Jhonen Vasquez
Jhonen Vasquez
Born	September 1, 1974 (1974-09-01) (age 33) San Jose, California, United States
Pen name	Mr. Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a Pseudonym adopted by an Author or their publishers to conceal their identity Scolex, Chancre Scolex
Occupation	Cartoonist, comic book artist, writer
Nationality	Mexican American
Writing period	1993-present
Genres	Comic books, animation, music video
Literary movement	Alternative comics
Influences David Cronenberg, Kurt Vonnegut, Franz Kafka, H. R. Giger, H. P. Lovecraft, David Lynch
Official website http://questionsleep.com/

Jhonen Vasquez (born September 1, 1974), also known by his pseudonyms Mr. Employment is a Contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing Cartoons Traditionally much of this work was and still is humorous and is intended primarily for entertainment purposes A comic book creator is any one of a number of people working to create a Comic book or Graphic novel. A writer is anyone who creates a written work although the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally as well as those who have written in many different forms Nationality is a relationship between a Person and their State of Origin, Culture, association Affiliation and/or Loyalty See also History of Mexican-Americans Mexican Americans are Americans of Mexican ancestry A literary genre is a category of literary composition Genres may be determined by Literary technique, tone, Content, or even (as in the case of fiction A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative The bouncing ball animation (below consists of these 6 frames A music video is a Short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music most commonly a Song with lyrics This is a list of modern literary movements: that is movements after the Renaissance. The term "alternative comics" is one of several labels applied to a range of Comics that have appeared since about 1980 in the wake of the Underground comix David Paul Cronenberg OC, FRSC (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian Film director and occasional Actor. Kurt Vonnegut Jr (November 11 1922 – April 11 2007 (ˈvɒnəgət was a prolific and genre-bending American Novelist known for works blending Satire, Black Hans Ruedi Giger (ˈɡi ɡɚ (born at Chur, Grisons Canton, February 5, 1940) is an Academy Award -winning Swiss Howard Phillips Lovecraft ( August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American author of horror, fantasy David Keith Lynch (born January 20 1946 is an American director, Screenwriter, producer, painter, Cartoonist, Composer Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. Year 1974 ( MCMLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. A pseudonym is a fictitious alternative to a person's legal name (see Alias) Scolex and Chancre Scolex, is a cartoonist living in Los Angeles, California, United States. A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing Cartoons Traditionally much of this work was and still is humorous and is intended primarily for entertainment purposes Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West The United States of America —commonly referred to as the He is the creator of a number of alternative comics published by Slave Labor Graphics including Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, I Feel Sick, Fillerbunny, Bad Art Collection, and Squee!, as well as the creator and writer of the short-lived cult animated television series Invader Zim. The term "alternative comics" is one of several labels applied to a range of Comics that have appeared since about 1980 in the wake of the Underground comix Slave Labor Graphics or commonly SLG, is an independent American Comic book publisher well-known for publishing darkly humorous offbeat comics This page is about the comic book series For its central character see Johnny C. I Feel Sick is a "doubleshot" full-color comic book written and drawn by the comic artist Jhonen Vasquez and colored by Rosearik Rikki Simons Fillerbunny is a character created by Comic book artist and writer Jhonen Vasquez. This article is about the fictional character in Johnny the Homicidal Maniac This article does not discuss "cult" in the original sense of "veneration" or "religious practice" for that usage see Cult (religious practice An animated cartoon is a short hand-drawn (or made with computers to look similar to something hand-drawn Film for the cinema, Television or computer Invader Zim, Branded as Invader ZIM, is an American Animated television series that was produced by and subsequently Many of his works have developed cult followings. A cult following is a group of fans devoted to a specific area of Pop culture.

Early life

Jhonen Vasquez was born to Mexican parents and raised in East San Jose. East San Jose (or the East Side; less commonly the East Valley) is the name for several neighborhoods east of downtown San Jose California. He attended Mount Pleasant High School, where he often spent much of his class time drawing in sketchbooks. Mount Pleasant High School is a Secondary school located in San Jose California which educates grades 9 through 12 Taking part in a contest to design a new look for his school's mascot, the Cardinal, he submitted an entry that the judges rejected. The term mascot – defined as a term for any person animal or object thought to bring Luck – colloquially includes anything used to represent a group with a common The Cardinals or Cardinalidae are a family of Passerine Birds found in North and South America. On the back of a preliminary drawing for the contest, he drew his first sketch of the character who would later become Johnny C. Johnny C is a fictional character starring in the comic book series Johnny The Homicidal Maniac. His high school's newspaper published a number of his strips entitled Johnny the Little Homicidal Maniac. A newspaper is a written Publication containing News, information and Advertising, usually printed on low-cost paper called Newsprint.

Vasquez also created Happy Noodle Boy while attending Mount Pleasant. This page is about the comic book series For its central character see Johnny C. According to Vasquez, "So many years ago, [my little romantical friend in high school] was the unwitting reason Happy Noodle Boy was created. [She] always asked me for comics. But I couldn't draw as fast as she requested. Thus, I tried to create the worst abomination of a comic that I could, so as to make her not want comics anymore. That abomination, my friends, was Happy Noodle Boy". ^[1]

After graduating in 1992, Vasquez went on to become a film student at De Anza College in Cupertino, California. De Anza College is a 112-acre (453000 m² Community college located in Cupertino California. Cupertino (ˌkuːpɚˈtiːnoʊ is a Suburban city in Santa Clara County, California, U Though he had little formal artistic training, he soon dropped out of De Anza to pursue a career as a professional cartoonist. He met Roman Dirge, Rikki Simons, and Tavisha Wolfgarth-Simons at Alternative Press Expo in 1995. Roman Dirge (born on) is an Artist and magician, and the creator of the Lenore comic-book series he currently lives in Los Angeles Dirge later became a writer on Vasquez's Invader Zim, while Rikki Simons became the voice of the show's crazed robot GIR, as well as a member of the show's coloring team. Invader Zim, Branded as Invader ZIM, is an American Animated television series that was produced by and subsequently GIR is one of the main characters from the Animated television series Invader Zim. Rikki Simons also worked with Jhonen on the coloring seen in his two-issue comic "I Feel Sick".

By September of 1996, Vasquez announced in his introductory text to the sixth issue of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, he had reached sufficient success in his artistic career to be able to quit his day-job and devote himself full-time to his art.

Comics

Many of the characters in Vasquez's cartoons are highly geometric and nearly thin to the point of being stick figures. Geometry ( Greek γεωμετρία; geo = earth metria = measure is a part of Mathematics concerned with questions of size shape and relative position A stick figure is a very simple type of drawing made of sticks and circles generally of the Human form although stick figures of other types of Animals are possible The protagonists in his comics are typically insane characters who live in dysfunctional societies, and whose manias are able to speak through other objects (as with Johnny and the Doughboys, or Devi and Sickness. The Protagonist or main character is the central figure of a story. ) His storylines tend to follow the basic black comedy formula. Black comedy, also known as black humor or dark comedy, is a sub-genre of Comedy and Satire where topics and events that are usually regarded

His comic works often feature an outside narrative in the form of notes and comments left in the corners of his strips. This can be found in the vast majority of Vasquez's comics, such as in issue #5 of JTHM: A large monster is shown bursting through a wall, arms and hands flailing, tentacles sweeping through the air. It is a scene that surely conveys a sense of violence and danger, yet in the corner of the panel, a small box contains the text "Kids - Don't be scared! He don't bite!" These small touches help with emotional connection to Vasquez's work, and are likely one of the factors in his cult following.

Carpe Noctem magazine published early one-page strips featuring Johnny in the early 1990s. Carpe Noctem was a goth sub-culture Magazine that was edited by Thom and Catia Carnell (with Thom credited as just 'Carnell' and published In 1995, Slave Labor Graphics began publishing a series of Johnny comics after Vasquez submitted samples of his artwork to them. Vasquez's first comic, Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, ran for seven issues and was collected as a hardcover and a trade paperback book, Johnny the Homicidal Maniac: Director's Cut. This page is about the comic book series For its central character see Johnny C. The cover features the logo "Z?", meaning "question sleep," which appears frequently throughout Vasquez's work and relates to his characters' insomnia and his own hypnophobia. Insomnia is a symptom of a sleeping disorder characterized by persistent difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep despite the opportunity The series follows Johnny as he searches for meaning in his life, a quest that frequently leads to the violent deaths of those around him as well as, briefly, his own. A photograph of one of Vasquez's friends, Leah England, serves as the middle of a portrait collection on the cover for the second issue of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac. England also gave Vasquez the inspiration for a filler strip about a child who was dangerously afraid of losing sight of his mother, as well as the notorious "Meanwhile" filler piece in the second issue of JTHM.

Vasquez's next project was The Bad Art Collection, a 16-page one-shot comic. Jhonen Vasquez (born September 1, 1974) also known by his Pseudonyms Mr Vasquez stated that he did the book's art while he was in high school to discourage classmates from asking him to draw for them.

In 1997, Vasquez gave Squee, a supporting character from JTHM, his own four-issue series. This article is about the fictional character in Johnny the Homicidal Maniac It chronicles Squee's encounters with aliens, Satan's son, and eventually Satan himself. Satan, ( Standard Hebrew Satan'el, English accuser) is a term that originates from the Abrahamic faiths, being traditionally The trade version (which features a cover image of Squee with the words "Buy me or I'll die!") contains, in addition to the actual Squee comics, the Meanwhiles that were left out of the Director's Cut of JTHM, as well as comics of Vasquez's "real life" and Wobbly Headed Bob.

Vasquez's next project was I Feel Sick, colored by Rikki Simons. I Feel Sick is a "doubleshot" full-color comic book written and drawn by the comic artist Jhonen Vasquez and colored by Rosearik Rikki Simons I Feel Sick follows a tortured artist named Devi (another character introduced in JTHM) as she tries to maintain her sanity in an insane vision of society, despite conversing with Sickness, one of her own paintings.

Slave Labor has published three Fillerbunny mini comics, the third having been released in March 2005. Fillerbunny is a character created by Comic book artist and writer Jhonen Vasquez. The mini comic was a spin-off of a filler comic designed to replace a vacant page usually reserved for advertising space in the Squee! comics. Vasquez said at the 2007 New York ComicCon that the original Fillerbunny comics would be done in a single night and he would rush through and do whatever he could in a small amount of time. The third issue, however, broke this mold. According to the introduction, it took over nine months to complete, and he feels it is of much higher quality than the first two.

At Comic-Con 2005, Vasquez mentioned that his next comic was a love story. Since this, however, he attended an event in early 2007 and stated he was not working on his 'own' comics - he was collaborating on two comics in the style of Everything Can Be Beaten, acting only as author. The first, titled Jellyfist was intended for release on July 25, 2007. However, the initial print run of Jellyfist was incredibly poor, and so it was re-released in October 2007. It is unknown what has happened with the love story comic since 2005.

Television

After the success of Squee!, the children's cable network Nickelodeon approached Vasquez about producing an animated television series. Nickelodeon (commonly referred to as Nick) is an American Cable television network owned by Viacom International, founded in 1977 as Pinwheel The series, Invader Zim, was canceled after little more than a year; only 27 half-hour episodes were made, most split into two 11-minute episodes but several full half-hours, and many episodes unfinished. Invader Zim, Branded as Invader ZIM, is an American Animated television series that was produced by and subsequently Episodes in the second season aired first internationally and later aired on Nicktoons Network in 2006. The show was cancelled (despite its good ratings ^[2] ) due to its dark tone, and the violence in the show. Although in the dvd commentary Jhonen had said it was because he had quit the show. AnimeWorks, a branch of Media Blasters, released the DVD collection Invader Zim Vol. Media Blasters is a corporation in New York City that was founded by John Sirabella and Sam Liebowitz Media Blasters is a corporation in New York City that was founded by John Sirabella and Sam Liebowitz DVD (also known as " Digital Versatile Disc " or " Digital Video Disc " - see Etymology)is 1 on May 11, 2004. It contains the first nine episodes plus audio commentary by Vasquez and various cast- and crew-members, including Richard Steven Horvitz, Rikki Simons, Melissa Fahn, Wally Wingert, Andy Berman, and Kevin Manthei. Richard Steven Horvitz, sometimes credited as Richard S Horvitz, Richard Horvitz or Richard Wood (born on July 29, 1966 in Rosearik Rikki Allen Simons AKA Rikki Simons (born September 8, 1970 in Fontana California) is an American Voice actor Melissa Fahn (born April 28, 1973) is an American voice and stage actress known for her work in Anime dubs and other mainstream Wallace E Wingert (born May 6 1961 in Des Moines Iowa) is an American Actor and Voice actor. Andy Berman (born February 24, 1968 in Chicago Illinois) is an American Actor most famous for playing Chuck Coleman on Kevin Manthei is a Composer for film, television and video games The company released Vol. 2 on Aug. 31, 2004, Vol. 3 on Oct. 12, 2004, and a boxed set was released on April 12, 2005. The boxed set contained a "Special Features" DVD with audio-only episodes never aired on Nickelodeon, as well as the original uncut version of the Christmas special. Christmas themes have long been an inspiration to artists writers and weavers of folklore

Invader Zim has also run on the cable channels Nicktoons Network, YTV (a Canadian youth network) and MTV2 (in the "'Sic'Emation" block of the latter) and is available on iTunes in the States. Nicktoons Network, once known as Nicktoons TV and simply Nicktoons, is a Digital cable and satellite Television YTV is a Canadian English language Cable television Specialty channel aimed at Youth, available nationwide through cable MTV2 is a cable network that is widely available in the United States on Digital cable and Satellite television, and is progressively being iTunes is a proprietary digital media player application introduced by Apple Inc

Vasquez also directed the music video for "Shut Me Up" by the band Mindless Self Indulgence^[3] which centers around a store clerk having a "meltdown. A music video is a Short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music most commonly a Song with lyrics Shut Me Up The Remixes +3 is the title of a Mindless Self Indulgence Remix CD released on 12 September 2006 Track Mindless Self Indulgence (commonly referred to as MSI) is a New York-based Shock rock band " However, no members of the band are actually in the video.

Other works

Vasquez collaborated with Crab Scrambly to produce the storybook Everything Can Be Beaten, published by Slave Labor in 2002. "Everything Can Be Beaten" is a short illustrated story written by Mr Vasquez, credited as Chancre Scolex, wrote the story and Crab Scrambly illustrated it. Everything Can Be Beaten is about a strange person who lives in a room in which he can do nothing but beat kittens. However, an adventure into the outside world changes his perspective, and he discovers that "everything can be beaten. "

At the New York Comic Con and more recently on his LiveJournal, he has stated that he is currently working on a movie. The New York Comic Con held annually in New York City is a convention dedicated to comics graphic novels anime manga video games toys movies and television LiveJournal (often abbreviated LJ) is a Virtual community where Internet users can keep a Blog, Journal or Diary. ^[4] It is still in the early scripting stages at the moment but if it moves past that he has stated that he will be directing it. A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film.

Vasquez did the entire artwork for the deluxe edition of the new Mindless Self Indulgence album If as well as the digital single, Mastermind

He has also indicated that he that he shows his artwork in galleries from time to time. Mindless Self Indulgence (commonly referred to as MSI) is a New York-based Shock rock band If is the fourth Studio album by New York group Mindless Self Indulgence. If is the fourth Studio album by New York group Mindless Self Indulgence. ^[5]

Style

Vasquez's writing often conveys misanthropic and pessimistic themes, though these darker elements are often used for the purposes of parody, satire, and scenes meant to shock the viewer. Misanthropy is a general dislike distrust or hatred of the Human species or a disposition to dislike and/or distrust other people Pessimism, from the Latin pessimus (worst is the decision to evaluate perceive and view life in a generally negative light A parody (ˈpɛɹədiː US, [ˈpaɹədiː] UK) in contemporary usage is a work created to mock comment on or poke fun at an original work its subject Satire is often strictly defined as a literary genre or form; although in practice it is also found in the graphic and Performing arts In satire human Similar styles and mannerisms can be found in many of his characters as well as running gags and common themes, including repeated references to moose, meat, chihuahuas, monkeys, tacos, "piggies", cheese, morbid obesity, and "dookie". The running gag is an often amusing Joke or reference that appears repeatedly throughout a work or series of works The moose (North America or elk (Europe Alces alces, is the largest extant Species in the Deer family. In modern English usage meat most often refers to Animal tissue used as food mostly Skeletal muscle and associated Fat, but it may also refer The (Chihuahueño is the smallest breed of Dog in the world and is named after the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. A monkey is any member of either the New World monkeys or Old World monkeys two of the three groupings of Simian Primates the third group being A taco ( is a traditional Mexican dish composed of a Maize or wheat Tortilla folded or rolled around a filling Pigs, also called hogs or' swine', are Ungulates which have been domesticated as sources of food leather and similar products since ancient times Cheese is a Food made from Milk, usually the milk of cows, Buffalo, Goats or sheep, by coagulation. Obesity is a condition in which excess Body fat has accumulated to such an extent that health may be negatively affected Feces, faeces, or fæces (see spelling differences) is a waste product from an animal's digestive tract expelled through the Anus Vasquez also frequently sneaks cameo appearances of characters such as Happy Noodle Boy and Johnny The Homicidal Maniac into unrelated works. David Cronenberg and Kurt Vonnegut have influenced his work. David Paul Cronenberg OC, FRSC (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian Film director and occasional Actor. Kurt Vonnegut Jr (November 11 1922 – April 11 2007 (ˈvɒnəgət was a prolific and genre-bending American Novelist known for works blending Satire, Black Franz Kafka, H. R. Giger, and H. P. Lovecraft are other influences. Hans Ruedi Giger (ˈɡi ɡɚ (born at Chur, Grisons Canton, February 5, 1940) is an Academy Award -winning Swiss Howard Phillips Lovecraft ( August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American author of horror, fantasy When asked what his influences are during the New York Comic Con, he responded by saying that he is a fan of David Lynch. David Keith Lynch (born January 20 1946 is an American director, Screenwriter, producer, painter, Cartoonist, Composer

Several of Vasquez's works have featured gothic characters or depictions of the goth subculture for the purpose of satire. The goth subculture is a contemporary Subculture found in many countries Satire is often strictly defined as a literary genre or form; although in practice it is also found in the graphic and Performing arts In satire human In an interview on the show The Screen Savers, Vasquez responded to host Kevin Pereira's comment that fans considered him "a goth king," saying disdainfully: "King, yeah, but not goth. The Screen Savers (broadcast May 11, 1998 – March 18, 2005) was a live American TV show on TechTV Kevin Pereira (born December 28, 1982) is co-host of G4 's Attack of the Show! (formerly The Screen Savers) with I mean, that's arrogant. "

Awards and nominations

• Squee! was nominated for 1998 Eisner Awards for Best New Series and Best Humor Publication. The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award is a prize given for creative achievement in American Comic books It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner ^[6]
• I Feel Sick won an International Horror Guild Award in 2000 for Best Illustrated Narrative.
• Invader Zim won an Emmy, an Annie, and the award for Best Title Sequence at the 2001 World Animation Celebration awards. It also garnered seven other nominations. ^[7]
• Vasquez and his work were honored in the National Design Triennial: Inside Design Now, a 2003 exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

Selected bibliography

• Johnny the Homicidal Maniac
• Squee!
• The Bad Art Collection
• Fillerbunny
• Everything Can Be Beaten
• I Feel Sick
• Jellyfist

Filmography

References

External links

• Jhonen Vasquez at the Internet Movie Database
• Official Vasquez website
• Jhonen's LiveJournal
• Jhonen's Twitter page
• An Interview on SuicideGirls.com

External links

• Revolution Science Fiction (Oct. 26, 2001): "Death and Morons: The Jhonen Vasquez Story" (online-chat transcript)
• Jhonen Vasquez Spotlight (2007 New York Comic Con speech Podcast. 54:12m) Downloadable mp3
• Interrogation Special with Zoetica Ebb (Aug. This page is about the comic book series For its central character see Johnny C. This article is about the fictional character in Johnny the Homicidal Maniac Jhonen Vasquez (born September 1, 1974) also known by his Pseudonyms Mr Fillerbunny is a character created by Comic book artist and writer Jhonen Vasquez. "Everything Can Be Beaten" is a short illustrated story written by Mr I Feel Sick is a "doubleshot" full-color comic book written and drawn by the comic artist Jhonen Vasquez and colored by Rosearik Rikki Simons Invader Zim, Branded as Invader ZIM, is an American Animated television series that was produced by and subsequently Events 240 BC - 1st recorded Perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. Events 1041 - Empress Zoe of Byzantium elevates her adoptive son to the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire as Michael V See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1190 - Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowns in the Sally River while leading an army to Jerusalem Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 43 BC - Octavian, later known as Augustus compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Mindless Self Indulgence (commonly referred to as MSI) is a New York-based Shock rock band 22, 2007)