Jeffrey Brown (born July 1975) is an American

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

born in

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

Biography

Early life and education

After growing up in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the second most-populated city in the state after Detroit. Grand Rapids is the ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, Brown moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 2000 to pursue an MFA at the

School of the Art Institute The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) is a private art school associated with the Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to an art students' cooperative founded in 1866, which grew into the museum and ...

. By the time he finished his studies, Brown had abandoned painting and started drawing comics seriously.

Career

Brown specializes in personal and intimate works detailing moments in relationships. He writes and draws his comics in sketchbooks, and his drawing style mirrors the strain and awkwardness of the situations he depicts. His first self-published book, ''Clumsy'' (2002), appeared seemingly out of nowhere to grab attention from cartoonists and comics fans, alike. Brown wrote and drew ''Clumsy'' while at the School of the Art Institute. Established as a sensitive chronicler of bittersweet young-adult romance and nonsensical superhero parody, Brown's current direction remains split between autobiographical material, examining the minutiae of everyday life, whatever humorous fiction he feels in the mood for, and a wide range of fiction subjects in his series ''Sulk''. Brown has also created two series of books set in the ''Star Wars'' expanded universe (under the "Legends" & "Infinities" brands). In 2012, Brown told ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' that

Mark Alan Stamaty Mark Alan Stamaty is an American cartoonist and children's writer and illustrator. During the 1980s and 1990s, Stamaty's work appeared regularly in the ''Village Voice''. He is the creator of the long-running comic strip ''Washingtoon'' – on whi ...

's picture book ''Small in the Saddle'' influenced his own career and about subsequently meeting its author; Brown's girlfriend (and later his wife) had helped him find a copy.

Personal life

Brown lives in Chicago with his wife Jennifer, a former

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

business development executive, and their two sons.

Comic works

Brown's most popular works — ''Clumsy'' (2002; the story of a long-distance relationship), ''Unlikely'' (the story of how Brown lost his

virginity Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

), and ''AEIOU (Any Easy Intimacy (Over Us))'' — comprise the so-called "Girlfriend Trilogy" and its epilogue, ''Every Girl is the End of the World For Me''. More recently, his autobiographical work has included ''Little Things'', and the

memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...

s ''Funny Misshapen Body'' and ''A Matter Of Life''. His humorous works include '' Bighead'' (a super-hero parody), ''I Am Going To Be Small'', ''Cat Getting Out Of A Bag'', ''Kids Are Weird'', and the graphic novel series '' Incredible Change-Bots''. His work has been featured in MOME Summer 2005, Vol. 1, as well as ''

Drawn & Quarterly Drawn & Quarterly is a publishing company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, specializing in comics. It publishes primarily comic books, graphic novels and comic strip collections. The books it publishes are noted for their artistic content, ...

Showcase'', ''

McSweeney's McSweeney's Publishing is an American non-profit publishing house founded by Dave Eggers in 1998 and headquartered in San Francisco. Initially publishing the literary journal'' Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern'', the company has moved to n ...

'' #13, and ''The Best American Comics 2007''. He was also featured in local newspapers such as the ''

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...

'' and ''NewCity''. Brown's "To Phoenix I'm Sorry I Missed You" was published in the Spring 2008 issue of ''The Florida Review''. Brown has written and drawn seven books set in the ''Star Wars'' expanded universe. These include four humorous takes on

Darth Vader Darth Vader is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. The character is the central antagonist of the original trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is one of the main protagonists in the prequel trilogy. ''Star Wars'' creator George ...

as a hapless father to young

Luke Skywalker Luke Skywalker is a fictional character and the protagonist of the original film trilogy of the ''Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. Portrayed by Mark Hamill, Luke first appeared in ''Star Wars'' (1977), and he returned in ''The ...

and

Princess Leia Princess Leia Organa is a fictional character and one of the main protagonists in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, portrayed in films by Carrie Fisher. Introduced in the Star Wars (film), original ''Star Wars'' film in 1977, Leia is princess of th ...

— ''Darth Vader and Son'', ''Vader's Little Princess'', ''Goodnight, Darth Vader'', and ''Darth Vader and Friends'' — and three volumes in the ''Jedi Academy'' series, which are young-adult novels done in the mixed cartooning and diary style of the ''

Diary of a Wimpy Kid ''Diary of a Wimpy Kid'' is an American children’s book series and media franchise created by author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney. The series follows Greg Heffley, a middle-schooler who illustrates his daily life in a diary (although he const ...

'' series.

Critical and commercial reception

He won an

Ignatz Award The Ignatz Awards recognize outstanding achievements in comics and cartooning by small press creators or creator-owned projects published by larger publishers. They have been awarded each year at the Small Press Expo since 1997, only skipping a ...

in 2003 in the category of Outstanding Mini-Comic, for ''I Am Going To Be Small''.

James Kochalka James Kochalka (born May 26, 1967, in Springfield, Vermont) is an American comic book artist, writer, animator, and rock musician. His comics are noted for their blending of the real and the surreal. Largely autobiographical, Kochalka's cartoo ...

has called Brown's ''Clumsy'' his "favorite graphic novel ever." ''Clumsy'' (2002) was originally self-published and was later published by

Top Shelf Productions Top Shelf Productions is an American publishing company founded in 1997, originally owned and operated by Chris Staros and Brett Warnock and a small staff. Now an imprint of IDW Publishing, Top Shelf is based in Marietta, Georgia. Top Shelf pub ...

; as of 2007, an estimated 20,000 copies have been printed, according to an interview with Brown in ''

The Comics Journal ''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing re ...

''. Brown won back-to-back

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

s for Best Humor Publication, for ''Darth Vader And Son'' (2013) and ''Vader's Little Princess'' (2014).

Other work

Brown has contributed to

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

's ''

This American Life ''This American Life'' (''TAL'') is an American monthly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internation ...

'' (April 18, 2003). Brown directed the

animated Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anim ...

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for

Death Cab for Cutie Death Cab for Cutie is an American rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard (vocals, guitar, piano), Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Zac Rae (keyboar ...

's " Your Heart is an Empty Room" (April 11, 2006). He was featured in Bruce Parsons' documentary ''Drawing Between The Lines'' (2009). He illustrated the movie poster for the feature-length documentary '' Rabbit Fever'' (2009). He co-wrote the feature film, ''

Save the Date ''Save the Date'' is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Michael Mohan. It stars Lizzy Caplan and Alison Brie. It won the Achievement Award at the 2012 Newport Beach Film Festival and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at th ...

'' (2012), with Egan Reich and Michael Mohan. The film, directed by Mohan, stars

Lizzy Caplan Elizabeth Anne Caplan (born June 30, 1982) is an American actress. Her first acting role was on the television series ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2000). She received wider recognition with roles in the films ''Mean Girls'' (2004) and ''Cloverfi ...

Alison Brie Alison Brie Schermerhorn (born December 29, 1982) is an American actress. Her breakthrough came with the role of Trudy Campbell in the drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), which won her a Screen Actors Guild Award. She gained recognition fo ...

Martin Starr Martin James Pflieger Schienle (born July 30, 1982), professionally known as Martin Starr, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for the television roles of Bill Haverchuck on the short-lived comedy drama ''Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–20 ...

Geoffrey Arend Geoffrey Rashid Arend (born February 28, 1978) is an American film, television, voice and theater actor. He is best known for his role as List of Body of Proof characters#Ethan Gross, Ethan Gross on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC drama ser ...

, and Mark Webber.

Bibliography

Books

Standalone books

* ''Clumsy'' (2002) * ''Unlikely'' (2003) * '' Bighead'' (2004) * ''Miniature Sulk'' (2005) * ''AEIOU or Any Easy Intimacy'' (2005) * ''Every Girl Is The End Of The World For Me'' (2006) (included in Undeleted Scenes) * ''I Am Going To Be Small'' (2006) * * '' Incredible Change-Bots'' (2007) * ''Little Things'' (2008) * ''Sulk Vol. 1 — Bighead and Friends'' (2008) * ''Sulk Vol. 2 — Deadly Awesome'' (2008) * ''Funny Misshapen Body'' (2009) * ''Sulk Vol. 3 — The Kind Of Strength That Comes From Madness'' (2009) * * * ''Incredible Change-Bots Two'' (2011) * ''A Matter Of Life'' (2012) * ''Kids Are Weird'' (2014) * ''Incredible Change-Bots Two-Point-Something-Something'' (2014) * ''My Teacher is a Robot'' (2019) * ''Once Upon a Space-Time!'' (2020) * ''A Total Waste of Space-Time!'' (2021)

''Star Wars: Darth Vader and Son'' (series)

* ''Star Wars: Darth Vader and Son'' (2012) * ''Star Wars: Vader's Little Princess'' (2013) * ''Star Wars: Goodnight, Darth Vader'' (2014) * ''Star Wars: Darth Vader and Friends'' (2015) * ''Star Wars: Rey and Pals'' (2019) * ''Star Wars: A Vader Family Sithmas'' (2021)

''Star Wars: Jedi Academy'' (series)

* ''Star Wars Jedi Academy'' (2013) * ''Star Wars Jedi Academy: Return of the Padawan'' (2014) * ''Star Wars Jedi Academy: The Phantom Bully'' (2015)

''Lucy & Andy Neanderthal'' (series)

* ''Lucy & Andy Neanderthal'' (2016) * ''Lucy & Andy Neanderthal: The Stone Cold Age'' (2017) * ''Lucy & Andy Neanderthal: Bad to the Bones'' (2018)

Comics

* ''Be A Man'' (included in ''Undeleted Scenes'') * ''Conversations #2'' (with

) * ''Feeble Attempts''

Significant anthology contributions

* '' MOME Vol. 1-6'' * '' Drawn & Quarterly Showcase Vol. 2'' * ''

Kramers Ergot ''Kramers Ergot'' is a series of anthology-style books of comic art edited by Sammy Harkham. Publication history ''Kramers Ergot'' started as a mini-comic self-published by Sammy Harkham under the imprint Avodah Books. Issues 4 and 5 were publishe ...

Vol. 4'' * '' The Escapist Vol. 3'' * ''

#13'' * '' Best American Comics 2007'' * '' Yale Anthology of Graphic Fiction Vol. 1-2'' *
POPGUN volume 4
' * ''

Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror The following is a list of comic book series published by Bongo Comics based on the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. The first comic strips based on ''The Simpsons'' appeared in 1991 in the magazine ''Simpsons Illustrated'' (no ...

#15'' * ''

Strange Tales ''Strange Tales'' is a Marvel Comics comics anthology, anthology series. The title was revived in different forms on multiple occasions. Doctor Strange and Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (feature), Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. made their d ...

#3'' * ''Side B'' from

Poseur Ink Poseur Ink (2003-2013) was a small-press publisher and distro by comic artist Rachel Dukes. Based in San Diego, California the company specialized in independent comics, zines, buttons, and novelty T-shirts. During that time Poseur Ink published ...

References

External links

*
''Top Shelf Comix''
— Jeffrey Brown's publisher.
''The Holy Consumption of Chicago''
— Regularly updated with work by Jeffrey as well as John Hankiewicz,

Paul Hornschemeier Paul Hornschemeier (born October 27, 1977) is an artist, author, and director based in Pasadena, California. He is known for his thought-provoking explorations of the layered complexities of human life in his work. Biography Hornschemeier was b ...

and Anders Nilsen.
''Crudely Drawn Naked People''
— A blog attempting to review all of Jeffrey Brown's published work. (On hiatus since September, 2008)

— A 2-page interview from ifpthendirt.
''Audio Interview at Crown Commission''
April 2006 interview.

July 2006 interview.
Between the Lines''
A short documentary created in 2006 about Jeffrey Brown and his work.

February 2007 interview on the Around Comics Podcast

November 2007 interview with the New York Daily News.

April 2008 interview with the New York Daily News. *
Rumpus interview with Jeffrey Brown
*http://www.topshelfcomix.com/creators.php?artist=14 {{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Jeffrey Alternative cartoonists Artists from Grand Rapids, Michigan 1975 births Living people