Howard Cruse (May 2, 1944 – November 26, 2019) was an American

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

known for the exploration of gay themes in his comics. First coming to attention in the 1970s during the

underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...

movement with ''Barefootz'', he was the founding editor of ''

Gay Comix ''Gay Comix'' (later ''Gay Comics'') is an underground comics series published from 1980–1998 featuring cartoons by and for gay men and lesbians. The comic books had the tagline “Lesbians and Gay Men Put It On Paper!” Much of the early c ...

'' in 1980, created the gay-themed strip ''Wendel'' during the 1980s, and reached a more mainstream audience in 1995 when an imprint of

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

published his graphic novel ''

Stuck Rubber Baby ''Stuck Rubber Baby'' is a 1995 graphic novel by American cartoonist Howard Cruse. He created his debut graphic novel after a decades-long career as an underground cartoonist. It deals with homosexuality and racism in the 1960s in the southern U ...

.''

Early life

Cruse was born on May 2, 1944 in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

and raised in nearby Springville, the son of a preacher and a

homemaker Homemaking is mainly an American and Canadian term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping, housewifery or household management. It is the act of overseeing the organizational, day-to-day operations of a hous ...

. His earliest published cartoons were in ''The Baptist Student'' when he was in high school. His work later appeared in ''Fooey'' and ''

Sick Sick may refer to: Medical conditions * Having a disease or infection * Vomiting (British) Music * The Sick, a Swedish band formed by two members of Dozer Albums * Sick (Loaded album), ''Sick'' (Loaded album), 2009 * Sick (Massacra album), ' ...

''. He attended high school at

Indian Springs School Indian Springs School is a rural private school for grades eight through twelve, near Birmingham, Alabama, United States. It has both boarding and day students, and is located in Indian Springs Village, Shelby County, Alabama. History Indian S ...

in (what is now) Indian Springs, Alabama, and college at Birmingham-Southern College, where he studied drama. Cruse worked for about a decade in television. In 1977, Cruse moved to New York City, where he met Eddie Sedarbaum, his life partner, in April 1979. Sedarbaum founded the New York activist group Queens Gays and Lesbians United. They married after moving to

North Adams, Massachusetts North Adams is a city in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its population was 12,961 as of the 2020 census. Best known as the ...

.Howard Cruse, "Stuff About Me"
, Howard Cruse website

Career

Cruse's cartooning first attracted nationwide attention in the 1970s, when he contributed to underground comix publications. His best-known character from this period was ''Barefootz'', the title character of a

surreal Surreal may refer to: *Anything related to or characteristic of Surrealism, a movement in philosophy and art * "Surreal" (song), a 2000 song by Ayumi Hamasaki * ''Surreal'' (album), an album by Man Raze *Surreal humour, a common aspect of humor ...

series about a good-natured, well-dressed young man with large bare feet. Although dismissed by many underground fans as overly "cutesy", others found it a refreshing change of pace from "edgier" comix. Cruse had been open about his homosexuality throughout the 1970s, but aside from having a gay supporting character (Headrack) in ''Barefootz'', did not acknowledge it in his work. This changed in 1979, when publisher

Denis Kitchen Denis Kitchen (born August 27, 1946) is an Americans, American underground comix, underground cartoonist, publisher, author, agent, and the founder of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Early life Kitchen grew up in Wisconsin, attending William ...

asked him to edit ''Gay Comix'', a new anthology featuring comix by openly gay and lesbian cartoonists. For much of the 1980s, he created ''Wendel'', a strip (1–2 pages per episode) about an irrepressible and idealistic gay man, his lover Ollie, and a cast of diverse urban characters. It was published in the gay newsmagazine '' The Advocate'', which allowed Cruse substantial freedom in terms of language and nudity, and to address content such as AIDS,

gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 3 ...

demonstrations,

gay-bashing Gay bashing is an attack, abuse, or assault committed against a person who is perceived by the aggressor to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT). It includes both violence against LGBT people and LGBT bullying. The term covers vio ...

, closeted celebrities, and same-gender relationships, with a combination of humor and anger. Two collections of these strips have been published, as well as an all-in-one volume. Cruse spent the first half of the 1990s creating ''Stuck Rubber Baby'', a 210-page graphic novel commissioned by editor Mark Nevelow for his

imprint

Piranha Press Piranha Press, an imprint of DC Comics from 1989 to 1994, was a response by DC to the growing interest in alternative comics. The imprint was edited by Mark Nevelow, who instead of developing comics with the established names in the alternative co ...

but eventually published by DC's

Paradox Press Paradox Press was a division of DC Comics formed in 1993 after editor Mark Nevelow departed from Piranha Press. Under the initial editorship of Andrew Helfer and Bronwyn Carlton the imprint was renamed. It is best known for graphic novels like '' ...

. It is the story of Toland Polk, a young man growing up in the American South in the 1960s, and his growing awareness of both his own homosexuality and the racial injustice of American society. The book features Cruse's most detailed and realistic comics art and his most serious and complex storytelling. It received numerous awards and nominations. Cruse briefly wrote a column in a comic book review magazine, ''Comics Scene'', under the rhyming masthead "Loose Cruse". Cruse contributed to the

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

comics anthology series ''Juicy Mother'', edited by

Jennifer Camper Jennifer Camper is a cartoonist and graphic artist whose work is inspired by her own experiences as a Lebanese-American lesbian. Her work has been included in various outlets such as newspapers and magazines since the 1980s, as well as in exhibit ...

, which first appeared in 2005 and then in 2007. In August 2009, Howard Cruse self-published ''From Headrack to Claude'', a collection of all his gay-themed strips accompanied by commentaries on his career and life, including the never-reprinted 1976 ''Barefootz'' story where the character Headrack came out, and some unpublished stories. On March 17, 2010, an original one-off titled ''Lubejob'' penned by Cruse was published in ''

Nib-Lit ''Nib-Lit'' is a weekly comics journal edited by Mykl Sivak and published both independently in an electronic format as well as running as a two-page section in ''Southern News'', the student newspaper of Southern Connecticut State University. The j ...

'' comics journal. In 2011, Cruse's ''The Complete Wendel'' was republished by Rizzoli's Universe Books imprint. Cruse was chosen as a keynote speaker, alongside

Alison Bechdel Alison Bechdel ( ; born September 10, 1960) is an American cartoonist. Originally known for the long-running comic strip ''Dykes to Watch Out For'', she came to critical and commercial success in 2006 with her graphic memoir ''Fun Home'', whi ...

, for the inaugural Queers & Comics conference in 2015. Howard Cruse died on November 26, 2019 from

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlar ...

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

. Shortly before, it had been announced that a 25th anniversary edition of ''

'' was scheduled for publication from

First Second Books First Second Books is an American publisher of graphic novels. An imprint of Roaring Brook Press, part of Holtzbrinck Publishers, First Second publishes fiction, biographies, personal memoirs, history, visual essays, and comics journalism. It als ...

Publications

* Cruse, Howard. (1985) ''Wendel'', New York: Gay Presses of New York. * Cruse, Howard. (1986) ''Howard Cruse's Barefootz: The Comix Book stories'',

Renegade Press Renegade Press was an American comic book company, founded by Canadian Deni Loubert, that operated from 1984 to 1988. Notable titles published by Renegade included '' Flaming Carrot'', '' Ms. Tree'', and '' normalman''. History Loubert was pub ...

. ASIN B00072X5YY * Cruse, Howard. (1987) ''Dancin' Nekkid with the Angels'', St Martin's Press. * Cruse, Howard. (1989) ''Wendel on the Rebound'', St Martin's Press. * Cruse, Howard. (1990) ''Early Barefootz'',

Fantagraphics Books Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and the erotic Eros Comix imprint. History Founding Fantagraphics was found ...

. * Cruse, Howard. (1995) ''Stuck Rubber Baby'',

. * Cruse, Howard. (2001) ''Wendel All Together'', Olmstead Press. * Shaffer, Jeanne E. (2004) "The Swimmer with a Rope in his Teeth" illustrated by Howard Cruse, Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books. * Cruse, Howard. (2009) ''From Headrack to Claude'', Nifty Kitsch Press. *Cruse, Howard (2011) The Complete Wendel, Rizzoli/Universe.

Contributions

Robert Kirby Robert Kirby (16 April 1948 – 3 October 2009) was a British-born arranger of string sections for rock and folk music. He was best known for his work on the Nick Drake albums, ''Five Leaves Left'' and '' Bryter Layter'', but also worked ...

and David Kelly, editors, (2008) ''The Book of Boy Trouble 2: Born to Trouble''. Green Candy Press. * Camper, Jennifer, editor (2007) ''Juicy Mother 2: How They Met''.

Manic D Press Manic D Press is an American literary press based in San Francisco, California publishing fiction (novels and short stories), poetry, cultural studies, art, narrative-oriented comix, children's books, and alternative travel trade paperbacks. It wa ...

. * Fish, Tim, editor (2007) ''Young Bottoms in Love''. Poison Press. (includes the ''My Hypnotist'' short story) * Camper, Jennifer, editor (2005). ''Juicy Mother''.

Soft Skull Press Counterpoint LLC was a publishing company distributed by Perseus Books Group launched in 2007. It was formed from the consolidation of three presses: Perseus' Counterpoint Press, Avalon Publishing Group's Shoemaker & Hoard and the independent S ...

References

Sources

* ''The Comics Journal'' #111, pp. 64–96, Fantagraphics, September 1986. A long interview of Howard Cruse. * ''The Comics Journal'' #182, pp. 93–118, Fantagraphics, November 1995. A critical overview of ''Stuck Rubber Baby'', with another interview of Howard Cruse. * ''I Have To Live With This Guy'', pp. 164–177, TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002, . Eddie Sedarbaum talks about his life with Howard Cruse.

External links

*
No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics
- documentary film about five queer artists including Howard Cruse

with

Dr. Seuss Theodor Seuss Geisel (;"Seuss"
'' Interview with Howard Cruse

Howard Cruse Papers, 1941-2019
at the Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University, New York, NY {{DEFAULTSORT:Cruse, Howard 1944 births 2019 deaths American comics artists People from Springville, Alabama Birmingham–Southern College alumni Gay artists Inkpot Award winners LGBT comics creators LGBT artists from the United States LGBT people from Alabama Artists from Birmingham, Alabama Underground cartoonists People from North Adams, Massachusetts Indian Springs School alumni