The Cure

Been watching some old The Cure clips on youtube. He's written some catchy songs, Robert Smith. I don't really know how to draw a guitar.

The Brain That Wouldn't Virginia Woolf

It's The Brain That Wouldn't Die meets Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. And... it's told backwards! Woo-hoo! Yeah, real clever... Anyway, that's something I've wanted to try a long time. I've seen it used in episodes of thirtysomething and Seinfeld. There's also the French film Irréversible, but that one I haven't actually seen. Hopefully it'll be more than just a trick, but who knows, probably not.

So Long, Mary Ann

I'll write a couple of words about each of the six stories in Athos in America. First: So Long, Mary Ann. It's quite influenced by the film noir Raw Deal, directed by Anthony Mann, with cinematography by the great John Alton. It has some of the same story elements: a prison escape, a couple on the run, a love triangle. It's a good film, but in my head I saw an other ending. There's also my version of the ultimate film noir bad guy. And yes, I stole the title from Leonard Cohen, just changing it from Marianne to Mary Ann.

Le Havre

The trailer for Aki Kaurismäki's new film, Le Havre, can be found here:
http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/08/24/movies/100000001014818/trailer-le-havre.html?ref=movies

... and the back cover.

Athos cover

Here's the coverdrawing for Athos in America...

... and the sketch.

H. J. Ward

Got my copy of H.J. Ward, a collection of his pulp art from The Illustrated Press. It's just as brilliant as the Norman Saunders book.