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"Heirs earn from inherited real estate, patents, companies, stocks, bonds, etc.; this isn’t rocket science.
"The argument that heirs shouldn’t earn from the labors of parent creators is completely and offensively nonsensical [BS] - fortunes, and earnings from ongoing revenue streams, are passed on every day, everywhere. Arguing that real revenue-creating and generating properties like comic book characters/titles/concepts aren’t the same turf is more defeatist horse[expletive]."
Steve Bissette explains in greater detail his position on Jack Kirby V. Marvel.
Check out our other Quote Of The Day quotes here.
[Artwork: Journey Into Mystery by Jack Kirby, © Marvel Comics, swiped from Mondo Marvel]
Read More | Steve Bissette On Kirby
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Comic Book Jobs: Checking Out Craigslist
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Movies, Independent,
Despite the buzzwords that get thrown around, rich people are not really job creators, they’re money-holders.
The real job creators are in the comic book industry, and some of them are on Craigslist. Here are a few to help you:
If you have a comic book store in the Los Angeles area, a low-budget filmmaker wants to borrow it for a short-film shoot from October 7-9.
Famous Monsters of Filmland in Los Angeles is looking for “a creative, self-starting Graphic Design Intern.”
Click to continue reading Comic Book Jobs: Checking Out Craigslist
Kamandi The Last Boy On Earth Omnibus
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Collecting, Editorials, Reviews, DC Comics,
What do you do if you can't get the comic book license to Planet Of The Apes?
If you're DC publisher Carmine Infantino and the time is the early 1970s, you simply encourage someone to follow an old comic book tradition: create the homage.
Except that Infantino made that request of Jack Kirby and he took – to his credit – only the very basics of that idea (which was a staple of post-apocalyptic sci-fi for decades) and ran wild with it. According to Wikipedia, Kirby took the germ of Infantino's request, mixed it with a couple of pre-POTA projects of his from earlier and the result was Kamandi, The Last Boy On Earth.
It debuted in 1972 as part of Kirby's "2nd phase" at DC, after they cancelled all his debut books from the Fourth World series – New Gods, Forever People and Mister Miracle – and turned Jimmy Olsen back into a red-headed d-bag.
Click to continue reading Kamandi The Last Boy On Earth Omnibus
Most of you already know that a federal judge ruled in favor of Disney/Marvel and against the estate of Jack Kirby in their claim for copyright termination for 45 characters Kirby either created or co-created.
Naturally, there has been some reaction to this as we all await what the next step will be in what one can only assume is an ongoing, sad, and unnecessary struggle.
Here are some links if you want to follow along:
Michael Dean at The Comics Journal - which has a history with Kirby and was instrumental in helping Jack get what was left of his art back from Marvel in the 1980s and exposing how Marvel was extorting his signature - does the heavy lifting on the ruling.
Dean also wrote a summing up of Kirby’s 1980s-era battle with Marvel over the return of his original art.
Click to continue reading Jack Kirby And Marvel Comics
Attention cartoon fans! Sydney Opera House in Australia has just moved into round 2 of their global GRAPHIC animation competition.
It's part "of the GRAPHIC 2011 festival of storytelling, animation and music."
In round 2, they've narrowed the field to 10 1-minute animated shorts by a host of creative folks - if you love the short cartoons and want to see some terrific animation in a variety of styles get over to their website and watch and vote.
And feel free to vote for Dave Barton Thomas' short, Kissing Gramma. He's a friend of mine, he won last year, and we have a project together - not this one - that we're hoping goes somewhere.
Click to continue reading Sydney Opera House: Animation Competition
Read More | Sydney Opera House
I missed this but Steve Holland at Bear Alley caught it. Cartoonist Simon Bond, creator of the best-selling 101 Uses For A Dead Cat, has passed away. That book, an acclaimed best-seller, sold more than 2 million copies and spawned a sequel, another 20 or so books from Bond, and at least a generation of similar titles from imitators and followers.
[Artwork: Cover to 101 Uses For A Dead Cat]
Read More | Bear Alley
I've written before about my history with writer Don McGregor (Killraven, Black Panther, Detectives, Inc. and so much more).
Now, Clifford Meth, who in the past has helped out Dave Cockrum's widow and Gene Colan, is reporting that Don could use a little help.
Clifford is organizing a worthwhile effort to help Don meet some unexpected and sad expenses. So get over to his blog and see what you can do to help out.
If you're not familiar with Don or his work, here's a Mile High interview with him that covers a lot of ground.
[Artwork: Amazing Adventures #29 featuring Killraven © Marvel Comics]
Weekend Reading: Kirby, Ditko, Cowboys & Aliens And Marvel Comics
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Interviews, Movies, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics,
I’m sure you’ve heard by now that the Kirby family lost its claim in court to the copyright to characters Jack Kirby created. As usual, Tom Spurgeon at The Comics Reporter has the best analysis.
Now let’s see what else is out there.
Cowboys: Deadline continues to do the number-crunching on this week’s comic book-inspired film, Cowboys & Aliens. The early results show an under-performer.
Blood: And over at Bleeding Cool, Rich Johnston looks at the long journey getting Cowboys & Aliens from concept to screen.
Ditko: Tom McLean at Bags & Boards doesn’t post as often as he should, but when he does, it’s worth reading. His latest is a review of Blake Bell’s Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko from Fantagraphics. This is a beautiful snip: “Could Ditko be a first-generation fanboy, an 83-year-old whose life was spent obsessing first over comics and later over a juvenile political philosophy that only makes sense within a self-imposed bubble?”
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Kirby, Ditko, Cowboys & Aliens And Marvel Comics
Top 10 Surprises In Captain America
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Movies, Marvel Comics,
To some people’s surprise (that would be me, if you’re asking), Marvel Comics made an excellent movie about Captain America.
Who’d’ve thought that the shield-slinging WWII hero would translate so well to the screen? It’s so good, that they may wait at least 8 years before rebooting it.
But for those that watch the movie a second or third time (that would be me, if you’re asking), there are some surprises lurking in the margins.
Here then, are the Top 10 Surprises In The New Captain America Movie:
10: His shield is made out of Reb Brown’s career
9. It’s not just the skull that’s red
8. The Falcon calls the studio every day. "I'm in the sequel right?"
Click to continue reading Top 10 Surprises In Captain America
Comic Con International: Bone by Jeff Smith
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Independent,
When Bone by Jeff Smith first came out as an independent comic book, I completely ignored it.
I didn't deliberately ignore it, it's just that my LCS didn't carry it and I didn't even know it existed for the first year of its printed life.
However, at the San Diego Comic Con International in 1992, I ran into my friend Wayne Markley who worked for the distributor Capital City. He asked me what I thought of Bone. When I proclaimed my ignorance, he dragged me over to Jeff Smith's table, introduced me to the creator and then shoved the issues-to-date in my hands and told Jeff I'd take them all, ring me up.
Wayne's judgment in these matters was always solid so I did as I was told. I bought them, read them while at the con (no easy task), loved them and duly thanked Wayne when next I saw him. And when next I saw him, a couple of days later, he invited me to join him for dinner on Capital City's dime.
Click to continue reading Comic Con International: Bone by Jeff Smith
Read More | Boneville
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