Not the storage company, steak sauce or the newspaper’s front page. I’m talking A-1 Comics!

I’ll be doing a Cool Jerk book signing at one of my favorite comic book shops — A-1 Comics in Sacramento — this Saturday, Nov. 6, from 11am to 2pm. A-1 is located at 5361 Auburn Blvd. in Sacramento (NOT the Roseville location). I’ll have all my books on-hand, plus the Canvas Panels I debuted at Comic-Con this summer. THREE HOURS ONLY!! Tell your friends!! It’d be nice to say hi to you Sacramento-area readers (many of whom I’m sure joined this mailer at APE or WonderCon in years past) and introduce you to my newest book, Bimboozled!

THIS is the kind of crap Doc Splatter has to put up with.

How does The Doc respond to young Josie Simmons? Go here to find out!

NOTE: People, this is legit. The above letter is a real letter given to The Doc at San Diego Comic-Con. Your participation is always encouraged. Please write The Doc. Be part of the magic. Be an index entry in the next Doc Splatter book. Be famous. Don’t make me bust out the house ads.

I’m sure many of you have seen my recent guest-artist run with comic writer Kevin Church (The Rack — Halloweek). If not… GO THERE FIRST BEFORE YOU READ ANY MORE OF THIS.

This is Kevin’s and my third annual Halloween collaboration, and since I detailed how I create Cool Jerk a few months back, I though I’d share how I did these strips for Kevin. It was a bit of a departure for me, in several ways.

First, I’m working with someone. Crazy! Kevin types up his screenplay (for lack of a better layman term), detailing each panel, caption and sound effect. Kevin even went so far as to include hyperlinks to source images, in the event I didn’t know what type of gun or video game I was supposed to draw. So for this Halloweek, there were five screenplays.

Another difference from my Standard Operating Procedure is that I’m working with characters not my own. Now, this happens all the time in comic books, but rarely for me. So I plowed through The Rack Year One (Mostly), Kevin and regular series artist Benjamin Birdie’s first volume of The Rack, and worked up my own variations of his characters. It’s kind of fun to play in someone else’s sandbox every now and then!*

The most-obvious aspect of Halloweek that differs sharply from Cool Jerk is… Sharpies. When I cartoon for myself, I use brush and ink; always have (well, since 1988… and I use Koh-I-Noor rapidographs or Sakura Pigma Micron pens for Doc Splatter). But, a couple years ago, I did the 24 Hour Comics Day challenge all in Sharpies. It allows me to adopt a loose and manic style which works great for Doc Splatter, plus it saves my hand from cramping up (which can happen if I use the brush for too long). Each Halloweek strip is about 98% Sharpie, and 2% Photoshop trickery and retouching.

Finally, The Rack uses a Comicraft font called Monologous. Thing is, Monologous doesn’t have a lowercase, so I have to use Comicraft’s BlahBlahBlah for those instances. (I also snuck in a tiny bit of Hornopolis hee hee. Look for it.)

The actual cartooning process was similar to Cool Jerk. Penciled roughs, printed panels, lightbox, Macintosh post-production, etc.

Thanks to Kevin for another harrowing week outside my comfort zone, and to Benjamin Birdie for clearing a week from your regular schedule.

*I recently did an illustration for Sarah Kuhn of her characters, featured in her witty and delightful book One Con Glory.

Here’s the detail (and tonal) version of the photo Yuri took of herself and Lady Gaga, from her first night working at Steamy Kawaii — The Pneumatic Jailbait Cafe.

I had a book signing for Cool Jerk Vol. 3: Bimboozled this past Saturday at M-Theory Music here in San Diego, and it was the best three+ hours I’ve had since my written driver’s test! Like I mentioned earlier (see the previous blog post), I wanted to have a consolation ‘con — a “Cool Jerk Comic-CAN” — for local friends and allies of Cool Jerk who couldn’t make it to Comic-Con this past summer. So I set up a mini-version of my SDCCI “tablescape” and sold some books!

Now, I’ve done a few book signings over the past 3-4 years, but this one was special for a few reasons:

• I used Facebook and Twitter (in conjunction with the weekly Cool Jerk e-mailer) to get the word out. Likewise, Darlene also contacted a few of her local friends via her food-blogging and comics aficionado circles. Believe it — those two worlds overlap!

• Darlene managed to get San Diego’s premier mobile cuisine (read: taco truck) Tabe BBQ to partner with us for the first 90 minutes. AND — to sweeten the deal — I whipped up some Taco Tickets for book-buyers (buy a book, get a free taco).

• M-Theory Music also has a weekly newsletter, plus a calendar of events (like mine) on their website.

• San Diego City Beat ran a blurb about the signing in the most-recent issue.

It was a synergetic synchronicity of comics, music and delicious Asian-fusion cuisine! Not a bad way to spend a warm autumn evening in America’s Finest City!

Thanks to a chunk of the Poway Posse — Nathan, Joe, Ben, Barry, Mack and rookie inductee Gary — for coming down to get Bimboozled! Also, a contingent of former Union-Tribune colleagues showed up to get the ‘Jerk (Chris, Steve, Janine, Anna, Mike, Jenny, Sandy, Ani and Bruce). Bethany Jordan and her friend Joey came by, as did Alex Gamboa and Darlene’s high-school video instructor, Mr. Lakin (and his entourage). I also finally got to meet the hilarious and enigmatic food-and-pop-culture blogger Canine Cologne (also with entourage). And, lastly, thanks to Rick at M-Theory Music for hosting the event, and to Chef Todd and Matt from Tabe BBQ for making it 40% more awesome (and 100% more delicious)!

San Diego Comic-Con just wasn’t the same this year. Oh, it was awesome, don’t get me wrong. IT’S ALWAYS AWESOME. I debuted my third Cool Jerk book, a new t-shirt design and a new hand-made product— the Cool Jerk Canvas Panel. And judging by sales, they were well-received.

But it just wasn’t the same. I have many regulars (and irregulars, truly) who have always made an effort to come by the Cool Jerk table and at least say hi, if not buy some of my stuff. They’re not fans. They’re friends. And a busload — no exaggeration — of local regulars couldn’t/didn’t make it to SDCC this year, for one reason or another (economy, tickets sold out, conflicting plans, sequestered for jury duty, boob job…). So I promised to hold a Cool Jerk Comic-CAN for my peeps.

This Saturday (Sept. 25), I’ll be having a three-hour book signing at M-Theory Music in the Mission Hills neighborhood of San Diego. I’ll have dozens of copies of Cool Jerk Vol. 3: Bimboozled, ready to sign off to you in person. Plus, I’ll have Hodabeast (Vol. 1) and Chickadoowa (Vol. 2) just in case you need to complete your library or your holiday shopping three months early! And just like my comic-con special— if you buy all three Cool Jerk books, you’ll get Doc Splatter Ominous Omnibus for FREE! The table space is somewhat limited, so I’m not going to be selling t-shirts, stickers or other items, but I will have the Canvas Panels on hand, too.

I realize a three-hour book signing pales to SDCC. But here are some plusses: NO $30 admission! Short lines! Wear whatever shoes you like! No eye-stabbings! And… how about a taco?

In her quest to make this event even more awesome, Darlene talked with Tabe BBQ — San Diego’s premier mobile cuisine — and they’re going to be parking their taco truck next door at the library for the first half of the signing (5-6:30pm)! So to make this more synergetic, I’m doing this: For every Cool Jerk book bought, I buy you a taco. This is a first-come, first-served offer, open to the first 20 books sold! Buy three books? THREE FREE TACOS! Comics and tacos? Did I just make your Saturday? You KNOW I did!

Here’s the event poster, with all the particulars. In short: Cool Jerk Comic-CAN, M-Theory Music at the top of the Washington Street hill, this Saturday from 5-8pm.

Thanks to M-Theory for hosting this little shingig (please throw some business their way, too!) and Tabe BBQ (their fish tacos are really, really good. I know what I’m having for dinner!).

I’ve amassed a small photo album of confirmed Cool Jerk paraphernalia sightings over the years. If you’ve seen others, feel free to email them to me so I can add them to the gallery!

Clear Cool Jerk sticker, side of a cigarette dispenser at a subway stop, Berlin, Germany.

Clear Cool Jerk sticker, side of steel pole near Manneken Pis, Brussels, Belgium.

Faded vinyl Cool Jerk sticker, Hillcrest neighborhood near Bronx Pizza, San Diego, CA.

Cool Jerk t-shirt in use, Solana Beach, CA (photo by James Burns).

Cool Jerk vinyl sticker, neighborhood bulletin board near Tokyo Tower, Tokyo, Japan.

Cool Jerk vinyl and clear stickers on underside of skateboard, San Diego, CA (photo by Jamie Lim).

Cool Jerk button (2004 edition) seen on anonymous 2010 San Diego Comic-Con attendee, San Diego Trolley, San Diego, CA.

Cool Jerk air freshener, in random car (OK, it’s Darlene’s. What.), San Diego, CA.

Had a nice, busy Cool Jerk-related day yesterday. Comic-Con is barely a week in the rear view mirror, but that doesn’t mean I rest on my laurels until the next convention or store signing. Oh no. I loaded up the car and headed up to Los Angeles. Mission: Bimboozled.

My first stop was Tustin. No, wait. My first stop was Port of Subs in Oceanside. Gotta eat some #8 for breakfast! (I considered sending JustJenn a photo, as is tradition.)

OK. My first Bimboozled-related stop was Comics Toons and Toys in Tustin. The owner — Matt Powers — and his #1 henchman Ken Rolow have long been allies and advocates of Cool Jerk. In fact, my second-ever store signing (in Dec. 2005) was there. Their inventory showed Hodabeast only, and Matt was kind enough to add Chickadoowa, Bimboozled and Doc Splatter Ominous Omnibus to their store. Yay!

My next stop was in Pasadena. I’d been to Comics Factory a few times, the most recent time I spotted a copy of Hodabeast on their shelf. So I introduced myself to George (the owner) and let him know I have three more books! He took a stack off my hands, cut me a check and we wished each other a good day.

Like a moth to a flame, I can’t get within a 20-mile radius of Burbank without stopping in to Porto’s Bakery for some lunch (potato ball sandwich) and to one of my all-time favorite comic shops: House of Secrets. Erik and Paul have been staunch supporters of Cool Jerk for years, and they hosted a store signing for me in January. Their clientele are loyal and friendly. All Erik needed to see was one copy of Bimboozled and nothing need be said by me, as he just said “let’s do it.” And now House of Secrets has the full Cool Jerk library.

Off to Meltdown on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. I “officially” met Leslie (creator of the Beastlies), whom I’ve seen and said “hi” to a few times at Comic-Con over the years. Unfortunately, the head cheese Chris was recording a podcast so I was unable to strike up a partnership. I left copies of three books for his consideration, and a promise to contact him when it’s not so busy. (Meltdown does have a couple copies of Hodabeast in stock)

It wasn’t the smartest plan to drop in on comics shops on a Wednesday, aka New Comics Day. The busiest day of the week. But it was necessary, because my NEXT stop was The Comic Bug in Manhattan Beach… and thus the true reason for the trip north.

Unlike the other shops I visited, this one wasn’t about Cool Jerk. It was about JustJenn. Darlene’s and my friend Jenn was having a store signing (is that the right term?), selling her stationery, pads, buttons, badges, posters and related handmade design collectibles and ephemera. And cupcakes. Ohh-h-h-h. The cupcakes.

Besides being an outstanding food blogger and graphic designer, Jenn also bakes a mean cupcake. The ones she was selling (or giving away as samples, or with purchase) were meticulously decorated with some of the more popular Marvel or DC superhero logos.

That Superman logo was a jaw-dropper.

Not only did she make up one special for me (Fantastic Four logo), but the cupcakes themselves were “Horn Specials” — Red Velvet with Cream Cheese frosting and Ovaltine with Ovaltine Ganache frosting. (They’re nicknamed “Horn Specials” because Jenn did these exact cupcake varieties for Darlene’s and my wedding last summer, minus comic logos.)

Jenn already blogged about the event, so I won’t steal her thunder. But from my side of the table, it was a lot of fun. I saw a bunch of friends, most of whom are on Twitter (@sarahkuhn, @fakejeffchen, @foodlibrarian, @waffles) and met Jenn’s friend Cheryl (who bought a set of Cool Jerk books from me curbside at Jenn’s suggestion) and Jenn’s grandmother, aka The O.G.

For 12 hours yesterday, it was like a bonus sixth day of Comic-Con. Sure I sold a bunch of books, but I also bought more comics than I did during comic-con. I also met friends, made new ones, helped support a pal. Good day.

Figure I’d start things off with the usual shot of the Cool Jerk table, but as I was going through our photos, I realized I didn’t take a photo of the table! So here’s the next best thing: a pic of some Starfleet cadets with a Photobomb thrown in free of charge.

Here’s Kady and Keith, a couple of long-time Cool Jerk readers, with their haul. Keith got himself Bimboozled (and a FREE T-Waster print, because he had a subscriber coupon), plus a couple of the canvas panels. I debuted the panels this year to much interest and fanfare. It was interesting (to say the least) to see which ones sold. (Memo to self: Must do more comics that feature zombies, boob jokes, ultraviolence and John C. Reilly.)

Many of the attendees’ costumes are half-assed and unfortunate. Melissa Felton’s Huntress was NOT one of them. Bravo!

Now this is pretty cool. David Oakes — a certifiable LEGO Maniac — made a custom LEGO of Armpit. Lovin’ it! He promised a Puppy LEGO is just around the corner.

Speaking of LEGO Maniacs, here’s the charming and delightful John Layman, author of Chew. I’m not sure if this is before or after he won the Eisner Award for Best New Series. I’d say after because it looks like he’s been celebrating, but he ALWAYS looks like he’s been celebrating. Hearty congratulations, John! It was serendipitous that he wrote Bimboozled’s foreword for me.

Lil’ Terminators. Skynet/CyberDyne keeps making ’em smaller and smaller. I guess they go through less titanium alloy that way.

Again, excellent costuming. Yes, we’ve seen Indiana Jones. But I’ve never seen his dad… OR the old knight from the Last Crusade! “We named the dog ‘Indiana!'”

Little bit of crossplay, with a female Blade. Or maybe Daywalkers have infiltrated “The View?” Never did get the story. Love the teeth!

I, uh… sorry. Lost my train of thought there. Unfortunately, there is no way to crop this picture without damaging the artistic integrity of the composition. I’d thought this lass was actually veteran cosplayer Ruby Rocket dressed as Emma Frost/White Queen, but by Day 3 I was pretty sure she was just a gal who liked wearing underwear in public. Note the inset: It would’ve been HILARIOUS if her fingers were just a little bit longer, so as to cover up the second “O” in the book title.

Here’s a lovely Sue Storm, drawn for me by Ming Doyle in the front of her sketchbook. This is the first sketch I’ve had drawn for me in many a year! *blushes* (the Scotch tape effect is part of the printed sketchbook) She also drew Darlene a Barbara Gordon Batgirl. ORIGINAL ART IS AWESOME YO!

This is a fun after-hours photo of Matt Groening being interviewed by Scott Thompson (from The Kids in the Hall).

A few minutes later, we left the convention center. Oxygen yay! BATMAN RETURNS (to Hall C) — apparently he was called back into the convention center to thwart some villainy.

The crowds were cray-cray, as you can imagine. The sweet spot of this photo is Jack checking out the gal in the lime green shortshorts.

We don’t need another hero! These cosplayers ROCKED. Extra credit to Mad Max who screamed a profanity-heavy tirade into his cell phone.

It takes some extra moxie to pull off Luke Cage: Power Man (circa 1977). And the wings on Hawkgirl are WAY above-and-beyond the call of cosplay duty.

Here’s the wife-beater variant of Logan with Sailor Maan.

Here’s some eye candy for the ladies: Chris Hemsworth, who will be better known as Thor come May 2011.

Marvel Studios had a gigantic display. Actual-size Asgard Throneroom. Here are the helmets of Loki, Odin and Thor. In a neat trick, the display cases were usually fogged up with dry ice, so you couldn’t see what was contained within. They also had the Destroyer armor (hidden inside the Twilight Sword behind Odin’s throne) and — apparently — the Infinity Gauntlet. *thorgasm*

Something for everyone! Here’s a rubber dress-wearing Daphne (Scooby-Doo) for Jonathan Solomon. The previous page had a lot of Sharpie marker bleed-through, so that’s why there are little black and red spots here and there. (The guy who drew on the previous page? Me).

Darlene stumbled upon Joshua Jackson — one of her Island Guys ifyouknowwhutI’msayin’andIthinkyoudo — while getting lunch at the neighborhood Ralph’s. Double-Jay (as Darlene now refers to him) was holding “Pacey-Con” across from the convention center, attracting female fans far and wide. Darlene even got an autographed 6-page fanfic “Pacey and Joey Have 6 Kids.” D was walking on clouds for days, until she learned it was all being filmed for a Funny or Die short. Luckily (?) she didn’t make the final cut. More of this tale from Darlene’s point of view here!

Riverdale High represent! Betty, Archie and Veronica stopped by for some chocolate malts. Note the blue hilights in Ms. Lodge’s hairdo.

Pretty much the creepiest super-hero costume I saw was Red Lantern Mera at the DC booth. I can’t confirm if she was puking blood or not prior to this photo.

Couples! Here we have Tim Burton-style Queen and Mad Hatter, Spock (XX chromosome variant) and an Orion Slave Girl, and Mary Marvel with Captain Marvel. I know I’ve been going to A LOT of these shows when I start to immediately recognize cosplayers in different roles. You might recognize the Marvels from previous ‘cons, when she was Batgirl and Black Canary and he was Kirk Alyn-style Superman.

Squirrel Girl! Didn’t see Tippy-Toe or Monkey Joe, however. I think Kevin Church voted this the best costume at the ‘Con.

Here’s my buddy “Magic Snapshot,” who comes by my table every year. She’s going through a rough patch but I’m — we’re — confident she’ll be coming back year after year. XOXO

Here’s another example of cosplay done right! Meet Brittany Skipper. That day she was Sleeping Beauty, but I know she’s also cosplayed most of Disney’s stable of princesses (Belle, Ariel, Tinkerbell, Alice, Cinderella, Snow White, among others). And it’s kind of refreshing to see costuming done completely devoid of the perv/skank quotient. Bravo, Brittany!

Simple, yet effective. Best Uhura I’ve seen.

Our friends Sarah Kuhn and Jeff Chen came by the table, too. I think they had a fun convention: Sarah was on the Geek Girls Exist panel, and Jeff helped out over at JustJennDesigns a couple rows behind us. In this photo, I think Darlene was telling them where they could sneak away to have a nap.

Little slice of life behind the table. Here are my neighbors Wendy Chin-Tanner and Jose Cabrera during a brief — but welcome — lull in table traffic. Good neighbors to have!

If you’re going to fail, FAIL BIG. That’s my motto. At first glance, I’d just chalk up these costumes to being half-assed (like seeing a dude with steampunk goggles and backpack but wearing a polo shirt and Tevas). But these two guys transcend fail and bring it to an art form. I don’t know who I liked better: the Stormtrooper with a bucket for a helmet and paper plates as a suit of battle armor, or Iron Man in bathroom slippers, armor made from Coca-Cola boxes and touch lights on his palms. Let’s call it a tie.

San Diego Comic-Con International 2010 is all but a fading memory. Only a slightly cracked voice and a small pile of mementos (freebees or otherwise) are here to remind me that I spent a solid five-day work week on my feet, talking to friends and making new ones. Oh, and Darlene and I took a slew of photos. But I’ll get to those later in my annual SDCCI Photogasm Recap, as tradition dictates.

This year’s ‘Con marked the worldwide debut of Bimboozled, the third volume of collected Cool Jerk strips. It was serendipitous that I asked my long-time pal John Layman to write the foreword several months ago. Who knew he’d go on to get nominated for — and ultimately win — an Eisner Award for Outstanding New Series? (I did, secretly) His Image comic Chew is the talk (taste?) of the town, and I’m really happy for him. Bravo, Mighty Layman. Bravo.

This year’s coupon — available ONLY to subscribers — was for a free, full-color poster print with the purchase of Bimboozled. The print was an extremely limited run and they all went to subscribers who participated. Thank you! My gift to you for supporting small press and independent cartoonists, and for being a subscriber!

This comic-con had a lot of exciting events: “Scott Pilgrim,” “The Walking Dead,” “Thor,” “Green Lantern,” “True Blood,” “Glee” (?) and scores of other TV shows and movies dominated the buzz, as did a face-stabbing in Hall H on Saturday and rumors about if Comic-Con is going to leave San Diego in the coming years.

Sadly, dozens of familiar faces (familiar to Team Cool Jerk, that is) didn’t attend Comic-Con this year, for one reason or another (conflicting schedules, passes selling out, the economy, moving out of the area, etc.). Missed you guys! You know who you are.

But I did get to say hi to a lot of friends and allies of Cool Jerk: Tom Bray and his posse (Tom was instrumental in getting Cool Jerk into multiple newspapers back in the early 1990s), Richard Foley, Jay Halili and Jamie Lim, Earthdog, Marc Mason, Alex G., Randy, Eric (and Jocelyn, by proxy), Jim Burns and Jason Childs (responsible for this strip, swear to God), Wendy the Rollergirl who kicked my ass last year, Lacie, Brian, Dennis Schamp, Trina Mills & her brother and pop, Kim the Catgirl & her brother and pop, Armando, Magic Snapshot (hug to you, dear lady!), Kurt Snibbe, Marian (and Majorie, by proxy), Bridget Crosby and Josh (!!), Keith G. and Kady, David S., Donald and @kirbiecravings, Jonathan Solomon, Larry C., Shaylan and Ty (only reps from the Poway Posse this year), James Michael’s emissary whose name escapes me, Grace and Araceli, a slew of former co-workers (Anita, Nel, Michelle, Rose and Jeff, Luis and Neil), Steve Yatson and Rebecca Watson from Poser/Manga Studio, and @acomicbookgirl. Thanks to Mike, the other Mike, Matthew, Todd, John, Tak, Hans from Peru, Kim’s co-conspirator Patrick, Bailey, Jonathan, Dan, Justin and Lauri, Rob and his boy Matt for stopping by and making my acquaintance (or vice-versa).

Even though I was super-busy, I was able to catch up/spend some extra time with pals and colleagues Jodi Kurland, Sarah Kuhn and Jeff Chen, Kevin Church, Ming Doyle, Daniel and Dawna Davis, Ryan Claytor, Ben and Andrea Walker, Naomi and Jose Cabrera, Bavarian Erin and Superfro, Deb Aoki, Tyler and Wendy Chin-Tanner, James Hicks, Chris Wisnia, Phil Foglio, Abby Denson (and Matt Loux, who I met) and Ren Bates. JustJenn gets a big virtual hug for letting us spend so much time with her. XOXO

I also got to meet fellow creators (and first-time Small Press exhibitors) Audra Furuichi & Scott Yoshinaga (mahalo!) and steampunk simian Chet Phillips, which was a whole lot of awesome! I understand they all had a good show.

It’s nearly impossible to mention you all. I hope I didn’t leave out anyone who’s reading this!

Special thanks goes to the other half of Team Cool Jerk, my wonderful wife Darlene! Among her many in-front-of-and-behind-the-scenes escapades, she ran into one of her five Island Guys on the way to getting me lunch! “OMG! PACEY CON!” *swooon*

Photos to come!