King-Cat Comics

• Title — King-Cat Comics and Stories • Schedule — Irregular • Format — Ongoing • Publisher — Spit and a Half • Date — May 1989 – present • Issues — 81 (As of February 2022) • Writers — John Porcellino • Artists — John Porcellino • Creators — John Porcellino • Tpb — Diary of a Mosquito Abatement Man • Isbn — 097652550X • Tpb1 — Perfect Example • Isbn1 — 1896597750 • Tpb2 — King-Cat Classix • Isbn2 — 1894937910 • Tpb3 — Map of My Heart • Isbn3 — 1897299931 • Tpb4 — From Lone Mountain • Isbn4 — 1770462953

Porcellino (publishing under the moniker Spit and a Half) began producing King-Cat in 1989. (The title of King-Cat comes from the Beat poem "Sometime During Eternity", by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, which Porcellino reprinted in an issue. In the poem, Jesus Christ is referred to as the "king cat".) Content-wise, King-Cat has evolved considerably over the years: through the mid-1990s,Early issues featured themes associated with punk rock and included a mix of aggressive and comedic stories. A popular, ongoing feature was "Trail Watch", where Porcellino criticized the drawing and story elements in the syndicated Mark Trail comic strip. Porcellino also did an entire issue chronicling his (fictional) romantic relationship with Madonna, and did a series of strips following the adventures of "Racky Racoon", a slacker-ish animal who works at a series of dead-end jobs and likes to get drunk. Later issues shifted focus toward philosophical themes and reflections on the nature of life. Porcellino's later work includes adaptations of Zen koans and stories regarding the transient nature of life. The change in thematic focus coincided with a shift in the publication's readership. King-Cat's letter column is titled "Catcalls". As of February 2022, Porcellino had published 81 issues of King-Cat (an average of three issues per year).