REMEMBER SPAIN?

I also don’t know how many of you remember Spain Rodriguez. He was/is one of the truly great underground comic artists. Is on-going strip Trashman: Agent of the Sixth International – the first radical left comic book hero – was even cited as a subversive influence at the Old Bailey trial when my partners and I fell foul of the law and were forced to defend ourselves for publishing the comic book Nasty Tales back in the day. Munz sends us this timely reminde…

“For the cover of My True Story, an autobiographical anthology of his work, cartoonist Manuel “Spain” Rodriguez used one of his many illustrations of a barroom brawl. This one is a real beauty, the royal rumble of bar fights. Bikers, truckers, a blonde frozen in mid-scream—everyone is either pummeling or about to get pummeled. There has perhaps never been so many comic strip sound effects packed onto a single page: ptoomf, wonk, ptaf…even a blump. (That one sounds like it didn’t hurt too bad.) In the center of the melee is Spain himself, ducking slightly, a hint of a smile on his face as he grips the neck of a beer bottle, ready to swing. Bar stools are flying through the air. Chains, wrenches, and fists are poised over the crowd. A thought bubble above one brawler’s head reads, “Someday, this will make a great comic strip.” (Click here for more.)