On July 12 comic book writer and music critic Harvey Pekar, most famous for his autobiographical work American Splendour, died. And I’m in mourning.
1) Because he was a great writer.
His comics were a standout in a time when your comic book options were limited to superhero stories marketed to kids. But Harvey always found that life was “complicated enough”, without the need for spandex-clad theatrics.
He couldn’t draw to save himself but that didn’t stop him either. He had pals Robert Crumb and co. for that. And his written word, his concepts, the humanity that shone from the stick figures on his page were so real, so apart of all of us and of life’s frustrations, that illustrators were able to execute them with ease.
Harvey’s work gained the respect of his peers, critics; and the audience he related to so well... and we eagerly awaited his next addition...his next droll comment on life.
2) Because he was one of us, a working man until the end.
Although Pekar won awards (the American Book Award and the aptly named Harvey Award), and his work was celebrated worldwide, he never ‘made it’; he remained a hospital file clerk until he retired at 62.
There is no doubt his comics were better for it.
God knows you can’t legitimately agonise over life’s constant disappointments when you’re rolling through Cleveland in a Hummer. The truth is Harvey Pekar wasn’t capable of being mainstream; it wasn’t part of his make-up. His foray into prime time television, ending in a Dave Letterman showdown, proved this. Harvey would never lie back and live off the mainstream dollar.
But he did leave a legacy; a small solace when the fear of our own mortality creeps over us and we ask ourselves “what’s the point of all of this?”
And he was honest.
And he was honest.
Although often described as depressing, critical, dissatisfied and hopeless. I found his honesty refreshing and true to his nature. We aint all happy-go-lucky, why should we pretend for other people’s sake? Is that any way to live? Pretending?
To be dead, without an original masterpiece, but remembered as a really swell guy...
Nuts to that.
Harvey’s wife reported that on his last day on earth Harvey Pekar went to bed “in high spirits”.
It was official, Harvey Pekar was dead.
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