Johnny Ryan no longer works at the Seattle piss factory or as he likes to call it, the urological clinic. Thats a good thing because it gives him a chance to work on as much Angry Youth Comix as possible. Fantagraphics has just been reprinted the latest issues into a trade paperback called What're You Lookin' At?
If you took the whole of pop culture and put it in a blender with a human penis you might end up with a red shake that resembles Angry Youth Comix. Its filled with angry, violent and very funny characters such as Loady McGee, Sherlock McRape, Sinus O'Gynus and Blecky Yuckerella.
Check out the official website for Johnny Ryan
Daniel Robert Epstein: I missed your appearance G4 Tech TVs The Screen Savers. How was doing that?
Johnny Ryan: It was ok. It was kind of funny and cool. Just the fact that people are interested in my comic on any level is good.
DRE: Did the hot blonde interview you?
JR: No it was the hot guy.
They really rehearsed me beforehand. I had a producer go over the questions a couple of times. The interview was pretty short and they wanted me to hit those important points. I had to make sure that people knew what Fantagraphics is. I had to explain that so I sort of felt I had to rush through the rest. It wasnt like Conan OBrien where you are just sitting back and shooting the breeze. I had an agenda I had to get across. They went over the questions with me at least four times. I even did a pre-interview with a different guy for their website. The online one was a little more extensive so I was able to elaborate a bit more.
DRE: Do you keep track of your personal website?
JR: No I dont really. As far as people writing me and buying stuff from my website I cant say there was that much of a spike in sales. I did get a few emails. Most of the people that wrote me seemed like they were fans of that channel. I thought it was weird that there were fans of this channel because I had never heard of it before they asked me to be on.
Though it was cool being on the show its really weird to have your ass kissed all day long. It just doesnt happen in the real world. Im a cynical person by nature and they were paying me all these compliments so it got to the point where I wanted to be like Alright Im a genius, just shut up already. There is also that small part of me who thought I should just soak it up.
DRE: I wonder if they actually read your entire book because I dont think they would want you on then.
JR: I did tell the producer that I thought they would be hard pressed to find many pictures from my comics that they could show on TV. She said she was looking all morning trying to find good ones. But they did it.
DRE: The previous trade paperback of your work was PortaJohnny which was mostly shorter pieces. How is it doing longer stories now?
JR: Its funny because in those early Fantagraphics issues I was trying to exercise my storytelling skills and show people I could make an attempt to do longer stories. But the most recent issue is all two page stories so Im kind of going back to doing shorter stuff.
DRE: Why is that?
JR: Ive found that the shorter stuff hits home a little more than the longer stuff. When it comes to humor I find that the things of mine people really like is the stuff thats an immediate gag. Im not saying I wont ever do a long story again but its good to mix it up.
DRE: The story, The Blind Date, is an example of a longer story but its still basically just short gags all throughout it with a real ending. The one that doesnt have a real ending to it is The Apey Capers one where Loady just ends up licking used jalapeno dildos. How easy is it to wrap up these stories?
JR: It can depend. I think the reason I have gone to doing shorter pages has to do with the Shouldn't You Be Working? strips Ive been doing lately on my website. There Ive done Marvel parodies and parodies of newspaper comics. Now Im doing parodies of underground comics. I started these things thinking I would start at the top of the page with a particular character like Spider-Man then spew out as much funny stuff as I can without any preparation or concerning myself with how the art looks. I brought that work ethic over to my regular comic which isnt as loose but I try to come up with the ideas more spontaneously instead of planning and plotting the whole thing out. As for endings its almost a challenge to start somewhere and then wrap it up within a page or two.
DRE: Can you draw differently than the way you draw in Angry Youth Comix?
JR: I can but its not all that great and I dont usually have a good time doing it.
DRE: Heres an example of what Im getting at. There is this movie called Nekromantik which is about a couple who have sex with a dead body. Its very low budget with awful special effects but if the movie had good effects it would be unwatchable. Do you think your gags would work as well if you drew in a photo realistic style?
JR: I dont think so. Thats one of the things that I like about comics even when I was a kid. Reading Mad magazine back then I would appreciate the more cartoony stuff rather than the Mort Drucker type of stuff. Not that hes realistic but he is more realistic than say Al Jaffee. When you are drawing someone cartoony its inherently funny rather than having a real persons head hacked off.
DRE: I mentioned used jalapeno dildos earlier and you laughed. Is this stuff still funny to you?
JR: It can depend. Sometimes after a while I will go back and read some of my old stuff and some things I think were really good and funny. Some things work at the time then after a while they dont seem as funny anymore.
DRE: But used jalapeno dildos will always be funny.
JR: [laughs] Just dildos in general is funny. Its a funny word and a funny thing to have in your house.
DRE: I happened to be reading some old Daniel Clowes and Peter Bagge stuff recently. It really struck me how their older work can be quite similar to what you do. But now Clowes does these somber books now. Can you see yourself doing work like that 15-20 years down the line?
JR: At this point I cant envision myself doing that. There is that part of me that would be heckling myself if I tried to write a serious story about my grandfather or something. I just cant see that happening but who knows. 20 years down the line I might fall and hit my head then Ill be writing serious stuff.
DRE: I interviewed [Fantagraphics publisher] Gary Groth recently and he said he thought that issue number six of Angry Youth Comix was a masterpiece.
JR: Yes that was the issue that Gary actually wrote to me about. I never even thought that he was aware I was being published there. I just thought it was something [Fantagraphics Director of Promotions] Eric Reynolds and Kim Thompson secretly did while Gary was off doing other things. It was nice to hear him say how much he liked that issue.
DRE: What did he like about that issue so much?
JR: I think the thing he liked the most were the Boobs Pooter stories. Hes a loudmouth kind of comedian character. In the first story he breaks into a house and causes all this havoc like a more gruesome Cat in the Hat. It goes back to what I was saying before because it was a short fast spontaneous piece.
DRE: Youre collaborating a bit more now. I saw that you did a story with Dave Cooper for Bizarro 2.
JR: I just saw that the book came out but I already got my free copy in the mail. We did a Wonder Woman versus Supergirl story. I wrote it back in 2002 so its been a while. I thought Dave and I did a good job. Weve been doing stuff for Nickelodeon Magazine so we seem to work well together.
DRE: I like the Hipler stories you and Peter Bagge do together in Angry Youth.
JR: We wrote those together when I was still living in Seattle. I kind of just took those ideas and drew them when I moved to LA.
DRE: It must be great for you to work with him.
JR: He put out that comic Sweatshop for DC Comics which I did some inking and penciling on. It was a good book and I really think it started to hit its stride about issue four or five but its gone now. It was cool because it was like doing some apprentice work for Peter. I saw how he lays pages out and organizes things.
DRE: There is a story in What're You Lookin' At? called 1976 that is so different looking.
JR: Because the story takes place in the 70s I was going for Crumb underground look. That particular story was something I had written and even drawn years before in my sketchbook. I was going to put in one of the self published issues of Angry Youth but I wasnt sure if it was that great. Years later my wife and a friend saw the story and said I should put it in my comic. So I redrew it and put it in there.
DRE: There is a quote on the back of the trade paperback credited to Crumb "Generally speaking, (Johnny Ryan's) comics are really dumb and infantile, and prove beyond a doubt that chemical pollution, television, video games, pop music, etc. is making us all stupider by the minute." Did he really say that?
JR: Oh yeah, that was in a letter I got from him.
DRE: It doesnt seem like a positive statement.
JR: I have no idea. Hes kind of a weird guy.
DRE: Its an awesome quote though.
JR: He sort of seems like an old grump.
DRE: What do you know about SuicideGirls?
JR: Absolutely nothing.
DRE: Really? Its awesome. Its Goth, punk and emo girls NAKED!
JR: Really! Ill have to check that out.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
If you took the whole of pop culture and put it in a blender with a human penis you might end up with a red shake that resembles Angry Youth Comix. Its filled with angry, violent and very funny characters such as Loady McGee, Sherlock McRape, Sinus O'Gynus and Blecky Yuckerella.
Check out the official website for Johnny Ryan
Daniel Robert Epstein: I missed your appearance G4 Tech TVs The Screen Savers. How was doing that?
Johnny Ryan: It was ok. It was kind of funny and cool. Just the fact that people are interested in my comic on any level is good.
DRE: Did the hot blonde interview you?
JR: No it was the hot guy.
They really rehearsed me beforehand. I had a producer go over the questions a couple of times. The interview was pretty short and they wanted me to hit those important points. I had to make sure that people knew what Fantagraphics is. I had to explain that so I sort of felt I had to rush through the rest. It wasnt like Conan OBrien where you are just sitting back and shooting the breeze. I had an agenda I had to get across. They went over the questions with me at least four times. I even did a pre-interview with a different guy for their website. The online one was a little more extensive so I was able to elaborate a bit more.
DRE: Do you keep track of your personal website?
JR: No I dont really. As far as people writing me and buying stuff from my website I cant say there was that much of a spike in sales. I did get a few emails. Most of the people that wrote me seemed like they were fans of that channel. I thought it was weird that there were fans of this channel because I had never heard of it before they asked me to be on.
Though it was cool being on the show its really weird to have your ass kissed all day long. It just doesnt happen in the real world. Im a cynical person by nature and they were paying me all these compliments so it got to the point where I wanted to be like Alright Im a genius, just shut up already. There is also that small part of me who thought I should just soak it up.
DRE: I wonder if they actually read your entire book because I dont think they would want you on then.
JR: I did tell the producer that I thought they would be hard pressed to find many pictures from my comics that they could show on TV. She said she was looking all morning trying to find good ones. But they did it.
DRE: The previous trade paperback of your work was PortaJohnny which was mostly shorter pieces. How is it doing longer stories now?
JR: Its funny because in those early Fantagraphics issues I was trying to exercise my storytelling skills and show people I could make an attempt to do longer stories. But the most recent issue is all two page stories so Im kind of going back to doing shorter stuff.
DRE: Why is that?
JR: Ive found that the shorter stuff hits home a little more than the longer stuff. When it comes to humor I find that the things of mine people really like is the stuff thats an immediate gag. Im not saying I wont ever do a long story again but its good to mix it up.
DRE: The story, The Blind Date, is an example of a longer story but its still basically just short gags all throughout it with a real ending. The one that doesnt have a real ending to it is The Apey Capers one where Loady just ends up licking used jalapeno dildos. How easy is it to wrap up these stories?
JR: It can depend. I think the reason I have gone to doing shorter pages has to do with the Shouldn't You Be Working? strips Ive been doing lately on my website. There Ive done Marvel parodies and parodies of newspaper comics. Now Im doing parodies of underground comics. I started these things thinking I would start at the top of the page with a particular character like Spider-Man then spew out as much funny stuff as I can without any preparation or concerning myself with how the art looks. I brought that work ethic over to my regular comic which isnt as loose but I try to come up with the ideas more spontaneously instead of planning and plotting the whole thing out. As for endings its almost a challenge to start somewhere and then wrap it up within a page or two.
DRE: Can you draw differently than the way you draw in Angry Youth Comix?
JR: I can but its not all that great and I dont usually have a good time doing it.
DRE: Heres an example of what Im getting at. There is this movie called Nekromantik which is about a couple who have sex with a dead body. Its very low budget with awful special effects but if the movie had good effects it would be unwatchable. Do you think your gags would work as well if you drew in a photo realistic style?
JR: I dont think so. Thats one of the things that I like about comics even when I was a kid. Reading Mad magazine back then I would appreciate the more cartoony stuff rather than the Mort Drucker type of stuff. Not that hes realistic but he is more realistic than say Al Jaffee. When you are drawing someone cartoony its inherently funny rather than having a real persons head hacked off.
DRE: I mentioned used jalapeno dildos earlier and you laughed. Is this stuff still funny to you?
JR: It can depend. Sometimes after a while I will go back and read some of my old stuff and some things I think were really good and funny. Some things work at the time then after a while they dont seem as funny anymore.
DRE: But used jalapeno dildos will always be funny.
JR: [laughs] Just dildos in general is funny. Its a funny word and a funny thing to have in your house.
DRE: I happened to be reading some old Daniel Clowes and Peter Bagge stuff recently. It really struck me how their older work can be quite similar to what you do. But now Clowes does these somber books now. Can you see yourself doing work like that 15-20 years down the line?
JR: At this point I cant envision myself doing that. There is that part of me that would be heckling myself if I tried to write a serious story about my grandfather or something. I just cant see that happening but who knows. 20 years down the line I might fall and hit my head then Ill be writing serious stuff.
DRE: I interviewed [Fantagraphics publisher] Gary Groth recently and he said he thought that issue number six of Angry Youth Comix was a masterpiece.
JR: Yes that was the issue that Gary actually wrote to me about. I never even thought that he was aware I was being published there. I just thought it was something [Fantagraphics Director of Promotions] Eric Reynolds and Kim Thompson secretly did while Gary was off doing other things. It was nice to hear him say how much he liked that issue.
DRE: What did he like about that issue so much?
JR: I think the thing he liked the most were the Boobs Pooter stories. Hes a loudmouth kind of comedian character. In the first story he breaks into a house and causes all this havoc like a more gruesome Cat in the Hat. It goes back to what I was saying before because it was a short fast spontaneous piece.
DRE: Youre collaborating a bit more now. I saw that you did a story with Dave Cooper for Bizarro 2.
JR: I just saw that the book came out but I already got my free copy in the mail. We did a Wonder Woman versus Supergirl story. I wrote it back in 2002 so its been a while. I thought Dave and I did a good job. Weve been doing stuff for Nickelodeon Magazine so we seem to work well together.
DRE: I like the Hipler stories you and Peter Bagge do together in Angry Youth.
JR: We wrote those together when I was still living in Seattle. I kind of just took those ideas and drew them when I moved to LA.
DRE: It must be great for you to work with him.
JR: He put out that comic Sweatshop for DC Comics which I did some inking and penciling on. It was a good book and I really think it started to hit its stride about issue four or five but its gone now. It was cool because it was like doing some apprentice work for Peter. I saw how he lays pages out and organizes things.
DRE: There is a story in What're You Lookin' At? called 1976 that is so different looking.
JR: Because the story takes place in the 70s I was going for Crumb underground look. That particular story was something I had written and even drawn years before in my sketchbook. I was going to put in one of the self published issues of Angry Youth but I wasnt sure if it was that great. Years later my wife and a friend saw the story and said I should put it in my comic. So I redrew it and put it in there.
DRE: There is a quote on the back of the trade paperback credited to Crumb "Generally speaking, (Johnny Ryan's) comics are really dumb and infantile, and prove beyond a doubt that chemical pollution, television, video games, pop music, etc. is making us all stupider by the minute." Did he really say that?
JR: Oh yeah, that was in a letter I got from him.
DRE: It doesnt seem like a positive statement.
JR: I have no idea. Hes kind of a weird guy.
DRE: Its an awesome quote though.
JR: He sort of seems like an old grump.
DRE: What do you know about SuicideGirls?
JR: Absolutely nothing.
DRE: Really? Its awesome. Its Goth, punk and emo girls NAKED!
JR: Really! Ill have to check that out.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 3 of 3 COMMENTS
neumie:
I love his comics! And Crumb is right about him and us in general.
olivia:
I hate myself for loving his comix, but I just can't get enough of Loady McGee and Blecky Yuckerella.