Interviews - Still More Craig Yoe

It’s a brand spanking new year, and it’s sure to be another great twelve months for interviews on The Comics Alternative. In fact, Andy and Derek start things off with a bang! this month with another visit from the always-friendly, always-funky, and always-fun Craig Yoe. This is the third time he has been on the show, and this time around the guys not only talk with Craig about his latest releases, but they also discuss the past, present, and future of Yoe Books. It’s the 5th anniversary of the imprint, and starting off a year-long celebration marking the occasion, Craig reveals his new Yippie Yi Yoe Society. Derek and Andy were fortunate to get their complimentary membership package in the mail last month, complete with a snazzy welcome letter, an official membership card, a society sticker, a cool “I Belong to the Yippie Yi Yoe Society” button, and a DVD with videos and music…including the club’s song, “The Merry Yippie Yi Yoe Society Marching Song.” Is that cool, or what? Then the guys get into the nitty gritty of Creepy Craig’s latest efforts, the two new books Ditko’s Shorts and Howard Nostrand’s Nightmares (Yoe Books/IDW Publishing). They spend a lot of time talking about the new Ditko effort, talking with Craig about the genesis of the project, the research he and Fester Faceplate (AKA Mark Knox) conducted for the volume, and behind-the-scenes shenanigans that should excite any true Ditko fan. Next, they delve into the new Nostrand collection, the latest in Craig’s “Chilling Archives of Horror Comics” series, discussing an artist who is sorely overlooked yet so vital to the horror genre. As the great forelocked one points out in the book’s introduction, had Jack Davis and Wally Wood had a love child, it would have been Howard Nostrand. Derek and Andy try to get Craig to discuss any future and yet-to-be-announced Yoe Book projects — he never spill the beans — but he does talk a little about books that will be released early this year, including Tom Sutton’s Creepy Things, The Untold History of Black Comic Books, and Milt Gross’ New York. In fact, the guys want to have Craig back on the podcast to talk about the new Milt Gross book, so listeners probably won’t have to wait too long to get a another shot of Yoe.