''San Francisco Comic Book'' was an

underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

anthology published between 1970 and 1983. Conceived of and edited by

Gary Arlington Gary Edson Arlington (October 7, 1938 – January 16, 2014) was an American retailer, artist, editor, and publisher, who became a key figure in the underground comix movement of the 1960s and 1970s.Yardley, William"Gary Arlington, a Force in Unde ...

, the anthology highlighted the work of many of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

's top underground talents, including

Bill Griffith William Henry Jackson Griffith (born January 20, 1944) is an American cartoonist who signs his work Bill Griffith and Griffy. He is best known for his surreal daily comic strip '' Zippy''. The catchphrase "Are we having fun yet?" is credited to ...

Robert Crumb Robert Dennis Crumb (; born August 30, 1943) is an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contem ...

Kim Deitch Kim Deitch (born May 21, 1944 in Los Angeles, California)Donahue, Don and Susan Goodrick, editors. Deitch bio, ''The Apex Treasuet of Underground Comics'' (Apex Novelties, 1974), p. 127. is an American cartoonist who was an important figure in t ...

, Justin Green,

Rory Hayes Rory Hayes (August 8, 1949 – August 29, 1983) was an American underground cartoonist in the late 1960s and early 1970s. His comics were drawn in an expressionistic, primitivist style and usually dealt with grim subject matter such as para ...

Willy Murphy William "Willy" MurphyMurphy entry
''Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999''. Acc ...

, Jim Osborne,

Trina Robbins Trina Robbins (born Trina Perlson; August 17, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American cartoonist. She was an early participant in the underground comix movement, and one of the first female artists in that movement. In the 1980s, Robbins beca ...

, and

Spain Rodriguez Manuel Rodriguez (March 2, 1940 – November 28, 2012), better known as Spain or Spain Rodriguez, was an American underground cartoonist who created the character Trashman. His experiences on the road with the motorcycle club, the Road Vultures M ...

. ''San Francisco Comic Book'' was the brainchild of Gary Arlington. Over the years the shaky finances of San Francisco Comic Book Company, required him to enlist the help of fellow Bay Area publishers

Print Mint The Print Mint, Inc. was a major publisher and distributor of underground comix based in the San Francisco Bay Area during the genre's late 1960s-early 1970s heyday. Starting as a retailer of psychedelic posters, the Print Mint soon evolved into ...

and

Last Gasp Last Gasp or The Last Gasp may refer to * Last Gasp (publisher) * ''Last Gasp'' (''Inside No. 9''), a TV episode * '' The Last Gasp'', a 2007 album by Impaled * ''The Last Gasp'' (novel) * "Last Gasp" (song) {{dab ...

in getting the book printed.

Publication history

The first issue of ''San Francisco Comic Book'' was published by editor Arlington's own San Francisco Comic Book Company. Issues #2 and #3 were published by the

"for the San Francisco Comic Book Company." Issue #4 was published by the Print Mint. After a seven-year hiatus, issue #5 was co-published by the Print Mint and

(although it was still copyrighted by the San Francisco Comic Book Company). Issue #6 was "produced" by the San Francisco Comic Book Company and published by Last Gasp. Issue #7 was published by Last Gasp.

Overview

Gary Arlington operated the San Francisco Comic Book Company as a retailer and soon enough a publisher. By late 1969, his store was a nexus for local underground talent,Yardley, William
"Gary Arlington, a Force in Underground Comic Books, Is Dead at 75,"
''New York Times'' (Jan. 30, 2014). and San Francisco was well on its way to becoming a Mecca for underground cartoonists from all over the country.Lopes, Paul. ''Demanding Respect: The Evolution of the American Comic Book'' (Temple University Press, 2009), p. 77. Arlington determined to publish an anthology showcasing the work of the local underground cartooning community, and thus was born ''San Francisco Comic Book''. Arlington recruited

Don Donahue Donald Richard Donahue (May 18, 1942 – October 27, 2010)Levin, Bob"Don Donahue 1942-2010: As Far as Hello,"''The Comics Journal'' website (Nov. 2, 2010). was a comic book publisher, operating under the name Apex Novelties, one of the instig ...

Apex Novelties The apex is the highest point of something. The word may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional entities * Apex (comics), a teenaged super villainess in the Marvel Universe * Ape-X, a super-intelligent ape in the Squadron Supreme universe *Apex ...

to co-edit the first issue of the anthology. The two publishers then recruited cartoonists

Willy Murphy William "Willy" MurphyMurphy entry
''Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999''. Acc ...

Larry Welz Lawrence Welz (born November 21, 1948) better known as Larry Welz, is an American cartoonist, who created Cherry Poptart (now known simply as Cherry (comics), Cherry). He was an early contributor to the underground comix movement in the San Franc ...

, Jack Jackson, and Jim Osborne — all credited as co-editors — to bring in more talent.Fox. M. Steven
"San Francisco Comic Book #1,"
ComixJoint. Accessed Oct. 8, 2016. As a result, issue #1 featured work from four members of the ''

Zap Comix ''Zap Comix'' is an underground comix series which was originally part of the youth counterculture of the late 1960s. While a few small-circulation self-published satirical comic books had been printed prior to this, ''Zap'' became the model for ...

'' crew: Crumb,

S. Clay Wilson Steve Clay Wilson (July 25, 1941 – February 7, 2021) was an American underground cartoonist and central figure in the underground comix movement. Wilson attracted attention from readers with aggressively violent and sexually explicit panoramas ...

, Spain, and

Rick Griffin Richard Alden "Rick" Griffin (June 18, 1944 – August 18, 1991) was an American artist and one of the leading designers of psychedelic posters in the 1960s. As a contributor to the underground comix movement, his work appeared regularly in ...

. Issue #4 featured contributions from three members of the

Air Pirates The Air Pirates were a group of cartoonists who created two issues of an underground comic called ''Air Pirates Funnies'' in 1971, leading to a famous lawsuit by Walt Disney Productions. Founded by Dan O'Neill, the group also included Bobby Lo ...

collective:

Bobby London Robert "Bobby" London (born June 29, 1950) is an American underground comix and mainstream comics artist. His style evokes the work of early American cartoonists like George Herriman and Elzie Crisler Segar. Biography As a child, London was "pen ...

Gary Hallgren Gary Hallgren (born October 28, 1945) is an American illustrator and underground cartoonist. Illustrations by Hallgren have been "commissioned by publications such as ''The New York Times'', ''Men's Health'', ''The Wall Street Journal'', '' Mad ...

, and

Ted Richards Ted Richards (born 11 January 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Essendon Football Club and the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL). AFL career Richards was recruited from Xavier Col ...

. (The lead Air Pirates instigator,

Dan O'Neill Dan O'Neill (born April 21, 1942) is an American underground cartoonist, creator of the syndicated comic strip ''Odd Bodkins'' and founder of the underground comics collective the Air Pirates. Education O'Neill attended the University of Sa ...

, had work in issues #1 and 2.) That same issue featured an 8-page supplement called ''Dogbite Magazine'' with illustrations of vicious dogs by

Roger Brand Roger Brand (January 5, 1943 – November 23, 1985) was an People of the United States, American cartoonist who created stories for both mainstream and Underground comix, underground comic books. His work showed a fascination with Horror comics, h ...

Jay Lynch Jay Patrick Lynch (January 7, 1945 – March 5, 2017) was an American cartoonist who played a key role in the underground comix movement with his ''Bijou Funnies'' and other titles. He is best known for his comic strip ''Nard n' Pat'' and the r ...

, Michael McMillan,

, and

Jay Kinney Jay Kinney (born 1950) is an American author, editor, and former underground cartoonist. Kinney has been noted for "adding new dimensions to the political comic" in the underground comix press of the 1970s and '80s. Kinney was a member, along wi ...

Issue guide

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:San Francisco Comic Book) 1970 comics debuts 1983 comics endings Underground comix Comics anthologies San Francisco Bay Area literature