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The Comancheros
At a time when movie stars were truly larger-than-life and iconic, few stood taller and were more memorable than John Wayne. The Duke more or less played himself, the tall, laconic keeper of the moral code regardless of era or genre. He’s best remembered for his work in Westerns, ultimately earning his one Oscar for True Grit, a tribute to a career spent along the dusty trails of a bygone America.
Bit by bit, Wayne’s oeuvre is being preserved on DVD and now Blu-ray, with [[[The Comancheros]]] being the most recent offering. In time for the perfect Father’s Day gift, the deluxe package from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment offers up one of Wayne’s last big Westerns just as interest in the genre was beginning to wane. The movie is well regarded by many Western fans and Elmer Bernstein’s score has lived on, well beyond the film itself, used elsewhere ever since (including The Simpsons). It also has the historical footnote of being the final film from director Michael Curtiz, beloved for his earlier work on The Adventures of Robin Hood and Casablanca. He was laid low early on by cancer and Wayne himself took over much of the directing but refused credit. Second unit action sequences were handled by Cliff Lyons. The unfortunate many hands approach probably led to the film feeling incredibly uneven, talky without much punch to the dialogue sequences, and sluggishly paced for the first third. (more…)
ALL PULP REVIEWS-FORTIER TAKES ON ‘GHOSTS OF WAR’!
GHOSTS OF WAR
By George Mann
Pyr Books
231 pages
Available July 2011
Hot on the heels of earning a Pulp Factory Award nomination for Best Pulp Novel of 2010 for GHOST OF MANHATTAN, writer George Mann unleashes the second novel in this steampunk series. Although considering the archetype pulp trappings these books are totally saturated with, one would suggest labeling them steampulp.
This new adventure of Gabriel Cross, the haunted veteran of World War One who protects New York City as the rocket-boot propelled, black garbed vigilante known as the Ghost, begins only a few weeks after the end of his last, horrific case. He is still emotionally wounded having witnessed his lover, Celeste, sacrifice herself to save mankind from outer-dimensional monsters.
When a new threat to his city arises, he gratefully dons his Ghost garb and goes into action. Weird hybrid mechanical flying creatures called Raptors are swooping out of the night sky and randomly kidnapping people with no apparent pattern or purpose other than to cause city wide terror. The Ghost sets about catching one of these horrible monstrosities with the help of his friend, Inspector Felix Donovan, who shares his secret identity.
At the same time, Donovan is given the task of hunting down a British spy by his superiors. He is told the secret agent is a catalyst with information that will ignite a war between England and America. When elements from both assignments suddenly come together, the Ghost and Donovan begin to suspect a much darker plot with tendrils leading to corruption among the highest ranks of City Hall. In the end the Ghost allows himself to be captured by the raptors and taken to their hidden lair. It is his one chance to uncover the evil mastermind behind the attacks and discover the true horror that awaits all mankind unless he and his small band of allies can save the day.
Hideous creatures from another dimension, a mad scientist more machine than man, an armed, massive airship on a mission of doom and more thrill-a-minute action than any other ten, oversized thrillers on the market today. GHOSTS OF WAR is even better then its predecessor as Mann is truly warming up to this alternate world and his remarkable, colorful and appealing cast of characters that populate it. This is new pulp fiction at its finest and I’m predicting there’s another Pulp Factory Award nod in its future. Long live the Ghost!
Rapture Ready Comics: ‘Dies Illa’ from Wasteland #3
There’s a lot of chatter about an event that may or may not happen tomorrow.
(SPOILER: It won’t happen. See Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32.)
For what will become obvious reasons, it reminded me of this story from John Ostrander and David Lloyd from Wasteland #3, February 1988 from DC Comics.
As for me, I plan to spend Friday night going out and leaving strategically placed piles of clothes and shoes.
Artwork ©1988 DC Comics.
Amazon Now Sells More eBooks Than Paper Books
Yesterday. the future arrived.
[[[Amazon]]] announced that eBooks are now the most popular sales format on Amazon.com, outselling the joint sales of hardback and paperback books. Since April 1, 2011, for every 100 print books Amazon has sold, it has sold 105 Kindle editions. It took Amazon just about four years to make that statement come true, and it represents the tipping point.
Related to that, the Association of American Publishers released new sales figures for March 2011, and eBook sales were up from last year, but down from February 2011. March eBook sales totaled $69.9 million, compared to $90.3 million in February 2011. Still, this was a big increase from March 2010, which saw $28.1M in sales (a 145.7% increase).
And yes, they’re cannibalizing paper sales.
So far, we don’t have numbers on what it’s doing for comic sales, although Apple has stated that the most in-app purchases have come from comic book programs, although no one’s quoting hard numbers yet. But it will only be a matter of time and display technology.
As for me, I don’t feel like Kevin McCarthy screaming in traffic quite so much anymore.
WHAT? NOT ENOUGH PULP ARK YET? YES, THERE’S MORE…
You say you don’t have enough PULP ARK yet? Well, others agree with you…for instance…
THE BOOK CAVE
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| Ric Croxton (left) and Art Sippo in PULP ARK’s Dungeon
Ric and Art are running recorded interviews, panels, classrooms, and general chatter from PULP ARK all this week! If you missed it, listen to the magic! If you were there, relive the wonder one more time!
Or if you’re more of a visual person, then check this out from Friday night (recorded by Derrick Ferguson)
And if you want to watch a scene or two from the exclusive PULP ARK drama, THE CASE OF THE BLOODY PULP, you can watch these provided by Van Plexico!
Enjoy!
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PULP ARK DAY THREE-WRAPPIN’ IT UP
Sunday, May 15th, 2011
PULP ARK came to a close at 12 Noon, May 15th, 2011. That was four days ago. Still, the internet is alive with pictures, comments, ideas, threads, and remembrances of a three days that we will never forget. There are even more pictures below. I had planned to do a major article here, but I won’t. Instead I’ll say-There will be a PULP ARK 2012, most of the guests who were there for the first time around have already committed to return. And I’ll also say…
Thank you. Thank you all.
Tommy Hancock
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| And for some, the Con went on! |
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| RADIO LIVES AGAIN! |
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| Derrick Ferguson and Art Sippo |
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| Derrick Ferguson and Lee Houston, Jr. |
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| Bobby Nash and Van Plexico |
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| Fuller Bumpers and Bobby Nash |
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| Ron Fortier and the Domino Lady |
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| Lee Houston, Jr. |
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| Terry Alexander and his lovely wife |
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| And The Pulptress awaits your return next year to PULP ARK 2012! |
ComicMix Quick Picks: May 19, 2011
Closing them in our browsers so you can open them on yours…
- In honor of the start of principal photography on The Dark Knight Rises, we present this picture from Dan Hipp.
- A Guide To The Complete Works Of Newt Gingrich, Novelist: With special thanks to William R. Fortschen. (Publishing humor, ain’t it hilarious?)
- And if we include comic writers, the averages get worse.
- Syfyâs Craig Engler Responds To Fans Of âStargate Universeâ In Wake Of Cancellation: There’s no easy way to go after this without picking on Craig, but it seems to me he’s oversimplifying things here. Still, a decent primer for the average person on many of the points that go into a cancellation, with lessons that can be applied to why your favorite comic book got the axe.
- Free Comic Book Day 2011: A Look Back | The Beat – Torsten Adair gives a balanced look back at the long-term success over the last ten years, at something I still think should be focused at Halloween as well.
- What Really Happens After a Radioactive Spider Bite
- Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. Blames iPad For American Unemployment (VIDEO) Which is not without merit– it may make life better for comic creators, but it makes things rougher on comic book stores.
- Seth MacFarlane to Reboot The Flintstones: Can he do FOUR prime-time animated comedies? We’ll soon find out…
Anything else? Consider this an open thread.
‘The Dark Knight Rises’ Begins Shooting
Here’s the release with all the current information, reminding us of how much we’re looking to seeing how this wraps up:
BURBANK, CA, May 19, 2011 – Principal photography has begun on Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ The Dark Knight Rises, the epic conclusion to filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s [[[Batman]]] trilogy.
Leading an all-star international cast, Oscar® winner Christian Bale (The Fighter) again plays the dual role of Bruce Wayne/Batman.
The film also stars Anne Hathaway, as Selina Kyle; Tom Hardy, as Bane; Oscar® winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose), as Miranda Tate; and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as John Blake.
Returning to the main cast, Oscar® winner Michael Caine (The Cider House Rules) plays Alfred; Gary Oldman is Commissioner Gordon; and Oscar® winner Morgan Freeman (Million Dollar Baby) reprises the role of Lucius Fox.
In helming The Dark Knight Rises, Christopher Nolan is utilizing IMAX® cameras even more extensively than he did on The Dark Knight, which had marked the first time that a major feature film was partially shot with IMAX® cameras. The results were so spectacular that the director wanted to expand the use of the large-format cameras for this film.
Jeffrey Catherine Jones, 1944 – 2011
Noted illustrator and sometime comics artist Jeffrey Catherine Jones died yesterday of complications from emphysema.
In comics, her work appeared in Heavy Metal, the various Warren magazines, Epic Illustrated, and many, many others. Committing herself to illustration in general and expressionism in specific, she was a member of the legendary Studio along with Michael Kaluta, Barry Windsor-Smith and Bernie Wrightson. Jones’ illustrations graced a great many science fantasy novels (Michael Moorcock, Dean Koontz, Fritz Lieber, Andre Norton, and others) and magazines as well as publications such as The National Lampoon.
Her work has been reprinted in a number of albums, most recently IDW’s [[[Jeffrey Jones: A Life In Art]]]. This ironically titled tome was released at the beginning of this year.
Jones married Mary Louise Alexander (now Louise Simonson) in 1966 and had a daughter, Julianna, the following year. In 2001 Jeffrey had gender reassignment surgery. In recent years she suffered from numerous ailments, but had made a sadly brief return to the drawing board last month.
In one of the highest compliments imaginable, illustrator Frank Frazetta called Jones “the greatest living painter.”
