About

A lifelong Southern Californian, Nathan Callahan was born in Aldous Huxley’s Hollywood, raised in Zappa’s San Fernando Valley, and ripened in Orange County during the days of The John Birch Society and The Brotherhood of Eternal Love.

In 1988, Callahan teamed with Will Swaim — future founding editor of the OC Weekly — to publish The County, a short-lived, yet influential zine of political and social commentary. Soon thereafter, he co-wrote and edited, along with William Payton, “Shut Up, Fag!”: Quotations from the Files of Congressman Bob Dornan“. With its unsettling title and contemptible subject matter, the book became a B-list cult success. TV and radio interviews followed. In 1996, Dornan, a six-term congressman lost and never regained office.

As a contributing writer for the now defunct OC Weekly beginning with its premier issue in 1995, Callahan was run off the road and spat on by right-wing anti-semetic pre-MAGA primitives, accused by the Irvine Company of being an “environmental extremist,” and recognized by The New York Times for helping dissolve Orange County’s conservative media stranglehold.

When he wasn’t busy irritating George Argyrous, Dick O’Neill, and Tom Fuentes, Callahan conspired with illustrator, cartoonist, and tuba player Bob Aul on the darkly humorous comic strip Pet President.

Bookwise, Callahan has written Suburban Manners: An Irreverent View of Politics, Wealth and Culture in Orange County, California. He is currently at work with illustrator Louis Netter on Bad Buddha, the story of how a boy and his dog outwit the gods.

As of now, Callahan can be heard every Friday on KUCI 88.9 FM, Irvine, California on Weekly Signals.