Episode 132: Barbara Slate

We return with a true pioneer in the representation of women in comics innovating several genres within the formerly male dominated industry.
 
Barbara Slate is a trailblazer for women in comics. She’s a sought-after speaker, teacher, and author of You Can Do a Graphic Novel, endorsed by Stan Lee and widely used in classrooms. Her first character, Ms. Liz, appeared on greeting cards, in Cosmopolitan, and on NBC’s Today Show. She created Angel Love for DC, Yuppies from Hell and Sweet XVI for Marvel, and adapted Beauty and the Beast, Pocahontas, and Barbie. She also wrote over 100 Betty and Veronica stories. Her 2012 graphic novel, Getting Married and Other Mistakes, explored modern relationships. Her work has been exhibited widely and featured in The New York Times and A Century of Women Cartoonists.

Barbara discusses making Betty and Veronica about the characters and not Archie, the blow-back from featuring real word issues in Angel Love and how she inadvertently changed the greeting card industry with Ms. Liz!