Harvey Pekar, A Passing

The last several years have taken a great many incredible people out of our world. Names drop from life to join the list of those no more. So much talent, such amazing lives, and many interesting personalities laid to rest at last.

I never had much of a chance or a drive to read American Splendor. I regret this because what I picked up from the little I knew of the book was that it was something certainly worth reading. It was truth and life, not just any, but those of a simple Ohio resident named Harvey Pekar.

Harvey seemed like a character, hell he most likely was based on all the documentation of his life I've been exposed to. I felt a kinship in many ways, like I knew the silly man. His tales, the most wondrous gifts we gift each other during our lives, were fun, odd, sad, and stirred so many folk's emotions. I could feel his effect on the wondrous industry of comics and the legacy he crafted and left behind. I didn't need to be a life long fan to understand or appreciate him. All I needed was a read over his work, a look at him in discussion and I was certain that this was an impressive force. Thanks to the film makers of American Splendor for fully exposing me to this fella.

It was great to have known of, and have had exposure, though limited, to such a man as Harvey Pekar. May he rest well. I wonder what he'd say of his current state or where he found himself after death. That would make a great comic, and I'm certain it would be all the better being recorded with his pen.