For the conclusion of Diamond Comic Distributors Retailer Summit and for the opening of Geppi’s Entertainment Museum’s new exhibit 75 Spirited Years: Will Eisner and The Spirit on Friday, September 25, 2015 – four top creators were asked to provide their interpretations of a concept sketch that had been created by Eisner but never before finished.
One of those creators was Mark Wheatley, the Inkpot, Mucker, Gem, Speakeasy, and Eisner award-winning writer-artist perhaps best known for his successful and often cutting-edge collaborations with fellow writer-artist Marc Hempel. Wheatley will see his piece based on Eisner’s sketch featured on the cover of a limited edition of Overstreet’s Comic Book Marketplace Yearbook 2015-2016. This version will be given to retailers who attend the closing party for the Retailer Summit, which is also the official kick-off of the Eisner exhibit.
“I’m thrilled to have been asked to posthumously collaborate with Will Eisner on this project. Will’s sketch left a lot open to interpretation, but really evoked the tone of The Spirit to me,” Wheatley said.
Wheatley will sign copies of the limited edition cover at Geppi’s Entertainment Museum on Friday, September 25, from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Retailers attending the opening will receive one copy each free of charge and will be able to purchase additional copies. The two standard versions of Overstreet’s Comic Book Marketplace Yearbook 2015-2016 are scheduled to go on sale at shops on October 7, 2015. The 192-page, full-color, trade paperback-size publication carries a $12.95 cover price.
Even Dr Evil might join in for a prize like this. THE BAZILLION DOLLAR CLUB is a new competition show from SyFy where tech gurus Dave McClure and Brady Forrest award big money to brilliant start up ideas, but how do they pick the right ones? The guys share their secrets here. Then meet actor John Lucas (A BRILLIANT MIND, AMERICAN PSYCHO) who previews his new comedy, THE MEND.
Since you are reading this, that means Rob Ernst aka The Tweeks’ Dad has failed at his attempts this week to build a time machine. And therefore, Maddy and Anya, ComicMix’s resident Twin Tween Geeks, have turned 13 today! Making them our resident Twin Teen Geeks!
The girls started their birthday celebrations at Long Beach Comic Con when they were gifted a photo op with John Barrowman, whom they adore.
The birthday fun continued this weekend, when Maddy & Anya along with their mom, Jen, attended the 3 day posh Kaboo Festival. Headliners included No Doubt, The Killers and Zac Brown Band.
Happy happy 13th Birthday Maddy and Anya from your ComicMix family!!
They are among YouTube’s biggest stars with over 23.5 million viewers. Meet Eva Gutowski, Andie Case & Meredith Foster who are joining together for a live 20 city tour called GIRLS NIGHT IN. They give all the details plus some tips on how they got started on the internet. Then Troy Dunn, a man who never gives up. After several successful TV shows and books, he’s back on the UP Network with a new show helping people find family members they have lost contact with. Wait until you hear how it all began for him.
After six award-winning years on SONS OF ANARCHY, Ron Perlman is back on series TV with a new project on Amazon Prime called HAND OF GOD. What was so special about this show that it drew him back? Ron explains it and his love for the craft of acting plus meet the hosts of CRAZY TALK. Reality TV boiled down to just the cool stuff, all by Ben Arron and Tanisha Thomas.
Everybody knows about Kim Davis, but how many of you know about Charee Stanley, the United Airlines ExpressJet flight attendant who refuses to serve alcohol because she is a Muslim? The problem was handled a while by the other flight attendants who shared flights with Ms. Stanley; they served the drinks while Ms. Stanley did other duties. But eventually another employee filed a complaint, and ExpressJet suspended Ms. Stanley (administrative leave for 12 months without pay) for not fulfilling her expected duties; if there is no satisfactory resolution by the end of that time period, Ms. Stanley will be terminated. She has filed a complaint with the EEOC (Equal Opportunity Commission).
Newsflash, people. The United States of America is not a theocracy.
So the simple answer to Kim Davis and the flight attendant is “Get another job.”
But is it so simple?
Aside: Though my gut reaction is to say, “yeah, it is simple, get another job,” I was born on the cusp of Libra, (Justice) and Scorpio, (The Scorpion). So although my gut reaction, my stinger, is to say, “yeah, it is simple, get another job,” my intellect is constantly balancing the scales.
What if a superhero refused to do his or her job because of religious reasons? I have previously stated that I believe that Wonder Woman, for all her stature as a modern feminist icon, is firmly in the anti-abortion, pro-life camp, owing to her own miraculous birth on an island where the usual biological procreation of children is impossible, and has been since the Amazons arrived on Themiscrya. How conflicted would Princess Diana be in upholding Roe vs. Wade? Very, I think.
And let’s say, for argument’s sake, that Kitty Pryde has become shomer Shabbat, which in modern lingo means a Jew who has “returned,” after living an assimilated or non-practicing life, to following the commandments honoring the Sabbath and God as laid down in the second book of the Torah (Deuteronomy), i.e., an Orthodox Jew. Would Kitty be right in refusing to aid the other X-Men in a fight against the Brood if it happened to be a Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, or Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism, spent in fasting and prayer?
Uh, actually, no. The preservation of life, the act of preserving life, is, in fact, the most important principle of Judaism superseding all others and all commandments. “The Mishna says: “’Whenever a human life is endangered, the laws of the Sabbath are suspended’. The more eagerly someone goes about saving a life, the more worthy he is of praise.” (The Babylonian Talmud, tractate Yoma, page 84b)
So what’s the answer?
I don’t know, but I’m glad I live in a country in which Amendment I of the Constitution states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”
And I’m glad I live in a country in which Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution says that “The judicial Power of the United States shall be vested in one supreme Court…”
Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron has been released via Disney Movies Anywhere (DMA) and now can be found at Amazon Video and Microsoft Movies & TV, with Roku and Android TV following on September 15th. The actual Blu-ray combo pack follows. When you buy Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron through DMA, you can take a deeper dive into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the exclusive bonus feature “Connecting the Universe.” Disney release a teaser for this featurette.
Additionally, Scarlett Johansson talked about her work in the cinematic unvierse.
How would you describe The Avengers at the beginning of Marvel’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron? And how has the world changed since the first movie?
Scarlett Johansson: It really is business as usual at the beginning of the film, but the world is aware of the universe in a way that they weren’t in The Avengers. The common man knows the vocabulary of aliens and space travel. Before the battle in New York, The Avengers had a stealthy approach and S.H.I.E.L.D. certainly had that as well – but now we’re being judged in a different way. Everybody is watching us, so it’s a different playing field.
What personal challenges do The Avengers face in the movie?
Scarlett Johansson: Every one of The Avengers has come to the table with a lot of baggage. None of us chose this job; the job chose us – and their reluctance to wear the superhero hat makes for very interesting backstories. We all have our histories, which we get to explore a little bit, and I think the audience is going to absolutely love it. It makes the audience that more invested in our interpersonal relationships and also the future of these characters, which is pretty cool.
How would you describe the romantic relationship that develops between Black Widow and Bruce Banner in the movie?
Scarlett Johansson: These characters have what I always thought was an unlikely love story that grows between them – but it’s actually rooted in a very likely love story because they have a lot in common. It’s a very complicated relationship. It’s an impossible love that seems unlikely but isn’t.
Marvel’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron..Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson)..Ph: Jay Maidment..?Marvel 2015
How does Black Widow tame The Hulk?
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: How does Natasha tame the beast? That’s a very good question. It’s interesting that she does it with a human touch. I would imagine your every instinct is telling you not to touch The Hulk. He’s not the person you grab and give a bear hug to. And yet, somehow, he’s a raging person that needs a tender bear hug. He needs someone to remind him that he’s grounded and he has someone with him. He needs someone to be present to tell him to come back to himself. She develops a therapeutic thing with the Hulk, and I think that probably comes from her own maternal instinct.
How does it feel to play a female superhero in a male dominated world, Scarlett?
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: I just go through the script and look at my parts – and those are the only parts I read. What’s great about playing this character is that she is based on something deep and something I could hold onto. She’s very real. She’s experienced a lot of trauma and she’s never really been able to make active choices for herself – but now she is and she’s ready for it.
You were pregnant when you shot the movie. How did you prepare for the physical role and the challenging motorcycle scenes?
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: I don’t think you’re allowed to ride a motorcycle when you’re pregnant. I embarrassingly rode some sort of mechanical bull-type of motorcycle, which goes nowhere and doesn’t look cool at all! But we had some very professional and amazing motocross work being done that makes Black Widow look like a total badass.
Marvel’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron..L to R: Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Steve Rogers (Chris Evans)..Ph: Jay Maidment..?Marvel 2015
How much do you enjoy the physical aspect of the role?
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: I’m very fortunate that there’s a team around me that is super-supportive in helping all of Widow’s fight moves and badass motorcycle riding. It takes a lot of choreography and team spirit. Every film is exciting because I get new tools and cool new things to do. Luckily, [director] Joss [Whedon] writes me some badass moves that make me look epic. It’s awesome.
How would you sum up Black Widow’s journey in the movie?
SCARLETT JOHANSSON: At the beginning of Avengers 2, there’s some sense of The Avengers being a well-oiled machine. Finally, the introductions are over and we’re at work, we’re digging our heels in. At the end of Avengers 2, I think Widow has let her guard down and she is hopeful for something. I think she had this moment of false hope where she felt like she put in the work and there should be some kind of personal payoff – and she was ready to accept it. Then she realizes that her calling is a greater one and that’s not necessarily something that she’s thrilled about, but that’s what is most heroic about her. She accepts the call of duty, even at her own personal loss. I think it’s an interesting place to leave her, because there are many different directions to go. Is she going to be able to withstand this huge weight that’s bearing down on her or is she going to crack under it and crumble? I guess we’ll have to wait and see, right?
Would you like to see a solo Black Widow movie to tie up these loose ends?
A Black Widow movie will be cool. Sure. I’m always excited to get that cat suit on!
The BBC is giving us all a grand Christmas present – Alex Kingston will return to Doctor Who for the Christmas special as The Doctor’s Paramour and assassin, River Song.
Day one of filming the eleventh Doctor Who Christmas special starts this week and is written by lead writer and executive producer, Steven Moffat, produced by Nikki Wilson and directed by Douglas Mackinnon (Doctor Who, Sherlock).
Award-winning Alex Kingston comments on her reappearance:
“To be honest, I did not know whether River would ever return to the show, but here she is, back with the Doctor for the Christmas special. Steven Moffat is on glittering form, giving us an episode filled with humor and surprise guest castings. I met Peter for the first time at Monday’s read-through, we had a laugh, and I am now excited and ready to start filming with him and the Doctor Who team. Christmas in September?, why not!”
Steven Moffat, lead writer and executive producer adds:
“Another Christmas, another special for Doctor Who – and what could be more special than the return of Alex Kingston as Professor River Song. The last time the Doctor saw her she was a ghost. The first time he met her, she died. So how can he be seeing her again? As ever, with the most complicated relationship in the universe, it’s a matter of time …”
River Song’s timeline with The Doctor has always been a topic of great discussion among fans. From her point of view, her first appearance in Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead was the last time she saw The Doctor, having died and all. Up until the recent episode The Name of the Doctor, all of River’s appearances have been from earlier in her life / timeline – only in the latest one have we seen her from after the events of that first (well, I say “first”…) meeting. So there’s no knowing from whence we’ll be seeing her appear this time.
As fans of their relationship know, there’s one very important moment we’ve yet to see – The Doctor has not yet presented her with the souped-up version of the sonic Screwdriver she used with such style in the Library. And considering Christmas is traditionally when presents are exchanged, who’s to say this isn’t when it’ll happen?
Curse you, Moffat, we haven’t even gotten to the premiere of the new season (September 19, as if you didn’t know) and you’ve already got us looking ahead to Christmas.
Actor Billy Bob Thornton has give us some incredible movie roles, but did you know his passion is shared standing on stage with his band, The Box Masters? Billy talks about how music has influenced his life and about which of his movie characters were his favorites. Plus it has been a decade since Hurricane Katrina laid waste to the Gulf Coast. Experts from ANGRY PLANET (Pivot TV) and The Weather Channel weigh in on the way the forecasting has changed since that storm and the possibility of it happening all over again.
With just 48 hours left, Paramount Pictures and Omaze have released one final video, featuring Simon Pegg, for their contest where the winner will have a walk-on role in Star Trek Beyond. The Justin Lin-directed 50th anniversary feature film has been shooting for several months now and has a July 16, 2016 release date.
For the conclusion of Diamond Comic Distributors Retailer Summit and for the opening of Geppi’s Entertainment Museum’s new exhibit 75 Spirited Years: Will Eisner and The Spirit on Friday, September 25, 2015 – four top creators were asked to provide their interpretations of a concept sketch that had been created by Eisner but never before finished.
