Does it come in chartreuse? đ
May I alphabetize that for you?
Greetings from my parents' house in Virginia! I was supposed to visit in December, but then I caught the ol' Omicron. Fa-la-la-la-la.
It's been a minute because a) I got a bunch of freelance gigs*; and b) I've been trying to Get Out and Do Things again, like seeing plays and art and anything other than my sad apartment walls.
Thanks to everyone who has been listening to my playlist of songs from 1982! A few other bits on my mind/eyeballs/fingertips:
- I *loved*Â Ali Wong's new Netflix special, DON WONG, though make sure there are no children, parents or delicate animals in the room when you watch it.
- I'm obsessed with and inspired by cartoonist Robert Sergel, whose 2018 book, BALD KNOBBER, is a quick and perfect read. His book SPACE is also worth tracking down; you can read the title comic from that collection here.Â
- The PEACEMAKER finale was so satisfying! I'm still watching THE RIGHTEOUS GEMSTONES, 1883, SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE and (gulp) PAM & TOMMY.Â
- I went to a fun party for the new anthology ANONYMOUS SEX. The book features incredible contributors, but here's the kicker: Their names aren't attached to specific stories, so you gotta guess who wrote which racy tale!
- Speaking of sexy, Brian K. Vaughan and Niko Henrichon are rocking Substack with a new NSFW graphic novel.Â
- My creative collaborator Dean Haspiel wrote a charming and provocative essay about his nostalgia for performance art.
- I don't know what to think about the "Andy Warhol A.I. voice" in Netflix's Warhol documentary, which premieres March 9. But OF COURSE I'm gonna watch.
- I saw Patti Smith on Tuesday and would share a photo ... except I was too immersed in my own bliss to take one. But here's video of her singing "Because the Night."
- Podcast-wise, I enjoyed the chat with W. Kamau Bell on FRESH AIR, Patti Harrison on DON'T ASK TIG and the Replacements episode of KREATIVE KONTROL.
*Some of you have asked what I do for (paid) work these days. It's a mix of writing kids' books, consulting for various TV shows/films/networks and ghostwriting for CEOs/executives and celebrities. These things help fund my (unpaid) work, which includes writing plays and screenplays, self-publishing comics, etc. If you or your company may be interested in hiring me, email me.
I was so thrilled to receive a letter from 11-year-old Elliott S. in Houston! Elliott's dad gave him my minicomic, and Elliott said he likes to make comics, too. (He even included one in his note.) THANK YOU, ELLIOTT! You really brightened my day.
Here's my studio address, if you'd like to send me something:
TI Art Studios
Attn: Whitney Matheson, Studio #3053
183 Lorraine St.
Brooklyn, NY 11231
Thanks for reading! Reach out at whitmath@gmail.com or by whispering my name into a coconut shell.
All aflutter,
Billie Bird
"I'd love to sell out completely. It's just that nobody
has been willing to buy."
- John Waters
Find me via Twitter, Instagram & whitmath@gmail.com.
Read my kids' books on Epic!