Born out of the American Independent Comics Movement, ''Silly Daddy'' is a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

and

webcomics Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books. Webcomics can be ...

blog by Joe Chiappetta. Started shortly after the birth of his first child in 1991, artist Joe Chiappetta began his career as "Silly Daddy", a mostly autobiographical comic series centered on his experience (and lack thereof) as a father. Since Joe is a resident of

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

, most of the ''Silly Daddy'' adventures take place in the Chicago area or local dreamland. Major themes in this eclectic series include parenting, family relationships, goofing off, the search for joy and meaning in life, and redemption. The print comic version and the webcomic have elements of humor, surrealism, and slice-of-life observations.

Timeline

Chiappetta began publishing ''Silly Daddy'' in 1991. A graphic novel collection of his work came out in 1994, featuring a decade of art. Chiappetta began posting ''Silly Daddy'' as a webcomic in 2004, and moved it to

Blogger A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order s ...

in early 2007. Chiappetta was most active as a cartoonist in the 1990s, and largely moved on to writing prose in the 2000s.

Reception

Reviewing the 1994 ''Silly Daddy'' graphic novel, ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' described the collection as reminiscent of

Harvey Pekar Harvey Lawrence Pekar (; October 8, 1939 – July 12, 2010) was an American underground comic book writer, music critic, and media personality, best known for his autobiographical ''American Splendor'' comic series. In 2003, the series inspired a ...

's ''

American Splendor ''American Splendor'' is a series of autobiographical comic books written by Harvey Pekar and drawn by a variety of artists. The first issue was published in 1976 and the last one in September 2008, with publication occurring at irregular interva ...

'' at first glance, though noted the appeal of seeing Chiapetta's "considerable evolution as an artist" in the book. The art and lettering of early stories in the book are described as "terribly crude", while the book's cover is described as "genuinely handsome".

Awards

Xeric Award The Xeric Foundation is a private, nonprofit corporation based in Northampton, Massachusetts, which for twenty years List of Xeric grant winners, awarded self-publishing grants to comic book creators, as well as qualified charitable and nonprofit ...

Winner: 1998 *

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 ...

Nominee: Outstanding Artist, 1998 * Ignatz Award Nominee: Outstanding Story, 1997 *

Harvey Award The Harvey Awards are given for achievement in comic books. Named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman, the Harvey Awards were founded by Gary Groth in 1988, president of the publisher Fantagraphics, to be the successor to the Kirby Awards that were ...

Nominee: Best New Series, 1996 *

Illinois Arts Council The Illinois Arts Council is a government agency of the state of Illinois formed to encourage development of the arts throughout Illinois. Founded in 1965 by the Illinois General Assembly, the Illinois Arts Council provides financial and technica ...

Award, 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silly Daddy American comics artists 1968 births Living people 2004 webcomic debuts