Class Photo

by Robert Triptow

In this book, a cartoonist uses a 1937 found photo to create a fictional graphic novella about each student in the class. Robert Triptow stumbled across a real-life class photo of an anonymous 1937 public school under a pile of garbage and his imagination took off. Several years later, the result is the utterly charming, completely original graphic novella Class Photo . Using the photo as a springboard, each student’s fictionalized life is depicted in one-page installments. Triptow weaves these imagined lives in and out like so many dedications in a yearbook, mixing in social satire, elegant cartooning, occasionally disgusting hilarity, and plenty of good, clean fun. What began as a self-motivating formal exercise has yielded one of the more whimsically engaging, original, and entertaining graphic books in recent memory. Black & white

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Humor, Graphic Novels Comics

64 pages, Paperback

First published November 7, 2015

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

My blurb for this book is on the back cover: "Robert Triptow is like that brilliant and talented high school classmate about whom you've been wondering: 'Whatever happened to...?' Class Photo is a hilarious, wildly spiky return from a cartoonist too long gone from the scene."

Triptow has long been an inspiration. His comics like "I Know You Are But What Am I," "Bi...Bi...Baby," and "Fruitboy,"–all from the important 80's-era underground anthology Gay Comix–made a big impact on me, while his Lambda Award-winning book Gay Comics (Plume, New American Library, 1989) neatly summed up the first wave of gay cartooning, and to this day remains one of my favorite comics anthologies. Class Photo is a fine showcase for his warped, occasionally elbow-in-the-ribs brand of humor. I hope it does well so he'll keep working - he said in a recent interview that he's nearing retirement age! (Where does the time go?) Anyway, get this book–it's really funny and irreverent and beautifully produced by Fantagraphics.

2/29/16: Here's my interview with Triptow for The Comics Journal: http://bit.ly/24xm06u

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Triptow was pretty young he and his pal David Jensen got some money to take out the trash and they found this photograph underneath it all, an actual class photo from P.S. 49. He and David sat down and made fun of each of the goofy kids they saw there, making up funny stories about them. Such a neat idea, right? Which he says is like what Paul McCartney was doing in his song "Eleanor Rigby," writing up a life after seeing a gravestone with her name engraved on it.

I was reminded of Woody Allen and Diane Keaton's young lover characters, sitting on a bench in Washington Park (NYC), making up funny stories about the people they saw passing by.

Triptow's version doesn't really go for "Eleanor Rigby" poignancy, it goes for laughs, but doesn't really get them very often from me. Worth a few smiles. A little bit funny. I liked the idea more than the execution, obviously.

The art is kind of rough alt comix style, ala Crumb, going' for the goofy.

Treptow only has one other book, Gay Comics, a contribution to got comics history. He is himself a figure in that history. Some of the blurbs are apparently from his good friends such as Howard Cruse and Trina Robbins, also archivists of a certain age.

[StrictlySequential ArtNarrative · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deceptively long read but worth it- it even has a pop quiz with detailed answers at the end!

This guy is funniest when examining gay characters- which makes perfect sense since he mentions having a husband.

[Lauren Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you've ever looked at an old picture of stranger and made up a life for them, this is the book for you

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good idea badly executed.

Making up stories about strangers from an old class photo is a fun idea. This goes on a little too long and many of the imagined lives fail to be funny at all.

[Tollula · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a fascinating idea. A found class photo of people you don't know and write a book about it. I was disappointed to find out the author just created fake stories of each person and didn't try to research their real lives. After a while the outrages stories made up by the author and his stoner friends became redundant and way to predictable though very outlandish.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

One joke book and the joke was likely funnier in a stoned basement then it is in the light of day

[Chloe A-L · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars. interesting idea, fun to read in parts, but there were so many just... horribly upsetting "jokes" obviously written by a boring, shitty white dude.

[🌸 · Rating 1 out of 5]

This comic expands upon the idea of finding a class photo and making up lives for each individual in the photo. The book itself notes that some of the terms used are a reflection of the time and there are definitely plenty of things to take offense to throughout these comics. There are lots of references to sex and nazis… and some other gross topics. I felt like this comic was never-ending and I’m not sure we needed an idea about /every/ person. I was bored after the first few and didn’t find myself really enjoying anyone’s story. Maybe it’s because I was just trying to finish this comic but I felt like it was so much longer than it should have been. I also did not like that they included the real photo with each person labeled after spinning up a fictional (often offensive) version of their life.

I think this comic idea would’ve been better served as a few non-offensive comic strips. The art style was busy but I enjoyed it and felt it added to the feel of the story.

[Joanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Actively disliked. One star for the idea, but mean-spirited and inane execution. I don’t think that the whole ‘underground’ comix thing is as funny or as appropriate as it used to be. I think it looks like the artist had some fun making it, but he might be the only one.

And for those reasons, I’m out! 🦈

[spoon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What even? Brilliant.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

via NYPL - Pretty funny at times but not consistently, and it the sum doesn't really add up to much before a series of goofy gags.

[Erikka · Rating 3 out of 5]

A worthwhile fun read with a simple premise: a guy found a 1937 school class photo and came up with stories for the people in it. Some are non-sensical and weird, but others are hilarious. It's a quick read and worth it.

[Hollowspine · Rating 2 out of 5]

The discovery of a class photo from the 1930's prompted a story for every student and adult pictured. Although I found the concept interesting and Triptow's style engaging, his humor less so.

I read through most of the comic, but the jokes were so obvious, like stuff made up by a couple of kids, which is pretty much what happened when Triptow and his uncle and friend David Jensen (they were the same age) found the picture in a pile of trash. The stories are truly creative and I could see many people enjoying them, it is human nature to add narrative to everyone (and thing) around us, but I found this a little heartless.

The stories often featured gross anatomical exaggerations, unlikely feats of ridiculousness, and physical/mental slights of every nature. I stopped really reading once I got to Wally Weems, where I had to agree with the author's guess that perhaps I didn't even want to know that, I didn't.

The best part of the book for me were the pictures and notes at the end. Looking at the actual class photo and wondering about the real stories of these people was more fascinating to me than Triptow's imagined stories. The note at the end about the possibility that the school was set up for refugees from Germany and Europe added another note of speculation about the lives of these kids.

Overall, I'd rather pick up any old school year book (of which I have a couple), look through the pages, and imagine my own stories.

[Matthew Brady · Rating 2 out of 5]

A goofy comic inspired by a class photo from 1937 that the cartoonist found when he was a kid, inspiring him and his friends to make up names and stories for each of the people. This book does that in comics form, highlighting the silly name and ridiculous life stories of everyone pictured (and some that aren't). It's enjoyable and fun, but pretty light in the end. In the introduction, Triptow recommends using this as a bathroom book, since each page is perfect to be consumed in a short period of time, but taking them all in quick succession is kind of numbing. It's pretty good from a humor standpoint, but that's about it.

[J.T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the concept this was based on (imagining the lives of people from an old discarded class photo), and the drawing is well executed, but it didn't sustain my interest for terribly long. I'm impressed that the artist stuck with it, coming up with stories for all the kids in the photo (and even some that were not!).

This would be a good book to keep by the toilet in that it can be consumed in small chunks. I read it straight through, so the gimmick wore thin. Also, the humor isn't quite up my alley (a little too obvious).

[Jen Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good concept, but I found the humour a little cutesy (for me) and due to the large number of students in the photo, I found it was too drawn out and started to drag. Had the humour been a little darker/stronger, the premise might have had more longevity for me. Nice illustration style.

[Eddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concept! Very droll.