682 WEIRDO
We i r d o began as Crumb’s attempt to emulate comics magazines that had infl uenced
him, especially the early Mad and Harvey Kurtzman’s Help! (1960–65): many of
We i r d o ’s covers, packing small fi gures into elaborate borders, were in homage to
Crumb’s models. Designed more like a magazine than a typical comic book, We i r d o
included advice columns (by Terry Zwigoff and Harvey Pekar ), notably cranky letters
pages, and ads promoting like-minded publications, including the fi rst wave of hand-
made mini-comics. Under Crumb’s editorship, a series of fumetti , or photo- funnies,
were also featured: depicting the large women that obsessed him acting out silly sce-
narios (often with Crumb participating); they were a regular source of complaints from
readers. (Somewhat peevishly, Crumb has since refused to reprint them in collections
of his work.) In addition to Crumb, who contributed signifi cantly to every issue, key
underground fi gures such as Spain Rodriguez, S. Clay Wilson , Robert Williams, Bill
Griffi th, Justin Green, Robert Armstrong, Frank Stack, and Kim Dietch were fre-
quently represented, although not always with their most memorable work. We i r d o may
have been more benefi cial for the space it off ered to younger artists who had missed the
earlier underground as a publishing option; in addition to Bagge, the magazine included
early work by eventually notable artists Kaz, Daniel Clowes , Drew Friedman, Ray-
mond Pettibon, David Collier, Joe Sacco , Doug Allen, and Gilbert Hernandez.
Even before Kominsky-Crumb established a tongue in cheek policy promoting
(as the cover of #18 stated) “the grueling, gritty world of young women cartoonists,”
We i r d o had also welcomed female artists, in marked contrast to all-male precursors
like Zap. Along with Kominsky-Crumb’s regular strips, We i r d o eventually showcased
Phoebe Gloeckner , Terri Boyce, Diane Noomin, Mary Fleener, Carol Tyler, Carol Lay,
Julie Doucet, and Debbie Dreschler. Early on, the editors had discovered Dori Seda,
who remained a regular (and rapidly improving) contributor until her death in 1988,
with #22 presented as a “Dori Memorial Issue.” We i r d o also reprinted historical mate-
rial that suggested a lineage for its creators: the fi rst issue has a Brueghel engraving as a
center-spread, and later issues gather Gene Deitch’s 1940s jazz cartoons, obscure strips
from 1950s African American magazines, and Ed “Big Daddy” Roth’s hot-rod cartoons.
Finally, We i r d o also included technically crude work by outsider artists such as Bruce N.
Duncan, Norman F. Pettingill, prison cartoonist Macedonio Garcia, and Crumb’s own
troubled brother Max. Issue #12 included work by (and a memorial to) the notoriously
unstable underground legend Rory Hayes, who died in 1983.
Crumb’s contributions to We i r d o included many important autobiographical strips,
including “I Remember the Sixties” (#4), “Uncle Bob’s Mid-Life Crisis” (#7), “Footsy”
(#20), “Memories Are Made of Th is” (#22), and “I’m Grateful! I’m Grateful!” (#25).
He also provided parodies, including a rather strained series of strips centered on the
ultra-fashionable Mode O’Day (ultimately an easy target), and a wicked imitation of
the independent erotic comic “Omaha,” the Cat Dancer (#24). Yet the magazine was
also Crumb’s chosen venue for a number of remarkable historical comics, including an
illustrated section of James Boswell’s 18th-century London Journal (#3), case studies
from Kraff t-Ebing’s 19th-century Psychopathia Sexualis (#13), and a biography of the
