smiling was that they hadn't paid a penny to enter, thanks to a slew of generous sponsors.)

In our short time there, we got to chat with a bunch of MICE planners and participants, including:

Keith Knight, creator of the nationally syndicated comic strip Knight Life, and one of the main speakers at MICE with his presentation "They Shoot Black People, Don’t They? A Cartoonist’s 20-year look at Police Brutality in the U.S."
MICE volunteers Ed Shems, the guest relations coordinator, and marketing guru Zach Clemente.
George O'Connor of Homeless Comics talking about what sets MICE apart.

Listen below, and don't forget to check out our friends at Comic Strip Cartoonist magazine!

Pete and Keith Knight at MICE.

MICE featured panels from world-famous cartoonists on both Saturday and Sunday.

Workshops of all sorts were jam-packed at MICE this past weekend.

Comments

Introducing Strip Search, the cartooning podcast

Hello all! Welcome to Strip Search, a new podcast where we'll be interviewing cartooning professionals and talk comic strips: their history, classic comics, the current state of the industry, and comics to watch out for. If you're a cartoonist or humorous illustrator and want to appear on the podcast with Dave and Pete, email us at petpeevescomic@gmail.com .

Strip Search, Episode 41 — Jimmy Craig

When most comic strip animals talk, they don’t exactly scream “realism.” It was hard to imagine that Garfield was speaking for most cats when he declared his hatred of Mondays or his love for lasagna. But the animals that populate “They Can Talk,” the wry, brilliant weekly webtoon by cartoonist Jimmy Craig, don’t just sound authoritative — they’re downright relatable. And fans of both comics and animals are clearly listening to what Craig’s creatures have to say. In the seven years since he launched the strip, it’s amassed 615,000 followers on Instagram, 658,000 on Facebook, and has spawned two books; the latest, “Are You Gonna Eat That?” from Ulysses Press , hits shelves this month. Listen or watch below as we catch up with Craig to talk about talking to the animals, and them talking back. You'll find samples of his work at the bottom of this post, and for more you can visit Jimmy's website, theycantalk.com , or his Facebook and Instagram feeds. (Plus, for his standalone New...

Strip Search, Episode 52 — Jeff Kinney

Jeff Kinney (right). A self-described failed cartoonist, Jeff Kinney spent eight years developing his first “ Diary of a Wimpy Kid ” novel after syndicates passed on his daily comic strip. Within a few years after that, he found himself with a hit book series and a movie in the works (the first of many), and he’s since become the steward of a worldwide franchise that shows no signs of abating. Plus, he gives back every day to his community of Plainville, Massachusetts, via his bookstore, An Unlikely Story . How cool is that? For some reason, Jeff sat down with London & Chianca for a wide-ranging interview on Strip Search: The Comic Strip Podcast. In the middle of an international tour in the wake of the publication of his 19th “Wimpy Kid” book, “Hot Mess,” Kinney talked about his love of comic strips, where “Wimpy Kid” came from, how he wound up in Massachusetts, his input on the “Wimpy” movies, his drawing methods and tools, and much more. Listen or watch b...

Strip Search with London + Chianca

Search This Blog