Way back in this blog's history, in July of 2005, I had the pleasure of interviewing independent filmmaker Jordan Cooper, director of the funny mock-documentary, Tim Warner: A Life in the Clouds. The documentary starred co-writer James Jajac as misanthropic (and bad...) cartoonist Tim Warner, creator of the milquetoast comic strip "The Silver Lining." My wife and I laughed a lot during the film, and we've always remembered it fondly...which is saying a lot considering how many independent films I watch.
Today, I can report that the character of Tim Warner has been resurrected for James Jajac's mock-compilation book, Silver Hell - "A Comic Strip Journey into Madness." The back cover of this mock-doc book sets the stage:
"Tim Warner has delighted audiences for over 20 years with his national comic strip, The Silver Lining. Adults and children alike are delivered a touch of hope when they see the paper each Sunday to see what new adventures Ted and his lovable pets (Doggy and Squiggles) will find themselves in that week...
...What is known to few, aside from those truly devoted fans (who refer to themselves as "squiggle maniacs"), is that for a brief time in the early 90s, The Silver Lining was left absent from the daily newspapers without explanation. It was rumored that Tim Warner had suffered a nervous breakdown, or that there had been an argument over contract agreements. For years, the topic has been a subject of debate, a truth unknown...until now."
The book goes on to describe how in 2004, Tim Warner's former publisher made a discovery: the missing Silver Lining comic strips...the so called "Silver Hell" period that "coincides with his painful divorce from his first wife, Barbara."
What you get in Silver Hell, then, is a continuation of the savage satire begun in A Life in the Clouds. Tim's strips begin with sane, optimistic pabulum (think Ziggy...), but by book's end descend into the scribbling of a self-loathing, life-hating depressive. It's very funny, sharp stuff. I got an immense kick out of the book, and the funny conceit of a psychotic death spiral caught progressively (but unknowingly...) in an artist's "secret" work. There's a dark comedic genius at work here, one worthy of a wider audience.
If you're interesting in getting acquainted withTim Warner and his 'dark' "Silver Hell" period, you can purchase the book here, or visit James Jajac at Silver Hell and his own web site.
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