The Associated Press is reporting that comic-book writer Harvey Pekar has been found dead in his Ohio home. He was 70.
Ouch. That was one death I didn’t expect; he was writing up until a couple of years ago. His works really captured the zeitgeist of life as an everyman in Cleveland’s eastern suburbs.
Sad. A good run, but I would have hoped he would have kept going for awhile longer. Definitely a unique voice in the comic world.
And I’d strongly recommend the movie American Splendor to anybody who hasn’t seen it yet. It’s uniformly excellent, a step above your standard biopic ( especially as it features not one, but multiple Harvey Pekars, including Harvey Pekar ).
Well… I was unsure what I was going to do tonight- Guess it’s American Splendor in the DVD player.
Too bad. Not a huge devotee, but I appreciated his work.
Joe
He was the odd ball in all of us. Sad to see him go.
Dammit.
Harvey Pekar, author of the comic book, American Splendor (the REAL show about nothing), and who was memorably play by Paul Giamati in the movie of the same name has died.
RIP to a real legend. Someone who took the excruciating banality of genuine, day to day life and somehow made it fascinating.
I still remember his bristly appearances on Letterman too, including the one where he finally flamed out. Hoist one to one of the most interesting underappreciated writers of the last half of the 20th Century, and to a guy who was the definition of authenticity in his work. I think that his work will become more and more appreciated in the fullness of time.
Merged the threads.
Sorry about that. I did look to see if there was already a thread, but I somehow missed it.
Is Stan Lee directing the funeral?
*American Splendour *was one of the most original things I’ve read in comics.
RIP, Harvey.
Fuck me. I’ve been reading American Splendor since 1976, when I was a 15-year-old underground comix buff in Cleveland. Excellent film, too. Rest in peace, my friend.
I live in Cleveland so i saw him once but never met him. I used to LOVE his Letterman appearances.
r.i.p.
How sad! I briefly corresponded with his wife a long time ago. Such nice people…
He lived within walking distance of my house. The neighborhood will never be the same.
If you run into Joyce, pass along my condolences…
Rest in peace, Harvey.
I noticed that the in New York Times obituary, the main photo labeled as Pekar is actually a still of Paul Giamatti playing Pekar, from the film American Splendor.
I’m sure the irony would not be lost on him; he’s not even important enough to star in his own obit. One final thing to grumble about…
I found out about this yesterday while looking up Steinbrenner news. I was a lot more taken aback about Pekar, even tho I mainly knew of him thru his Letterman appearances. God bless you & your family, Harvey.