Evan Dorkin

If Memory Serves: A Conversation With Jamie Hewlett

I flew over to the U.K. four times to attend UKCAC events in Glasgow and London. The last time I attended was with Sarah, David Mazzucchelli and Richmond Lewis. Previously I went on my own, except for one time I was with a former co-worker from Jim Hanley's Universe who managed to invite himself along. We shared a hotel room during the convention and he snored. Very loudly. He also put a blow-up sex doll in my bed, which was "hilarious" to find when I returned to the room.  

These ...

Experiment: #85

You've seen this face before.

A Thing Done For A Thing

Shhhh. 

Will let you know where and when this appears.

Hoping to have my weird computer text file issues taken care of in the next few days so I can finally get some PDFs posted.

HackArtober Continued #26 (Scanned In Shocking Detail)

I saw Shocker when it was released to theaters. My friends and I all hated it. 

I drew Horace here because I knew I could do a halfway decent job of it, after failing several times at a few other characters. I like doing these card drawings as warm-ups or as breaks, but sometimes I'm frustrated by my drawing limitations because I can't pin down a costume design or character likeness. Tonight I tried drawing one of The Slime People, from a ludicrous but entertaining (imo) old no-bud...

Experiment: Panel 84

Another victim of circumstance, or the same victim of circumstance?

HackArtober #25 (Belated, Scanned On The Moon)

Jeeeebers Christ. This fucking movie.

"The Beast of Yucca Flats" was a title that stuck in my kid brain, injected via Famous Monster of Filmland. It conjured up images of a lizard like The Giant Gila Monster, or a Tarantula or Black Scorpion desert bit. Or maybe a hairy biped, not that I would have used the phrase back then. Or a Hideous Sun Beast kind of thing. 

Over the years I still wondered about this one, because that title...it's hard to forget. Specifically "Yucca Flat...

Out Today! Beasts of Burden: Occupied Territory HC

The fourth Beasts of Burden collection is out in comic shops today. 

Thanks to everyone who has been supporting the series, and who picked up the individual issues. The HC contains a back section featuring Benjamin Dewey's process images and notes. 

This is my last scheduled comics project for the time being. Unfortunately, sales have slowed down on beasts despite our putting more material out in the past few years than in the decade previously. Some things dragged us do...

HackArtober #24 (Scanned Expressly For The Patreon)

If you're interested in my thoughts on Horror Express, Paul Yellovich and I recorded an episode of our Tear Them Apart horror movie podcast about it. As well as the shipwreck of a jaws-ripoff, Up From the Depths (a horror comedy sent to it's room until it learned to behave more like a horror movie, with entertainingly awful results). 

https://tearthemapartpodcast.home.blog/2021/06/...

HackArtober #23 (Scanned In Them Thar Hills)

This movie freaked me the hell out when I first caught it on pay-cable (probably Wometco Home Theater, which showed local UHF programming -- like The Uncle Floyd Show -- until the movies kicked in at night: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wometco_Home_Theater). It's got a lot of moving parts: broken-down-car-in-the-middle-of-nowhere, slasher flick, good family vs. (creatively designed) evil family, reve...

HackArtober #22 (Scanned With a Hook)

This one's pretty obscure, and maybe mostly deserves to be. Scream Bloody Murder is an oddball mish-mash of elements that might remind you of a number of other films, only those films weren't made until later, so maybe this is a trailblazer like Citizen Kane or King Kong or The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacobs. There's an upscale home invasion reminiscent of Badlands (which came out a year later) only with a different outcome. Since Badlands was based on the Charles Starkweather/Caril Ann Fugat...

Hacktober #21 (Scanned With Enzymes Extracted From Royal Jelly)

The Wasp Woman is a Roger Corman cheapie directed by the man himself. I'm not much of a Corman fan, to be honest. I do like his Poe (and Poe-adjacent) movies, i like a bunch of his old unpretentious cheapies. He's responsible for a lot of careers, but also for a shitload of pure calculated horseshit that flooded cable, video stores, TV and now the internet streaming services. I find him terribly cynical, requesting added rape scenes to movies like it was the same as tossing in another murder ...

Hacktober #20 (Scanned In Drips And Drabs)

The 70's was a pretty dire time for the traditional monster movie, replete with shitty giant rabbits, shitty giant spiders attached to Volkswagons and a bunch of other shitty "giant" things, usually portrayed by superimposing ants over backgrounds or dumping rats into miniature sets (and drowning them, holy shit, Food of the Gods, WTF?). Attempts at creating a modern horror icon usually dipped into 50's SF-horror territory, with dullsville junk like Slithis and the The Incredible Melting Man....

Hacktober #19 (Scanned On Parchment, Snuck Into Your Pocket)

One of the best supernatural movies ever made, based on M.R. James "Casting The Runes". I haven't seen the British "Night of the Demon" cut -- which I believe is also now a restored release for the American-released  "Curse" as well now. I need to rectify that, more footage would be welcome because the character interplay and the story are the main draw here, not the monster. Not knocking the titular Demon, I like the big beastie. Some folks don't like the rubbery monster but I think it'...

I Made And Sold About 100 Of These Back in 1983 (A Nerd Reminiscence)

In 1983 I was attending New York University, specifically the Tisch School of the Arts, studying film, and hoping to become an animator. I was commuting to school from my home in Staten Island, which was a mistake, but I was afraid of living on my own -- despite not having a happy home life -- and I can't be sure of it but I wouldn't be surprised if my not getting housing on campus was a money-saving decision. I don't remember. 

Comics were going through changes, in regards to the ...

Some Links To Video Of Me Saying Stuff While Fidgeting A Lot

1) 8-minute lip from #ComicStansPodcast Episode 10 

I do a terrible job of explaining how I work with red and blue pencils to set up final pencils for a drawing. Note my cowlick:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D77dCmZ5OIg

2) Another clip from 2021-10-28 22:00:31 +0000 UTC View Post

Experiment: Panel 83

This one is interesting to me because while I was drawing it I realized it's an image from a story idea that I never got off the ground. So maybe it will work in this. It could, especially since I have a few ideas about what's going on. 

Hmmm.

Hacktober #18 (Scanned On An Island Covered In Fungus )

I never saw Attack of the Mushroom People on television as a kid, it just never seemed to play locally. It must have, but unlike the American-ized monster and kaiju movies I devoured on channels 5, 9, 7 (Monster Week on the 4:30 Movie, baby!) and 11 I never got my eyeballs in front of it. I'd seen pictures of the mushroom monsters in the fan magazines and was dying to see the damned thing. Unlike most of the then-available Godzilla, Gamera, et al movies, this one eluded me for decades. I lear...

HackArtober #17 (Scanned At The Gates Of Hell, On All Saints Day)

Through the horror podcast I do with my friend, Paul Yellovich, I've learned to overcome my exasperation with Giallo and, to a lesser degree, my bewilderment with the films of Lucio Fulci. I've seen actual movies he's made that are more-or-less coherent and even satisfying. I've seen   and really enjoyed, to one degree or another, the Gates of Hell trilogy, especially The Beyond. 

City of The Living Dead (1980, aka The Gates of Hell) is the first of the "trilogy", which l...

HackArtober #16 (Scanned Via Tachyon Transmission, w/Bonus Rambling)

Released this day in 1987. One of my absolute Carpenter favorites, absolute horror movie favorites. All-time favorite. 

On the whole, I think a film or text should allow you to make sense -- or make some judgement or mental agreement, if that makes any sense -- with the work on a first association. At least to where you have a decent idea of whether you enjoyed it, or was left intrigued by it, or was left cold or irritated with it.  Life is short and so is spare time, so it's ...

HackArtober #15 (Scanned In Glorious 1932 Black & White)

Pro Tip: Stay away from anyone who goes by the name of "Murder".  

And beware those eyes what hyp-mo-tize.

HackArtober #14 (Scanned To Expose Its True Face)

I'm not much of a fan of this movie, it's not awful but it's kind of a mess. I want to like it but I just don't, tried it twice and the plot holes were more glaring on the second viewing. Maybe the Director's Cut(s) is better and smoother, but the released version is still made up of stuff Barker wrote and filmed. And a lot of it is just messy and awkward, especially the larger action scenes at the end. It doesn't matter how you organize or edit iffy footage filled with stiff acting, awkward ...

HackArtober #13 (Scanned While Eating Cookies)

This movie. Oy. I guess it's a comedy. I laughed a bunch. I think it's a comedy. I think it doesn't care what it is. A singular achievement. That's not a recommendation, by any means. It's just me saying that it's a singular achievement. A statement of fact. Oy.

I mailed out all outstanding art and book orders today. Right before taking the car back to the garage. We should have the car back Friday, with two new parts. 

Onward! Ever onward!

HackArtober #12 (Scanned A Week late, Because It Was Drawn A Week Late)

We two. We crappy two.

I met Rosie Grier when I was about 13, at a skateboard exhibition at the Nassau Coliseum. He was the celebrity host and I can't remember the connection my friend Michael Kemper's mom had with the affair, but we were backstage. I made him laugh with a Nixon joke.  It meant a lot to me, because it seemed like a genuine reaction. I wish I had seen The Thing With Two Heads at the time, I would have bugged the shit out of him with questions. 

Sorry I fe...

Odd Old E-Mail (Creepy Human Drama Not Actually Involving Me)

My computer is currently having issues with opening text files so I am unable to post as planned tonight. But I can plumb the depths of my ancient e-mails to bring you this bit of weirdness from 2006. Enjoy --?

EvanDorkin@aol.com

Sun, May 7, 2006, 3:30 PM

to evandorkin

In a message dated 2/24/03 6:38:54 PM Pacific Standard Time (name redacted) writes:

Dear Evan,

I'm a journalist/writer based in L...

2021-10-18 23:54:14 +0000 UTC View Post

Experiment: Panel 82

Where the blood goes. 

A reminder.

HackArtober #11 (Scanned In Parts And Sloppily Stitched Together Just For You)

A day late. It was practically done but I couldn't post it because life decided to be cruel. 

I'm going to have to do a Two-For-Tuesday sometime this month to catch up. Or a Thirteen-For-Thursday if it comes to it. In November. 

Art is therapy. Even stupid horror movie art. 

M&C Commission WIP: Using Violence To Teach Ruth Buzzi To The Ignorant Rabble

I need to learn and remember to shrink the scans I make. This is idiotically huge. Maybe it looks sharper on phones, everyone lives on phones, right? I fuck everything up on the phone just as bad -- if not twice just as bad -- as on the PC. If I don't perform a task several times regularly for a while, I forget how to do it. I don't remember keystrokes or directions, I more kind of remember the visuals and visual pattern. I'm like that when I drive, as well. 

Anyway, several commis...

Recreation of a Recreation of a Fun Strip (Or, Hooray For Art Theft)

The second piece I had to recreate for Zack Davvison after the original strip recreation (see below) was stolen. The Kitaro/M&C piece was posted a little while ago. I'm terrified something's going to happen to this package when I send it. I am not redrawing these a third time. I just can't.

I pretty much do all the Fun Strips as squares now, rather than four panels across as I always did. I find them easier to  work on and physically handle, and the format suits posting online ...

HackArtober #10 (Children Should Only Scan Dead Things For Patreon)

HackArtober #9 (Scan Torn From Larger Scan, Later Stitched Together)