Category: Phables

My apologies to those of you who have already read the Rafinesque storyline from the Greystone Inn archives I’ve been promoting this month.

I couldn’t resist using it as the basis for a special Halloween edition of Phables a few years back. I was always sad that the storyline din’t get the recognition it deserved when it appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News as part of a three-week storyline. So I reformated the panels into a Phables-type presentation.

A man dressed in Colonial garb to be in the background of a movie shot here in Philly gets more than he bargains for. I guess that’s why they’re called extras.

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will run every other Monday.

A New Yorker, on leave from a tour in Iraq, gets lost in Philadelphia. She’s gonna need that combat training. Luckily, she gets a little help from the city that loves you back.

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will run every other Monday.

A few-too-many beers and a lusty rendezvous leads a Jersey college student to the threshold of love (or something darned close). Now if he could only remember which threshold. Or which door. Or how to get home, for that matter. Luckily, he’s in Philly.

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will run every other Monday.

No good deed goes unpunished — especially in the City of Brotherly Love. See what happens to our good samaratin when he finds a way to get a bus driver to hold the bus for a running passenger.

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will run every other Monday.

Lloyd comes in with a dynamic story about Philadelphia and the Godfather of Soul.

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. However, due to a scheduling error, it is running this week after having run last week. It will not update next Monday and it will resume its regular every-other-week routine thereafter.

If you don’t drink, it’s hard to know when it’s time to leave a bar. Unless, like Kevin from Lambertville, you ‘ve worked out a system..

Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will appear every other Monday until further notice.

Debby from Port Richmond was waiting for a bus in a bad neighborhood when she noticed a thug hiding in the shadows, eyeing her purse. She was close to panicking when along came her knight in shining armor..

Also, a programming note: Phables has been placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. It will appear every other Monday until further notice.

It was the late 20s/early 30s. The Great Depression and Prohibition had America in a death grip. Families were struggling to survive. And to make it through, this Philly family relied on two beverages: milk and beer.

Also, a programming note: Phables is being placed on a summer schedule by the Philadelphia Daily News. Starting this week, it will appear every other Monday until further notice.

Gas is hovering around $4 a gallon, and more people are on bikes — some of them for the first time. So Your Phavorite Pheature is proud to present a timely public service… Bicycle Safety Tips.

I’ve been looking forward to going to Seattle for weeks (by the time you read this, however, I will be on my way back home). Aside from seeing three of my very closest friends, I’ve had another reason to be eager to get to the West Coast.

This Spring’s allergy season in Philly is hitting me like a sledgehammer. I remember getting sweet relief from the pollen last year when I hit Seattle, and I am desperate to stop sneezing for a couple days this year.

To that end, this week’s Phables talks abo– abou-ab – ab- ab- ACH-OOO!

You get the idea…

Here’s an interesting story, just in time for Mother’s Day, about a woman who received an interesting lesson in history from the woman who raised her.

Here’s a story from Yours Truly. Read about how I solved the mystery of the non-ringing phones..

A Phabler who discovered the project through Scott Kurtz wrote in with this fantastic story about a young women who takes a jog through South Philly and winds up the subject of a running gag..

Here’s a fascinating story about a woman who finds an old, rusty dog tag on the ground and winds up in the center of a decades-old mystery involving a little girl and her dog..

I love when I get a call on my answering machine that says, “Hi, Brad… Have I got a story for you…” That’s what happened last week when Jimmy from Kensignton got in touch. And, boy was he right. You’re gonna find this one hard to believe. .

I forgot to promo this yesterday, which is a shame because I really like how it turned out. I talked to the Phillie Phanatic’s best “phriend,” Tom Burgoyne, about the popular Phillies mascot. Burgoyne is a great guy and I’ve always wanted to do a Phable about the Phanatic. This one lists the Top 10 Ways the Phillie Phanatic Prepares for Opening Day.

I just returned from an extended visit with my family in Michigan. This Phable tells one of the stories that unfolded that doesn’t include Michigan state troopers.

I’ll tell the trooper story another time.

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, some of the best take place in a … parking garage.

With winter coming to a close, I thought it would be the right time for a tale of … Spring Fever in Philadelphia.

For everyone expecting a con report from Katsucon in Washington, D.C., a couple weekends back, today’s tale of … getting hopelessly lost in D.C. will have to do until I get an official one written up. Look for a special cameo appearance from one of my very good Halfpixel pals.

In Philly, the old axiom holds true … getting there is often half the fun.

It’s the return of a popular Phables feature from last year: Philly BINGO! Today, it’s time to play … PARKING BINGO. You know the rules… take a copy of the bingo card with you on your next trip through Philly and check off the scenes as you see them or experience them. First one to connect five in a row vertically, horizontally or diagonally is the winner!

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… parking tickets. See what happens on this rare occasion in which a Philadelphian talks herself out of a parking ticket…

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… wilndow dressing. It’s a tradition in South Philly to decorate the front of your house — especially the front window — according to a holiday or special occasion. And this is true of *almost* every month…

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… wildlife in the city. This one is going to amaze you. A pest-control worker trying to help a young couple out with a mouse problem finds himself face-to-face with the competition.

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… all of the great stories from the preceeding year. It’s the ubiquitous yearend wrap-up. Read and enjoy.

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… Christmas presents. I was hoping for a nice, sentimental story for Christmas and boy did I ever get one!

Everybody has a story about Philadelphia, and some of them are about… model trains. This one is a story about taking my first-born son to see the impressive model-train display at Reading Terminal Market.

Mice. Nobody admits to seeing one in his house, yet we all know it’s a problem — and most of us Philadelphians live in attached housing. So in the interest of sharing information here’s some… Do’s and Don’ts of Mouse Control.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them are about… leftovers.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them are about… second acts. This one is particularly cool because it’s a Philadelphian with a unique connection to yours truly that isn’t revealed until the very end.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them are about… well… the city.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them are about saving the day.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them are about seeing signs — and sometimes those signs can cause trouble.

Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them involve loss.

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Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them involve a little good fortune.

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Everyone has a story about Philadelphia. Some of them restore one’s faith in Dog.

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It’s stories like this that make Phables such a stand-out feature. Back in the 80s, a mystery man started cutting enigmatic messages into linoleum tile and then permanently affixed them to the road using asphalt sealer. He’d set them out on a hot day and let the tires of passing-by cars seal them to the road.

TOYNBEE IDEA
KUBRICK MOVIE 2001
RESURRECT DEAD
PLANET JUPITER

By the end of the 80s, there were more than 130 of these tiles across Philly — and then they started showing up across the globe.

No one knows for sure who started it or why. But it is as much a part of the Philly fabric as cheesesteaks and the Liberty Bell.

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Have you ever hears a little voice inside your head tell you to take a different path? This guy did. He listened and his life has been forever changed.

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Remember when your parents would tell you to “sleep tight and don’t let the bedbugs bite”? This Philadelphian found out that, sometimes, that’s easier said than done. Fair warning: This one’s gonna make you itch all day.

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A woman takes a short-cut through the parking lot… of a funeral parlor.

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Sadly, this week’s Phables was inspired by my own experience a few weekends ago at the Post Office. It was an exasperating experience in which I walked away with a new respect for non other than the Great American Postal Worker.

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It’s hot and, let’s face it, we’re all getting on each other’s nerves a bit. So Phables is proud to do its civic duty and offer some tips on keeping cool in this oppressive weather…Beating the Heat: Dos and Don’ts

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A monster-movie fan is on a quick snack run while his wife is in labor with their second child. At the convenience store, he sees the poster for Phoenixville’s BlobFest. Does he drive to the Colonial Theatre — site of one of the climactic scenes from the classic flick — to find out more or does he return to his struggling wife? Let’s put it this way, if he did the latter, he’d have never made a very good Phable.

BlobFest is an annual event that raises funds for the historic Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville, PA — just outside of Philly. It takes place this Friday and Saturday.

If you go, don’t miss the chance to meet the star of “The Blob,” a bucket of the actual red silicon gel used in the movie, displayed by prop-collector Wes Shank. In an era in which many movie stars are silicon-enhanced, it’s refreshing to meet one that’s actually enhanced silicon.

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Ask anybody who lives in a big city and they’ll tell you. We like it when the police catch a drug dealer, but we’d love it if they’d lock up the cretin who refuses to clean up after his dog. In today’s Phable, we see what citations would read like if they were levied for everyday, quality-of-life offenses.

Due to popular request, I’ve made this one a downloadable PDF.

Phables

Everyone yearns for the Fairy Tale. You meet. You’re star-struck. You fall in love. And you live happily ever after. In today’s Phable, a ninety-year-old talks about what happens next. It’s a beautiful testiment to love at its most essential.

Phables

Today, it’s a special Father’s Day Phable! A man reminisces about his outlanding, unique, loving Dad.

Phables awarded “Best Local Column” by Philadelphia Society of Professional Journalists

Last night I accepted the award for Best Local Column in Philadelphia for Phables. The award was given to me by the Society of Professional Journalists.

This was a huge event for me. I have been insisting that sequential art (uppity-speak for “comics”) could be used to improve several aspects of journalism, and Phables was my way of proving that. I stated building up to this point years ago, using comics in different ways to compliment news coverage. Once my editors were comfortable with that, I pitched Phables to them as a way to revitalize the time-worn local newspaper column. Seeing it accepted in this way is incredibly encouraging.

I’m very proud of my work on Phables, and seeing it take root this way lets me know that it wont be long before newspaper editors are ready to expand on this idea even further. I’ve got my own ideas, and there are probably others being formulated elsewhere.

It’s just a very good chance of good things to come.

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Just in time for Wizard World Philadelphia, I’ve got a special Phables about a couple of suburban lads’ first trip to Philly for a comic convention. They wind up five cents short for the train home, and when SEPTA refuses to let them slide, they find themselves in need of a real hero.

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This is a topic I had hoped to cover since the very beginning of the Phables project: What happens when an out-of-towner falls in love with someone from South Philly.

Phables note

There will be no Phables on Monday, due to the Memorial Day holiday.

Comixpedia Interview

Comixpedia has interviewed me about my weekly comic, Phables, its nomination for an Eisner Award, and its being named the best local column in Philadelphia (even though it’s presented much differently than most newspaper columns).

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This week. I’m featuring a first-person story about the day I realized I had become a genuine Philadelphian… the day I realized I hated something I had never even considered hating before.

Phables awarded “Best Local Column” by Philadelphia Society of Professional Journalists

This just in… my weekly comic, Phables, has taken first place in the Local Column category of the Greater Philadelphia chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists’ Excellence in Journalism Awards.

I’m really happy about this — especially since the category is “Local Column” as opposed to “Best Graphic.” That’s a stamp of approval by fellow journalists recognizing Phables as something more than a comic. For me, it’s a big step towards getting a wider acceptance for comics as a powerful journalistic tool. Sounds corny… I know. But that’s really the kind of stuff that goes through my head. 🙂

Phables

Last year, a very special Mother’s-Day Phable talked about a widespread Philly tradition: Stealing flowers for Mother’s Day. That story got a lot of response… One of which I’ve waited a year to share with you. It’s about stealing flowers for Mother’s Day, too, but it’s going to make you feel much different than last year’s.

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Today’s Phable realizes that this area doesn’t offer much for bird-watchers. But plastic grocery bags flying through the air? Those we have! Maybe this could be a new hobby for Philadelphians. If not, you can always try to curb your plastic bag use. But, as one correspondant shares, that can be more difficult than it sounds.

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Today’s Phable is an interesting look at Philly psyche. See, back in the day, people swept their trash into the street, where a Streets Department worker with a horse-drawn wagon would sweep it up every trash day. Today, people still sweep their trash into the street, but without the horse-drawn trash collector, it just gets washed into the sewers.

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Today’s Phable is a funny story about a woman delivering her first child. She has a unique reaction when a nun offers a solution to her intense labor pains.

So, let me pull back the curtain for you and talk a little bit about how this one got into the paper.

This will make more sense if you read Phables first. Go ahead. I’ll wait.

I brought that comic to my editor, as is my standard procedure, the week pefore it was scheduled to run.

Seeing the religious content, she showed it to a broad spectrum of people around the newsroom. She told me the reaction ran the gamut from “Fantastic!” to “Complete waste of a page.”

The negative response seemed to hover around two things. In the original version, the book was clearly labeled “The Holy Bible” and the act of throwing the Bible at the nun was visually depicted — with a resounding thump.

It was a real dilema for me. If I ran it the way it was — the way I thought it had the most impact as a humorous piece — I would risk alienating some of my readers. But would changing it be tantamount to buckling to a dogmatic sense of religion?

I gave this a tremendous amount of thought, and I finally decided to change the way the story was presented. Taking a page from Alfred Hitchcock, I let the action appear off panel, letting the reader’s imagination fill in the rest. I also made the reference to the Bible itself more ambiguous.

And here’s why: I want people to enjoy Phables for what it is — great storytelling about Philadelphia. If the presentation of that story antagonized a portion of my readership to the point that they wouldn’t be able to enjoy the story, then perhaps that presentation had to be re-thought.

I didn’t change any of the facts of the story, mind you. Rather, I chose to present it in such a way that a greater number of readers could enjoy it.

I’m sure some readers still found it offensive. Let’s face it, you don’t present a humorous piece to 150,000 people and avoid offending someone. (And that doesn’t even include the online readership.) But I think the new version was more appealing to a wider range of people.

With that in mind, here’s the original version. Please don’t click on the link if you’re easily offended over religious issues.

Phables nominated for an Eisner

Phables, my weekly comic about life in Philadelphia, has been nominated for an Eisner Award, the comic-book industry’s top award!

Phables began last year as a bi-weekly comic in the Philadelphia Daily News. After an enormous response from readers, it was promoted to appearing in the paper every week. It was my attempt to re-imagine the standard newspaper “life about town” column.

To say that I’m thrilled is an understatement!

Phables

I can guarantee today’s Phable is going to be one for the highlight show. It’s a guaranteed scream. Sean from North Philly wrote in about his worst day on the job as an electric-company meter reader. If you think your Monday is going by, you’ll want to read about this.

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Today’s Phable is about two ladies who take some kids to a baseball game. They’re clearly not into sports, but the fact that they cared enough about the kids to expose them to live baseball puts them among the best in Philly fandom.

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Today’s Phable talks about the massage parlor that used to be across the street from where I worked.

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Today’s Phable is a touching story about how a WWII vet who moved to Philly after the war touched the lives of younger people who moved into his neighborhood.

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Today’s Phable is a two-fer. First, find out what happens when an out-of-towner can’t find her car in the 30th Street Station parking lot. Part Two is a follow-up to last week’s Phable in which some guests who are interested in mafia history wind up eating at the Bomb Bomb Barbecue Grill, thanks to their South Philly host. Although the Phable never says anything about the eatery being a mob hang-out, some people have read it that way, and the owner, Frank, has been fielding questions ever since. He says it’s not: The twin bombings were over a chef who came to work for the restaurant from another tavern. It wasn’t a mafia turf war. He explains.

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After his brother sent in a story for Phables, his mother leaned on him to send one in, too, so she could have a “matched set.” The story was so good, I was happy to oblige. Find out what happens when a couple of out-of-towners ask their South Philly guide to take them to “where you keep your mobsters!“

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Today’s Phable tells a story about what happens when a trip on the subway really gets a guy down!

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Today’s Phable is one of the quintessential Philadelphia stories… showing an out-of-towner the ropes!

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Today’s Phable is a fascinating dissertation of fashion through the ages. Ludwig makes an interesting argument: Back in the Sixties and Seventies bad fashion meant something, but these kids today — they got it bad and that ain’t good!!

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Today’s Phable is a look at an intriguing habit of Philly drivers — the intersection wave!

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Today’s Phable is a look at city traditions… some are learned the easy way and others are learned hard way!

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Today’s Phable is a truly phenomenal story about life in Philadelphia. A woman’s bike is stolen, forcing her to use the subway to get to work. Two days later, on the way to the subway, she sees her bike… and decided to confront the thief! You’ll be amazed by what happens next!

Phables reaction

It seems as if my first Phable of the New Year has already irked a reader or two. For example, Brendan not only wrote me an e-mail, but linked to his blog as well:

Twice in the same “Phables� strip, Brad Guigar writes, “Only a mom knows how sometimes the fear of one’s own death has nothing to do with one’s own life.�

Right, “only a mom� has any sense of responsibility or devotion to the family. “Only a mom� knows what it’s like to have children who depend on you for everything from daily meals to moral guidance to help with homework. We fathers have nothing to do with our families: why, if you took away the paycheck we contribute, what else do we offer, other than nothing? We don’t have any involvement with our kids, other than providing half their chromosomes. And since we’re not moms, none of us dads have any idea of how “fear of one’s own death has nothing to do with one’s own life.� Read the whole post. (Warning: Very strong language.)

Phables

Today’s Phables returns today and begins its weekly schedule.Be sure to tune in every Monday for a new Phable from Philadelphia. I wanted to come out of the box strong, and I think when you read this one you’ll agree that Phables is off to a great start.

Phables returns Monday

Phables, the full-page, longform comic about life in Philadelphia that I created for the Philadelphia Daily News, will return this Monday. As I reported earlier, it received such a strong response that it will now be a weekly feature, updating every Monday.

That means I’m going to need twice the number of Philly-themed stories, so don’t hesistate to e-mail me with yours!

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In today’s Phables, a man learns a lesson about acceptance — in more ways than one — at the hands (er, paws) of an uninvited guest.

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A new Phables updates today. This one is a heart-touching look at the strength of a neighborhood’s love.

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A new Phables updates today. This is a sequel of sorts. A few months back, I did Philly Road Bingo. That one was so popular, I ended up creating a PDF version so people could print them out and play in their cars. Hopefully, this will go over equally well.

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A new Phables updates today. My apologies to those of you who have already read the Rafinesque / Curse of Transylvania storyline from Greystone Inn.

I couldn’t resist using it as the basis for a special Halloween edition of Phables. I was always sad that the storyline din’t get the recognition it deserved when it appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News as part of a three-week storyline. So I reformated the panels into a Phables-type presentation.

Deeper still, it’s kind of a victory dance of sorts. See, I wanted this to be the inaugural Phable when I originally pitched this project to my supervisor. It would have run during one of the years supposedly affected by Raf’s seven-year curse.

2004.

That’s right, I pitched Phables for well over a year before finally being allowed to launch it earlier this year.

If you ever see me in person, ask me about the real punchline to that story. Needless to say, I can’t post it here.

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A new Phables updates today. This one has a much deeper meaning about what is means to live in a Philadelphia neighborhood.

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A new Phables updates today. This is already one of my favorites. It’s a look at one of my favorite spots in Philadelphia: Eastern State Penitentiary.

Eastern State was built in the 1800s as a new kind of prison. It was built to instill a sense of penance in the prisoner — thus the term “penitentiary.” To give you a sense of how advanced the building was, every prisoner had indoor plumbing (including a toilet). The President of the United States at the time (John Quincy Adams) could not say the same of his White House.

When Charles Dickens visited America, he wanted to visit two places: Niagra Falls and Eastern State Penitentiary.

It’s also considered one of the most haunted places in America.

Every October, Eastern State converts part of its interior in a “Haunted House” attraction called Terror Behind the Walls. It’s incredibly popular, with lines snaking around the block every night. The money made this month will fund the excellent historic restoration of the prison throughout the year.

Today’s Phables doesn’t talk about any of that stuff (except the haunted house part). It’s a collection of ghost stories from inside the prison walls.

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A new Phables updates today. This one is about a topic familiar to urban dwellers everywhere: Pigeons.

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A new Phables updates today. I went to the Mascot Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony last Tuesday. You may have caught the Phables Extra I did last week covering the event.

Well, while I was there, I got a terrific story about one of the mascots being inducted. I spoke to his family and, later, to him. I hope you enjoy it.

Phables Extra!I went to the Mascot Hall of Fame induction ceremony yesterday, looking for a good story for Monday’s Phables. I ended up getting so much great material that I offered a “Phables Extra” to the Daily News in addition to the story I’m planning for Monday.

So check it out: It’s the Mascot Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony by the numbers.

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A new Phables updates today. It’s a hot topic about a universally-despised character in everyday Philly life: The trash-picker. However, this Phable says there’s another way to look at that. Check it out.

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A new Phables updates today. This one is a story from 1986 about a crime — and help from an unexpected source. It also has a moral that holds added resonnance in this summer of increasing crime in this city: When we stand together, crime doesn’t stand a chance. I’m really proud of this one and I hope you like it, too.

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A new Phables updates today. This one is a field guide to the Philadelphia litterbug. This is something that really peeves me. Every day, I see someone throwing trash on the ground as if it’s no big deal.

Look for a special, Web-exclusive, Father’s Day Phable this Sunday. It’s three-times the typical length, and it’s got twice the typical sentimentality. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll go through all the emotions.

I’ve been getting a lot of positive response about today’s Phables.

It’s about all the annoying things that people do on the road. I’ve made it into a game. Now, when you see it happening, instead of getting angry, put an X in the corresponding box.

First one to get five in a straight line (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) gets to yell: PHILLY ROAD BINGO!

Due to popular request, I made a letter-sized PDF for you to download and print. Go play in traffic.