Snake 'n' Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret [Paperback]

Michael Kupperman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2000

Featuring the mannister! Two-fisted Poe! Mister Bossman! wonder Book Junior, Boy Detective! Cousin Grampa! Sex Blimps! Underpants-on-his-head man! and much, much, much, more!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

With a tip of the hat to visual punster Glen Baxter, Kupperman lampoons the absurdities of genre fiction, from the Hardy Boys to time-travel fantasies, and of TV series, from Bewitched to Biography . The stars of his mad cavalcade are Snake 'n' Bacon, a, er . . . , snake and a strip of bacon who have been movie stars since the 1930s. They turn up more often than any of Kupperman's other characters in this seeming graphic novel that has plenty of plots but far more recurrence than coherence. For instance, Pablo Picasso shows up several times, always irascible, always threatening to break some imagined antagonist into cubes, always speaking in a Chico Marx "Eye-talian" accent. Other repeaters include Cousin Grampa, Long John Silver, Tottie Tinkles, Roger Daltry, Mark Twain, and the Underpants-on-His-Head Man (a costumed crime fighter). Kupperman's figures resemble Baxter's stiff manikins, and his backdrops morph from realism to abstraction with the speed of those in George Herriman's Krazy Kat . Kupperman bears the banner of absurdist comix humor quixotically forward into the next millennium. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Michael Kupperman has done many illustrations for such publications as Fortune, The New Yorker, and The New York Times. He frequently writes scripts for DC Comics. This is his first book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks; 1 edition (September 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380807904
• ISBN-13: 978-0380807901
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #647,145 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Kupperman lives and works in Brooklyn with his wife Muire and son Ulysses. His cartoons and illustrations have appeared in magazines from the New Yorker to Fortune, newspapers from The New York Times to the Village Voice, and numerous books, including many published by McSweeneys. His first book, Snake'N'Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret, was also adapted by the author as an Adult Swim animated pilot which can be seen online; two strips from that book were also adapted into cartoons for the Comedy Central series TV Funhouse. Other television work including drawing a TV Funhouse cartoon for Saturday Night Live, and writing for The Peter Serafinowicz show on BBC2 in the UK. He can currently be found on Twitter, where his user name is MKupperman.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incomparable weirdness, August 28, 2001

By 

Jens Alfke (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snake 'n' Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret (Paperback)

Oh, new taste! This is sublime cartoon Dada, an uncontrollable mixmaster of comic book and pulp fiction cliches, miscellaneous 20th century popular culture, and crazed anachronisms (Leonardo da Vinci inventing "Crunchalicious" snackin' crackers for a group of young hooligans straight out of the "Little Rascals".) Every page delivers the unexpected. I was mesmerized, and my wife was howling with laughter the whole time she read it. Now, most people aren't the type to be reduced to helpless giggles by a cartoon snake and a strip of bacon who say "Ssss!" and "Pat me dry with a paper towel to remove excess grease!", but if you're among the lucky few who are, press that big candy-colored patented One-Click button RIGHT NOW!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Contagion of Strangeness, September 14, 2000

By 

J. A. Bellamy "bluejaye" (Dallas, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snake 'n' Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret (Paperback)

Michael Kupperman has created perhaps one of the strangest books ever
with Snake 'n' Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret. For readers unfamiliar with
Kupperman's work, let me clarify. After reading some of these
cartoons, you will not be able to engage any other activity with any
seriousness at all. For example, you may read a strip about
Underpants-on-his-head-man, and then proceed directly to your morning
paper, however, after Underpants-on-his-head-man, you will have an
added insight into how ridiculous things really are and be unable to
take anything Vladimir Putin, and certainly George Bush Junior &
Al Gore, says seriously.

This book is good for a rainy day, its good
for a sunny day in the park. Its perfect for a birthday or an
un-birthday. It's the all purpose book of the season. If I were you,
I'd stock up now and be the first on your block to own it!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspired beyond words, September 28, 2000

By 

William A. Fitzhugh (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Snake 'n' Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret (Paperback)

When I first heard of Snake 'n' Bacon about a year ago I laughed out loud. I hadn't seen the drawings -- the idea alone tickled me. Now I've seen the art and I'm knocked silly.

Michael Kupperman is a genius. This collection of work is profoundly inspired. He's created superheros the likes of which have never been seen before: Underpants-on-his-head-man; Dr. Slappy; Rip Lazybones and His Futuristic Wonderbed; and Professor Gastropod to name only a few. And superheros aren't necessarily his strong suit. Part surreal, part non-sequitur, all inspired. The humor comes from the concepts, the dialogue, and the art itself.

If you're a fan of humor that lands in the ballpark with Gary Larson, Monty Python, The Onion, Robert Smigel, Smack the Pony, National Lampoon etc., this collection is for you. And for your friends. Do yourself a favor and get it now! You can thank me later.