Christopher Grady Answers Childish Questions For 'Lunarbaboon: The Daily Life of Parenthood' Release
by Caleb GoellnerChristopher Grady has been keeping track of his growth as a father online for several years now in his webcomic Lunarbaboon. It's a journey he chronicles with humanity, sincerity, and imagination in his brand new print collection, Lunarbaboon: The Daily Life of Parenthood. That's why we decided to test his resolve with some of the most childish questions we could think of in this, our GoComics interview. Read on to find out just how mature the cartoonist, school teacher, and father of two young children can be in the face of GC-grade interviewing.
GoComics: There are five main baboon species on Earth (Papio Hamadryas, Papio Papio, Papio Anubis, Papio Cynocephalus and Papio Ursinus). What is the scientific name for the Lunarbaboons?
Christopher Grady: There is only one Lunarbaboon that I know of and he's kind of a loser. I am not sure science really cares about naming him, but if they did it would probably be Losa Luna.
GC: "Lunarbaboon" roughly means "Moon Baboon". With this knowledge, do you still believe you made the right choice naming your comic?
CG: There is nothing else a comic about isolation and togetherness, imagination and realism, love and loss could be named. Life, as in what it means to be a Lunarbaboon, will always be confusing and worth trying to figure out.
GC: In the wild, baboons live to about 30 years old. In captivity, about 45. What kind of a boon do you feel captivity has been to you as a cartoonist?
CG: The captivity of mental illness and living with children has been the most difficult thing for me as a person, but the most beneficial as a creator. No day in captivity passes by without some pain and some work. Captivity also gives the captive lots of time to think. A perfect storm for a little bit of creativity.
GC: Baboons have famously exposed rumps, while humans tend to not. How can humans truly consider themselves free in light of this discrepancy?
CG: Humans just need to work a little harder at opening up to people and letting them in.
GC: Yesterday while I was writing these questions I started singing that George Thorogood & The Destroyers song "Bad to the Bone" as "Bab to the Boon". How do you feel about your role in that?
CG: I only want to be influential if I am influencing people to do good things. So if that change of lyrics is positive to you then I am fine with being the cause.
GC: The most common baboon predators are Nile crocodiles, lions, hyenas, leopards and cheetahs. Which predator would you prefer being devoured by, and why?
CG: I've thought we need to find the humor in our pain. So I would have to say hyena. At least we would have a good laugh.
GC: Baboons supposedly have a partial ability to read. What would you like a hypothetical reading baboon to get from checking out The Daily Life of Parenthood?
CG: I would hope a baboon reading the book would laugh and cry, and feel somewhere that they are not alone in this big scary beautiful world.