Keep on truckin’

Robert Crumb, probably one of the most famous cartoonists of the last hundred years (if not the most famous), is receiving a lot of (overdue in our opinion) attention right now (not least in the Guardian this week). A new collection/autobiography – the R Crumb Handbook – has been released and a major retrospective of his decades-long work is being mounted by the Whitechapel Art Gallery, London (thanks to Pat of Diamond Comcis for the link), while the National Film Theatre is screening a series of Crumb and Crumb-inspired movies.


From the underground comix days of the 60s in Cleveland onwards (working for a greeting card company to pay the bills) this thin, nervous, misogynistic, sexist and rather odd man (all by his own admission) would grow in stature, from a 60s sub-cultural icon to an international legend, revered even by ‘serious’ art critics. Much of his material became iconic, such as Keep On Truckin’ or Fritz the Cat, and much of his output offended as many people as it won over – and indeed, it still does – and he has influenced countless artists right up to today (it’s no great stretch to say many comics, especially independent ones, would be very different without him).

For someone so reticent in person Crumb gives a distinct impression of fearlessness on the printed page. He explores his own darker impulses and desires – and by extension those of society – and puts them there in cartoon form for the whole world to see (like friend Harvey Pekar they created a semi-autobiographical/confessional format that in a way prefigures the nature of some of today’s blogs). His cartoons often use himself and his wife (and fellow cartoonist) Aline for subject matter.

Strips such as ‘The Family That Lays Together Stays Together’, which lampooned both the happy nuclear family and incest, attracted as much conservative bile as Brass Eye would on TV decades later, with some people again refusing to see it as a humorous attack on a subject. Perhaps the fact that Crumb’s exploration of his own impulses and neuroses often touches tender, shared nerves in society is why he has been so revered and reviled, with some wanting him to stay silent on subjects such as racism or sexism while other applaud him for opening out the subject for discussion.

Over the last few years the independent comic publisher Fantagraphics has been producing The Complete Crumb Comics series. Now running to multiple volumes (Vol. 17 is due this summer with more to follow) and taken together they form an excellent library of material for cartoon art enthusiasts in general and Crumb devotees in particular. As well as the obvious advantage of collecting together Crumb’s prodigious output the reader also has a wonderful chance to observe the ever-changing perception of the artist to the world as it changes around him, giving a real peek into the constant flux of the creative process and the way society influences it (and it influences society arguably) over the decades .


While we always endeavour to bring you the finest in comic art at a good price, we are delighted to let you all know that to celebrate the work of Robert Crumb we’re going to offer you a whopping 35% off all of our Complete Crumb Comics titles in our online webstore. FPI are also pleased to include the Robert Crumb Coffee Table Art Book and the R Crumb Handbook in this excellent offer. And because we are truly lovely people we’re even including the forthcoming Vol. 17 of the Complete Crumb in this offer – so if you pre-order this during our two-week offer you can take advantage of our generous promotion. This very special 35% off offer runs for two weeks, so get yourselves over to the webstore and enjoy!