Category: News

Is Jim Starlin gearing up for a lawsuit over Thanos?

Jim Starlin has offered proof that he created Thanos, leading to speculation that he may launch a lawsuit against Marvel Comics.

The writer and artist has posted an early concept drawing of the Mad Titan from before he began working at the publisher, reports The Beat.

Interest in the character is growing following his cameo in The Avengers movie, the speculation of an upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy film and the announcement of a Thanos: Son of Titan miniseries from Joe Keatinge and Richard Elson.

“This is probably one of the first concept drawings of Thanos I ever did, long before I started working at Marvel,” Starlin wrote on his Facebook page. “Jack Kirby’s Metron is clearly the more dominant influence in this character’s look. Not Darkseid.”

“Both D and T started off much smaller than they eventually became. This was one of the drawings I had in my portfolio when I was hired by Marvel. It was later inked by Rich Buckler.”

Marvel is reportedly struggling to find records relating to the period in the mid-’70s when Thanos debuted in its comics.

“This is the second film that had something I created for Marvel in it – the Infinity Gauntlet in Thor being the other – and both films I had to pay for my own ticket to see them,” Starlin previously said.

“Financial compensation to the creators of these characters doesn’t appear to be part of the equation.”

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AIRSHIP 27 ENTERS THE REALM OF LICENSED WORK WITH ‘CAPTAIN ACTION’ PULP NOVEL DEBUT!

CAPTAIN ACTION – PULP HERO!
Airship 27 Productions, one of the premier publishers in the New Pulp movement, and Captain Action Enterprises, licensors of the popular Captain Action toy line, have joined forces to produce the first ever Captain Action pulp novel, “Riddle of the Glowing Men,” by Jim Beard.  The book debuts this Aug. at Pulp Fest in Columbus, Ohio.
“We are tremendously excited to be working with Joe Ahearn and Ed Catto of Captain Action Enterprises,” said Airship 27 Productions’ Managing Editor, Ron Fortier.  “This is the first time we’ve ever put together a title based on a highly popular and successful license.”
Captain Action is based on the action figure created in 1966 by Stan Weston for Ideal Toys. He came equipped with a wardrobe of costumes allowing him to become many different heroes such as Batman, The Lone Ranger, the Green Hornet and many more. In 1967, Captain Action proved so popular that the line was expanded to include a sidekick, Action Boy and a blue skinned alien foe with bug eyes, the nefarious Dr. Evil.  The following year, DC Comics licensed the character from Ideal and published five issues of Captain Action featuring industry luminaries such as Jim Shooter, Wally Wood and Gil Kane.

Since 2005, Captain Action Enterprises, has been producing an array of exciting new collectibles, including statues, toys, comics, trading cards, and apparel.  Still, the one remaining venue the enduring hero had yet to conquer was that of a prose novel.  Enter veteran writer Jim Beard, a life-long fan of the character.  “Jim approached us late last year with this idea for a Captain Action pulp novel,” recalls Catto. “We were immediately intrigued by the possibilities and began seriously exploring the idea.”
It was Beard who then brought Ahearn and Catto to Airship 27 Productions.  “At the time I’d just finished my first book for Airship 27,” Beard elaborates.  “Impressed with their industry leading quality and professionalism, I knew they were the right people to usher Captain Action into the fast-paced world of pulpdom.”

The challenge of doing a licensed property appealed to Fortier and his partner and Art Director, Rob Davis and they signed on.  Their first goal was to assemble the finest art team possible. This was achieved by recruiting the talented cover painter, Nick Runge.  Runge’s work on such IDW titles as Angel & Terminator –Salvation has spotlighted him as being one of the finest new artists in the graphic field today.  Davis himself took on the task of doing the nine interior illustrations while also designing the entire package.

“Riddle of the Glowing Men,” is set in the sixties where secret agent, Miles Drake, aka, Captain Action, is attacked at A.C.T.I.O.N. headquarters by several assassins whose green skin glows as if radiated.  In the process of learning the identity of these killers and the reason behind their attack, Captain Action teams with a beautiful female Russian agent and their quest leads them to a hidden civilization under the frozen wasteland of Siberia. “Jim Beard has written a terrific, authentic Captain Action adventure,” applauds Fortier. “It perfectly captures the break-neck speed and thrills of the early pulps only with today’s modern sensibilities. This book is sure to appeal to both Captain Action fans and new pulp enthusiasts alike.”
Joe Ahearn and Ed Catto will be hosting a Captain Action panel at this year’s San Diego Comic Con with further details about other exciting plans for the classic hero.  Artist Nick Runge will also be present at his table in Artist Alley.  Fortier, Davis and Beard will be in attendance at Pulp Fest and will announce the book’s actual publication date.

About Captain Action Enterprises

As Retropreneurs, Captain Action Enterprises, LLC specializes in taking old properties and rejuvenating them for a new generation. Captain Action now appears in an on-going comic book series, lithographs, statues, action figures, T-shirts, model kits and an iPhone app. Additional properties include Lady Action, the Zeroids and Savage Beauty. For additional information, contact ed.catto@bonfireagency.com.


About Airship 27 Productions

Begun in 2004 to produce new novels and anthologies featuring classic, public domain pulp heroes of the 30s and 40s, Airship 27 Productions was one of the major factors behind the pulp renaissance which evolved into the New Pulp Movement.  Today they have over fifty titles in their ever expanding catalog, sell both hard copy and digital versions of their books and will soon be launching audio books of their titles. They can be found at airship27hangar.com



FIGHT CARD DEBUTS ‘A MOUTH FULL OF BLOOD’!

The latest release from New Pulp powerhouse publisher Fight Card is the first sequel in the series!



A year after the pulse-pounding action of Split Decision, Jimmy Wyler is back in Chicago trying to put his life back together. Working a job washing dishes in a late night diner, Jimmy vows to never get into a boxing ring again.

But then, someone needs him. Leo, a teenaged boy who fights hard against the city every day, could use a man like Jimmy. To help save him from his alcoholic father, and to save his only sister from a pimp bent on turning her out.
Jimmy must fight again. Fight for the ones who can?t fight for themselves. It will take him from fistfights in back alleys to no rules bouts with crowds screaming for blood and all the way back to the orphanage where he grew up. Along the way, blood will be spilled and knuckles will be bruised.
More white-knuckle action and epic fights from the Fightcard series.
Praise for Split Decision: It was unpredictable; it put its main protagonist through the ringer; and didn’t take the soft option for the resolution. It’s that kind of story. I finished it in one sitting. It’s that entertaining. Highly recommended.- Permission To Kill
Split Decision is a prime example of the sort of variety and adventurous storytelling we can expect from the Fight Card series, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Highly recommended.- James Reasoner, author of Dust Devils and The Blood Mesa
Split Decision hooked me. Allow enough time to read the whole thing at one sitting, you’re not going to want to put it down.- Mike Faricy, author of Russian Roulette and Finders Keepers
Available now in Paperback on Amazon and as an Ebook for Your Kindle!

Stan Lee Talks About His Cameo in The Amazing Spider-Man

The Amazing Spider-Man Stan Lee Banner

Before you head out to see “The Amazing Spider-Man,” now in theaters and IMAX 3D, watch Spidey’s creator Stan “The Man” Lee as he shares more about his cameo in the film in a special vignette below!

Check out the full clip right here on Marvel.com, and for more Webslinging-action, see Spidey outrun New York’s finest or school Flash Thompson in some basketball. Better yet, get a glimpse of the villainous Lizard as he terrorizes Gwen Stacy!

 

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A CLick Survival Guide for Comic-Con International

With Comic-Con International, ak.a. San Diego Comic-Con, now just days, almost hours, away, those traveling to the extravaganza are packing to hit the road. There are several noteworthy survival guides we can recommend to those of you less familiar with what it’s like being there. Tom Spurgeon at The Comics Reporter has his valued 150 tips, the gold standard of advice.

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But our friends over at Click Communications has also assembled a witty Survival Guide of their own. Click is a leading media public relations firm and we’ve been dealing with them for years. They talk the talk, walk the walk, and have plenty of good pieces of advice to share along with thumbnails on many of the properties near and dear to their hearts. While Tom’s tips are good for everyone, even veterans, this guide is great for newcomers and those who don’t speak Geek as fluently as the rest of us.

They explained to us, “This guide began as a way to offer some helpful tips—and a little entertainment—to anyone working the Con who might not count down the days ‘til July the way we do.  Now in its fifth year, our simple How-To manual has grown into something that “n00bs” and nerds alike can appreciate. This year, the guide also features original artwork from some talented, up & coming comic book artists: Tess Fowler, Tony Fleecs, and Scott Arnold.”

Since you’ll be stuck on lines for a good portion of the con, they have even come up with a useful way to pass the time: The Click Communications Comic Con Survival Kit Contest!

Enter to win a Survival Kit of your very own by visiting our blog, or join us in playing Comic-Con Bingo.  Grab the Bingo card from the back of the Guide and share your pics online via Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest to line up your finds to win fabulous prizes while in San Diego.  For more information, and to enter to win, visit either here or here.

Now for Click’s OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER:

Click’s Comic-Con Survival Guide is just a little something they put together for your information and our amusement. There’s zero guarantee that the information they found online is 100% reliable.  After all, release dates change, actors need rewrites, directors run out of budget, writers go…insane. Things happen. Since we all know that, no one should take any of the information contained within as locked-in gospel or anything. Okay?  Okay.

PRO SE ANNOUNCES STUNNING ADDITION TO 2012 PUBLISHING CALENDAR!

Pro Se Productions, a leading publisher in the New Pulp Movement, announces an addition to its already dynamic publishing calendar for 2012!


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“Even though the New Pulp Movement,” stated Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se Productions, “is still in its infancy, relatively speaking, there have already been some writers and works that stand out.  Authors and books who will truly be remembered as being the best of what New Pulp has to offer and considered classics by those after us, and even by many today. One such book from the last two years was “Sun Koh: Heir of Atlantis” written by Dr. Art. Sippo.   Pro Se is extremely proud to announce that we will be publishing and promoting Volume Two of The Collected Stories of Sun Koh, tentatively titled ‘ Quest of the Secret Masters’ written once again by Dr. Art Sippo.”


According to Sippo, “Sun Koh was a character created by Paul Mueller for Germany’s pulp magazines who was based on Doc Savage. He was intended to be the Nietzschean Übermensch. He was an Aryan prince from ancient Atlantis who came to the future and descended out of the sky to land in London. He had come to prepare for the coming of the next Ice Age when Atlantis would rise again from the ocean. He would save all those who were fit to survive and use them to repopulate the lost continent. Of course, those he considered to be most fit were of Aryan/German extraction according to the theories of the Theosophists whose mythology had been taken over by the Nazis.”


“Between 1933 and 1938 there were 150 Sun Koh stories published. Sun Koh epitomized the Aryan ideal and fought all sorts of villains and super-science threats very similar to those from the Doc Savage stories.  Strangely enough, the Nazis found these stories frivolous and in some cases subversive. Eventually they forced the series to end and Mueller had Sun Koh discover and conquer the newly risen Atlantis inside the Hollow Earth in 1938. That brought an end to the series.”


Cover of original Sun Koh Pulp

Sippo continued, “Sun Koh was the most successful of all the Doc Savage clones (if we exclude the comic characters like Superman and Batman). I was fascinated by the idea of such a character having so many adventures in a language that I could not read. I became frustrated and decided to write my own stories about Sun Koh preserving as much of the original adventure ideas as possible and excluding all the Nazi nonsense.”


“We are ecstatic,” Hancock stated, “to be a part of the work Art is doing with this great character.   He has taken a character that could have been lost to history and even more, marred by the country and period it originated in, and using the original tales and roots of the story, created and woven an intelligent, action packed adventure that not only does not skirt the philosophical issues involved, but instead turns them on their ear by showing Sun Koh to be more than what label anyone puts on him.   Art writes him as, even as a Prince of Atlantis, a very human hero who has to make choices about what sort of man he will be in the world around him.”


“Quest of the Secret Masters” is currently in production and will be published in late 2012 from Pro Se Productions!   Press releases featuring more information and interviews with Dr. Sippo and more will follow in coming weeks as publication approaches!


Pro Se Productions-Puttin’ the Monthly Back Into Pulp! 

For interviews and further information, please contact Tommy Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net.



Monkeybrain and ComiXology announce exclusive distribution agreement for Monkeybrain’s new line of independent creator-owned comics

MonkeyBrain, Inc.

 

A press release from Chip Mosher of ComiXology.com:

 

New York Times bestselling comic book creator Chris Roberson is celebrating “Independents Day” a little differently than others this year as he and co-publisher Allison Baker launch MonkeyBrain Comics, with a slate of creator-owned titles from some of the top names in the field. MonkeyBrain Comics will debut digitally first on comiXology—the revolutionary digital comics platform with over 75 million comic and graphic novel downloads to date—through a exclusive distribution agreement between the two companies.

 

Joining Roberson (iZombie, Memorial, Cinderella) under the Monkeybrain Comics umbrella with their own independent titles will be a who’s who line up of creators, including: Grace Allison, Nick Brokenshire, J. Bone, Chad Bowers, Wook-Jin Clark, Colleen Coover, Kevin Church, Dennis Culver, Matt Digges, Ming Doyle, Curt O. Franklin, Ken Garing, Chris Haley, David Hahn, Phil Hester, Joe Keatinge, D.J. Kirkbride, Adam Knave, Axel Medellin, Jennifer L. Meyer, Michael Montenat, Ananth Panagariya, Thomas Perkins, Adam Rosenlund, Chris Schweitzer, Brandon Seifert, Chris Sims, Matthew Dow Smith, Paul Tobin, J. Torres, Josh Williamson and Bill Willingham, among others.

 

More creative teams with new titles will be announced next week at Comic-Con International during the Monkeybrain Comics panel on Friday, July 13th at 7PM.

 

“MonkeyBrain Comics was born out of a desire to directly explore what opportunities there were in the newly expanding digital marketplace for creator owned material,” said Roberson. “We knew from the get go that we’d want to work exclusively with comiXology, who have become the undisputed leader in the digital comics field with their platforms’ unparalleled reading and shopping experience. And we’re pleased to have so many of our close creator friends along for the ride. I can’t wait to see what fans around the world think about our first batch of releases!”

 

“We’re excited to be the exclusive digital home of MonkeyBrain Comics,” says co-founder and CEO David Steinberger. “ComiXology’s mission is to get comics into the hands of people everywhere and we look forward to doing just that with Chris and Allison’s stellar line of creator owned comics!”

MonkeyBrain Comics is a new comics imprint of Roberson and Baker’s long-running publishing company MonkeyBrain Books. Over the past decade, MonkeyBrain Books has published a line of prose novels by authors such as Phillip Jose Farmer, Michael Moorcock, Rudy Rucker, Paul Cornell and genre collections edited by such notables as Joe R. Lansdale, Lou Anders and others.

Launching their first titles on July 4th with the slogan “Independents Day” exclusively on the comiXology digital platform, Monkeybrain Comics are currently exploring following up their digital releases with trade paperback collections.

 

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The Point Radio: Heading On The HAUNTED HIGHWAY


Some spooky stuff, different venue. SyFy takes us to where the creatures are just off the road in the new series, HAUNTED HIGHWAY. Star Investigator Jael DePardo, along with Devin Marble, tell us what makes this show really scary. Meanwhile, Marvel says “It’s not a reboot”, but????

The Point Radio is on the air right now – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun for FREE. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE on any computer or mobile device– and please check us out on Facebook right here & toss us a “like” or follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

Get the Gringo Swag and More at Comic-Con International

Get the Gringo, the latest action-comedy starring Mel Gibson, will be making its debut on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Download July 17, 2012

Before the film comes home, it will be making an appearance at SDCC at Fox Booth #4313, where attendees can pre-order the film and participate in numerous activities. Fans will also be treated to loads of cool swag, including an exclusive mini-poster where fans are tasked to find the ‘Gringo’s’.

In addition to the mini-posters, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment will be hosting a few fun activities to promote the release, including photo-ops with Lucha libre wrestlers and sexy ring girls (on Friday, July 13 and Saturday, July 14, 2012).

Attendees can also take part in the #GetheGringo San Diego Comic-con social media experience. The ring girls will be carrying posters with an exclusive QR code and fans who scan the code, post photos of the wrestlers via Twitter (using #GettheGringo) or upload pictures to Facebook, will receive a voucher for a free taco from Lucha Libre Taco Shop in San Diego.

Fans are also be encouraged to ‘like’ Get the gringo on Facebook via: https://www.facebook.com/GetTheGringo

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Written produced by and starring Mel Gibson, Get the Gringo is an explosive action filmed infused with dark comedy directed by Adrian Grunberg from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mel Gibson and produced by Mel Gibson, Bruce Davey and Stacy Perskie. Filmed in Mexico, the multi-lingual film also stars Daniel Gimenez Cacho, Jesus Ochoa, Roberto Sosa, Dolores Heredia, Kevin Hernandez, Fernando Becerril, Mayra Serbullo, Mario Zaragoza, Gerardo Taracena, Tenoch Huerta and Peter Gerety.

During a high-speed car chase with the US Border Patrol and a bleeding body in his back seat, Driver (Mel Gibson) violently crashes his car into the border wall as he tries to outrun them.  Driver survives the crash only to land inside a hard-core Mexican prison where he enters the strange and dangerous world of “El Pueblito.”  He finds unlikely guidance from a 10-year-old kid who shows him the ropes.

Avengers Second Screen App now Available

Marvel Studios has announced that people with iPods and iPads can now download the Avengers Second Screen app to access additional bonus material to extend your Avengers film experience.

Here’s the fact sheet:

App Overview:                     Second Screen transforms the movie watching experience by allowing viewers to explore the story behind the film perfectly synched on a second device, like an iPad™ or laptop, without interrupting their enjoyment of the movie. By accessing the Second Screen companion application on their Internet-connected device, consumers are able to dive deeper into the film by engaging with key elements of the movie.

This groundbreaking new application allows users to interact with their Blu-ray™ player by simply starting the Blu-ray movie, and then syncing Second Screen to the film automatically by following the easy on-screen instructions.  Once connected, they can explore interactive galleries, play games, and learn interesting facts about the scenes they’re watching.

Features:                              Enter the S.H.I.E.L.D. database on your second screen device accessing personnel files, comic book origins and exclusive interactive content with The Avengers Initiative: A Marvel Second Screen Experience. By downloading the app, you can:

–          Become a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and participate in the Item 47 Comic-Con experience either remotely or in the field.

–          Examine the confidential files of the Avengers including heroes, agents and villains.

–          Sync to the movie and explore exclusive behind-the-scenes interactive content such as visual effects labs where you can explore sequences layer by layer.

–          Seamlessly link the characters, stories, and scenes of the movie back to their comic book origins through the interactive Marvel digital reader.

–          View the major events of the Marvel Cinematic Universe – Phase 1 on the definitive timeline of all 6 movies.

Devices:                                                iPad or PC/MAC computer with FLASH

Formats:                               Optimized for Blu-ray™ and included in Combo Pack releases.

NEW – Now works with iTunes Extras

Access:                                  Visit http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/avengers-initiative-marvel/id539555261?mt=8

Select your version (either iPad™ or Web)

Sync to the movie or explore on your own

Currently only available in US and English-speaking Canada

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