LEADED GASOLINE
A Horror True To Life
SOUTH CENTRAL LOS ANGELES 1987
INTRODUCING LEADED GASOLINE, A NEW HARDCOVER FROM PATRICK KINDLON AND LORENZO RE!
In the 1980s South Central Los Angeles was host to the highest concentration of serial killers in the world.
A narrative emerged that it was the same murderer. This misdirected residents, media, and even detectives for decades. It’s frightening to picture a single killer responsible for so many bodies, but confronting a trend is even darker.
LEADED GASOLINE is a tale of Los Angeles, from the street people to the cops to the politicians to the dead. Our protagonist is a professor with no tie to the murders other than a theory: the violence has a cause. One that can be cracked by good science, if anyone will listen. There’s something in the environment. Something we’re breathing.
TRUE events inspired this one. The lead characters are works of fiction, but the Southside Slayer and the waves of indifference that allowed ‘him’ to operate unmolested are real.
We’re dealing with violence, sexual sadism, and the targeting of LA’s underclass. It’s tawdry, direct, and uncompromising.
We originally intended to publish LEADED GASOLINE as a four-issue series, before collecting it in trade or hardcover. But it was around this time that we learned about the model Sean Gordon Murphy had been championing. It sounded like a fun experiment. Put the hardcover out first for the crowdfunding people, then bring it to single issues for the collectors. Hit a reverse Uno on the way the industry is typically done. Let’s give it a go.
I’d like everyone reading this to take a minute and check out the Kickstarter link HERE.
Kickstarter campaigns need strong first days to puncture the algorithm. So go now.
And here’s your bullet points:
Genre: horror-thriller; true crime
Tone: grim; realistic
Vibe: 80s black & white boom
Format: Hardcover; 2 options
Stage of Production: all interior pages and covers complete; ready for print
Fulfillment: This is published through Black Mask and they are covering that aspect, something they had some success with
This is a solidly built story full of accurate (to the best of my ability) depictions and exciting conjectures. Lorenzo did a killer (no pun intended) job on this one and I’m proud of my work.
Some of my books are, for lack of a better word, too comicky for casual readers. I think this book can bridge that divide. So if you’re someone who likes what I do in music, but find the genres I work with in comics too far afield from your interests: try this one.
PAGES IN MY INBOX
Atsuji is doing great things.
THEMES
I have so much to say about the current bullshit behind the scenes in comics. But a pink bar has appeared at the top of the window telling me I’m nearing the limit of emailable length. So, next time.
MEDIA CONSUMPTION
Mid for Ken Burns is still a must-watch. I didn’t think The American Revolution was his best, but I still loved it. My takeaway: revolutions can’t be picky. Washington was willing to deal with anyone who would get the job done. Recommended.
The Housemaid is pure wife-content. We went as a date night and I had a blast. It’s an elevated (but not by much) Lifetime Original Movie. And it worked. Recommended.
This, I learned after I hit play, is not The Girl Next Door that many people my age remember fondly. This is a crappy Lolita-lite thriller in which the girl dies. Sorry, spoiler.
One Battle After Another was the strongest argument for execution-over-everything I’ve ever seen. This is a profoundly stupid premise saved by remarkably good filmmaking. You forget 2/3 of the way through that you wanted to turn it off for the first 20min. Recommend.
FROM THE DESIGN FOLDER
I’m really outta room so I’ll just point out the obvious: this is how colors are supposed to work and it looks cool as hell. Stealing it.
THANKS
Send me a couple bucks if you enjoy the newsletter, but I prefer you back the Kickstarter. Thank you, as always, for giving my work a fair shake. I am grateful. Do for self.
Backed! Excited for this one.