Article

The People Who Make Comic Con a Success

Comic Con has always celebrated the accomplishments of creators and this year is no exception. A host of milestones were reached this year including the 90th birthday of the late LOONEY TOONS director Bob Clampett, a San Diego native, the 75th anniversary of TARZAN, BUCK ROGERS, TINTIN and POPEYE in comic strips, the 50th anniversary of GODZILLA in America, the 40th anniversary of CREEPY, Warren Magazines' groundbreaking horror comic, the 25th anniversary of Bob Burden's FLAMING CARROT comic book, the 20th anniversary of Stan Sakai's USAGI YOJIMBO comic book the 10th anniversary of Mike Mignola's HELLBOY and Batton Lash's SUPERNATURAL LAW comic book and the end of CEREBUS, Dave Sim's 27-year, 300-issue self-published comic book. These milestones were touched upon during the Eisner Awards, considered the "Oscars" of the comic book industry. This year's Eisner Awards was quite an event and we were there to report on the proceedings. You can find the details at the bottom of this article.

Artists

Comic book artists deserve the praise they receive. Drawing a 32-page comic month-after-month is no easy task, as any artist can attest. The bottom line is, late books affect sales and artists really do gain a certain amount of credibility by delivering well-drawn books on a timely basis.

Comic Con attracts other types as artists too, artists who paint comic book covers, provide book illustrations and produce Internet web cartoons to name but a few. Many of these artists have been creating art and paintings for decades and are now inspirations for fledling artists. We found a number of artists at this year's Comic Con representing all of the facets of the comic book world.

 

The comic legend that is Neal Adams

Neal Adams has had a long and illustrious career in the comics. His short run on the X-MEN in the late '60's saved the title from cancellation. As one of DC's top cover artists, he drew many memorable SUPERMAN and BATMAN covers and is credited with updating the BATMAN property from the campy '60's TV-show persona into the modern, dark knight that he is today. In fact, his BATMAN work serves as a prototype and inspiration for every BATMAN illustrator today. His Continuity Studios is involved in a number of projects including advertising animatic work, TARZAN book covers, theatrical costume and stage design, amusement park ride design, and magazine work, including NATIONAL LAMPOON. Adams may be best remembered for his instrumental involvement in the fight for creative rights and royalties for SUPERMAN creators Jerry Seigel and Joe Schuster.

 

Neal Adam's BATMAN hardbound

Neal Adam's historic BATMAN stories are now available for the first time in hardbound. BATMAN ILLUSTRATED BY NEAL ADAMS Volume 1 is a 240-page hardcover featuring Adams's contributions from 1967 through 1969. This is the first of three hardcover volumes chronologically collecting his early Batman work. Neal Adams provides a new cover, introduction and a few art and color changes to five of the eight stories presented in the volume. Volume One collects material from BATMAN #200, 203 and 210; THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #75-76 and 79-85; DETECTIVE COMICS #370, 372, 385, 389, 391, and 392; and WORLD'S FINEST COMICS 174-176, 178-180, 182-183, 185, and 186.

 

Roger Dean

The great Roger Dean is the creator of distinct and visionary graphic images, logos, lettering and is the longtime album cover artist for the musical groups YES and ASIA. Made popular through the medium of album covers and posters of his work, Roger Dean has sold in excess of sixty million copies of his work world-wide. He has set up and successfully run his own publishing company which published his books Views and Magnetic Storm. Views went straight to number one in the best seller lists going on to sell over a million copies.

 

Roger Dean's 1974 YES album cover for TALES FROM A TOPOGRAPHICAL OCEAN

Roger Dean drew inspiration for this famous YES album cover from his trip to Japan. The final collection of landmarks was more complex than he had intended because it seemed appropriate to the nature of the project that everyone who wanted to contribute should do so.

 

Brian Froud, artist of THE DARK CRYSTAL and LABYRINTH fame

Brian Froud is best known for his unique artwork for the movie THE DARK CRYSTAL. Jim Henson hired Brian Froud to create a unique otherworld known as THE WORLD OF THE DARK CRYSTAL after seeing the 1978 book FAERIES by Froud and artist Alan Lee, a book that hit number four on the New York Times Best Seller List. They later worked together on the film version of THE DARK CRYTAL, which was released in 1982. He later worked on Henson's LABYRINTH film, released in 1986, starring his son Toby. Froud continued working with Henson on television programs such as "Jim Henson's Storyteller," as well as working on designs for other film and media projects.

He collaborated with Terry Jones, the screenwriter for LABYRINTH, tocreate one of Froud's most popular books LADY COTTINGTON'S PRESSED FAIRY BOOK and he recently published a sequel to FAERIES titled GOOD FAERIES AND BAD FAERIES.

 

Brian Froud's forthcoming book GOBLINS

Brian Froud's book GOBLINS is due to hit bookstores in October, 2004. Word is, their investigation into this book may have dire results for the reader. Among its pages are reproductions of the ancient, odoriferous Codex Goblinensis; a glossary of common goblins and their markings; and a gazetteer of goblin photographs taken with the arcane Goblin Camera. Those fearing an infestation can refer to the section with details for determining whether you've "got goblins" and, if so, what can be done about them.

 

Charles Vess, artist for Green Man Press

Charles Vess has worked for many publications, including HEAVY METAL, KLUTZ PRESS, and NATIONAL LAMPOON. His award-winning work has graced the pages of numerous comic book publishers, and has been featured in several gallery and museum exhibitions across the nation, including the first major exhibition of Science Fiction and Fantasy Art at the New Britain Museum of American Art in 1980.

In 1991, Charles shared the prestigious World Fantasy Award for Best Short Story with Neil Gaiman for their collaboration on SANDMAN #19 (DC Comics) -- the first and only time a comic book has held this honor. In the summer of 1997, Charles Vess won the The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award for best penciler/inker for his work on THE BOOK OF BALLADS AND SAGAS, which he self-publishes through his own Green Man Press. In 1999 he was awarded the World Fantasy Award for best artist for his work on STARDUST. If you like fantasy illustrations and books with fantasy themes, you most definitely need to track down work by Vess.

 

Charles Vess's MEDICINE ROAD

MEDICINE ROAD is a series of linked short novels by Charles de Lint that are profusely illustrated by Charles Vess. Each of the projected three volumes will feature various combinations of the seven red-haired Dillard sisters (from SEVEN WILD SISTERS) as well as new characters introduced as the stories progress. The first book will be set in the Sonoran Desert around Tucson, Arizona, with excursions north. It is available now in a beautiful trade hardcover edition and a deluxe signed limited edition from Subterranean Press.

 

Mike Mignola, creator of HELLBOY

Mike Mignola began working as a professional comic book artist in the early 1980's, workong on POWER MAN AND IRON FIST, DAREDEVIL, THE DEFENDERS and his own comic creation ROCKET RACOON. While Mignola has worked on many different comics, he is best known as the award winning writer and artist of HELLBOY, which he created in 1993. The stories follow the exploits of the world's greatest paranormal investigator, HELLBOY, champion of good and battler of evil for the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (B.P.R.D.).

Mignola has also worked in the film industry as a production designer on the Disney film ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE and as a visual consultant to Guillermo del Toro on both BLADE 2 and the film version of HELLBOY.

 

The HELLBOY DVD

From DVD jacket: Born into the flames of hell and brought to Earth as an infant to perpetrate evil, HELLBOY was rescued from sinister forces by the benevolent Dr. Broom, who raised him to be a hero. In Dr. Broom's secret Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, Hellboy creates an unlikely family consisting of the telepathic "Mer-Man" Abe Sapien and Liz Sherman, the woman he loves who can control fire. Hidden from the very society that they protect, they stand as the key line of defense against an evil madman who seeks to reclaim HELLBOY to the dark side and use his powers to destroy mankind.

This HELLBOY special edition 2-disc DVD includes new special features never used in DVDs before such as BRANCHING DVD COMICS drawn by Mike Mignola and THE RIGHT HAND OF DOOM set visit feature. It also includes bonus materials and introductions by Guillermo del Toro and Selma Blair, audio commentaries, a storyboard track, the 2-Hour SEEDS OF CREATION documentary and deleted scenes. At the show, an expanded 3-disc DVD version was announced that will contain the Director's Cut with 15-minutes of extra footage, a Sideshow HELLBOY mini-bust and a new commentary track. The third disc will also be a data CD-ROM with files including the screenplay.

 

Mark Schultz, artist of Wandering Star's first CONAN hardbound

Mark Schultz built a career on producing commercial illustration until 1986 when he first submitted an introductory story of his critically acclaimed comic book series XENOZOIC TALES which was later adapted to a CBS television animated series titled CADILLACS AND DINOSAURS. He is the co-creator and co-writer of SUBHUMAN, an underwater adventure series for Dark Horse Comics, and has provided scripts and cover art for other comic titles including SUPERMAN, MAN OF STEEL, STAR WARS, ALIENS, and PREDATOR.

Mark Schultz has been awarded five Harvey Awards, two Eisner Awards, an Inkpot Award, a Spectrum Award, and three Haxtur Awards.

 

Robert E. Howard's CONAN OF CIMMERIA Volume 1

Mark Schultz recently finished illustrating Robert E. Howard’s Complete CONAN OF CIMMERIA, Volume One (1932-1933) published by Wandering Star Press. This volume contains never before seen material including contextual notes, synopses, plot outlines, initial drafts, original ideas, notes and even Howard's own hand-drawn maps of the Hyborian world. Of special note is the previously unpublished first version of Howard's debut CONAN tale, THE PHOENIX ON THE SWORD. This is the original draft which Howard initially submitted to WEIRD TALES Magazine, and which was later condensed and rewritten by Howard for publication.

This luxury edition contains full color paintings by Mark Schultz, is profusely illustrated with exquisite black and white line work throughout, is packaged in a slipcase with embossed color plate, has a fully illustrated dust jacket, is gilt edged and is signed and numbered by award-winning artist Mark Schultz. CONAN OF CIMMERIA, vol. 1 contains the following stories: THE PHOENIX ON THE SWORD, THE FROST-GIANT'S DAUGHTER, THE GOD IN THE BOWL, THE TWOER OF THE ELEPHANT, THE SCARLET CITADEL, QUEEN OF THE BLACK COAST, BLACK COLOSSUS, IRON SHADOWS IN THE MOON, XUTHAL OF THE DUSK, THE POOL OF THE BLACK ONE, ROGUES IN THE HOUSE, THE VALE OF LOST WOMEN and THE DEVIL IN IRON.

 

Gary Gianni, artist of Wandering Star's newest CONAN hardbound

Gary Gianni's work harks back to the golden age of illustrating, to people like Joseph Clement Coll, Franklin Booth and Roy Krenkel. In 1997, collaborating with Archie Goodwin, his illustrations won him The Eisner Award for Best Short Story, Heroes, in BATMAN: BLACK AND WHITE, for DC Comics.

In 1998, Robert E. Howard's SAVAGE TALES OF SOLOMON KANE was published by Wandering Star Press. Gary spent a year and a half doing 200 pen drawings and seven oil paintings to illustrate the adventures of Howard's brooding puritan hero. In 2001, Gianni illustrated a companion to Solomon Kane - Robert E. Howard's BRAN MAK MORN: THE LAST KING. This compiles the complete tales of Howard's doomed lost race and its tragic warrior king. Illustrated with eight color plates and over forty-five pen and ink drawings.

Gary Gianni has since taken artistic responsibilities for Hal Foster's legendary creation PRINCE VALIANT in conjunction with the longtime PRINCE VALIANT strip writer - Cullen Murphy. Reprints of PRINCE VALIANT can be found online at King Features Syndicate.

 

Robert E. Howard's CONAN OF CIMMERIA Volume Two

Wandering Star presents the original CONAN in this second volume of Robert E. Howard's acclaimed tales of Hyborian Age adventure. This limited edition hardbound is based upon the fully restored, authoritative texts and is illustrated throughout by Gianni. It includes a slipcase with a color-embossed plate, dust jacket, gilt edge, and is signed and numbered by Gary Gianni. Gary said the artwork for this volume took him almost 3 years to complete!

Of special note are the never-before-published versions of PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE and A WITCH SHALL BE BORN. The texts for these stories were taken from Howard's original carbon and typescript, respectively, and feature an UNCENSORED restoration of the story text before it was edited by the original publisher. Over half of this book is taken from Robert E. Howard's original drafts and typescripts -- a world debut! In addition, this volume contains Howard's only novel of CONAN THE CIMMERIAN, the stunning THE HOUR OF THE DRAGON.

 

Brom

Brom has been producing fantasy illustrations since the early '90s for companies such as TSR, maker of DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS and their best-selling DARK SUN WORLD. He has produced paintings for novels by many popular writers including MICHAEL MOORCOCK, TERRY BROOKS, R.A. SALVATORE and E.R. BURROUGHS. His art has appeared in role-playing games from TSR, WHITE WOLF, FASA and WOTC, he has produced comics for DC, CHAOS and DARK HORSE and has produced artwork for the video games DOOM 2, DIABLO 2, and HERETIC. His artwork has also been used in Tim Burton's SLEEPY HOLLOW, GALAXY QUEST, BLESS THE CHILD, GHOSTS OF MARS and SCOOBY DOO.

 

Brom's book OFFERINGS

Brom is a master of sinister, disturbing imagery and his book OFFERINGS delivers up some of the very best. This book features much of his artwork, over 120 images, from novels, video games, collectable cards (ICE's LORD OF THE RINGS) and movies (all mentioned above).

 

Larry Elmore of DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS fame

Larry Elmore has been creating fantasy and science fiction art for over 20 years. He worked as a staff artist for TSR, Inc. from 1981 to 1987. While at TSR, he helped set the standards of gaming art in the role-playing genre. Besides creating covers for DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS and other gaming books and scenarios, he may be best known for his work with the world of DRAGONLANCE. Since 1987, he's been working as a freelance illustrator, doing covers for comics, computer games, magazines, fantasy and science fiction books and many more projects too numerous to list here.

 

Larry Elmore's book: 20 Years of Artwork

This full-color, large format 9" x 12", 144 page, high quality art book contains covers the past 20 years of Elmore's career including his work at TSR, the DRAGONLANCE years and his current work.

 

John Gabriel (a.k.a. Gabe) of Penny Arcade

Penny Arcade is a web comic written by Mike Krahulik and Jerry Holkins. The strip features their cartoon alter egos John Gabriel (a.k.a. Gabe) and Tycho Brahe, respectively, who spend much of their time playing computer games and commenting on them. A good deal of the humor of this strip revolves around Internet subculture and video games, and often features in-jokes that are explained by the news posts that accompany each comic. Penny Arcade regularly features profanity and violence, and can easily be considered offensive to those unused to such elements. The first comic strip appeared on November 18, 1998.

 

Penny Arcade

There is little continuity on Penny Arcade, owing to the writers' dislike for the concept. They have been quoted as describing it as the "dreaded continuity". A character who dies a horrible, violent death in one strip will come back the next perfectly whole. There is also little realism in Penny Arcade. All manner of creatures have been known to drop in, from zombies to a talking DivX player.

 

Richard and Wendi Pini, creators of ELFQUEST

Elfquest began in 1977 and is credited as the first continuing fantasy/adventure graphic novel series in America to be co-created, written and illustrated by a woman. With husband/editor/facilitator Richard, she has scripted, drawn and painted many ELFQUEST graphic novels, co-written and illustrated prose novelizations, produced calendars, portfolios and art prints and provided cover art for the ELFQUEST related anthology series BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS. Appealing to comics and sci-fi/fantasy fans alike, it has attracted a very large and unique audience. Over three million copies of the collected graphic novel volumes have been sold to date.

 

Richard and Wendi Pini's new book ELFQUEST: THE SEARCH AND THE SWORD

ELFQUEST: THE SEARCH AND THE SWORD is the first new Elfquest material in years. It is an original, full-color 96-page hardcover graphic novel in which the elves must adapt to a world without the Troll smiths, who forged their weapons and tools.

Writers

Writers are the unsung heroes of the comic book world. Since comic books are a visual medium, it is the artist who receives the praise. But behind every good book resides the writer, the person responsible for scripting the basic story of the book, providing character dialog, and producing descriptions of every panel for the artist to draw. While there are a lucky few talented enough to fill both positions, the majority of comics are written by a single individual working in concert with the artist, inker, letterer and colorist. Here is a brief spotlight on writers we spotted on the Comic Con floor this year.

 

Tad Williams

Tad Williams did a signing at the Penguin booth to promote his upcoming Shadowmarch books that are due in November of 2004. These stories are taken from the online Shadowmarch text-based stories and accompanying artwork. Tad Williams is a New York Times and London Sunday Times bestselling author of fantasy and science fiction, with novels including the OTHERLAND series, THE DRAGONBONE CHAIR, and the new book THE WAR OF THE FLOWERS.

 

Tad Williams' upcoming book Shadowmarch, Volume 1 from publisher Orbit

The maze-like castle of Southmarch stands sentry along the border between the human kingdoms and the land of the immortal Qua. Now, the darkness from beyond that border has begun to enfold Southmarch - or Shadowmarch - the Qua's ancient home. To stop the darkness falling, the Southmarch royal family must face their human enemies, supposed friends and the family curse. Twins Barrick and Briony shoulder impossible burdens as their father is imprisoned and their brother murdered. Briony flees towards her father and the slave armies of the Autarch, while her brother Barrick crosses the Shadowline gripped by madness ...

Shadowmarch is being published by Orbit out of the UK, the same publisher of books by Iain M. Banks and Ken Macleod. It is due to hit bookshelves in November of 2004.

 

William Harms, author of the upcoming book Bad Mojo

William HarmsWilliam Harms has written comic books for Marvel Comics, Caliber Press, Boneyard Press, and Slave Labor Graphics and is the former senior editor of PC Gamer Magazine. He is also the author of the critically-acclaimed graphic novel ABEL, which was published in 2002 by AiT/Planet Lar. His latest book, BAD MOJO, is due to hit the shelves on August 25, 2004.

 

William Harms' BAD MOJO

Bruce O'Connor is on the cusp of realizing his childhood dream--playing professional baseball. But while driving cross country--with two friends--to report for spring training in Arizona, Bruce falls asleep at the wheel and hits another car. As luck would have it, the other car is being driven by a man-hating witch.

Enraged that Bruce has damaged her car, she curses him: Every day at dawn he will die and when the sun goes down he'll come back to life. With his professional baseball career in jeopardy, and the clock ticking before the start of spring training, Bruce and his friends agree to help the witch. If they get her certain "items", she'll lift the curse.

While getting the witch the hand of a dead murderer, the three friends lose track of time and Bruce drops dead in the middle of a busy diner outside of Harras, Oklahoma. Unfortunately for Bruce and his friends, the people in Harras don't take too kindly to witchcraft and people rising from the dead....

 

Steve Niles at the IDW Publishing booth

Steve Niles is credited with the reemergence of horror comics. His horror comics published at IDW Publishing include 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, WAKE THE DEAD, DARK DAYS and HYDE at IDW Publishing and FREAKS OF THE HEARTLAND, FUSED: THINK LIKE A MACHINE and LOVE ME TENDERLOIN: A CAL MACDONALD MYSTERY for Dark Horse Comics.

Last year's 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, which single-handedly vaulted horror comics back into the limelight after a lull of several decades, is being developed into a major motion picture. Niles is writing the screenplay and Sam Raimi of SPIDER-MAN and SPIDER-MAN 2 is producing. IDW Publishing has also announced a deal with Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster, to do three prose novels in mass-market paperback format based in the nightmarish world of 30 Days Of Night.

 

Steve Nile's 30 Days of Night

In a sleepy, secluded Alaska town called Barrow, the sun sets and doesn't rise for over thirty consecutive days and nights. From the darkness, across the frozen wasteland, an evil will come that will bring the residents of Barrow to their knees. The only hope for the town is the Sheriff and Deputy, husband and wife who are torn between their own survival and saving the town they love.

 

Danny Fingeroth

Danny Fingeroth was the longtime Spider-Man Group Editor for Marvel comics where he wrote and edited many issues of SPIDER-MAN and other comic book titles including SUPERMAN and SONIC THE HEDGEHOG. He also served as a story consultant to the 1990's Fox Kids Spider-Man animated series. Currently, Fingeroth serves as the editor of Write Now! Magazine, a magazine he created and launched in August of 2002 that takes readers behind the scenes, into both the creative and business sides of writing narrative fiction (comic books). Fingeroth also teaches Comic writing classes at the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies.

 

Danny Fingeroth's latest book SUPERMAN ON THE COUCH: WHAT SUPER HEROES REALLY TELL US ABOUT OURSELVES

From the dust jacket: Why are so many of the superhero myths tied up with loss, often violent, of parents or parental figures? What is the significance of the dual identity? What makes some superhuman figures "good" and others "evil"? Why are so many of the prime superheroes white and male? How has the superhero evolved over the course of the 20th and early 21st centuries? And how might the myths be changing?

Why is it that the key superhero archetypes - Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, the X-Men - touch primal needs and experiences in everyone? Why has the superhero moved beyond the pages of comics into other media?

All these topics, and more, are covered in this lively and original exploration of the reasons why the superhero - in comic books, films, and TV - is such a potent myth for our times and culture.

Book and Comic Stores

Comic books are just not possible without comic book stores. If it weren't for stores dedicated to selling comic books, the majority of comic books and comic related products created every year would never see the light of day. It takes a special type of person to run a comic book store, a person who not only loves reading them, but more importantly enjoys discussing them, and spreading that interest and the love of the medium to others. And as any owner will tell you, it requires a large amount of time and resources to do it successfully. It is not an easy job. Here are a few of our favorite stores and owners.

 

Rory Root, proprietor and self-proclaimed "schmoozer" of Comic Relief in Berkeley

Rory Root has been involved in comics his entire life. Like most store owners, he worked at someone else's comic store in the beginning, before taking the plunge and opening his own. Comic Relief in Berkeley, California, is known for its wide array of independent books, zines, pop culture journals, underground comix, manga, comic strips, art books and trade collections. The reason they carry such a varied selection simple, Rory Root has an extremely eclectic taste in comics and books, which is quite evident when he speaks about them. Rory has been an evangelist for graphic novels in public libraries, writing articles for books, magazines and trade journals and speaking passionately at numerous events, including the GRAPHIC NOVELS IN LIBRARIES panel at this year's Comic Con.

 

As for the store, Comic Relief is quite possibly one of the most diverse comic "book" stores in the nation. If you're looking for graphic novels and trade paperbacks, look no further -- their shelves are literally packed with books. And, if by some odd chance they don't have what you're looking for, the odds are that Rory can get it. Comic Relief has specialized in graphic novel and trade paperback editions since its inception, stocking an estimated 10,000 different titles, many of which are long out of print. It is no coincidence that Comic Relief received the very first Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing Award in 1993, a once-in-a-lifetime award. If you find yourself in Berkeley and have a chance to drop by Comic Relief, don't be afraid to introduce yourself to Rory to discuss comics and books -- his vast knowledge is quite possibly the store's greatest asset.

 

Bud Plant of Bud Plant books

Bud Plant Comic Art of Grass Valley, California, carries more than just comic art. Much, much more. They specialize in comic book creators, fantasy artists, erotic art and photography collections, art from popular culture of the 19th and 20th centuries, and a number of other illustrators and artists including Arthur Rackham, N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle, Maxfield Parrish, Pre-Raphaelites like J. W. Waterhouse and Lord Leighton, J. C. Leyendecker, Mucha, and illustrator/ teachers like Jean-Leon Gerome, and Andrew Loomis.

What we like best about Bud Plan is their selection of deluxe signed editions, portfolios and prints. They even get artists to draw special, hand-signed booklates for their books which they pass on to buyers at no extra cost!

 

Bud Plant has been in the mail order business for over 30 years. He began his career in the early 1960's by collecting comic books. He has since expanded the variety of books he carries to include art books, graphic novels, comic strip collections, comics, books on illustrators from the past, popular culture, erotic art and photography, and more. Bud Plant's strength is his quarterly 248 page INCREDIBLE CATALOG -- it is packed with pictures, detailed descriptions and recommendations from Bud himself. Really, it is truly amazing and we recommend going to his site and ordering one. It's free!

 

Chuck Rozanski of Mile High Comics

Chuck Rozanski, the founder and president of Mile High Comics, was at the show in force. His booth featured a display of more than $100,000 in trade paperbacks, all of which were on sale for 30 percent off. If you've never heard of him, Chuck Rozanski started Mile High Comics in his parent's basement in 1969 at the age of thirteen. He sold at flea markets and then conventions before opening his first Mile High Comics retail store in Boulder, Colorado. At twenty-one, he owned four. His purchase of the "Mile High" collection of Golden Age comics, the largest and highest-quality collection of old comics ever discovered comprised of mint copies of every comic book published from 1938-1950, made his name and that of Mile High Comics commonplace in the comic book industry.

 

Mile High Comics boasts more than 5,000,000 back issue comics and a large majority of them are available via their website and are always discounted in some form or another. We highly recommend Chuck's weekly email to keep abreast of his sales. In these emails, he often provides codes for free shipping or additional discounts and always talks about his business, family, the comic industry, his garden and his prized collection of pueblo pottery.

Rozanski's dedication to the promotion of comics as an art form is what really sets him apart. Chuck does much more than run store and booths at conventions; he also hosts the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) Auction every year as the auctioneer. As he says, "Defending our First Amendment freedoms to express ourselves without restraint is very important to me, so I work especially hard to keep the CBLDF solvent." This years auction was hailed as a tremendous success as they had 70 bidders who spent a combined $15,000.

Publishers

 

Larry Young and Mimi Rosenheim of AiT/Planet Lar publishing

AiT/Planet Lar is a very odd name for a comic publishing company. AiT stands for ASTRONAUTS IN TROUBLE, Larry Young's book and we're guessing that Planet Lar is short for Planet Larry. Regardless, Larry Young and Mimi Rosenheim have accomplished something few people ever do, a successful publishing company. AiT/Planet Lar is a pop-culture company based in San Francisco that dedicated to bringing high-quality entertainment to the masses through the creation of original projects or producing works deserving of wider recognition. They provide a full range of services from concept to completion including writing, art management, lettering, advertising and promotion, prepress production, ancillary merchandise, and print management. Their original graphic novels have received awards and are available in mass-market bookstores, specialty bookshops and Amazon.com.

 

Larry Young's ASTRONAUTS IN TROUBLE: LIVE FROM THE MOON

Fifty years after Armstrong's one small step, the world's richest man claims the moon as his own personal property... and Channel Seven is there! This graphic novel shows what happens when absolute power corrupts absolutely, when The Mob has nuclear first-strike capability, and when cows jump over the moon. Witty banter, one-sixth gravity derring-do, and an explosive finale from a tale that Sci-Fi Universe says has "a wide-eyed sense of wonder and a clear appreciation for adventure-based science fiction."

Larry Young describes ASTRONAUTS IN TROUBLE: LIVE FROM THE MOON as DIE HARD meets BROADCAST NEWS on the Moon. It was nominated for the American Library Association 2002 Popular Paperbacks and includes an introduction by Warren Ellis and a follow-up story by Larry Young and TRANSMETROPOLITAN artist Darick Robertson.

 

Tom McCorkell of Penguin Books

This was the first year that Penguin Books has had a presence at Comic Con. They featured books in from their three science fiction / fantasy lines (Ace, Roc and DAW) as well as selected titles from other adult and children's divisions. Penguin, the publisher of classic literary works and many out-of-print authors, had a booth at Comic Con with quite a few author appearances.

Tad Williams signed samplers of SHADOWMARCH (DAW), the first of a new fantasy epic. He was also signing his recent paperback release of WAR OF THE FLOWERS. S.M. STIRLING signed his new August hardcover, DIES THE FIRE (Roc). Harry Turtledove promoted DAYS OF INFAMY, the new alternative history novel from New American Library (NAL) which is due in November, 2004. Both Harry and S.M. joined the Saturday alternative history panel.

Kevin Anderson and Rebecca Moesta, both Comic Con guests of honor, signed STAR WARS: YOUNG JEDI KNIGHTS: JEDI SUNRISE, a recent omnibus release. Kevin was also signing the movie tie-in of SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW and promoted his next DUNE series called A FOREST OF STARS written with Brian Herbert. Max Allan Collins, author of ROAD TO PERDITION, signed his recent mystery THE LONDON BLITZ MURDERS (Berkeley) and Charles Vess signed the new August release of THE FAERY REEL (Viking), a new anthology with illustrations by Vess and edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling. This is a follow-up to the World Fantasy Award winner THE GREEN MAN. Other authors in attendence included Peter Beagle, Peter David, Sherwood Smith, Emily Drake, Lorna Freeman and Lee Goldberg.

Penguin was handing out posters of major forthcoming hardcover titles including SHADOWMARCH (DAW - November 2004) by Tad Williams, INCUBUS DREAMS (Berkley - October 2004) by Laurell K. Hamilton and the new Anita Blake Vampire Hunter novel THE RUNES OF THE EARTH (Putnam - October 2004) by Stephen R. Donaldson (Book 1 of the Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant). Penguin also had a display of SINGULARITY SKY (Ace), the Hugo nominee by Charles Stross, now available in paperback and IRON SUNRISE (Ace), the sequel just out in hardcover.

 

DelRey Books

Del Rey had a booth and were on hand to give away books, galleys, manga samplers, bookmarks, posters, temporary tattoos and more. They hosted a number of authors in person for signings including Terry Brooks (HIGH DRUID OF SHANNARA: TANEQUIL); Greg Keyes (THE CHARNEL PRINCE: BOOK TWO OF THE KINGDOM OF THORN AND BONES); China Mieville (IRON COUNCIL); Steven Barnes (STAR WARS: THE CESTUS DECEPTION); Alexander Irvine (ONE KING, ONE SOLDIER); Andy Fox (BRIDE OF THE FAT WHITE VAMPIRE); Minister Faust (COYOTE KINGS OF THE SPACE-AGE BACHELOR PAD); Tim Zahn (STAR WARS: SURVIVOR'S QUEST); Howard V. Hendrix (THE LABYRINTH KEY); Greg Bear (DEAD LINES); and Mark Cotta Vaz (CAUGHT IN THE WEB: DREAMING UP THE WORLD OF SPIDER-MAN 2). Also, bestselling author Christopher Paolini (ERAGON) was present on behalf of Alfred A Knopf for Young Readers.

The 2004 Eisner Awards

 

The Eisner Awards are named for renowned cartoonist Will Eisner (creator of THE SPIRIT and several award-winning graphic novels), who always attends the ceremony to personally hand the trophies to the winners. The Awards are given out in more than two dozen categories covering the best publications and creators of the previous year (such as Best Short Story, Best Graphic Album, Best Writer, and so on). The finalists on the ballot are selected by a blue-ribbon committee that considers thousands of entries submitted by publishers and creators. The nominees are then voted on by all parts of the comic book industry: writers, artists, and other creators; publishers; editors; and retailers and distributors.

2004 Nominees

2004 Recipients

 

Will Eisner

The Eisner Awards, established in 1987, came under the auspices of the San Diego Comic Convention, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, in 1990. The Awards Administrator is Jackie Estrada. The awards program has been funded by contributions from distributors, retailers, media companies, and such industry suppliers as major printers of comics.

A complete list of this year's Eisner Award Recipients can be found here.

 

Pulitzer Prize–winning author Michael Chabon

Michael Chabon, author of THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER AND CLAY, kicked off the evening with a well-received keynote speech in which he issued a call to comics creators and publishers to do comics for kids that actually appeal to children and contain all the elements that excited today’s creators about comics when they were kids.

 

NY Times best-selling author and Hugo Award-winner Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman, author of the New York Times Bestselling and Nebula, Hugo, Bran Stoker and BSFA award winning novel AMERICAN GODS, presented the Fund’s Defender of Freedom Award to Jim Lee, who spoke about the importance of protecting First Amendment rights and supporting the Fund.

 

Jim Lee named CBLDF Defender of Liberty

Neil Gaiman presented Jim Lee with the CBLDF (Comic Book Legal Defense Fund) Defender of Liberty award.

In his acceptance speech, Jim Lee said, "These are some very weighty words. My gut reaction is simply—I am not worthy -- not that I am trying to be falsely modest but because I take this award and its significance very seriously."

"Just look at the list of past recipients -- Harlan Ellison, Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller, George Perez, Brian Pulido, Chuck Rozanski -- it’s a rather all-star lineup."

 

"Some of the biggest and brightest names in our industry. These are guys who have been leaders in both action and in word -- guys who have devoted much of their careers to fighting the proverbial good fight."

"So please understand how much more comfortable I would feel if this were perhaps renamed the Sidekick to the Defender of Liberty. Or maybe the Ultimate Fundraising Defender of Liberty (as clunky as that sounds) because in many ways, that’s how I feel about my history with the fund."

The truth is, Jim Lee deserves this award more than anyone else this year for the tireless work he has done for the CBLDF and the money he has helped raise. Lee, founder of Wildstorm Productions which is now owned by DC Comics and a highly talented artist in his own right, even auctioned himself off, offering an all expenses paid store visit and signing for the winning store on behalf of the CBLDF. The winner was Chuck Rozanski of Mile High Comics with a bid of $6,700.

 

Sergio Aragones presented the annual Hall of Fame Awards

Sergio Aragones, famous artist of MAD MAGAZINE and his own GROO THE WANDERER presented this year's Hall of Fame Awards. Recipients this year were Otto Binder (wrote CAPTAIN MARVEL and BLACKHAWKS), John Stanley (writer and layout artist for LITTLE LULU), Kazuo Koike (writer of LONE WOLF AND CUB and CRYING FREEMAN), and Goseki Kojima (artist of LONE WOLF AND CUB). The four elected inductees were Al Capp (creator of LI'L ABNER), Jules Feiffer (took over THE SPIRIT after 1952 and also created CLIFFORD), Don Martin (famous cartoonist for MAD MAGAZINE), and Jerry Robinson (artist for BATMAN and creator of THE JOKER and ROBIN). Jerry Robinson was on hand to accept his award in person.

Santa Cruz's own Joe Ferrara of Atlantis Fantasyworld presented the Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailing Award as he has done as the facilitator of the award for the past six years. This year's winner was Acme Comics of Iowa. Joe later surprised guests, and Sergio Aragones himself, when he pulled out a guitar and asked Sergio to join him in a rendition of You Belong to my heart by Three Caballeros. A picture of the duo can be seen on the COMICON.com PULSE news site.