Before Johnny Ryan, before Mike Diana, before Dan Clowes and Pete Bagge, before even Robert Crumb began exploring his id in his comic book stories, there was S.Clay Wilson, the dark heart of underground comix.
Wilson appeared on the early underground comix scene with a totally original style, reminiscent of densely packed medieval woodcuts, and soon created some of the most outrageously unrestrained comics ever drawn. His freewheeling stories about pirates, demons, dykes, zombies, & bikers, influenced the whole direction that underground comics (and hence alternative comics) then took. Yet there is no collection of his comics work still in print!
Even more outrageous and powerful are his paintings, and these you CAN see, in this totally eye popping book from Ten Speed Press.
Anyone wishing to check out his comics work would do well to pick up Zap Comix issues 2 & 5, and Weirdo issues 14, 15 & 19 (the "Meadows" trilogy).
...and here's a couple of odd strips I found online - no idea what comics they're from, but it looks like early work.
And here's an excerpt from Bob Levin's interview with Wilson in the new Comics Journal.
It's good to hear mention of a new issue of Zap Comix!
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