Vice Squad
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
A comic book store in Rome, Georgia, took part in a Halloween event in which comic books were distributed for free. At this point, we pick up with the description from the press release of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund:
..."Alternative Comics #2," the Free Comic Book Day edition from publisher Alternative Comics for 2004, was inadvertently included in the mix of books being disseminated. The comic features a variety of stories from the company's line, including an excerpt from Nick Bertozzi's "The Salon" depicting the first meeting between Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso. On three pages of the eight page section, Picasso is depicted in the nude, a factually accurate detail for the period during which the story is set. There is no sexual content in the story. The comic was inadvertently distributed to a minor, whose parent filed a complaint with the police. The age and identity of the minor are unknown. Days later, Gordon Lee, the owner [of the comic book store], was arrested.Now he faces charges that could bring him a few years in jail.
There's something about comics that brings out the obscenity police -- even in Japan.