Michael Davis: You Better Recognize
I’m pissed.
So pissed that this article was first written for my website. My website is usually where I rant about goings on in the world of politics and such, I almost never talk about comics there. Well, I was so pissed over a Publisher’s Weekly article I couldn’t wait for Tuesday to vent my anger so I went ahead and wrote this piece for MDW.
Those of you familiar with my writings know I tend to use language not suited for everyone.
Translation: I swear a lot.
Chantal d’Aulnis is a dear friend who I’ve known for a long time. She is also the unofficial 6th founding member of Milestone, as it was Chantal who gave us invaluable advice when setting up the company. She pointed out to me that my swearing may take away from the importance of what I was trying to say in this article when I posted it on MDW.
It’s with that in mind that I’m going to edit the original piece for ComicMix. I will be substituting less offensive words in the place where I swore in the original piece. The words changed are in bold just in case you are wondering. This version will also have additional new content or not…
This one’s for you, Chantal…
The following from a recent Publisher’s Weekly article:
This year’s programming includes a spotlight panel discussion that recognized the 20th anniversary of Milestone Media, a pioneering comic book company founded by a group of black writers and artists that included the late Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan and others.
The article was about The East Coast Black Age Of Comics Convention the Milestone panel was just one of many great things that went on at the convention over the weekend and it was nice the PW gave us a shout out.
Publisher’s Weekly is a big deal a mention there even a small one is never a bad thing, well unless that mention is a review and the reviewer thinks the book you wrote sucks booty. I’ve been mentioned and/or reviewed in PW a few times. The last time was a review they did on the book David Quinn and I wrote, The Littlest Bitch.
That review got us a call from a network looking to talk to us about an animated series of the book. It’s safe to say in entertainment all the major playa’s read PW.
So, when I see that PW has regulated Derek Dingle and I to “other” status regarding Milestone that’s a cause for concern and frankly PW should have done a better job with their background checking. Milestone Media changed the game so much that we are being celebrated at the San Diego Comic Con this year. Comic Con is the biggest pop culture event in the world. You don’t use “others” to describe founders of anything that important. It’s retarded reporting at best and pecker journalism at worst.
This year’s programming includes a spotlight panel discussion that recognized the 50th anniversary of The Beatles, the pioneering rock and roll band that included John Lennon, Ringo Starr and others.
I mean, come on.
Don’t get me wrong, the article was a wonderful piece, extremely well written but, “…and others?”
Come the booger on!
I could be wrong but here’s what I think happened, the reporter got his or her background information from those she or he interviewed at the convention. The reporter’s name is Bobbi Booker, I have no idea if that’s a girl or guy and yes I do know a guy that that spells his name that way so it could be a guy, smartbotty.
Like I said, I could be mistaken but I think whoever Bobbi spoke to gave the impression that Derek and I didn’t matter as much or we were junior partners.
There’s a myth a lot of people have taken as truth that persists about Milestone. The myth is that my dear departed friend and partner Dwayne McDuffie started Milestone and everyone came after.
That myth is so strong that a few years ago some clown went on Facebook and called me a liar when I stated at my annual Black Panel at Comic Con the following;
“Denys Cowan created Milestone, I co-signed but the creation of Milestone is ALL Denys. Anything else you hear is just scrotum basket!”
By “co-sign” I mean, I was with Denys the moment he came up with the idea and said it was a good one. That (white people) is called a co-sign.
Imagine my surprise and anger when this mouth stain went on Facebook and called me a liar during a major forum. He stuck to his “sources” until I bet him $10,000.00 that his information was simply sissy.
This guy was convinced that Dwayne put everything together then called Denys, Derek and me. On another black comic forum someone swore Robert Washington both created Static and wrote the Static bible.
Wrong.
Denys Cowan, Dwayne McDuffie, Derek Dingle, Christopher Priest and I created Static. Oh, and the Static bible? I wrote that. What Robert Washington did was take our good idea and make it darn great. Those books were some of the best comics to ever see the light of day and that was all Robert and John Paul Leon.
Speaking of John Paul, I read somewhere that Matt Wayne discovered him.
Nope. That was me.
On many on line forums people who have no darn clue about Milestone except what they have “heard” are holding court as if they wrote the business plan and pitched it to DC and Marvel.
Oh, you didn’t know Milestone almost ended up at Marvel? I guess Ray Ray didn’t get that from Huggy Bear who knows all. “Word on the street is that Milestone was started by John Lennon and Ringo Starr…”
This is not sour grapes on my part. I’m not bitching because I’m not getting the proper credit for my contribution to Milestone, but rumors and misinformation have a tendency to become fact that can affect everything that you do. I’ve seen news stories that mention no one but Dwayne when discussing Milestone.
Why is that important to correct?
It’s important because brand is important. How you manage or don’t manage your brand can be the reason the business world gives you respect and takes you seriously.
Don’t think so?
My Space is a butt joke, Paris Hilton is an afterthought, Blackberry is just another smartphone and Tim Tebow is feces unemployed.
Brand management or lack there of is why those above are no longer on any A-list.
Tiger Woods, Robert Downey Junior, Vanessa Williams and Bill Clinton are at the top of their game after each faced career ending scandals. That’s brand management.
For my money the single best example of great brand management is Tylenol. Years ago tainted Tylenol tablets were killing people. Tylenol managed to not only come back but are bigger than they have ever been.
The Milestone story is too important to let just anyone who heard some Doo Doo though the grapevine tell it. If the accepted narrative becomes just Dwayne created Milestone what happened to me at a meeting some time back will become commonplace. I was in talks with a mainstream publisher about an imprint deal I would have with them. During a meeting with eight people in the room including the publisher someone mentioned Milestone. I promptly interjected that I was a founder of Milestone and someone actually said; “No it was McDuffie who started Milestone with backing from Quincy Jones.”
Oh, no! Now, I’m put in the position where I have to address that. Having to deflect, correct, restate or clarify anything in a corporate setting is almost always bad.
Anytime you take the position that information you provided or spoke to is flawed, inaccurate or wrong puts your credibility in question. The perception that Dwayne is solely responsible for Milestone is problematic because Dwayne was such a massive talent future Milestone business could be at serious risk if a company decides they don’t want to be in business with Milestone because the guy who started it is gone. He’s not gone, his name is Denys and he’s even more talented than he was when he started Milestone 20 years ago.
Derek, Denys and I are truly blessed to have been partners and friends with Dwayne. Milestone was a great idea and Dwayne made it a greater idea of that there is no doubt. I’ll leave you with a bit of advice Dwayne gave me and no doubt countless others…
Get it right.
WEDNESDAY MORNING: Mike Gold
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON: Mindy Newell
“It’s important because brand is important. How you manage or don’t manage your brand can be the reason the business world gives you respect and takes you seriously ” and Dwayne McDuffie was the face of it, just like Steve Jobs was the face of Apple.He was the one who made statement’s online and at the con’s that he was taking Milestone back to DC and the one who took the blame and answered questions about it at his website.The question now is who is the face of Milestone now and fighting for it ?
Your right to tell people on the who set it up and why because its too important story to get wrong as it changed the game for comic books and still does.
Paul,
You underscore my point, Jobs WAS the face of Apple. However Jobs created Apple and a lot of Apple’s myth was built around Jobs and he played into that. Dwayne always made the characters and the stories THE story.
When Jobs died it’s more than fair to think that Apple may be rudderless without it’s founder. Milestone’s founder Denys Cowan, and it’s co-founders are still very much with us.
ALL that said-YES you are SO right Dwayne was the ‘go to’ guy for most things Milestone and boy were we glad he was.
About who will be the face of Milestone now, I’m not sure if we need a face for two reasons, the first is whoever the ‘face’ is they will immediately be compared with Dwayne. NO ONE can replace Dwayne and no one would even try but that will be the narrative and frankly it would be a distraction much like the company Ania was when we started Milestone.
The second reason is Milestone has ALWAYS been about good stories, well told and faces don’t do that, creators do.
Thanks for your post, it gave me a lot think about.
Jobs was a leech who took other peoples’ genius and turned it into “Jobs is all-knowing”.
Face it – the man nearly destroyed Apple before he was forced out. While he was out,many of the things that later somehow became Jobs’ ideas were introduced.
When he came back, he destroyed the Apple IIgs, which was Woz’s last real association with Apple.
I was an Apple fanboy until Jobs began turning the Mac into a cult…
Michael,
First thanks for taking time to answer my comment, as I was worried after posting it that it may come over troll like.I feel your right about not needing a new “Milestone Face”, but can’t help but not only worry about the characters and the IP’s while its there still at DC as the next fight for you and Denys Cowan, and it’s other co-founders is correcting people’s misconception over the deal itself, a lot of the DC “readership” who comment on the forums at CBR feel that DC now own Milestone !.That misconception started when DC with the new 52 introduced a group of bad guys going by the name of the “Shadow Cabinet” in title called “Stormwatch” a few months after Dwayne had passed.
“The second reason is Milestone has ALWAYS been about good stories, well told and faces don’t do that, creators do”
is bang on the money too as Dwayne said at the time BIG NAMED creators who were working at DC at the time the deal was done,were lining up wanting for chance to play in that sandbox
Paul,
Dude if I had a dollar for every time someone TOLD me (not asked me) that Milestone was owned by DC…
Milestone has never been and still isn’t owned by DC.
About the “Shadow Cabinet” I was NOT aware of that. That’s a conversation to be had to be sure.
This is a tough situation to be in, because, as you said, some people might think it’s about “sour grapes” or some such. But it’s obviously very important to correct the misconception, which I’ve seen as well. And even though it’s not just about getting proper credit, per se, certainly all of you should be getting proper credit for your contributions!
I also think it makes for a more interesting story, having several talented folks collaborating on such a project; which is handy, since that happens to be the real story. :)
Emily,
Milestone has been around for 20 years and for 20 years misconception and outright falsehoods have been around. However-when the company is about to be immortalized at the biggest pop culture event in the world you cannot lies stand or that lie becomes the accepted truth.
Oh, I totally agree! (And also, congrats again on the 20 years and the being honored at SDCC! So great!) People should be made aware of the true history of the company, as well as where it stands today; and if they are not, it could negatively impact current/future plans for the company, as you touched on in your column. It’s very important to speak up, and be loud and clear about the true facts.
I also forgot to mention earlier, but I am, like you, appalled that the reporter couldn’t be bothered to look up and/or list everyone’s names. That is extremely shoddy journalism!
I honestly hope this is the case of run of the mill ignorance, or poor reporting, and not a case of idiots freaking (subconsciously or otherwise) over the idea that so many wonderfully powerhouse creative persons of color might create something special en masse.
I hope you are right my friend.