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In total, the Council for Canadian Unity and Option Canada received $10.9-million from Heritage Canada between the PQ's arrival in power in 1994 and the referendum. Most was spent in the run-up to the official referendum campaign, which was not illegal.

Among the acceptable federal expenses noted by Mr. Grenier was $160,500 for 30,000 copies of the book Dear Canada/Cher Canada, by the late cartoonist Ben Wicks, presumably intended to win the hearts of wavering Quebecers.

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In an unfitting ending to a gallery that has been in existence for more than 40 years, the Liane and Danny Taran Gallery of the Saidye Bronfman Centre for the Arts closes with a whimper rather than a bang with its final exhibition Comic Craze, which ends June 3.

Creating an interior maze of basically black and white tubes and inserting them with a mishmash of non-indexed Canadian French and English-language comic books does not make for an art exhibition. This stuff belongs in a library, not an art gallery.

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When he wasn't falling trees, Ladysmith logger Gord Barney was chopping down camp bosses with his satirical cartoons.

The caricatures and small cartoon strips found a home on the cookhouse and camp office walls. The veteran logger's drawings earned him a reputation in logging camps along B.C.'s coastline. Quietly, Barney also scribbled down the stories co-workers would tell over a beer after a hard day in the bush.

"I thought these stories were going to get lost," Barney says.

After three years of sweat and labour, Barney finished typing out the old long-hand notes for his sixth book Camp Inspector: Tales of a B.C. Logger.

Labels: publishing

While large comic book publishers such as DC Comics and Marvel Comics have regularly adjusted the pricing on Canadian comic books, the pricing has rarely reflected the current exchange rate between Canada and the United States.

The premium paid by Canadian comic book readers is abusive. For example, a copy of Ultimate Power # 4 costs to an American customer, $2.99. The price for the same comic book for a Canadian customer is $3.75. This means that the same comic book costs about 80% less for an American customer than a Canadian one.

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"I felt more loser-ish cause I didn't have a costume than the people who had them. Even the ones with bad costumes fit in better than I did."

"nerds are easy"

"Oh but some of ze cosplayers were just wrong.
There were older hairy men dressed up as the Sailor Scouts"

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Women of Comics II and Kiss Machine Presents

Women of Comics II (WOC II) is a two-day event, taking place on Saturday, June 9th and Sunday June 10th as part of the 2007 Paradise Toronto Comicon. Sponsored by All New Comics Inc., WOC II is designed to showcase female talent and creativity in what has traditionally been a male-dominated industry, the symposium will feature signings, portfolio reviews, panel discussions, and direct interaction with the artists themselves.

This year will feature a spotlight on local Toronto imprint Kiss Machine Presents, dedicated to publishing "graphic novellas" by top Canadian talent. Founded in 2005 by editor Emily Pohl-Weary, Kiss Machine Presents was launched with "Violet Miranda: Girl Pirate" by Pohl-Weary and Willow Dawson, and also features "Skim" (winner of a special Doug Wright award and soon to be a graphic novel by Groundwood/House of Anansi press) by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki, and "Mendacity" by Tamara Faith Berger and Sophie Cossette.

An offshoot of Kiss Machine, a Toronto-based zine that focuses on art, literary culture, and political views, the purpose for Kiss Machine Presents was different, but no less important to publisher, Emily Pohl-Weary. "In comics it's hard to find good female characters, and they all look like Barbie," she laughs. "I wanted to create a fun, sexy, woman-run comics line that was a meeting place for innovative, unusual talents".

Next up, at the end of June 2007, is Summer Ink: An Illustrated Book of Letters, by Golda Fried (Governor General's Award Finalist for Nellcott is my Darling) and Vesna Mostovac (animator and Foolish Girl creator). Summer Ink represents two months' worth of correspondence between the long-time friends. On the pages, sticky with tears, cigarette ash, beer, coffee, ketchup and bacon grease, they document their trials and tribulations in the world of love and heartbreak, paying close attention to the songs spinning in the background. Each letter comes alive with graphics Vesna has drawn and collaged, based on images present in the writers' minds as they wrote the letter.

Learn more about this dynamic line at the Women of Comics Kiss Machine Presents panel, taking place on Saturday, June 9th at 4:30 PM featuring guests Emily Pohl-Weary, Willow Dawson, Vesna Mostovac and Mariko Tamaki.

The 5th Annual Paradise Toronto Comicon runs from June 8-10th in Hall C at the Direct Energy Centre on the CNE Grounds.

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NRAMA: Is it harder or easier creating stories for the limited space of serialized comics?

JT: I'd say it's harder. I like the freedom of the graphic novel format. Serialized comics forces you into an issue-by-issue rhythm. It requires much more rigorous plotting and pacing.

NRAMA: What was the inspiration for Rex Libris?

JT: Rex Libris was inspired by the whole genre of work in which mild mannered occupations are crossed with the world of action and adventure. Often this includes the supernatural and various sorts of monsters, in which case the original occupation no longer has to be mild mannered (such as the X-Files). There's all sorts of stuff out there like this. It was also a response to working on Nil, which was a satire on nihilism and quite dark. Rex is more positive. I also wanted to include a secret order, which are always popular. Sort of a communal secret identity.

Labels: graphic novels, interviews

On a spring morning spilling with sunshine, a group of Muff Mills' friends gather at Danny's barbershop in Cambridge to remember the artist.

Muff was a real character, a guy who was so interested in people he collected friends like a child collects wild flowers: each valued for its beauty and uniqueness.

"He had that ability to make you feel you were the only one, that you were very special . . . (from) babies up to seniors," said friend Shirley Murdoch. "When anyone met him, you'd never forget him."

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This year's convention will feature two rooms dedicated to all things yaoi. Programming will include viewings of yaoi films and TV shows, panel discussions with titles including "World History Of Homosexuality" and "Crossplay 101" (in other words, drag) and Cafe Nocturne -- a Japanese-style drag cafe featuring flirty female waiters dressed as men.

But Kat Williams, a Toronto-based anime artist and author who organized queer panels at the convention for several years beginning in 2000, says she's dismayed by the lack of queer content created specifically for queers at recent Anime North gatherings.

"[Last year's Yaoi North] was pretty much straight girls squealing about their favourite [gay anime] couples," says Williams.

Lai makes no bones about the genre's objectification of queer men. "But yaoi men are as ridiculous as gay porn men," she says.

Nor is she worried about the lack of gay activism at the conference. "We don't discourage people being proud and out or talking about issues like that... [but] this is a hobby, an interest. Our purview is discussing cartoons. We're not saving lives."

Schwartz is all for straight anime lovers' queer obsessions. "These people are our straight allies. They're the ones who are with us at gay pride marches, and if they relate to gay media, then that makes me happy bringing them into the gay community."

He adds that Yaoi North attendees run the gamut of gender and orientation, and notes that he hasn't heard any complaints from gay attendees about feeling objectified.

Gay men may be getting the red carpet treatment, but last year when Williams was promoting lesbian events, her experience was quite the opposite.

"I got spat at. I had things thrown at me," says Williams, adding that she heard similar complaints from other queer attendees.

Williams says she didn't report the incidents to convention security. "There isn't much security can do about people being overly rude unless [the homophobes] stick around and continue to harass someone repeatedly."

Todd Spencley, who handles security for Anime North, says he is unaware of an escalation in homophobic incidents at recent conventions.

"Anything that is reported to me, I make sure I track it down," says Spencely. "If I find somebody behaving in a discriminatory manner I have a nice long talk with them. I do not put up with that at our convention."

Spencley says that offenders may be banned from the conventions, offering as an example the hosts of The Conventioneers, a reality show on Bite TV, who reportedly harassed crossdressing attendees and body checked a child on camera without his guardian's consent at the 2006 convention.

"For those actions we decided The Conventioneers are no longer permitted to attend Anime North," says Spencley.

Williams is also disappointed with the lack of girl-on-girl anime, or Shoujo-ai (pronounced show-joe-eye), compared to yaoi. Although Williams is presenting a two-hour panel on girl-on-girl anime, it's a far cry from a 24-hour dedicated space.

Anime North's director of programming Eileen McEvoy agrees that there's room for more Shoujo-ai at the convention. She says that there had been a room set aside for a three-day track focussing on dykey fun but that panel organizers -- including Williams -- backed out at the last minute.

Labels: events, manga

Usually, when people say "see you in the funny pages," it's just an expression.

For local artist Jack Reid, however, it rings true.

Reid's name was mentioned as part of an ongoing storyline in the comic strip "Between Friends," which appeared in The Packet & Times May 11-12.

"I was very pleasantly surprised," said Reid on the phone from Quesnel, B.C., where he was holding a painting workshop last week. "That's quite an honour."

The artist, who has lived in Lagoon City for more than a year, wasn't familiar with the syndicated comic strip and didn't learn of his mention until he started receiving calls from people in Victoria and Edmonton - and even Hawaii - asking him if he is the Jack Reid in the strip.


Sandra Bell-Lundy, the creator of "Between Friends," is a big fan of watercolour art, the medium in which Reid paints, and so was familiar with the painter.

"I didn't know him, but I knew his work," she said.

When she started creating the storyline, Bell-Lundy said she thought it would make the content funnier if she inserted an artist's name, and Reid's was the first that popped into her head.

"I just really think he's got a lot of talent," she said.

Reid, who will celebrate his 82nd birthday June 1 in Whistler, B.C., said he's lost count of the number of pieces he's created over the course of his career.

Aside from his artwork, Reid has also written a number of art books and, as a rough estimate, has taught more than 25,000 people through classes and workshops.

Labels: comic strips

The International Manga Award is the brainchild of Japan's Foreign Minister Tara Aso, who is an avid fan of manga, the term used to describe Japanese comics and print cartoons.

"Manga and anime [Japanese animated films and TV series] have been spreading overseas and are selling quite well," Aso said.

"I want to further boost the communicative power of these so-called pieces of pop culture."

Presented to an artist working abroad, the new award will honour the winner's contribution to the spread of manga around the world, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement Tuesday.

While the award will carry no cash prize, organizers are in the process of creating a trophy and will host the winner and three runners-up at an awards ceremony in Japan.

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Radical Sheep Productions, leading producer of children's programming, has recently optioned the rights to produce a new animated series for kids aged 6-12, based on Bleeker: The Rechargeable Dog, the hilarious online comic strip by Jonathan Mahood about a hapless and loveable robotic toy dog named Bleeker and his owner, Skip.

Picking up on the nuances of the online strip, Bleeker will explore Skip Smalls' sibling-like relationship with his robotic toy dog Bleeker as they navigate their friendship, co-dependence and the many crises Bleeker inadvertently causes as a result of trying so eagerly to earn the love of a hyperactive 10-year old.

"We're very excited about Bleeker. Bleeker the Rechargeable Dog is such a unique and fresh character - the first of his kind," says John Leitch, President of Radical Sheep Productions. "We feel the series will really speak to today's younger generation and their high comfort level with technology. Technology is a complex, evolving and somewhat confusing entity, and Bleeker is too. Only Bleeker's much funnier than an iPod."

"I'm very excited about seeing this little robotic dog fetch, print, download and malfunction his way across the small screen," says Jonathan Mahood, creator and illustrator of the popular online comic. "Radical Sheep's enthusiasm and strong relationship with its creators made them an excellent choice for Bleeker adaptation to television."

Radical Sheep is looking to produce 26 x 11-minute episodes of Bleeker: the Rechargeable Dog for the 6-12 audience, with broad appeal to both girls and boys.

The property is currently being presented to Canadian broadcasters.

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The result will be a revelation to anyone not familiar with the sorts of movies that get made on borrowed camcorders. The acting is good, the lighting is bad, the story is effective and funny. It's even got one shot, an exterior done at the University of Toronto's Scarborough campus, that's compositionally striking enough to be the centrepiece of an art film. Which this is not. It's far too messy, and too much fun. "It's a little bit like a buffet," Munroe says. Cheap and filling.

Screening tonight at 7 at Innis Town Hall (2 Sussex Ave., Toronto). $5 includes show, "nanite-enhanced treats" and invitation to the after-party.

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Megan Mackey, lawyer for the Wicks family, said yesterday in her closing submissions that the legal definition of abandonment puts the onus on the finder of the property to prove that the property was abandoned.

Judge Thomas Lederer agreed, saying to Richard Harnett's lawyer, Charles Campbell, "the onus is very high here."

"We don't want people to be easily enriched at the cost of others," the judge said.

...the defendant's lawyer, Charles Campbell told the judge, "If it was packed like garbage, looked like garbage and smelled like garbage, then it was garbage."

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