Participants
Howard Cruse
Howard Cruse has been doing comics for over thirty years. He
first achieved acclaim for his underground strip Barefootz, known
for being one of the friendlier and more positive underground
strips. In 1980, Cruse joined with underground
artist- turned- publisher Dennis Kitchen to found Gay Comix,
redressing the lack of a venue for the queer community in the
underground comics community.
Since then, Cruse's work has included comic strip Wendel, which ran in the Advocate throughout the '80s, and opus Stuck Rubber Baby. One of a few graphic novels conceived and completed as a whole work, not intended for serialization, Stuck Rubber Baby is set in Alabama during the civil rights movement of the sixties and presents the beauties and vicissitudes of daily life as they become eclipsed by racism and homophobia in a story about the frustration of the queer community's hopes for equality and the difficulties and dangers of coming out pre-Stonewall.
Cruse's commercial work includes flash animations and graphics for web use. His most recent work is for The Swimmer with a Rope in his Teeth, an 'illustrated fable' in collaboration with writer Jeanne Shaffer.
