Mysterious nexus/enabler and comics editor Jeff Newelt is interviewed at Gothamist talking of rasta, his work for Samsung the comics for SMITH magazine and his role with Act-i-vate:

Katrina Came Calling, the print version of Josh’s LiveJournal online diary of his time volunteering with the Red Cross in Biloxi after Hurricane Katrina, blew my mind with the brutal picture it painted and to me was screaming for the comics treatment. When I introduced Josh to Larry Smith at the Shooting War launch party last summer at Sutra, and Josh gave Larry a copy of Katrina Came Calling, my eyes went blank, head went back, a gargle-like sound ensued, foam came out of mouth, and my brain fast forwarded 10 months to SMITH inviting Josh to turn that experience and then some into a web comic for SMITH, as sort of an American Splendor 2.0 Altmanesque simultaneously panoramic and microscopic look at the ongoing effect of this tragedy on the lives of five real New Orleans residents and also other regions, such as Biloxi, where Josh volunteered.

Jeff has a big help to The Beat over the last two years in many ways we never even realized, and it’s nice to see him get some coverage of his own.