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"Secret" Origin of Barbelith?

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electric monk

19:24 / 28.05.03

Paging thru the Morrison H-Z section of my comics collection recently, I came across a little gem I thought would be of interest here. GM had a short story printed in A1 called "The House of Heart's Desire". In the story, the main character comes upon a city called "Barbelith". It's spelled out on a sign that points the way to the city and as my eyes passed over that panel, my jaw dropped. For those interested in the hunt, it appeared in A1 #3 (of 6) by Atomeka Press. Couldn't find a date on the sucker, but it does seem that a Mr. Scott Duniber was assistant editor on it. Don't he edit one-a-them-thar X-books?

FinderWolf

17:54 / 29.05.03

VERY cool, warhol.

I think Dunbier edits Moore's ABC book LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN, and maybe some other ABC books currently as well.

What was the story like? Who illustrated it? And what was the city of Barbelith like?

Clearly this mysterious word, which IIRC came to Morrison in a dream, haunted his thoughts for many a year before THE INVISIBLES. I think someone posted a thread on here a long while ago showing BARBELITH as a graffiti scrawl in KILL YOUR BOYFRIEND, pre-INVISIBLES, or something like that.

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

09:47 / 30.05.03

The red globe appeared in The New Adventures of Hitler too.

electric monk

11:36 / 30.05.03

Ach, yer right about Duniber. I knew I'd seen the name somewhere recently.

The story is actually quite good, one of my favorite GM short stories. It was illustrated by Dom Regan. The city of Barbelith is described as having 2 kinds of residents: one half of them are mute, the other are disembodied voices, endlessly screaming and carrying on. Can't recall anything having anything to do with the later definition/purpose of Barbelith.

I'm surprised this entity shows up as much as it does in GM's work. I will have to take a look at Kill Yr Boyfriend tonight and hunt down that graffiti. "Ooh baby, touch me with your claw."

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

13:28 / 30.05.03

It sounds more like something from Doom Patrol from that description. Comics Showcase in London had about 5 copies of this recently, I wish I'd picked one up now.

DaveBCooper

14:59 / 30.05.03

Was it from the 'Aenigma Rebus' (have I got that right ? I'm at work, where the comics aren't) issue of Doom Patrol, with the line 'Iamtheinvisiblefirethatworksinsecret' on the splash page ?
Issue 55 or thereabouts, our hermaphroditic bandage-wrapped pal is on the moon*, the issue opens with 'but what's the question?' and ends with 'Now I know the answer...', I think.

*There's a turn of phrase I didn't think I'd be typing when I got out of bed this morning, I have to say.

dlotemp

23:10 / 30.05.03

I recall GM mentioning that the Aenima Regis story, which is the one with rebis as "iamtheinvisiblefire...yadda yadda," as being the first comic appearance of the Barbelith bouy. It's a concept that has been floating in his consciousness for quite sometime, predating the Invisibles series.

Elegant Mess

14:03 / 31.05.03

In vaguely related news, I recently picked up the first two issues of Sebastian O from a new comic store here in Glasgow, and was surprised and amused to see a character use King Mob's catchphrase "nice and smooth" several years before Gideon had a chance to use it himself.

Equally surprising and amusing was the feeling that Emma Frost in earlier issues of NXM and Sebastian O seem to have a number of characteristics in common...

Morrison does seem to love his upper-class, cut-glass bastards, doesn't he?

houdini

02:01 / 10.06.03

The city of Barbelith in the A1 story seems to me to be rather inspired by Italo Calvino's amazing book 'Invisible Cities' which recounts Marco Polo's journeys through hundreds of metaphorical cities much like this one.

And "King Mob's slogan" is really Ray Davies's, from the start of 'David Watts', which has been around since the 1960's. So if GM thought it was kewl then it's not necessarily surprising that he used it before. If the man's consistent about anything, it's recycling.

Ignatz_Mouse

09:07 / 17.06.03

I always assumed the word Barbelith derived from Barbello (I think that's what the word is), the first principle and intial creative force in several Gnostic cosmologies.

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

07:01 / 12.12.05

If anyone's interested, I have a couple of snippets from this on my website.

Gypsy Lantern

10:44 / 12.12.05

The city of Barbelith is described as having 2 kinds of residents: one half of them are mute, the other are disembodied voices, endlessly screaming and carrying on.

Why does that sound familiar?

electric monk

11:48 / 12.12.05

We're living it, baby.*

*(with regards to Sax)

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

12:41 / 14.12.05

I got an email from the artist, the content of which is at the link if anyones interested.

Twig the Wonder Kid

12:59 / 14.12.05

Oh, and related: a character called King Mob is referred to (obliquely) in Watchmen too.

Mario

13:17 / 14.12.05

If my memory serves me correctly, the term "King Mob" dates back to the French Revolution.

Twig the Wonder Kid

10:32 / 15.12.05

"King Mob" were one of the many Paris '68 groups, contemporaries of Guy DeBord and the Situationalists. I don't know if the name has origins any further back than that though.

_Boboss

10:36 / 15.12.05

1780 (?) King Mob riots in London AKA 'Gordon Liberty Riots' - bad time to be a catholic. but king mob is just a poetic term for 'the mobile party' i.e the propertyless classes, that's been around for even longer than that. first usage i have no clue of, probably some wit in a coffee house.

Cowboy Scientist

12:26 / 15.12.05

Oh, and related: a character called King Mob is referred to (obliquely) in Watchmen too.

Where?

Hallo, Paper Spaceboy

14:43 / 15.12.05

Gumbitch: but king mob is just a poetic term for 'the mobile party' i.e the propertyless classes, that's been around for even longer than that.

Huh. Nice connecting symbolism with who the Harlenquinade are, then.

Malio

16:12 / 15.12.05

I always fancied that Barbelith was an anagram of Blairbeth Road in Glasgow.

FinderWolf

17:55 / 15.12.05

>> Oh, and related: a character called King Mob is referred to (obliquely) in Watchmen too.

>> Where?

I believe the words "King Mob" are spraypainted on a wall, one of the many shots of walls covered with graffiti. Am I correct? Do I win a Barbelith No=Prize?

FinderWolf

17:56 / 15.12.05

>> I always fancied that Barbelith was an anagram of Blairbeth Road in Glasgow.

This sounds a likely (if subconscious) influence, since Grant M. is from that town, aye?

matthew.

20:15 / 15.12.05

RE that Doom Patrol issue

I thought of Barbelith, too... The issue says the red globe is also (your) mother's nipple. Hee-hee, nipple.

iamus

21:53 / 15.12.05

Hmmmm.

Anyone know what area Blairbeth is in?

Dan Fish - @Fish1k

08:22 / 16.12.05

Stick "Blairbeth Glasgow" in maps.google.com

ONLY NICE THINGS

08:38 / 16.12.05

This sounds a likely (if subconscious) influence, since Grant M. is from that town, aye?

Och aye yes. Hoots, mon. He verrae much does come from that wee town, Glasgow.

ONLY NICE THINGS

10:27 / 16.12.05

I'm sorry for any offence caused by that post. Glasgow is, of course, not a "town", but a "toon".

Jings!

Crivens!

Helpmaboab!

Gypsy Lantern

11:53 / 16.12.05

I'd fucking love to see Grant Morrison finally tackle Oor Wullie or The Broons.

ONLY NICE THINGS

12:33 / 16.12.05

I have a vague feeling oor Wullie was among the dead in Zenith Phase 3...

Malio

16:18 / 17.12.05

Slightly off topic but... GM discusses the influence of The Broons on his A-SS here and will be contributing to a BBC documentary on Scotland's favourite family on 30/12/05 as mentioned here.

The Falcon

17:56 / 17.12.05

Ace links, Malio. Superman going for a smokie? Well - they are delicious, but it's hardly the point, prof.

Horatio Hellpop

19:46 / 17.12.05

i don't have it in front of me but i think king mob is on one of the display cases in the trophy room, rather than graffiti on a wall. maybe a display case with a gorilla's head?

FinderWolf

20:00 / 17.12.05

>> They plan to use the calamity filled world of Paw Broon as the model for clumsy Clarke Kent, Superman’s alter ego.

I like how they add the "e" onto Clark Kent's name. Sounds very European.

iamus

00:25 / 18.12.05

Stick "Blairbeth Glasgow" in maps.google.com

Ah. It's only ten minutes round the road from my house!
I'm going to go there tomorrow and masturbate over the traffic lights!

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