Tagged: comics

Jay Kennedy RIP

  • News
  • March 16, 2007

According to an announcement from the Hearst Corporation, King Features Syndicate editor-in-chief Jay Kennedy died yesterday while on vacation in Costa Rica. He was 50 years old.

"Jay had a profound impact on the transformation of King Features as a home for the best new and talented comic strip creators in the country," said Bruce L. Paisner, executive vice president, Hearst Entertainment & Syndication. "He was an extremely creative talent himself and we are indebted to him for all he did."

Kennedy joined King Features in 1988 as deputy comics editor and became comics editor one year later. He was named editor in chief in 1997. He previously served as cartoon editor of Esquire magazine,and was a humor book agent and a cartoon consultant and editor for magazines and publishers, including People. In 1985, Kennedy guest edited r the "European Humor" issue of The National Lampoon.

Kennedy wrote articles about the history of cartooning, and profiled cartoonists and contemporary comics for magazines including New Age Journal, Heavy Metal, New York, The IGA Journal, and Escape, an English bi-monthly. He was also the author of "The Underground Comix Guide," published in 1982.

Before graduating with a sociology degree from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Kennedy studied sculpting and conceptual art at The School of Visual Arts in New York City.

I recall having corresponded with Kennedy on several occasions, probably asking some questions or other about women cartoonists at King Features, and always found him knowledgeable and pleasant.  ComicMix offfers our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones.

Michael Davis: Model Behavior

  • News
  • March 16, 2007

michael-davis100-9812506I have to apologize to my editor Mike Gold for this column upfront. Sorry, Mike, I told you I would write an article about education and empowerment and I will, I promise! But I have to write this article because, well, you will see why…

A few days ago I was at the Sprint store trying to get my cell phone serviced. Some idiot at the Palm Company sent me an email telling me that I needed to download some new software so my smartphone can handle the new daylight saving time.

Well let’s just say my smartphone is as dumb as a brick. When I downloaded the darn software it erased all my information on the phone. By the way, the phone automatically changed the date an hour later.

I went to the Sprint store to get them restore some of what I lost. While I was there a sweet young lady named Azy hooked me up by spending two hours with Palm technical support on my problem. She was cool but I had just wasted two hours of a beautiful day and this was first day in weeks that I had a moment to myself. Need to say I was not happy!

When I left I went to a car dealership across the street. I went there to calm down (hey, nothing calms a dude down like shopping for a new car; ladies – cars are a man’s shoes) When I got to the car dealer there, in all her glory, was a SUPER MODEL! I won’t tell you who it was because this is about to get ugly, but you would know this person. Whenever I see a celebrity, and I see a lot because I work in television, I always ask the same thing, “Can I have some money?”

Well she thought that was funny and we started talking. She was fairly nice until she noticed I had a comic book in my hand. It was the new Blokhedz graphic novel. It’s called Genesis and it’s great! She asked about it and I told her it was really cool, she looked at it for a few seconds and then she said “Comics are for kids, and stupid.”

I tried to explain the rich history of comics; she was having none of this. “Comic books are just silly.” I tried AGAIN to explain about comics. She just gave me a “You stupid” look. (more…)

Comics – because it’s there

  • News
  • March 15, 2007

Via Lisa at Sequentially Speaking, Joao Garcia climbed Mount Everest’s north side eight years ago, and has decided to tell his story via comics, publishing a limited, 2,000-print adaptation of his Everest story book A mais Alta Solidao (The highest solitude), illustrated by Ricardo Cabra.  Read his interview with ExplorersWeb here.

This appears to be something of a trend among Portuguese creative folk; a few days ago ExplorersWeb interviewed artist Antonio Coelho about his climbing experiences.  Both interviews are well worth scoping out for the copious numbers of illustrations therein.

John Ostrander: Writing 101

  • News
  • March 15, 2007

ostrander100-5978791What does a writer do?

I did an interview recently and I was asked what advice I could give to someone who also wanted to be a writer. I get asked that at classes, lectures or seminars and I always answer by asking that question.

It’s not a trick question, although some people seem to think it is. Generally, I get answers like:

a) writers create stories

b) writers make up characters

c) writers make up things

It’s actually a lot simpler, more basic, and far tougher than all of the above.

What does a writer do? A writer writes. We don’t simply think about writing or talk about writing or imagine ourselves writing, although every writer I know does that and, in many cases, prefers to do that. It’s a hell of a lot easier than actually doing the work. However, if that’s all you do, then you’re not a writer. You’re a wannabee.

A writer writes. Every day. If you’re just starting, find a time and place that you can do it even if it’s only for five minutes. It’s like when you’re starting to exercise; you’re not – or shouldn’t – go from 0 exercise to trying to running the Boston Marathon. You need first to get into shape; with writing you need to get into the habit of writing. At first you’re looking for consistency – five to seven days a week.

I don’t care where or how you do it – in a diary, a journal, with pen and paper, on a computer or what. Text messaging is not the same thing, and you know it. It’s preferable to write in something so you can see what you’ve done, where you can refer back to earlier entries. Date the entries. (more…)

Cabot comes to comics

  • News
  • March 13, 2007

avalon_high-7084574More good news for all those teen readers!  Meg Cabot, author of the popular Princess Diaries series, will be making the foray into comics with Avalon High: Coronation, a manga sequel to her novel Avalon High brought to us by the ever-expanding Tokyopop (which also answers the question "whatever happened to Jinky Coronado?", as Coronado is set to draw the graphic novel).  This should hit stores in July.

This is the result of a joint effort by Tokyopop and HarperCollins to create a progressive new line of co-branded (i.e., licensed) manga titles based on key young adult franchises from the HarperCollins list.  The other title, set to release in May, is Warriors: The Lost Warrior, based on the Erin Hunter series, to be written by Dan Jolley and drawn by James Barry.  Hey, it’s cats, go wrong!

Top ten videogames announced

  • News
  • March 13, 2007

spacewar-4155375Now that comics have earned mainstream respectability, can videogames be far behind?  Henry Lowood, curator of the History of Science and Technology Collections at Stanford University, is at the forefront of gaining recognition of this hobby and industry as having "a history worth preserving and a culture worth studying."

So last Thursday at the annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Lowood, along with game designers Warren Spector and Steve Meretzky, academic researcher Matteo Bittanti and game journalist Christopher Grant, announced the committee’s list of the 10 most important videogames of all time.  For the final list, see below.

The list ranges chronologically from 1962 (!) through 1994, and was closely modeled on the work of the National Film Preservation Board, which every year compiles a list of films to be added to the National Film Registry.  So expect a lot more additions in the future of this still-nascent industry — a future that looks brighter and more competitive every day, reports the BBC in this article about the stiff competition of talent trying to break into game designing.  And you thought getting into comics was hard!

(more…)

Sopranos’ Frankie Valli sings to ComicMix!

We’ve got the low-down on The Boys, Batman gets a swell new squeeze, comics and DVD new releases get revealed, Tom DeFalco gets previewed (?), and Timeline gets out in 1963, and we interview the Sopranos‘ most famous singing dead guy thus far,  Mister Frankie Valli!

All this and, as we always say, even more… at ComicMix Podcast #13.

It’s all yours, if you just click here:

Dennis O’Neil: The Fanatic Conclave, part two

  • News
  • March 13, 2007

About 370 million years ago, give or take, swimmy little critters biologists now call lobefish developed appendages that were helpful in getting around the bottoms of the ponds and lakes where they lived. Their descendants eventually flopped onto land and those appendages evolved into things that are useful for tap-dancing, kicking field goals and, attached to the likes of Jessica Alba, drawing admiring glances.

Comic books began as a low-common-denominator, novelty entertainment and became an industry and, arguably, an art form. Lobefish spawned, among other phenomona, karate and Ms. Alba’s thighs and comic books spawned, among other phenomona, comic book conventions. These were, at first, quite modest affairs, as described in last week’s installment of this feature, but, like the lobey appendages, have evolved into quite something else. They’re, some of them, held in gigantic auditoriums – the San Diego Convention Center and New York’s Javits Center, to name two – and attended by tens of thousands of participants. And people far more knowledgeable regarding showbiz than I am say that anyone wanting to launch a fantasy or science fiction-themed movie or television show is well-advised, if not required, to do so at one of these mega-soirees.

They have become an integral part of the huge modern monster media and I wonder if they’re not more influential as that than as places for hobbyists to gather and share enthusiasms. Further – I wonder if some folks forget that the “comi” in comicon refers to these visual narratives still being published in glorified pamphlet form.

A lot more entertainment seekers will see the forthcoming Fantastic Four movie (starring our friend Jessica, by the way) than will read any years’ worth of Marvel’s Fantastic Four comic books. And how many of the millions of ticket buyers who made Ghost Rider the box office champ for two weeks running, despite iffy reviews, even realized that the character had been born as a Marvel superhero?

I think it’s clear that the term comic book is in the process of redefinition, though what it will mean in 10 years I don’t know. It certainly won’t be merely a noun referring to the aforementioned pamphleted narratives. Nor will it any longer be a modifier meaning low, dumb, semi-literate, borderline immoral, as it has been until recently, and might still be in some venues. Probably it’ll describe a genre, or combination of multi-media genres. Or, could be, it’ll be entirely forgotten. After all, we don’t call legs lobes, do we?

And now, in the spirit of Jon Stewart, who on The Daily Show has his moment of Zen, we have our Recommended Reading: Superhero: The Secret Origin of a Genre, by Peter Coogan. Full disclosure: I wrote the book’s introduction. But I won’t profit if you buy it. I recommend it because it is, quite simply, the best treatment of the subject I’ve encountered.

Comics take on statutory rape

  • News
  • March 12, 2007

To help combat a growing trend, the Virginia health department has commissioned a "fotonovela" – a comic book that uses photographs instead of art, also known as fumetti – to educate Spanish-speaking girls younger than 18 about how they can avoid being coerced into unwanted sex.

Citing cultural tradition, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention told CNN Latinas lead the nation in teen births with a birth rate more than double the national norm. Young mothers are extremely reticent to name the fathers of their children.

According Paz Ochs, the Richmond VA Hispanic liason who helped create the fotonovela, "We wanted something that would be appealing. There’s some people that might not realize that this is even against the law." Health care workers in Illinois, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Indiana and Florda have contacted the Virginia Department of Health for more information.

Mike Gold: It’s about time

  • News
  • March 12, 2007

mikegold100-4129572I was listening with keen interest to Mike Raub’s interview with my old friend, DC publisher and president Paul Levitz, available on the current (#12) ComicMix Podcast. Back in the days of papyrus scrolls, Mike, Paul and I were in an a.p.a. (amateur press association; a forerunner of the Internet) called Interlac. It was great fun, and if I’m not mistaken it’s still around in the more capable hands of those who still own staplers.

Anyway, Mike asked Paul for his opinion as to the single greatest change in the comics medium in the 35 years since he ran a massively influential fanzine called The Comic Reader. Without dropping a beat, Paul talked about the acceptance of the comic art medium.

A couple hours later I found myself debating which would be the least expensive way to see the movie 300: my AARP card or the first-showing matinee. Linda and I piled into the car and drove up I-95 to watch the carnage. I’m referring to the movie, and not I-95.

Later on TiVo showed us the latest episode of Ebert and Roeper, where 300 lead the discussion. Mind you, I regretted the passing of the show’s original co-host, Gene Siskel. Unbeknownst to much of humanity, Gene was a serious fan of Roy Thomas’s Conan work and at one time had at least three complete collections. But then again, he might have reviewed the movie through the eyes of a comics’ fan. I doubt that, but roll with me for a while longer.

Roeper reviewed the movie and loved it. He commented at length about the evolution of the graphic novel-based movie without once referring to costumes and capes (oddly, 300 had both – but you get my drift) and Frank Miller’s influence on comics, film, and our culture in general. He spoke of Miller’s work the way arts critics speak of Martin Scorsese, John Lennon and Philip Roth. Not a single word was condescending. Not one.

And it’s about time. Paul’s perception is right on the money. In earlier days we would look to the movies as justification for our four-color passions, as if to say “see, somebody else is taking us seriously.” That played a big, big part in our enthusiasm for Richard Donner’s Superman – The Movie. Today, we no longer need to prove anything to anybody.

Previously, I stated in this column that respectability might be the death of us. I still feel that’s a possibility: I’d hate to see the comic art medium be taken as seriously by its fans as those many rock’n’roll enthusiasts who lost their sense of humor and perspective a long time ago.

But if respectability is the death of comics, at least we’ll get a well-written obituary.

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