alt.spooky FAQ (Bring It Back from the Dead!)
Bushido Hacks
1. INTRODUCTION
This FAQ is a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and the
Frequently Answered Answers (FAA) to them collected from various
sources of spooky websites and fans of comics like Johnny the Homicidal
Maniac (JTHM) websites, the Slave Labor Graphics (SLG) website, and
from posts to the newsgroup. Direct all questions, comments,
complates, requests, rambling, rants, etc. to the newsgroup alt.spooky
or send e-mail to AnneGwish<64>hotmail<46>com or to
bushidohacks<64>gmail<46>com or to Bela Lugosi.
An HTML version of this FAQ is posted at
http://www.bushidohacks.com/alt.spooky/FAQ.html
Updates since last post: A few.
2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Table of Contents
3. What is alt.spooky?
3a. What kind of posts are allowed?
3b. Does anyone actually post here?
3c. Um.. Corvids?
3d. Where can i find the FAQ?
4. Who (or what) is Jhonen Vasquez?
4a. How do you pronounce...
5. Body of Work
5a. Where can I find out news about Jhonen, JTHM, Squee, SLG or
other, um, stuff?
5b. Did Jhonen Vasquez do Lenore?
5c. Did Jhonen Vasquez do Serenity Rose or Vicious Whisper?
5d. How can I order from SLG?
5e. Is [insert comic title and issue #] out yet??
5f. Will there ever be more JTHM?
5g. What's this Carpe Noctem thingie?
5h. Can I scan in, or grab JV's artwork elsewhere on the web, to
use on my very own website?
5i. I've made [insert random thingies]_with the [insert jv work]
logo on them. Would JV mind horridly if i marketed them?
6. Characters
6a. Johnny C. aka NNY
6b. Squee
6c. Happy Noodle Boy
6d. Devi
6e. Anne Gwish
6f. Filler Bunny
6g. Invader Zim
7. Miscellaneous
7a. If I paint my [-- fill in --] black, will it be spooky?
7b. What is that wonderful "backwards e" font?
7c. Why Won't Bela Lugosi answer my letters?
7d. Annotated Links
7e. Acknowledgements
7f. More Spookies
3. WHAT IS alt.spooky?
Alt.spooky is an unmoderated Usenet newsgroup. It was chartered the
same month (8.1996) as JTHM #5 was published. If you observe Anne
Gwish's computer screen in this JTHM edition, you will see she is
reading "alt.spooky". Legend has it this was a spoof on alt.gothic. In
the words of Asenath:
"It was in fact started at Jhonen's request by a friend of his, and is
indeed for the discussion of JTHM, Squee, Slave Labor Graphics, Lenore
and other relevant things...
[Posted on alt.spooky -- 5.14.1998 --]
However, this was recently proven to be a big fat lie by Jhnen VEE
himself:
"You know, in the FAQ it states that this newsgroup was started at my
request, which just isn't true. I remember using the name for a comic
strip some million years back, and someone actually created it as a
joke, inspired by that comic. If I'm not misteken, [sic] the actual
creator of the group was someone working for Carpe Noctem during those
days of Carpe Noctemization.
"I was as surprised as anyone to see this group existed."
[Posted on alt.spooky -- 7.30.03--]
3a. WHAT KIND OF POSTS ARE ALLOWED?
Any posts are allowed, but it is prefered that posts are "on topic",
that is to say, related to Jhonen Vasquez and his work, or just
generally spooky things. We regret to inform you that this does not
include X-files RPG stories, as that is not even mildly spooky.
3b. DOES ANYONE ACTUALLY POST HERE?
Yes, yes, people do post here. Maybe not a daily flood of posts, but
we're around and we'll poke our heads out of the ground if there's
something to talk about.
Jhonen himself put it so elegantly:
"It seems rather appropriate, really, that a newsgroup named
'alt.spooky' would normally be empty, like the classic haunted houses
you read about all the time in the Family Circus the kids love so
much."
[Posted to alt.spooky -- 8.9.1998 -- ]
3c. Um.. Corvids?
In the words of Pwl [p...@NOSPAM.demon.co.uk], a corvid himself:
"It's mostly about JTHM etc, but there are a few oddly Corvids knocking
around the sky, and usually flying well off the Maniac topics. We
encourage anyone to contribute postings about Jhonen Vasquez.
Especially we encourage the Corvids to do so. (:>) But the Maniacs
don't usually get Homicidal about the Corvids, 'cos they are fairly
Spooky creatures too, and they help to keep the newsfeeds open. But the
Corvids shall remain reasonably polite to the Maniacs who were here
FIRST. And the Maniacs shall give the Corvids a few Shiny Objects:
especially that the
Maniacs shall endeavour to give them an appreciation of the Words of
Vasquez. "
[posted to alt.spooky -- 8.15.1998 --]
For those who don't know: Corvids are the family of birds that include
Jays, Crows, Magpies, and Ravens. There are a few around.
[Edited ot alt.spooky -- 7.19.2005 --]
3d. WHERE CAN I FIND THE FAQ?
Intially, the text version of the FAQ is ususally posted to alt.spooky
on the 1st and 15th of every month. But I have't been doing that
lately. Perhaps when we get a little more traffic, then I might keep
that promise.
The text version of the FAQ is also available at
http://www.bushidohacks.com/alt.spooky/FAQ.txt.
The HTML version of the FAQ is available at
http://www.bushidohacks.com/alt.spooky/FAQ.html
4. WHO (OR WHAT) IS JHONEN VASQUEZ?
Jhonen Vasquez is the creator, comic book artist -- whatever you want
to call him -- of Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, Squee!, I Feel Sick,
Invader Zim, and more. He lives somewhere on the west coast and was
formerly MrEff...@aol.com. The latest appearance by him on alt.spooky
was from organ...@earthlink.net. But both of these e-mail addresses are
not active.
A good explaination of who (or what) Jhonen is on Wikipedia at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jhonen_Vasquez
Jhonen's website (officially) is at http://www.questionsleep.com/
Jhonen's LiveJournal (officially) is at
http://chancrescolex.livejournal.com/
4a. HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE...
Jhonen:
Say "JOE-nen "
NNY:
Say "KNEE" like that wrinkled bendy-thing between your toes and your
nether-regions.
5. BODY OF WORK
Jhonen is currently published by Slave Labor Graphics (SLG)
[http://www.slavelabor.com]. Here is a somewhat feeble attempt at
listing his works to date:
* 1995-1997
Johnny the Homicidal Maniac
issues #1-7 - includes Happy Noodle Boy, Wobbly Headed Bob
* 1997
JTHM Director's Cut
all 7 issues - includes Happy Noodle Boy, plus 20 pages of sketchbook
material
* ?
Johnny Special Edition
reprint of JTHM issue #1 with a special laminated cardstock cover and
new inside cover - signed and number by Jhonen, limited to 2000 copies
* 1996
Bad Art Collection
a collection of hideously rendered 'things'
* 1997-1998
SQUEE!
issues #1-4 - Squee: NNY's little traumatized neighbor
* 1998
SQUEE's Wonderful, Big, Giant Book of Unspeakable Horrors
trade paperback soft cover collection of all 4 Squee! issues -
including the Meanwhile...'s, and other stories from both Squee! and
JTHM
* 1999-2000
I Feel Sick: a book about a girl
Issues #1-2: All about Devi holds the distinction of being the first
full-color creation.
* 2000-2001
Filler Bunny
a little lab experiment gone awry. Cuddly plush toy also available.
* 2001-2003
Invader ZIM
Nickelodeon Cartoon about an alien sent to conquer earth.
Canceled.
5a. WHERE CAN I FIND OUT NEWS ABOUT JHONEN, JTHM, SQUEE, SLG, OR OTHER,
UM, STUFF?
Good webpages to check for news:
* SLG [http://www.slavelabor.com]
* Immortalizing The Moment's News page
[http://www.bunnyofdoom.org/itm/]
* Question Sleep [http://www.questionsleep.com/] (Jhonen's website)
* We Get You When You Sleep [http://chancrescolex.livejournal.com/]
(Jhonen's LiveJournal blog)
* alt.spooky
5b. DID JHONEN VASQUEZ DO LENORE?
Actually No. Lenore is a comic done by Roman Dirge. It is also
published by SLG. From the introduction of the first issue:
"LENORE is basically, the adventures of a cute little dead girl. She
tackles everyday life with a perverted innocence that makes you want to
give her a big hug . . . . and then stand back very quickly while
checking to see if everything is still attached."
Jhonen did a little doodle of Lenore with Nail Bunny on the last inside
page of one of the issues. There's a Lenore short in Squee #4. Roman
Dirge helped out on some of the Invader Zim episodes. The official
Roman Dirge/Lenore website can be found at http://www.spookyland.com/
5c. DID JHONEN VASQUEZ DO SERENITY ROSE OR VICIOUS WHISPERS?
Also No. Serenity Rose is a comic done by Aaron Alexovich. Vicious
Whisper is a spin off weekly webcomic/advice-comic based on Vicious
Whisper from Serenity Rose. Like Roman, Aaron also worked with Jhonen
on Invader Zim. If character design looks familiar, its because Aaron
worked on character design. Aaron's website is
http://www.heartshapedskull.com/ .
Check out the Visicous Whispers webcomic at
http://www.heartshapedskull.com/vicious.html
5d. HOW CAN I ORDER FROM SLG?
You can visit the SLG website at http://www.slavelabor.com/; call the
toll-free order number 1-800-866-8929; or visit them in the Bay Area
(call for directions and hours).
Dan Vado [d...@slavelabor.com] is the head of SLG Publishing. They
publish some other good stuff. Just go see their webpage.
5e. IS [insert comic title and issue #] OUT YET??
Go to the SLG website and see for yourself, or go ask at the nearest
*good* comic book store.
5f. WILL THERE EVER BE MORE JTHM?
Probably one day. Straight from the monkey's mouth:
"When I do a JTHM run again, I plan for it to be the worst thing human
eyes have ever laid eyes on. My thinking is that human beings always
have this innate desire to improve upon the past, to build higher and
stronger upon the foundation built on experience. I want to do
something different. I wish to rebel against tha natural, and embrace
the
perversion of human striving. I want to draw the book with my feet. I
want Johnny to be a happy little guy who works at Hot Dog on a stick,
and who drives a new Beetle. In order for people to truly feel
something new from the books, they will have to be so horribly sickened
by them that they want to throw drinks in my face. This will give them
something to talk about that far exceeds the usual noise about how the
older books were better than the originals. The new books should make
people cry for having spent any money on them. There should also be a
magical talking baby beaver in the book who gives Johnny good advice on
how to be a good person."
[9.8.2000 SLG message board]
5g. WHAT'S THIS CARPE NOCTEM THINGIE?
Carpe Noctem [http://www.carpenoctem.com] seems to be dead. It was a
goth magazine thatsometimes printed one-page comics by Jhonen in it
(sometimes ones already published in one of his own series and
sometimes
ones unique to CN). There was a Jhonen interview in issue v3.2. That
issue sold out. Good luck finding it.
------------------------------
5h. CAN I SCAN IN, OR GRAB JV'S ARTWORK ELSEWHERE ON THE WEB, TO USE ON
MY VERY OWN WEBSITE?
As much as that sounds tempting, the answer is technically "NO!" That
would be not unlike stealing. All artwork is protected under copyright
laws, most of them are down right stupid, but hey, the law is the law.
In rare cases, the U.S. Copyright Office will send ring-wraths (like in
Lord of the Rings) with swords that burn with the fires of a thousand
evils!
However, the official word from Dan Vado at Slave Labor Graphics:
"... if you want to run art on your page, the proper copyright notice
format is, for the index page: All characters and artwork are [tm] and
(c) 2000 Jhonen Vasquez. All rights reserved. Each piece of art should
also have the following: (c) 2000 Jhonen Vasquez. You should use the
symbols for copyright and tm if at all possible."
They aren't the kind to start sending you nasty emails for slipping up
a little in the copyright notice, but you should do it by the book if
you can. They do ask you don't run full pages or stories.
[(2/29/2000) -- Posted to alt.spooky -- thanks to Sunder -- ]
5i. I'VE MADE [insert random thingies] WITH THE [insert JV work] LOGO
ON THEM. WOULD JV MIND HORRIDLY IF I MARKETED THEM?
In his own words:
"It's not quite the sort of thing I'd react HORRIDLY to, but it would
get some form of unpleasant reaction from me to know that those things
were actually being made and marketed. [snip].... Please be pleasant
enough to know that the matter should end there, with my saying "no". I
am in the middle of dealing with people who have gone ahead to produce
similar things without my permission. "
[(8.27.1998) -- posted to alt.spooky -- ]
In other words, it would be most unsavvy.
6. CHARACTERS
Lets start out with just a few characters, shall we? I'll add to this
one day when I become more bored. Think of this section as a little
yearbook of many of JV's characters. Luckily, most won't be able to
look back in 10 years and say "OH MY GOD LOOKIT MY HAAIR!"
-- Anne
Hey Anne! It's been 10 years! (TEN YEARS OF JTHM! 1995-2005)
-- Bushido
6a. Johnny C. aka NNY
Johnny has been called "a tortured, lonely psychotic whose killing
sprees reflect his contempt for humanity and modern culture". The
creation of NNY actually took place long, long ago. The first attempts
looked a lot like young Danny DeVito's evil twin. But alas... he has
aged so gracefully. Of particular note in the JTHM series are the
secret
encrypted messages laced around the oh-so innocent looking borders.
These will render you hideously retarded if you try to decipher them
for too long.
Johnny has no known past. He lives at house #777, next door to Squee.
All of the other characters are secretly jealous of NNY because he is
"Daddy's favorite" *shhh*
6b. Squee
Squee is the cute little kid who lives next to NNY. He comes from a
somewhat dysfunctional family. His real name's Todd but way back in the
first issue of JTHM, NNY happened to meet this little guy and nicknamed
him Squee. He has a stuffed teddy bear named Shmee, is prone to
nightmares and doesn't exactly enjoy it when NNY shows up at his house
covered with blood. The Squee! series was 4 issues long.
6c. Happy Noodle Boy
Who's Happy Noodle Boy? One-page comics stuck into JTHM or Squee
issues. NNY is said to author these when he isn't otherwise preoccupied
with disembowelment.
From an interview with Jhonen in issue #29 of Ben Is Dead:
"I had a friend who would ask me to draw comics for her all the time. I
ran out of good ones, so just to shut her up, i created this awful,
annoying, badly drawn character, to give her every time she asked me
for a drawing. I figured she'd stop asking, but it just took off. I
liked it. "
6d. Devi aka The One That Got Away
We met Devi in JTHM #2 in the nearly-infamous "SHIT IN THE PANTS
MEANWHILE...". She has a frighteningly bad track record for dating. She
had a nice date with NNY, until he tried to "immortalize the moment",
at which time she kicked his ass. She now has her own color series, "I
Feel Sick".
6e. Anne Gwish
Anne Gwish first appears in JTHM #5. She is, among other things, a
*deep breath* pathetic, irritating, vain, vile, bitter, shallow,
hypocritical, angst-ridden megalomaniac. She is that person we all love
to hate. We quiver in the shadow of her uber-gothicity.
JV on Anne Gwish:
"Anne Gwish... pretty much disgusts anyone with a brain. I thought of
her as being a character in Johnny's world, that actually played no
part in the storyline. I'm afraid of the different reasons people have
for
liking the her character"
[--character thingie at the end of Director's Cut--]
6f. Filler Bunny
Filler Bunny was sort of JV's accidental child. A one-page shortage of
Squee! material caused JV to rack his "brainmeats" and this was the
spawn of said racking. Filler Bunny is a genetically-engineered lab
experiment and yes, he is very happy despite his relatively miserable
existence.
6g. Invader Zim
Zim is an Irken. He messed up with Operation Impending Doom and is now
considered a failure by the other Irkens. He hates earth and
earthlings.
He has his very own website
[http://www.nick.com/all_nick/tv_supersites/zim].
Quoth Rob [of chicken-fucking fame]:
"This Nickelodeon thing scares me. I think Jhonen having access to
young minds in such large number is one of the seven signs of the
apocolypse. If Jhonen gets this show, build bunkers in your back yard,
stock up on the canned food, and prepare for the end..."
[5.1.1997 -- Roadkill Journal -- ]
7. MISCELLANEOUS
Anything that doesn't fit well into one of those other sections. Plus
Links and Acknowledgements. Please e-mail us if we've neglected to
mention something here, or if you have a suggestion for a new
Miscellaneous subsection.
7a. IF I PAINT MY [fill in the blank] BLACK, WILL IT BE SPOOKY?
Depends on what shade of black, what you're painting, and if the paint
manages to kill it. Make an appointment with the nearest spooky expert.
7b. WHAT IS THAT WONDERFUL "backwards e" FONT?
The font used at the beginning of every book is called ebola. It is
available at [http://home.swipnet.se/~w-50064/PAGES/files/ebola.zip]
7c. WHY WON'T BELA LUGOSI ANSWER MY LETTERS?
Because he's stone dead.
7d. ANNOTATED LINKS:
--Immortalizing The Moment: [http://www.bunnyofdoom.org/itm/]
The oldest and arguably the most interesting JV page around. Includes a
chat forum which can be accessed via IRC as well as the website. A good
place to check for news. Extensive link section.
--Slave Labor Graphics: [http://www.slavelabor.com]
The place to go if you want to order back-issues. The webstore is
cranky. They've removed the message boards due to juvenile deliquency.
--Roadkill: [http://members.aol.com/danslave/roadkill.html]
Read as JV terrorizes his travel companions by poisoning them and video
taping them being anally raped on the NYC subway. Don't miss JV
committing heinous acts of brutal assault on loving fans, and more!
Fascinating, funny, poignant. You'll laugh, you'll cry. Spent many
weeks in 1997 as a"must read" on the NY Times bestseller list. Caveat:
Ends rather abrubtly, leaving the reader wondering if the travel
companions did indeed perish. An epilogue would have been a nice touch.
--Nothng: [http://www.angelfire.com/ny/nnyc/0.html]
Plagued with annoying pop-up windows which drive me to the brink of
insanity. Grrrr. Has a one-of-a-kind "Kill Record" which i like. Loud
migraine-inducing background makes for unpleasant reading.
--Jhonen Vasquez Shrine:
[http://www.geocities.com/spooky_chan/jhonen_shrine.html]
Noteworthy for the desktop wallpaper shrine designed exclusively for
the hard-core JV stalker-type fan.
--jthm: gone the way of my sanity:
[http://www.geocities.com/duo_chan/index2.html]
Lots of broken links. Appears to be abandoned. Contains some veeery
interesting and potentially incriminating jv pictures (like the one of
jv getting a blow-job at a signing?? Yes, Yes... Or the ones of jv and
roman playing with each other's sock monkeys? Yes, yes...) Glad
annoying midi can be turned off.
--Z? [http://thepayne.net/~jhills/]
Only visible in IE.. written in netscape-invisibility ink? Hmm. Anyway,
the Haven interview is reproduced on this page. Might be abandoned.
-- Johnen's Website [http://www.questionsleep.com/]
Jhonen's Offical website.
-- Wikipedia: Jhonen Vasquez
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jhonen_Vasquez]
Links to other Jhonen Stuff. Bio. Friends. and More.
[-- Removed alot of dead links. 7.19.2005 --]
------------------------------
7e. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Bushido would like to thank Anne for her hard work and starting this
FAQ. It's been two years since it was last posted.
Anne would like to thank Tezza for laying the groundwork for this FAQ.
Other than that, you can all go to hell! [kidding, folks]
7f. MORE SPOOKIES
Other Spooky stuff found online
Spooky Horror
* http://www.horrorchannel.com/ The Horror Channel - A Network
deidcated to all things horror
* http://www.xombified.com/ Xombie - An horror action animated
webcartoon by James Farr
Spooky Comedy
* http://www.tmous.com/ The Mininstry of Unknown Science - A
mad-scientist comedy troupe featuring another Invader Zim writer Eric
Trueheart
* http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/tv_shows/billymandy/ The Grim
Adventures of Billy and Mandy - created by Maxwell Atoms, this cartoon
debuted around the same time as Invader Zim did
* http://www.bearfoo.com/ Bear - a spooky comedy by Jamie Smart
* http://www.orneryboy.com/ Ornery Boy by Michael Lalonde
* http://www.taintedink.com/ Contemplating Reiko by Vincent Grisanti
*** HELP CONTRIBUTE LINKS TO THIS SECTION ***
Tell us where to find some good spooky stories, spooky horror, spooky
comedy, spooky websites, or anything else that is spooky leaving a
comment here at alt.spooky. (No, you're spam website is not going to
make it on this list.)
*** TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT THIS NEWSGROUP ***
Bring this group back to life so that it may arise and menace the
peasant villagers. (ERRRGH!!!)
Watch out for Snakes!
[-- alt.spooky FAQ v2.1 -- October 18, 2006 -- originally created by
Anne Gwish. Edited and revised by Bushido Hacks. --]
BOO!
TenshiKurai9
> alt.spooky v2.1 ( Back from the Dead, Hungry for BRAAAAAIIINNSSS!!! )
Spicy brains?
http://www.matazone.co.uk/animpages/kitty1.html
-TenshiKurai9
Bushido Hacks
Bushido Hacks
http://www.skary.net/ - Katy Towell's Childrin R Skary
In relavance to an upcoming holliday (you should all know which one),
here's one of my favorite movies by Ms. Towell:
http://www.deviantart.com/view/23252207/
TenshiKurai9
> Here's another one I just remembered:
> http://www.skary.net/ - Katy Towell's Childrin R Skary
Due to never having watched every episode of Zim despite having had the
box set for over a year, I had to put that first. Now I've had some
time to start looking at that. Thank-you. But we seem to be
forgetting another good site. . .Oh yes. Making Fiends.
-TenshiKurai9
aafuss
gives me a 404 error.
aafuss
Bushido Hacks
it yet. Consider that link a proposed idea for the moment.