GAPO THE CLOWN
Tony Miello's Rude Clown Gets Collected
Gapo the Clown: Big, Fat and Greasy is a collectionof Tony Miello's web strips and some new never been seen strips (over 370 strips in all) which makes this the complete black and white Gapo the Clown comic strip 
collection. The book was recently self published but is now under the Transfuzion banner.
Because he is the TV host of Gapo's Super Happy Fun Show, kids andparents love Gapo, but his children's show colleagues see him as the rude, disgusting, sloppy drunk that he really is. In Big, Fat and Greasy, Gapo does battle with a murderous sidekick, is reunited with his family of side show freaks, and gives birth to a tape worm in addition to many other escapades, often a result of Gapo's eccentric and rude behavior.
The book runs 146 pages and retails for 12.99 and will be available for ordering from Transfuzion and online stores such as Amazon by mid-January.
New York native Tony Miello turned to cartooning while being a stay at home dad. He created GAPO after one too many inane children's TV show. Miello found wider acclaim as the artist on the Wolfman Mac's Chiller Drive-In Theater comic book as well as the Fat Momma comic books from the SciFi Channel's Who Wants to be a Superhero. Miello lives in the Detroit suburbs, with his wife, son, dog and the voices in his head.
Here's an interview with Tony about the Gapo book.
Transfuzion: What can you tell us about the book?
Tony Miello: This book is the complete run of GAPO the Clown strips up to a point. I had switched to doing the strip in color on the web. I wanted to do a collection of all the black and white strips that I had done. From the web and print this book contains every black and white comic strip I had created. There is about six or seven years' worth of comic strips in this book. I also enjoy the fact that you can see how the characters changed as my style developed.
TF: How did you "break" into comics?
TM: I got my start as the inker for a small independent publisher out of New York on a book called Fates Five. I was with them for about three years as we developed a couple of different titles. After that I was away from comics and art all together until I started drawing again to pass time after an injury. That's when I developed GAPO the Clown.
TF: So, do you have any kind of educational background for your comic skills or are you self taught?
TM: Aside from taking a couple of basic classes in high school, I'm completely self-taught.
TF: What's the best project or situation that you've worked on or with in your career so far?
TM: I tend to lose interest in projects pretty quickly. The fact that I've been working on GAPO the Clown so long surprises the heck out of me. Ideally the best project for me is the next one.
TF: What's the best advice to give any aspiring creators?
TM: Listen to all criticism and try to learn from it but never give up. You have to plug away every day to make it happen. Draw or write every day. No one is going to knock on your door one day and say "Hey kid, I hear you draw comics. Here a contract." I this world you have to make it happen yourself. If you're not looking to self-publish, then work your ass of and put together the best portfolio you can and start hitting up editors. And listen to what they have to say. They have those jobs for a reason and they k now what they're talking about.
TF: Anything that you worked on that you would love to go back to?
TM: I've started writing a horror graphic novel that I'm dying to finish. I've been so busy the last year that it's just been sitting in a file on my computer desk top mocking me.
TF: What's next for you?
TM: Good question. I'm working on a number of projects but nothing I can talk about yet. I'm also going to be contributing art for a couple of gallery shows coming up in the next year.
Quickshots
TF: Who is your favorite comics writer?
TM: Garth Ennis
TF: Who is your favorite "classic" comic artist?
TM: John Romita Sr.
TF: Who is your favorite current comic artist?
TM: Jim Cheung and Eric Powell
TF: Do you read digital comics or plan to soon?
TM: No
TF: What is your favorite movie?
TM: Iron Giant, Serenity, Star Wars, Mighty Joe Young, the 1949 version
TF: What TV shows are you watching?
TM: Walking Dead, Newsroom, Big Bang Theory
TF: Give a shout out to wherever you get your comics.
TM: Wonderworld Comics and Big Ben's Comix Oasis
Gary Reed is the publisher of Transfuzion Publishing and was the former publisher of Caliber Comics. As a writer, he has written a number of graphic novels and comics including Saint Germaine, Deadworld, Baker Street, Renfield, Raven Chronicles, A Murder of Scarecrows, and others. Outside of Talking Transfuzion, he has his regular blog covering a wide variety of topics at reedgary.blogspot.com and his website www.garyreed.net
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