SpiderBaby Archives: WaP!, Part 1
WaP!
The Forgotten Activist Prozine: Part 1
This material has never been seen online before, anywhere.
I’d like to keep it that way, too.
This serialized essay is ©2013 Stephen R. Bissette. The individual archival images are ©1987,1988 their respective authors and creators.
Note: I have not granted permission for these posts to be shared at Goodreads.com or any other thieving sites that cull blog content from non-participating creators; if this post is appearing anywhere but at the genuine Myrant blog/site (http://srbissette.com), it is stolen and should be immediately reported.
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Some ground rules: Please respect these rules, and please report to me (via comments thread or email — msbissette@yahoo.com) any breaking of these rules.
If all goes well, I’ll do more of this at Myrant; if the virtual archives are robbed, so to speak, this will be the last and only time I get into these kinds of archival materials at Myrant.
Believe me, I have tons of material to share — I kept everything! – but I’m asking for a few basic groundrules to be followed:
1. Post links to the relevant Myrant posts; please do NOT lift the graphics to place them on your own blog, journal or website.
2. Please do NOT lift these posts, and my text, verbatim and place them on your blog, journal, flicker pages or whatever.
3. Please note all copyright notices at the end of each post, and respect them. I do not own this copyright material, nor do I claim to; I am sharing it here (with correct copyright ownership noted) to share this material with fans, scholars and researchers.
4. If there are any problems, I’ll just tear this all down and abandon the project.
Please, help me maintain some order, and let’s see where this goes. Thanks!
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Work began on WaP! over the winter of 1987-88, and I was contacted by Frank Miller from its inception, and an enthusiastic contributor from the very beginning.
A preview sampler, WaP! #0 (self-described as such in its indicia: “WAP! #0 is a special ‘preview’ of WAP! (Words and Pictures), a newsletter for comics freelance artists and writers.”), arrived sometime in early 1988.
Frank Miller and I were friends at the time; Frank had, in fact, been working on a story for Taboo that morphed into a different story, and ultimately never was completed (aspects of which ended up materializing in other work, including Sin City). We were talking on the phone pretty regularly during this period, and my involvement in WaP! emerged/was solicited from those calls.
I believe the copy of WaP! #0 was mailed to me by Frank; all subsequent mailings involved Frank and WaP! editorial/publishing partner Brad Munson. Frank tucked full-page photocopies of three editorial cartoons into the middle of my copy of WaP! #0, two of which I’ve scanned and included here, below (FYI, the third was a cleaner version of the cartoon by Frank on the cover of #0).
Here’s a snapshot of what was in WaP! #0:
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Contents of WaP! #0: 8 pages, 8 1/2″ x 11,” photocopied on white paper.
Cover: “The Trial of Friendly Frank’s” opening paragraph; editorial cartoon by Frank Miller.
Pg. 2: “A Statement of Intent,” indicia.
Pg. 3: “The Trial of Friendly Frank’s,” cont.
Pg. 4-5 (centerspread): Bill Sienkiewicz cartoon (shown above, scanned from a higher-quality photocopy Frank sent to me with the issue)
Pg. 6: “The Trial of Friendly Frank’s,” conclusion (the article was uncredited); “The Comics Freelancer’s Lexicon” (three entries)
Pg. 7: “It’s BA-A-ACK…!” (see above scan).
Pg. 8: “It’s BA-A-ACK…!” conclusion; “Freelancer’s Dictionary” cont’d (one entry); subscription form.
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WaP! #1 refined and expanded the contents and design of WaP! #0, and indeed arrived as the indicia of #0 had indicated in April 1988 (my copy was postmarked April 14 from Los Angeles, CA). It was a 12-page newsletter, and as feisty as its preview issue had promised.
Alas, there were no writing credits anywhere in the issue, save for the letters in “Who Watches the Watchdogs?” (providing a detailed chronology of the entire Cerebus/Diamond Comics/Puma Blues debacle via three letters from the principle players) from William D. Schanes (National Account Representative, Diamond Comics; letter dated Dec. 23, 1987), Dave Sim (undated), and the joint letter to Diamond from Michael Zulli and Stephen Murphy (Jan. 20, 1988). See my Prologue post for links to earlier Myrant serialized essays that covered this ground in grueling detail.
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Contents of WaP! #1: 12 pages, 8 1/2″ x 11,” photocopied on white paper.
Cover: “The Trial of Friendly Frank’s” opening paragraphs; “Who Watches the Watchdogs?” opening paragraphs; portion of Frank Miller‘s editorial cartoon from #0.
Pg. 2-3: “BRAKABRAKABRAKBRAK: The Latest Rumors and Innuendo for Freelancers Only,” illustrated with editorial cartoon by Frank Miller (portion of the cover of #0’s cartoon; pg. 1), Sergio Aragones (cartoon shown fully, above, pg. 2).
Pg. 4-7: “Who Watches the Watchdogs?” (continued), editorial cartoon by Stephen R. Bissette (pg. 4).
Pg. 8: “They’re Ba-a-ack…” (see scan, below).
Pg. 9: “The Trial of Friendly Frank’s” conclusion; “Helping Friendy Frank’s” call for CBLDF (Comic Book Legal Defense Fund) donations.
Pg. 10-11: “The Comics Freelancer’s Lexicon” (29 entries); “WAP! Wants You…” (call for contributors); editorial cartoon by Bill Sienkiewicz (shown above, from better photocopy; pg. 9)
Pg. 12: “A Statement of Intent” (above); mailer address/return address/stamp.
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FYI, it was the “fun” elements of WaP! #1 that immediately resulted in the most scathing public criticisms of WaP!, via Gary Groth‘s editorials in The Comics Journal: the uncredited, unsubstantiated gossip column “BRAKABRAKABRAKBRAK” was the real flashpoint, which resulted in a curious fandom quickly having a distorted view of the unseen-by-all-but-subscribers newsletter.
Gary‘s outrage was predictably scathing, and the gossip column was a dubious proposition from the start—but, also, to the mind of the editors of WaP!, essential, given how often and many freelancers were regularly hung out to dry on the industry gossip mills (something we had all experienced, at one point or another). This resulted in a public perception (for the fleeting period any such thing even existed) of WaP! as a gossip rag, at best;
Of course, Gary was and remains a prominent publisher. It arguably served his interests as much as any other comics publisher’s interests to as quickly as possible snuff out any such freelancer’s newsletter—and The Comics Journal was at that time a most effective vehicle to do so.
Oh, the obvious ironies.
I understood then, and understand now, Gary‘s ire. It was, in part, quite justified. But since Gary and the Fantagraphics crews TCJ had played a part in spreading their share of spreading often vicious rumors and gossip—well, shit, howdy. You get the idea.
Exception was also taken to “The Comics Freelancer’s Lexicon,” which provided satirical definitions for words and terms (“INCENTIVE (in-sen-tiv) n.: a paternalistic bribe which a company is under no obligation to provide, and which may be removed, modified or withheld at the company’s whim. ‘To match the royalty plan offered by other comics companies, Marvel is initiating an incentive program.’ Not to be confused with Royalty.”). More on that shortly.
Also tucked into my copy of WaP! #1 were the following (note: I am no longer at that mailing address or living in that part of VT, and I have deleted WaP!‘s editorial address from their letterhead):
I have removed the bottom of the subscription insert from this scan; the WaP! address is no longer active, subscriptions/copies are obviously no longer available (and no, I don’t know where/how you can find copies, sorry).
Still as timely as ever—moreso, obviously, given my own recent posts about such matters—is the completely self-explanatory “They’re Ba-a-ack…” (referencing the 1982 movie Poltergeist, natch), addressing Marvel Comics working conditions which have only worsened since 1988:
How little, really, times have changed, save for the higher stakes in the work creators (some of whom were yet unborn) still sign over to Marvel…
Great stuff — another important piece of comics history!
I’m pretty positive the stamps on the back of the checks never used the term “work-made-for- hire.”
The 1978 copyright revision was designed (supposedly) to enable creators to regain a copyright they had sold. As I understand it the revision recognized creators who are not established or have no leverage will often sell a copyright not because they want to, but because they have no other option if they want to make a sale.
Work-made-for-hire agreements became important to the publishers because the revision does not apply to work-made-for-hire.
In a fair world the fact comic book publishers used a stamp on the back of checks saying the creator was selling the copyright to the work should logically have worked against the publishers. The stamp indicates the creator is selling the copyright. If the creator had been doing work-made-for-hire there would have been no copyright for the creator to sell, the copyright would already belong to the company. The stamp is an admission the work was not work-made-for-hire.
Unfortunately we live in a Corporatocracy where everything is viewed through a lens which favors corporations under every circumstance.
An admission a copyright is being sold, means no nothing.
Panicked scrambling to cover their asses after the 1978 revision by retroactively redefining freelance work as work-made-for-hire means nothing.
The complete absence of any contracts, vouchers, invoices, receipts, assignment agreements, notes scratched on the back of a napkin, the complete absence of any paper trail…means nothing.
Don McGregor told the story of how one day the stamp appeared on the back of his paycheck for the first time… and for MORAL reasons, he stopped working for Marvel right then and there.
Steve, this is FANTASTIC stuff and I really hope that you keep posting it. As a teen in the 80’s I think I was more interested in the creation and business side of comics rather than the actual work itself, and in today’s bloated industry I’m even more so, since let’s face it, the great work is so few and far between these days.
I can only HOPE that your vigilant stance on unauthorized reproduction of this material will be heeded and you will continue to post it. Because lets face it there is an audience who wants to know.
Class act as always
This is all incredibly mind-blowing. Even with the internet today, I don’t see this kind of exact effort being made anywhere. I mean, this is far more informative than a snarky twitter comment. I’ve know a few artists who, whenever they do actually trade words with members of their “virtual studios”, tend to limit the dialogue to the first person shooter games they’re playing online. The threat of being labeled “difficult” by publishers is maybe more ominous today, which is just horrible.