*SPX WRAP-UP..
I like SPX because it's in a town that doesn't have a whole lot going on (unlike MoCCA and APE), so it always has good attendance, and I find myself hanging out with fellow cartoonists a lot more at this show. There aren't 37 parties, events, art openings and keg parties like there are in San Francisco and New York City.

I drove down with fellow CWAer Ted Rall. Ted is not only dangerous with a pen and piece of paper, he is dangerous behind the wheel. I went through three diapers.

This was my first time at the Expo in it's current location: The Marriott in North Bethesda. I like it. It's bigger. Fancier. And easily accessible by subway. I didn't make as much $$$ as in the past, but I forgot my freakin' canvas bags and didn't have a new book to sell. Oh well. Me and many of my fellow Cartoonist With Attitude members crashed at comics historian and collector Warren Bernard's house, much like we did this past summer for the AAEC's 50th anniversary convention in D.C. Good fun.

Also sat on a panel with Zippy the Pinhead creator Bill Griffith, Perry Bible Fellowship and fellow Harvey winner Nicholas Gurewitch, and stunt driver Ted Rall. Nicholas had the book of the show, but the way. His new Dark Horse collection is the cat's bottom. Also pick up Julia Wertz's first collection of the Fart Party. You will not be disappointed. Good stuff.

I'm looking forward to going back next year with my--

*TWO NEW BOOKS FOR 2008!!
What?!! Two new books for 2008? Ya damn right. Things ain't totally figured out yet, but there will be a new K Chronicles collection (#5) out for the 2008 convention season. And coming in June 2008 is the book many have been waiting for: A 500 PAGE K CHRONICLES OMNIBUS COLLECTION!! Featuring every strip contained in the four (mostly out-of-print) K Chronicles collections in a much larger format. With commentary, sketches, foolishness and more!!

*THE NEW KCHRONICLES.COM...
..will be coming very soon. I want to hear your feedback about it . Keep an eye out. It's going to kick bottom.

*ANOTHER INTERVIEW..DONE THIS PAST SUMMER..
http://freynosowrites.blogspot.com/

*OH, BY THE WAY..
THE ALTERNATIVE PRESS EXPO HAS BEEN MOVED TO NOVEMBER 1ST AND 2ND OF 2008!! I kinda like the idea of a move to the fall, but NOT the day after Halloween. People are gonna be hungover and not wanting to go to something during the day. I say it should be the second week in November. The closer to the Holidays, the better. People will be wanting to shop for presents.

*AND YEAH..THE K CHRONICLES ABOUT THROWING TOMATOES AT CARS..
..is a repeat. I threw tomatoes in San Francisco. Wouldn't dare throw 'em in L.A. Everybody's packin' heat down here.

Labels: APE, Cartoonists with Attitude, interview, new books, spx 2007

 
*AWRIGHT...SO WHERE WAS I?
OKay..So the AAEC fundraiser went well and the next day was the Fourth of July. Tremendous Comics patron Warren Bernard took a few of us sporty type cartoonists to the Nationals baseball game...What is more patriotic than that? We witnessed a grand slam and people dressed up in Disney-like cartoon costumes representing the various Presidents on Mount Rushmore. It was weird and scary cuz the costumed people came off the field and walked all the way up right by my seat. For a second I thought they were coming to eat me.

Speaking of eating...Washington Nationals stadium, a.k.a. RFK Stadium has the worst food I've ever had in a ball park. The WORST. Don't go anywhere near the BBQ place..It was revolting.
Oh, and speaking of crappy, we just missed our current crappy President BY ONE DAY.. Gee Dubya showed up the next afternoon to watch the game for his birthday.

Lessee..There was a BBQ at August's house and then the registration party. Frankly, all this convention consisted of was drinking, some eating, and drinking some more.

Oh!! But the hotel where it took place was super swanky and we met a lot of famous folk in there. Lou Piniella and his Chicago Cubs were in there. Bob Uecker, George Stephanopoulos, and the coolest guy I met: Democratic Candidate Mike Gravel!!

Mr. Gravel is the only reason to watch the Democratic debates. He was the nicest dude and even gave me his home number just in case I could talk the AAEC into having speak. He was funny, cordial and *gasp* human in a totally un-political way.

I also hung out with some great editorial cartoonists like Mike Peters, Rob Rogers, Mike Luckovich, Signe Wilkinson and so many more. I was psyched that a few of the AAEC founding members knew the K Chronicles.

A special guest at one of the final events was Bay Area political satirist Will Durst. He showed up a day early, so we spent a good amount of time hanging out. He's a funny dude so if you seem him rolling through your town, check him out.

It all ended on Saturday with a special signing of the Cartoonists with Attitude at Borders. It was the biggest signing I've ever done, outside of my college gigs. At least 125 people. It was great. We each did about three minutes of slideshow. And then signed for about an hour after.

Thanks to Mikhaela Reid and the rest of the Cartoonists With Attitude.
A bunch of us will hanging out in San Diego, so come check us out.

*I'M NOMINATED FOR A 2007 HARVEY AWARD!!
..and I need all of you industry professionals to vote for me!! Click here and fill out a ballot and send it by Aug. 3, 2007. I'm up for Best syndicated strip or panel.

*I NEED SPONSORS FOR THE 826LA MINI-GOLF TOURNAMENT..
I will be participating in the first annual 826LA Mini-Golf Tourney for Cheaters coming up next month. The key to winning the tournament is THE MORE MONEY I RAISE, THE MORE I GET TO CHEAT.

It's weird, but if we raise a certain amount, we get to blast a bike horn while our opponents are putting. I f we raise more money, we can blindfold our opponents and so on.. I NEED YOUR SUPPORT!! My team got in late, so we're WAAYY behind in fundraising. But I know I can count on my readers. Can't I?

Go here to check it out and donate to my team. The wifey's on my team, too. We're called
" Dimpled Balls".

*SEE YOU IN SAN DIEGO!!
Starting the 25th at 6pm. Look for us at K-15 in the Small Press Section , on the end right next to Steve "Bob the Angry Flower" Notley.

Labels: AAEC, Cartoonists with Attitude, Mike Gravel, mini-golf, Nationals, san diego, Washington D.C., Will Durst

 
*EXTRA!! EXTRA!! KEEF COMING TO WASHINGTON D.C NEXT WEEK..

Cartoonapalooza: Fireworks in Pen and Ink!

Cartoonapalooza! Meet prize-winning political cartoonists from across the country as they discuss their most controversial cartoons.
Date: Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: Renaissance Mayflower Hotel
1127 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington DC 20036
Phone: 202-232-5300
Ticket Price: $25 in advance/$35 at door

Why did Tom Toles of The Washington Post get dressed down by the Joint Chiefs of Staff? How did Ted Rall invoke the wrath of a legion of 9/11 widows? Why did a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Atlanta take out a half-page ad to apologize for a Mike Luckovich cartoon? Meet ten of the nation's best political cartoonists as they discuss their most controversial cartoons. Cartoonapalooza, the kick-off event for the 50th anniversary convention of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC), is a rare opportunity for the public to meet prize-winning political cartoonists from across the country as they discuss their most controversial cartoons. Join Tom Toles, Ted Rall, Mike Peters, Mike Luckovich, Rob Rogers and five other brilliant, ground-breaking editorial artists as they talk politics, the election, Bush and beyond. The public is invited to a cocktail reception before the panel discussion to meet the artists. Door prizes at the reception will include signed original cartoons and books. The proceeds from this event will go to support Newspapers In Education's "Cartoons for the Classroom" program, a non-profit program that provides editorial cartoon-related lesson plans for teachers. Cartoonapalooza is the must-attend event of the year for all political buffs and cartoon aficionados!
Featured Cartoonists:

* Ted Rall, Universal Press Syndicate
* Tom Toles, Washington Post
* Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal Constitution
* Mike Peters, Dayton Daily News
* Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
* Jack Ohman, The Oregonian
* Ruben Bolling, Tom the Dancing Bug
* Ann Telnaes, Cartoonists and Writers Syndicate
* Keith Knight, The K-Chronicles
* Mark Fiore, Animated Political Cartoonist
-----------------------------------------------------------------
And the 2nd event is on Saturday and it FREE..

The Cartoonists With Attitude gang storms the capital on July 7 with an edgy satirical cartoon slideshow and book signing!

• When: Saturday, July 7, 2 p.m.
• Where: Borders 18th & L Streets NW Washington, DC 20006 ( 202.466.4999)
• Price: Free!

Celebrate Independence Day weekend with a slideshow and signing with edgy, groundbreaking and controversial alternative cartoonists from around the country! Be there or the torturers, bombers, ex-gays and wire-tappers win! Meet:

• Ruben Bolling ("Tom the Dancing Bug")
• Matt Bors ("Idiot Box")
• Keith Knight ("The K Chronicles")
• Brian McFadden ("Big Fat Whale")
• Stephanie McMillan ("Minimum Security")
• August Pollak ("Some Guy With a Website")
• Ted Rall(Silk Road to Ruin)
• Mikhaela Reid ("The Boiling Point")
• Ben Smith ("Fighting Words")
• Jen Sorensen ("Slowpoke")
• Masheka Wood ("Not Just Knee Deep")

Labels: Cartoonists with Attitude, politics, signing, Washington D.C.

 
*MOCCA CHOCOLATTA YA-YA WRAP-UP..
Ahhh, MOCCA. Does it ever really matter that I don't sell as much stuff here as I do at SPX, APE, Wondercon or San Diego? It's New York fer chrissakes!! It's about the connections, the experiences, the people!!

I had a great time stayin' in Queens at Marginal Prophets producer Jamie Lemoine and wonderful wife Dearbhla's lovely Jackson Heights estate. A great neighborhood for Indian food and the walk to the Roosevelt Ave. subway totally reminds me of London.

Thanks to AOL/Black Voices and my former Africana editor Ken Gibbs fer gettin' me into a Smirnoff sponsored afterwork party last thursday. It was smokin' with free food, open bar and great deejays including Pete Rock. Things got even better after my sunglasses fell into the toilet.

Hung with K Chronicles coolection ( I met to spell it like that!) graphic designer Pete Friedrich at the amazing Top Shelf ten year anniversary party. Although I just missed the shrimp, open bar was to be had and all the dolmas I could eat. It was in this super-smooth bar called G-Staad, Once open-bar was done , I heard some drinks clocked in at $15. I was outta there long before that happened.

But before I left, I got to meet big-time indie rapper/producer MF Grimm, who was at the Vertigo booth at MoCCa promoting an upcoming graphic novel based on his life. And quite a life it has been.

My slideshow on saturday went super groovy. People laffed when they were supposed to. And the MoCCA staff did a great job running it..Kudos to them. And a shout out to Calvin Reid from Publishers Weekly for attending the event.

The coolest thing that went down in New York was I got "peoped"!! What is getting "peoped"?, you ask. It's this way cool portrait/interview done by great New York artist/cartoonist Fly. It comes out like this.

Fly encapsulates everything that I think is great about New York City. I hope to be part of her next collection of Peops. If any publishers are interested, give her a shout out.

Actually, MoCCA this year was all about the females. Along with Fly were recent Rueben award winner Hilary Price, Every award under the sun winner Alison Bechdel, the hilarious tooners Rina Piccolo & Julia Wertz, fellow CWA-er Mikhaela Reid and the world's youngest professional cartoonist, 7 year old Alexa Kitchen .

In conclusion, New York rocked, despite low sales. Shout outs to L.A. homies Rob and Georgene, fellow eMPee Chernobyl Def Gee, Now Jersey rez Kaffy P, fellow CWA-ers Masheka Wood and
Brian McFadden, and everyone else who came by the table to say hello...

*HEY..THAT "THIS IS DEDICATED TO THAT ONE BLACK KID" K CHRONICLES STRIP HAS REALLY TOUCHED A LOTTA FOLK..

Wow. You gotta check out all the letters to Salon about it. Here.

Some letters of the week..

Keith,

I liked the K Chronicles comic from the other day, the one "dedicated to the
black kid." You are the ballsiest cartoonist I've ever read.

-N.
-------------------------------------------------------
This one white kid...

...thinks that was one of your best ever - GREAT
cartoon, man!

C.

--------------------------------------------------------

Good afternoon, Mr. Knight.

I am an recreational reader of Salon and have come across your very imaginative and amusing work for a bit. But for some reason, today I delved deeper and checked out your website - bio, etc.

Fascinating.

I am a Black female, more Creole-ish than African-ish, a writer, pr person and great appreciator of most things articstic.

It is in this spirit that I was moved to take a few moments from my workday to type these words to you.

May you know success and no bill collectors ringing your phone, but may you not suffer the slings and arrows of Aaron McGruder and Dave Chappelle. No one should really have to suffer for his art.

You've done well for a department store Jacko.

Pax vobiscum.

K.
Chicago

*OH, A COUPLA MORE THINGS..
I did a K Chronicles comic about being cheap and one of the things I put in there was to pour cheap vodka through a Britta filter to make it better vodka. Some folks didn't believe it, but the results are right here.

Yikes! I just got word from the C-Ville Weekly that they're down-sizing and (th)ink is on the chopping block. Next week will be the last one. If you are in the area, send letters and emails to the editor, but wait til it ain't there anymore.

Labels: Cartoonists with Attitude, female cartoonists, Marginal Prophets, MoCCA, New York