Pekar produced groundbreaking comics while holding a day job at the VA hospital in Cleveland. In the 1960s he befriended Robert Crumb, who brought a counter-cultural edge to underground comics, and encouraged Pekar to start writing on his own. He believed the life of a flunkie (his words) file clerk still had the makings of great drama and possibilities for narrative storytelling. He knew lots of interesting people, saw comical things happen everyday that rivaled anything in a Hollywood movie.
In "Our Movie Year" our man not only chronicles his year as a movie star, but also his influences as a comic writer: jazz music, realistic literature, and politically aware artists. We also meet some of Harvey's close friends in comics Robert Crumb, Alan Moore, and many others. In addition, Pekar provides a travelogue with his travels to Sundance, Cannes, Japan, and Australia.
A recurring theme throughout Pekar's career is how comics remain a largely untapped resource. Superhero films have ruled the box office for the past decade; DC and Marvel still dominate the industry. He believed the narrative power of comics had infinite possibility to inform people on important issues like political repression, censorship, issues of race and class, and the struggles of everyday people.
