Happy Birthday: Dean Haspiel
Born in 1967 in New York City, Dean Edmund Haspiel started in the comics industry as an assistant to such luminaries as Howard Chaykin, Bill Sienkiewicz, and Walter Simonson. In 1987 Haspiel created The Verdict with Martin Powell. He also created the two-man comics anthology Keyhole with Josh Neufeld. In 2006 Haspiel created the online comics studio ACT-I-VATE with several others, and began serializing the Billy Dogma Trilogy there. He was also a founding member of DEEP6 Studios. Haspiel worked on The Escapist with Michael Chabon, Brawl with Michel Fiffe in 2007 and The Alcoholic with Jonathan Ames in 2008 but is probably best known for his work on The Quitter and American Splendor with Harvey Pekar.
Currently he edits the comix anthology Next-Door Neighbor at Smithmag.net, produces more Billy Dogma stories at ACT-I-VATE, and has a new wecomic, Street Code, coming soon from Zudacomics.com. Haspiel was nominated for an Eisner in 2002 and an Ignatz in 2003.
Arnold Drake was born on this day in 1924. Drake was best known for his work on Deadman and Doom Patrol but he also co-created the 1950 picture book It Rhymes with Lust, which may many consider the first American graphic novel. Drake also wrote the screenplay for a 1964 horror movie, The Flesh Eaters. Sadly, Drake died on March 12 of last year.
D’oh! We meant the voice of Homer Simpson, 
At last, one of my favorite TV shows paying homage to the comic book format! Writer Anthony Bourdain, the host of the Travel Channel show No Reservations, is a big fan of Cleveland’s own Harvey Pekar, many of whose daily-life adventures in American Splendor have been drawn by Gary Dumm. Last night’s episode of No Res had Bourdain visiting his friend 
