Former Comic-Con Goddess Reflects on San Diego Comic-Con 2010 Part 2 Of A Guest Blog By Tina LoSasso!        -------------- ---------- Above Topmost Photo: Michael and Tina at the 2nd Annual Captain Rochester Artists Appreciation Dinner Party! Directly Above: Michael and Tina at SyFy's 'Cafe Diem' Downtown San Diego! At the Top Left: Another Waiting In Line Experience for Ballroom 20! At the Bottom Left: The Logo for the Comic Con International: San Diego - a.k.a. San Diego Comic Con 2010.

TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3204:

Today's post is guest blogged by my wife, Tina LoSasso, a continuation of Part 1 posted here yesterday!

A Woman’s View of 10 Years of Comic Con!

The crowds at Comic Con have begat line control worthy of Disneyland. I missed wading through the Hall H line looking for line buddies in the hour before dawn on Saturday mornings. Can’t do it anymore, the line is too tight and directed by the security patrol instead of the meandering mess it used to be.

As for the change in security, I think they were much more polite and customer-focused than in recent years. It seemed clear to me that they’d been given some very strict instructions about how to talk to attendees. I’ve heard some stories to the contrary, and on Sunday, they seemed to have lost their patience, but overall I think the security personnel were a big improvement this year.

In recent years, the Elite staff has been ill-informed, rude and sometimes out of control. Just last year, I was flabbergasted by an Elite red-shirt telling a blind woman she had to walk to the next set of bathrooms (about a quarter-mile of hallway) because they’d cordoned off the nearest ones for no discernable reason.

Between volunteers and security, line control was much more pro-active this year with plenty of staff positioned along routes to direct people joining the lines. Twice I saw security staff help someone essentially jump the line by guiding them through the Hall H line to join their friends further ahead. Now that’s customer service.

My favorite improvement this year concerned the Warner Brothers booth. After being elbowed repeatedly and nearly crushed last year trying to get Michael a Wonder Woman bag, I applaud whoever brokered the deal whereby WB included a bag in every attendee packet. I suspect it was the Fire Marshall. This simple change helped alleviate some of the insanity on the Floor.

And, was it me or where there a lot less clueless parents with small children in strollers?

I made a big change this year – no Convention food. After contracting food poisoning last year, I decided we weren’t eating anything we didn’t bring in ourselves. I highly recommend the practice – you’ll avoid one more line and save a ton of time!

After 10 years of Comic Con, I’m still a fan – not a Goddess – these days, I think, you have to dress up like Wonder Woman to earn that, but a fan nonetheless.

Despite the crazy crowds, we had a lot of fun at Comic Con.  Here are a few of our favorite lighter moments:

“Jeffster” performing to Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” at the Chuck panel. Vik Sahay made the long wait in line worth it, which was fortuitous since the panel itself was disappointing (horrible moderator and no time for audience Q&A).

Running into Allison Scagliotti in the ladies room – she was elated that her job moderating the Eureka panel was over – so Claudia!

Any moment during Quick Draw but Peter David guessing the drawings depicting the word “Miscellaneous” -- with the emphasis on “aneous” -- was hilarious.

Molly Quinn (rumored to be the next Mary Jane in the Spidey reboot) getting into the Comic Con spirit by donning a Lt. Uhura costume for the “Castle” panel. We had a heads-up on that and weren’t disappointed.

A surprise Hall H visit from the always delightful Guillermo Del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth) who gave us a glimpse into his upcoming “Haunted Mansion.”

The gay guy who was posing men cross-legged on Thor’s throne at the Marvel booth. He was mock insulted when I played it safe and said, “How metrosexual of you” -- he corrected me!

Helen Mirren (“The Queen” for goodness sakes!) taking the stage for the RED panel in a Harvey Pekar T-shirt.

Funniest Comic Con Moment: This sums up the twisted mentality of Con goers. I spotted him outside the Floor on Sunday afternoon. Obviously riffing on a Comic Con staple, the handmade signs proclaiming things like: “Free Hugs,” the guy had cut out a hole over one eye and drew a circle around it, and taped a pen to the board and wrote “Free Pokes to the Eye.”  If you don’t know what this refers to, Google “Comic Con stabbing” – you’ll be more polite in Hall H in the future, I’m sure!

Note: If you haven’t purchased your ticket for next year’s Con, stay tuned. The 15,000 4-day with Preview Night tickets sold out before the end of this year’s Con. Watch Michael’s blog for when tickets are available online – and jump to it.  Tickets usually go on sale during August. If recent history is any indication, they’ll sell out surprisingly quick.)

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Thus Part 2 of Tina's 2 part guest blog ends today.  Thanks, Tina!

PLUS: My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now over 3,200 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog!

Note: Our online comic book shop carries many different genres of comics, magazines, graphic novels, and comic con promotional items at the link seen below.  

http://www.comicbookscircus.com/

 

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"Hammering Out the Web For You Since May 12th, 1998!"       Note: If you are breaking into, or already work in the comic book industry or other pop culture productions, you are welcome to email us press releases, news items, and updates that you feel would be of interest to our blog readers. Including YOUR own works! To mail printed items to us for possible review, send to:   Make It So Marketing Inc. PO Box 130653 Carlsbad, CA 92013     ComicBooksCircus.com - It's Under The Big Top Of Comics! Click the Above Circus Tent to See Our Current Listings!

My thanks to those of YOU that have read today's blog post! I do appreciate that! For those of you that didn't know me before today... I first set up as a 'dealer' at the 1972 San Diego West Coast Comic Con (SDCC) at the El Cortez Hotel. So I've been around comic conventions for a little while, LOL!   My wife Tina and I now have an on-line exhibitor (dealer) table at the first "virtual" comic con titled the "Facebook Comic Con" (FBCC)! You can view our dealer table and interact with us there on Facebook by clicking this link, which takes you to our table named: 'Facebook Comic Con | Make It So Marketing'.  So if YOU are a Facebook member, please 'join' our Facebook Comic Con - Make It So Marketing exhibitor table for updates, specials, links to this blog, and other wall comments that we post every day!     Also, if you are a Facebook member and would like to also join my Facebook Network, feel free to send a 'friend request' to 'Michael D Hamersky'. I am reaching the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends soon, and I don't want YOU to be left out!         ------------------- Talking about comics: if YOU are a comics creator, (writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, etc.), OR even a Comics / Magazine Publisher, feel free to contact me regarding YOUR works for a possible mention / review! I've made a special blog post about: "How To Best Submit YOUR Publication For Possible Review!" for those creators / publishers that would like to possibly have their publications mentioned or reviewed. Just click on the link provided in this paragraph! ~Michael @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com   WEB PAGE NOTE:  This blog post is written for the IE Browser standards. Chrome, Safarai, Netscape, Firefox and the others serve the page up differently, sorry about that! The screen display resolution is best seen at the setting of 1024 x 768 on your laptop or desktop computer. NOTE: All images and characters within this blog post are copyright and trademark their respective owners.

 

Former Comic-Con Goddess Reflects on San Diego Comic-Con 2010 Part 1 Of A Guest Blog By Tina LoSasso!        -------------- ---------- Above Topmost Photo: One of the few times in 2010 that Tina was #1 in Line! Above Photo: The lines at the 2010 SDCC were long but well organized! At the Top Left: The huddled masses yearning to be free...To enter Ballroom 20! At the Bottom Left: The Logo for the Comic Con International: San Diego - a.k.a. San Diego Comic Con 2010.

TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3203:

Today's post is guest blogged by my wife, Tina LoSasso:

A Woman’s View of 10 Years of Comic Con!

In 2001, just weeks after Michael and I got engaged, I figured I’d better check out what this Comic-Con thing was since it was so important to him. I joined him for a Saturday. I’ve attended every SDCC since then, and boy, have things changed for us goddesses, uhm, girls.

Yes, in 2001 (and for several years thereafter) I was considered a Comic Con Goddess. How did I earn that status? Well, it was easy – I showed up. There weren’t too many of us and most of the fan boys were a tad nervous. They stared a lot but wouldn’t meet my eye. Michael had to do the talking for both of us. (It reminded me of when I traveled to Italy and my one friend who was fluent in Italian spoke for all of us!)

Each morning as I glanced up and down the line waiting to get into the Convention Center, I’d see maybe one woman for every 20 or so guys. Ah, those were the days. We had our pick of bathroom stalls that hadn’t been used by another soul all day. For a germaphobe like me it was marvelous.

Today it’s more like the modern style of comics that Michael tells me is known as “grim and gritty.” (For the uninitiated, think “The Dark Knight” or “Sin City” or anything by Frank Miller.)

Today, women are all over Comic Con – and not just at annoying “Twilight” programs. There’s programming for women, about women and by women. You’ll find female artists and writers featured in Artists’ Alley and Small Press section of the Convention Floor. Women and girls dress up as their favorite characters, screen Anime films, pore over long boxes of back issues, and stock up on Comic Con exclusive collectibles.

As it was way back in the day, when it previewed Star Wars footage, Comic Con is not just about comics. Sci-fi, fantasy, and various pop culture programming have always been strongly represented at Comic Con. Some old-time comics fans think the mix has gone too far toward the “Hollywood” side. With panels for “Glee” and “Castle” I can’t help but agree. I suspect the “Glee” panel was invited because there was no “Twilight.”  C’mon, the fan boys need something to complain about!  Speaking of “Castle,” the line was predominantly female and extremely long. They didn’t look like “Firefly” fans to me. Security closed the line over an hour and a half before letting people into the room.

As a more mainstream, pop culture fan, I tend toward the movie and TV panels which I’ll be guest blogging about in the coming weeks. I hang out in Hall H or Ballroom 20 while Michael attends what I affectionately call “old-fart” programs in the smaller meeting rooms. After the first few years of attending Comic-Con, I bailed on sticking with Michael – I couldn’t stay awake in the panels! These guys remind me of my NY relatives sitting around after Thanksgiving dinner telling story after story about people I don’t know. Hey, I nod off on them too – but I think it was the turkey and the heat in Grandma’s apartment!

For me, the biggest difference in 10 years of Comic Con is summed up by my experience that first day. After I snoozed through a few panels, on a whim, Michael walked me over to see what was happening in Ballroom 20 – the Hall H of its day.  We walked right in and found seats just as James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger took the stage to talk about T-3.  Unfortunately, this could never happen today. Today, you’d have to camp out in the wee hours, or plan on being in line several panels ahead.

The crowds, the crowds, the crowds. For the last several years the crowds have been insufferable, but this year, they turned ugly. The Hall H incident didn’t surprise me. Civility has become a casualty of the crowds. In one of the bigger panel rooms, I witnessed people crawling over a woman in a wheelchair to get to some just-vacated seats. People moving in and out of the lines push, walk into and step on people with no regard.

Safety notice to Comic Con organizers: Try selling fewer tickets!

(To be continued...!)

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Thus ends Part 1 of Tina's guest blog today.  Stay 'tooned' for Part 2 tomorrow!

My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now over 3,200 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog!

Note: Our online comic book shop carries many different genres of comics, magazines, graphic novels, and comic con promotional items at the link seen below.  

http://www.comicbookscircus.com/

 

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"Hammering Out the Web For You Since May 12th, 1998!"       Note: If you are breaking into, or already work in the comic book industry or other pop culture productions, you are welcome to email us press releases, news items, and updates that you feel would be of interest to our blog readers. Including YOUR own works! To mail printed items to us for possible review, send to:   Make It So Marketing Inc. PO Box 130653 Carlsbad, CA 92013     ComicBooksCircus.com - It's Under The Big Top Of Comics! Click the Above Circus Tent to See Our Current Listings!

My thanks to those of YOU that have read today's blog post! I do appreciate that! For those of you that didn't know me before today... I first set up as a 'dealer' at the 1972 San Diego West Coast Comic Con (SDCC) at the El Cortez Hotel. So I've been around comic conventions for a little while, LOL!   My wife Tina and I now have an on-line exhibitor (dealer) table at the first "virtual" comic con titled the "Facebook Comic Con" (FBCC)! You can view our dealer table and interact with us there on Facebook by clicking this link, which takes you to our table named: 'Facebook Comic Con | Make It So Marketing'.  So if YOU are a Facebook member, please 'join' our Facebook Comic Con - Make It So Marketing exhibitor table for updates, specials, links to this blog, and other wall comments that we post every day!     Also, if you are a Facebook member and would like to also join my Facebook Network, feel free to send a 'friend request' to 'Michael D Hamersky'. I am reaching the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends soon, and I don't want YOU to be left out!         ------------------- Talking about comics: if YOU are a comics creator, (writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, etc.), OR even a Comics / Magazine Publisher, feel free to contact me regarding YOUR works for a possible mention / review! I've made a special blog post about: "How To Best Submit YOUR Publication For Possible Review!" for those creators / publishers that would like to possibly have their publications mentioned or reviewed. Just click on the link provided in this paragraph! ~Michael @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com   WEB PAGE NOTE:  This blog post is written for the IE Browser standards. Chrome, Safarai, Netscape, Firefox and the others serve the page up differently, sorry about that! The screen display resolution is best seen at the setting of 1024 x 768 on your laptop or desktop computer. NOTE: All images and characters within this blog post are copyright and trademark their respective owners.

 

My 'Take' On Will Eisner: Portrait Of A Sequential Artist Now Out On DVD & Blu-Ray!        -------------- Above Top Photo: The Movie Poster for the 'Will Eisner: Portrait Of A Sequential Artist' Film! At the Top Left: The Cover to the DVD Version of the Film! At the Bottom Left: The Logo for the Comic Con International: San Diego - a.k.a. San Diego Comic Con 2010.

TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3202:

Saturday night we watched the DVD of the film "Will Eisner: Portrait Of A Sequential Artist'.

This brand new release was brought to my attention by the Director of the film, Andrew D. Cooke of Montilla Pictures, when I met him at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con International, (SDCC).

The film was one that Tina and I had see a premiere of a while back at an earlier SDCC. Unfortunately we had not seen it all at that time due to program scheduling conflicts.

The fact that it was in association with 'Comic Book Artist' Magazine, and its Editor, Jon B Cooke - who was the writer this film, was an additional plus to my wanting finish viewing this film on DVD and mention it here in my Blog.

Before I start though, I'll be upfront with you, my blog reading audience.

When I first started reading comics in the late 1950's, Will Eisner was already out of comics / comic books. He had closed down the publication of 'The Spirit' in 1952 due to the ever increasing cost of newprint.

Will didn't come back to 'comics' until being invited by the late Phil Seuling in 1972, when Phil invited him to attend his comic con in NYC.

There he was amazed at how underground comics had come into being, after being introduced to them by Dennis Kitchen.

(Side note by Michael:  By that time, I had already caught the 1st Wave of Marvel Comics Madness.  DC Comic Book Titles were mostly over 100 issues by the time I started to 'collect' comics in 1962.  Marvels were mostly starting with number ones.  Being a 'completist' at heart, and loving the 'Marvel Way' of doing things, along with my hero worship of Stan Lee, I became an early 'Marvel Zombie'. Thus Will Eisner wasn't even on my 'radar' in the early 1970's.)

Will's return to comics was prefaced by reprints of his 'The Spirit' newspaper supplements by Dennis Kitchen of Kitchen Sink Press, until his first sequential art novel, which he called a 'Graphic Novel', 'A Contract With God' was published.

The film goes back to his roots. His parents, their meeting, and ensuing marriage in 1915, and his being born in 1917.

In the Summer of 1939 Will developed 'The Spirit' for 'Busy' Arnold, but Will retained all rights.

A Side Note:  There were many quick stories told in this 96 minute film. One that struck me was his love for 'Krazy Kat', which is celebrating its 100th Birthday this year. As announced in the 2010 Comic-Con International Souvenir Book I blogged about earlier here.

Other stories were told by Trina Robbins, Sergio Aragones, Scott McCloud, Dennis Kitchen, Stan Lee, Jerry Robinson, Art Spiegelman, Kurt Vonnegut, Joe Kubert, Gil Kane, and oh so many more well known individuals!

Several of those shown in the film have passed away. I remember seeing so many of the them in panels at the SDCC in earlier years. 

Matter of fact, the film has several clips of some of those persons mentioned above in interviews conducted at the SDCC.

For those of you that don't know of Will Eisner's previous works, his history, and what he contributed to the comics industry, this is a really good film on DVD for your reference library!

In addition to the film itself, there are a few additional Special Features on the this DVD:

1) Shop Talk Takes - Interviews recoded on cassette tapes by Will for his column'Shop Talk' conducted during the 1980s.  Some taped inteviews were with Neal Adams, CC Beck, Milton Canniff, Jack Kirby, and Joe Simon among others.

2) Selected artwork - There was good music playing in the background while the photos and illustrations were shown.  Which was good because the early pictures shown in this feature were direct from the film.  The colorized versions were also shown as well as this feature unraveled. Many more additional photos & illustratins were added as the feature continued.  We watched the whole of this featurette.

3) Credits / Links - Lots of credits and links for follow up reasearch if desired by the viewer!

Whew!  There was a LOT to this film and features on this DVD. It made a perfect showing for our Saturday evening, coming down from our previous weekend's high at the San Diego Comic Con International itself!

For those of YOU that would like to see a clip of the Film itself, here is the link to the trailer!

My comic book grade for this DVD is a NEAR MINT (NM) 9.4!  Because it was well researched, very well presented, Plus there were additional valuable features added on the DVD itself!

You can find it for sale at the web site: Montilla Pictures. The cost of the DVD version is $19.99 plus shipping. The Blu-Ray version is $25.99 plus shipping.

BTW, We have a couple of back issues of 'Comic Book Artist' Magazine in our online store.  We picked up another couple of dozen of them at the SDCC, which we will be listing shortly.  You can find those issues of 'Comic Book Artist' listed here in our online store.

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As an Addendum, both my wife, Tina, and my youngest son wanted to add a couple of thoughts to this blog post today on the film:

Tina:  She thought that this was a good history of the man she had seen briefly at several Comic-Cons before Will's passing on January 3rd of 2005.  Her comic book grade for this DVD is a VERY FINE PLUS (VF+) 8.5 grade.

Vinnie, (my tween-aged youngest son):

NOTE: Before this film, I knew nothing about Will Eisner except for the Eisner Awards named in his honor. This past Saturday night, we watched the film, 'Will Eisner: Portrait of a Sequential Artist'.

It taught me much of the history of when Will Eisner was a kid all the way up until his death. I learned about how The Spirit was first in the comic strips of newpapers, then later became reprints in magazines.

What I found interesting about his work was that the title, "The Spirit," was never lettered the same way twice. Each issue would have you almost thinking it was a different magazine with the same title, because the way Will designed it ranged from being written in calligriphic-looking writing to being written in the scenery or in what appeared to be pipes or electrical cords. He obviously put much detail into the titles themselves, as well as time for thinking up the new style.

Overall, I believe Andrew D. Cooke did a magnificient job on the presentation, and putting it all together to direct this film.  If I had to give it a Comic Book Grade, I would give it a Very Fine Plus (VF+) 8.5.

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In Summary, my thanks again to Andrew D Cooke for bringing to my attention that the DVD / Blue-Ray format of this Film was premiering at the SDCC. And that it would also be For Sale this past week at their online web site. It was great to meet You at the SDCC and to finish watching the film! Plus being able to view the Special Features only found on the DVD once we arrrived home!

PLUS...My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now at the 3,200 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog!

Note: Our online comic book shop carries many different genres of comics, magazines, graphic novels, and comic con promotional items at the link seen below.  

http://www.comicbookscircus.com/

 

---

 

"Hammering Out the Web For You Since May 12th, 1998!"       Note: If you are breaking into, or already work in the comic book industry or other pop culture productions, you are welcome to email us press releases, news items, and updates that you feel would be of interest to our blog readers. Including YOUR own works! To mail printed items to us for possible review, send to:   Make It So Marketing Inc. PO Box 130653 Carlsbad, CA 92013     ComicBooksCircus.com - It's Under The Big Top Of Comics! Click the Above Circus Tent to See Our Current Listings!

My thanks to those of YOU that have read today's blog post! I do appreciate that! For those of you that didn't know me before today... I first set up as a 'dealer' at the 1972 San Diego West Coast Comic Con (SDCC) at the El Cortez Hotel. So I've been around comic conventions for a little while, LOL!   My wife Tina and I now have an on-line exhibitor (dealer) table at the first "virtual" comic con titled the "Facebook Comic Con" (FBCC)! You can view our dealer table and interact with us there on Facebook by clicking this link, which takes you to our table named: 'Facebook Comic Con | Make It So Marketing'.  So if YOU are a Facebook member, please 'join' our Facebook Comic Con - Make It So Marketing exhibitor table for updates, specials, links to this blog, and other wall comments that we post every day!     Also, if you are a Facebook member and would like to also join my Facebook Network, feel free to send a 'friend request' to 'Michael D Hamersky'. I am reaching the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends soon, and I don't want YOU to be left out!         ------------------- Talking about comics: if YOU are a comics creator, (writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, etc.), OR even a Comics / Magazine Publisher, feel free to contact me regarding YOUR works for a possible mention / review! I've made a special blog post about: "How To Best Submit YOUR Publication For Possible Review!" for those creators / publishers that would like to possibly have their publications mentioned or reviewed. Just click on the link provided in this paragraph! ~Michael @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com   WEB PAGE NOTE:  This blog post is written for the IE Browser standards. Chrome, Safarai, Netscape, Firefox and the others serve the page up differently, sorry about that! The screen display resolution is best seen at the setting of 1024 x 768 on your laptop or desktop computer. NOTE: All images and characters within this blog post are copyright and trademark their respective owners.

 

My 'Take' On Alter Ego #95 Cover Feature Article - Marie Severin and NOT Brand Echh!        -------------- Above Top Photo: The Front Cover to the July 2010 Issue of Alter Ego by TwoMorrows Publishing! At the Top Left (L-R): Marie Severin and Ramona Fradon at the 2001 San Diego Comic-Con International! At the Bottom Left: The Logo for the Comic Con International: San Diego - a.k.a. San Diego Comic Con 2010.

TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3201:

Those that have been reading this blog for the last two weeks will know that I was very enthusiastic about the 41st Comic-Con International: San Diego that ended on Sunday, July 25th! Because I have done nothing but blog about what to expect there, what panels / programs to see, and what I picked up there to read!

Today will be no different!  That's because we picked up a lot of back issues from TwoMorrow Publishing at this Comic-Con!

I always see John Morrow at least at the Annual Jack Kirby Tribute that Mark Evanier moderates, if not also at his Exhibit Floor Booth. This year was no different!

I was introduced to John's "Jack Kirby Collector" years ago and at one time had a subscription to that fine magazine.  It was only after he increased the size of the mag to oversized that I stopped subscribing...Only due to the USPS not properly placing it in my PO Box, and opted to buy the issues direct at the San Diego Comic Con each year at the TwoMorrows booth!

Besides 'The Jack Kirby Collector', John also publishes other magazines under the TwoMorrows banner.

One that I enjoy a lot is Roy Thomas' Comics Fanzine, Alter Ego!  This blog will review the latest issue that we picked up at the Comic-Con. This particular issue and back issues of this magazine can be found for sale in our online store, ComicBooksCircus.com!

So what's this issue about? Here's the promo blurb about this issue:

July 2010 - 84 pages

Now featuring a 16-page FULL-COLOR section each issue! In ALTER EGO #95 (84 pages, $7.95): Who says a comic book has to be good? NOT BRAND ECHH, from 1967-69! Behind a fabulous cover by MARIE SEVERIN, we feature a look at Marvel’s madcap parody mag, with rare art and artifacts by ROSS ANDRU, GENE COLAN, JOHN BUSCEMA, STAN DRAKE, BILL EVERETT, GARY FRIEDRICH, JACK KIRBY, STAN LEE, the SEVERIN siblings, FRANK SPRINGER, TOM SUTTON, ROY THOMAS, HERB TRIMPE, and more!

Plus the conclusion of our cataclysmic GEORGE KASHDAN interview—FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) with C.C. BECK and MARC SWAYZE, and spotlighting Mary Marvel on TV—MICHAEL T. GILBERT and MR. MONSTER’s COMIC CRYPT, and more! Edited by Roy Thomas.

Quite honestly I've got to tell you that I have met Marie Severin a few times before at this Comic-Con in San Diego.  I haven't seen her there in a few years, so the photo here and at the top left is from 2001, which happens to be the same time period of the self caricature she illustrated that was used for this issue's cover.

I found her to be very charming, witty and a lot of fun to talk with. I appreciated meeting her, especially as I enjoyed her superhero work when I was younger, and yes, especially her work in NOT Brand Echh!

So this section on NOT Brand Echh! was a familar read to me. The first article was "Echh" Marks The Spot! by Roy Thomas.  Excellent review of the 13 issues of this series. Basically because Roy Thomas would know the history of this series very well, because as he stated, it was he "Who Was There!".

For those of YOU that have a fondness for this series, this article is an excellent read. Plus there are photos of the covers, and of the comics people who contributed so much to this short lived series.

Plus Roy adds on a few pages on "Beyond Not Brand Echh", including Crazy the comic, Crazy the Magazine, and Arrgh! which were published in similar veins of this Not Brand Echh comic book.

Then there is the interview with Marie Severin conducted and transcribed by Bernie Hogya back in 1977. A really good interview, and well illustrated in the four pages allocated to this feature.

I really enjoyed both articles that made up the cover feature.

The next article was "The DC Editors Got Into Arguments, Part III". Which was on George Kashdan On Editing and Writing Comics In the Golden Age.  Conducted by Jim Amash, and transcribed by Brian K Morris. 

Even though it was Part III, and I not yet read Parts I & II, the interview was one I picked up on right away.  George Kashdan spoke up right away, and spoke freely, and frankly.  Matter of fact, more frankly than most comics people when being interviewed.  Almost reminded me of Gil Kane who when I saw him on panels at comic cons, who would speak his mind clearly and frankly.

This article would be of interest to those interested in those DC days that George Kashdan was on the scene.

Mr. Monster's Comic Crypt section was next.  This is by Michael T Gilbert. This section is always illustrated profusely and ties in very well with the text.  This issue's feature was no different.  A good read once again.

The next article was on 'Crudzine: Steve Gerber's Fanzine That Couldn't Shoot Straight'. I had not known about this one shot publication from years ago.  The article was 'An Appreciation of Sorts by Roy Thomas', presented by CFA Editor Bill Schelly. Interesting reading.

'Shel Dorf (1933-2009) "The Supreme Fan of Comics" by Mark Evanier' was the next article, (one page). I read this after reading Mark's earlier mentions of Shel's passing in his on POV column online.

Another one page In Memoriam article was printed next. Jim Harmon (1933-2010) "Mr. Radio" by Don Glut.  I've read articles by Don before, but did not know of Jim Harmon.

P.C. Hamerlinck's FCA section was the last section in this issue. FCA stands for 'Fawcett Collectors of America". This section is considered to be "Issue #154" of FCA. Which is printed as a type of 'insert' in the Alter Ego now.  You know...I never was a big Captain Marvel Fan (Fawcett's original Captain Marvel - Not Marvel Comics' Captain Marvel), but I usually find some good reading in this section.

Whew!  That's a lot of reading in 84 pages!  Of course there are some ads, and also in-house ads, but the vast majority of this issue's pages are of historical content. Once again a Good Read!

My comic book grade for this issue #95 of Alter Ego is a NEAR MINT (NM) 9.4 grade out of a 10.0 grading scale.  Once again worth the time reading and money invested in buying this title.

BTW, We have a baker's dozen of this title's back issues for sale as this blog 'goes to print', and will be listing a couple hundred more in the days to follow.  You can find those issues of 'Alter Ego' listed here.

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Again, my thanks to John Morrow of TwoMorrows Publishing for publishing his line of magazines. Plus it was great to see you at the San Diego Comic-Con again this year!

PLUS...My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now at the 3,200 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog!

Note: Our online comic book shop carries many different genres of comics, magazines, graphic novels, and comic con promotional items at the link seen below.  

http://www.comicbookscircus.com/

 

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"Hammering Out the Web For You Since May 12th, 1998!"       Note: If you are breaking into, or already work in the comic book industry or other pop culture productions, you are welcome to email us press releases, news items, and updates that you feel would be of interest to our blog readers. Including YOUR own works! To mail printed items to us for possible review, send to:   Make It So Marketing Inc. PO Box 130653 Carlsbad, CA 92013     ComicBooksCircus.com - It's Under The Big Top Of Comics! Click the Above Circus Tent to See Our Current Listings!

My thanks to those of YOU that have read today's blog post! I do appreciate that! For those of you that didn't know me before today... I first set up as a 'dealer' at the 1972 San Diego West Coast Comic Con (SDCC) at the El Cortez Hotel. So I've been around comic conventions for a little while, LOL!   My wife Tina and I now have an on-line exhibitor (dealer) table at the first "virtual" comic con titled the "Facebook Comic Con" (FBCC)! You can view our dealer table and interact with us there on Facebook by clicking this link, which takes you to our table named: 'Facebook Comic Con | Make It So Marketing'.  So if YOU are a Facebook member, please 'join' our Facebook Comic Con - Make It So Marketing exhibitor table for updates, specials, links to this blog, and other wall comments that we post every day!     Also, if you are a Facebook member and would like to also join my Facebook Network, feel free to send a 'friend request' to 'Michael D Hamersky'. I am reaching the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends soon, and I don't want YOU to be left out!         ------------------- Talking about comics: if YOU are a comics creator, (writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, etc.), OR even a Comics / Magazine Publisher, feel free to contact me regarding YOUR works for a possible mention / review! I've made a special blog post about: "How To Best Submit YOUR Publication For Possible Review!" for those creators / publishers that would like to possibly have their publications mentioned or reviewed. Just click on the link provided in this paragraph! ~Michael @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com   WEB PAGE NOTE:  This blog post is written for the IE Browser standards. Chrome, Safarai, Netscape, Firefox and the others serve the page up differently, sorry about that! The screen display resolution is best seen at the setting of 1024 x 768 on your laptop or desktop computer. NOTE: All images and characters within this blog post are copyright and trademark their respective owners.

 

My 'Take' On The 2010 San Diego Comic-Con International Souvenir Book!        -------------- Above Top Photo: The Front Cover to the 2010 Comic Con International Souvenir Book! At the Top Left: The 60th Anniversary of the Beetle Bailey Comic Strip! At the Bottom Left: The Logo for the Comic Con International: San Diego - a.k.a. San Diego Comic Con 2010.

TODAY'S FEATURE - Blog #3200:

The 41st Comic-Con International: San Diego ended on Sunday, July 25th, at 5PM, and I had not yet read all of the 2010 Souvenir Book at the Con!

That's because there was so much to see and do at this comic con; that for the first time ever in attending this Con, I didn't get to walk the whole event which included the dealers section!

Plus I keep seeing people who recognized me from photos at this blog and from our Facebook Group Page at Hamersky.com, that I didn't make the time to read all of the Events Guide, let alone the Souvenir Book!  Plus I really enjoyed meeting everyone in person thus matching faces with names!

But that's no excuse for not putting this 2010 Souvenir Book up to the top of my 'to read list', which I did after unpacking the car for the 5th time!  We did pick up a lot at the Comi-Con this year to read and sell in our online store, ComicBooksCircus.com!

It's now Friday, 5 days after the 2010 Comic-Con ended, and I've finished reading this massive Souvenir Book...Whew!

So what were the 'Main Features' of this year's Souvenir Book? Well, here they are direct from the promotional literature on the con's web site:

Themes and Anniversaries

• The Year of the Writer
The current issue of Comic-Con Magazine is "the Writers Issue," in advance of Comic-Con 2010 featuring "the Year of the Writer" as a programming theme. It all starts with the written word, and this year's lineup of guests features some of the finest writers -- and writer/artists -- in comics, science fiction, and fantasy. (Please note: this theme is a bit more programming oriented than the rest of our list and may not lend itself to art and articles in the Souvenir Book, but if you have an idea for either, we'll consider it! Possible ideas include a look at DC writers over the history of the company, or articles devoted to the works of some of our special guests who are writers.)

• 100th Anniversary of Krazy Kat
Highly regarded as one of the classics of newspaper comic strips, George Herriman's Krazy Kat celebrates its 100th birthday in 2010. First appearing on July 26, 1910 in the cartoonist's The Dingbat Family strip, Krazy, Ignatz, and Office Pupp got their own strip in 1913, which lasted until Herriman's death in 1944. The strip -- with its surreal setting and Herriman's incredible landscapes and color work on Sundays -- is viewed as a major influence by many cartoonists.

• 75th Anniversary of DC Comics
The impact of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman on pop culture cannot be underestimated. And it all started with a Daring Concept way back in 1935: comic books with all new content. Help us celebrate the three-quarters of a century mark with DC Comics!

• 60th Anniversary of Peanuts
It's hard to believe that Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the whole Peanuts gang are 60 years old! If there's a touchstone in pop culture for millions of people around the world, Charles M. Schulz's creation is it. Still being published ten years after Mr. Schulz's death, Peanuts will live on for many years to come.

• 60th Anniversary of Beetle Bailey
Mort Walker's forever young -- and enlisted -- character started as a college student before he joined the Army in 1951. Beetle Bailey remains one of the longest-running comic strips still being produced by its original creator. Walker went on to give the world other strips, including Hi and Lois, Sam's Strip, and Boner's Ark, among others.

And what's 'My Take' on these?

Well, it's supposed to be a Comic Book Convention, right?!  So I guess that running the 75th Anniversary of DC Comics would make better copy for the front cover. So that is the feature this year.  With DC's 'Big 3' characters.  And not a bad illustration at all of them by Ivan Reis (penciller), Oclair Alber (inker), and Alex Sinclair (colorist).

The 'DC Comics 75th Anniversary' pages and articles were well written and presented that even a newbie to the Comic Con would find interest in this pages allocated to this topic.  Besides, there are a lot of comics fans that are interested in the 'Big 3' as well as other DC Characters.  Well written articles, and Fan & Pro art used in this section!

Going back to the order in which the features were presented in the Souvenir book is:

The Year of the Writer - Article on 'Adaptation vs Authors' and a panel discussion at Wonder Con 2010 'Comic Writers Unite' make up this section.  The latter is a good retelling of the panel for those that missed it in San Francisco earlier this year.

Krazy Kat 100th Anniversary -  I'll be honest, I've never really enjoyed reading 'Krazy Kat' strips...it might be because of the style and the fact that it was way before my time that I just don't "get it".  However, I do see the value in celebrating the 100th Anniversary of this important comic strip.

60th Anniversary of Peanuts - A good feature on the latest Milestone that the Peanuts gang has hit this year. Those that enjoy 'Peanuts' will like this section of several articles.

60th Anniversary of Beetle Bailey - My affection for this comic strip has grown over the years.  I liked it years ago, and even more today.  Our little newspaper here in North San Diego County has very few comic strips that I read.  This is definitely one of them.  Good presentation with historical background as well as what's going on today.  Happy Anniversary to the cast of 'Beetle Bailey' and the Walker Family!

There were other sections in this Souvenir Book as usual. The hi-lights for me were:

The bios for the 2010 Special Guests - So much easier than looking them up elsewhere. I found a few guests here that I met in person earlier, not realizing all that had done so far.

The In Memoriam section which included a few persons that passed away since the last Souvenir Book that I wasn't aware of.

The Awards section would be good for those that haven't attended Comic-Con for a while, as it also listed the 'Eisner Hall of Fame' winners.

Once again, the staff of this Souvenir Book have published a very good book.  It truly is a 'Souvenir Book' and one that all who attended will be looking back at fondly in the years to come!

My comic book grade for this year's Souvenir Book is a NEAR MINT (NM) 9.4 grade out of a 10.0 grading scale.  If YOU didn't attend and want to order one of these, we will have a few up for sale in our online comic book shop in this store aisle, as well as some from earlier years.

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Again, my thanks to those that are listed on page 3 of this Souvenir Book for another great job this year! And my thanks to the GCD for providing the comic book covers!

PLUS...My thanks again to all of YOU reading this blog and our archived blog posts, now at the 3,200 total posts in number! I do appreciate your continued reading and support of this Blog!

Note: Our online comic book shop carries many different genres of comics, magazines, graphic novels, and comic con promotional items at the link seen below.  

http://www.comicbookscircus.com/

 

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"Hammering Out the Web For You Since May 12th, 1998!"       Note: If you are breaking into, or already work in the comic book industry or other pop culture productions, you are welcome to email us press releases, news items, and updates that you feel would be of interest to our blog readers. Including YOUR own works! To mail printed items to us for possible review, send to:   Make It So Marketing Inc. PO Box 130653 Carlsbad, CA 92013     ComicBooksCircus.com - It's Under The Big Top Of Comics! Click the Above Circus Tent to See Our Current Listings!

My thanks to those of YOU that have read today's blog post! I do appreciate that! For those of you that didn't know me before today... I first set up as a 'dealer' at the 1972 San Diego West Coast Comic Con (SDCC) at the El Cortez Hotel. So I've been around comic conventions for a little while, LOL!   My wife Tina and I now have an on-line exhibitor (dealer) table at the first "virtual" comic con titled the "Facebook Comic Con" (FBCC)! You can view our dealer table and interact with us there on Facebook by clicking this link, which takes you to our table named: 'Facebook Comic Con | Make It So Marketing'.  So if YOU are a Facebook member, please 'join' our Facebook Comic Con - Make It So Marketing exhibitor table for updates, specials, links to this blog, and other wall comments that we post every day!     Also, if you are a Facebook member and would like to also join my Facebook Network, feel free to send a 'friend request' to 'Michael D Hamersky'. I am reaching the maximum of 5,000 Facebook Friends soon, and I don't want YOU to be left out!         ------------------- Talking about comics: if YOU are a comics creator, (writer, penciler, inker, colorist, letterer, etc.), OR even a Comics / Magazine Publisher, feel free to contact me regarding YOUR works for a possible mention / review! I've made a special blog post about: "How To Best Submit YOUR Publication For Possible Review!" for those creators / publishers that would like to possibly have their publications mentioned or reviewed. Just click on the link provided in this paragraph! ~Michael @ ComicBookCollectorsBlog.com   WEB PAGE NOTE:  This blog post is written for the IE Browser standards. Chrome, Safarai, Netscape, Firefox and the others serve the page up differently, sorry about that! The screen display resolution is best seen at the setting of 1024 x 768 on your laptop or desktop computer. NOTE: All images and characters within this blog post are copyright and trademark their respective owners.