Wizard Magazine calls ToonSeum a Number One Location for Fan Boys

The ToonSeum is featured in Wizard magazine as one of the the Number One Places to Go, Fan Boy Approved Locations to Spend Your Summer!
On the list are such sites as Disneyland, Universal Islands of Adventure, as well as our fellow cartoon museum in New York. This is a big big honor for the ToonSeum! Thanks Wizard!

Media Circus at the ToonSeum!

Join the ToonSeum for Media Circus, our first-annual sidewalk sale featuring great buys on comics, graphic novels, limited edition prints and more—all benefiting Pittsburgh's most animated museum! Patrons can browse through comics media of all kinds: rare collectibles, animation cels, comics and toys, DVDs and special bargains on one-of-a-kind prints and original artwork by local artists!

Looking for another way to help out the ToonSeum? Consider donating your old comics collection or artwork!

Saturday, June 5th
10:00am to to 7:00pm 

Sunday, June 6th

Hours: 11:00am until 4:00pm 

Donations will be received at the ToonSeum during regular business hours thru Wednesday June 2nd.

Toon in Tuesday: The Art of Te Wei, Chinese Watercolor Animation

The ToonSeum continues its Toon-in Tuesdays series with a screening of selected works by seminal Chinese animator Te Wei. These rare classics, completed in the late 1950's and 60's, showcase the painstaking art of watercolor animation.

Te Wei's beatific shorts are serene portraits of nature and motion. A popular artist in China throughout the 1960's, Te Wei became a victim of Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution and was no longer able to continue producing films. Much of his work fell into public domain and was introduced to American audiences in the old cartoon-calvacade variety shows of the 1970's and 80's. Te Wei died in February at the age of 95.

"Te Wei's animation is, in every sense of the phrase, a painting come to life,"said ToonSeum Manager John Mattie. "The meditative pacing and fluidity of the work is simply breathtaking. As a child, these cartoons were so mysterious, so different from anything else I'd seen. Viewing them again as an adult has been just as revelatory."


Included in the screening will be "Where Is Mama" and "The Cowboy's Flute." This screening is appropriate for all ages. Guests will also be able to view the current exhibit "The Art of AKIRA," a celebration of Japanese cel animation.
Admission is a suggested $4.00 donation, children under 12 are free.
Order tickets via Eventbrite:
http://teweitoon-efbevent.eventbrite.com/

The ToonSeum and East End Brewing Company Announce Release of Illustration Ale, a Special Hand-Bottled Beer

The ToonSeum and East End Brewing Company Announce Release of Illustration Ale, a Special Hand-Bottled Beer

Cartoon fans and craft beer connoisseurs can sample a custom hand-bottled beer from the ToonSeum and East End Brewing Company
The ToonSeum, Pittsburgh’s own museum dedicated to the cartoon arts, is proud to announce the June release of Illustration Ale, its collaboration with East End Brewing Company (“Pittsburgh's micro-est microbrewery”).

Illustration Ale is a limited edition, 700-bottle run of a one-time East End brew. The ale is a bottle-conditioned, with a rich dark malt character, spicy and nuanced, without any actual spices added. The complex flavors result from the brewer’s careful handling of a special Farmhouse Ale yeast.

Each one-liter swing-top bottle bears a label created by one of six Pittsburgh cartoonists, making for a unique six-pack collection. The custom labels were designed by David Coulson, Dave Klug, Pat Lewis, Jim Rugg, George Schill, and Mark Zingarelli, and showcase some of the amazing cartoon talent based in the city. Two dollars from the sale of each bottle will directly benefit the ToonSeum.

Scott Smith, brewmaster, owner and sole employee of East End Brewing Company, which recently celebrated its fifth anniversary, said “This is a Belgian Dark Strong Ale, which means something pretty specific to beer geeks like me.” He added that “Traditionally, beers of this style are named with an "-ation" suffix, like Temptation or Salvation, so Illustration seemed a natural choice for a ToonSeum brew.” Smith has used labels and logos created by local artists Mario Zucca and Wayno for other brewery projects, so he’s no stranger to combining beer and cartoons. Still, as he reviewed the art for this brew he said “I'm stunned at the diversity of material.”

Joe Wos, executive director of the ToonSeum, said “We’ve always been fans of East End Brewing Company, and have been waiting for the right project to work on together. As we brainstormed about ways to highlight the work of local artists, we hit on the concept of an ‘illustration six pack,’ and the project fell right into place. Sophisticated cartoon art combined with craft-brewed beer perfectly captures Pittsburgh’s unique mixture of blue-collar roots and a tradition of cultural innovation, with no pretense whatsoever.”

Illustration Ale will be available for sale at East End Brewery during its Tuesday through Thursday growler hours.