A few days ago a friend told me that if she made movies, the movie she would have liked to have made would be BIG FISH. I just finished THE SUN ALSO RISES, and I think it's the book I would have most like to have written.
EDITED TO WONDER: Why aren't there any steamy videos of writers having sex on the internet? Are movie stars, models, and musicians the only ones careless with their smutty homemade porn?
EDITED TO WONDER: Why aren't there any steamy videos of writers having sex on the internet? Are movie stars, models, and musicians the only ones careless with their smutty homemade porn?
There are entirely too many pictures to repost, so I will kindly direct you to my blog for full coverage of Wizard World Chicago.
You wouldn't know it, but there's a new Eddie Campbell book out there from DC called BATMAN: THE ORDER OF BEASTS. I'd heard that Eddie was working on a Batman story, but I wouldn't have known it was out if bbkaro hadn't asked me if I'd picked it up yet. So, I went out, picked it up, and read it.
It's far, far better than Eddie's recent CAPTAIN AMERICA stint, but that's mainly because the folks at DC let Eddie be Eddie. THE ORDER OF BEASTS is foggy and scratchy and mysterious, with the art handled entirely by Eddie; it was co-written with Daren White. CAPTAIN AMERICA was written by Robert Morales and involves some sort of strange time-travel story that doesn't even make sense in a super-hero comic; Eddie had art assists from Stewart McKenny and colorist Brian Reber. There's a heavy Kirby-influence in the CAPTAIN AMERICA book, especially in the first issue when Cap and Iron Man are palling around, but I honestly wouldn't pick it out as an Eddie Campbell book unless I already knew it was beforehand. THE ORDER OF BEASTS, on the other hand, stands out as Eddie's work even though it involves Batman swinging around London. That doesn't even seem that strange. It's not that action-heavy, and the action that takes place seems awkward-but-natural, in an Eddie Campbell sort of way, if that makes sense to anyone.
I was looking for something to link this article to, but the closest I could find was a message board over the Comics Journal website where the consensus is that it's pretty to look at, but it's a pretty lame story. But there's been a growing rumble in the world of comic books that, after decades of trying to prove that comics aren't just for kids anymore . . . actually, some comics ARE still for kids. Or, at least, they should be. This argument was put forward wonderfully by Michael Chabon at this years Comic-Con. The transcript is now available for all to see. THE ORDER OF BEASTS isn't quite that kind of comic book--it's not a particular kid-friendly book, on the surface--it's a murder mystery in which Batman spends more time sipping tea with police inspectors in London, learns the local slang, and changes into his costume in the back of rented cars, than he does battleing Nazi spies. But at the same time, it's a very Batman-kind of story. Batman solves the crime, he is feared by the cowardly criminals and earns the respect of the local police, and Bruce Wayne charms the local female singer without even realize he's doing so. It would work well with kids because it's not trying to. It's just a straight-forward, if quirky, super-hero story that is self-contained and entertaining. It's a Batman story that doesn't try so hard to be a Batman story.
Unfortunately, it's also carrying a $5.95 price tag for 48 pages of story between two glossy covers. It was buried at the bottom of the rack at my local comics shop underneath something else. No kid will pick it up, but it's precisely the sort of story that would have appealed to me when I was nine years old--appealed to me because it wasn't trying to appeal to me, and also not trying to appeal to some 30-year old dude who buys Batman because he's always bought Batman. But the only folks who are going to buy it are either Batman completists or Eddie Campbell fans--the Batman completists won't like that Batman isn't dressed in black and brooding, and the Eddie Campbell fans will wonder when the next used-to-be-called-ALEC book is coming out. If only someone could figure out how to get a book like THE ORDER OF BEASTS into the hands of the kids who will appreciate it.
It's far, far better than Eddie's recent CAPTAIN AMERICA stint, but that's mainly because the folks at DC let Eddie be Eddie. THE ORDER OF BEASTS is foggy and scratchy and mysterious, with the art handled entirely by Eddie; it was co-written with Daren White. CAPTAIN AMERICA was written by Robert Morales and involves some sort of strange time-travel story that doesn't even make sense in a super-hero comic; Eddie had art assists from Stewart McKenny and colorist Brian Reber. There's a heavy Kirby-influence in the CAPTAIN AMERICA book, especially in the first issue when Cap and Iron Man are palling around, but I honestly wouldn't pick it out as an Eddie Campbell book unless I already knew it was beforehand. THE ORDER OF BEASTS, on the other hand, stands out as Eddie's work even though it involves Batman swinging around London. That doesn't even seem that strange. It's not that action-heavy, and the action that takes place seems awkward-but-natural, in an Eddie Campbell sort of way, if that makes sense to anyone.
I was looking for something to link this article to, but the closest I could find was a message board over the Comics Journal website where the consensus is that it's pretty to look at, but it's a pretty lame story. But there's been a growing rumble in the world of comic books that, after decades of trying to prove that comics aren't just for kids anymore . . . actually, some comics ARE still for kids. Or, at least, they should be. This argument was put forward wonderfully by Michael Chabon at this years Comic-Con. The transcript is now available for all to see. THE ORDER OF BEASTS isn't quite that kind of comic book--it's not a particular kid-friendly book, on the surface--it's a murder mystery in which Batman spends more time sipping tea with police inspectors in London, learns the local slang, and changes into his costume in the back of rented cars, than he does battleing Nazi spies. But at the same time, it's a very Batman-kind of story. Batman solves the crime, he is feared by the cowardly criminals and earns the respect of the local police, and Bruce Wayne charms the local female singer without even realize he's doing so. It would work well with kids because it's not trying to. It's just a straight-forward, if quirky, super-hero story that is self-contained and entertaining. It's a Batman story that doesn't try so hard to be a Batman story.
Unfortunately, it's also carrying a $5.95 price tag for 48 pages of story between two glossy covers. It was buried at the bottom of the rack at my local comics shop underneath something else. No kid will pick it up, but it's precisely the sort of story that would have appealed to me when I was nine years old--appealed to me because it wasn't trying to appeal to me, and also not trying to appeal to some 30-year old dude who buys Batman because he's always bought Batman. But the only folks who are going to buy it are either Batman completists or Eddie Campbell fans--the Batman completists won't like that Batman isn't dressed in black and brooding, and the Eddie Campbell fans will wonder when the next used-to-be-called-ALEC book is coming out. If only someone could figure out how to get a book like THE ORDER OF BEASTS into the hands of the kids who will appreciate it.
A friend of mine is putting together a zine. If you are a writer, or know a writer, or always dreamed of being a writer, then take heed:
* * * * *
Real Quick Like
Topic: "Last to See Them Alive."
Ready and go! Procrastination is not your friend, dear writer. One month. You write em, we want em. From the gut. Stories, poetry, essays, fiction or non. Let the topic inspire you, and then send it on.
No time for writers block. We are looking for original, unpublished work from writers of all shapes and sizes, deadline September 1. Adhere to the date, stick to the topic, keep it under 3,000 words and all other rules be damned.
No, you will not be paid. Not just yet. But you will see your work in print alongside other talented writers and distributed to every web ring, zine shop and department store bathroom from Jersey to Sausalito.
Please send submissions and questions electronically to rql@realquicklike.com with your name and contact information. Published work for first publication rights only. Accepted work will be compiled into a real pretty-like journal, with funds determining whether pretty means tri-color glossy or stapled together on neon green copy paper. Winners will receive one complimentary copy.
No excuses! Submission is free, with no limit to the number of pieces you can submit. Now go make your mama proud.
* * * * *
Real Quick Like
Topic: "Last to See Them Alive."
Ready and go! Procrastination is not your friend, dear writer. One month. You write em, we want em. From the gut. Stories, poetry, essays, fiction or non. Let the topic inspire you, and then send it on.
No time for writers block. We are looking for original, unpublished work from writers of all shapes and sizes, deadline September 1. Adhere to the date, stick to the topic, keep it under 3,000 words and all other rules be damned.
No, you will not be paid. Not just yet. But you will see your work in print alongside other talented writers and distributed to every web ring, zine shop and department store bathroom from Jersey to Sausalito.
Please send submissions and questions electronically to rql@realquicklike.com with your name and contact information. Published work for first publication rights only. Accepted work will be compiled into a real pretty-like journal, with funds determining whether pretty means tri-color glossy or stapled together on neon green copy paper. Winners will receive one complimentary copy.
No excuses! Submission is free, with no limit to the number of pieces you can submit. Now go make your mama proud.
It's along the top, but seriously: Vote for DebraJean.
She's losing, and she's by far the sexiest Schwartz I know. And she's really, really funny.
She's losing, and she's by far the sexiest Schwartz I know. And she's really, really funny.
RAW, BOILED & COOKED: COMICS ON THE VERGE is coming to the Chicago Cultural Center August 7-October 3.
From the card:
"This traveling exhibition is a survey of North American graphic novelists and comic artists inspired by the ground breaking RAW MAGAZINE. It includes storyboards, installations, video and computer art by over 40 artists, including Lynda Barry, Charles Burns, Julie Doucet, Bill Griffith, Gary Panter, art spiegelman and Chicago's own Chris Ware."
The Chicago Cultural Center is located at 78 E. Washington Street, awfully close to Art Institute. It's a swell building, and best of all kids, it's free free free! If you're in town for Wizard World in August and you need a break from the super-heroics, take the train downtown and check out the show. There's an opening reception Friday August 6th from 6-8 pm, and I'm excited as all heck about the show.
From the card:
"This traveling exhibition is a survey of North American graphic novelists and comic artists inspired by the ground breaking RAW MAGAZINE. It includes storyboards, installations, video and computer art by over 40 artists, including Lynda Barry, Charles Burns, Julie Doucet, Bill Griffith, Gary Panter, art spiegelman and Chicago's own Chris Ware."
The Chicago Cultural Center is located at 78 E. Washington Street, awfully close to Art Institute. It's a swell building, and best of all kids, it's free free free! If you're in town for Wizard World in August and you need a break from the super-heroics, take the train downtown and check out the show. There's an opening reception Friday August 6th from 6-8 pm, and I'm excited as all heck about the show.
I finally saw Fahrenheit 9/11 yesterday. I'd been putting it off because I figured, hey, I'm a pretty informed dude, and I tend to agree with what Michael Moore says even if I don't always like how he says it--the movie won't have anything new to tell me, so I'll take my time.
I saw Control Room first, for example--a documentary about al-Jazeera during the invasion of Iraq. It's terribly informative about the process of selling the news during wartime and it focuses on the people behind al-Jazeera as well as the controversy that surrounds them. They have to be doing something right when both Donald Rumsfeld and Iraq's former Minister of Information accuse them of spreading lies and propaganda.
But anyway--Michael Moore. With Bowling for Columbine, I thought he was trying a little too hard in some scenes, like when he leaves the picture of the little girl outside Charleton Heston's mansion. That struck as being for the camera, not a documentation of what really happened. But with 9/11, there is not a single thing I can think of that was trying too hard. Maybe he realized he didn't need to--I don't know. But the movie really punched me in the gut. The stuff with Gore and the 2000 election at the beginning was a great way to start, because that still smarts for me, especially with how things have turned out. I like Gore a lot and I'd vote for him all over again.
The sequence on the attacks made me teary-eyed, as did the interview with the mother from Flint. The parts on military recruitment made me mad, and so did seeing Bush in that classroom trying to pretend like nothing was happening on the morning of the 11th. The movie has its own point of view, but Moore lets the facts tell the story more than he has in the past.
There is one Michael Moore kind of stunt in the film, and it feels pretty out of place. But aside from that, it makes for a powerful film and I'm glad it was made. I'm glad it was distributed and I hope lots and lots of people see it before the election in November.
On an unrelated note, I'm also glad that Barack Obama will be delivering the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston. And I hope someone like Ditka runs against him, so Obama can stomp him. I'm not wildly enthusiastic about Kerry like I would have been about DEAN, but I am pretty excited over Obama. My god, but politics are better than any baseball/football/kickball game ever.
I saw Control Room first, for example--a documentary about al-Jazeera during the invasion of Iraq. It's terribly informative about the process of selling the news during wartime and it focuses on the people behind al-Jazeera as well as the controversy that surrounds them. They have to be doing something right when both Donald Rumsfeld and Iraq's former Minister of Information accuse them of spreading lies and propaganda.
But anyway--Michael Moore. With Bowling for Columbine, I thought he was trying a little too hard in some scenes, like when he leaves the picture of the little girl outside Charleton Heston's mansion. That struck as being for the camera, not a documentation of what really happened. But with 9/11, there is not a single thing I can think of that was trying too hard. Maybe he realized he didn't need to--I don't know. But the movie really punched me in the gut. The stuff with Gore and the 2000 election at the beginning was a great way to start, because that still smarts for me, especially with how things have turned out. I like Gore a lot and I'd vote for him all over again.
The sequence on the attacks made me teary-eyed, as did the interview with the mother from Flint. The parts on military recruitment made me mad, and so did seeing Bush in that classroom trying to pretend like nothing was happening on the morning of the 11th. The movie has its own point of view, but Moore lets the facts tell the story more than he has in the past.
There is one Michael Moore kind of stunt in the film, and it feels pretty out of place. But aside from that, it makes for a powerful film and I'm glad it was made. I'm glad it was distributed and I hope lots and lots of people see it before the election in November.
On an unrelated note, I'm also glad that Barack Obama will be delivering the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston. And I hope someone like Ditka runs against him, so Obama can stomp him. I'm not wildly enthusiastic about Kerry like I would have been about DEAN, but I am pretty excited over Obama. My god, but politics are better than any baseball/football/kickball game ever.
GOLDBLUM WATCH
Where's my head?
He can be seen in INDEPENDENCE DAY on your local Fox affiliate this very second.
Where's my head?
He can be seen in INDEPENDENCE DAY on your local Fox affiliate this very second.
