Fri Sep 19, 2008 — by Michael Davis

Luck Be A Lady? No. Luck Be my Bitch. By Michael Davis

Straight No Chaser

I am not a lucky guy.

I have never won anything in my life. If I was the only one to enter a contest and the person in charge was my mother I would still lose. I went to Vegas once and hit the jackpot on a slot machine and it was voided because I was told the machine was “defective.” I was too young and stupid to raise a fuss.

That’s a true story.

I have faced death on more than one occasion and survived, but I don’t consider that lucky. I consider that a preview of what will happen one day soon. I have always felt I was living on borrowed time, but that is a story for another time. I have never found any money, or been picked at random for anything great because I was in the right place at the right time.

I have been held up at gun point, stabbed (twice), been arrested for walking to my car during a gang sweep WHILE wearing a chucking $2,000.00 suit I’m sure the cops assumed I was a member of the Bloods because my tie was red. These and a zillion other things have happened to me over the years.

What kind of luck is that?

As much crap as I talk about being from the projects and the sense of bravado and attitude I’m TOLD I project (thanks Russ), I’m a romantic at heart. Yep, I like a good chick flick every so often while drinking Tequila, cleaning my guns and being fed grapes one at a time by my Asian wife and my girlfriend while my six underage kids work to support me and my drug habit because all REAL men live like that. OK, that’s not all true…there are seven kids, but one is really ugly and I don’t think it’s mine.

Short story. Once, around twenty years ago I was sitting on a subway train when I caught the eye of a strikingly beautiful woman. She was Latino and made Angelina Jolie look like a crack whore who was just run over by a train, no, 20 trains, one after another.

BAM,BAM,BAM.BAM,BAM,BAM,BAM,BAM.BAM,BAM,BAM,BAM,BAM.BAM,BAM, BAM,BAM,BAM.BAM,BAM AND BAM!!!!!!

Sorry, that was wrong. It was 21 times. My bad.

This woman smiled at me and I looked around to see if it was I she was really looking at. When I looked back she smiled again. I then, LIKE A DORK, pointed at myself and she smiled again. The train came to a stop and she stood to leave. When the doors opened she looked right at me and said something in Spanish. I figured it was “I’m to hot for you to even dare dream about, you silly boy.” Then she left the train, stopped and stood at the platform looking at me. LIKE AN ASSHOLE I SAT ON THE TRAIN assuming all of this was just my imagination. Then the guy next to me started to chuckle. He was Latino and understood what the pretty lady had said. He turned to me and said, “She said that she wanted to get to know you. She’s waiting for you to get off the train.” “NO SHIT?!” I shouted like a doctor just jammed his finger…well you get the idea. I stood up, rushed to the doors just in time for them to close.

With her on the platform and me still on train.

Yeah. I’m one LUCKY MOFO.

I’m currently in negotiations to run the entertainment division of a company. That’s not luck – that’s skill, buddy. I have run major divisions at major companies over the last 20 years and every so often, no that’s not right, ALL THE TIME, I meet people in the comics industry who tell me how lucky I am.

I’m just a WEE bit tired of that shit.

If I did not come up with the idea, write a business plan, pay for development, fly to wherever I have to (AND I HATE TO FLY) take a zillion meetings, create budgets, manage cash flow, wine and dine potential strategic partners and be charming and FUNNY as Hell at board meetings where I also have to show revenue projections, if I did not have to do ALL THAT AND MORE then yes I would be lucky!

Like I said, I am not a lucky guy.

But in all my wheeling and dealings I have made the same massive mistake in every deal I do.

That mistake is I never, NEVER make time for any personal creative work. The problem with working in the entertainment business in a management position is that the vast majority of your work is operational. The time you spend creating is very little.

With my pending deal I have instructed my lawyers to carve out some time for me to devote to personal projects. What this means is I will have certain days and weeks where I can devote time and effort to just those personal projects.

I love the “art of the deal.” In fact, that was going to be the first name of this very column. I do like deal making but I miss sitting in a room and making things up. In my opinion there is no greater thing on the planet than to create something from nothing and get paid for it.

Some of the projects I can talk about, some I can’t. Those I can talk about include a graphic novel from Dark Horse on the Underground Railroad, which is years in the making…and I do mean years in the making. That project is finally on the drawing board and I could not be happier about that.

From another publisher I’m writing a book called Everything You Wanted To Know About Black People But Were Afraid To Ask. I’m also working on a graphic novel on the real story of Jackie Robinson from the same publisher.

I have two projects at ComicMix – one is called The Adjuster, the other is in collaboration with Denys Cowan that will be epic in scope and present black people in a way never seen before in comics. It’s called Where the White Women At?

I kid, I joke. It’s not called that. But man, would that sell! It would be the “must have” book of the year in the hood.

Oh by the way; Where the White Women At? © and  Michael Davis 2008.

The above projects are firm with the exception of the Jackie Robinson book which will be firmed up soon I hope. I have another dream project with Dwayne McDuffie that I hope is announced soon. In a rare departure for me, I’m not involved in details of that deal at all. As the co-creator of the project it is difficult for me to let someone else run with the ball but I trust Dwayne and there is no one better person than him to oversee this. I’m also writing a show for a network that I can’t talk about but it’s funny as hell, if I do say so myself.

When my entertainment deal drops I will still have ample time to produce these projects. I am well aware of what happens when time is a factor or you work with someone who takes advantage of your time. Those factors will result in the project SUCKING like an old porn star. Why an old porn star? Because no one will pay to see that. I’m at the time in my life when liking what I do is much more important than anything else. I’m looking forward to the challenge of my new entertainment deal but I’m finally going to have the time to just be me.

Michael Davis just being himself…I know…scary.

So, no I am not a lucky guy. I’m blessed to be able to do what I do and work with people who get me. I know I’m not the easiest (but I am the sexiest) guy to work with.

I love this quote; luck is when opportunity meets preparation.

I’m prepared for what is ahead. Luck? I make my own.

Now, if all these projects suck then I will have NO problem blaming bad luck.

 For those who still think I’m lucky, those dice are for you.

Media mogul Michael Davis appears with something new here at ComicMix.com every Friday.  

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