Quotes from Harvey Pekar

My parents' work ethic amazed me. How could they put in such long hours, day after day? Part of the reason was to keep the family going - to keep me going. I realized that, although we had different values derived from different cultures and wouldn't agree on certain issues, they were good people, incredible people, and I loved and respected them.

Praise from people I respect can get me through times of no money better than money can get me through times of no praise.

I actually took them all on quite handily, although I learned when I came to study the issue that I was completely wrong. I also came to believe that the war on drugs is one of the last vestiges of institutionalized racism in our society.

And no business can possibly equate happy workers (community) with profit (effectiveness). Happy workers are much more productive workers and hence contribute to profit, but no organization is formed for the idea of pleasing its employees.

I looked at her when she was saying this and I realized that there is absolutely nothing you can say to a person who would feel comfortable suggesting something like that, let alone a direct accusation.

I don't mind if I show myself being cheap or unreasonable sometimes.

Israel's creation was politically amazing and caused by a number of unusual events. And I understand. For centuries, Jews endured horrible suffering, and like other people, deserve the right to self-determination, but the way Israel is going now frightens me. Jews make awkward colonial overlords.

I thought I had a great opportunity when I started doing my comic book in 1972. I thought there was so much territory to work in.

I just continue to be kind of disappointed that people don't realize that and try and diversify the kind of work they are doing in comics.

I write scripts in storyboard fashion using stick figures, and thought balloons and word balloons and captions. Then I'll write descriptions of what scenes should look like and turn it over to the artist.

Some of the most valuable stuff I do has to do with my dissenting from the general opinion about people in movements.

Even a pretty traditional comic book writer can make valuable contributions to the Internet.

I think the people who would be the least interested in my work would be people who read lots of comic books.

It didnt take long to establish myself, as far as people thinking my work was good. They liked it from the start.

I think you can do anything with comics that you could do in just about any art form.

There's no limitation on comics, nothing. From a logical standpoint, how can there be a limitation on comics? You can use any word in the dictionary. You can put them in any order you want to. You can use a vast variety of illustrating styles. People could do all sorts of things.

I can't write in a whole lot of different styles, trying to please the highbrows one time and the lowbrows the next. I pretty much have a basic style I employ.

Everybody's like everybody else, and everybody's different from everybody else.

I concentrate, more than I think virtually any comic book artist has in the past, on the so-called mundane details of every day life - quotidian life. What happens to a person during a working day, marital relations, and stuff like that.

It's extremely seldom that anybody wants me to change what I've written about them. Generally I portray them in a good light, if they're friends.

Letterman... he got his problems. We don't get along too well.

I'm a guy that likes to sit in one place.