Gene Colan - Daredevil

Gene Colan passed away on June 23, 2011...

Colan was well known for his work with Marvel comics, specifically for Daredevil, Howard the Duck and Dracula...

Colan is credited with co-creating the Falcon and Blade and was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2005, 1974 Shazam Award for Best penciller (Dramatic Division), 1977 and 1979 Eagle Award for Favorite Comic Book (Humor) for Howard the Duck, 2008 Sparky Award, 2009 Comic Art Professional Society's Sergio Award...

Colan started in the comic industry with Fiction House in 1944, drawing Wings Comics an aviation series. Moving onto Timely Comics, Colan's original work went uncredited as a staff penciller (including Captain America)...

DC Comics included Hopalong Cassidy Westerns, Our Army at War, Captain Storm, All-American Men at War, Batman, Wonder Woman, Fury of Firestorm, Night Force (created by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan) and many others...

Marvel included Astonishing Tales, Captain Marvel, Tomb of Dracula, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Daredevil, Avengers, Howard the Duck, Tales to Astonish, and many others...

Dark Horse Comics on Buffy the Vampire Slayer

James Anderson - Ellie on Planet X

Transmission from the Strang Institute...2011.06.11...Ellie landed on Planet X June 10, 2010...A little robot on a scientific mission...unfortunately she's off-line...

Ellie is a web-comic drawn by James Anderson, guided by the good people at the Strang Institute's mission control. I found Ellie through Wired.com's article on the best new web comics of 2010. They stated that Ellie's personality jumps out of every panel and the story has a classic, all-ages approach without feeling like a retread of a newspaper comic. I felt as if I were back in grade school reading a early reader with the drawing in two-colors on the top of the page, the art has that warm feeling. The limited use of color, and simple backgrounds

I also like the blog that goes along with Ellie featuring updates and information, like old manuals, advertisements and news articles from the Strang Institute. Check out the Dance-O-Scope...I hope they have a visitor's center.

I had sent a Project Mercury cover to James Anderson requesting a sketch of Ellie, he gladly consented. Like a kid sending in box tops for the special prize I waited for the cover to find it's way back. I could not be happier. Since I have a collection of space flight related covers this easily fits in both categories.

James also sent a letter on Strang Institute letterhead (I am impressed). - Thanks for sending the first day issue stamp. I'm honored to be able to draw on a stamped envelope from 1962! From Cape Canaveral, no less. I was actually really nervous to draw on it. I didn't want to mess it up. I hope I didn't!

Impossible to mess it up the drawing is better than expected. The letter also featured a drawing of Jeff!

Danielle Corsetto - McPedro

2011.04.03 Wild Pig Comic Con, Somerset, NJ...Ach! Who're these Impostehrs?!

Danielle Corsetto started drawing Girls with Slingshots in 2004, a web-comic, which has been published in book form. Girls follows the lives of Hazel (a red-head with a taste for alcohol) and Jamie, and a cactus, McPedro (that only talks when she's drunk) and their friends...

Beautifully drawn and rough-edged comedy...The first volume (with a drawing of Hazel) also features Corsetto's comic strip Hazelnuts, drawn for her high school newspaper...

The cactus FDC is also signed by cactus stamp designer Frank J. Waslick...

Matthew Petz - War of the Woods

2011.05.22 Wizard Comic Con, New York

Matthew Petz work ranges from biker zombies to computer games...as well as the Zuda web-comic War of the Woods, which MTV Geek named one of the best web comics of 2010.

War of the Woods is a classic alien invasion story to in a unique way, from the perspective of otters in the New Jersey Pine Barrens...Nathaniel Waterbrooks and his son Phinneas embark on adventures with their friend Issac Brownshell, a turtle, as they fight back against the greatest threat the planet has known...

The Liberty Bell envelope with the Lincoln stamps were chosen as Petz is a fan of Abraham Lincoln, and the Liberty Bell stand for American Freedom, from any invaders...

Joe Kubert

2011.06.04 - Joe Kubert was at Dewey's Comic City, Madison, NJ for a book signing. I did make a request for a sketch and Mr. Kubert declined as he was only signing books. I am good with that...

I had planned on picking up a couple of books, and the opportunity to meet Joe Kubert was in itself what the day was all about...

I picked up Kubert's latest Dong Xoai, Vietnam 1965. Excellent. The art work is not typical comic or graphic novel. The art looks like pencil sketches on gray paper with highlights, as if he was there and making the sketches while the story takes place. No little boxes to separate the art, each page draws you into the story...As a fan of Sgt. Rock, you can see his spirit in these Vietnam vets...

The Vietnam draft ended in 1973, the year I would have been in the selection process. No one in my immediate family was involved in the war, although my wife lost a cousin in battle. However, the war still holds memories for me of news reports, protests in high school and at the local college. And probably not having a full understanding of the war. Of not providing our troops with the full support they really needed.

Kubert pointed out that the back of the book, which is a true description of the events the story is based on by the men who were there and survived.

I am not a book reviewer nor was this blog set up for that purpose, but I was so appreciative of the small time spent between my son Matt, Joe Kubert and myself, and the depth of the story I could not resist...

Daxiong - Chinese New Year

2011.05.22 Wizard Comic Con, New York

Daxiong Guo was born in Jilin Province, China...1999 founded QiCartoon Studios and is one of the most successful artists in Chinese and European comics, receiveing recognition for his work, including 1st place Shanghai Animation & Comic Competition and top honors at the 33rd Annual Angouleme International Comics Festival...

Moving to NYC in 2008, he founded Flag Studios, LLC, and has worked with DC/Wildstorm Productions, Dark Horse Star Wars Adventures, Treasure of the Dragonsnakes, Superman and Doctor Light in Samurai...

I had seen Daxiong's set-up at a previous show and he was booked, so I could not get a sketch. This morning I was there as he was setting up and was able to get in a request before anyone else. I choose the Chinese New Year FDC to told Daxiong to do what ever he pleased. His rendering of the beautiful woman offset by the magnificent dragon in the background is more than I could have imaged...

Photo of Daxiong taken from MTV Geek - Wizard World Comic Con: A Look Back in Photos...Under the photo they ran the caption...Everyone was talking about hot new artist Daxiong at the show...

Sara Richard - Dinosaur

2011.05.22 Wizard Comic Con, New York

The first cover I want to share that I obtained at Wizard is from Sara Richard. I do not think the scan does the art justice. It is gorgeous!

Sara is a grad of the Columbus College of Art & Design, and started working at Hasbro as a temp. When I read her bio I was taken by the fact that she loved dinosaurs...

"Dinosaurs are freaking cool."

My choice of cover for Sara had to be the Dinosaur FDC, and gave her free reign to draw what ever she wanted. I am not disappointed. It is truly a miniature masterpiece...

Sara says her style is heavily influenced by Japanese Ink Paintings (sumi-e), trying to emulate the simplicity of the style. The art below is the back of her business card...

2011 Wizard Comic Con - NYC

2001.05.22 Wizard Comic Con, New York...

Matt and I attended Wizard's Big Apple Comic Con this weekend. I usually go with a list of artists that are supposed to be there and work out which cover and what type of drawing I would like. Unfortunately two of the top five artists on my list did not show up, and a third was way out of my price range $$$3-figures for a bust/head shot. I can at least say I was in the same room and said hello...

Two others I was looking for were Sara Richard and Daxiong, from whom I obtained beautiful sketches..Sara coming up tomorrow, Daxiong, next Friday...We had a good morning at the Con, met some interesting people and great artists...

The above signed page is from Vertigo Comics Neil Young's Greendale signed by artist Cliff Chiang..I was not able to obtain a sketch on cover, as his dance-card was full, and this was 10:30 AM on Sunday...He must have had a very busy Saturday...

Phil Ortiz was also in attendance, from the Simpsons TV series and comic books (Bongo Comics). Matt had himself Simpsonized, and Phil did an excellent job, check it out on Matt's Page. He shared a table with Phil Yeh who had us in stitches with his stories...

Phil Ortiz - Simpsons TV series and Comic books

Harry North - Mad Magazine

Harry North original art from Mad Magazine #213, 1980... featuring a defunct trading stamp..King Kotton

Harry North an English-born illustrator for Mad Magazine, during the 1970-1990s, as well as Mad Magazine books "The Mad book of Horror Stories, Yeechy Creatures and other neat stuff (writer Lou Silverstone), Mad Tales of School of Hard Yocks (Dick Dibartolo writer), as well as James Bone Shark Bait, Heavy Metal magazine, BEEB Magazine (England)....

"Surplus Items We Can Send to the Arabs"

Artist: Harry North Writer: Tom Koch

Americans are bemoaning the fact that the Arabs are overcharging us of their oil, and then adding insult to injury by bringing the money back here to buy up most of desirable real estate and our most precious art treasures. So MAD asks: Why don't we do something about it? With our famed Yankee ingenuity, we should be able to convince those Middle Eastern oil billionaires that they really ought to spend their US dollars on the very items we'd love to unload. Employing this had sell technique, we could soon get our money back without giving up a single thing that we'd prefer to keep. Mad shows how painlessly we could balance our trade deficit......

Items in the parody article included Our surplus polyester leisure suits, Our perpetual supply of raspberry sherbet, the Philadelphia 76ers, Five million homeless kittens, the greatest tunes of the Johnny Mann singers, North Dakota, Cancelled TV shows, chicken Take-out franchises, Hardy grass seedlings, Spokane's World's Fair site, Outmoded 3-D glasses, Jimmy Connors and Ilie Nastase, Bankrupt stockbrokers equipment, Shameful football letter sweaters, Incompetent TV weathermen, Cyclamate Cola, Merv Griffin, Egg timer glass, Discard Christmas trees and Defunct Trading Stamps.

FCBD - A Pair of Jokers

Nick Justus

Gavin Smith

2001.05.07 Dewey's Comic City, Madison, NJ

During the morning hours of the FCBD - Dewey's had two artists who were in their 3rd year of Joe Kubert's School of Cartoon and Graphic Art (The Kubert School), Dover, NJ, the graduating class of 2011...

When Nick Justus started his sketch, he touched on the idea of turning Stan Laurel into the Joker...

I asked both artists to draw their version of the Joker on a Comedians FDC. The comedians stamps honored Abbot and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, Jack Denny, Bergen & McCarthy and Fanny Brice and were all drawn by famed caricaturist Hirschfeld.

Al Hirschfeld (1903-2003) was well known for his line drawings of celebrities, musicians, movie stars and Broadway performers...I remember getting the Sunday paper to look for the comics, followed by the entertainment section to see fi there was a Hirschfeld drawing accompanying the reviews of the newest movie or Broadway play...I always had to try to find the Nina's hidden within...

Bill Gallo - Sports Cartoonist

Bill Gallo (1922-2011) passed away on May 10, 2011.

Although this is not a first day cover, I wanted to share a sketch I obtained in 1988...

Gallo was a sports editorial cartoonist for the New York Daily News, as well as being a boxing journalist.

Gallo received the National Cartoonist Society Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998, Page One Journalism Award from the New York Newspaper Guild (20-times), The Power of Printing Award, Elzie Segar Award as Outstanding Cartoonist 1975, NCS Sports Cartoon Award (10-times)..

Gallo's sports cartoons appeared daily in the New York Daily News providing a fresh look at sports not only from the New York teams, but from around the nation...

Galo created Basement Bertha who suffered for many years alongside the hapless NY Mets, Yuchie the average New York sports kid rooting for his favorite teams and General Von Steingrabber a take-off on the Yankees owner George Steinbrenner...

Gallo's art ranged from humorous to serious sketched portraits of sports celeberities. A few favorites seemed to be Ali and Casey Stengel...

My favorite memories of Gallo's cartoons were a special feature for the World Series. After each game Gallo would award a Hero and a Goat of the game..As I never expected the Yankees to lose, I took any Yankee being a goat to heart. As a kid I did not believe horns belonged on a Yankee cap...

Frank Thorne - Red Sonja

Frank Thorne - 2004.08.21 Barnes and Noble, Clark, NJ

Frank Thorne has produced art for many titles, including his own creation Ghita of Alizarr, Moonshine McJuggs for Playboy, Lann for Heavy Metal, The Iron Devil and Devil's Angel for Eros Comix and two autobiographies Drawing Sexy Women and The Crystal Ballroom.

Thorne started his career in 1948 working for Standard Comics romance issue, followed by work with the Perry Mason comic strip, comic book work on Flash Gordon, Jungle Jim and the Green Hornet. However, Thorne is best known for work on Marvel Comic's Red Sonja.

Red Sonja was created by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith in 1973, for the Conan the Barbarian comics. When Sonja earned her own title Thorne took over (1977-79), establishing her character as a beautiful but dangerous barbarian.

The space fantasy stamp is credited to fantasy artist Attila Hejja.

Elisha Lau - Fairy

Elisha Lau - Illustrator - Fairy 2010.12.12 Clifton Comic Book Expo

Elisha has done graphic design and illustration work for Fantage.Com, Fun Box, LLC, NJ.Com, GroundUp Studios, Studio 66 Media, as well as a production intern for $Kids Entertainment on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...

When I viewed her website, I was taken by her style and presentation, everything was bright colorful and happy. I had obtained the dragonfly FDC for the purpose of obtaining a fairy or pixie style drawing. Ms. Lau's style was perfect for this idea, and I am not disappointed.

Ever since I had heard about the Cottingley Fairies photographs, the concept of fairies existence in folk tales and art has fascinated me and millions of people across the world. The series of five photographs were taken by Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths, two young cousins who lived in Cottingley, near Bradford in England, in 1917. The pictures came to the attention of writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who used them to illustrate an article on fairies he had been commissioned to write for the Christmas 1920 edition of The Strand Magazine. Conan Doyle, as a Spiritualist, was enthusiastic about the photographs, and interpreted them as clear and visible evidence of psychic phenomena. He believed...