Everyone knows Winsor McCay. He created Little Nemo in Slumberland. He created Gertie the Dinosaur. He also created Dream of the Rarebit Fiend, a comic strip about what happens when you dream after eating a bit too much of something (sometimes Welsh rarebit) before bed. Wonderfully drawn and decidedly whacked, it ran from 1904 to 1913.

Now, who is Dr. Ulrich Merkl? Well, we'll tell you that in a moment. But first, let's tell you what Dr. Merkl has done: he's self-published The Complete Dream of the Rarebit Fiend. As you can tell from the dimensions in the picture there, it's a foot tall and seventeen inches across, to give the comic strips reprinted within enough room to be reproduced at their original size. The book weighs about ten pounds. In other words, it's only slightly sturdier than a Roman soldier's shield and could probably be used to stop small caliber bullets.

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