Monthly Archive: April 2008

Interview With Larry Fong, Cinematographer for ‘Watchmen’

  • News
  • April 28, 2008

While much of the hubbub over the movie adaptation of Watchmen has related to director Zack Snyder’s thematic and narrative choices, questions also remain over how the movie will visually reflect Dave Gibbons’ work on the seminal comic.

In answering some of those questions, Larry Fong, who is the cinematographer on the film, spoke with ComicUS (scroll down for the English version). Fong, who also worked on 300, said Watchmen will use less green screen than that film and will try to hew closely to Gibbons’ art.

There isn’t an underlying template on the movie per se. In fact one of the most exciting things about it is that it’s kind of all over the place, visually. We had so many opportunities to explore different looks and there’s even a few scenes that pay homage to other films…I won’t give anything away just yet, of course. …

In Zack’s storyboards, there are frames that are very similar to those in the graphic novel. But photographically, it was more important for me to capture the spirit of Watchmen. That’s more of an intuitive process.

Fong also hinted at Snyder’s next project:

Zack is planning to make another film next year based on an original story he’s had in his head for a long time. It’s crazier and wilder than all his films put together… hopefully I’ll be working on it too!

Happy Birthday: Uncle Marvel

  • News
  • April 28, 2008

Sure, everyone knows that Billy Batson, Mary Batson, and Freddy Freeman could say their magic words and transform into Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, and Captain Marvel, Jr., three of the World’s Mightiest Mortals, also known as the Shazam family.

Yet in their regular lives, they were mere children, and often needed a protector and mentor. They found him in the guise of their uncle Dudley, who was actually not related to any of them. Very little is known about Dudley before he joined the Shazam family. He may have been a failed stage magician and a confidence artist at some point, and he had been married but was since divorced.

Dudley discovered the Marvels’ secret by happening across Mary’s Good Deed Ledger and returned it to her, claiming to be her long lost uncle. He also claimed to have magic powers of his own and wore a Marvel costume he had made himself—when Mary transformed Dudley stripped off his regular clothes to reveal the costume and become Uncle Marvel. He established a business, Shazam Incorporated, to channel money from the Marvels’ deeds into charitable organizations, though he did pocket a little of the money for himself.

The Marvels quickly found out about his scheme, and that he was not related to them and didn’t actually have any powers. But they liked Dudley, who was otherwise a good person, and so they allowed him to maintain the charade. Dudley explained his lack of powers after that by saying he had lost them due to a bad case of “shazambago.”

Despite having no powers Dudley could often trick opponents into defeating themselves, and he did provide a caring paternal figure for the three young orphans.

Michigan Comic Shop Owner Shot in Robbery

  • Uncategorized
  • April 28, 2008

Until not too long ago, I worked for a newspaper as a police reporter, filing stories about homicides and then covering comic books in my free time. Thankfully, the worlds of real violence and superhero battles never intersected.

For the owner of Apparitions Comics and Books in Kentwood, MIch., violence became all too real Friday night, when police say a man went into the store, demanded money from David Pirkola, 56, then shot Pirkola and fled. The Grand Rapids Press has the full story.

First, best wishes to Pirkola for a speedy recovery. He’s listed in critical but stable condition.

One heartening aspect of this terrible news is the response from the comic book community, including owners of competing shops:

[Stephen] Jahner, who owns Capital City Collectibles in Lansing, said Pirkola enjoys role-playing games and is well known in comic circles for his devotion to the store.

He said he was informed of the shooting from another Apparitions employee, and together they will try to keep the shop open until Pirkola recovers.

Other Grand Rapids comic store owners said they were shocked to hear about the shooting.

"Comic-book store owners tend to have an affinity for each other," said Kirby Tardy, owner of Tardy’s Collector’s Corner, 2009 Eastern Ave. SE.

"It’s a tough business, and it takes a lot of love to keep it going."

Mekhi Phifer to Star in ‘Hunter’s Moon’ Film

  • News
  • April 28, 2008

Mekhi Phifer, who stars in ER, has signed on to appear in an upcoming comic movie adaptation, according to Reuters.

Phifer will take the lead role in Hunter’s Moon, which originally appeared as a five-issue series that came out last year. It features a father and son who go on a hunting trip to a rural area and become framed in a theft.

The series, which also touches on racial issues, was written by James L. White. White wrote the screenplay for Ray, the biopic of Ray Charles. No word if he’s adapting the script on Hunter’s Moon.

Hunter’s Moon was published by BOOM! Studios, which is producing the film.

Doctor Who in Review: Season Four, Episode #1 – New Companions, Old Feelings

The hit BBC series Doctor Who kicked off its fourth season on the Sci-Fi Channel this weekend, so there’s no better time than the present to kick off an episode-by-episode analysis of the reinvigorated science-fiction classic here on ComicMix.

Every week, we’ll have our best Who-philes go through the most recent episode with a fine-tooth comb (or whatever the "sonic screwdriver" equivalent might be) and call out all of the continuity checks, names dropped and storyline hints we can find to keep in mind for future episodes. We’ll post our analysis the following Monday, so you have ample time to check out the episode when it airs each Saturday at 9 PM EST on Sci-Fi Channel.

Keep in mind, we’re going to assume readers have already watched the episode when we put fingers to keyboard and come up with our roundup of important plot points. In other words, SPOILER ALERT!

Let’s begin now, shall we?

Season Four, Episode #1: "Partners in Crime" (more…)

Del Close Close Up, by Mike Gold

  • News
  • April 28, 2008

Well, it’s about time.

Author Kim Howard Johnson, former comics newsman (the late, lamented Comics Scene), occasional comic book writer (Superman: True Brit, with John Cleese and John Byrne), and frequent ComicMix commenter, has written the definitive biography of his mentor, collaborator and friend, comedy legend Del Close.

It’s called The Funniest One In The Room: The Lives and Legends of Del Close (Chicago Review Press, $24.95), and I’ll admit right off it’s impossible for me to not absolutely love a book in which I am mentioned in the second paragraph. I could have titled this column “Me and My Ego” but, no, this one’s about Del’s ego.

Comics fans may be familiar with Del’s work in collaboration with John Ostrander on Munden’s Bar during its original First Comics run, and/or their work together on the even-more-over-the-top Wasteland, the one we did at DC Comics. In fact, it was Del who suggested the title.

Students of American cultural history know Del as a Shakespearean actor who also performed on television and in movies and plays by Steve Martin, Jules Feiffer, William Saroyan, Judge Julius Hoffman, and Kaufman and Hart. But he is best known for his work as a director, teacher and mentor to – to name but a very, very few – John and Jim Belushi; Brian Doyle, Joel, and Bill Murray; Howard Hessman; Rob Reiner; Joe Flaherty; Harold Ramis; Betty Thomas; George Wendt; Tim Kazurinsky; John Candy; Chris Farley. Tim Meadows; Andy Richter; Stephen Colbert; Steve Carell; Kim Yale… and literally hundreds more. Oh, yeah… he was also rehearsal director of Saturday Night Live for a couple years and he created the format for SCTV. (more…)

ComicMix Columns for the Week Ending April 28, 2008

  • News
  • April 27, 2008

Last weekend’s New York Comic Con affected ComicMix columnists in different ways, with Michael, Martha and myself all musing about the con experience (and Dennis and John discussing other events of note from that same weekend).  Here’s what we’ve written for you this past week:

Michael’s column totally wins for "best byline" this week..  He probably wins for  "best comment thread," too.

Happy Birthday: Russell T. Davies

  • News
  • April 27, 2008

Born in Swansea, Wales in 1963, Russell T. Davies was immediately entered in academia—his father Vivian taught Classics and his mother Barbara taught French. Davies attended Olchfa Comprehensive School in Swansea and was a member of the West Glamorgan Youth Theatre.

He graduated Worcester College, Oxford in 1984 with a degree in English literature and turned to the theatre but soon left to work for BBC television. Davies started as a floor manager and then graduated to production assistant, but in the late 1980s he took the BBC’s directors training course. From 1988 to 1992 he produced children’s shows for BBC Manchester, and began writing for that division as well.

In 1991 Davies wrote his first television drama, Dark Season. Two years later he wrote Century Falls, technically a children’s show but dark enough that Davies realized he was better suited for adult programming. In 1992 he moved to Granada Television, producing and writing their children’s hospital drama Children’s Ward. He also began writing for several of Granada’s adult shows.

In the late ’90s Davies left Granada for Red Productions and created Queer as Folk and several other shows. He returned to the BBC in 2003 when they offered him his dream job, helming the revival of the long-running science-fiction series Doctor Who.

Since then, Davies has produced and often written not only Doctor Who but also two spin-off shows, Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures—he can be reasonably credited with introducing a new generation and much of the world to the adventuring Time Lord and his companions and friends.

Michael Chabon, Guillermo del Toro Among Nebula Award Winners

  • Uncategorized
  • April 27, 2008

The Science-Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America announced their annual Nebula Award winners this weekend in Austin, TX. The non-profit association honors writers of speculative fiction each year with the awards, and this year’s list of winners included some familiar names and series to fans of comics and science-fiction/fantasy:

Novel: The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon

Novella: "Fountain of Age" by Nancy Kress

Novelette: "The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate" by Ted Chiang

Short Story: "Always" by Karen Joy Fowler

Script: Pan’s Labyrinth by Guillermo del Toro

Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling

The group also held its annual election, which I probably wouldn’t report on here were it not for some of the intriguing write-in candidates for the positions. Spiro Agnew as Vice President, eh?

‘Iron Man’ Premieres Thursday at 8 PM

  • News
  • April 27, 2008

Hooray, hooray, the first of May; outdoor– er, Iron Man begins today!

Paramount is planning to open Iron Man at 8:00 PM on Thursday, May 1, instead of one minute past midnight on May 2nd as originally planned. The studio is apparently hoping that great word-of-mouth will help boost box-office business for the weekend.

Early buzz has been strong, let’s see how big a weekend it’s going to be, shall we? Place your bets in the comment section. I’m starting with $115 million for the first four days.

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