Hero Initiative Brings Tom Raney & Rick Maygar to Phoenix Comic Fest 2018
May 21, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Arizona, Comic Books, Convention News, Top Stories
Press Release:
Hero Initiative, the non-profit organization that helps comic book creators in need, is spending its Memorial Day weekend at Phoenix Comic Fest on May 24 thru 27 at the Phoenix Convention Center!
Hero will have TWO great artists exclusively at its booth #1485 – 1487: Avengers, Captain America, and Star Wars artist Rick Maygar will be joined by X-Men, Superman, and Incredible Hulk artist Tom Raney! Both will be signing and doing sketches all weekend, so make sure you bring your books and boards!
And Hero Initiative Ambassadors on the floor will be collecting for Hero when you get your books signed as well. Please swing by on Arthur Adams, Jim Calafiore, Joyce Chin, Katie Cook, Alan Davis, Mark Farmer, Scott Godlewski, Brian and Kristy Miller of Hi-Fi Design, Scott Kolins, Andy Kuhn, John Layman, Albert Morales, Marat Mychaels, Dan Panosian, Tony Parker, Brian Pulido, and Stuart Sayger!
About The Hero Initiative
The Hero Initiative is the first-ever federally chartered not-for-profit corporation dedicated strictly to helping comic book creators in need. Hero creates a financial safety net for yesterday’s creators who may need emergency medical aid, financial support for essentials of life, and an avenue back into paying work. It’s a chance for all of us to give back something to the people who have given us so much enjoyment.
Since its inception, The Hero Initiative has had the good fortune to grant over $1 million to the comic book veterans who have paved the way for those in the industry today. For more information, visit www.heroinitiative.org or call 626-676-6354.
Baltimore Comic-Con 2018 Welcome Iconic Creators of Creative Icons
May 17, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Comic Books, Convention News, Maryland
Press Release:
Come to the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor this September 28-30 for the 2018 Baltimore Comic-Con! Purchase your tickets now and avoid lines at the ticket counter. The Baltimore Comic-Con will feature some of the industry’s most impactful talent, including Batman’s Harvey Bullock creator Howard Chaykin, Blue Devil creator Paris Cullins, Preacher creator Garth Ennis, Black Lightning creator Tony Isabella, New Mutants creator Bob McLeod, Power Pack creator Louise Simonson, Beta Ray Bill creator Walter Simonson, Thanos creator Jim Starlin, Big Hero 6 creator Gus Vazquez, and John Constantine creator Rick Veitch, just to name a few.
Howard Victor Chaykin is a longtime veteran of the comic book business. As a cartoonist — both writing and drawing — he has been a major influence on the direction of comics, referred to frequently as one of the principle architects of the modern comic book. His signature creation, American Flagg!, introduced a new level of narrative complexity, depth of character, and point of view in its text, not to mention a previously unseen level of design and craft to the visual nature of an all-too-frequently staid and timid medium. Chaykin continues to produce work that pushes the envelope of concept, context, and content in comics. Last year’s The Divided States of Hysteria, thanks to social media, enraged an entirely new generation of the willfully ignorant who might have had a better case if they’d actually read the damned book. Chaykin’s new series, Hey Kids! Comics!, is a fictionalized history of the comic book business, a love letter written with just a frisson of acid in the ink, to the field he’s loved and called home for over four decades.
Paris Cullins landed in DC Comics’ intern program after repeatedly bringing in samples of his work in the 1970s. His first work was featured in Secrets of Haunted House #42, and he went onto work on other DC horror titles like Ghosts, The Unexpected, and Weird War Tales. Cullins transitioned to super-hero titles, doing back-up or assistant work on Green Lantern, Justice League of America, The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl, and The Fury of Firestorm before taking on his first work on a title for his co-creation, Blue Devil. While he spent much of his career working at DC on titles such as Batman, The Forever People, and The New Gods, Cullins has drawn Richie Rich and Hot Stuff at Harvey Comics, Hyperkind for Marvel’s Razorline imprint, and Shi for Crusade Comics. In addition to his work in comics, Cullins has spent time at advertisement agencies doing storyboards for TV commercials, and has provided full-color storyboards and designs for video games.
Garth Ennis broke into the American Comic scene in 1991, taking over the writing reins on Hellblazer. After a successful four-year run, Ennis moved on to create Preacher, a 66-issue epic that ran from 1995 -2000, which has now been adopted to a hit television series on AMC. In addition to these two ground-breaking series, he also had lengthy runs on DC’s The Demon and Hitman. More recently, Ennis wrapped up The Boys, a 72-issue story which began at DC’s Wildstorm imprint before moving to Dynamite Entertainment with issue #7. He has had numerous stints on Marvel’s The Punisher for Marvel Knights and MAX, as well as Fury for Marvel MAX. His recent work includes Dastardly and Muttley for DC Comics and Jimmy’s Bastards for AfterShock Comics.
Tony Isabella is creator/writer of Black Lightning, co-creator of Misty Knight and Tigra, and writer of Captain America, Daredevil, Ghost Rider, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Spider-Man, Star Trek, and many more. He was an editor and writer at Marvel Comics. At DC, he created Black Lightning, the company’s first prominent African-American super-hero. He co-wrote the prose novels Captain America: Liberty’s Torch and Star Trek: The Case of the Colonist’s Corpse. He’s the author of 1000 Comic Books You Must Read and the odd-but-wondrous July 1963: A Pivotal Month in the Comic-Book Life of Tony Isabella. He’s received an Inkpot Award from Comic-Con International in San Diego and a Pioneer Lifetime Achievement Award from ECBACC. Cleveland Magazine named him one of that city’s most interesting people of 2018. His most recent comics work is the six-issue Black Lightning: Cold Dead Hands, marking his return to his creation. He writes the daily “Tony Isabella’s Bloggy Thing” and the weekly “Tony’s Tips” review column. He lectures on comics history, comics writing, and diversity in comics.
Beginning his career in Marvel Comics’ production department, Bob McLeod got his early credits penciling and inking for Crazy magazine. He was a member of The Crusty Bunkers inkers while working at Adams’ Continuity Studios, became a top inker on titles like Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man, Incredible Hulk, Conan the Barbarian, and Star Wars, and DC Comics’ Detective Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes, Wonder Woman, and The New Titans. He also drew the graphic novel and the first three issues of Marvel’s New Mutants, as well as inking a number of subsequent issues, and helped launch DC’s Superman: The Man of Steel. He also wrote and illustrated Superhero ABC from HarperCollins, and edited Rough Stuff magazine for TwoMorrows Publishing. McLeod currently teaches part-time at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design.
Louise Simonson has, like her husband Walter, contributed significantly to the comic book industry. “Weezie”, as she is known, began her comics career as an editor at Warren Publishing before leaving for Marvel to edit titles including X-Men, New Mutants, and Star Wars. Departing the editorial role in favor of writing, Weezie has contributed to storylines in Marvel’s Marvel Team-Up, Web of Spider-Man, and Red Sonja, and was responsible for the introduction of Apocalypse in X-Factor as well as the launch of Power Pack. At DC Comics, she worked on Superman: The Man of Steel and The Adventures of Superman.
Walter Simonson has made vast contributions to comics publishing, as a writer, an artist, and even in founding publishing imprints. He was recognized in 2012 at the Harvey Awards in Special Award for Excellence in Production/Presentation and Best Domestic Reprint Project for Walt Simonson’s The Mighty Thor, Artist’s Edition from IDW, and in 2013 for Alien: The Illustrated Story from Titan Books for Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work. He also received the Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 at the Harvey Awards. Walt’s career began in the 1970s at DC Comics, where he worked on titles such as Weird War Tales, Manhunter, Metal Men, Orion, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl, Vigilante, and Hercules Unbound. Over at Marvel Comics, Simonson has had numerous noteworthy runs, including The Rampaging Hulk magazine, X-Factor, Fantastic Four, and Thor, on which he was responsible for the introduction of Beta Ray Bill and Thor as a frog.
The multi-talented Jim Starlin has worked on both writing and creating art for some of the most noteworthy creations since his entry into the field of comics in the 1970s. The mind behind the Marvel character Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu, he is also responsible for a number of noteworthy cosmic characters in the Marvel Universe, including Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, and the villainous Thanos, all of whom are featured in this year’s major motion picture, Avengers: Infinity War.He developed noteworthy runs on Marvel’s Captain Marvel, Warlock, and Silver Surfer, Marvel mini-series Infinity Gauntlet, Infinity War, and Infinity Crusade, and DC Comics’ Batman, The Weird, and Cosmic Odyssey. His Death of Captain Marvel was the first Marvel graphic novel to be published. More recently, he has provided writing and art for DC’s Stormwatch and writing on Green Lantern: Mongul #23.2, and he returned to his classic villain in April 2014 with Marvel’s Thanos: The Infinity Revelation and 2018’s Thanos: The Infinity Siblings.
Gus Vazquez is an illustrator who has worked in nearly every field, including comic books, trading cards, storyboarding for music videos, commercials, animation and film, logo design, character and toy design, and more. He started his career in comic books working as an assistant to comic book artists Adam Pollina on X-Force, and Kevin McGuire on Trinity Angels. He got his first solo gig at Marvel Comics drawing the covers and interiors for Sunfire and Big Hero 6, the series that introduced the characters featured in Disney’s Oscar winning Big Hero 6. He has worked on such Marvel titles as Deadpool, X-Force, Spider-Man, What If? Civil War, What If? Back in Black, The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and more. For DC, he has worked on such titles as Green Lantern, JLA, Blue Beetle, and most recently on The Flash, Suicide Squad, and Green Arrow. Gus was the artist on several issues of Claudio Sanchez’s (of rock music group Coheed and Cambria) The Amory Wars, and was instrumental in helping bring together the creative team of his friends, David Atchison (writer) and Tony Shasteen (illustrator), and his niece, film and TV actress Rosario Dawson on 12 Gauge’s The O.C.T. Currently, Gus has been working for DC Comics on The Sasquatch Detective, a backup story which can be found in the pages of Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, as well as DMC (Daryl Makes Comics) and on La Borinqueña. He is also working on his creator-owned book, Fang.
A member of The Kubert School’s first graduating class, Rick Veitch made a name early in his career as a fantasy artist and writer for Marvel’s Epic line of titles, where he worked on Epic Illustrated, Heartburst, and The One. He went on to work on the critically acclaimed Swamp Thing from DC Comics, as well as Miracleman from Eclipse Comics, for which he both wrote and provided art. Veitch then moved into the indie comics scene, working initially on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from Mirage Studios and then launching his own King Hell publishing house, with titles like Bratpack and The Maximortal. Returning to larger publishers, Veitch has worked on Image’s 1963 and Supreme, and DC’s Tomorrow Stories, America’s Best Comics, The Question, and Aquaman. More recently, he wrote the Vertigo title Army@Love and The Big Lie from Image. You can find his Miracleman work reprinted these days from Marvel Comics and Rick Veitch’s The One from IDW Publishing.
“We were looking through our guest list and came to the realization that a tremendous amount of significant comics characters were created by guests in the room this year,” said Marc Nathan, show promoter for the Baltimore Comic-Con. “Without the contributions of these guests, the comics tapestry would be far less ornate in each publisher’s respective universe. We know our fans are going to be excited to pull out issues of their favorite or first appearances of these characters to get signed by these great guests!”
The Baltimore Comic-Con is celebrating its 19th year of bringing the comic book industry to the mid-Atlantic area. For more information, please visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com.
Baltimore Comic-Con 2018 Adds Comic Luminaries Steranko, Joe Giella, Paul Levitz & Denny O’Neil
May 15, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Animation, Comic Books, Comic Strips, Convention News, Maryland, Movies, Other, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Television
Press Release:
Baltimore’s Inner Harbor comes to life this September 28-30 as the Baltimore Comic-Con returns to the Baltimore Convention Center. Tickets are now on sale. The Baltimore Comic-Con is thrilled announce the return of Jim Steranko to the Baltimore Comic-Con! Jim is joined by comic luminaries Joe Giella, Paul Levitz, and Hero Initiative guest Denny O’Neil.
Jim Steranko has cut a ferocious path through the entertainment arts, with a dozen successful careers to his credit: author, magician, illustrator, escape artist, historian. He is cited as one of the prime architects of Marvel Comics and the co-creator of Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. He also wrote and drew Captain America, The Hulk, Superman, and The X-Men (for which he designed the classic title logo); generated more than 150 original storytelling devices and techniques that changed the direction of the comics medium; and evolved a devoted cult of followers who have nicknamed him The Innovator. Wizard magazine credits Steranko as the 5th Most Influential Artist in the history of the form. He has painted a multitude of movie posters, record albums, and book covers; and in 1975, created Red Tide, the First Modern Graphic Novel. As the editor-publisher of the international newsstand entertainment magazine Prevue, he conducted hundreds of superstar interviews and penned more than three million words. He numbers among his friends and associates writers Mickey Spillane, Arthur C. Clarke, and Ray Bradbury; the animation giants Ralph Bakshi and Shamus Culhane; and directors Federico Fellini, John Huston, and Orson Welles. As a musician, he gigged with Bill Haley in the early days of rock ‘n’ roll; as a pop-culture icon, he has appeared at more than 350 international events and exhibited his work worldwide, including at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC and the Louvre in Paris; his two volumes of The History of Comics have sold more than 100,000 copies each; as an escape artist, his death-defying performances inspired the character Mister Miracle and, according to Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Michael Chabon, he was the man upon which the protagonist of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Klay was based; and more-photographer, ad agency art director, sideshow fire-eater, male model, typographer, designer…the list goes on. As a filmmaker, he collaborated with Steven Spielberg, George Lucas – for whom he created the look of Indiana Jones – and Francis Ford Coppola on some of their most popular films. He served as Creative Consultant for the History Channel’s two-hour documentary Comic-Book Superheroes-Unmasked; shook up Twitter with his innovative TNT technique (visit his live Sunday-night sessions by typing in iamsteranko); and is currently prepping An Evening with Steranko for theatrical venues across the country.
His recent Captain America covers topped Marvel sales charts; the IDW SHIELD Artist’s Edition sold out before publication (and won an Eisner Award); and the 2017 Overstreet Price Guide – with his Batman cover – had record-breaking sales. His covers on the record-setting Action 1000 and Captain America 700 have polled as fan favorites. Over the past several decades, he has amassed more than 100 highly-commercial Intellectual Properties, his Theatre of Concepts, which range from children’s interactive-learning entertainments to high-action adult digital gaming, from science fiction to superheroes. His vision is to shape, structure, and synthesize character-driven projects with state-of- the-art technology for the World of Tomorrow. And he’s still the best-dressed man in comics.
Joe Giella returns to the Baltimore Comic-Con for a rare appearance. The oldest living artist to have worked on Batman, this Golden and Silver Age creator worked at Timely, Marvel, and DC Comics as a penciller and inker. In addition to working on the comic, Giella provided pencils and inks on the Batman syndicated strip, as well as the syndicated Flash Gordon, The Phamtom, Mary Worth, and Sherlock Holmes comic strips. The United States Postal Service honored Giella by using two of his pieces of art for their 2006 “DC Super Heroes” collection of postage stamps. He has been honored with an Ink Pot Award, as well as being presented with the Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement award at the 2016 Harvey Awards ceremony.
Paul Levitz has been a mainstay at DC Comics since 1972, serving as a writer, editor, and President (2002 – 2009) over the tenure of his career. His name is synonymous with the Legion of Super-Heroes, which he wrote from 1977-1979 and 1981-1989, and he created such notable characters as the Stalker, the Earth-2 Huntress, and Lucien the Librarian. Levitz has since returned to writing the Legion of Super-Heroes for the New 52, as well as the Earth-2 centric book, World’s Finest. After ending his career as DC Comics employee, Levitz moved onto the next phase of his career, accepting a Board of Directors position with BOOM! Studios. He has recently contributed Brooklyn Blood to Dark Horse Presents from Dark Horse Comics and guest edited and contributed an essay to DC’s Action Comics #1000.
A board member of Hero Initiative, retired writer and editor Denny O’Neil spent much of his career making an indelible mark at Marvel Comics and DC Comics. Initially brought on as a writer at Marvel, he had a hand in writing or scripting diverse titles including Strange Tales, X-Men, Millie the Model, and Rawhide Kid. After a year at Charlton Comics, he followed editor Dick Giordano to DC Comics, where he assumed writing duties for Beware the Creeper, Wonder Woman, Justice League of America, Green Lantern/Green Arrow, and, perhaps most notably, Batman. On that title, he embraced the dark roots of the character, creating and defining the tone for numerous characters from the series. He returned to Marvel in the 1980s, assuming writing chores on Amazing Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Iron Man where he once again created numerous recurring characters in the respective titles’ mythos. He also served as an editor during his Marvel stint on numerous titles and runs before returning as Batman Group editor at DC, where he also wrote The Question, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, and Batman: Sword of Azrael.
“We’re still months away from the show, and our guest list is already incredible,” said Marc Nathan, show promoter for the Baltimore Comic-Con. “These four guys are amazing — we haven’t had Jim to the show since 2001, so we’re excited to have him rejoin us in 2018, and adding Joe, Paul, and Denny to the mix just knocks the ouevre of the room out of the park.”
The Baltimore Comic-Con is celebrating its 19th year of bringing the comic book industry to the mid-Atlantic area. For more information, please visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com.
Legendary creator John Byrne in a RARE appearance at Fan Expo Boston
May 15, 2018 by Joe Fauvel
Filed under Animation, Anime, Collectibles, Comic Books, Comic Strips, Convention News, Cosplay, Gaming, Horror, Manga, Massachusetts, Movies, Music, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Sports, Television, Video Games, Webcomics
Legendary creator John Byrne (X-Men, Fantastic Four, Star Trek) is making his way to FAN EXPO Boston for a rare appearance. He’ll also be talking comics & Star Trek with the one and only William Shatner!
More details on this once in a lifetime moment coming soon, get your tickets today: bostoncomiccon.com/
HeroesCon 2018 Add Legends Mike Royer, Steranko & more
May 11, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Animation, Comic Books, Convention News, Movies, North Carolina, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Television
HeroesCon has announced more new guests for their 2018 show including Mike Royer, Jim Steranko, Ben Caldwell, Shane Davis, Nathan Fox, Rudy Nebres, Jerry Ordway, Tim Sale, Dean Trippe and more! HeroesCon 2018 takes place June 15-17, 2018 at the Charlotte Convention Center.
BEN CALDWELL | Prez, A-Force, Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, Dare Detectives
SHANE DAVIS | Axcend, Superman Earth One, Superman Batman, Green Lantern
JEFF DEKAL | Iron Fist, Kingpin, Hulk
MICHAEL EURY | FRI & SAT ONLY Editor-in-Chief of Back Issue Magazine
JOHN FLOYD | Wonder Woman & Tasmanian Devil, Django Unchained, Batman, Rune
NATHAN FOX | The Weatherman, Vertigo SFX, Captain Victory, Dogs of War, Haunt, DMZ
JODY LEHEUP | The Weatherman, Shirtless Bear-Fighter
DANIEL LEISTER | Lord of Gore, Werewolf Run, Hack/Slash
RUDY NEBRES | Dr Strange, Conan, Deadly Hands of Kung Fu, Eerie, Creepy
JERRY ORDWAY | Superman , Captain Marvel, Infinity Inc., WildStar
MIKE ROYER | Mister Miracle, Kamandi, Superman, The Demon, Disney, Tarzan, New Gods
TIM SALE | Captain America, Batman, Spider-Man, Catwoman
CHRIS SCHWEIZER | The Creeps, The Crogan Adventures, Pirates of the Caribbean
KEVIN SHARPE | Thor, He-Man, X-Men
BRIAN SHEARER | GI Joe, Transformers, Doctor Who, William the Last
JIM STERANKO | Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., History of Comics, Prevue Magazine
DEAN TRIPPE | Something Terrible, Power Lunch, Butterfly, Project: Rooftop
For the most up-to-date information, check our blog, or sign up for the weekly Heroes Hotline newsletter. You can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook!
BUYING AN ADVANCE PASS MEANS YOU’LL GET ANY ADVANCE INCENTIVES WE OFFER, FREE!
ENTRY WILL BE $25: FRI $25: SAT $20: SUN / AT THE SHOW ITSELF, SO YOU SAVE AS MUCH AS $20 BY PURCHASING ADVANCE PASSES TODAY! TICKETS ARE NOT REFUNDABLE, UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES WE MAY CREDIT AN UNUSABLE TICKET TOWARD FUTURE TICKET PURCHASES.
HEROES CONVENTION was founded in 1982 by Shelton Drum, owner of Charlotte’s Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find comics shop. Since then the convention has become famous for its comics-first and family-friendly atmosphere, where fans can mingle directly with professionals and exhibitors. Boasting an incredible guest list built mainly on reputation and goodwill, HeroesCon is known nationwide as a “must” on the summer schedule, drawing fans, exhibitors, and creators from all over the world to the Charlotte Convention Center.
DE – Where We Live Signing
May 11, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Comic Books, Delaware, Signing and Appearance Profiles
Press Release:
Contributors to WHERE WE LIVE: BENEFIT FOR LAS VEGAS SURVIVORS are coming to The Comic Book Shop for a signing on Saturday, June 2nd from noon till 3:00 PM!
Please join us in supporting this meaningful collection of perspectives, experiences, and cathartic stories.
Guests Include:
Greg Pak
Erica Schultz
Liana Kangas
Justin Jordan
Matthew Dow Smith
Monica Gallagher
The WHERE WE LIVE anthology is a riveting collection of both fictional stories and actual eye-witness accounts told by an all-star lineup of the top talent working in comics today, on Image Comics.
All the creators have graciously volunteered their time and talent to help bring some sense to this senseless act and, in the process, raise money for the survivors and their families.
The book will include a variety of perspectives with key themes exploring gun violence, common sense gun control, value of a compassionate society, mental health stigmatization, aftermath of tragedy and how individuals and communities persevere, and an appreciation of Las Vegas as a vibrant community.
WHERE WE LIVE also features stories from local writers and artists as they relate their personal experiences and reactions to this tragedy. One hundred percent of the proceeds for the WHERE WE LIVE anthology will be donated to an existing GoFundMe campaign for the survivors in Las Vegas.
********** ********** ********** **********
When a gunman fired on Las Vegas’s Route 91 Harvest music festival on Oct. 1, 2017, 58 people lost their lives and more than 800 were injured by gunfire. It was the worst mass-shooting in United States history, and follows a decade where the issue of gun violence has become more and more prevalent for those living throughout the 50 states.
In response, writer and artist J.H. Williams III, himself a Las Vegas resident and known for his work on Batwoman and Promethea, decided to curate a benefit anthology comic for those who were affected by the shooting. This year that project sees publication in the form of Where We Live, which is scheduled for release on May 30 through Image Comics.
RSVP on Facebook!
The Comic Book Shop
1855 Marsh Road, Wilmington, DE 19810
(302) 477-1119
TX – Mark Waid Signing
May 4, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Comic Books, Signing and Appearance Profiles, Texas, Top Stories, Webcomics
Meet Eisner Award-winning writer Mark Waid at Bedrock City Comic Co’s Westheimer location on Wednesday, May 23rd from 4:00 -7:00 PM.
Waid is known for his Marvel books such as Avengers, Captain America, Champions, Fantastic Four, and, of course, Daredevil.
Waid’s DC titles includes one of the best selling comics of all time, Kingdom Come, plus The Flash, and Superman: Birthright!
…and don’t forget about his run on Archie or the exclusive Bedrock City cover of Archie #1
This signing is free with the purchase of at least one Mark Waid comic.
CGC services will be provided by Bedrock City Comic Co
Bedrock City Comic Co.
6516 Westheimer, Suite D, Houston, TX 77057
(713) 780-0675
OH – Secret Coders Signing
April 26, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Comic Books, Comic Strips, Ohio, Signing and Appearance Profiles, Webcomics
Celebrate Children’s Book Week with a special visit from Gene Luen Yang, author of the Secret Coders graphic novel series for children, at the Public Library of Cincinnati on Sunday, May 6th at 2:00 PM. The series introduces children to coding through logic puzzles and basic programming instruction. Yang is also the author and illustrator of American Born Chinese. The book was a National Book Award Finalist, as well as the winner of the Printz Award and an Eisner Award. While serving as National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature from 2016-2017, Yang created the Reading Without Walls Challenge, which promotes diversity and opens readers’ eyes to new ideas and experiences.
Mr. Yang will discuss the Secret Coders series and the Reading Without Walls Challenge. Books will be available for sale and signing, courtesy of Joseph-Beth Booksellers.
Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
800 Vine St, Cincinnati, OH 45202
(513) 369-6900
Wicomicon 2018 Announces Guests
April 26, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Comic Books, Convention News, Maryland, Movies, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Television, Webcomics
Press Release:
WICOMICON 2018, a one-day pop-up arts and comics convention is coming to Baltimore this Saturday, April 28. This brand new festival, housed at the historic building at 1100 Wicomico Street, will feature an all-star roster of guests from the worlds of television, comic books, and entertainment!
Just days after the announcement of WICOMICON 2018, Black Heroes Matter, The Nerds of Color, Carbon-Fibre Media, New Release Wednesday, theblerdgurl, and the Be A Boss App are pleased to announce the following guests:
CHEO HODARI COKER, creator and showrunner of Netflix’s Luke Cage; APRIL REIGN, creator of #OscarsSoWhite and founder of AKUAREL; GREG PAK, writer of Mech Cadet Yu (BOOM!) and Totally Awesome Hulk (Marvel); LEAH WILLIAMS, author of The Alchemy of Being Fourteen and writer of X-Men: Gold (Marvel); BRYAN TILLMAN, artist of Creative Character Design; JADE TAILOR, RIZWAN MANJI, SERGIO OSUNA, and HANNAH LEVIEN from SYFY’s THE MAGICIANS; and TAMSEN MCDONOUGH and SEAN BAEK from SYFY’s KILLJOYS.
Come meet your favorite celebrity guests for signings, panels, and photo opportunities on Saturday, April 28, beginning at 10:00 am. Visit WICOMICON’s exhibit hall to peruse artwork and merchandise from over 50 vendors; experience cosplay contests, tabletop gaming, music performances, kid’s entertainment, prizes, and more! See the constantly updated list of exhibitors online at hardnocmedia.com/exhibitors.
Baltimore Comic-Con Spring Fling Returns This Sunday
April 24, 2018 by Colin Solan
Filed under Animation, Comic Books, Convention News, Maryland, Movies, Webcomics
Press Release:
This Sunday, April 29th, the Baltimore Comic-Con Spring Fling returns for its 2nd annual event! Baltimore Comic-Con Spring Fling is a good old-fashioned comic book show with rows and rows of comic book dealers from around the country selling comics and collectibles from the ancient to the very modern, and some amazing comic guests as well — and admission is free!
We are very happy to announce the addition of Pixar and Disney artist, Marty Baumann to our line-up of guests for Spring Fling 2018!
Marty Baumann is an illustrator, graphic artist, and production designer. He has contributed to some of the most popular, Oscar-winning animated films of all time. Marty has worked as an artist at Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios as an illustrator, graphic artist, and production designer on such films as Toy Story 3, Big Hero 6, Zootopia, Cars 2, Planes, Wreck-It Ralph 2, and many others. He also helped develop theme park installations, toy packaging, and Pixar corporate branding. Marty has rendered illustrations and developed characters for toy manufacturers, magazines, and newspapers, and illustrated children’s books, created logos, infographics, broadcast promotions, and presentation art for Hasbro, Universal Studios, National Geographic, Scholastic Books, Nickelodeon, and many others. Recent projects include his role as concept artist for the new Mystery Science Theater 3000 and the visual development of Sir Paul McCartney’s feature film, High in the Clouds.
Ringo Award winner and Harvey and Eisner award nominee Frank Cho launched his career as a comic strip artist at the University of Maryland-College Park student newspaper, penning University2, which was the predecessor of his creator-owned syndicated strip and comic series, Liberty Meadows. His body of work also includes Marvel Comics’ New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, Shanna the She-Devil, New Ultimates, and X-Men: Schism, as well as Jungle Girl for Dynamite Entertainment. His recent work can be seen in BOOM! Studios’ Skybourne, and on covers from DC Comics’ Harley Quinn and Wonder Woman.
Long-time friend of the show, Ringo, Harvey, and Eisner Award nominee, and guest since our inception in 2000 (!), artist and writer Steve Conley has contributed to numerous comic titles, both printed and on-line. His Astounding Space Thrills was self-published, published by Image Comics, and collected as a trade paperback by IDW. He has been featured in titles such as JLA-Z from DC Comics, Star Trek: Year Four from IDW, and Michael Chabon’s Amazing Adventures of the Escapist from Dark Horse Comics. His creator-owned Bloop, is available through his online store in print or soft copy editions, and you can read his webcomic, The Middle Age, on his website.
John Gallagher is the award-winning artist and writer of graphic novels Buzzboy and Roboy Red (with Rich Faber). John teamed with sons Jack and Will to create a kids book, E.P.I.C. Bros., about two kids whose superhero dad is always out saving the world, and they pass the time using his gizmos for lovable mayhem. Jack and Will follow in the footsteps of big sister Katie, who teamed with her dad to create Zoey and Ketchup. John’s Buzzboy is back from American Mythology Productions in Buzzboy Go Digital Monster Mayhem, where he has also contributed to the recently relaunched Casper the Friendly Ghost and The Inspector. When not creating comics, John is executive director of Kids Love Comics (kidslovecomics.net) and works as art director for Ranger Rick magazine.
Mark Morales has established himself as one of the industry’s go-to inkers for major titles and events for the big publishers. He has inked a vast number of titles at Marvel Comics including, among many others, A+X, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers vs. X-Men, New Avengers, Secret Invasion, Sentry, Siege, Thor, Uncanny X-Men, Wolverine, X-Force, and X-Men. He has also done work for DC Comics on titles like Action Comics, Batman/Superman, JLA, New Suicide Squad, Prez, and Superman: The Man of Steel. He was also awarded the Harvey Award for Best Inker in 2009 and 2011.
And, as a special Hero Initiative guest, Tom King. The Ringo and Eisner Award winner is currently the writer of Batman at DC Comics, where he has also written Mister Miracle, Grayson, The Omega Men, DC Nation, Swamp Thing Winter Special, and has a story in Action Comics #1000, not to mention his award-winning work at Marvel on The Vision. King’s first book, A Once Crowded Sky, a postmodern super hero novel, was recognized by USA Today as one of the best Graphic Novels of the year. He was named by the Hollywood Reporter as one of the five comic creators to watch in 2015.
Tom will be signing from 1pm-3pm at the Hero Initiative booth, accepting donations for signatures. Tom requests that no graded books be brought for autographs and appreciates his fans’ understanding.
The Baltimore Comic-Con is celebrating its 19th year of bringing the comic book industry to the mid-Atlantic area. For more information, please visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com.
