Wiki Wacky Woo — UPDATE

September 29, 2006 By

Steve Wacker SPEAKS OUT!

First of all, thanks to Matt Brady for letting me TENURE this little essay. I’ll try and continue to be as unprofessional as possible.

Second, don’t be fooled by his nerd-knowledge. Waid’s a scrapper.

Third, how did this MAJOR story drop to 8th on the Newsarama front page!! Could someone please introduce sex into this scandal?!?!

Whoa, Axel…I was kidding. Easy, fella.


If nothing else, it proves why Marvel wanted Wacker on their team — his free-wheeling sense of humor will fit right in…do we sense a BLOG in his future, mayhaps?

UPDATED: In a later interview with Dan DiDio, the new 52 editor is revealed, Mike Siglain, best known as Associate Editor on some Bat-family books.

Filed Under: DC, Marvel

Those were the days

September 29, 2006 By

Golden.Cover
Kevin Huizenga posts pictures from The Golden Encyclopedia, and we are stupefied with jealousy.

Filed Under: General

Fantagraphics opening reports — update

September 29, 2006 By

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[Photo by Ron Hogan]
We attended the Fantagraphics art opening last night at the Society of Illustrators, as did our colleague Ron Hogan at GalleyCat:

“Most museums don’t like to show works that are unfinished,” Terrence Brown explained as he introduced me to the exhibition of artwork from Fantagraphics Books’ first 30 years of publishing independent comics, but the Society of Illustrators was delighted to host the retrospective, which was suggested by political cartoonist Steve Brodner, even though some of the artwork was still a few steps away from their printed versions, with captions missing or pasted over after rewrites.


Our camera situation was NOT optimal but Ron has some pictures at the above link, and sent us one showing Anne Bernstein, Glenn Head, Michael Kupperman and Jennifer Gonzalez.
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Here’s one we took showing the crowd. The show is great, and the turnout was exceptional: Sam Gross, Jules Feiffer, Arnold Roth, Steve Brodner, Evan Dorkin, Bob Fingerman, Gabrielle Bell, K. Kikuo Johnson, David Heatley, Dean Haspiel, Tom Hart, Abby Denson, Matt Loux, Mark Newgarden, David Sandlin, Dan Goldman, Bob Sikoryak, Stephen DeStafano, Dan Nadel, Bill K, First Second’s Gina Gagliano, Renee Witterstaetter, and DC’s Scott Nybakken, who once long ago even worked for Fantagraphics. We’re surely forgetting a few dozen people. Anyway, if your in the nabe, or even if your just around, go check out the chow, which isup until October 21st. HURRY!

UPDATE: Craig Yoe has some good pics and a breaking scandal involving Mrs. Arnold Roth at his excellent Arflovers blog.

Filed Under: Events, Indies

The tits are alright

September 29, 2006 By

Kurt at Groovy age of Horror, the blog that discovered the TOMB OF DRACULA censorship issue, is back with a very long post on all kinds of censorship issues, including links to the material that conservative watchdog groups use as primers to pressure the removal of such things as magazine and breastses and so on:

Response to the Censored Essentials post really caught me by surprise, and I’ve been following it with much interest. Thanks again to Groovy Age’s own Andy Decker for supplying the scans, and to Bill Cunningham of DISC/ontent for starting the snowball rolling. One interesting exchange takes place in the comments of Heidi MacDonald’s The Beat. While I don’t think she’s quite guilty of what Dirk goes off about, I’m glad he addresses an issue that inevitably comes up whenever anyone expresses an interest in nudity or sex in comics or animation. Here’s one forum that also picked up the ToD Essentials topic, and here’s another. There are a lot of other sites that linked to the post (click “links to this post” to see them, or scroll down if you’re viewing the post on its own page), and I’d recommend checking them out for other perspectives on the matter.


There is a rather long argument with another blogger, but also some good links for exploration of related topics.

Filed Under: Marvel, Sociology

Platinum breaks down the walls to financing

September 29, 2006 By

200609291108Spurge had a link to an otherwise little-noted pr from Tuesday about Platinum getting some equity investment. Coming on the heels of the NY Times piece revealing Platinum’s plan to publish on the Web, the pieces are all coming together.

Several people have wondered in comments if Platinum has ever published anything, as and far as we can tell, the answer is, no. However, COWBOYS AND ALIENS, which has been in film development for some time, has been solicited for a December release. According to the website, it’s been co-written by Fred van Lente, who writes the awesome ACTION PHILOSOPHERS so that’s one good thing. Actually, you can see for yourself just how good, as the book is being serialized at DrunkDuck. New pages go up weekdays. Meanwhile here’s the financing PR.


Platinum Studios, an entertainment company that controls the world’s largest independent library of comic book characters, announced today an equity investment of more than $1 million by Brian Altounian, the company’s president and chief operating officer.

“This equity infusion comes at a particularly important time in Platinum’s growth,” said Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, chairman of Platinum Studios. “It will allow us to expand our new media and mobile divisions at an accelerated rate and significantly increase our partner initiatives.”

Altounian joined Platinum Studios (www.PlatinumStudios.com) in 2005 to build the company’s digital strategy for business development and acquisitions in the online, interactive, and wireless industries.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Indies, Movies, Webcomics

Comics make BIble cool!

September 29, 2006 By

200609291047Gannett News has a fairly comprehensive look at the new religious comics publishers:

LifeWay’s “Spirit Warriors” follows the adventures of six rebellious teens mysteriously orphaned as children who have uncommon God-given strengths. They unleash their “holy fury” to protect a local church when an evil villain “sucks the righteousness right out” of it.

[snip]Barbour Publishing was among the first Christian companies producing comic novels. The Uhrichsville, Ohio-based publisher last year launched a manga series called “Serenity” that is aimed at young girls. The books follow the travails of a troubled non-Christian teen who moves to a new town and a new school, where a Christian prayer group takes her on as its “project.”

The Christian-themed books have attracted the attention of the mainstream comics industry. Diamond Comic Distributors has begun placing them on the shelves of mainstream and comics bookstores. The company’s executives now attend Christian booksellers conventions in search of new titles. And Christian publishers have begun setting up tables at the industry’s Comic-Con conventions, where comic books make their debuts.

Filed Under: Books, Indies

Recovering actor signs on as recovering superhero

September 29, 2006 By

Downey0077
Rumors were flying fast and furious yesterday and IT’S TRUE. Oscar® Nominee and recovering lawbreaker Robert Downey Jr. has signed to play IRON MAN.

Jon Favreau is directing the movie, which will be distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Downey will portray Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor who is kidnapped and forced to build a devastating weapon. Using his intelligence and ingenuity, Stark instead builds a high-tech suit of armor and escapes captivity. Upon his return to the U.S., he uncovers a plot with global implications and must don his armor and protect the world.

[snip] The movie version, written by Art Marcum & Matt Holloway and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby, will be set in today’s geopolitical climate.


Okay, we can’t help but make the joke about Downey, whose battles with substance abuse have become the stuff of legend, playing billionaire playboy industrialist Tony Stark, the superhero with the drinking problem. However, according to
Varietythe celluloid Iron Man won’t be turning into a lush until the “sequel”:

In the comics, Stark was an alcoholic, a trait that will undoubtedly draw public comparisons with Downey’s own struggles with substance abuse. However, Feige said the first pic won’t deal with Stark’s alcohol problems, though it would likely come up in potential sequels.


This will be the first movie that Marvel is producing all on its own, so signing up an solid director and A-list (although not box office) star is a good step for Marvel. Variety notes that this will be Downey’s first action role.

PS: while we were looking for images we stumbled upon this cool little website of drawings of Iron Man. Check it out.

Filed Under: Marvel, Movies

Nigerian scam hits mini comics!

September 29, 2006 By

Jenny Gonzalez, a cartoonist who sells mini comics at her website, had this to report over on the TCJ board earlier this week:


I have someone who contacted me by email wanting to order a large quantity of comics. Rather than going through the paypal option on my site, he says he wants to send a cashier’s check or money order through the P.O. Box. Ok fine, but instead of having me send the books to an address, he says he has a “shipper” that will arrange to pick up the books from me directly. What really is weirding me out though is this paragraph from an email he sent me today:

>>>I also want to alert you on the fact that you will be recieving an overdraft Cashier Check or Money Order , which will cover the money for the pickup (pickup and shipping to the final destination) as well as the money to be paid to the company that will take care of the pickup and the Items with you. So please, as soon as you receive the Cashier Check or Money Order , go and cash them immediately, deduct the money that accrues to you, and send the balance to the Head Office of the company that handles the shipment via the nearest
Western Union agent in your area. Deduct the Western Union charges from the balance and send the remaining immediately .

While Gonzalez got hep to the scam, there are a few other mentions of approaches like this, and a link to a Snopes page on this kind of scam–you end up being responsible for the overage on the bad check. Cartooners, beware!

Filed Under: Sociology

Miller to be feted at Scream Awards

September 29, 2006 By

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Comic Book Resources has the press release from Spike’s Scream Awards, “which celebrates Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Comic books.” The event will be taped on October 7th and then doubtless air endlessly between episodes of CSI. Rosario Dawson, Marley Shelton and Rose McGowan will appear, My Chemical Romance will perform, and special kudos will be handed out including:

Big honors of the night include the first recipient of the “Comic-Con Icon Award,” Frank Miller. The genius behind graphic novels turned into films, “Sin City” and the upcoming “300,” Miller has been instrumental in creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comic and related popular art forms, and bringing this great medium to wider recognition.

A tribute to the “Prince of Darkness” himself, Spike TV’s SCREAM AWARDS 2006 will present a special honor to Ozzy Osbourne. Also honored will be Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez. World premieres of their latest projects, “Death Proof” and “Planet Terror” will be included.


The PR goes on to list the “advisory board” which contains a shocking number of The Usual Suspects:

Members of this year’s advisory board included: Wes Craven (writer/director “A Nightmare on Elm Street”); David S. Goyer (screenwriter, “Batman Begins”); Geoff Johns (comic book writer, Green Lantern); R. Eric Lieb (Comic book writer, “Saw: Rebirth”); Brian Pulido (“Lady Death”); Judd Winick (executive producer/creator, “The Life and Times of Juniper Lee”); Jonathan Woods (Storyboard artist, “Team America: World Police”); and Rob Zombie (writer/director, “House of 1,000 Corpses”).


Taco Bell will also be involved somehow, and to us that spells the beginning of true horror.

[Pictured: Rose McGowan, instead of Frank Miller. Sorry, Frank.]

PS: There are few things in life we hate more than Spike TV’s Flash-based website.

Filed Under: Awards, Television

TO DO 9/30: Berkeley, CA– Stagger Lee signing

September 29, 2006 By

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STAGGER LEE the GN creators Derek McCulloch and Shepherd Hendrix appear at Comic Relief with prizes for hat wearing.

“Stagâ€? Lee Shelton shot Billy Lyons dead during an argument over a Stetson Hat. It happened in a St. Louis saloon on Christmas Night, 1895. More than 100 years and as many song versions later, Bay Area authors Derek McCulloch and Shepherd Hendrix take an entertaining and bold look at that ‘Bad Man Behind The Myth & Song’ in their new graphic novel, STAGGER LEE. McCulloch and Hendrix launch a Stagger Lee “101â€? Tour Party at Berkeley’s Comic Relief Book Store on September 30 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. At 7:30 pm the creators will host “101″ presentation featuring a slideshow and Q & A. Wear a Stetson Hat & Win A Prize!

When: Sept. 30, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m., presentation at 7:30 p.m.
What: Author Book Signing, Reception/ STAGGER LEE Book Tour
Who: Derek McCulloch and Shepherd Hendrix
Where: Comic Relief Book Store, 2026 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA, 94704, Wear a Stetson Hat and win a prize!
Public info: 510-843-5002

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Events, Image

Bissette draws!

September 29, 2006 By

B000Hewer6.01. Ss500 Sclzzzzzzz V60559016 Cartooner Steve Bissette (TYRANT, TABOO, SWAMP THING) has pretty much left the page behind, although he can blog up a storm, but an 8-page comic by Bissettewill be apppearing as a prop in an indie horror film:

When George Walker, the protagonist of the new horror film “Head Trauma,” finds a religious comic book at a phone booth near his home, the drawings might as well have “Made in Vermont” stamped across them.

That’s because the comic book — which is essential to the plot of the brooding and dark independent horror feature — was drawn and assembled by renowned Marlboro cartoonist Stephen Bissette and his son, Danny, more than two years ago.

[snip]
“The script called for a comic as a prop in the film,” Bissette explained. “It was to be a Christian comic, similar to and emulating the look of the Jack T. Chick mini-comics.”

But the role of the comic book and its themes quickly shifted throughout the movie’s filming and production, Bissette said.


Much more in link. The film is just out on DVD.

Filed Under: Cartoonists

An erection lasting more than four hours

September 29, 2006 By

03

It’s been a long week.

Profile Jewels @ profilejewels.net

Filed Under: Late Night

Where will you be when the robots arrive?

September 28, 2006 By

200609280133This link has been making thr rounds, but it definitely qualifies as MUST-READING: MIT’s Henry Jenkins interviews Todd Allen about micropayments. Now we admit, micropayments aren’t a very sexy topic, and Allen can get a little technical on you, but he has been following the developments in developing revenue streams for e-comics for some time. And, it seems to us, that is indeed the central question of the future of comics: how can comics on the web be monetized? Allen starts out looking at methods that are working:

If I had to point to one, I’d point to merchandising. T-shirts, posters, printed collected editions (graphic novels, if you prefer)… selling things seemed to be the highest revenue generator when viewing the area from a high level.

That said, the more popular web comics – your PVPs and Penny Arcades – do quite well with advertising. In these cases you have high page view counts and higher than average CPM rates for the advertising, owing to a desirable demographic, particularly to gaming companies.

Ultimately, different revenue streams will work for different web comics. There will be differences in audience demographics and merchandising options from property to property that cause variations in the productivity of a revenue model. There’s no reason not to mix the models until one clearly overtakes the other. Initially, merchandising will be a better option for more web comics. Advertising becomes a more viable option as your strip’s traffic grows

.
Allen also discusses the FLYING FRIAR experiment (the comic was made available for purchase online at the same time as the print comic and at the same price with a 2% return.) He also looks at the broader spectrum of Marvel and DC’s uneasy flirtation with web delivery:

If you look at the whole world, the web opens up possibilities to all, but more to DC and Marvel. Why? Because DC and Marvel are recognizable brands. You will have a magnitude more people seeking out Batman and Spider-Man online, than you will something like Fear Agent or Queen & Country. Your smaller publishers will need to do more marketing to catch up, when using brands that are, effectively, unknown to the mass market. That’s not to say that something like Fear Agent couldn’t become popular with the mass market, similar to how the Sin City film turned people onto the comics, but its a longer and harder road.


All of this stuff is increasingly important with such developments as the debut this week of the Sony Reader :

The general outline of the reader has been known for some time: its use of E-Ink delivers a sharp, clear reading experience on a six-inch screen and it measures 5 inches by 7 inches, is half an inch thick and weighs about 9 ounces. The player can hold approximately 80 books and has enough battery life to support 7,500 page turns. Sony is using a proprietary system, which means that e-books can be bought only from the company’s Connect e-bookstore.

Publishers have enough faith in the reader to make about 10,000 titles available for the device.


Among those publishers: TokyoPop. And Engadget shows that you can indeed read I LUV HALLOWEEN on the Reader.

Would anyone PAY to read I LUV HALLOWEEN on the Reader? Perhaps that is even more so the central question of our times.

Filed Under: Retailing & Marketing, Webcomics

Editorial shuffle

September 28, 2006 By

Newsarama reports that C.B. Cebulski has gone back on staff at Marvel, even while pointing out that he never really left. Cebulski will be helping out with the X-office, whipping up some international licensing deals and helping with talent management. Oh, and BLOGGING.

Meanwhile, also at Newsarama, the news that editor Steve Wacker was leaving for Marvel ignited the combustible bales of fanboy rage into a 350+ message firestorm. We make it a point not to read Newsarama message boards because…well, they make us angry.

They make Mark Waid angry, too. The expressed anguish and anger over Wacker’s supposed lack of professionalism, abandoning the 52 baby in the woods for the wolves to carry off to the hotlist motivated Waid to suit up and fly a chopper right over the heart of the blaze:

The next person…the very next person…who dares even hint that Steve Wacker was ever in any way “unprofessional” is going to be eating through a straw for the rest of his goddamned life.

I speak for all the creators involved with 52 when I say that Steve is one of the best, most professional and most talented editors we’ve ever worked with, and we will miss him immensely. His contribution to this series cannot be understated. Leaving was not an easy decision for him to make, but he has earned from us our support in whatever he does, and DC’s loss is Marvel’s gain.

Steve’s professionalism is not up for debate in this forum, and to throw around a claim like that based on what little you know about comics, the industry, and life in general just makes you look like an idiot and makes Grant, Geoff, Greg and me eager to track you down and “visit” with you in a Jay and Silent Bob sort of way. Steve is a pro through and through. End of debate.

This immediately ignites a new firestorm over whether Waid should have used such violent imagery, blah blah blah — Graeme, how the hell do you do this?

All we can say is anyone who is genuinely curious about how the comics industry works should not under any circumstances read Newsarama comment threads, because from the fact that no one knows WHAT a comics editor does to the speculation and downright fantastical ideas of how the comics industry works, it is all a warped funhouse view of reality. Wait, there is ONE thing prospective comics industry workers can learn from Newsarama posters, and that is that fanboys like to complain.

Filed Under: DC, Marvel

SVA grads present CRITICAL CITADEL

September 28, 2006 By

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Oh those SVA kids. Their recent ranks have included everyone from Becky Cloonan to James Jean to probably the greatest cartoonist of tomorrow. Now they are at it again!

Grad Matthew Bernier writes to tell us “at the end of last year many of SVA’s best senior cartoonists, and also me, got together to publish an anthology of our work.” The result: CRITICAL CITADEL. Hit the link for samples and free downloads. In a manner distressingly common for young cartoonists, the samples are unimpeded by any information whatsoever on the names of the artists. Here’s a lesson they should have taught you in school: PUT YOUR NAME ON YOUR WORK!!!

200609280243

Despite this youthful error, there is some promising work here. We already purchased and enjyed Bernier’s OUT OF WATER, and the marketing gambit of posing the book next to an adorable baby kitten shows real ability. Go Critical Citadel!

Filed Under: Indies

Consortium picks up CPM and DramaQueen

September 28, 2006 By

Via MangaCast news that the book distributor Consortium has picked up two manga publishers: the temporarily defunct CPM and yaoi specialist DramaQueen. MangaCast has much analysis:

CPM has had a deal with Consortium before. Actually days before their “implosion” they announced something with this group and there were rumors around that the deal had fallen through. Well, looks like CPM might be coming back. I will take my typical stance with CPM – believe it til I see it. Nothing wrong with their manga, outside of meh production values, I feel they have a decent enough line-up. Jarred has written here about his love of Nananan Kiriko before and I still rave about Lee HyunSe titles. Announcements made at the start of this year that included seinen titles from Wani Books and a couple Shodensha josei titles were making me want to like them. However, outside of a couple reprints in January and the random BeBeautiful book, nothing has been seen from them in almost 20 months. I almost feel I have a better chance with Gustoon! than with CPM. So what’s a deal like this do for CPM? I kinda wish they would say something, cause until they announce something or begin to release any books I almost don’t care. Give me more Mythology of the Heavens darnit!!


More in link.

Filed Under: Manga

Webcomickers react to Platinum deal

September 28, 2006 By

Johanna has a great post rounding up reaction to the Platinum Studios piece in the NY Times (Them AGAIN!) about their plan to post their comics on the web via DrunkDuck.com. As you might expect, the Webcomics elite, never a shy bunch, let loose with results that set new highwater marks for snark. In particular, this line is a set up for sarcasm:

“We’re tearing down the wall� that has separated traditional printed comic books from those emerging online, he said. “We completely believe in this model.�


Poor Scott Rosenberg. He was only giving a sound bite.
Scott Kurtz:

It’s about time that somebody tore down the wall that separated traditional comic books for those emerging online. This could be great news from those struggling cartoonists over at Penny-Arcade.

Watch out, Dumbrella. Platinum studios has tentative plans next year to tear down the barriers between college students and tee shirts with ironic sayings on them.

Penny Arcade

Good, because as it stands only rabid weasels are reaping the benefits of digital distribution – it’s about time human beings got into the game. It’s either a statement of profound naivete or profound hubris. Saying that you’re going to make the web a place for comics is like suggesting that you plan to colonize the Earth. If they want to break down the walls that keep artists from publishing online, well, I hope they brought a wall with them, because we don’t really have anything like that here. I suppose we could special order.


Penny Arcade also has a strip here.
Reader comments also have a field day. More in Johanna’s post.

Filed Under: Indies, Webcomics

Kibbles ‘n’ Bits 9/28

September 28, 2006 By

• Utterly adorable t-shirt designs by Vera Brosgol

• Comic Book Resources launches new comics sales analysis chart. Frankly, anything that includes columns entitled “Delta” slings us back in time to a hellish world of multi-function calculators and the quadratic equation. So far commentary light, but new ways of looking at sales is always good.

• Teshkeel media has a new partner to raise capital, the Unicorn Investment Bank.

UIB will underwrite and assist TMG in the raising of $25 million for the offering. TMG’s current investor base includes large GCC institutions the Commercial Bank of Kuwait, Bayan Investment Company, Safat Investment Company, Al Aswak Company and retail group MH Shaya Company as well as a consortium of private investors from the United States, Mexico, China, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Kuwait.

[snip]Yasser Abbady, Director of Corporate Finance at UIB, commented, “TMG have identified and successfully developed unique content for the young, highlighting Islam’s rich culture and heritage. With a substantial proportion of the region’s population under the age of fifteen, TMG’s management vision coupled with their award-winning concept of ‘The 99′ makes this a very attractive investment indeed.”


Comics + children = THE FUTURE!

• Viz has teamed with several foreign publishers to bring out DEATH NOTE in Europe.

VIZ Media…has inked deals with Ediciones Glenat España in Spain, Panini in Italy, Tokyopop in Germany and Dargaud Lombard in France to publish the DEATH NOTE manga from Shueisha. It is scheduled for fall 2006 release.

DEATH NOTE is about Light Yagami an ace student with great prospects who is bored out of his mind. Then he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and Light vows to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But when criminals begin dropping dead, the authorities send the legendary detective L to track down the killer and he’s hot on the heels of Light Yagami.

Filed Under: General

Inside the Comics Loving New York Times

September 28, 2006 By

Marvel sent out a press release yesterday trumpeting the fact that Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa had been mentioned in the Arts, Briefly section of the New York Times. Now the Times has been breaking much comics news recently, but this was really more of a tangential note:

SPIDEY GOES TO THE WHITNEY

Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, a playwright and a writer for Marvel Comics, has a fondness for including details about New York City in his comic book tales. Such points have varied from the Human Torch, a member of the Fantastic Four, boasting about getting tickets for “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee� to having Nightcrawler, an X-Man, investigate demons in the Dakota. In “Sensational Spider-Man� No. 30, which went on sale on Wednesday, Mr. Aguirre-Sacasa used the Whitney Museum of American Art as the setting for a battle between the wall crawler and Max Dillon, who happens to be a fan of fine art and is also the supervillain Electro.


There’s more to the item, so click on the link while you can to read the whole thing. There is certainly something of interest in this, and we don’t begrudge Times go-to comics guy George Gustine getting this bit in–in fact his perseverance in getting regular comics coverage in the Times stands as one of the great comics mole achievements of our era. But face it, tiger, it’s kind of filler-ish — Marvel Comics reference real world stuff! That’s been Marvel’s schtik for years.

This was actually the top item in yesterday’s Arts Briefly section. What else, we wondered merited coverage that day?

– A rare, yellow-sleeved variant edition of the Mona LIsa will be on display next month in the UK.

–Famed photographer James Nachtway wins the $250,000 12th annual Heinz Award for Arts and Humanities. We once accidentally touched Nachtwey’s elbow at a gallery opening, and that was one of our best brushes with greatness ever. Dude is hardcore.

–Rating analysis of once-hot show DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES.

–Katie Couric’s ratings slipping. Boo hoo.

–The theft damaged masterworks “The Screamâ€? and “Madonnaâ€? by Edvard Munch will be exhibited for a few days.

– Robin Williams is out of rehab and full of beans.

Etc. etc. etc. Looked at in this context, a random issue of SPIDER-MAN being the news equal of the Mona Lisa, The Scream, Katie Couric and James Nachtwey may just be a new plateau in media acceptance of our bastard medium.

Filed Under: Marvel, Sociology

Johnson to Hachette

September 27, 2006 By

Publishers Weekly reports that Rich Johnson, formerly in charge of DC’s book trade biz, has been hired at Hachette to set up a graphic novel imprint at Little/Brown:

In an internal memo released to PW, Hachette announced the decision to go graphic by stating that the publisher “has been looking for a creative way to be part of this exciting category.” Johnson, who had been v-p of book trade sales at DC, has been hired as a consultant to look into acquiring titles in a number of categories under the graphic umbrella including licensed manga, original manga, original American comics and graphic novels, webcomics, licensed adaptations and children’s graphic novels.


Johnson will be at next week’s Frankfurt Book Fair to make contacts for future projects and hires.

Filed Under: Books
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