Posted By 13th Dimension on Dec 1, 2014 | 5 comments

Nothing says Christmas like Annie Nocenti, a strip club and Matt Murdock!

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It’s the SUPER-STAR HOLIDAY SPECIAL: a series of holiday remembrances by some of the best in the biz — like Kelley Jones, Paul Dini and Ron Marz! Click here to check ’em out!

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Now, here’s one of our favorite folks, Annie Nocenti, with a classic tale of Christmas with the Devil …

John Romita Jr. pencils. Al Williamson inks. 1989.

By ANN NOCENTI

Sometimes I do stupid things that turn out OK. One year I broke-up with my boyfriend a few days before Christmas, and when that festive day came, I had nowhere to go. I was living in Chelsea in New York City, not far from Billy’s Topless, a pub known for its strippers and knife fights.

On Christmas Day, I watched the world pass by my window, everyone loaded down with food and presents to bring to Christmas dinners. What an alienating feeling, to have nowhere to go! I was going to hide all day, pretend Christmas never happened that year, but there was no food in the fridge. Or rather, there was the usual dregs of what consisted of my idea of cooking in my early 20s – six packs and cold pizza. So, I took a walk. Nothing was open but Billy’s. What the hell, I thought. Why not go in? They had some pathetic tinsel hung in the window that looked downright festive, as compared to the black lump of coal in my heart that day.

I went here with my friend Colin when I was about 22. Everything Annie says about the place is true. — Dan

I had one of the best Christmases of my life in that pub. I met other unfortunate souls like myself that had nowhere to go on Christmas. A lovely elegant woman who kept lying to us all, claiming a limo was about to arrive with her gentleman date, like Blanche DuBois. Two brothers that fought bitterly about the implosion of their family. A few blind men from School for the Blind housing around the corner. As I drank rounds with these strangers, I thought of the comic I was currently writing, Daredevil. I was planning a story arc that was going to blow up Matt Murdock’s life. I thought, damn, he could end up here at the end of that arc.

So, in the spirit of the camaraderie of that day, I wrote a little tale for a Daredevil story that came out a year later called, A Beer with the Devil.

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For more SUPER-STAR HOLIDAY SPECIAL stories, click here.