The Penguin

 Just giving y'all a heads-up - The Die Kätze Collection  is now available! That's right folks, all three issues of the landmark trilogy are here conglomerated, as well as sketches, color covers, and a bonus promo comic. Supplies are extremely  limited, so don't hesitate to visit our Storenvy page and order your copy now! Shipping is FREE in the United States!

I was just going back through my blog archive and happened to stumble across this post I wrote way back in June 2015, in which I profiled Boy's Life artist Tom Eaton. Mr. Eaton wrote and illustrated "Pedro" and "Dink & Duff" for the magazine, as well as illustrating numerous puzzles and gags, beginning sometime in 1984. I received wonderful responses from several Tom Eaton fans, who pointed me to collections of old Boy's Life ; at the time, I was kicking around the idea of collecting Mr. Eaton's work into a single document, if only for my own amusement. As far as I know, there is no definitive "Collected Tom Eaton", which is a shame. Having revisited the post, I decided to Google Tom Eaton and his work, wondering if new material had been uploaded since I wrote the original post. This is when I found out he'd recently passed away, on December 11, 2016. You can read the Scouting magazine obituary here. Tom Eaton was a big influe...

Yep, new year, new weird...no politics here. I consider my blog a politics-free haven. A lot has happened to me lately, all positive; I have a lot to be grateful for. Here's a rundown on all the cool stuff I've gotten into within the past few months: New Job!   That's right folks, since October I've been working at Capital Imaging in Lansing, a print shop - ten years after graduating, I'm finally using my damn Graphic Design degree!!! I started out as a Finisher (stack, chop, fold, etc.), which was awesome...but at the beginning of January I was bumped up to Marketing Assistant, which is twice as awesome. Now I've got my finger on the proverbial pulse of the company, wielding my marionette sticks as the Puppet Master...well, not really. But still, it's pretty rad. New Web! Along with the Marketing Assistant job, I've had a chance to take a crash course in WordPress and social marketing, skills I've tested out with Blind Alley Comics. We now no...

That's right! The second Die Kätze is out, and soon to be in stores! It's already in our  Etsy store , with convenient online ordering. Yeah, a whopper...22 pages of super Lovecraftian fun, plus cats! Don't miss it! Rick Out.

I've been doing a lot of short comics stories lately - usually about 5 pages, although some are quite a bit longer. What I've realized is that certain genres are pretty tough nuts to crack, if you really want to do them right. One of the most difficult is the Time Travel story. Here's the problem: any story that involves time travel faces what I call "existential overload": if, say, an aspect of history can be changed (i.e., killing Hitler), then why not all of them? Why not a slurry of fanatical time-changers going back and changing things willy-nilly? How would this be regulated, except by a quasi-omnipotent order of "Watchers" who somehow ensure that time runs "correctly", whatever "correctly" means? Will only the time-changers know that history - and therefore existence - has been radically altered, or will everyone on earth retain their memories even when reality slips into a different mode? I ask all these questions becaus...

That's right, folks...way way back in 2010, I began work on a pretty cool webcomic called Fight or Flight, written by amazing local writer, celebrity personality, and swashbuckling swordsman David Crampton. Unfortunately I had to beg off the project two years later due to a slight case of madness (no, really ), so the project languished for nearly five years. Well, guess what? Our plucky robot friends are back in their all-new adventures! I'm still deciding how best to get back into the swing of things; I've been given a generous lead-time, so part of me wants to revamp the whole thing with CGI-type illustrations (3-D stuff, like Toy Story). The reason for this is because, while Chapter Zero looks pretty good, by Chapter One things start to look pretty tired; I was assembling the robots from 2-D bits and pieces, which gets extremely tedious. Why not create the scenes in 3-D and take screenshots instead? Naturally this will alter the look of the comic, but I think it woul...

Guess what?!! Blind Alley Comics is going to a convention. Yes, your favorite hermit-comickers are currently hitching up our big-boy pants and getting ready to brave the great Outside. Thankfully we have support from our great friend Joe Rodgers of 12-Gauge Gore, who will be bringing some bangin' t-shirts and horror merch to add class to our grungy display. I've got all the deets on Facebook, but here's the info again, just in case you haven't been bombarded enough already: Birch Run Expo Center 11600 N Beyer Rd, Birch Run, MI 48415 (989) 624-4665 October 8-9 Saturday: 10-6 Sunday: 10-5 Wait, you have plans for that weekend? A hot date? A wedding? Too bad! Drop everything, grab the camping equipment, and pitch a tent right now outside the location! That's right, once word gets out, the millions-strong Blind Alleyans (totally a thing) will flood the event like a tidal wave of marginally-acceptable humanity. Seriously, secure your place in line. Bring a m...

Yes, comicsfans, it's almost here! Number 7 is set to debut in the middle of September. I'll have an availability list on the BAC Facebook page. Also be on the lookout...Bone Boy #4 is out; THC's #2 and #5 are going to be reprinted, so we'll have copies for those who want them. Also, I have a sneaking suspicion that the THC 1-5 Trade Paperback might be coming soon...! But we'll see. Oh, and don't forget...a certain coterie of conniving cats will be making their second appearance in December...more information, as to their whereabouts and the content of their diabolical schemes, is unavailable at this time...I'll keep you posted. Rick Out!

Greetings, Fiendish Readers. Yessir, we just got back up from Columbus after two days of debauchery in that decadent southern paradise we call Ohio...okay, maybe there was only one  orgy, and only five people showed up, and nobody was really into it...but still! Hedonism! The Downfall of Midwestern Civilization! The drive down was pretty harrowing, firstly because of the ice on the freeway (like driving over a glacier, damndest thing I've ever seen) and secondly because the Ohio freeway system is proudly, defiantly, exasperatingly committed to labeling every highway with three or four numbers, and interrupting their ostensibly free ways with traffic lights. We got turned around somewhere south of Findlay and ended up driving through cornfields for an hour before finally picking up 75 again. Honestly I don't think I've ever driven through Ohio without getting lost once; the state likes to suck in outsiders and funnel them into its empty interior, there to circle endlessl...

Yes, comicsfans, once again Rick has overextended himself. Surprise surprise. Well, not actually ...just mentally. Trying to keep too many plates spinning, too many balls in the air, too many metaphors mixing, too many ideas and schemes in my head at the same time. That's perhaps the good thing about spending more time planning things than actually executing them: by exhausting myself with the run-through, I can talk myself out of a potentially expensive misstep. Basically I'm talking about things I need  to do, and things I want to do, and how to distinguish between them. Sometimes it gets a little difficult. I think everyone struggles with this problem to some extent. Here's what I need  to do: 1. Print The Human Cannonball #6 (due out this month) . 2. Get ready for SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo). 3. Help Joe edit Bone Boy #4 for April release. Wow...just three things?! Okay, here's what I want to do: 1. Get money. 2. Get more money. 3...

That's right, comicsfans, The Human Cannonball is launching yet another screaming projectile into the aether. This time there's a g-g-g-GIRL  involved! As a character, even! What will she do? What will she say? How will she reinforce the values of patriarchal society?? Who knows!! Who cares!!! You'll find out in March, so keep your darn shirt on...!!!!! Geez, calm down... spaz ... Mucho apologies to Mucha. I'll letcha know when, where, and how to get your hands on a copy. Rick Out!

Holy crap, it's been a long time since I've done one of these! As you may know, I'm committed to introducing many less-read comics to the masses. Since moving to Lansing and patronizing the Capital Area District Library , I've been able to read an enormous number of amazing comics and graphic novels that I wouldn't have had a chance to read otherwise. CADL has an extensive graphic novel section, the largest I've ever seen (granted, I haven't been to too  many libraries), and it's an honor and a privilege to plug them whenever possible. So, without further hairdo...I mean, ado... on to the comics! 1.  7 Miles a Second (Vertigo 1996; Fantagraphics 2013) Written by David Wojnarowicz Illustrated by James Romberger and Marguerite Van Cook. 7 Miles a Second pulses with rage as David looks back on his childhood hustling on the streets of New York, and forward to his eventual death of AIDS. The artwork is a primal, visceral scream of tumbling bioin...

Yes, you heard that correctly, sportsfans! Blind Alley Comics is going digital. Entering the internet age. Gettin the Ones and Zeros. World Wide Webbing. We just talked with web designer Rob Hix, who has generously agreed to design an awesome site for a pitifully small fee (we're kind of embarrassed about it). You'll be able to buy our comics and posters, both digital and hard-copy; view our awesome artwork in all its glory; see upcoming releases and view ancient history (of our work, that is); and find great links to other cool stuff that's floating around in the websphere, all alone. The site itself will be pretty immersive: lots of cool animations, an art gallery that's really a shooting gallery, and a creepy, gritty nighttime atmosphere. You're gonna love it, I guarantee it. It's gonna be a lot of work, but I think we're up for it. Rick Out! Update 1/28/16: As happens in life, our website plans have stalled a bit. Hopefully we can get back in touch...

Here is the first page - let me know if the text is too small to read when you enlarge it. As usual, all images © 2011 Richard M. Schlaack.

Dear All: I'm going to start uploading my comic to this blog, in order for you to see the wonder and glory. I'll upload it one page at a time (except for the covers), and then maybe do a slideshow-type dealio. All right, here's the cover sequence: As usual, all images © 2011 Richard M. Schlaack

Dear Friends (and nemeses): Here's the logo for Blind Alley Comics, formerly Dead City Productions: I sure hope you like it...'cause you're going to be seeing a lot of it. So you'd better get used to it. No whining or complaining. At least, not when I'm around. Rick Out.

Well, maybe not that innocent. Just an announcement that, due to some issues at the County Clerk in Lansing, Dark Corner Productions has changed its name to Dead City Productions . We're hoping to be able to use "Dark Corner" eventually - at least as soon as something called, "Dark (K)night Productions" gets off the books. Rick Out.

Having just finished the first installment of Redtooth , I'm going to try and get installment 7 of The Empty Quarter started. This will be the final installment of TEQ , and after that I'll just have more Redtooth to work on. For those of my faithful readers who don't know (and I know there are thousands of you readers out there), The Empty Quarter began as a four-page comic book assignment for my sequential art class, ARTS 275: Comic Book Illustration. In it I used a group of characters I had already conceived for a story of my own, titled Longshots. Longshots is an expansive story about a crew of four misfits who prowl the galaxy, looking for odd jobs and generally getting into and out of trouble. There is Captain Andrew Logan, a former star-pilot; Second Mate and Engineer Beth Kasty, originally a mercenary fighting other aliens' wars; Communications Officer and Security Officer Ishmael Kuffing, whose past remains a bit of a mystery; and Botswain's Mate Eric Mu...