japanamerica

my biggest fan, is my smallest.

--to John Fuller, Shigeharu Ono and the absurdly patient and kind staff of Kinokuniya NYC , to Marco Pavia and Mandy Willingham of TokyoPop , to Clyde Adams III of NYC Anime , to Peter Tatara of New York Anime Festival and Comic Con , to Taeko Baba and Justin Keesey of New York-Tokyo , to Wired magazine , to Lee-Sean Huang and JETAANY , to the four extraordinary manga artists, whose backgrounds (US-Hispanic; US Caucasian; Korean; Japanese) served to exemplify the japanamerica phenomenon--and to you, that glorious mob of you who attended, ranging in age from the teens to the 80s, in race and ethnicity from African American to Asian to White to Hispanic, and in costumes elaborate to mundane--I am, and remain, grateful. What a night in New York. [photos courtesy of marlene marino and lee-sean huang.]

... encountered this a couple of weeks ago and neglected to write about it, probably because I was writing about something else. But now the NYT's got it, and good. Simply put, if you're in or near or headed to New York--see it, feel it, touch it, and heal yourself from the mediocrity. 'Twas Passing Strange. Listen to a few of the songs --legally, no less.

Just added another artist to tomorrow's event at Kinokuniya NYC. If you're anywhere near the shop on Bryant Park, please join us.

Japanamerica has just been released in an expanded and updated paperback edition. To celebrate, Kinokuniya New York (on Bryant Park) and TokyoPop are teaming up for a big in-store event THIS Wednesday, February 27, starting at 6 p.m. Admission is FREE. The event will take place on the 2nd floor near Japanese café Zaiya in Kinokuniya Bookstore, 1073 6th Ave (btw 40th & 41st St), New York NY 10018 (new main NYC store), +1-212-869-1700, open Monday–Saturday 10:00–20:30, Sunday 11:00–19:30. Map: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1073+6th+Ave,+New+York,+NY+10018,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title FOR MORE INFO: nyinfo@kinokuniya.com The evening will feature a cosplay event and contest for all attendees, TokyoPop original manga creators Hiroki Otsuka (artist of Boys of Summer ), June Kim ( 12 Days ), James Barry ( Warriors, the manga ), Melissa De Jesus ( Sokora Refugees ), a reading and manga panel, and a book signing by all the artists and author Roland Kelts. There will also be man...

TEKKON KINKREET, Best Animated Picture, 2008 Japan Academy Awards Vast and sincere kudos to: Taiyo Matsumoto--original artist and writer, Michael Arias--director, Anthony Weintraub --screenplay (pictured above), Eiko Tanaka, Shinji Kimura--and the entire Studio4C team. Honto ni omedetou gozaimasu!

Flew out of the one warm and sunny day in Tokyo into an even warmer, brighter San Francisco. Every time I arrive here I'm a twenty year-old again, strutting down Sutter with a gin high. Long story. Eight hours is preferable to 11, 12, 13 or 14 in the air. But it's still a night's sleep lost--and 17 estranged hours. Lovely lunch with Berkeley pals and dinner with Herr Schodt, Chairman Tezuka. Tomorrow I will speak alongside Mariko Fujiwara at the behest of the Japan Society. Talk starts at 6 p.m. at the Delancey Screening Room on Embarcadero: JAPAN SOCIETY: THE YEAR AHEAD If you're in the Bay Area, swing by. I plan to be awake and out of my hotel by then. Books, too.