Comic Book Resources

Thin wallets, fat bookshelves | A publishing news roundup

The Original Johnson

• IDW has announced the street dates for a couple of publishing ventures recently, including the their two Archie collections. The Best of Dan DeCarlo Vol. 1 will hit stores in May, while The Classic Newspaper Comics Vol. 1 will arrive in June.

More notably, the company also announced they would be collecting and releasing Trevor Von Eeden's The Original Johnson, about the life of boxer Jack Johnson, in December. In his recent interview with The Comics Journal, Von Eeden had discussed contract disputes he had been having with co-publisher ComicMix about the work so it's nice to book being completed and in print form.

• According to a press release that seems to be going around town, Fantagraphics and Supermen! editor (and former Fanta employee) Greg Sadowski will be working together on a series of seven collections of Golden Age comics. They are: Setting The Standard: Alex Toth at Standard Comics 1952-54, The Road To Plastic Man: The Golden Age Comics of Jack Cole 1937-41, Away From Home: EC Artists at Other Companies, Creeping Death From Neptune: Basil Wolverton’s Sci-Fi and Horror Comics 1938-55 and The Comic Book Frankenstein: The Monster According to Dick Briefer. That's a pretty amazing line-up. I'm especially excited for that Briefer book.

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Co-founder sues Radical Comics' parent company

Hercules #4

Just days before Comic-Con, Radical Comics owner Blatant Entertainment was dealt a bit of a blow: a lawsuit from one of its co-founders.

THR, Esq. reports that David Elliott, who was editor-in-chief of Radical until his termination in April, claims the parent company hasn't given him his full salary, failed to properly credit him on several titles (including Hercules), and is exploiting other properties in which he has a copyright stake without receiving his permission. Those, Elliott asserts, include Aladdin, Caliber, Hercules, City of Dust and Freedom Formula.

He also claims that he wasn't compensated for acquiring three properties for Blatant: Hotwire, Cholly & Flytrap and Lords of Misrule.

The lawsuit, filed July 16 in Los Angeles Superior Court, seeks compensatory damages, general damages and "harm to reputation and emotional distress damages" of no less than $1 million. In addition, Elliott asks for, among other things, a reversion of rights to Aladdin and an injunction barring Blatant from using and exploiting Caliber, Hercules, City of Dust, Freedom Formula and other projects "in any and all media and markets."

Blatant's Radical Pictures division already has most of those properties set up for film adaptations.

But, as THR's Eriq Gardner points out, the most interesting and -- if it's true -- potentially damaging aspect of the lawsuit may be this allegation: "Blatant's management failed to have any of its employees sign work-for-hire agreements and/or assignments of copyrights, thereby clouding title to all of Blatant's projects, and making it impossible for Blatant to provide proper chain of title documents and guarantees to investors, production companies, studios, and insurers, to the detriment of its shareholders."

Elliott's departure became public in mid-May when it was announced former Top Cow president David Wohl had replaced him as editor-in-chief. Radical characterized the move as a decision "mutually made" because Elliott was unwilling to move from New York to the company's offices in Los Angeles.

SDCC '09 | Movie news and notes

First Family

• FremantleMedia Enterprise has signed a first-look deal with Liquid Comics -- formerly Virgin Comics -- designed to bring the publisher's properties to other media.

The first two projects in the agreement are based on comics set to be released later this year: Animax, about a boy who can who can absorb the abilities and characteristics of any animals he touches, will be developed as an animated series. The second, First Family, will be turned into a drama about the teen children of a newly elected president who have to grapple with high school.

• Len Wiseman (Underworld, Live Free or Die Hard) will develop and direct the big-screen adaptation of Shrapnel for Radical Pictures.

The comic, from Radical's publishing division, is set in a future where humans have colonized the solar system, leaving Venus as the last rebellious holdout. A self-exiled former Marine teaches the colonists how to fight back against the Solar Alliance.

• Comic artist Kaare Andrews will direct the action film The Hunted, based on his own screenplay. The movie centers on assassin who's hired to kill a young girl but refuses to fulfill the contract.

• The oft-discussed sequel to 300 appears to be slowly making progress. The Hollywood Reporter's Risky Business Blog has word that Frank Miller recently finished a draft of the graphic novel on which the movie will be based.

• Black Beauty, the gadget-filled car from The Green Hornet movie, was revealed during Preview Night by Seth Rogan, writing partner Evan Goldberg and director Michel Gondry.

• ShockTillYouDrop.com has a photo of the Comic-Con banner for Warner Bros.' Jonah Hex movie.

• /Film rolls out a gallery of images from Preview Night, with a focus on movie and TV booths and props.

• Nikki Finke claims Comic-Con opened with "a whimper," at least from a Hollywood perspective. Her correspondent in San Diego is unimpressed with the studio presence at the event.

SDCC '09 | Movie news and notes

World of Warcraft

• Sam Raimi will direct a live-action movie based on the popular World of Warcraft online role-playing franchise.

Legendary Pictures and video-game publisher Blizzard Entertainment will produce the film, with Warner Bros. co-financing and distributing. Raimi will tackle the film once he completes Spider-Man 4.

• Darren Lynn Bousman (Repo! The Genetic Opera) has signed on to write and direct the bloody Abattoir for Barry Levine's Radical Pictures.

The company's comics division, Radical Publishing, is turning the property into a graphic novel, based on a concept by Bousman and partner Michael Peterson. Artwork from the comic will debut at Comic-Con.

Abattoir centers on a real-estate agent who must clean up the remnants of a massacre in a mansion he hopes to sell.

• Director Ryuhei Kitamura and writer Holly Brix are attached to Magdalena, the film based on the Top Cow Productions character.

Jenna Dewan (Step Up) and Luke Goss (Hellboy II: The Golden Army) already are signed to star in the feature about the descendant of Mary Magdalene who serves as the warrior and protector of the Catholic Church.

• Relative newcomer Zachary Gordon (National Treasure: Book of Secrets) will star in Fox 2000's adaptation of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney's best-selling series about a smart-aleck middle-schooler.

Chloe Moretz (Kick-Ass) is in negotations to play the female lead.

SDCC '09 | Hotels, comic stuff and more

The 2009 San Diego Comic-Con is getting really, really close, with preview night kicking things off on Wednesday, July 22. That's two weeks! If you are a publisher, creator, retailer or any other kind of exhibitor who would like to let folks know about any special plans you have for the show (panels, signing schedules, exclusives, debuts, etc.) drop me an email and I'll run it here.

Also, today's the cut-off day for hotel deposits, so it might be a good time to check for a room at that closer hotel you were aiming for but couldn't get.

Hero House

Comics | Justin Aclin dropped us a note about two projects of his that will be available at the show. The first is the graphic novel Hero House from Arcana Comics. The book won't be in shops until November, but attendees can get a copy early at the con. Justin and artist Mike Dimayuga will be at the Arcana booth to sign it as well.

Justin is also the head writer of Twisted ToyFare Theatre, and says the latest collection, Volume 10, hits comic shops on the first day of the show, with an introduction by Joe Quesada.

Comics | Scott Morse lists the books he'll have at the show, including the fast-selling The Ancient Book of Sex and Science, and the two issues of Strange Science Fantasy he posted on his blog earlier this year.

Comics | SLG Publishing has posted a list of creators who will be signing at their booth during the show.

Comics | Artist Francis Manapul will have about 200 copies of his new art book at the show.

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FCBD | 24 hours away

Fantagraphics FCBD 2009

Free Comic Book Day is tomorrow, so here's one last roundup of various events and signings you can attend. Today's update includes events in Seattle, Texas, New Jersey, Michigan, Canada and all over California.

You can find an even more extensive list of creator signings on the Free Comic Book Day website.

*****

SLG Publishing will celebrate Free Comic Book Day at their San Jose location, The SLG Art Boutiki, with live music:

The Boutiki will be open from 12-4 giving away (Yes, GIVING AWAY) comic books and all kinds of cool stuff. We will have a selection of the official Free Comic Book Day comics as well as a large selection of SLG comics from years past. Maybe a couple of toys, who knows. Live Music by Perpetual Infinity (come get your funk on).

The SLG Art Boutiki is located at 577 S. Market Street, San Jose, CA 95113. The night before they have a gallery opening featuring the work of Eric Jones, along with more live music. For information on all their May event, check out this blog post.

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Q&A | Rick Remender's life of crime

At the New York Comic Con earlier this month, Radical Publishing announced The Last Days of American Crime, a new book by writer Rick Remender and artist Greg Tocchini. I caught up with Remender for a brief Q&A on the book, working with Radical and the screenplay he's already working on based on the property.

JK: Thanks for agreeing to do this interview, Rick. What can you tell me about your new book from Radical, The Last Days of American Crime? What's the book about?

Rick: The skinny: The U.S. government has perfected a broadcast signal that will extinguish criminal thoughts. Enter fifty-four-year-old burnout, Graham Brick, a grifter who, with only 10 days before the signal goes live, discovers the crime of the century that he’d been planning suddenly transformed into the last crime in American history—if he can pull it off.

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WonderCon | Watching the Watchmen + lots of booth info

WonderCon kicks off this Friday at the Moscone Center South in San Francisco. The show welcomes special guests Jim Lee, Ed Brubaker, Matt Fraction, Brian Azzarello, Jill Thompson, Alex Robinson and many more Feb. 27-March 1.

There are only a couple of days left until the curtain lifts, but I'll be posting info on what various publishers, creators, retailers, etc. have planned for the show up until the last moment possible. So if you haven't yet shared your booth schedule, comic debut, special deal or any other information about what you have planned for the show, drop me an email.

General information: Programming | Registration | Special guests | Autographs

Watching the Watchmen

• A limited number of lucky fans attending the show on Friday will have the chance to see a certain comic book movie well before the general public:

Three-day and Friday only members have an opportunity to receive a free pass to a special Friday, February 27, 11:55 PM IMAX screening of Watchmen courtesy of WonderCon & Warner Bros.!

Drawing will be held at WonderCon, Friday, February 27 only. Members (3-day and Friday only) will draw a ticket for the opportunity to receive a free pass, while supplies last.

Go to the WonderCon Boutique Booth (#242) for a chance to win from 5:00-7:00 PM.

More details here. The screening is at 11:55 p.m. Friday night at a secret location.

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NYCC | Sunday round-up

Lockjaw & the Pet Avengers

As is typical with most conventions, Sunday was a bit slower at the New York Comic Con in the news department. But a few items did manage to sneak out ...

• At the Mondo Marvel panel today, Marvel announced that Saturday Night Live cast members Bill Hader and Seth Meyers are working on an Amazing Spider-Man: The Short Halloween one-shot with art by Kevin Maguire.

• Editor Tom Brevoort announced "The Marvels Project" by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting, which explores the origins of the Marvel Universe. It kicks off in June and is part of Marvel's 70th anniversary celebration.

• Chris Eliopoulos and Ed Guerra are working on a Lockjaw & the Pet Avengers one-shot, which will feature Lockjaw, frog Thor, Lockheed, Red Wing, Speedball's cat, Zabu and Aunt May's dog.

• Coming out of Saturday's panels and continuing a theme that played out all weekend, Dynamite Comics announced they had another $1 comic in the works featuring a Project Superpowers character. They also announced Garth Ennis is working on a six-issue series called Herogasm, while Leah Moore and John Reppion are working on a new Sherlock Holmes book.

• Speaking of comic book pricing, Radical announced yesterday that their comics will now generally be 48 pages each at a price of $4.99, with stories coming in three-part arcs. They also announced a few upcoming series, like Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency and Aladdin: Legacy of the Lost.

No doubt more stories and panel coverage will spill into tomorrow.

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NYCC | Saturday round-up

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man

With Saturday sold out, and wireless providers taxed to the limit -- thank you, Twitter and live-blogging -- it's no surprise that the second day of New York Comic Con was brimming with publishing announcements:

• Marvel rolled out plans for expanded digital content, including an original Spider-Woman motion comic -- billed as the publisher's first "all-new in-continuity" work using motion-comics technology -- written by Brian Michael Bendis and directed by Alex Maleev, a motion-comics adaptation of Astonishing X-Men #1-10, and a five-issue online series called Dark Reign: Made Men. (On Friday, Marvel announced the online-exclusive miniseries War of Kings: Warriors.)

• Marvel's nine-year-old Ultimate imprint will be canceled and relaunched as Ultimate Comics, which will feature four series. The flagship title, renamed Ultimate Comics Spider-Man, will continue to be written by Bendis but will be illustrated by David Lafuente. Artist Stuart Immonen is moving to New Avengers.

Powers, the creator-owned series by Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming, will relaunch with another Issue 1 under the Icon emblem.

• Yen Press has picked up the license to Kiyohiko Azuma’s popular slice-of-life comedy Yotsuba&!, which had withered at ADV Manga.

• Insanely popular webcomic Penny Arcade will move to Del Rey with Penny Arcade, The Splendid Magic of Penny Arcade: The 11.5 Year Anniversary Edition, a 208-page hardcover edition set for release in February 2010. Dark Horse published the first Penny Arcade collection in 2006.

• DC Comics confirmed that writer Greg Rucka and artist J.H. Williams III will take over Detective Comics with Issue 854 for a run that stars, at least initially, Batwoman. Rucka said Williams will be on the title for "12 issues, guaranteed."

The publisher also revealed the composition of the Bat-Family of titles in the wake of the "Battle for the Cowl" crossover: Detective, Batman, Batman and Robin, Batgirl, Batman: The Streets of Gotham, Red Robin, Outsiders, and Gotham City Sirens.

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Crime pays for Remender and Radical

The Last Days of American Crime

Someday soon I think Rick Remender will be writing every comic on the stand ... case in point, this week we learned he's got a new book coming out from Radical Comics called The Last Days of American Crime with artist artist Greg Tocchini.

"The Last Days of American Crime is a story I've been itching to scratch for a few years now,” Remender said in a press release from Radical. “Fans of my creator-owned books Fear Agent or XXXombies will be right at home with this one. And Greg Tocchini is a powerhouse, one of the best artists I've ever worked with, a true future superstar. Radical is a perfect home for the project, so I'm having a blast."

MTV's Splash Page has a preview up of the new series, as well as an interview with Remender on what the book's all about:

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Radical talks future plans at Publisher's Weekly

Caliber

Calvin Reid at Publisher's Weekly talks to Radical Publishing about their publishing philosophy and their upcoming plans:

“We're a publishing company on a broad scale,” said Levine during an interview in Manhattan. “It's the easiest way to brand ourselves and control our properties. We offer great content with multiplatform opportunities. Our books can stand on their own, and the films help them appeal to another segment of the audience.” Levine, who is Radical's president and publisher, called the house's movie plans “marketing strategies” that are used to cross-promote the graphic novels.

In addition to movie versions of their Hercules, Caliber and Freedom Formula comics, the article also hits on their planned move into prose publishing:

In addition, the house is negotiating with New York trade houses to create prose novelizations of its comics, and Matt Fleckenstein, a writer on the animated TV hit Family Guy, is developing Animal Square as a kids' book and animated film. And in 2009 the house will publish a series of lavishly illustrated prose novels (each with 30 to 45 pages of artwork), developed by pairing writers from its comics list (“comic book writers are all frustrated novelists,” said Berger) with artists from the Storm Lion manga studio.

That last quote was surely said in jest, right?

NYCC '09 | Counting down

With the New York Comic Con coming up in a few short weeks, we'll be collecting and posting information on the various things you can do and see while at the show. So this will be the first of many. 

If you're a publisher, creator, retailer or otherwise exhibiting at the show, feel free to drop me an email with your booth schedule, any comics you might be debuting, giveaways or any other information on what you have planned for the show.

General information: Ticket info | Panels | Autographs | 2009 ICv2 Graphic Novel Conference | Blog

• Need some help organizing your show? Heidi at The Beat points out this widget you can use to plan your schedule. Very cool.

• The Hero Initiative, the non-profit that provides a financial "safety net" for creators, will have George Perez at the booth (#1762) all weekend long.

They're also hosting an art auction Saturday from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in room 1A14:

Join Hero Initiative Chairman George Pérez for a GREAT art auction benefiting The Hero Initiative! Over 40 killer pieces are up for auction, including works from Joe Quesada, George Pérez, Darwyn Cooke, Jae Lee, John Romita Sr. and Jr., Steve Rude, Jim Starlin and ALL the Image Comics founders! Not to be missed!

They also plan to host a kickoff party Thursday night in conjunction with Reed Exhibits at Dave and Busters in Time Square, with additional details to be announced.

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