October Happenings

Hey, gang- got a blog post full of art happenings and MSCA news for you.

We had a good turnout for our October dinner meeting at Garibaldi’s Pizza, and lots more freebies available for attendees. And since it’s October there’s lots more going on around town this month.

MSCA member Dale Martin has a busy month ahead: two art shows – the latest Nasty Women Memphis show Choice at Marshall Arts, 639 Marshall Ave. (closing reception Friday, Oct. 21, 6-8 pm), and OZ inspired art in Beyond the Emerald City at Playhouse on the Square in conjunction with their staging of “The Wizard of Oz” from October 14-December 28, 2022 (artist reception on November 11th and pop-up shop on December 10th)…plus the Memphis Monster Market online now through the end of October!

Get the whole scoop (and the latest Watusi comic) in his October newsletter. You can subscribe in the link below…
https://mailchi.mp/5cc9bec9a392/ssnews1022

Speaking of the Monster Market– it’s currently open online and the in person kickoff party was a blast!

They had an amazing turnout for the one night only event at Marshall Arts.

There was a photo booth, a wall to draw on, framed art on the wall to check out, items to buy…

…and did I mention there was an open bar..?

Lots of fun items were for sale by many of the Monster Makers

…and we saw several familiar faces at the event. The lines to check out were very long but continued to move along throughout the night, right up until closing- which is a great sign!

Like Dale (Smeary Soapbox Press), I’ve got some of my Scared Silly and Monsterpieces for sale.

They had to go online only because of the pandemic, but I hope that next year they can get back to being an in person pop-up shop again.

If not and it’s still a virtual storefront, I do hope they throw another kick-off party like this year’s shindig. Nicki and I had a great time shopping and talking.

Last month MSCA president Kevin Williams and I put up a display at the  First Regional Library in Hernando to celebrate the Mid-South Cartoonists Association’s 35th anniversary. Now  we’ve got a Ghostbusters display up for October.

It’s filled with items from mine and Kev’s personal collections including autographs, patches, and equipment. You can check it out in the library’s lobby all month long during the library’s normal business hours. You can also check out more about our Memphis Ghostbusters group here.

RiverArtsFest is a celebration of fine arts and fine local music with live artist demonstrations and hands-on art activities for all ages. More than 150 artists from around the country and right here in Memphis gather to exhibit and sell their latest works of original fine arts in what’s become the largest juried artist market and urban festival in the Mid-South. The event is Sat, Oct 22 – Sun, Oct 23 from 10:00am-5:00pm. Adult tickets are $10 for 1 day, and $15 for 2 days. Children (6-12yrs) tickets are $5ea and kids 5 and under are free. The 2022 RiverArtsFest will be held on Riverside Drive in Downtown Memphis, TN.

The Midtown Con will be back at Black Lodge (405 N Cleveland) on Saturday, October 29th from 10am-5pm. Admission is $5 and kids 12 and under are free. That same day 901 Comics East on Macon in Cordova will be celebrating Halloween Comic Fest in-store. Free comics, cards, and more will be available.

 

At Crosstown ConcourseFRIGHT-TOBER movies, because “free” fits everyone’s budget, especially artists…

Soulsville USA Festival is 10/15, with free admission to the Stax Museum.

Come see MSCA member Jim Palmer at Germantown Community Theatre(3037 Forest Hill Irene RD., Germantown, TN 38138) in:

AN INSPECTOR CALLS    Oct 21 – Nov 6, 2022 

In 1912 pompous industrialist Arthur Birling, who has hopes of a knighthood, his superior wife Sybil and young son Eric are celebrating the engagement of daughter Sheila to eligible Gerald Croft when they are visited by blunt Inspector Goole. He tells them of the suicide of a young woman named Eva Smith and though they all claim not to have known her the inspector demonstrates that each in their own way contributed to her downfall.

Don’t forget, we’ll be having another MSCA group art show at GCT this spring during their production of Spamalot.

Lonnie Easterling is enjoying working digitally and has been hitting it out of the park with his #FrightFall2022 drawing challenge toons.

This last weekend, DaMarco Randle, the Wades (Martheus, Anakin, Janet), and Kevin Williams participated in this year’s Paint Memphis in the Broad Avenue Arts District area.

Oh, and thanks to 901 Comics for having comics legend Joe Staton in for a couple signing appearances at the first of October. Nicki and I got to stop by the 901 Comics East Macon Rd. location to see Joe and get a few comics signed before heading down to the Monster Market opening.

901 Comics (both locations) along with Comics & Collectibles and The Cellar will be celebrating Halloween Comic Fest on the Saturday before Halloween (Saturday, October 28th) with some freebies while they last. If you can’t make it by, you can still download some free digital comics by clicking here.

Hope you all have a Happy Halloween, and can make it out to our next MSCA dinner meeting on Tuesday, November 1st/All Saints Day from 6-8pm. We might have some surprises for you to enjoy..!

Lin

PS: Happy Birthday to MSCA member/former Prez Charles Ettinger!

A Junk Opera, Murals, Skateboards, and Ghosts…What’s Going On Here..?!!

Hey, gang-

Nicki and I are doing some maintenance and redesign of the MSCA site, so things will be looking different here. Be sure to share your art/member news and links for future posts.


“What the hell are you doing..?!!”

Here’s what’s been going on and/or coming up in the MSCA…

Shockheaded Peter A Junk Opera

MSCA member Andrew Chandler emcees the play “Shockheaded Peter A Junk Opera” at TheaterworksCLICK HERE to learn more.

October 29 – November 14, 2021
Shockheaded Peter

Fridays & Saturdays at 8:00, Sundays at 2:00
ADDED DATES: Thursday Nov. 4 at 7:30, Friday Nov. 5 MIDNIGHT SHOW, 12:00 am
​Please note: Sunday Oct. 31 is sold out.

Created for the stage by Julian Crouch and Phelim McDermott. Original music and lyrics by The Tiger Lillies. Originally conceived and produced by Michael Morris for Cultural Industry, London
Directed by James Kevin Cochran
Musical Director Eileen Kuo

SHOCKHEADED PETER is a musical adaptation of the Der Struwwelpeter by Heinrich Hoffman, an 1845 German children’s book of short stories and poems about the disastrous consequences of misbehavior. SHOCKHEADED PETER features a sinister but incompetent master of ceremonies who leads the audience through the tale of a childless couple that has their fondest wish granted in the most delightfully dreadful way imaginable, accompanied by songs, puppetry, and vignettes in which the hilariously horrible fates that befall naughty children everywhere are brought to darkly comedic life.

Cast:
Emcee . . . . . Andrew Chandler
Lead Singer . . . . . Ryan Scott
Ensemble . . . . . Mersadies Burch, Patricia Carreras, Julia Hinson, Franklin Koch, Marianne Orendorff, Amy Rush, Ashley Trevathan, Johnathan Underwood, Jen Wood-Bowien

 

MAW Productions Murals

MSCA member Martheus Wade has been featured in an article about the mural featuring many characters from the MAW Productions Universe!


The mural was painted by the Jetta team- Martheus (top/L) & Janet Wade(bottom/L), Anakin Wade(sitting/C), Damarco Randle(top/R), and Kevin Williams(bottom/R).


CLICK HERE to read it on BLAC®, which is the premier lifestyle magazine for African Americans in and around Memphis.


Recently as part of #paintmemphis 2021, Martheus, Janet Wade, Anakin, Damarco, and Kevin were painting murals again downtown!


The Jetta mural took 17 hours over 3 days to complete.


If you’re in the Memphis area, head down to 660 BB King Blvd (on the Georgia Street side) for that mural and many more- including an awesome Avatar: The Last Airbender one by Damarco Ranldle– which took 40 hours of work!


Do you own a business or know someone who needs branding help..? Don’t forget to check out www.MAWProductionsLLC.com who can take care of all those needs as well.

 

Hernando Skates!


On Saturday, October 16th, Nicki and I went to check out the Hernando Skate Park 6th Anniversary event at Pidgeon Park in Hernando, MS.


The skatepark is just around the corner from us and Nicki had a new mirror-less digital camera she wanted to play with.


There was a great “Hernando Skates” turnout- lots of spectators, many bands performed, and several skaters of all skill levels took to the concrete.


There was even a landshark in the bowl..!


There was some serious defying of gravity going on…


…well, sometimes gravity can be a harsh mistress..!


Trust me, I was reminded the first time I tried going in!


You can read more about that time when Kevin Thorn, Greg Cravens, Mike Womack, their kids and I checked out the skatepark on my Have Geek travel blog.

 

MGB at Malco Olive Branch!


“Who y’all gonna call?”


Saturday, November 20, 2021 AT 12 PM – 2 PM
Malco Olive Branch, 6430 Goodman Rd, Olive Branch, MS 38654


The Memphis Ghostbusters will be in person at the Malco Cinema Grill in Olive Branch, MS to celebrate the release of the new Ghostbusters: Afterlife movie.


The local Memphis Ghostbusters franchise (founded by Kevin Williams and myself/Lin), will be in uniform to meet and do photo-ops with fellow ghostheads.


We’ll be set up outside the entrance to the theater, unless the weather is bad and then we’ll be inside the lobby.


We will be masked and socially distancing per Malco rules and guidelines.

 

2022 MSCA Art Show Scheduled

We have a chance to be part of an art show at Germantown Community Theater in January 2022, to coincide with the play The Complete History of America (abridged) (synopsis is below). We need MSCA members to commit to 12 medium to large size pieces which will work in their space and history of America theme, so if we have 6 – 8 artists commit we can fill it.

We’re allowed to sell the pieces keeping 60% and the theater gets 40%.

Who’s in?? Please let Kevin know VERY soon, and the art will be due by our first in-person meeting the first Tuesday in January 2022. You can email Kev at midsouthcartoonists (at) gmail (dot) com.

The Complete History Of America (abridged)
With a ten year run in the West End at the Criterion Theatre, The Complete History of America (abridged) ought to be funny. And informative. And it’s both. In the short space of ninety minutes, Adam Long, Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor take us through 600 years of History, from Washington to Watergate, from the Bering Straits to Baghdad, from New World to New World Order – The Complete History of America (abridged) is a breakneck rollercoaster ride through the glorious quagmire that is American history. 
Tackling such controversial questions as: Who really discovered America? Why did Abe Lincoln free the slaves? How many Democrats does it take to screw in a light bulb? – absolutely nothing is sacred in the authors’ unique satirical exploration of America’s past.

“History has never been this much fun. Or as delightfully mutilated.” Montreal Gazette
“This History of America should be a required course.” – Boston Herald

Germantown Community Theatre is a non‐profit 501(c)(3) organization set in an intimate 98‐seat theatre located at 3037 Forest Hill‐Irene RdGCT provides both theatrical entertainment and educational opportunities for Midsouth families in an environment that nurtures creative expression and artistic growth. Our mission is to entertain, educate, engage, and enrich the community through theatrical programming.

Tickets may be purchased online (click here) or through the box office (901-453-7447). Box office hours are Tuesday through Friday 10:00am–3:00pm. During show days, the box office is open one hour before showtime. GCT accepts all major credit cards including Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express. 


This art show will be a great way for us to start celebrating the MSCA’s 35th anniversary year!

We’ll be discussing it and other plans for 2022 during our next monthly Zoom meeting call on Tuesday, November 2nd starting at 7pm. You can email Kev at midsouthcartoonists (at) gmail (dot) com for the link to join in on the comics conversation.

 


Hope you all have a Happy Halloween!

Lin