Harvey Pekar
Tuesday, Sept. 22, 7:30 p.m., Arts & Journalism 175
“Ordinary Life Can Be Pretty Complex Stuff”
Come join comic book fanatics, artists, and readers of all kinds when underground comic book writer & social commentator Harvey Pekar gives a talk on life, writing, and comic books on Tuesday, September 22nd at 7:30 p.m. in AJ 175.
In 1976, Pekar published the first in a series of comic books about his quotidian life as a veterans hospital clerk and record collector in his native Cleveland. The series has continued with different illustrators through the years, earning Pekar an American Book Award in 1987. In 2003, the film based on his life and work—also called American Splendor—won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. The talk will be followed by refreshments and a book signing with the author.
In conjunction with Pekar’s visit, the University Film Committee will host a screening of American Splendor in AJ 175 on Monday, September 21st at 7:30—introduced by Harvey Pekar himself!
If you’d like to brush up on your American Splendor reading before Pekar’s talk, visit the Bracken Library electronics reserve site (search under “Jill Christman” or “Visiting Writers Series”) to find excerpts from books Pekar cites as among his best: THE QUITTER, AMERICAN SPLENDOR: LIFE & TIMES OF HARVEY PEKAR, and BEST OF AMERICAN SPLENDOR.
*Harvey Pekar’s visit to Ball State is sponsored by Creative Writing in the Department of English with support from the Virginia Ball Center for Creative Inquiry and the Department of Telecommunications.