What kind of sociopathic monster would not want to pay the man who made this?

“Considering a career in illustration? The money now is LESS than in 1980s, + you spend half your time chasing it cuz NOONE WANTS TO PAY YOU.”

– The great cartoonist and illustrator Michael Kupperman, whose Tales Designed to Thrizzle is legitimately one of the funniest comics ever made, serves up some real talk on Twitter. Congress failing to extend unemployment benefits is still the most depressing thing I read about the economy this week, but Michael Kupperman — Michael Kupperman! — having a hard time getting paid to draw things is a close second.

Mr. Porcellino's neighborhood

John Porcellino, creator of the long-running self-published minicomics series King-Cat Comics and Stories, is arguably one of the most influential comics creators of the past quarter century. That and $2.25 will get you on the subway, apparently. Today Porcellino blogged a series of photos of the seemingly economically depressed Illinois town to which he recently moved “in desperation” after losing his previous place of residence. “It’s times like these that make a man wonder ‘How?’, ‘Why?’,” Porcellino writes. And that is your soul-crushing quote of the day. Oh well, I suppose you could cheer yourself up by reading several complete King-Cat issues on What Things Do while waiting to hear how many Social Security cuts will be required to offset additional tax cuts for our billionaire overlords.

DC Comics

DC Comics will lower the price of all of its standard-length ongoing titles from $3.99 to $2.99 beginning in January, the publisher announced this afternoon.

The move to the lower price will mean a decrease in story pages — from 22 pages to 20 in a standard 32-page comic — as well as the loss of co-features in eight titles, including Action Comics, Adventure Comics and Detective Comics.

“As co-publishers, we listened to our fans and to our partners in the retail community who told us that a $3.99 price point for 32 pages was too expensive,” Co-Publisher Dan DiDio said in the press release. “Fans were becoming increasingly reluctant to sample new titles and long term fans were beginning to abandon titles and characters that they’d collected for years. We needed a progressive pricing strategy that supports our existing business model and, more importantly, allows this creative industry to thrive for years to come. With the exceptions of oversized comic books, like annuals and specials, we are committed to a $2.99 price point.”

The following standard-length ongoing series and licensed titled, previously price at $3.99, will move to $2.99 for 32 pages (20 pages of story): American Vampire; Batman: The Dark Knight; Batman Incorporated; Gears of War; God of War; Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors; JSA All-Stars; Kane & Lynch; and Ratchet & Clank.

These comics, previously priced at $3.99 for 30 pages of story, will lose their co-features and shift their price to $2.99 for 20 pages of story: Action Comics; Adventure Comics; Batman: Streets of Gotham; Detective Comics;
Doc Savage; Justice League of America; Legion of Super-Heroes; and The Spirit.

Batman: Europa #1, First Wave #6, DCU: Legacies #9, Weird Worlds #1 and World of Warcraft: Curse of the Worgen will remain at $3.99 for 40 pages/30 pages of story. Hellblazer #275, an oversized anniversary issue, will be priced at $4.99 for 48 pages/38 pages of story.

Nexus, by Steve Rude

Creators | Renowned artist Steve Rude and his family are in danger of losing their home, so the co-creator of Nexus is auctioning art in hopes of raising the money to meet a Nov. 15 deadline. [Steve Rude's Facebook, The Comics Reporter]

Publishing | Retailer news and analysis site ICv2.com suggests Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim series could close out 2010 as the No. 1 graphic-novel property of the year, surpassing the top-selling adaptation of Stephen Meyer’s Twilight. [ICv2.com]

Digital comics | David Brothers wonders how the rise of digital comics might change comics “culture,” and the Wednesday ritual. [4thletter!]

Comic Book Guy

Retailing | Some 20 years after the character’s debut, the Boston Herald asks retailers what they think of The Simpsons‘ Comic Book Guy. “I love the fact that my occupation gets the Simpsons treatment, an over-the-top stereotype,” says Larry Doherty, owner of Larry’s Wonderful World of Comics in Lowell, Mass. “If your occupation doesn’t get the Simpsons treatment, maybe it’s irrelevant.” [Boston Herald]

Creators | Tucker Stone talks with Darwyn Cooke at length about his adaptation of The Outfit. [Comics Alliance]

Creators | Douglas Wolk chats briefly with artist Doug Mahnke. [Techland]

Creators | Dartmouth’s student newspaper covers a lecture by Fun Home cartoonist Alison Bechdel. [The Dartmouth]

Brightest Day #7

Publishing | Chart-watcher John Jackson Miller wades into the grim direct-market sales figures for August, and notes that they mirror the state of the market in 2000: “Like 2010, 2000 was a year with a successful super-hero movie release — the first X-Men film. In that year, however, it had little impact on the market partially due to the cash-poor position of retailers at the time — and we might expect retailers were in the same position this year. [...]  In 2000, by contrast, the reason wasn’t the general economy, but rather the seven-year industry recession that preceded it. Another similar element: price increases. From 1999 to 2000, Marvel went from benchmarks of $1.99 and $2.50 to $2.50 and $2.99. Other titles increased as well; $2.95 first became the industry’s median price in late 1999.  The 2000 jumps are one of the more drastic previous increases by percentage — eclipsed, of course, by the current $2.99-to-$3.99 move.” [The Comichron]

Legal | India’s Delhi High Court has refused to hear a complaint by Archie Comics challenging the use of the name “Archies” by Mumbai-based Purple Creations. The court said it had no jurisdiction in the matter because Archie doesn’t have an office in India. [Deccan Herald]

Bone One-Volume Edition

Publishing | Jeff Smith’s Cartoon Books is moving its bookstore distribution from Diamond Book Distributors to Publishers Group West, effective Oct. 1. [ICv2.com]

Publishing | Sarah E. Needleman spotlights Dark Horse President Mike Richardson. [The Wall Street Journal]

Retailing | Diamond Comic Distributors will release more details of its “Day Early Delivery” program on Oct. 8 during a Retailer Appreciation Breakfast at New York Comic Con. [ICv2.com]

Retailing | Comics Cubed is set to open today in Kokomo, Indiana, thanks in part to a $15,000 loan from the city designed to encourage businesses to locate downtown. [Kokomo Perspective]

Organizations | Valerie D’Orazio has announced that as of Jan. 1 she’ll no longer be president of Friends of Lulu, the troubled comics-advocacy group that’s in danger of losing its tax-exempt status. She was elected president in September 2007. [Occasional Superheroine]

SPX

Conventions | Heidi MacDonald reports on last weekend’s Small Press Expo, which drew slightly more than 2,000 paid attendees, up 18 percent from 2009 and 30 percent from 2008. [Publishers Weekly]

Conventions | Cincinnati Comic Expo will be held Saturday at Xavier University’s Cintas Center. Guests include Murphy Anderson, Russ Heath, Lora Innes, Tony Moore and Michael Uslan. [FOX19.com]

Creators | Brian Heater kicks off a three-part interview with Lisa Hanawalt. [The Daily Cross Hatch]

Comics | The Yale Law School library’s exhibit “Superheroes in Court! Lawyers, Law and Comic Books,” which runs through December, showcases comics ranging from Action Comics #359 (“The Case of the People vs. Superman”) to Wolff & Byrd: Counselors of the Macabre, as well as documents like the 1955 report to the U.S. Senate called “Comic Books and Juvenile Delinquency.” [The New York Times]

Comics | Jesse Schedeen counts down the 10 most dangerous places in comics, from Marvel’s Eastern Europe to DC’s Middle East to Bludhaven. [IGN.com]

Comics | Eight superheroes that turned evil but got better. [Topless Robot]

Comic Evolution

Economic forces continue to take a toll on comic retailers — online stores and brick-and-mortar shops alike — a gloomy reality illustrated by two recent developments.

The first comes from Khepri Comics, the 12-year-old Internet bookseller specializing in independent comics and the works of creators like Brian Wood, Becky Cloonan, Ross Campell and Cliff Chiang. According to owner Brian Johnson, it’s been a brutal past few months, with “gross ‘summer’ revenue” down 43 percent versus 2009, and 58 percent versus 2008. “Sorry — one more summer of decline, and Khepri is done,” he writes on the store’s blog.

“Sure, the economy is crap,” Johnson says in a follow-up with The Beat. “Undoubtedly, downloading (legal or otherwise) must takes its toll. But excuses won’t pay the bills. So I’ll redouble my efforts and see what the next twelve months bring.”

As Johnson suggests in his nod to downloading, he doesn’t think the recession is solely to blame for Khepri’s declining revenues.

“It’s tough sledding out there competing with Amazon’s free shipping, Hastings’ new impetus, Mile High’s incredible selection, Midtown’s dogged advertising, and on and on,” he continues. “At the same time, Marvel is now Disney, DC is Time Warner, Comic-Con International is now Hollywood, and only Big Business is Too Big To Fail. It may be sluggish yet, but the future is now – this is the new comics industry, this is the new global economy. Where, exactly, do I fit in?”

Meanwhile, as Puyallup, Washington, retailer Comic Evolution heads into its third anniversary next month, owner Chuck Messinger reveals he has experienced a decrease in business of more than 60 percent in recent months.

“In years past, it has been safe to assume everyone is enjoying their summer and will get back to reading the good stuff in the off months,” Messinger writes on the store’s Facebook page. “This year we have not even made enough to cover invoices since June.”

In addition to “the harsh reality of this economic downturn,” Messinger lays blame on subscription customers who abandoned their accounts without notifying the store, leaving him “to write off more than $30,000 this year in neglected subscription files.”

In the Facebook plea, titled “State of Evolution: Save Our Store,” Messinger asks for subscription customers to bring their accounts up to date or at least notify the Comic Evolution that they’re unable to do so.

“For the first time since our opening in 2007, we are experiencing a financial crisis that unfortunately we may not be able to pull out of,” he writes. “Not having enough revenue to pay the utilities, the rent, and all necessary commodities has opened our eyes.”

Dan DiDio

In an interview with ICv2.com, DC Comics Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee touch upon a wide range of topics, from the end of the CMX manga imprint to their digital plans to the company’s management transition. However, it’s the discussion of cover pricing, and retailer concern about the creep toward $3.99, that may be of most interest to budget-minded readers.

“Only 25% of our line is over $2.99,” DiDio tells the retail news and analysis site. “For the amount of books that we put out, the amount of product we have out there, to be over $2.99 for just 25% I think is a good, strong indication of how we’re dedicated to try to keep the prices down. [...] We’re trying to hold the price as much as possible.”

He notes, however, that readers are “willing to pay the higher price for books that they want.”

“They seem to be a little more cautious about the books that are higher priced that they’re on the fence about,” DiDio continued. “We’re well aware of that. Our goal is to hold the prices as low as possible. We don’t see our line getting to the point where our competition is at where so much of their line right now is higher than a $2.99 price point.”

You can read the full three-part interview beginning here.

Chris Ryall

Publishing | IDW Publishing has promoted Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall to the new position of chief creative officer, expanding his duties to encompass the company’s efforts across all platforms. Ryall, who joined IDW in 2004 from Kevin Smith’s Movie Poop Shoot website, will remain as editor-in-chief. [press release]

Publishing | In not-exactly-unexpected news, Dark Horse will move its online anthology Dark Horse Presents from MySpace to the publisher’s website. DHP originally appeared in print from 1986 to 2000, and was relaunched in digital form at MySpace in August 2007. [Newsarama]

Publishing | John Jackson Miller analyzes direct-market sales figures for May, which saw graphic novel sales slip 15 percent from the previous year: “My suspicion continues to be that orders for bigger-ticket items have been more likely to be impacted by the general recession; retailers are letting trade paperback inventories fall a bit, even in months in which they’re ordering more comic books (even given the price increases).” [The Comichron]

Publishing | Kai-Ming Cha offers a brief overview of recent developments in the battle between manga publishers and scanlation websites. [Publishers Weekly]

iPad

Publishing | Chris Sims wonders whether Marvel is trying out “digital second printings” as a way to release recent comics on the Apple iPad (presumably without making waves with direct-market retailers). [Comics Alliance]

Publishing | Mumbai-based publisher Vimanika Comics is profiled. [CNNGo.com]

Conventions | Anime Expo, which kicks off today at the Los Angeles Convention Center, will remain in the city through 2013. The four-day event is expected to attract 100,000 attendees and bring about $24 million in revenue to the city. Deb Aoki has a rundown of this weekend’s highlights. [Money & Company]

Conventions | Susan Karlin briefly profiles Comic-Con President John Rogers, who oversees a $7 million budget, and a staff of 20 full-time employees and 3,000 volunteers — plus sibling events WonderCon and Alternative Press Expo. [IEEE Spectrum, via Journalista]

Retailing | Julie Shapiro spotlights New York City’s Midtown Comics as it prepares to open a new location on Fulton Street. [DNAinfo.com]

Creators | Douglas Wolk talks with J.H. Williams III about the upcoming Batwoman monthly series: “The first arc is very much a horror story, and then the second is an espionage/intrigue sort of thing, and after that sort of a fantasy epic for the third, and initial plans for the fourth are more along the lines of a family drama.” [Techland]

Creators | Tucker Stone profiles artist Cliff Chiang: “When I started, I felt like everything had gotten so precious, art-wise. I wanted to make marks, these really fat brush lines. To force people to see that what I was doing was also drawing. It doesn’t have to look like Todd McFarlane. I ended up getting a lot of jobs that were Golden Age or period pieces. Since then, I’ve seen things move in that direction. Michael Lark started working in brush, and Darwyn was doing his stuff, and then it felt like there was this whole movement of people doing this classic, noir-ish visual style. And they were so good at it, it made me feel like I needed to change. That’s why you see a shift in the Human Target stuff, I think it’s in issue fourteen, the one with the boy-band priest. It was a reaction to people doing better work in an area that I’d gotten comfortable in. So I picked up and tried to do something else.” [comiXology]

Creators | Graeme McMillan interviews Dan Goldman about his web series Red Light Properties. [Techland]

Creators | Paul Levitz chats about Adventure Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes and Superman/Batman. [iFanboy]

Comics | Dave Carter and Heidi MacDonald run down Wonder Woman’s many costumes over the decades. [Yet Another Comics Blog, The Beat]

Reviews | Techland contributors on Scott Pilgrim, Vol. 1; Brian Hibbs on an assortment of new releases; Michael Dirda on Wilson; Ryan Jent on Batwoman: Elegy; Tom Speelman on Chew, Vol.; and Kirk Warren on a handful of new releases.

Abe Sapien: The Abyssal Plain #1, by Dave Johnson

Welcome to the first of hopefully many editions of “Food or Comics?”, the spiritual successor to our “Can’t Wait for Wednesday” feature. As we did in CWFW, we plan to share what new and notable comic books we’re excited to see in shops every Wednesday, but with one twist — a price limit.

Every week we’ll tell you what comics we’d buy if we had $15 to spend, if we had $30 and if we had some “mad money” (like a gift card) to blow on what we’re calling a “Splurge” item. Admittedly, this was a tough exercise, much tougher than I thought it would be, and a reminder as to why I buy my books from a place that offers a discount.

To see what Kevin Melrose and I would spend our hard-earned money on, keep reading …

Kevin Melrose

If I had $15, I’d buy …

Abe Sapien: The Abyssal Plain #1 ($3.50)

I admit that I’m picking this up as much for Dave Johnson’s cover as I am for the story, which recounts one of Abe Sapien’s first B.P.R.D. assignments: searching for an ancient relic in a sunken Soviet U-boat. It’s by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Peter Snejbjerg, so it’s well worth the $3.50. (Dark Horse)

Northlanders #29 ($2.99)

This stand-alone issue of Brian Wood’s Viking saga has at least two things going for it: The first is guest artist Fiona Staples, who produces consistently top-notch work, from Secret History of the Authority: Hawksmoor to North 40 to The Mystery Society. The second is the memory of another self-contained Northlanders story, Issue 17′s “The Viking Art of Single Combat,” in which Wood and guest artist Vasilis Lolos crafted an enthralling and informative 22-page fight between the champions of two feuding clans. It ranked easily among my favorite issues — of any series — of 2009. For “The Sea Road,” Wood comes up with an equally engaging, but perhaps less violent, premise: The entire story is set on a cramped Viking ship heading into the uncharted waters of the Atlantic. (Vertigo)

Wonder Woman #600 ($4.99)

I don’t think I’ve read Wonder Woman in probably three years, and I have no idea what’s going on, story-wise. However, it’s tough to pass up a milestone issue likes this, particularly when it features contributions by the likes of Amanda Conner, Geoff Johns, Gail Simone, Walter Simonson, Adam Hughes, Phil Jimenez, Jock, Jim Lee, Francis Manapul and George Perez. Plus, as with Superman #700, Wonder Woman #600 offers a preview of J. Michael Straczynski’s new direction for the title. (DC Comics)

Captain America #607

Captain America #607 ($3.99)

If I had a pull list, Ed Brubaker & Co.’s Captain America would be one of the few monthly series on it. This issue is the second part of the “No Escape” storyline. (Marvel)

That comes to $15.47, which exceeds the budget by a whopping 47 cents. However, I’m not above cheating — or rummaging through the sofa cushions for change.

If I had $30 to spend, I’d also pick up …

Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper ($3.99)

Writers Joe R. Lansdale and John L. Lansdale and artist Kevin Colden (Fishtown, I Rule the Night) — that’s an impressive creative team — adapt Psycho author Robert Bloch’s horror short story that originally appeared in Weird Tales magazine in the 1940s. Yours Truly is the first release from IDW’s Robert Bloch Collection. You can see a preview here. (IDW Publishing)

The Last Airbender

The Last Airbender Movie Adaptation ($8.99)

Frankly, I’m a little torn on this one: As eager as I am to see a Last Airbender comic by co-writers Dave Roman and Alison Wilgus and artist Joon Choi, I’m put off by how white the characters are on the cover. I realize that reflects the (controversial) casting for the live-action movie, but it’s particularly jarring to see the the change to the characters in their cartoon forms. (Random House)

The Royal Historian of Oz ($1)

Wonderland writer Tommy Kovac joins artist Andy Hirsch, a recent graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, for a five-issue miniseries that centers on a failed writer who discovers Oz really exists. However, he makes a serious misstep that brands him a criminal in two worlds, leaving his son to save him and the family name. If the premise weren’t intriguing enough, the cover price certainly is. (SLG Publishing)

That brings me to $29.45. I’m getting better at this.

Splurge:

Tribes: The Dog Years

Tribes: Dog Years ($24.99)

Okay, $25 may not exactly be a “splurge,” but this graphic novel by Michael Geszel and Inaki Miranda caught my eye a few months back. Featuring beautiful horizontal art by Miranda and Eva de la Cruz, Tribes takes place two centuries after a viral apocalypse shortened human lifespans to 21 years. The remnants of humanity splinter into tribes that survive among the ruins until, one day, everything changes for Sundog of the Sky Shadows. Paul Pope describes Tribes as “like Mad Max by way of Disney,” which is enough to convince me to shell out the cash. You can see a 10-page preview here. (IDW Publishing)

JK Parkin

If I had $15, I’d buy …

Usagi Yojimbo #129 ($3.50)

I’ve been a fan of Stan Sakai’s samurai for many years, and it is consistently one of the best comics around. This issue features the return of Kato, who has been hunting Usagi because he believes the rabbit ronin stole money from him. (Dark Horse)

Northlanders #29 ($2.99)

I don’t know what I can add that Kevin didn’t already say about this book above, but writer Brian Wood talks more about it here. (Vertigo)

Secret Avengers #2

Secret Avengers #2 ($3.99)

You can never have too much Ed Brubaker, unless, of course, you’re trying to limit your spending and two Brubaker books hit the stands during same week. It was a toss-up over whether to go with this or Captain America, but since I enjoyed the first issue so much, and it’s loaded with characters I really like, I opted for Secret Avengers. (Marvel)

Invincible Iron Man Annual #1 ($4.99)

Matt Fraction and Carmine Di Giandomenico bring the Mandarin back into the fold in a book that will be released both digitally and in print on the same day. Because it’s the cheaper of the two options, I’m going with the print version. (Marvel)

That brings my total to $15.47 … which, like Kevin, is a little more than the set limit.

And if I had $30, I’d also buy …

Unknown Soldier #21

Unknown Soldier #21 ($2.99)

I’m disheartened that Joshua Dysart’s resurrected Unknown Soldier series is ending, but I plan to be there until the finish. This issue is drawn by Rick Veitch and follows the “life” of a Kalashnikov AK-47 machine gun that was built in the 1970s and made its way through Africa, showing the lives it touched and took. Veitch talks more about the issue here. (Vertigo)

Captain America #607 (3.99)

The other Ed Brubaker title, featuring the work of Mitch Breitweiser and the legendary Butch Guice. (Marvel)

Muppet Show #7 ($2.99)

Roger Langridge’s Muppet Show is always a delight, and even though he isn’t drawing this one, Amy Mebberson is a more-than-capable replacement. This issue focuses on Fozzie, who apparently has mother issues. (BOOM! Kids)

Action Comics #890

Action Comics #890 (3.99)

I’m a fan of Paul Cornell’s previous work at Marvel, so I’m interested in seeing what he has planned for Superman’s pal Lex Luthor … especially since it picks up on Luthor’s role in the Blackest Night mini-series. (DC Comics)

That brings my total to $29.43, which means I’ll have to pass on Flash #3 and Wonder Woman #600 — both of which almost made the cut. And maybe I can talk Kevin out of his extra 55 cents, so I can combine it with my 57 cents to buy my own copy of The Royal Historian of Oz.

Splurge:

Usagi Yojimbo 12 inch plush ($24.99)

I’ll probably take some heat for picking a plush toy rather than something you can actually read, but c’mon, look at this guy:

Usagi Yojimbo plush

All plush toys should aspire to his level of badassery.

You can find the complete list of what’s hitting stores this week at Diamond’s site. Let us know in the comments field what you’re planning on getting this week. Also let us know what you think of our new format.

Comic-Con International

Conventions | A survey commissioned by the San Diego Convention Center Corp. reveals that Comic-Con International’s 130,000 or so attendees pour a whopping $163 million into the local economy — quadruple what was previously thought. Surprisingly, this is the first official estimate of the event’s financial impact. But as impressive as that figure is, convention center officials point out it doesn’t take into account the money spent by the roughly 50 percent of con-goers who don’t stay in hotels.

The survey’s results were disclosed just as Comic-Con organizers are set to decide whether to remain in San Diego, or move to Anaheim or Los Angeles, after their contract expires in 2012 with the convention center. [The San Diego Union-Tribune]

SuicideGirls

Conventions | The founder of SuicideGirls claims the website is banned from “having a significant presence” at Comic-Con, supposedly because adult-only SuicideGirls DVDs were purchased at WonderCon without the seller checking IDs. However, Comic-Con spokesman David Glanzer insists the group isn’t banned. “My understanding is that SuicideGirls didn’t have a booth and there is a 400+ waiting list,” he said. [LA Weekly]

Publishing | There’s been much debate this week whether DC Comics is, indeed, the first publisher “to announce a participation plan for talent” for digital sales. Heidi MacDonald reports that on Monday, just two days before DC revealed its entry into digital distribution and the accompanying royalty program, Marvel sent a letter to its exclusive talent announcing an incentive plan. [The Beat]

Publishing | Hermes Press will collect comics based on Milton Caniff’s Steve Canyon published in the late 1940s and early 1950s by Harvey Comics and Dell Comics. The first volume will debut in summer 2011. [ICv2.com]

Retailing | Torpedo Comics, the online comics store launched in 2007 by System of a Down drummer John Dolmayan, is auctioning its inventory and domain name to pay creditors. [The Beat]

Retailing | Canada’s Strange Adventures, which already has stores in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Fredericton, New Brunswick, has opened a third location in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. [Halifax News Net]

Mike Mignola

Creators | Mike Mignola discusses the Hellboy universe and his plans to return to drawing the character he created: “I really enjoy collaborating, so it’s been very easy to spend years without drawing my own comics. But I don’t want to be just a writer; I want to get back to drawing the comic. And this place we are with Hellboy, wrapping up the storyline, is the natural place for me to step back in, although I’ll continue to co-write everything else. I’ve known for years what this next period of Hellboy will be. It will be a brand new chapter. The Storm will be an ending of everything we’ve read about Hellboy up until now. It’s going to be a clean slate when I jump in.” [The List]

Creators | Artist Michael Lark about The Amazing Spider-Man, superhero movies, and which is harder to draw — New York cityscapes or the webs on Spider-Man’s costume: “ I’ve gotten to the point where I try to avoid drawing those cityscapes as much as possible. I’ll draw a foreground building or two, but for a big cityscape, I’ll just manipulate a photo. It’s really just a pattern. It’s something that’s so much more accurately done with something mechanical than it is by hand. So, yeah, those webs are a pain, because they have to follow the contours of his body accurately. It’s tough to do.” [D Magazine]

Creators | Ian Burns wraps ups his three-part interview with Air writer G. Willow Wilson. [TCJ.com]

Creators | Johanna Draper Carlson has rethought her earlier stance on not supporting creators’ Kickstarter projects. [Comics Worth Reading]

Avengers #1

Publishing | Direct-market comics sales rebounded in May, increasing 15 percent from the same month last year. Sales of graphic novels, however, fell 13 percent. Diamond’s list of Top 300 periodicals was led by Avengers #1 with an estimated 163,867 copies — 50,000 more than second-place Siege #4 (the final issue of the Marvel miniseries). The lackluster graphic-novel chart was topped by the ninth volume of Ex Machina, with fewer than 5,000 copies. Once again The Walking Dead was a standout, with 12 volumes charting — including a reprint of the six-year-old Days Gone Bye collection, which came in at No. 19 with about 2,300 copies. [ICv2.com]

Internet | Kimberly Saunders looks at how scanlation aggregators hide titles on their websites, removing yaoi titles from the prying eyes of Google — Google’s AdSense application doesn’t permit sites with sexually explicit content — and seemingly satisfying take-down notices from publishers: “MangaFox is not alone in trying the shell game, either. AnimeA have game on as well. Visit their site, click on a manga title they have supposedly removed, (all Viz so far, just like MangaFox) and up comes a message that it is licensed and you have to buy it. But if you have a page bookmarked, or come via a search engine, and click on a listed  numbered chapter of (name of removed manga), guess what? Yes, it is there, just hidden and inaccessible from the main page in an attempt to appear compliant …” [The Kimi-chan Experience, via Deb Aoki]

Flash Gordon #3

Passings | The New York Times publishes an obituary for illustrator Al Williamson, who passed away on June 12 at age 79. Meanwhile, The Comics Journal reruns the second part of Steve Ringgenberg’s 1984 interview with the legendary artist, and Rick Veitch recalls working with Williamson on Marvel’s adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back. [The New York Times]

Conventions | Tired of traveling to other cities for comics conventions, fans Matt Bredestege and Andrew Satterfield are launching one in Cincinnati in September: Cincinnati Comic Expo. [Cincinnati Enquirer]

Creators | Tom Spurgeon talks at length with Gene Luen Yang about the success of American Born Chinese, shifting gears with The Eternal Smile (with Derek Kirk Kim), the collection of his New York Times serial Prime Baby, and his upcoming projects. [The Comics Reporter]

Jonah Hex: No Way Back

Creators | Artist Tony DeZuniga chats briefly about the creation of Jonah Hex: “John Albano (who died in 2005) was approached by Joe Orlando to do this Weird Western Tales series. That year, everything had a ‘Weird’ tag attached to its title. Then John spoke with me about designing the character. One day, while I was at the doctor’s office, I saw the doctor’s chart with half of a skeleton and half of the muscles, and I had the idea: Wouldn’t it be cool to do half a face like that. When I did the concept [on paper], John was so excited and happy. ‘This is the character!’, he said.” [Suite101.com]

Creators | Jonah Hex writer Jimmy Palmiotti explains the character’s appeal: “Sure, he can be abusive, a bit of an alcoholic, have his way with prostitutes, and kill anything in his way — but that doesn’t make him a bad guy. He’s just a classic anti-hero in every sense.” [Splash Page]

Creators | Laura Collins-Hughes spotlights the collaboration between cartoonist Art Spiegelman and the renowned Pilobolus dance company. “They haven’t done this before, I haven’t done this before, and that’s why I’m just glad that they talked me into it,” Spiegelman said, “even if I have to change my name after it appears onstage and start life over under a cartoonists protection program.” [The Boston Globe]

Sweet Tooth #11

Creators | Brandon Burpee chats with Jeff Lemire about Essex County, Sweet Tooth and his upcoming superhero work for DC Comics. [Multiversity Comics]

Creators | Air and Cairo writer G. Willow Wilson discusses her conversion to Islam, which she recounts in her new memoir The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman’s Journey to Love and Islam. [The Boston Globe]

Creators | CCL Podcast posts an interview with Dan Nadel, focusing on Art in Time: Unknown Comic Book Adventures, 1940–1980. [Collected Comics Library]

Creators | Brad Meltzer talks about his arc on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. [Blogcritics]

Creators | Paul Chadwick’s website has gone live, complete with a blog, a gallery, comics and more. [The Official Paul Chadwick Website]

Retailing | Teresa Tomassini looks at how a handful of New York City comic stores are weathering the economy. “The comic industry has become such a boutique item that it’s become something people will go out of their way to buy — unless they lose a job,” said Stephen Passarelli, owner of Action Comics. [New York Daily News]

Graphic novels | Sandy Billus runs down notable releases for the second half of the year. [I Love Rob Liefeld]

Reviews | Jason Thompson on Monster Collection; The A.V. Club crew on assorted titles, from Jonah Hex: No Way Out to Meta 4; Rachel Cooke on George Sprott; Tucker Stone on assorted titles, from Hellblazer #268 to 20th Century Boys, Vol. 9; John Reed on The Search for Smilin’ Ed!; Ben Morse on five recent first issues, including Young Allies and Zatanna; Rob Clough on Smile; Sean T. Collins on Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka

The Beano Annual 2009

Publishing | D.C. Thomson & Co., publisher of long-running comics like The Beano and The Dandy, is closing a printing plant in Dundee, Scotland, eliminating up to 350 jobs. The facility is used to print magazines and books. The company, which also owns The Evening Telegraph and Sunday Post newspapers, employs more than 2,000 people. [BBC News]

Publishing | Lori Henderson returns to the question of what led to the failure of the CMX manga imprint: “Its parent company, DC didn’t do anything to market that line. Putting a solicitation in Previews is not marketing. DC claimed they would bridge the manga and comic store gap, yet did nothing to help retailers or promote the books to bloggers, bookstores or librarians, their three strongest advocates. You can’t buy or recommend books you don’t know about. While there were other factors that contributed to its ultimate end, the mishandling of the imprint in its first year, and then being completely ignored for the rest was the main factor in its lack of sales.” [Manga Xanadu]

Retailing | Retailer Frank Mangiaracina argues that early delivery of comics to the direct market won’t work: “Here in Kansas City, from roughly 1993 to 1999, all shops enjoyed Tuesday delivery for Wednesday on sale. Most shops started selling the books on Tuesday regardless. A ‘secret shopper’ service like Diamond is proposing is unlikely to work as unscrupulous retailers would simply just sell to people they know (i.e. subscribers).” [ICv2.com]

Slam Dunk, Vol. 5

Creators | The Japan Basketball Association will honor Slam Dunk creator Takehiko Inoue with a special commendation for his contribution to the growing popularity of the sport in Japan, and for the establishment of the Slam Dunk Scholarship for high-school athletes. [Anime News Network]

Creators | Douglas Wolk chats briefly with Jason Aaron. [Techland]

Creators | Kate Beaton talks about humor, self-publishing, making a living from comics and being a celebrity: “Well, most of the time, I work at an office or in my house, and people don’t know who I am. The only time they know who I am is at comic shows. And that can get a little overwhelming. TCAF was intense, but they’re all like that. You’d like to have the time to talk to all the people that come to you, but you can’t. I’m not used to the crowds of people, and so I get overwhelmed, and lose it a bit toward the end. Not it a bad way, but it’s too much attention, too many drawings. And then you feel kind of like a jerk because, you know, people have come to see you, and you’re just like, ‘I’ve got to go outside or something, I need a break’.” [Torontoist]

Creators | Writer Neil Kleid is profiled by his local newspaper. [NorthJersey.com]

The New Teen Titans #1

Creators | Matt Price marks the birthday of George Perez by counting down his Top 10 comic-book runs, from The New Teen Titans to The Infinity Gauntlet. [Nerdage]

Crime | Two people stole the life-size fiberglass-and-foam statue of Spider-Man from outside The Time Capsule comics store in Seekonk, Massachusetts. One suspect reportedly distracted the store manager on May 30 while the other unhooked the bungee cord that attached Spider-Man to the shop’s sign. The statue, which is worth between $300 and $400, has been replaced by with one of Freddy Krueger. [The Sun Chronicle]

Comics | Dean Blumberg examines ecological issues in Alan Moore and Steve Bissette’s first arc of Saga of the Swamp Thing: Part 1, Part 2. [PopMatters]

Comics | Matthew Brady discovers 10 things he didn’t know about Wonder Woman. [Warren Peace Sings the Blues]

Comics | T.J. Dietsch looks at the “12 Coolest Personfications of Death,” including Jack Kirby’s Death Racer, Judge Death and, of course, Death of the Endless. [Topless Robot]

One Piece, Vol. 27

Publishing | Viz Media has confirmed that its public relations and design departments were among those affected by Tuesday’s layoffs. In a brief statement released yesterday, the company assured fans that, “We have no plans at this time for drastic measures such as product cancellations or business line closures. Your favorite series are not going away.”

Melinda Beasi, Simon Jones, Kai-Ming Cha and Lissa Pattillo provide more commentary. [Viz Media]

Legal | As a Belgian court decides whether to ban Tintin in the Congo because of racist content, Roger Bongos and Sebastian Rodriguez argue that Hergé’s book shouldn’t be censored but rather read and analyzed within the context of the era in which it was created. “You cannot deny however that the book is very discriminatory of black people,” Bongos writes. “Hergé wasn’t a racist person himself: he simply reflected the image the Western world had of the Congo and of Africa during those years, as well as the colonial aspirations of Belgians. In this sense, the book is kind of Proust’s ‘madeleine episode’ for us: it helps us remember our colonial history.” The court is expected to issue its ruling on May 31. [France 24]

CBLDF

Politics | The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund looks at the track record of Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan on the First Amendment. [CBLDF]

Webcomics | I missed this as it was unfolding on Monday, but a software developer named Dale Zak released the Web Comics application through the iTunes App Store that picks up RSS feeds of webcomics. Many creators reacted quickly and angrily, leading Zak to change the app’s price from $1.99 to free before finally removing it altogether. Lauren Davis and Gary Tyrrell provide analysis. [Storming the Tower, Fleen]

Awards | The Asahi Shimbun profiles the winners of the 14th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize. [Asahi.com]

Conventions | Cartoonist Evan Dorkin posts “a disjointed report” about last weekend’s Toronto Comics Art Festival. [Livejournal]

Retailing | Jeremy Shvetz spotlights The Phoenix comics store in Scarsdale, New York. [Scarsdale Patch]

DMZ #53

Creators | Brian Wood talks about his Vertigo series DMZ, New York City and becoming a New Yorker: “I can’t remember at which point I considered myself a New Yorker, officially. Maybe after I graduated college? One of Matty’s defining characteristics is his endless struggle to ‘belong,’ and typically he is struggling too long and too hard and that’s where the mistakes come in. He earned the respect of the locals pretty early in the series, but he clearly doesn’t feel like he has. Maybe the true New Yorkers are the ones who don’t talk about it, who just get on with life and aren’t always trying to prove it to you.” [Gothamist]

Comics | David Colton briefly spotlights IDW Publishing’s upcoming True Blood miniseries. [USA Today]

Naruto, Vol. 46

Publishing | Brigid Alverson, Simon Jones, Gia Manry and Daniella Orihuela-Gruber provide commentary on Tuesday’s announcement that Viz Media is restructuring, laying off up to 60 employees and closing its New York City branch. Manry cautions that there’s little need for panic, while Jones points out that it’s unclear whether the company’s cuts are in its manga or anime divisions.

Alverson notes that the news came as such a surprise because Viz publishes the most popular manga properties (Naruto, One Piece, Fullmetal Alchemist) as well as some of the most acclaimed (Children of the Sea, Pluto, 20th Century Boys): “However, as publishing veterans know, acclaim does not necessarily equal sales.” [Viz Media]

Frank Frazetta

Passings | Tom Spurgeon pens a very nice obituary for artist Frank Frazetta. [The Comics Reporter]

Conventions | Tom Devlin and Chris Pitzer file reports about last weekend’s Toronto Comics Art Festival, while organizer Chris Butcher rounds up links to photo sets from the convention. [TCAF]

Retailers | Stadium Comics in actor Michael Cera’s hometown of Brampton, Ontario, lobbies for the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World star to appear at the store for a signing by declaring Aug. 13 “Michael Cera Day.” [press release]

Creators | Marvel has signed exclusive agreements with colorist Elizabeth Breitweiser and artist Ryan Stegman. [Marvel]

Love & Rockets #24

Creators | Christopher Irving profiles Jaime Hernandez, while Steve Bunche interviews Todd Hignite, author of The Art of Jaime Hernandez: The Secrets of Life and Death. “He made me come to my hometown, and the neighborhood where I grew up,” Hernandez says of Hignite. “I took him up and down the street and showed him all these little places that didn’t look like anything but had such history, for me. By the time he put it down on paper, in the book, I thought how he brought out what I was about was the real art of the book. I thought he did that really well and I thought ‘Nobody has to look at any of the art in the book. I want them to read it, because it covers so much that doesn’t come out in the art’.” [Graphic NYC, Publishers Weekly]

Creators | Gail Simone discusses her return to DC’s relaunched Birds of Prey, which debuts this week: “It’s a little naughtier, for sure.  We purposely avoided romance and sex stories previously, to show a female-led book didn’t HAVE to have that component. Okay, that’s proven. Now some Birds might get some action.” [iFanboy]

Nathan Schreiber

Creators | David Harper talks to Eisner-nominated cartoonist Nathan Schreiber, creator of Power Out. [Multiversity Comics]

Education | The Dartmouth student newspaper spotlights the “The Graphic Novel” course offered by the college’s English department. [The Dartmouth]

Education | A teacher discourages a third-grader from selecting a graphic novel for Children’s Book Week, so the boy’s mother writes to the newspaper asking, “Are graphic novels bad for young readers?” Short answer: Of course not. [Detroit Free Press]

Politics | “What Batman Can Teach Conservatives on Immigration and Other Issues.” Yeah, I don’t know. [The Huffington Post]

Viz Media

Top-selling manga publisher Viz Media today announced the layoffs of as many as 60 employees and the closing of its New York City branch, Publishers Weekly reports.

The staff cuts — 55 from its San Francisco headquarters and five from the New York office — represent about 40 percent of the company’s workforce.

In a statement today to PW, the publisher acknowledged it is “restructuring to adjust to changing industry and financial market realities.”

Viz, which publishes such hits as Naruto, One Piece and Fullmetal Alchemist, had appeared to weather the worst of the economic and market declines that led to a major restructuring of rival Tokyopop in 2008 and the closing of several smaller manga publishers.Viz previously laid off a reported 12 to 15 people in February 2009.

Update (May 12): Evelyn Dubocq, Viz’s senior director of public relations, revealed this morning on Twitter that she has been laid off after seven years with the company. “It’s so odd waking up on a work day having no place to go,” she wrote.

Update 2 (May 12): Viz Media has released a statement about the restructuring:

VIZ Media is in the process of refining its focus and is restructuring to adjust to changing industry and financial market realities.

As part of the restructuring the company had to refine its workforce by eliminating certain positions and making cuts in other areas.

We are of course saddened by these departures, and sincerely appreciate the hard work, passion and dedication of those that have moved on, but we feel confident that with these changes VIZ Media will be more streamlined and able to withstand the climate of the economy at this time.

This restructuring was not insignificant; however, this was primarily an internal reprioritization to build toward our future. We wish to apologize to our wonderful fans if this news has caused you concern. Be assured VIZ Media remains committed in its obligations to you. We have no plans at this time for drastic measures such as product cancellations or business line closures. Your favorite series are not going away.

Piracy

Digital piracy | Although some have credited, or blamed, Rich Johnston for bringing pirate website HTMLcomics.com to the attention of publishers, Harlan Ellison has stepped forward to gleefully suggest he may have had something to do with its exposure: “Several months ago, if you recall, we were advised of an internet pirate who was posting — along with about 30,000 other pages — DC, Marvel, Archie, Dark Horse, and on and on — my stories from HARLAN ELLISON’S DREAM CORRIDOR. When we advised him to cease and desist, he essentially told me to go fuck myself, and urged me to sue him. Just like every one of them, all the way back to my AOL suit, he told me he couldn’t be found, he was impregnable, I could go fuck myself. … I warned him. … I asked four members of The Flying Blue Monkey Squad to help me. They found him in one day, unsnarled all his shunting devices, tracked his footprint back to his main server, we got his name, his location in Tampa, Florida, and sent that data on to, well, friends of friends.”

Johanna Draper Carlson, Alan Kistler, Gia Manry, Simon Jones, Jaime Weinman and Douglas Wolk have additional commentary. [Robot 6]

Comic-Con International

Conventions | As three cities make bids for Comic-Con International, Michael Reicher considers whether the the pop-culture event is really worth all the fuss: “Comic-Con attendees might drive in from Hollywood, eat at a burger joint and party at a bar, whereas doctors from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons might fly in from Chicago, stay at the Hilton and eat at the White House in Anaheim — and spend three times the amount as Comic-Con devotees, industry leaders say.” [Orange County Local News Network]

Business | Five months after the company’s purchase by Disney, Marvel merchandise has begun appearing at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. For now Disney is selling the merchandise only at its D Street store at the Downtown Disney District outside the theme park. [The Orange County Register]

Business | Not comics, but distantly related: Upper Deck, the collectible-card company that produced trading-card games based on Marvel and DC Comics properties, has eliminated 119 employees. Last summer the company was dealt a financial blow when it lost its license with Major League Baseball to rival Topps. [The San Diego Union-Tribune]

Bone: The Dragonslayer

Libraries | The editorial board of the Rosemount, Minnesota, newspaper throws its support behind a local school district’s decision to keep Jeff Smith’s Bone series on library shelves: “There is nothing wrong with a parent objecting to her child reading these books. Each parent has different standards for his or her child. But there are better solutions than removing the book from in front of all students. We believe many students can get something positive out of these books, and we’re glad they’ll still have the opportunity.” [Rosemount Town Pages]

Awards | Suvudu continues its rundown of Eisner Award nominees with a look at the contenders for best limited series or story arc. [Suvudu.com]

Retailing | Columnist Thomas Heath profiles Thomas and James Wu, owners of Barbarian Comics in Wheaton, Maryland. [The Washington Post]

Art by Jim Zubkavich

Creators | The National Post keeps chugging along with those Q&As with creators attending this weekend’s Toronto Comics Art Festival: Dustin Harbin; Erika Moen; Nick Marinkovich; Joey Weiser; Jordyn Bochon; Jim Woodring; Maryanna Hardy; Jeff Ellis and the Cloudscape Comics Collective; David Huyck; Joy Ang; Jim Zubkavich; and Nick Thornborrow. [Toronto Comics Art Festival]

Creators | Vanessa Farquharson profiles Jeff Lemire. [National Post]

Creators | Audio interviews from Stumptown Comics Fest with Graham Annable, Joelle Jones and Nicolas Hitore De, Matthew Southworth, James Sturm, and Steve Lieber. [Stumptown Trade Review]

Creators | Michel Fiffe talks at length with artist Juan Bobillo. [The Beat]

Creators | David Harper chats with Caanan Grall, creator of the Zuda Comics series Celadore. [Multiversity Comics]

X-Men: Second Coming #1

The direct market reached a milestone in March, one that will make a lot of comics readers very unhappy. For the first time, more comics in Diamond’s Top 300 were priced at $3.99 than at $2.99.

That’s according to chart-watcher John Jackson Miller, who provides the breakdown: 130 titles priced at $3.99, 124 at $2.99, and only 16 at “the intermediary step” of $3.50, which seems destined to disappear altogether.

It’s a slim margin, to be certain and, in Miller’s words, “mainly a psychological barrier,” as the average price still comes out to $3.55. But it’s a sure sign that the $4 comic soon will be the norm, with or without additional content or “co-features.”

Every month around this time, the retail news and analysis site ICv2.com posts its sales estimates for comics sold to the direct market, and virtually every month there’s a new round of complaints from readers about the increasing number of $3.99 titles. Yet, despite all the (virtual) gnashing of teeth and rending of clothes, the $3.99 books keep on selling. Of the Top 25 comics in March, 14 were priced at $3.99; of the Top 50, 27 were at the higher price.

Now, a lot of those titles were event comics, or tie-ins to event comics, or special one-shots, or miniseries, or — well, you get the picture. So I’ll agree with Miller that it’s possible the “common price” of comics could slide back to $2.99 once some of these crossovers and miniseries and so on wrap up. After all, DC’s next “events,” Brightest Day and War of the Supermen are priced at $2.99. However, most of Marvel’s “Heroic Age” launches and relaunches appear to be $3.99 books.

So, what does it all mean? Most likely, it’s a hearty welcome to the Four-Dollar Era. But don’t get too comfortable: The Five-Dollar Era will be along before you know it.

WonderCon

Conventions | Although WonderCon organizers are still tabulating attendance from last weekend’s convention, they say that “by all accounts the numbers for 2010 met or exceeded those for 2009.” Last year’s event drew about 34,000, a significant increase from the 20,000 that attended in 2008. They also set the dates for the 2011 convention: April 1-3, which undoubtedly means we’ll have to endure numerous April Fool’s announcements of titles and creative teams. [press release]

Awards | Deb Aoki, Lauren Davis, Tom Spurgeon and David Welsh provide commentary on the 2010 Eisner Award nominees. In case you missed it, I also offered my reactions. [Eisner Awards]

Creators | In an oddly worded post, Clifford Meth reports that 83-year-old comic artist Gene Colan was injured last week, and his being cared for by his children: “In addition, it appears that some of Gene’s artwork has disappeared, including pages from Nathanial Dusk and a Star Wars-related piece. The police are involved in the matter.” [Clifford Meth]

Business | Lorraine Mirabella has a follow-up on Thursday’s foreclosure auction of a Baltimore County, Maryland, mansion owned by Diamond Comic Distributors CEO Steve Geppi. The mortgage lender bought back the nine-acre property for $2.8 million. Geppi and his wife Melinda bought the 19th-century home in 2004 for $4.8 million, and defaulted on the loan in February 2009. [The Baltimore Sun]

Batman: Gotham After Midnight

Awards | Batman: Gotham After Midnight, by Steve Niles and Kelley Jones, was named Best Horror Comic in the eighth annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards. [Rondo Hatton Awards]

Creators | Using the three-year-old controversy about the Mary Jane “washerwoman” statue as a sort of touchstone, Shannon Donnelly spotlights “the New Wonder Women of Comics” — female readership, and creators and editors like Karen Berger, Rebekkah Isaacs, Jeanine Schaefer, Gail Simone and G. Willow Wilson (most of whom have been working in comics for years). [The Daily Beast]

Creators | Cartoonist Dash Shaw discusses BodyWorld. [io9.com]

From "The Sixth Gun"

Creators | The Sixth Gun collaborators Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt talk about their upcoming supernatural Western. “There’s an interesting alchemy that happens when you take two genres, each with their own language and rules, and then smash them together,” Hurtt says. “It’s great fuel for the imagination – it keeps us, as creators, from falling too easily into genre conventions, and it keeps the reader from knowing exactly what to expect. With Westerns, there are many tropes and iconic imagery that are so embedded in our cultural consciousness that it’s fun to take those things and play off them or against the reader’s expectations. And the same can be said of the imagery and ideas of fantasy. This isn’t a fantasy dressed as a Western, or vice versa, but instead an amalgamation of the two.” [Free Comic Book Day]

Creators | Alex Dueben talks to artist Robert Williams about underground comics, the Zap Comix collective and contributing to this year’s Whitney Biennial. [Suicide Girls]

Creators | MediaGlobal profiles writer Joshua Dysart, focusing on his work on Vertigo’s Unknown Soldier. [MediaGlobal]

Manga | The story that keeps going, and going and going: Kami no Shizuku (Drops of God), the manga that sparks a wine craze in virtually every country in which it’s released. [CNNGo.com]

Pop culture | Is Marvel’s Ryan Penagos (aka Agent M) one of the 10 hottest geek guys? [GeekWeek]

Steve Geppi's Cliffholme (Baltimore Sun)

As many of us grapple with the recession, layoffs and a looming tax deadline, it may be difficult to muster much sympathy for the problems of millionaires, but we can try.

A historic 19th-century mansion owned by Diamond Comic Distributors CEO Steve Geppi will be sold today for $7.7 million at a foreclosure auction at the Baltimore County (Maryland) Courthouse. Cliffeholme — yes, it has a name! — has an outstanding mortgage debt of $3.25 million.

Geppi and wife Melinda paid $4.8 million in 2004 for the eight-bedroom, 13,000-square-foot mansion and nine-acre estate. The home features nine fireplaces, a 65-foot grand hall and a master bedroom suite with a gym. The couple moved to another home in the area before putting Cliffeholme on the market in January 2008.

As the Baltimore Sun notes, it’s not been a good year or so for Geppi: He’s been sued over investment properties and printing debts; his Gemstone Publishing closed its offices in White Plains, Missouri, laid off five employees, and failed to renew the Disney comics license; and Geppi’s Entertainment Museum has struggled to pay its bills. Diamond, meanwhile, has experienced its share of difficulties.

Sun financial columnist Jay Hancock attempts to link Geppi’s woes to the challenges the comics industry faces from the recession and the Internet but, frankly, does a terrible job of it — probably because there doesn’t appear to be much of a connection. I’ll go along with Hancock as far as some of the belt-tightening at Diamond (those that are recession-induced, anyway), but to make his case he has to ignore Geppi’s debts that have nothing to do with the comics distributor: namely, those investment properties and his pop-culture museum, the latter of which has operated in the red from the get-go.

From Green Spring Valley, Maryland, we travel cross-country to Bel-Air, Los Angeles, where the Tudor mansion of Ghost Rider and Kick-Ass star Nicolas Cage failed to find a buyer Wednesday at a foreclosure auction.

Cage, who faces $6 million in tax liens and has traded lawsuits with his former business manager, earlier had tried to sell the 11,816-square-foot mansion for $35 million. Wednesday’s auction opened at $10.4 million, but still … no interest.

But why? Built in 1940, the house’s former owners include Dean Martin and Tom Jones. It boasts six bedrooms, nine baths, a 35-seat home theater and an Olympic-size pool. So why no takers, even at that low, low price.

Real estate agent Bret Parsons thinks he knows: It comes down to Cage’s “fascinating and bizarre” tastes in interior design.

“The design was ‘frat house bordello,’ ” Parsons told the LA Times. “There must have been 300 comic book covers elaborately framed and hanging on the walls.”

P.M. Update: Like Cage’s mansion, Geppi’s has failed to draw a buyer. The mortgage lender has taken back the property.

Chapel Hill Comics

Retailing | Ada Price surveys six retailers from across the United States about weathering the tough economy, what’s selling (and what’s not), and the effects of price increases and “event fatigue.” “Event titles brought people in last year, both long-time fans and new readers, but [this year] people are suffering from event fatigue,” said Eric Thornton of Chicago Comics. “The last year and a half [crossover] events didn’t bring people in, and catered to people who are [already] fans.” [PW Comics Week]

Publishing | Manga sales in Japan fell 6.6 percent to $4.63 billion in 2009, the largest annual decline in market history. The Tokyo-based Research Institute for Publications points to fans reading in manga cafes instead of buying in bookstores because of the recession, and the release of fewer hit titles. [Anime News Network]

Wandering Son, Vol. 1

Publishing | Matt Thorn, editor and curator of Fantagraphics Books’ recently announced manga line, reveals plans for four releases a year with print runs of 6,000 to 8,000 copies each. [PW Comics Week]

Legal | The vote by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly on the proposed legislation to restrict sexual provocative “visual images” of characters that appear or sound to be younger than 18 years old apparently will be postponed until June. The amendment, which would affect manga, anime and video games sold in metropolitan Tokyo, was protested earlier this week by manga creators. [Anime News Network]

Conventions | Reed Exhibitions Group Vice President Lance Fensterman discusses the debut Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo, set for April 16-18. There’s also a brief preview of the Diamond Retailer Summit, which will be held April 14-16 in Chicago, in conjunction with C2E2. [ICv2.com]

American Vampire #1

Creators | The American Vampire promotional tour continues as writer Scott Snyder discusses working with Stephen King, and why he focuses on vampires, rather than, say, zombies or werewolves, for the new Vertigo series: “What’s so scary about vampires is that they are the same people — they just come back from the dead and they have this infection, this abomination of the blood that makes them into something that’s unnatural. For me they were always the scariest creatures for that reason. Scary zombies are sort of No. 2, where your father can come back and try and kill you. Vampires come back and are actually knowledgeable. It was the people around you turned into these monsters — the people you trusted like your neighbors in Salem’s Lot, or the people who live in the trashy trailer next door in Near Dark, or the kids you look up to in Lost Boys.  It’s that idea of someone you care about or somebody you trust coming back and being this evil version of themselves that Stephen King does so well.” [USA Weekend]

Madman Gargantua!

Creators | Brandon Burpee posts a video interview with Mike Allred from last weekend’s Emerald City ComiCon. [Multiversity Comics]

Creators | Stumptown Trade Review has audio interviews with Jeff Lemire and Terry Moore from Emerald City ComiCon. [Stumptown Trade Review]

Creators | Bob Fingerman discusses From the Ashes, the End of Days, his upbringing and more. [Heeb]

Creators | Brian Heater talks with artist Ryan Alexander-Tanner about his Xeric-winning book Television #1 and his collaboration with Bill Ayers on To Teach: The Journey, In Comics. [The Daily Cross Hatch]

Comics strips | Greg Evans’ syndicated strip Luann turns 25 years old today. [North County Times]

Comic strips | Olivia Putnal names seven comic strips, now in collected form, that deserve a second look. [Woman's Day]