American Splendor

The spirit of independent publishing is alive and well deep within the pages of American Splendor. Written and published by Cleveland based author Harvey Pekar, American Splendor turns the “simple” complexities of everyday life into highly addictive, hard to put down short stories.

Ethical issues such as social prejudice, personal insecurities and street violence are at the core of every self-contained story—each reading more like a day in the life journal entry rather than the standard comic book fare. But perhaps the most personal tales, the ones most likely to have caught the attention of comic book publisher Dark Horse Comics, are the ones relating to Pekar’s bout with cancer. So touching are these stories, in fact, that they act as the precursor to the writer’s graphic non-novel, Our Cancer Year.

Jump to issue:

#9

Cover: $2.50

W: Harvey Pekar · A: Sean Carroll, Kevin Brown, May Midwest, Barry Hoffman, Gary G. Dumm, Val Mayerik, Philip Fried, Mitch Sonoda, Robert Crumb

ca. 1984

1 copy for $79.95
#13

Cover: $3.25

W: Harvey Pekar · A: Gary G. Dumm, Drew Friedman, Frank Stack, Joe Zabel, Paul Mavrides, Val Mayerik, Donald Simpson, Rebecca Huntington, Ed Wesolowski, Greg Budget

B&W

2 copies from $29.95
#14

Cover: $3.50

W: Harvey Pekar · A: Gary G. Dumm, Joe Zabel, Drew Friedman, Paul Mavrides, Frank Stack, Allison Bechdel, Donald Simpson, Laura Dumm, William Fogg, Ed Wesolowski, Rebecca Huntington, Stephen Destefano

David Letterman exploitation issue; ca. 1989

1 copy for $149.95
#15

Cover: $3.50

W: Harvey Pekar · A: Gary G. Dumm, Joe Zabel, Alan Moore, Carole Sobocinski, Chester Brown, Bill Knapp, Mark A. Zingarelli, Spain Rodriguez, Frank Stack, Robert Stack, Ed Wesolowski, Richard G. Taylor

2 copies from $24.95