Harvey Pekar (1939–2010) created and wrote American Splendor comics, which debuted 50 years ago in 1976. American Splendor also inspired a branch of memoir comics and the 2003 American Splendor film. Joyce Brabner (1952–2024), Pekar's wife and creative partner, collaborated on American Splendor, along with artists including R. Crumb, Gary Dumm, Frank Stack, Joe Zabel, Joseph Remnant, Spain Rodriguez, Dean Haspiel, and Josh Neufeld. The work influenced generations of graphic novelists. Panelists include Joe Zabel (American Splendor artist), Peter Kuper (Insectopolis, who knew Pekar in 1970s Cleveland), Arie Kaplan (From Krakow to Krypton), Jackie Estrada (Comic-Con International, friend of Harvey’s), Andrew Kunka (USC Sumter), and moderator Danny Fingeroth (Disguised as Clark Kent: Jews, Comics, and the Creation of the Superhero).
