The Fun Never Stops

Through May 6 (with a reception this Thursday at 5 p.m.), you can revel in the grotesque inner selves made manifest by cartoonist/caricaturist Drew Friedman. In his new collection, The Fun Never Stops: An Anthology of Comic Art 1991-2006 (Fantagraphics, $16.95), targets include George W. Bush, Sens. John Kerry and John McCain, and Woody Allen (uh-oh, is he running for public office?). Having previously lampooned showbiz dinosaurs (as in Old Jewish Comedians), Friedman’s work today has evolved into a kind of alternate-reality Borscht Belt D.C., where our nation’s leaders are covered in flop sweat, pancake makeup, and bad toupees. The terrible burden of performance, the false smile you see on McCain every time he says “my friends,” corrodes this gallery of stars from the inside out. Fame is a cancer, eating at each and every one of them. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, 1201 S. Vale St., 658-0110, www.fantagraphics.com. Free. 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. BRIAN MILLER
March 30-May 6, 2008