I’ve had a very interesting career in comics.

I’ve done some pretty interesting things in my career. Co-founded Milestone Media, created The Action Files, the only line of comics taught as a curriculum in the school system and created another universe, The Guardian Line, for African-American churches and Christian book stores.

When DC comics launched Piranha Press in 1987 I was the artist chosen to illustrate the first series for the line. The Black Panel, a comics and entertainment forum I started over a decade ago, is now in development as a TV show as is The Littlest Bitch (TLB) a book I co-wrote with David Quinn.

David and I first conceived TLB as a graphic novel on the New Jersey turnpike almost 20 years ago. We were driving home from The Kubert School where I was teaching a master illustration class and David was my guest speaker that day.

Speaking of TV, Static Shock, based on the character I co-created, can still be seen on a Disney channel, which cracks me up because Disney turned it down quick, fast and in a hurry when we pitched it there 10 years ago.

I’ve done some other pretty note worthy things (I think) in comics but I’m most proud of my mentor program. Some of the biggest names in comics have come through my program. I won’t bore you with the names but I will say that because of my self-funded mentor program I have four city proclamations and a school auditorium named in my honor.

I’ve also managed to carve out a bad boy type of reputation in the industry. That reputation has many origins, depending on whom you get the story from but that story is for another time. I will tell you this: when it comes to getting that bad boy rep, I have no one to blame but myself.

I don’t tell you some of what I’ve accomplished in comics to impress you but rather to impress upon you that is there is plenty of blame and help to go around and there lies within a tale, which just may help someone who’s trying to break in now. Sooo…

In 1987 I was offered and was right about to accept a position overseeing the art department at a very prestigious prep school. This was a dream job. They were going to pay me a fat salary, give me an on-campus apartment as part of my compensation package and all my meals were free. The only thing I had to pay for was my phone bill as there was also a clothing stipend.

That was a dream job, so why didn’t I take it? Those of you who hate me are thinking ‘Oh why, oh why, did that loud mouth mofo not take that job?’

In fact, I was going to take it. I had started packing my bags when Denys Cowan talked me into going to the Mid-Ohio con with him. As fate would have it I went to the Mid-Ohio Con to attend a very small but very cool comics convention.

It was clear when we got there, Denys knew everyone and everyone knew Denys. I did not know a soul there. Denys would often leave me alone to go and talk to some one, which left me to wander aimlessly around the convention. It was during one of these aimless walks that I met John Ostrander.

Wait a sec-before I go on I should let you know that I was (still am) a comic’s geek. Although I had a very good career going as an illustrator it was my dream to somehow work in comics.

John and I hit it off very well and before I knew it he was inviting me to Mike Grell’s room to watch the Sable pilot. I thought I had died and gone to Comic Book Heaven. I adored Mike Grell’s work. At the time he was my favorite artist on the planet! Later when Denys arrived I causally mention that I was going to Mike Grell’s room to watch the premier of his new TV show.

The look on Denys’ face was priceless. It said “how the hell did you manage that?” We still had some time (I told Denys he could come as my guest; you should have seen that look) so we decided to browse the convention floor.

If you know me, you are well aware I talk to everyone. I mean everyone. I’m just wired that way. Standing at an artist’s table looking at their work without uttering a sound is just freakin crazy to me.

Little did I know the two guys I was now chatting with would go on to change the industry in a huge way!

End of part 1.

WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold

Coming in October from Marvel Comics.

Based on the Novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Adaptation by Roger Langridge
Art by Filipe Andrade
Cover by Skottie Young
The comic-book adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ tale continues! See John Carter meet the beautiful but deadly Princess Dejah Thoris! Watch him make a dangerous enemy! And discover the fate of those who dare to cross the Martians, when Carter takes the life of a Thark warrior! The world of Barsoom continues to unfold in this brand new interpretation of a great classic.
32 PGS./All Ages …$2.99

JOHN CARTER of Mars: world of mars #1 (of 5)Based on the Novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Written by PETER DAVID
Art by LUKE ROSS
Cover by ESAD RIBIC
If you thought all the action on Mars began with the arrival of John Carter—are you in for a shock! John Carter: World of Mars is the official prequel to the upcoming Walt Disney Pictures blockbuster film releasing March 2012 and reveals the shocking events that transpire before the hotly anticipated motion picture! Plus it features some of the greatest characters ever conceived by Edgar Rice Burroughs, including Princess Dejah Thoris, the valiant, four-armed Tars Tarkas, John Carter and Burroughs himself!
Dejah Thoris has yet to meet the love of her life, but she has her hands full with the malicious Sab Than, would-be ruler of Zodanga, who sees kidnapping the princess of Mars as a short-cut to winning the thousand year war between his people and her city of Helium. Meanwhile Tars Tarkas is not yet the leader of his people, but instead an unambitious warrior who is caught between the desires of the female he loves and his best friend who needs Tars’s help to become Jeddak of the Tharks…assuming that his ambitions don’t kill them all. It’s a compelling tale of romance, court intrigue and an unending war on a distant world. Take an unforgettable journey to Barsoom. It’s a trip you can’t afford to miss!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

DOROTHY & THE WIZARD IN OZ #2 (Of 8)Written by ERIC SHANOWER
Art & Cover by SKOTTIE YOUNG
The Wizard of Oz is back and the Mangaboos have him! These deadly vegetable people also have Dorothy, her cousin Zeb, their horse Jim and kitten Eureka. To save their lives, the humbug Wizard must win a contest of magic against a real Sorcerer—using only his wits and nine tiny piglets. The beloved Oz adaptation continues with the critically acclaimed and Eisner Award winning team-up of Eric Shanower and Skottie Young.
32 PGS./All Ages …$2.99

BLACK PANTHER: THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN ALIVE #524Written by DAVID LISS
Pencils & Cover by FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA
SPIDER-ISLAND TIE-IN!
First it was American Panther, now it’s…Six-Armed Panther? The arachnid infection griping Manhattan hits T’Challa, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stop trying to protect Hell’s Kitchen! And when Overdrive breaks into the quarantine zone, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Panther swings into a deadly race across the streets of New York City. What has the Spidey villain stolen that’s worth smashing through a hero-protected border, and why is the lethal Lady Bullseye trying to keep him from getting back out?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99

AVENGERS 1959 #1 & #2 (Of 5)Written and Penciled by HOWARD CHAYKIN
Cover by HOWARD CHAYKIN
EXPLODING FROM THE PAGES OF NEW AVENGERS…
It’s the tail end of the fabulous fifties. NICK FURY and his AVENGERS roar into their secret mission, hunting down NAZI SUPER VILLAINS…men and women relentlessly preparing to unleash hell on a troubled world barely holding onto peace…only to find the Avengers have what appears to be serious competition in their manhunt for these escaped ubermenschen…when their mission is suddenly compromised by interference from an unlikely source.
32 PGS. (each)/Rated T+ …$2.99 (each)

CAPTAIN AMERICA #4Written by Ed Brubaker
Pencils & Cover by Steve McNiven
Fantastic Four Anniversary Variant by MARKO DJURDJEVIC
Brubaker and McNiven continue their heart-stopping run on Cap with a nightmarish trip down memory lane – and that’s bad news when your memory lane goes right through World War 2!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

RED SKULL #4 (of 5)Written by GREG PAK
Art by MIRKO COLAK
Cover by DAVID AJA
The life of Johann Schmidt has been a tragic, tortuous road. As his destiny and doom drag the future Red Skull to his inevitable crossroads, Johann plots a shocking assassination…one that could change the course of history… By the acclaimed writer of MAGNETO: TESTAMENT, Greg Pak, and the breakout SECRET WARRIORS artist, Mirko Colak
32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$2.99

CAPTAIN AMERICA AND BUCKY #623Written by ED BRUBAKER & MARC ANDREYKO
Penciled by CHRIS SAMNEE
Cover by ED McGUINNESS
Behind enemy lines! Bucky and Cap have faced the horrors of war on many fronts, but this issue, they go further into the depths of evil than our young heroes realized possible. And what is the secret that connects the Cap and Bucky series to the modern day stories – the clues begin to add up this issue, as Brubaker, Andreyko, and Samnee keep the pedal to the medal.
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99

THE PUNISHER #4Written by GREG RUCKA
Penciled by MARCO CHECCHETTO
Cover by BRYAN HITCH
MORE PAIN. MORE GAIN.
Last month, the Punisher fell. Hard. Now Frank Castle is a man brutally and violently broken and barely grasping onto life. And for Frank Castle… it means he’s more dangerous than ever.
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99

KA-ZAR #5 (Of 5)Written by PAUL JENKINS
Pencils & Cover by PASCAL ALIXE
The Pangean people confront their utmost limits as the calamity in the Savage Lands hits its critical apex. Corporate oil has seeped throughout the jungle and children perish from foreign remedies. Now two battles erupt that will ultimately decide the fate of Pangea. One man stands alone in the austere chambers of the United Nations, while one nation must finally rise against the threat from within. Amidst the bloodshed, can Ka-Zar protect the integrity of the land and people he swore to? Or will exploitation and internal strife ensure the destruction of his beloved home?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99

LEGION OF MONSTERS #1 (Of 4)Written by DENNIS HOPELESS
Art & Cover by JUAN DOE
A monster adventure to scream over!
Elsa Bloodstone hates monsters – and when the trail of a mysterious serial killer leads to their underground city, Elsa’s ready to kick some horrific butt. Morbius the Living Vampire, Werewolf by Night, the Living Mummy and the slithery Manphibian have news for her, though; the monsters are innocent, and the real killer is out there…a creature so terrifying and vicious that even monsters are scared to death! Elsa Bloodstone and the Legion of Monsters are on the case!
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

PUNISHERMAX #18Written by JASON AARON
Penciled by STEVE DILLON
Cover by DAVE JOHNSON
The Punisher is at his lowest point. Homeless, penniless, gun-less. But none of this changes the fact that he’s got his sights aimed squarely on the most powerful man in the country: the Kingpin of Crime. Fearing for his life and paranoid, the Kingpin brings in a new bodyguard, the best money can buy: a hard-as-nails woman going by the name of Elektra.
32 PGS./Explicit Content …$3.99

PUNISHERMAX: FRANK PREMIERE HCWritten by JASON AARON
Penciled by STEVE DILLON
Cover by DAVE JOHNSON
His final confrontation with Bullseye left Frank Castle wounded and reeling in more ways than one. Now confined to a prison hospital bed, Frank must begin the long painful process of healing — not just his broken body, but also his horribly scarred soul. To do that, he’ll have to face the darkest secret of his past — one he’d hoped would stay buried forever. Collecting PUNISHERMAX (2010) #12-16.
120 PGS./Explicit Content …$19.99
ISBN: 978-0-7851-5208-8
Trim size: standard

For a full listing of Marvel’s October Release, visit them at http://www.marvel.com/.

“There’s no one quite like MY Flying Glory” This week’s page is all about people past and present who felt they could OWN Flying Glory. All part of Issue 14 “Reverberations” as we continue to celebrate the
10th Anniversary of FLYING GLORY AND THE HOUNDS OF GLORY
Read it at: http://www.flying-glory.com/

In Lone Justice, we presented the story of a superhero whose millionaire secret identity fell on hard times during what is politely termed an economic downturn. Well, according to this vacation rental listing on Trip Advisor, Lone Justice isn’t the only fellow having problems:

Situated in the grand expanse of the Thomas and Martha Wayne estate on the outskirts of Gotham City, Wayne Manor welcomes guests with centuries-old charm combined with the very latest technological amenities to ensure your stay is as memorable as the day your parents died.

Relax in the misty gray sunshine on the spacious greens for a damp stroll in the afternoon, or in the event of clear skies enjoy a cocktail at your choice of either Olympic-sized swimming pools. In the evening, retire from your day of sun or drizzle into the renown Wayne Library, its towering walls lined with original printings ranging from classic Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to the latest reflections upon Jungian psychological individualization theory. Please note that vistors traveling with busts of family members should be advised not to leave them on display near any large windows, as such statuettes have been known to attract some of the more aggressive–however stately and noble!–nocturnal wildlife of the manor grounds.

Our one-man hospitality staff allows Wayne Manor to remain affordable for any guest budget; there’s no need to be world-travelling celebrity photojournalist or the daughter of an Arabian mystic to enjoy a luxurious weekend with us!

And at only $2000 a week, it’s within almost anybody’s price range. We know where we’re spending the High Holy Days…

I came home from work on Friday to find a package had arrived from Amazon. It was Supergods, by Grant Morrison. I had first heard about the book while reading the Rolling Stone interview with Morrison, which I mentioned last week. Between that interview and all the hoo-hah about Action Comics Vol. 2 #1, both my own reaction and those in the media, I had to read it.

(The debate continues, by the way. Today, Sunday, National Pubic Radio – NPR – devoted a segment of its “Studio 60” program to the reboot, with two interviews: the first with a comic book shop owner in Brooklyn, and the second with Jill Pantozzi, who herself is a redhead and in a wheelchair. Jill wrote an absolutely brilliant and terrific Op-Ed piece for Newsarama about the transformation of Oracle back into Batgirl, entitled Oracle Is Stronger Than Batgirl Will Ever Be. You should check it out.)

Anyway, back to Supergods. The subtitle is “What Masked Vigilantes, Miraculous Mutants, And A Sun God from Smallville Can Teach Us About Being Human.” I’ve only read the introduction, and browsed through it, and already I’m enthralled.

Now granted (no pun intended – or maybe it was), Morrison is not the first to write about the mythology, the übergeist – I think I just made up that one from a combination of Yiddish and German – the collective consciousness of humans creating heroes to reflect themselves, their darkness and their light, their trial and tribulations. If you didn’t have to read it in college, you learned about Joseph Campbell and The Hero With A Thousand Faces from George Lucas through a little thing called Star Wars. But as one of the preeminent contemporary writers of superheroes, I can’t wait to really sit down and read it.

I think about God a lot. When I was a little girl, I had this recurring dream. I was somewhere in the middle of a field. It looked like the field in “Christina’s World” by Andrew Wyeth, complete with the farmhouse at the top of the hill. Of course it was a dream, so it was a totally warped “Christina’s World.” I was standing there, and it was blue skies and sun. All of a sudden the sky was black with clouds. There was an absolutely huuuuge clap of thunder and a lightning bolt, and suddenly God was standing before me. Well, all I could see was the bottom of his long, black Supreme Court Justice robe. I craned my head up and back and up and back and the robe went up and up and up beyond the sky. Then God bent over, and I could see His face, and it wasn’t happy. His long white hair and beard mixed with the grasses of the field, and He looked at me with stern black eyes, and just shook his finger at me as if to say, “You’re a bad, bad girl, Mindy.”

I don’t know why I dreamed that dream. Probably got punished by my mother or my father for something I did that I don’t remember. Talk about Jewish guilt!

God and theology continued to fascinate me as I grew up. I didn’t go to Hebrew school, wasn’t bas-mitzvahed, and I got kicked out of Communion class for asking the rabbi how the Jews could be so sure that Jesus wasn’t the Son of God, and saying that maybe we just screwed it up. (I asked a lot of questions that the rabbi didn’t like, like the time I asked him if Jonathan and David were maybe more than “just friends.”) But I read all the stories from the Old Testament that my brother brought home, and I read bits and pieces of The New Testament. I devoured movies like The Robe and Quo Vadis, and brought the books home from the library. My favorite though was, and still is, Ben-Hur.

There’s a line in Ben-Hur towards the end, when Esther and Judah Ben-Hur are taking his mother and sister from the Valley of Lepers to see Jesus. Judah’s mother is afraid, and Esther says, “No need. The world is more than we know.”

I know it was only a line in a movie, but I think the writer got it right.

Like Grant Morrison’s Animal Man, maybe the world was created by God because he’s a writer, and that’s what writers do, create, and we’re just the four-color two-dimensional characters in his comic book. Like Alan Moore’s Promethea, maybe we create the world out of our collective consciousness. Like Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, the world is nothing but a dream set in motion by Morpheus.

Maybe there’s an obelisk on the Moon, just waiting to be discovered.

TUESDAY: Michael Davis