Neil Gaiman, In Words and Pictures

Remember, Remember: From Neil Gaiman's The Sandman

Will Shakespeare and Ben Jonson discuss topics of the day and dash off a little poem together.

Martin Tenbones, To The Life

Martin Tenbones is a large, dog-like character in Neil Gaiman's The Sandman graphic novels, a creature who emerges from a young woman's childhood imaginary world to seek out her help. When I saw this picture of a Chinese mastiff, I declared out loud to myself, "It's Martin himself, to the life!"

Ole-Luk-Oie

Ole-Luk-Oie is the Danish version of the Sandman, most famously described by Hans Christian Anderson in a story by the same name. His name is in two parts: Ole is a common Danish name, and Luk-Oie means "eye-shutter." He carries two umbrellas. One is covered with wonderful pictures inside, and this he holds over good children and gives them good dreams. The other is black, and this he holds over bad children, who then have no dreams and sleep heavily, and wake unrefreshed. He has a brother, also called Ole-Luk-Oie, whose other name is Death; he also shuts peoples' eyes.

The first three pictures here are from illustrations of Anderson's story; the fourth is from the Soyuzmultfilm feature The Snow Queen, where Ole-Luk-Oie (played by Mickey Rooney in the English dub) is narrator; and the fifth is from a proposed Disney feature that never got made. The story has influenced both James Branch Cabell (with Miramom Lluagor, the Lord of Dreams, and his half-brother Death) and Neil Gaiman (with Morpheus the Sandman and his sister Death).

For a really grotesque vision of the Sandman, look up E. T. A. Hoffman's version.

10 Books A Day: #47

The Absolute Sandman Vol. I...Neil Gaiman...Vertigo

The Absolute Sandman Vol. II...Neil Gaiman...Vertigo

The Absolute Sandman Vol. III...Neil Gaiman...Vertigo

The Absolute Sandman Vol. IV...Neil Gaiman...Vertigo

The Sandman: Endless Nights...Neil Gaiman...Vertigo

American Gods...Neil Gaiman...Harper Perennial

Anansi Boys...Neil Gaiman...William Morow

Fragile Things...Neil Gaiman...William Morrow

Coraline...Neil Gaiman...Bloomsbury

The Graveyard Book...Neil Gaiman...Harper Collins

Interworld...Neil Gaiman and Michael Reeves...Eos/Harper Collins

Mirrormask...Neil Gaiman & Dave McKean...Harper Collins

Beowulf: The Script Book...Neil Gaiman & Roger Avery...Harper

The Sandman: Book Of Dreams...Ed. Neil Gaiman & Ed Kramer...Harper Prism

The Sandman Companion...Hy Bender...Vetigo/ DC Comics

The Neil Gaiman Reader...ed. Darrell Schweitzer...Wildside Press

The Sandman: King Of Dreams...Alisa Kwitney...Chronicle Books


Book Count: 590.

Death...And She Has No Hat!

Got the "original" Death from Neil Gaiman's The Sandman yesterday, another DC Direct action figure. This Death has no hat (which was molded to the head on the other figure and couldn't be removed) but did have a rolled umbrella, as per the illustration previously posted. Rather than simply re-running that image, here is a panel showing her saying one of my favorite quotes from 'Facade' in Dream Country.

Terry Pratchett's Death (who is the more traditional skeleton in robes with scythe) says a line very similar in one of the Discworld novels. Pratchett and Gaiman collaborated on the novel Good Omens, and seem to enjoy referencing each other's work now and then. Who wrote it first? Don't know; can't say; daren't speculate.

Thanks again to Tom at Z's Toys for hunting her down for me.

Death...But She's Got A Hat!!!

The Sandman's sister was at Z's Toys and More yesterday: Death of the Endless. I've been trying to track one down for a while, and Tom was able to get me one that is an actual variant to the one seen above: instead of an umbrella, however, she has a black hat. The picture above was the only one on the card. Perhaps when I finally get a camera I can have a line-up of the Sandman figures I have: the Sandman, Death, and Daniel, who takes Dream's place when he is destroyed at the end of the comic. I had an opportunity to get a Death some years ago, but since I hadn't read any of the comic and didn't know her character, I passed it by. I understand these toys are very popular with Goths, which may explain some of the difficulty of finding one.

From the card: "Death. Neither malevolent or merciful, a final visitor to all yet a friend to none, Death does her job in a fashion that is both comforting and matter-of-fact. It's a job she has done since the first living thing came into existence, and only when the last living thing has died will her work be complete. Until that distant day arrives, she will be there. Waiting. Includes ankh and umbrella."

Who can identify the quotation alluded to in the title of this post?

The Sandman

I got an e-mail from my friend Tom over at Z's Toys and More saying that the Sandman he had ordered for me was in. It was a great deal at $10 (and that included shipping!); I believe that was the original price when it came out.

The Sandman is of course from the legendary comic book series written by fantasy novelist Neil Gaiman. I can't think of any other comic that references writers such as James Branch Cabell and G. K. Chesterton. The Sandman is one of seven brothers and sisters, less than gods but more than human. He is Dream, and his siblings are Destruction, Desire, Despair, Delerium (once called Delight), Destiny, and Death.

From the card: "The Sandman. He is known by many names: Dream of the Endless, Morpheus, The Sandman. At once an ephemeral figure and one of great might, he is perceived by the waking world only in fleeting glimpses. Of all the Endless, it may be he who takes his responsibilities to humanity most seriously. And in his own kingdom of the Dreaming, his power is supreme. Includes a removable cloth cloak and an attachable figure of Matthew the Raven."