The Boulevard Of Broken Dreams (comics)

''The Boulevard of Broken Dreams'' is a 2002 graphic novel by Kim Deitch (with Simon Deitch), published by Pantheon Books. Featuring Deitch's recurring character, Waldo the Cat, the book is "a twisted allegorical history of the rise and fall of American animation," including the career of cartoonist/animator Winsor McCay; and embodies Deitch's decades-long engagement with the intersection of comics, animation, and artistic authenticity.

Kim Deitch was an original member of the underground comix movement; ''The Boulevard of Broken Dreams'' helped bring his work to the mainstream book trade. The book was chosen by ''Time'' magazine in 2005 as one of the 100 best English-language graphic novels ever written.

Publication history

The 41-page first part of the graphic novel, co-written and drawn by Kim Deitch and his brother Simon, was published in '' Raw'' magazine vol. 2, #3 (June 1991). The same material was republished as a one-shot in 1993 by Fantagraphics.

The full 160-page edition, completed solely by Kim Deitch, was published by Pantheon Books on September 24, 2002.

The graphic novel was translated into French and published by Denoël Graphic as ''Une tragédie américaine'' ("An American Tragedy") in 2004.

Plot

The Deitch brothers grew up among animators, and ''The Boulevard of Broken Dreams'' spans the period "from 1927 (when theatrical cartoons began to hit their stride) to 1993." The book functions as both a historical reflection and a metafictional commentary on the animation industry, particularly its unsung contributors. The book's layered narrative interrogates artistic identity, memory, and the commercialization of creative work.

The novel’s protagonist, Ted Mishkin, is a fictionalized embodiment of the many real-life animators who worked in obscurity while others took credit for their creations. The plot focuses on Ted, his true love Lillian Freer, and a supporting cast of co-workers, family, and animation fans; as well as Ted's boss Fred Fontaine, and his hero Winsor Newton (a play on words on both Winsor McKay and Winsor & Newton, a brand of art supplies whose ink brushes are popular with cartoonists).

Ted is one of a close-knit group of employees of a minor animation studio, Fontaine Talking Fables, and the story tracks changes in the industry, which include fluctuating popular interest in sequential art as well the Disney empire's efforts to dominate the creative pool, "reveal nghow corporate concerns and mass culture took the edge off an art that once had a political and aesthetically experimental keenness." As a result of these factors, the character of Newton is disillusioned with the industry. (Like McKay, in his younger years, the character had a '' Gertie the Dinosaur''-like stage act featuring a mastodon named Milton.)

Ted's experiences are riddled by his personal mental health problems — which extend to hallucinating a malevolent talking cat, Waldo (a recurring character from Deitch's work extending back to the late 1960s), "who's just real enough to drive some of the cartoonists who created him into alcoholism and madness."

Characters

; Ted Mishkin: The protagonist, a talented but troubled animator. He later becomes a recurring inmate at the lunatic asylum Berndale Acres.
; Lillian Freer: Another animator at Fontaine Talking Fables and Ted's true love. As the story progresses, "she works on experimental films, supports the Disney workers strike, is caught in the anti-communist hysteria and is blacklisted."
; Winsor Newton: Fictional animation pioneer based on Winsor McCay.
; Fred Fontaine: Owner of the small animation studio Fontaine Talking Fables.
; Al Mishkin: Production manager of Fontaine Talking Fables and Ted's brother.
; Reba: Production-line worker at Fontaine Talking Fables and later Mrs. Fred Fontaine.
; Nate Mishkin: Nephew of Ted Mishkin.
; Waldo the Cat: " th the subject of Fontaine Fables' increasingly saccharine films, and the supernatural or imaginary 'friend' of Ted and later his nephew Nate Mishkin."
; Bert Simon: a "Gene Deitch figure" who becomes "Fontaine’s liberal new manager,... rates Lillian, and applauds her standing up to the notorious Un-American Activities commission."

Reception

In reviewing the book, writer Charles Hatfield observes how Deitch's visual style echoes early animation aesthetics, reinforcing the novel's nostalgic yet critical tone. Hatfield argues that Deitch’s approach to storytelling, with its nonlinear structure and unreliable narrators, mirrors the fragmented and often mythologized history of animation itself. Additionally, the novel serves as a meditation on the loss of artistic control in a corporate entertainment industry, making it a poignant critique of the shifting role of artists within popular media. Ultimately, Hatfield presents ''The Boulevard of Broken Dreams'' as a landmark work that not only reflects on the history of comics and animation but also challenges the ways in which artistic legacies are remembered—or forgotten.

''Publishers Weekly'' gave the book a positive review, writing:

''School Library Journal'' positively reviewed the book as well, writing:

The book was nominated for a 2003 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album-Reprint. The French translation of the book, ''Une tragédie américaine'', was nominated for an Angoulême International Comics Festival Prize for Best Album in 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boulevard of Broken Dreams, The
2002 graphic novels
American graphic novels
Pantheon Books graphic novels
Works by Kim Deitch