Schtick Figures Hardcover by Drew Friedman

Product Details

• Publisher: Fantagraphics (2024-07-23)
• Language: English
• Paperback: 144 pages
• ISBN-13: 9781683969341
• Item Weight: 567.0 grams
• Dimensions: 0.0 x 0.0 x 0.0 cm

A new collection of portraits of cultural legends from the only cartoonist to have graced the covers of both New Yorker and Mad magazine, and seemingly everything in between.

For years, acclaimed artist Drew Friedman has chronicled an oddball, alternate history of American pop culture, where forgotten character actors, old Jewish comedians, comic book artists, and liver-spotted elevator operators are afforded the spotlight over Hollywood starlets and heartthrobs. This latest collection showcases a wide range of recent color and black-and-white portraits of comedians (Gilbert Gottfried, Groucho Marx, Selma Diamond, Moms Mabley, Brother Theodore), writers (Kurt Vonnegut, Alan Zwiebel, Arnie Kogan), musicians (B.B. King, Bob Dylan, Al Kooper, Sammy Davis, Jr., Weird Al), directors (Elaine May, Terry Zwigoff), comic book legends (Max Gaines, Bill Gaines, Kelly Freas, Ron Turner), actors (Buster Keaton, Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney, Jr, Rondo Hatton, Peter Falk) and other famous, infamous, and not-so-famous human beings that Friedman has drawn inspiration from over his lifetime.

In addition to over 100 full-page images, this collection features a foreword by historian of comedy Kliph Nesteroff, a glossary of brief biographical information on each subject by the author. Shtick Figures is a must have for fans of Friedman's inimitable talent and sharp curatorial eye for preserving lesser known but worthy tributaries of all aspects of American culture, high and low.

About the Author

Drew Friedman's work has appeared in The New York Times, Mad, New Yorker, Rolling Stone, and many other magazines. He is the author of several collections of comics and cartooning, including All the Presidents, Maverix and Lunatix: Icons of Underground Comix, Old Jewish Comedians, and Any Similarity to Persons Living or Dead is Purely Coincidental. He resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and collaborator, Kathy Bidus, and their beagles.

Kliph Nesteroff is a best-selling author regarded for his vast knowledge of show business. Vice magazine called him "The Human Encyclopedia of Comedy," and Los Angeles magazine profiled him as "The King of Comedy Lore."