By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 11/10/2015
Well speak of the devil, here’s a new Kickstarter from the Locust Moon folks that plans to reprint some long lost early work by Will Eisner. The story of how it came to light is one of the craziest things I’ve ever heard: A collector outside Philly discovered 104 zinc plates engraved with work that […]
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 11/10/2015
Will Eisner: Champion of the Graphic Novel is a new book by former DC publisher Paul Levitz that looks at Eisner’s historical contribution to comics. And New York magazine has just excerpted the chapter in which Levitz discusses how and why Eisner is credited with being the midwife of the graphic novel form. Of course […]
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 7/8/2015
Today, Dynamite announced that they’ve acquired the rights to Will Eisner’s Sheena, Queen of the Jungle and plan to team her up with her historical inspiration Tarzan for a jungle crossover that would make Phil Colins quiver.
Check out the full press release below:
Dynamite’s Sheena, Queen of the Jungle comics will be solicited in upcoming editions of Diamond Comic Distributors’ Previews catalog, the premier source of merchandise for the comic book specialty market. Comic book fans are encouraged to reserve copies of Sheena-related projects with their local comic book retailers. Individual customer purchases will be available through digital platforms courtesy of Comixology, Dynamite Digital, iVerse, and Dark Horse Digital. Fans and retailers are encouraged to follow Dynamite Entertainment’s official social media channels for the latest updates regarding project development and release dates.Dynamite Entertainment is proud to announce their agreement with rights holders Galaxy Publishing and Valdoro Entertainment to publish original comic book and graphic novel content for Sheena, Queen of the Jungle, as well as reprints of the character’s classic jungle fantasy material. Described by co-creator Will Eisner as a female counterpart to Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan, Sheena will see her first adventure at Dynamite Entertainment teaming with the iconic “Lord of the Jungle” himself. Dynamite’s rights also include statues, trading cards, action figures, lithographs / fine art, and t-shirts.
“Sheena is one of the first-ever jungle heroines, a hypnotic character who has captured the hearts and imagination of fans throughout the decades,” says Nick Barrucci, CEO and Publisher of Dynamite. “Her long-running series in the 1940s and 1950s established her as a powerful and wild character, a welcome role reversal of traditional jungle action tropes who spent much of her time saving hapless men in distress. We’re thrilled to add Sheena to our line, and we are honored that we are able to make her first adventure a historic one which will bring her – for the first time ever – face-to-face with the archetypal jungle hero, Tarzan!”
Valdoro President Steven E. de Souza, whose many screen credits include Commando, Die Hard, and Tomb Raider, says, “I’ve been lucky enough to work on some immensely popular, action-packed series. Thanks to Dynamite, Sheena will join them – starting with this crossover that’s a fanboy’s dream. Hats (or is that pith helmets?) off to Nick and his team!”
Galaxy President Paul Aratow, who first brought Will Eisner’s other famous creation The Spirit to Hollywood’s attention, says, “When I signed onto this expedition with the Queen of the Jungle, I never could have imagined that the Lord of the Jungle himself would board our safari! Thanks to all who made it happen!”
“When you consider the depth of the legends of Sheena and Tarzan, you wonder why this hasn’t been done before,” says Jim Sullos, President of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. “We’re looking forward to the exciting adventure that Dynamite will create with this crossover. It will become a classic. I’ve already reserved my copy.”
Sheena, Queen of the Jungle was created by industry legends Will Eisner and S. M. “Jerry” Iger, and debuted in the UK publication Wags #1 in 1937 (reprinted a year later in the United States in the pages of Jumbo Comics #1). She was the first female comic book character to carry a dedicated series, preceding Wonder Woman #1 by four years, and her series spanned 167 issues and twenty years. Sheena began her fictional existence as an orphan raised by a shaman in the jungle, perfecting her survival skills and mastering the ability to communicate with animals. Her many adventures brought her into conflict with evil hunters, slave traders, and rampaging wildlife. The character has thrilled audiences in several television and film adaptations, including portrayals by actresses Irish McCalla (1955-1956), Tanya Roberts (1984), and Gena Lee Nolin (2000).
Dynamite Entertainment has a long history of publishing jungle fantasy and pulp adventure, making it the perfect home for Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. The iconic hero Tarzan appeared in the company’s Lord of the Jungle series, as well as the related title Lords of Mars. Dynamite has also published Frank Cho’s Jungle Girl, the Frank Frazetta-created Thun’Da, King Features Syndicate’s The Phantom and Jungle Jim, Alan Quatermain (of King Solomon’s Mines) as a supporting cast member in Prophecy and Savage Tales, and Turok: Dinosaur Hunter.
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 6/25/2015
While most comics fans are familiar with Will Eisner and his many contributions to comics, most are not aware that he also created a charitable foundation. The Will and Ann Eisner Family Foundation “fosters innovation and creativity in graphic literature, sequential art and comics.” One of their more visible projects is an annual grant given to two libraries: The Will Eisner Graphic Novel Growth Grant for libraries seeking to expand their graphic novel collections and community outreach, and the Will Eisner Graphic Novel Innovation Grant for libraries seeking to add graphic novels to their collections.
Yesterday, the 2015 grant award winners were announced, in anticipation of the annual American Library Association conference taking place this week and next in San Francisco.
The winners, from more than 150 applicants:
The 2015 Will Eisner Graphic Novel Growth Grant is awarded to Yuma High School Library, Yuma, Arizona. Its current graphic novel selection is only 2.69 percent of its collection, and yet accounts for 31.76 percent of its circulation, thus the library’s project – “Improving Literacy and Enriching Lives” – will expand its graphic novel collection to better serve the school’s diverse student body, which includes students from low-income households and students who are English language learners.
[Wow. What an awesome school history, and mascot!]
The 2015 Will Eisner Graphic Novel Innovation Grant was presented to Bellmore Memorial Library, Bellmore, New York, for its project “Picture Yourself: Using Graphic Novels to Explore the People and Perceptions of Bellmore.” The project aims to connect the library with a diverse local audience and document life in the town through book clubs, graphic novel workshops and the opportunity for patrons to write and illustrate their own story of their Bellmore.
[Bellmore is noted for a Supreme Court obscenity ruling, allowing that material not classified as “obscene” to adults might be restricted for sales to minors if the material were deemed harmful. Here is the Court’s ruling.]
Each award winner receives a $2,000 voucher to purchase graphic novels from Diamond Book Distributors (the library/book trade cousin of Diamond Comics), $1,000 to host a graphic novel-themed event, and a $1,000 stipend to attend the 2015 ALA Annual Conference in San Francisco. Additionally the winners will receive the Will Eisner Library (a graphic novel collection of Will Eisner’s work and biographies about acclaimed writer and artist) and copies of the graphic novels nominated for this year’s Will Eisner Awards at San Diego Comic-Con.
The winners will be formally announced on Saturday, June 27th, at 2:00 PM on the Graphic Novel Stage in the exhibits hall.
By: Maryann Yin,
on 4/23/2015
The nominees for the 2015 Eisner Awards were just announced.
Below, we’ve posted the complete list of nominees. Named after comic book pioneer Will Eisner, the awards “highlight the wide range of material being published in comics and graphic novel form today.”
Those who are taking part in this year’s judging panel include bookseller Carr DeAngelo, librarian Richard Graham, writer Sean Howe, educator Susan Kirtley, Comic-Con International committee member Ron McFee, and writer Maggie Thompson. The winners will be revealed at a gala ceremony during this year’s Comic-Con International: San Diego.
Best Short Story
Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)
Best Continuing Series
Best Limited Series
Best New Series
Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7)
Best Publication for Kids (ages 8-12)
Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)
Best Humor Publication
Best Digital/Web Comic
Best Anthology
Best Reality-Based Work
Best Graphic Album—New
Best Graphic Album—Reprint
Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)
Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material
Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia
Best Writer
Best Writer/Artist
Best Penciller/Inker
Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)
Best Cover Artist
Best Coloring
Best Lettering
Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism
Best Comics-Related Book
Best Scholarly/Academic Work
Best Publication Design
By: Jerry Beck,
on 4/15/2015
By: Maryann Yin,
on 7/28/2014
The winners of the 2014 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards have been announced. Follow the links below for free samples of books by some of the winners.
Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples won the prize for “Best Continuing Series” for Saga. Vivek J. Tiwary, Andrew C. Robinson, and Kyle Baker came out on top in the “Best Reality-Based Work” category for The Fifth Beatle. Matthew Inman took home the “Best Digital Comic” award for The Oatmeal.
Here’s more from the press release: “Named for acclaimed comics creator the Will Eisner, the awards are celebrating their 26th year of highlighting the best publications and creators in comics and graphic novels. The 2014 Eisner Awards judging panel consists of comics retailer Kathy Bottarini (Comic Book Box, Rhonert Park, CA), author/educator William H. Foster (Untold Stories of Black Comics), reviewer Christian Lipski (Portland, OR Examiner), Comic-Con International board member Lee Oeth, library curator Jenny Robb (Ohio State University Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum), and Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist/critic James Romberger (Post York, 7 Miles a Second).”
(more…)
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By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 7/22/2014
by Brandon Schatz
One day before the madness of this year’s San Diego Comic Con officially begins, Dynamite has announced their future intentions for Will Eisner’s The Spirit.
Most recently, the character has been a tangental part of the DC Comics line, starting with a ongoing originally helmed by Darwyn Cooke in 2006, before moving the character over to their ill-fated First Wave line alongside pulp heroes such as Doc Savage. He also briefly appeared in a Rocketeer crossover at IDW through an agreement with DC, who still held the rights for publication at the time.
This addition to Dynamite’s line makes perfect sense, as they seem to be building quite a library of pulp heroes. The company’s predication for those heroes to interact in various mini-series should make for some interesting content down the line. As it stands, we are still waiting on news as to who will be the creative team on any new book, as well as what form such a series would take.
More on this as it develops.
By: Kenneth Kit Lamug,
on 4/2/2014
The first graphic novel—a mesmerizing fictional chronicle of a universal American experience.
Through a quartet of four interwoven stories, A Contract With God express the joy, exuberance, tragedy, and drama of life on the mythical Dropsie Avenue in the Bronx. This is the legendary book that launched a new art form and reaffirmed Will Eisner as one of the great pioneers of American graphics.
It’s fair to say that Will Eisner invented modern comic art. A Contract with God has been called the first graphic novel, and its divergence from traditional comics themes and forms highlights Eisner’s foresight and brilliance. Dealing with stories and memories from his childhood in a Bronx tenement, he explores the brutality, fragility, and tenderness possible among people living in close quarters close to the poverty line. The four stories here are tough but funny, deep but finely detailed, much like the traditional Jewish stories he drew upon to flavor his own work. Ending reflectively (and perhaps autobiographically), A Contract with God shows us a young man peering out into his city as he decides whether and how to face adulthood. You won’t see that in the funny papers. –Rob Lightner –This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Get this book on Amazon toss a couple of crumbs over to the Rabbleboy:
A Contract with God
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 3/25/2013
If you’ve been following the history of the Asbury Park Comicon, which opened only a year ago in March of 2012, you know it’s been a strange, yet rather astonishing ride, but imagine how much stranger it must be for founder and indie comics creator Cliff Galbraith. What started in a bowling alley turned music venue and local hangout, Asbury Lanes, has become a major testament to demand for Comic Cons in New Jersey, and also a statement about the desires and tastes of con-goers who have relished the indie vibe of Galbraith’s brainchild. After a highly successful second Con in September of 2012, Galbraith announced that the Con would move to the much larger and even more historic venue of Asbury Park Convention Hall for its third event on March 30th 2013.
Then Superstorm Sandy struck, devastating the seaside town of Asbury Park, leaving the future of the Con in question. Against some difficult odds, the Con forged ahead, and Galbraith faced another kind of storm- media frenzy- over the upcoming Con. It’s fair to say that his phone has been ringing off the hook as local press as well as The New York Times have been trying to get the scoop on what looks to be a growing New Jersey institution as Asbury Park Comicon nears its biggest event yet. Dozens of prominent guests will be flanking this full-blown gala of a Con, and the Con will also be featuring panels and contests. Galbraith hasn’t had a moment’s rest since all this started more than a year ago, and he finished up several other interviews just in time to answer some questions about all this Con madness, and how it fits into his own life, for The Beat.
Hannah Means-Shannon: Can you remember the moment when the idea for starting a Comic Con in New Jersey first occurred to you? How wild did the idea seem at the time?
Cliff Galbraith: Maybe I’ve always wanted to run my own con. I’ve been to enough of them over the last few decades. A lot of them were pretty shabby. Customer service was pretty awful. I’ve been to cons where the promoter never came around and so much as said hello or how’s it going. Some were downright rude or deceitful.
On a Sunday in the summer of 2011, I stopped into the bowling alley/rock club Asbury Lanes — they were having a little record fair in there. I knew a few of my friends would be there selling and buying records or drinking beers so I figured I’d get away from my drawing table for the afternoon and see what was happening. My friend and neighbor Robert Bruce was selling an assortment of rare rock and jazz records and some underground comix. I remember looking at someone rooting through a white box of records, and I turned to Rob and I said “Where else have I seen somebody doing that? Reminds me of people at a comic convention digging through long boxes.” We laughed, but I walked around a bit and I kept thinking about it. If they could sell records in this place, why not comics? My friend Jenn Hampton was the manager, so I asked her if we could have a comic con at the Lanes. Nine months later we had the first Asbury Park Comicon.
HM-S: What’s the strangest task you’ve ever had to do in order to get a Con running or keeping it on track?
CG: Partner with Rob Bruce! We’re friends, but business-wise we’re been very independent, lone wolves. But it’s been a great experience and there’s absolutely no way I could’ve done all of this or come up with all the solutions on my own. It’s been Cliff and Rob’s Excellent Adventure.
[Rob Bruce and Cliff Galbraith]
HM-S: Why Asbury as a location for the Con?
CG: People launch cons in New Jersey all the time. Some have been going on for years, but they don’t grow. I think the secret ingredient in throwing a Con is location — pick a fun destination. That’s really what set San Diego up for success early on. Who didn’t want to go somewhere with beautiful weather with plenty of bars, restaurants, hotels, a beach? That’s enticing.
So there needs to be something other than the Con once you walk outside. That’s my standard. I don’t want to go to some Con near an airport or far away from everything. I don’t want to go to some little hotel hermetically sealed in away from the world. Lots of Cons are downright depressing. They have no personality. Just putting a bunch of artists and dealers in a room and charging admission doesn’t make it fun.
[The Asbury Park Boardwalk at dusk]
HM-S: What were reactions like to the first Con at Asbury Lanes?
CG: Everyone had a great time. Most people sold lots of books. I was stunned. I just wanted to put on a little event and not screw up, just have a fun day. But the venue was a real hit. The exhibitors who’d never been to Asbury Park, who’d never been to Asbury Lanes fell in love with it. I’m spoiled, the Lanes are part of my world, but it’s really a cool old place. And there’s a bar. We played old punk tunes and Serge Gainsbourg, Nelson Riddle, soul, and stoner rock. It was more like a party — with comics.
HM-S: What obstacles did you face launching that first Con at the Lanes?
CG: It’s always tough at first to get someone with a name to attract fans. I think the first guy I called was Evan Dorkin. I always dug his work, and I’d known him for years — but more importantly he was someone who would get what I was trying to do. Evan and Sarah Dyer jumped right in. Then they told Steph Buscema. Jamal Igle was another old friend, so I contacted him early on. Those guys trusted me — that was important. But getting talent can be tough early on. Then there’s talent that doesn’t show up, there are flakes in this business and it just goes with the territory.
The biggest shock was that two months before our first Con, Asbury Lanes was sold. I know it sounds crazy, but I never got a written contract. I made a deal with my friend who was the manager. At one point, she didn’t know if she was going to still have a job or whether the new owners would honor our deal or want more money. It was scary, because this was our first time and if we screwed this up nobody would ever trust us again. It all worked out and it was a great day.
[APCC at the Asbury Lanes]
HM-S: What’s your personal philosophy behind Comic Cons?
CG: Don’t be boring. Don’t be predictable. Don’t call yourself a Comic Con and fill the bill with wrestlers, actors, and other people who have nothing to do with comics. Respect and honors those who make comics, especially those who came before us. I see a lot of bullshit at cons and I just don’t get it. If somebody wants an autograph of somebody from Twilight or some guy who played a storm trooper 30 years ago — that’s their business, but it really has nothing to do with comics. It detracts and devalues comics as something that is supposed to be celebrated. My feeling is if you’re not here for the comics then shove off. Go to a horror con, go to a sci-fi con.
HM-S: Why do you think we need Comic Cons, as a society?
CG: When my parents were kids the big thing was the circus coming to town. That’s disappeared, and now we have the Comic Con coming to town. Look at every city — there’s a con everywhere. People love it — its like Woodstock, Lollapalooza, county fair, chili cook-offs, boat shows, car shows, record fairs, film festivals, people want to get together with those who share their passion. They want to spend a day with their kids, meet new friends, make a discovery. It’s an amazing social phenomenon, and it’s in its infancy.
HM-S: What did you grow up reading? Any favorite comics or characters?
CG: My mom grew up in a candy store in Newark, N.J., and she spent her time drawing pictures of movie stars from magazines that were on the newsstand. She also loved comics. She introduced me to Superman when I was about four years old. She also taught me to draw. She got me a subscription to SUPERBOY and I looked forward to those comics every month. Then one day when I was getting a haircut, I picked up a copy of FANTASTIC FOUR that was in the barber shop — this was around 1965. The Kirby art kind of creeped me out at first, but I was fascinated. Joe Kubert’s HAWKMAN was a favorite. Of course BATMAN. CREEPY, EERIE, FAMOUS MONSTERS and hot rod magazines with stuff by Ed Roth and George Barris. I also read a lot of science fiction — it was a pretty classic age with Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and I read Pierre Boulle’s Planet of the Apes after seeing the movie. I graduated from super heroes to MAD. Then National Lampoon. At some point I found some underground comix in a head shop in Menlo Park, N.J. — they blew my teenage mind. Then Heavy Metal Magazine and Punk Magazine completed the process of completely warping my mind.
HM-S: What are your biggest influences as a comics creator?
CG: More of MAD than I used to acknowledge. I think it was an early influence in the way I saw a lot of stupid things in society. It was much tougher on politicians and corporations back in the 60′s and 70′s. I would try to draw like Mort Drucker when I was a kid. Kirby is an influence when I’m feeling lazy, when I think I’ve done enough — I think about the amount of work he put out in a day and I’m embarrassed. He keeps me going back to do a bit more before turning out the lights. I love Moebius. Bernie Wrightson, Richard Corben, Crumb, Rick Griffin, Jack Davis. I go back to Will Eisner when I get stuck on a drawing that’s not working — I’m still learning from looking at his drawings, I get answers from his panels. But when I created Partyasaurus, Beachasaurus, and all the Saurus characters back in the 80′s, I did some sort of R.O. Bleckman thing with the wiggly, broken lines. It was very successful, but I never revisited that style again.
HM-S: It’s been a winding road for you career-wise. How does Con creating fit into your life, looking back?
CG: I came back to comics after ten years — at one point I was in really bad shape with Lyme disease, but that’s a whole other story. I started making RAT BASTARD comics again, just selling them at cons. I didn’t even go through Diamond — I just wanted to put something out and do some cons. Then I started working with my wife on UNBEARABLE, a totally different style but a lot of fun to draw. I was finally getting back into it, making comics. I had a few issues written I was drawing consistently and then this damn Asbury Park Comicon came along. The first one wasn’t too bad, but now with a much bigger venue, more guests, more exhibitors, ads, making a TV commercial, doing interviews with newspapers, and building a website, designing posters, it became a full time job. I didn’t realize it at first, but I sacrificed my art to build the Con. Which is okay, since April 1st I’m back at the drawing board and making comics again.
HM-S: Asbury Park was pretty hard hit by Superstorm Sandy. What was your own experience of the storm like?
CG: The other day I found pictures of my wife Judie and I at Convention Hall on the balcony making silly faces trying to stand up against the wind the day before the storm. I felt embarrassed that we were joking about it and twenty-four hours later there would be so much devastation. We could’ve have known, but I couldn’t look at those pictures. The fact that Convention Hall is still standing is amazing, but it did sustain a lot of damage.
My own experience with the storm was terror. There’s three giant pine trees in my yard that I was certain would crush us in the night. I felt like the roof on our house would be torn off any minute the whole time. We had no power for two weeks. We tried to stay in our home and tough it out with no power. I could draw during daylight. We had little parties with the neighbors and pooled our resources. After 7 or 8 days, it got too tough. It was cold. There wasn’t much to do once the sun went down. We had to go stay with my parents. But after a few days, I felt like I should be putting Led Zeppelin posters up in the basement — in other words, I felt like I was a teenager again. My parents were great about it, but you really can’t go back and live with your parents.
We were fortunate — we got to go back to our house and it was like nothing had happened other than we had to restock our refrigerator. But only two miles east of us looked like an A-bomb had been dropped. A lot of our friends suffered from that storm. We’ll be doing several things at Asbury Park Comicon to raise money for some of the nonprofits in our area and keep the focus on Sandy victims.
[The Asbury Convention Hall, site of APCC 2013]
HM-S: Were you afraid that damage from Superstorm Sandy might put the kaibosh on Asbury Park Comicon this year?
CG: It actually did. The building was going to be closed down by the city or something. We were told we needed to start thinking about an alternate site. It got pretty bleak. We looked into moving the con to Monmouth Racetrack, or one of the schools in Red Bank. We were desperate. And then I got a call late one night and they told me we were back in Convention Hall.
HM-S: What’s going on with Asbury Convention Hall? I hear it may not host events in the future after May.
CG: It’s an old building. It’s taken a beating. It had issues before the storm. So now it’s just better to shut down completely and get everything done once and for all. May 1st, it will be shuttered. We may be one of the last events there. This is a big thing for us to throw a con there — we grew up walking through the Grand Arcade from the boardwalk. I saw The Clash there, boxing, roller derby. To see our event on that marquee is like a dream come true — and it almost didn’t happen.
[Asbury Park Press covers COMIC BOOK MEN and Galbraith's upcoming Con]
HM-S: What’s up for Asbury Con in the future? Is it going to become an even bigger Jersey Con?
CG: We’ll know in a few weeks what the renovation schedule is for Convention Hall. We’d like to announce the dates for 2014 at this the con next week, but I don’t know if that’s quite possible by March 30th. But we’d like to move to late April and do a two day Con. The Berkley Hotel has a series of ballrooms — it’s like The Shining in there. I spoke to them last week. I’d like to keep this show in Asbury Park. Again, it’s the location that really makes a Con special. We’re planning on including more venues, galleries, etc. in the Con. Maybe a cosplay parade on the boardwalk. Put some of the bigger panels in the Paramount Theater.
We also have another big Con in the works for June 2014, but we haven’t finalized the date or exact venue. We’ve floated the ideas with a few comic industry people and we’ve gotten good feedback. The location will surprise a lot of people at first, but it makes sense geographically.
[Poster art for APCC#2 in 2012]
HM-S: What changes had to be made in the planning process of the con to move it from Asbury Lanes to the Convention Hall this time?
CG: Besides the amount of time Rob and I had to put into it, I’d say the next thing would be the amount of money it takes to launch an event this size. People have no idea what goes into a show like this. Now we’re into things like insurance, security, lighting, sound systems, putting guests in hotels, meals, travel, advertising — the expenses pile up quickly. This is no longer a fun little get-together at the Asbury Lanes with some comics and a few beers, this is a serious business venture.
[Memorable image from APCC #2 in 2012 with Evan Dorkin, Cliff Galbraith, Dean Haspiel, and Larry Hama]
The most important thing I’ve learned about running a show this size is we can’t do it on our own. We had a lot of help. Guys like Danny Fingeroth, Dean Haspiel, Seth Kushner, Chris Irving, Mark Mazz, Dave Ryan, all got us guests that we never would’ve gotten on our own. Eric Grissom built us a great website. Stu Wexler made a TV commercial — and nobody asked for anything in return. Mike [Zapcic] and Ming [Chen] from Comic Book Men have been promoting us for months on their podcast. The people who run Convention Hall have been amazing. They all just want us to succeed — we’ve got some great friends in our corner. We’ve also got some great guests: Al Jaffee, Herb Trimpe, John Holmstrom, Bob Camp, Don McGregor, Jamal Igle, Jay Lynch, Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, Mark Morales, Stephanie Buscema, and Batman producer Michael Uslan. Then there’s a whole indie crew like Box Brown, Josh Bayer, Mike Dawson, Steve Mannion, and lots of others.
I’m really fortunate to be able to do this. To have gotten my health back, to be making comics again and to put on events with so many remarkable people. Sure it’s a lot of work, but I’m having the time of my life!
HM-S: Cliff, I don’t know how you found the time to give us such a detailed insight into your own personal journey envisoning the Asbury Park Comicon with only a few days to go until the biggest APCC yet. But we appreciate your willingness to talk about it so openly and thanks for bringing a Con of this caliber to New Jersey.
Hannah Means-Shannon writes and blogs about comics for TRIP CITY and Sequart.org and is currently working on books about Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore for Sequart. She is @hannahmenzies on Twitter and hannahmenziesblog on WordPress.
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 3/13/2013
Towards the end of his life, witnessing the rise of the graphic novel as a format, Will Eisner commented on the fact that his books formed a subsection of the graphic novels display at a large bookstore by clarifying that his desire was to see his books shelved in the literature section alongside works by Jewish-American novelists of his generation (as expressed in an interview with David Hajdu). It’s enough to make you chuckle that he wasn’t pleased enough with the impact his books had on pushing the graphic novel format forward in American comics, but at the New York Comic and Picture-Story Symposium on the 11th of March, an Eisner-Week event critiqued the comparison between Eisner and his generation of fellow writers to see if his work stood up to his own claim of similarity. Speakers Jeremy Dauber (Professor in Yiddish Studies at Columbia University) and Danny Fingeroth (educator, author, former Marvel Comics editor and Chair of the Organizing Committee for Will Eisner Week) investigated Eisner’s use of setting, dialogue, and themes, as well as common cultural references he shared with his generation, to place Eisner in context and challenge the divide typically assumed between prose and comics media.
[Dauber and Fingeroth]
Dauber pointed out, in opening, that Will Eisner’s work is not usually considered in comparison to novels. He’s known for his prose, and often narrative-heavy work, but close textual comparisons between his writing style and those of his contemporary prose-writers is sparse, or even non-existent. Born in 1917, and “coming of age” in the 20’s and 30’s, Eisner, Dauber said, “was present a the foundational moment of Modern American Jewish Literature” and surrounded by the same influences and trends of major novelists of the period. Abraham Cahan, for instance, who fled from Czarist Russia to become a longtime editor of Yiddish newspapers in New York, was a “break through writer” in establishing Jewish-American literature. He often described the “urban landscape” as “something that’s alive”, as artist Andrea Tsurumi observed during audience participation. In comparison, Eisner’s CONTRACT WITH GOD gives a strong sense of place, and often speaks in a “high register” of prose, like Cahan’s work.
[Jeremy Dauber]
Another prose writer who became a “household name” during Eisner’s childhood was Anzia Yezierska, the “Cinderella of the tenements”, who often found herself in conflict with her parent’s generation, forged her high school diploma in order to attend college, and found herself exploring the conflict between the old and new world in her prose. Her use of dialogue, contrasting idiomatic Yiddish-English with her own more formal style of English speaks to a tension also visible in Eisner’s dialogue. Dauber presented novelist Henry Roth’s work as a final comparison in the use of dialogue to show differences in cultural background also found in Eisner’s Dropsie Avenue inhabitants. Dauber also pointed out a similar fascination with religious experience as a “transforming” force between Roth and Eisner.
[Danny Fingeroth]
While Dauber explored prose comparisons between Eisner’s work and other Jewish-American novelists, Fingeroth took a more visual approach to putting Eisner in context. He addressed the fact that many of the novels of Eisner’s generation and milieu found their way into film adaptation, like Philip Roth’s GOODBYE COLUMBUS (1969). This forms a visual link to Eisner’s own graphic novels and work as an artist. Like Saul Bellow, Eisner also embraced a strong sense of comedy in his work, whereas authors like Bellow didn’t seem to acknowledge comics as an expression of their generation. In a video clip Fingeroth played for the audience, Eisner described himself as “growing up in an environment of prejudice and exploration of identity”, a theme certainly visible in many of the Jewish-American novels of the period. Eisner’s injected his characteristic humor by adding that writing was “inexpensive long term therapy” for these issues.
[Will Eisner]
Fingeroth described the “Jewish-American assimilation experience” as a common feature of Eisner’s work and his novelist contemporaries. CONTRACT WITH GOD, the “first thing” Eisner created in his long career that “wasn’t an actual assignment” allowed him the freedom to revisit these very personal experiences. Fingeroth also noted that a common cultural reference among these writers was Baseball, as seen in Philip Roth’s THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL, and in Eisner’s artwork on “The Adventures of Rube Rooky”. Writing about baseball, Fingeroth explained, was a “leveling process” between cultures that became part of the assimilation process. Visually speaking, Fingeroth said, Eisner was a “master of this craft of depicting urban life” found in celebrated Jewish-American novels. Particularly in A CONTRACT WITH GOD, Eisner, “given the freedom to do what he wanted to…came up with stories based on the Bronx of his youth”, like other writers of his generation.
[Saul Bellow]
Fingeroth reminded the audience that exploring Eisner’s prose shouldn’t take away from Eisner’s own assertion that he “wrote with pictures”, though. According to Dauber and Fingeroth’s research, Eisner wrote “as well as anyone” else prominent in his generation. To understand Eisner’s legacy, we have to keep in mind that he “thought of himself as someone who wouldn’t be complete without pictures”, Fingeroth said. So, after this careful textual and cultural comparison between Eisner and the Jewish-American novelists of his day, what was the verdict? Could Eisner’s works be placed in the “literature” section of a bookstore next to the novels he felt expressed the same messages? “Will made it”, Fingeroth confirmed, “He belongs there, too”.
During the question and answer period, discussion turned toward Eisner’s overwhelming drive to raise awareness of comics as a medium. Fingeroth described Eisner as being on a “mission to explain his own life and to legitimize comics”. It’s a puzzling thing that Eisner apparently wanted graphic novels to be seen as “mainstream” literature rather than as a separate format, but the answer may lie in his sense that graphic novels were still being segregated from literature and therefore not treated as equal creative achievements. The double presentation of Eisner’s work in context from Dauber and Fingeroth made a strong argument for Eisner’s status alongside novelists of his day, especially in terms of subject matter and prose style. Dauber and Fingeroth presented reasonable evidence that Eisner’s work could be reshelved in the literature section at any bookstore, but it might cause quite a tug of war with those who see his work of “legitimizing” comics as most at home in a separate graphic novels section of books. “Ideally, all sorts of books could be shelved in more than one section of a bookstore or library,” Fingeroth added in a follow-up comment, “but a variety of practical reasons make that unlikely for the time being. Online venues seem to be able to do it, though, so hopefully some version of that will come to brick-and-mortar outlets, too.” So, why not place Eisner’s books in both locations? It might remind readers, for one thing, to view Eisner as a cultural peer of many of the novelists he revered.
Hannah Means-Shannon writes and blogs about comics for TRIP CITY and Sequart.org and is currently working on books about Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore for Sequart. She is @hannahmenzies on Twitter and hannahmenziesblog on WordPress.
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 3/5/2013
Anyone who has ever worked with Fernando Ruiz or benefitted from his teaching skills knows what a seriously impressive contributor he is to the future of comics. From his personal work as writer and artist on ARCHIE comics and a range of other freelancing projects to the intense mileage he puts in as an instructor at The Kubert School training young artists, Ruiz is all about comics. His own passion for the medium bleeds through every aspect of his life and erupts into casual conversation, whether he’s flipping through large format reproductions of the art of Wally Wood or he’s reflecting on the life of one of his personal heroes, the much-missed Joe Kubert whose presence is still felt daily at the school he founded.
[Fernando Ruiz in front of some of his ARCHIE work at the Kubert School]
I had the good fortune to make Ruiz’s acquaintance when I enrolled in some evening classes at the Kubert School and got to witness his virtuosity as a teacher first-hand. From the solid instruction in basic art techniques to student-prodded asides into the vastnesses of comics history, Ruiz displayed his trademark versatility in all aspects of the medium. Delving into his portfolio, particularly, is bound to prompt stunned silence as his sketches vault between styles and genres with a flexibility that seems almost impossible. If it weren’t for his engaging demeanor and unassuming attitude, his students would probably slink away quietly, intimidated by his abilities as an artist. The two sides of his life, private work and public teaching, are clearly driven by an overwhelming commitment to comics, matched only by his work ethic. I knew it wouldn’t be the easiest thing to get Ruiz to talk about his life and work, since he’s a modest person, but thankfully he agreed to field a few questions for us at The Beat.
Hannah Means-Shannon: I know that you attended the Kubert School and now teach there. What courses do you teach and how long have you been teaching?
Fernando Ruiz: I was invited to teach at the Kubert school in August of 1995. I’d graduated from the school a year earlier in 1994. I started by teaching the school’s Saturday Morning Sketch class, which is largely teaching cartooning to little kids. In 1996, I joined the full time faculty teaching during the week. Over the years, I’ve taught many different classes including Story Adaptation, Design, and Human Figure Drawing. Currently, I’m teaching Narrative Art to all of the First Year students and Basic Drawing to the Second Year students. In addition, I’m also teaching the school’s evening Basic Drawing class and after all these years, I’m still teaching that same Saturday morning class.
HM-S: What do you think are the most essential qualities for someone teaching aspiring comics artists?
FR: Obviously a certain amount of proficiency and knowledge in the area you are teaching is required. Beyond that, a teacher needs patience, flexibility and imagination in order to deal with the particular situation each student might present. Communication skills are also important. It’s not enough to be able to do what you are teaching. You have to be able to clearly explain what you are doing and verbalize it in such a way that your explanation is understandable to a beginner.
HM-S: What’s the most challenging thing about teaching aspiring comics artists?
FR: Each student is an individual and can represent a unique situation. It can be a challenge to gauge a class’ proficiency and tailor my curriculum to my students’ needs.
HM-S: What projects are you working on as an artist currently? What projects are you most excited about right now?
FR: Currently, I am penciling the LIFE WITH ARCHIE magazine for Archie Comics. This is a fun project in which Archie and his friends are adults and Archie is married to Veronica. The stories are serialized in a soap opera-like style and written on a more sophisticated level than your average ARCHIE story with more mature themes and sometimes very shocking twists. In recent issues, we’ve seen Archie’s gay friend, Kevin Keller, get married, his partner get shot, and Archie and Veronica very nearly get divorced! It’s a very crazy ride.
Recently, I took over as regular penciler for the U.S. Army’s PS Magazine. This is a magazine that has been worked on by Will Eisner, Murphy Anderson, and Joe Kubert. I’m very honored to follow them with this assignment.
In addition, I’m currently penciling a story for Image Comics’ HOAX HUNTERS. This is a short back-up story that will appear in their next trade paperback. It’s a different type of story than I usually work on so it’s a lot of fun and exciting.
[Ruiz draws The Avengers]
HM-S: How did you decide to become an artist? What influenced you to attend the Kubert School?
FR: I’ve always enjoyed drawing, comic books, and cartoons. I read comics from a very early age and almost immediately made my own with crayons and notebook paper! As I grew older, I knew I wanted to try for a career in comics but I wasn’t sure how practical or feasible that was. I attended Caldwell College in Caldwell, NJ where I became a Fine Arts major. After graduating, though, I was still attracted to the world of comics. I really wanted to give it a shot. I learned a lot about the fundamentals of art at Caldwell, but I didn’t feel I knew enough about the technical aspect of producing commercial art suitable for reproduction. This led me to enroll at the Kubert School, the best learning institution around for comic book art.
[Ruiz draws The Ultimates]
HM-S: What comics have you found inspirational in your work? What creators have influenced you the most?
FR: You can’t be an artist for Archie Comics without studying the work of all the great artists who came before you. I looked at guys whose work I enjoyed as a kid. Even before I cared to look for their names in the credits, I was studying and copying the art of guys like Dan DeCarlo, Samm Schwartz, and Harry Lucey. When I first started at Archie Comics, I was very fortunate to live close enough to their offices that I could deliver my work in person. Victor Gorelick, Archie’s Editor-In-Chief and the guy who hired me right out of the Kubert School, would ask Dan DeCarlo to sit with me and go over my pages, and give me pointers on how I could improve. Dan was a kind, generous guy and I can’t state enough what a helpful experience that was.
I also learned a lot from other guys who’s work I was reading and copying from as a kid. Among these guys were Steve Ditko, George Perez, Alan Davis, Kurt Schaffenberger, and the great Curt Swan, whose Superman remains my favorite comic book character.
[Ruiz draws Nova]
HM-S: What motivates you to commit your life to so many aspects of comics creation?
FR: I love comics. They’re the perfect storytelling fusion of writing and art. I’ve enjoyed comics ever since I was a kid and nothing makes me happier than being able to make a living creating them. I not only get to draw comics all day but I also get to spread my passion for the medium in my classes.
[Ruiz's work on EPICS]
HM-S: Are there any upcoming projects you want to spread the word about?
FR: In addition to my work on LIFE WITH ARCHIE and PS Magazine, I’m working on a self-published project called EPICS. This is an anthology comic I started with three of my fellow instructors at the Kubert School: Anthony Marques, Bob Hardin, and Fabio Redivo. We each wrote and illustrated our own original six-page story. The first issue was published in September 2012 and we will be publishing our second issue later this year. Working on a completely original story like this where it’s my own creation and I’m handling both the writing and the art makes it extremely satisfying and personal for me. I’m having a great time working on it. We got a lot of praise and attention for our first issue and we can’t wait to put out our second!
[Ruiz's work on EPICS]
HM-S: Where can comics fans find your work?
FR: Folks can check out my work at my website.
[Ruiz's work on EPICS]
HM-S: How can readers find out more about your classes?
FR: Visit the Kubert School’s website to keep up with upcoming courses and events!
HM-S: Do you have any advice for new artists who wants to work professionally in comics?
FR: Be versatile. Learn how to draw everything in every possible way. Don’t just learn how to draw Batman because you’re a Batman fan. If those very few Batman jobs out there are taken, you’re going to have to know how to draw something else. The more you can draw, the more employable you become!
HM-S: Ruiz is a tough act to follow, but he inspires his students to approach comics with respect and a certain amount of grit when it comes to pursuing personal success. He’s an asset of the highest caliber in the classroom, and I wasn’t surprised to learn, asking around, how many comics artists I know who have studied with him and gone on to influence the direction of comics. We wish the best of luck to him on his upcoming projects, hopefully showing off that range of style that makes such an impression on students. If you happen to see him at The Kubert School open house coming up on April 20th, feel free to embarrass him by praising his work and contribution to teaching!
Hannah Means-Shannon writes and blogs about comics for TRIP CITY and Sequart.org and is currently working on books about Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore for Sequart. She is @hannahmenzies on Twitter and hannahmenziesblog on WordPress.
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 2/22/2013
It's more than a week, but not quite a fortnight: from March 1-10 Will Eisner Week will be celebrated nationwide with events promoting reading graphic novels and celebrating the man most associated with pioneering the form.
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 1/20/2013
Tweet Before “meta” was physical, before Modernism became Posted, before Art Popped, cartoonists drew stories about cartoonists and cartooning! Some of it was autobiographical (or possibly semi-auto… I doubt Milt Gross almost became Batman!), some of it was pure fantasy. (The pygmalian dream of a drawing come to life is represented twice in this volume, [...]
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 6/8/2012
We all know (Or should know!) how important Will Eisner was to the comics artform. Something an increasing number of people know is how important libraries are to getting more and more people to read comics and graphic novels.
So it makes sense that a Graphic Novel Prize for LIbraries would be named for Eisner. The Will Eisner Graphic Novel Prize for Libraries will be presented at this year’s ALA to three libraries which will each receive a selection of books nominated for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, a $2,000 voucher to purchase more GNs, and $1000 stipend to hold author events. This is really a great idea for a prize and a great prize for people who love graphic novels. More in the PR below:
The Will & Ann Eisner Family Foundation announced today the launch of the Will Eisner Graphic Novel Prize for Libraries. The prize will be awarded annually to three libraries at the American Library Association’s summer conference commencing with this year’s event in Anaheim, California.
Each library will receive books nominated for the prestigious Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the entire Will Eisner Library of books, a $2,000 voucher for the purchase of additional graphic novels, and an additional $1,000 stipend for the library to hold a graphic novel author/creator event or a graphic novel/comics themed event. The collection of titles comprises over 100 books and the total value for each prize is approximately $4,000.
Carl Gropper, President of the Foundation says, “We developed this prize as a way to emphasize not only Will Eisner’s contributions to the comics industry, but to also recognize the important role that librarians have played in the phenomenal growth of the graphic novel category. While Will Eisner helped to create the foundation for graphic novels, librarians have championed the benefits of the graphic novel format and the comics medium to the world’s readers.”
Gropper continues “The addition of the Eisner Award-nominated titles to the prize reflects the spirit of inclusion that Will Eisner was known for. He would have loved to have participated in the convergence of the comics and library communities. The Eisner Awards are announced each year at San Diego Comic Con and are considered the Oscars of the Comics Industry. The list of nominated titles is created by a committee of independent industry experts, which has included a librarian since 2005, when Kat Kan was selected for the committee.”
David Glanzer, Director of Marketing and Public Relations for Comic Con International adds “Each year we take great pride in celebrating Will Eisner’s incredible contribution to the comics world with two awards named in his honor; the Will Eisner Comics Industry Awards, and the Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing award. We are happy to learn that the Will & Ann Eisner Foundation is creating and administering the Will Eisner Graphic Novel Prize for Libraries which endeavors to provide an even wider audience for graphic novels, a move we truly support.”
“We also thank our friends” continues Gropper “the publishers of the Will Eisner Library: Abrams ComicArts, Dark Horse Comics, DC Entertainment, IDW Publishing, and W.W. Norton and for their support and their contribution of books by Will Eisner and
6 Comments on Will Eisner Graphic Novel Prize for Libraries to debut at ALA Convention in Anaheim, last added: 6/11/2012Display Comments Add a Comment
By: Heidi MacDonald,
on 10/8/2011
.
Abrams publishes some of the most beautiful (and bestselling!) books about comics. Here are some of their forthcoming titles! (Anyone want to wager how many Eisner nominations these titles will garner?)
Click on the title to discover more information!
By: John,
on 5/18/2011
Yesterday I tweeted about some problems I was having on a job, and someone (thank you!) sent me this link as inspiration. The page lists dozens of wonderful old comics’ splash pages (and covers) that integrated mastheads and titles into the layout, rather than just having it sit there, essentially obscuring the illustration behind it. Obviously, Will Eisner did this better than anyone else. The one I picked here is one of the cleverest I’ve ever seen. Look at that. Knocks me out. So lovely.
…everything changed with the appearance of Will Eisner’s “The Spirit” (1940). ”The Spirit” was published as a seven-page supplement to the comics section of American Sunday newspapers. As a supplement tucked inside newspapers, “The Spirit” did not depend on being visible on the newsstands. It was not limited by the need for recognizable branding like “Superman.” Not only did he change the masthead of “The Spirit” for every issue, but very soon, the masthead became an integral part of the scene/set. (via Spirit of the Stone Type — Imprint-The Online Community for Graphic Designers)
The author posted an entire set of these on Flickr with over 75 examples.
By: Jason Boog,
on 3/7/2011
Google celebrated Will Eisner‘s March 6th birthday with a Google Doodle.
The image is embedded above, a logo combining Eisner’s famous hero, The Spirit, and the crowded New York City neighborhoods Eisner explored in later graphic novels. Comic artist Scott McCloud wrote on Google’s blog about how Eisner’s The Spirit newspaper comic influenced many artists, from Jack Kirby to Jules Feiffer.
eBookNewser has more: “Google celebrated the late Will Eisner’s birthday this weekend with a Google Doodle, dedicated to the legendary comic author. Artist Mike Dutton drew the above homage to Eisner, in which the ‘oo’s in Google have been replaced by the eyes of one of Eisner’s most famous characters named ‘The Spirit,’ aka Denny Colt, a crime fighting detective.”
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
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By: Julie Fortenberry,
on 11/17/2009
By: Neil Gaiman,
on 11/3/2008
The Vegas Valley festival also includes a comics festival on the Saturday. See http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/Publications/16668.htm
The signing is happening at 1 p.m. at the 5th Street School (401 S. Fourth St). Attendees can bring one item from home and whatever is purchased on site.
If folks can't make it down, signed books will still be available at the door the night of the event.
This very special evening will bring two of the series most beloved stories to life with a multimedia presentation that marries comics and live theater.
This looks pretty cool, and $25 for a hardcover book is reasonable these days. But can the publishers tell us how many pages will be in the book, and what size the book is? Is it the complete run of Eisner’s work, or is there a volume 2 coming?
Hi Al! It’s an 80 pg hardcover, and collects all of the UNCLE OTTO and HARRY KARRY strips. The format is landscape, 6.5×11″, with two strips per page. There are 108 strips total.
And thanks Heidi for this piece!