Alan Moore’s artist’s proof of the Randy Bowen sculpted Marvelman/Miracleman statue has been donated to the Comix4Sight.com auction to benefit comics’ legend John Ostrander. The benefit auction will be held Saturday, August 8 at 7:30 PM at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Rosemont, Illinois, as part of this year’s annual Chicago Comic-Con.

John Ostrander is a 30-year veteran of the comics field and a playwright facing the possibility of blindness from glaucoma. He is in the midst of a series of difficult operations to protect his remaining eyesight and, like a growing number of Americans, needs to supplement his insurance in order to cover the surgeries.

“With Marvel Comics having announced in San Diego that Marvel has acquired ownership of all rights to the Marvelman/Miracleman character, bringing him back to the public after more than 20 years, and knowing Neil Gaiman’s support for the Comix4Sight efforts for John, we thought that nothing would be more in demand than a high end Marvelman/Miracleman item.” program coordinator Adriane Nash stated.  “By good fortune, Ken F. Levin, attorney for Neil Gaiman’s Marvels & Miracles company, is a long-time close friend of John’s.  Neil Gaiman has also been most supportive of our efforts.  When Ken heard about the auction, Ken spoke to Neil and Alan Moore, and Alan– also a John Ostrander friend– gave the statue to us for John’s benefit with Alan’s blessing.”

The statue is an extremely rare Randy Bowen “Artist’s Proof,” which almost never make their way to the marketplace. As an added bonus, the statue itself has been signed by co-designer Neil Gaiman. Finally, to further identify the statue’s uniqueness, the lucky buyer will also receive a certificate of authenticity from Marvels & Miracles, identifying it as Alan Moore’s own.  “We greatly appreciate the support and assistance from Neil, Alan and Ken, particularly right when the Marvel Comics agreement has been announced,” Nash stated. Ken F. Levin has agreed to be on hand to personally auction the piece.

The auction will be held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Rosemont, Illinois, next to the Chicago Comic Con being held at the Rosemont Convention Center. The event is being co-sponsored by Wizard Entertainment, publishers of Wizard Magazine, and is being covered live at getthepointradio.com.

With the Chicago Comic-Con and WorldCon both around the bend, you may be tempted to waste your days away at the panels off the main floor. But I say, gentle geeks… NAY! Why waste your precious con time in stuffy rooms with stale ice water and tons of other mouth-breeders, when you can peruse the artist alley (where local, hip and trendy comic creators like to be… ahem…), grab schwag at the big booths (or not if YOUR local con has no big booths this year… epic fail…) or spend all of your inheritance on the dealer floor!

But Marc, you plead, I’m tired! I want to make my voice heard! I need to learn hot new tips and skills on how to make my portfolio Marvel worthy! Well, I said it once, and yes… I say it again: NAY. Why, you ask? Because ALL panels at comic conventions break down into one of these top 6 over-done panels:

1. “Mondo-Nation-Neighborhood-Universal-Pow-Wow”
Yup, this is the stalwart gotta-go-to panel they hype and hype and hype. Hey! Do you want HOT, never-seen-before, uber-rare, special sneak previews of all the things to come?! Well cart your XXL self on down to Hall H for a sensational panel that’s sure to knock your sock and sandals combo clear off! Drooling yet? Well, sop it up, fanboy. Thanks to the interwebs, all you’re gonna get is a rehash of the solicits you read about months ago on ComicMix, IGN, Newsarama, Comic Book Resources, CSN, or a hundred other places. And those special sneak peaks you’re just vibrating to see? Yup… posted on the artist’s message boards about the same time you were reading those months-old solicits! And you were counting on some tantalizing rumors about all your favorite characters? Well Bucko, are you in for a treat! Turns out the big boys can’t tell you anything you can’t (and most likely DID) read in Wizard itself, last month. Sounds fun? Sounds to me like 2 hours of time you could have spent waiting in line to get that Red Hulk Sketch Holofoil Variant Cover 17B signed, kiddo.

(more…)