Observatory Hill Highlighted in New Comic Book!

Comic book draws attention to North Side's attractions

By Michael Machosky, TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, April 2, 2009

Photos

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'North'

What: A graphic novel that highlights North Side sites

Cost: Free

Where: The Children's Museum, hotels, visitor centers, schools and art galleries throughout Pittsburgh

About the writer

Michael Machosky can be reached via e-mail or at 412-320-7901.

It can be hard to put into words exactly what you love about a place. And sometimes the subtle charms of a location can't be conveyed through photographs alone.

Luckily, for the fascinating but misunderstood North Side of Pittsburgh, there's a medium out there that just might be perfect -- the comic book.

Toonseum -- Pittsburgh's own cartoon museum, housed inside the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh -- began "North" as a novel way to introduce people to its neighborhood, the under-appreciated, attraction-packed North Side.

The graphic novel came about through the Charm Bracelet Project Fund, an attempt to connect the neighborhood's many charms, from the obvious -- Carnegie Science Center and Heinz Field -- to the easily overlooked, like Toonseum itself.

Despite its enviable supply of cultural, historical and architectural gems, the North Side has long had an identity crisis, says Joe Wos, founder and director of the Toonseum.

"The North Side was annexed by Pittsburgh, and I don't think they ever fully recovered from that," Wos says. "Then that big, grotesque mall in the center of the community (Allegheny Center) that everybody hates just really crushed the identity of the North Side. Over the past 25 years, they've started to ask, 'Who are we? Who is the North Side?' It's really the story of a community that's now standing up for itself, saying this is who we are."

A North Side businessman, Harold Behar -- also vice president of the Toonseum and a lifelong comics fan -- became the editor of "North."

"I'm a big fan of alternative comics," Behar says. "I spend a lot of time at different conventions around the country, and run into a lot of the Pittsburgh guys there. Just the sheer amount of talent we have in this town, from Ed Piskor to Jim Rugg, people like that, is amazing."

Piskor has a national reputation for illustrating Harvey Pekar's "American Splendor," and his own graphic novel series "Wizzywig." Rugg is co-creator of acclaimed comics "The Plain Janes," "Street Angel" and "Afrodesiac."

Other artists featured in "North" include renowned rock concert poster artist Mike Budai and master illustrator Wayno. Eighteen artists and three writers were each given assignments as varied as the Allegheny Observatory, Old Deutschtown, Manchester Craftsmen's Guild, the National Aviary and Venture Outdoors -- and a page or two to capture their appeal in black and white.

Rugg, a sports fan, was assigned to do Heinz Field and PNC Park, as well as the cover of "North." For PNC Park, he chose to do a traditional multipanel comic highlighting Pirates greats like Honus Wagner, a giant Primanti's sandwich, and that one-of-a-kind view.

"ESPN had done a stadium-by-stadium thing comparing baseball fields, and rated PNC Park the best," Rugg says. "Given recent Pirates history, I think the experience of the park gave me more to build on than the team itself. I think the park is beautiful, especially the view of the city from inside. On a nice summer night, that's a pretty nice place to sit and hang around."

Heinz Field was a no-brainer -- a giant, page-sized tableau of a Steelers tailgate party. The perspective is compressed, so it feels like you're sandwiched tightly inside the crowd -- and you can overhear Terrible Towel-toting, burger-grilling fans talking about Steelers history, and passing along trivia about the stadium.

"Our goal is really to get people to visit the North Side -- to see these attractions in a new light," Wos says. "We really had no sort of editorial control. We just said go, write what calls out to you."

"There's so many gems over here that we need to push forward," Behar says. "They can't do it individually -- the Mattress Factory's budget alone is not going to command enough to get into every airport and hotel to let people know they exist."

The money for the project came from the Grable Foundation, whose $9,000 grant enabled a first run of 6,000 comics, printed locally.

"Our hope is to apply for another grant, make another run -- but also to apply for advertising, to make this sustainable, a long-term project," Wos says.

There are already plans for an updated version, with a few more venues and artists. For example, Photo Antiquities Museum of Photographic History was featured in a panel in Pauline Poullet's chapter on Old Deutschtown, but Wos thinks it eventually deserves its own page. The creators hope to cover other neighborhoods, too.

As a secondary goal, "North" should expose Toonseum to a wider audience.

"Right now, there are only three broad museums of cartoon art -- San Francisco, New York and Pittsburgh," Wos says. "When you think about that, it's pretty remarkable.

"People say, 'Why Pittsburgh? Well, I think anybody who lives here knows why. Pittsburgh just has so much cartoon talent. 'North' was really a chance to showcase that."