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Ben McKenzie, Bryan Cranston, Katee Sackhoff, and Eliza Dushku cast in animated ‘Batman: Year One’

  • News
  • April 21, 2011

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The voice cast has been revealed for the animated version of Frank Miller’s [[[Batman: Year One]]], which premieres in July at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con. Heat Vision reports that Ben McKenzie (The O.C.) will provide the voice of Bruce Wayne/Batman, with [[[Breaking Bad]]] star Bryan Cranston portraying Lt. James Gordon. Katee Sackhoff ([[[Battlestar Galactica]]]) is voicing Detective Sarah Essen, and Eliza Dushku ([[[Dollhouse]]]) will voice Selina Kyle/Catwoman, and Alex Rocco (Moe Greene from The Godfather) will be the voice of Carmine Falcone.

 

Tab Murphy ([[[Superman/Batman:Apocalypse]]]) adapted the script, and Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery ([[[Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths]]]) are directing. Miller’s original novel lends itself nicely to a film adaptation, and large hunks of the story were used in Christopher Nolan’s [[[Batman Begins]]]. Executive producer Bruce Timm points out:

“The source material is surprisingly cinematic; it’s a pretty straight forward literal retelling. [David] Mazzucchelli’s artwork is beautifully composed and we were able to refer to the comic for about 80 percent of the camera setups.”

Miller’s Year One storyline– along with Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, which is also being adapted into an animated version– were both pivotal in restoring a dark and gritty style to the Caped Crusader.

To refresh your memory on Miller’s original 1987 four-issue story arc, “Batman: Year One”:

A young Bruce Wayne spent his adolescence and early adulthood traveling the world so he could hone his body and mind into the perfect fighting and investigative machine. But now as he returns to Gotham City, he must find a way to focus his passion and bring justice to his city.

Retracing Batman’s first attempts to fight injustice as a costumed vigilante, we watch as he chooses the guise of a giant bat, creates an early bond with a young Lieutenant James Gordon, inadvertently plays a role in the birth of Catwoman, and helps to bring down a corrupt political system that infests Gotham.

Batman: Year One comes out on Blu-ray and DVD on September 27th.

Reviews from the 86th Floor: Barry Reese reviews Gideon’s Sword

  • News
  • April 21, 2011

Gideon’s Sword by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
9780446564328

Preston & Child are the authors of the much-loved Special Agent Pendergast series, the most recent of which (FEVER DREAM) introduced several layers to the series that further cement it as one of the best New Pulps out there. Pendergast is the Shadow, Doc Savage and The Spider, all rounded into one. It’s a tremendous tour-de-force and is highly recommended by this reviewer.

GIDEON’S SWORD is a new series, introducing Gideon Crew, who witnessed his father die in a suspicious manner. Gideon grew up believing his father was a traitor to his country and mentally unbalanced… but the truth is that his father was the fall-guy in a government conspiracy. Armed with this knowledge, Gideon sets out to get revenge — he does so (surprisingly easily) and is then recruited into a shadowy organization (one that was featured in other Preston & Child books, most notably ICE LIMIT). Gideon is also informed that he’s dying and has less than a year to live. He elects to live his life to the fullest and along the way has romantic relationships with both a prostitute with a heart of gold and a lovely CIA agent.

This felt like two books — the story of Gideon’s hunt for his father’s killer and then the story of his becoming a secret agent. The first part was simply awful and almost prompted me to give up on the book. It was trite, silly and at times, just stupid. The way people just gave up sensitive information or engaged in info-dumps for the benefit of the reader was very frustrating. Thankfully, once Gideon is recruited for his later work, things do improve, though they never come close to approaching the quality of every other Preston & Child book that I’ve read. As much as I enjoyed the character of Orchid, how many hookers-with-a-heart-of-gold have we seen in fiction? And while Gideon’s master-of-disguise talents appeal to the pulp lover in me, I didn’t get a clear indication of how Gideon mastered these skills and thus it felt convenient to me. The entire story was utterly predictable, which is not something I would usually say about these authors. Until this book, I would say that their worst work was still better than most authors’ best… but this was a disappointment, from page one.

There are enough signs of hope here that makes me think they could still salvage the series (the authors say they’ve already sold the film rights to (shudder) Michael Bay) but to be honest, I’d prefer to simply pretend this book didn’t happen and go back to enjoying the Pendergast books and the various one-offs that the authors have done (like the excellent ICE LIMIT or RIPTIDE).

I give it 2 out of 5 stars.

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Wake Up, It’s Judgment Day!

  • News
  • April 21, 2011

the_sarah_connor_chronicles_poster-150x222-4429079Forget your troubles, come on, get happy…You better chase all you cares away… Shout hallelujah, come on, get happy… Get ready for the Judgment Day.

According to [[[Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles]]], Skynet went fully live two days ago on April 19, 2011 and will begin its attack against humanity sometime today, in an attack the few survivors will call Judgment Day.

Computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon figure it’s a reaction to yesterday’s announcement of Apple’s earning statement, or it’s a Facebook game that went horribly, horribly wrong.

Here’s a highlight reel of what to expect:

With #Skynet a trending topic worldwide the last few days on Twitter, we fear the worst. Since the series was canceled prematurely by Fox, we won’t actually know until later today if Sarah Connor, John Connor, Cameron, and Reese were able to stop the machines until it&^%$JKiuyfgg

***NO CARRIER***
***SKYNET ACTIVE***
***MISSILE LAUNCH***

More MGM Limited Edition Movies Released

  • Uncategorized
  • April 21, 2011

1000clowns-4911020Given the success of Warner’s Archive program, we’re thrilled to see other studios scouring their vaults for content aimed at the discerning cinephile. Here’s a release showcasing the latest coming from MGM via Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment:

LOS ANGELES (April 14, 2011) – Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment is bringing even more classics to DVD in April through its unique “manufacturing on demand” (“MOD”). The newest group of films will be part of the MGM Limited Edition Collection and available through online retailers. The vast catalog ranges from 1980’s DEFIANCE to 1965’s four-time Academy Award® nominated A THOUSAND CLOWNS.

Enjoy your favorite movies from across the decades including:

1950’s
●    DAVEY CROCKETT, SCOUT (1950): A U.S. military scout is assigned to stop Indian attacks on a defenseless group of wagon trains making their way West. Stars George Montgomery, Ellen Drew, Noah Beery Jr. Directed by Lew Landers.
●    CLOUDBURST (1951): A World War II veteran, working in the British Foreign Office, avenges his wife’s murder. Stars Robert Preston, Elizabeth Sellars, Noel Howlett, Harold Lang. Directed by Francis Searle.
●    FORT DEFIANCE (1951): The story of a young blind man, the brother he worships and a Civil War veteran who intends to kill the latter. Stars Dane Clark, Peter Graves. Directed by John Rawlins.
●    CHICAGO CONFIDENTIAL (1957): Brian Keith stars as Jim Fremont, an Illinois States Attorney fighting corrupt unions in Chicago. The union crooks in collaboration with a gambling syndicate try to pin a murder rap on an uncooperative union leader Blane (Dick Foran). Fremont and his co-worker fiancee Laura (Beverly Garland), work to prove Blane’s innocence and to punish the true villains. Directed by Sidney Salkow.
●    FOUR BOYS AND A GUN (1957): The moving story of four young men struggling against overwhelming odds to stay honest. When a crooked employer shorts their earnings they turn to crime, with their first theft ending in tragedy. Stars Frank Sutton, Tarry Green, James Franciscus, William Hinant. Directed by William Berke.
●    FORT BOWIE (1958): Attempting to affect peace between his men and the Apaches, the commander of a fort unwittingly inspires an Indian massacre. Stars Ben Johnson, Kent Taylor, Jan Harrison, Jana Davi. Directed by Howard W. Koch.
●    THE GUN RUNNERS (1958): The owner of a cabin cruiser in Florida innocently rents it to a ruthless gun merchant who sells arms to a revolutionary group in Cuba. Stars Audie Murphy, Eddie Albert. Directed by Don Siegel. (more…)

Review: Empire State: A Love Story (or Not)

  • News
  • April 20, 2011

empire_state_shiga-2246029[[[Empire State: A Love Story (or Not)]]]
By Jason Shiga, color by John Pham
144 pages, Abrams ComicArts, $17.95

Jason Shiga is an acclaimed artist, currently best known for his previous offering [[[Meanwhile]]]. Now he has a brand new semi-autobiographical graphic novel, Empire State. Told in either red or blue monochrome to differentiate timelines, it tells the story of a sad sack slacker, Jimmy, who finally screws up the courage to visit his best friend and object of affection, Sara, in New York City. Thinking he could see America, he buys a bus ticket where his companions and the sights are far from the idealized trip he envisioned.

The story is all about expectations, reality versus fantasy and growing up. The subtitle, A Love Story (or Not) has everything to do with Jimmy and Sara and nothing about the world either inhabits. Sara has gone to New York to work in publishing and live a glamorous life but winds up in a tiny Brooklyn apartment, unhappily reading slush. On the other hand, she has found a boyfriend, Mark, an older graphic designer she found via J-Date. When Jimmy arrives, unexpectedly as it turns out, he has to rapidly adjust his expectations.

(more…)

HANCOCK TIPS HIS HAT TO NEW WESTERN PULP AT ITS BEST!

  • News
  • April 20, 2011

TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT-Reviews of All Things Pulp by Tommy Hancock

TRAIL OF THE BURNED MAN
by Thomas McNulty
Linford Western Library, 2009
270 Pages

It’s always interesting to me to look at genres of fiction that were and still are staples within the realm of Pulp, but have somehow drifted away from those roots.  None of these is more apparent than the Western.  What once was fast paced, dead aimed storytelling full of heroes, villains, guns, horses, shootouts and standoffs has, at least in the hands of some authors, become more about exposition, analysis, and the human condition.   Many authors, well known ones even, have simply adapted a post modern take on literature to the western and by virtue of that have watered down an almost distinctly American form of storytelling.  Fortunately, there are some notable exceptions, men and women who still wear their six guns proudly and know that all a good man needs in the Old West is a woman better than he is and a villain badder than he is.

Add author Thomas McNulty to that latter group.

TRAIL OF THE BURNED MAN is definitely a New Pulp western written with the distinct flavor of the classics as well as liberally laced with the bravado and rapidity of a modern tale.  The characters are full and rich, complete portraits on a canvas of hard living, hair trigger decisions, and six gun action and adventure!  The story opens with Rafe Morgan, a man with a reputation, riding into a Wyoming town looking to make a new start for himself.  Almost immediately that gets complicated when Morgan gets into a fight with known badman Dutch Williams.  Scarred horribly by fire during the fight with Morgan, Williams vows revenge.  Morgan ends up staying on, working on Amy O’Hara’s ranch, even after her father, Ethan, also a Deputy U.S. Marshall, encourages Morgan to move on.   Soon, Williams enacts his plan for vengeance and involves Amy, Ethan, Rafe, an African American blacksmith, a Shoshone Indian, a young orphan, and an old ranch hand!  Oh, and did I mention the Sioux war party and a- no, I’ll let you find that one out yourself.

McNulty fires characters off like bullets from a hogleg.  This story is flowing with fully realized images of men and women, good and bad, lost and found.   The villain is grotesque and insane as any good Pulp villain would and should be.  What stands out for me most, however, are three characters.   I say three, but like many classic trios in the past, these men function as one, a sort of Trinity within McNulty’s story.  There’s Ethan O’Hara, the Marshall, Adam Washington, the blacksmith, and Black Wolf. the Shoshone Indian.  These three men have a connection that goes back beyond the start of this book and one that resonates loudly throughout the whole tale.  I’m not sure if McNulty plans to or not, but I would highly encourage him to consider more stories with these three larger than life heroically inspiring characters as the focus.

The only part of TRAIL OF THE BURNED MAN that bothered me in the slightest initially was some of the phrasing.  It just didn’t flow like most modern westerns I’d read in the last few years.  Then, about page six or so, it hit me.  It didn’t flow like most modern westerns because it’s not written like a modern western!  This is true old wild west Pulp at its best, full of descriptive phrasing, interesting, tight, concise exposition, and imagery and scene setting that doesn’t get in the way of the blockbuster narrative being told.   This is truly a New Pulp classic.

FIVE OF FIVE TIPS OF HANCOCK’S HAT-You won’t find a better New Pulp Western than McNulty’s TRAIL OF THE BURNED MAN.  Some will equal it for sure, but there aren’t any better.

MORE WINDY CITY GOODNESS! ON VIDEO!

  • News
  • April 20, 2011

Continuing the coverage of the Windy City Con, held April 15-17 in Chicago, find for your viewing pleasure below videos done at the con by Mark Halegua, pulp enthusiast, historian, columnist, and writer (http://www.pulps1st.com/)

Walking into the Windy City Dealer Room

Tommy Hancock and Fuller Bumpers, Pro Se Press
Wayne Reinagel, Knightraven Studios
Thomas McNulty, Author and Historian

Will Murray, Author and Historian

John Gunnison, Adventure House Windy City Producer
MORE VIDEO GOODNESS TO COME!

ALL PULP NEWSSTAND BULLDOG EDITION 4/20/11

  • News
  • April 20, 2011
ALL PULP NEWSSTAND
BULLDOG EDITION
4/20/11
DOCTOR WHO LEGEND PASSES!

Tuesday, April 19, 2011 – Posted by Chuck Foster

It is with great sadness that we report the death of the actress Elisabeth Sladen – forever known to us as the Doctor’s best friend, Sarah Jane Smith.

Born in Liverpool in February 1948, Elisabeth Sladen took an interest in acting from an early age; she joined the Liverpool Playhouse repertory company as assistant stage manager after drama school, where she would meet her future husband Brian Miller. After a stint touring the country in repertory, she settled in Manchester, during which she had her breakthrough television role in 1970, appearing as Anita Reynolds in Coronation Street. More small roles were to follow in popular shows like Doomwatch, Z Cars and Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em.

Then in 1973 came what would be her defining role as she was cast as the replacement companion for third Doctor Jon Pertwee. Following in the footsteps of popular companion Jo Grant played by Katy Manning, Sladen was to hit the ground running as investigative journalist Sarah Jane Smith in her debut story The Time Warrior, and over the next three years would see her popularity soar as she became part of what is arguably known as the “golden years” of Doctor Who alongside fourth Doctor Tom Baker, an era including the story frequently appearing top of fan polls, Genesis of the Daleks.

Despite choosing to leave the programme in 1976, with an emotional departure scene at the conclusion of the serial The Hand of Fear, Sladen later stated in interviews that although she had left Sarah Jane, “Sarah Jane never left me”. Although she declined producer John Nathan-Turner‘s offer to come back as support for the Fourth Doctor’s regeneration (being present at his own arrival at the end of this week’s DVD release Planet of the Spiders), she did returned to the role for the 1981 pilot: having been described by the Doctor as his best friend, Sarah was form her second long-lasting partnership with his “second-best friend” in the titular K9 and Company.

Sladen was re-united with “her” Doctor, Jon Pertwee, in the 1983 20th anniversary celebration The Five Doctors, and again during the 1990s for the two radio stories The Paradise of Death and The Ghosts of N-Space, written and produced by the person who originally cast her, Barry Letts – the two would also be joined by another popular Doctor Who legend in the form of Nicholas Courtney as the Brigadier.

Outside of Doctor Who, Elisabeth continued to work in theatre and television, often alongside her husband Brian; roles included Josie Hall in Take My Wife, a small role in the film Silver Dream Racer, and as Lady Flimnap in a production of Gulliver in Lilliput by her former producer Barry Letts, followed a few years later in his production of Alice in Wonderland as the Cheshire Cat. However, with the birth of her daughter Sadie in 1985, she was to focus more on her family.

However, Sarah would never be far from her life, with the actress continuing to be a popular guest at Doctor Who conventions, and also featuring in a series of audio adventures from Big Finish. Then, in 2005, a discussion with the revived Doctor Who’s head writer and long-term fan of hers, Russell T Davies, led to a guest appearance in the second series adventure School Reunion, which re-united Sarah (and K9!) with the Doctor in his most recent incarnation (David Tennant) – her appearance proved instrumental in cementing the connection between the 20th and 21st Century productions in a way that the Daleks couldn’t!

The character, and Sladen’s performance, proved to be as popular as ever, if not more so, and led to her own starring role in spin-off series, The Sarah Jane Adventures; the CBBC series continued on from her re-introduction in Doctor Who as an independent investigator of alien activity – now joined by her young own assistants as well as her faithful K9 – and winning a whole new legion of fans, both young and old. It is also a testament to the strength of the show that it has been graced by the appearance of the both the Brigadier (Nicholas Courtney), and the Doctor himself in both his Tenth incarnation in The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (and David Tennant‘s final performance as the Doctor), and Eleventh in the form of Matt Smith in Death of the Doctor – where Sladen was also to come ‘full circle’ by performing with the actress she ‘replaced’ way back in 1973, Katy Manning, aka Jo Jones né Grant.

The series itself has gone on to win awards, including the Royal Television Society award for Children’s Drama last month.

At the time of her death there are still three stories of The Sarah Jane Adventures to be broadcast on television, and her autobiography, Who’s That Girl is due out later in the year.

Elisabeth Sladen died in the morning of 19th April, having been battling with cancer for some time. She is survived by her husband Brian Miller, and daughter Sadie.

KPSB KEEPS UP WITH THE PULP GOODNESS!

From Kevin Paul Shaw Broden-
REVENGE OF THE MASKED GHOST
Chapter 19 “Fight For A Ghost”
The action is building to a head as the Masked Ghost’s investigation has lead him to the center of a massive web. Will he survive the night?
FLYING GLORY AND THE HOUNDS OF GLORY Issue #0  Page 4
“I worked very hard to put that part of my life behind me…” as Elsie and Annie continue to debate over the reunion, another attendee is more than happy to await the big day.
Find out the latest in “Generational Glory” our special issue #0 

CALL FOR WRITERS ON CHALLENGER ANTHOLOGY!

PROFESSOR CHALLENGER ANTHOLOGY SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Professor Challenger Anthology Submission Guidelines
Editors: J. R. Campbell and Charles Prepolec
Publisher: EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing
Genres: SF, Fantasy, Horror, Steampunk, Adventure
Submission deadline: January 31, 2012
Story Length: Approx. 7, 500 words to a maximum of 10,000 words
What we’re after:
A broad range of new and original stories built around Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s LOST WORLD character Professor George Edward Challenger. Stories derived from the aftermath of events in the Lost World are welcome, however simply revisiting or rehashing the Lost World without good cause is not. Challenger is a man of science first and foremost, not an explorer. Mash-ups or crossovers with public domain literary characters are welcome.  
For inspiration think X-files, Quatermass, Dr. Who, cryptozoology – Yeti, Nessie, etc…, aliens among us, supernatural occurrences, science gone awry in a Dr. Moreau, Invisible Man, Dr. Jekyll vein, nature run amuck, monsters large and small, world threatening cataclysm, Lovecraft mythos, think H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, E. R. Burroughs, John Wyndham, Nigel Kneale, alternate history, new lost places, steampunk, whatever…. Be creative.
Mine the potential for all it’s worth! Push it out there, get weird, play, have fun!
Notes: This is a professional market. Full rate to 7,500 words, half rate for balance to 10,000 words. One time publication rights. The anthology is part invitation and part open submission. Priority will be given to invited authors, but an invitation to submit is not a guarantee of acceptance. A minimum of two slots will be held for open submissions. Acceptance is based entirely on suitability of story and quality of writing. No reprints.
Submission Format:
Email submission in Rich Text Format (.rtf) or Microsoft Word (.doc) attachments only.  Use standard manuscript format. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuscript_format#Basic_manuscript_formatting)

Happy 160th Birthday, Detective Stories!

  • News
  • April 20, 2011

On this day in 1841 in Philadelphia, PA, Edgar Allen Poe’s first detective story, “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” was published in Graham’s Magazine.

It has been called the first detective story ever, with C. Auguste Dupin as the first true detective in fiction, the precursor of everyone from [[[Sherlock Holmes]]] to [[[Scooby Doo]]], from [[[Veronica Mars]]] to [[[Angel Investigations]]], from [[[Castle]]] to [[[Psych]]]. The Dupin character established many literary devices which authors have used ever since:  the brilliant detective, his friend who serves as narrator, and the last revelation being presented before the reasoning that leads up to it.

And of course, without detective stories, we don’t have Detective Comics… which means we don’t have either DC or Batman. Nor do we have the Elongated Man, [[[GrimJack]]], [[[Dick Tracy]]], Tim Trench, Richard Fell, Jason Burr, The Dead Boy Detectives, Jessica Jones, [[[The Maze Agency]]], or Detective Chimp.

So here’s to you, sleuths! To you we raise a glass (free of exotic poisons, we hope). May your locked room mysteries always have a way in and out.

Read “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” here.

WINDY CITY PULP AND PAPER PICTURES!

  • News
  • April 19, 2011

The Pulp World turned out in Chicago this past weekend and some of our All Pulp supporters and regulars were there!  Below are pictures taken by Rob Davis, Airship 27 Productions!  Expect more to come from even more attendees!



Author Thomas McNulty and his wife Jan



Wayne Reinagel, Author and Knightraven Studios


The Crowd at Windy City




Author B. C. Bell





Pro Se’s Tommy Hancock and Airship 27’s Ron Fortier



Moonstone’s Joe Gentile

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