Cyclops (magazine)

''Cyclops'' ("The First English Adult Comic Paper") was a comic-strip tabloid published in London in 1970 by former ''International Times'' art editor Graham Keen working with Matt Hoffman an American, handling advertising and distribution. Published by Innocence & Experience, ''Cyclops'' had national distribution and a large print run, but lasted only four issues.

In addition to reprinting comics by Spain Rodriguez, Vaughn Bodē, and Gilbert Shelton, ''Cyclops'' also published original work by U.K. artists like Raymond Lowry, Edward Barker (also called "Edweird"), Mal Dean, David Jarrett, and Australian Martin Sharp, a poster artist from '' OZ'' magazine. Some early Alex Raymond ''Flash Gordon'' comics from the 1930s were reprinted as well.

Novelist M. John Harrison, who would go on to become an exponent of the British New Wave, and literary editor of '' New Worlds'', scripted comic stories which were illustrated by Richard Glynn Jones. American novelist William S. Burroughs scripted ''The Unspeakable Mr. Hart'', illustrated by Malcolm McNeill.

History

Keen's photographs had appeared in ''IT'' and he became art editor in 1968. One of ''IT's'' founders, Barry Miles, was an art college friend from Cheltenham College of Art. In 1969/71 Keen lodged with Miles and his wife Sue in Lord North Street, London, and ran ''Cyclops'' from there. He managed to bring in William S. Burroughs, who contributed ''The Unspeakable Mr. Hart''. Burroughs wanted Malcolm McNeill – at the time a senior student at the Hornsey College of Art who had not read much Burroughs – to do the artwork.

Price may have been a factor in the demise of ''Cyclops'': it cost three shillings (3/-) for 20p. of material, whereas the ''International Times'', with app. 24 pages cost 1/6 d; an average paperback 3/6 d., and an American comic 1/-.

Issues

# (July 1970) — work by Vaughn Bodé, Richard Glyn Jones, Larry Lewis, Bernard Power Canavan: ''Orcus'' (p. 4), Martin Sharp (untitled; p. 3), Raymond Lowry, Edward Barker, and David Jarrett
# (Aug. 1970) — work by Lowry, Edward Barker ("Edweard"), Mal Dean, and ''Flash Gordon'' reprints
# (Sept. 1970) — work by Mike Bygraves, Lowry, Dean, Jarrett, ''Flash Gordon'' reprints, and an advert by Alan Moore for the London comic shop Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed on p. 8
# (Oct. 1970) — work by Judy Watson, Richard Jones, Mike Harrison, Spain Rodriguez, Lowry, Barker, Dean, Jarrett, ''Flash Gordon'' reprints, and an advert by Alan Moore for the London comic shop Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed p. 12

''Ah Pook Is Here''

McNeill and Burroughs continued to work together for years, but only eleven pages (of an intended 120) of their ''Ah Pook Is Here'' were published, in ''Rush Magazine'' in 1976. John Calder and Viking produced a text-only version in the collection ''Ah Pook Is Here: And Other Texts.'' Burroughs admired the Maya codices and he and McNeill wanted to create "an unprecedented, full blown word/image novel." Only fragments of this project have been published and only online.

Fantagraphics announced its publication of McNeill's memoirs ''Observed While Falling'' and ''Ah Pook'' in a two volume package in the summer of 2011.

References

Notes

Literature

* Barry Miles. ''In the Sixties.'' Jonathan Cape, 2002
* Roger Sabin. ''Adult Comics: An Introduction.'' Routledge, 1993
* _____. ''Comics, Comix and Graphic Novels.'' Phaidon, 1996

External links

"Malcolm McNeill Interview"
by George Laughead, Beats In Kansas, August 2007.

"Malcolm McNeill interview"
by Larry Sawyer, 20 January 2008.

{{UK underground

Comics magazines published in the United Kingdom
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