One the most pleasant developments with Warner Premiere’s line of animated movies featuring DC Comics’ heroes has been the addition of [[[Showcase]]], shorts based on the lesser known characters from the countless characters lingering in the library. To date, we’ve been treated to [[[The Spectre]]],[[[ Jonah Hex]]], and[[[Green Arrow]]] with two of them proving more satisfying than the main features. Now, the three have been collected, along with a fourth, all-new feature in the just released [[[Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam]]].
Michael Jelenic, the mastermind behind [[[Batman: The Brave and the Bold]]], writes the screenplay and since this is based on now source material, it only vaguely resembles any of the origins for the World’s Mightiest Mortal. Yes, orphan Billy Batson is summoned by magical subway to stand before the wizard Shazam and be given the power of six gods to be a champion of justice. However, this is adjusted as a reaction to the return of Black Adam, the first such champion who was corrupted by absolute power and was banished from Earth to travel through the stars. His return brings him to Earth and directly to Billy, who he somehow sees as Shazam’s designee. And it just so happens this all happens when Metropolis reporter Clark Kent is interviewing Billy about being a child of the streets. The remainder of the 20 minute short is a slug fest and is way too short on characterization or rationale for why the story was told this way.
The character designs, other than Black Adam, seem slight and a little too Asian in influence. The vocal casting choices are adequate although James Garner’s Shazam is almost unrecognizable. Overall, it was entertaining but wastes its length and leaves me wishing for more.
On the other hand, more is not always better. The three previous shorts are here in “extended” form and you’re hard-pressed to find what’s been added. The good ones remain good and the weak offering, Green Arrow, remains wretched.
The disc is complemented with four episodes of various series featuring the spotlighted characters which show other approaches to interpreting the comic books. As a result, this is a solid collection but only if you do not have any of these in other form. The lead feature just isn’t strong enough to make it worth buying.
DC Comics had grand plans for its 75th anniversary but most of them were shelved when the company evolved into DC Entertainment and the mandate was to look ahead, not back. Still, there’s the mammoth book coming from Taschen and this month we’re being treated to the documentary [[[Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics.]]] Narrated by next summer’s [[[Green Lantern]]], Ryan Reynolds, the 90 minute feature explores the company from beginning through today but given the wealth of subject matter, at best, this is a surface study.
The documentary makes good use of archival footage from creators no longer with us and mixes them in with fresh interviews so we hear from executives, writers, artists, and many of those who built the company. Among those you will see on screen include Neal Adams, Irwin Hasen, Marv Wolfman, Mark Waid, Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, Paul Levitz, Walter and Louise Simonson, Chip Kidd, Joe Kubert, Denny O’Neil, Mike Carlin, Grant Morrison, Neil Gaiman, Len Wein, Dwayne McDuffie, Geoff Johns, Karen Berger, Kyle Baker, Paul Pope, and Gerry Jones. Interestingly, Jenette Kahn, the architect for much of the company’s modern era, and current prez Diane Nelson do not appear.
This is a corporate history and as a result, it’s most famous black marks in its history, from the Fawcett law suit over Captain Marvel to the struggles of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster to gain some recognition and cash for[[[ Superman]]], are entirely omitted. Similarly, other corporate facts are either blurred, such as the separate companies[Detective Comics, Inc. and All-American Comics before becoming National Comics or the acquisitions of Quality, Fawcett, and Charlton’s heroes as each company folded are missing.
The chronology is a bit jumbled now and then but overall, we go from [[[New Comics]]] in 1935 though the forthcoming DC Universe Online. We’re treated to clips from the animated shows, live-action films, and some nifty archival footage of the Superman Writers’ Summit where the team plotted the death of Superman. The movie serials are ignored which is a shame and not enough emphasis is given to the current era of animation which was kicked off in 1990 and hasn’t looked back, influencing the comics and other animators. (more…)
ROB DAVIS, Comic/Pulp Artist, Designer, Co-Publisher
AP –Thanks for stopping by All Pulp HQ, Rob.Let’s start with some biographical data.At the present, who is Rob Davis?Where do you live and what is you current occupation? Etc.
RD – I live in central Missouri near Columbia, home of the University of Missouri. When I’m not drawing, painting or working on designs on my computer I drive a bus for the Columbia Transit system.
AP –What kind of formal art education did you have?
RD – Most of what I do these days I taught myself, but I worked three years toward a Graphic Design/Illustration degree at what is now known as Missouri State University. The basics I learned there were a great foundation for what I ended up having to teach myself later.
AP –Were you a big comic book fan as a kid growing up?What was your favorite comic company, Marvel or DC?
RD – I read both Marvel and DC comics as a kid in the 60’s, though my favorite characters were those at Marvel. They just seemed more “real” to me somehow, though I certainly enjoyed what was going on at DC at the same time. I bought the Marvel comics off the stand and read the DC comics at the barber shop. Ha!
AP –Which graphic artists did you admire the most and which do you think had the most influence on your own style of drawing?
RD – Jack Kirby was/is a major influence. His dynamic storytelling and wild, exciting concepts were a magnet to lots of imaginative kids in the 60’s. I was no exception. It was his work that inspired me to try to become a comic book artist. Also, it wasn’t conscious, but I was told that some people see the influence of Curt Swan (long-time artist of Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes at DC) in my work. After they told me that I thought about it and agree that Mr. Swan’s influence is definitely there.
AP – What was your first professional comic assignment?Who was the writer and for what company did this appear?
RD – Oh, my. Now you’re making me dig back! Ha! My first professional comics work was as a letterer for NOW Comics’ “SYPHONS” comic. I can’t tell you who the artist/writer was- we’re talking 1988-89, here-, but after that first issue I was made the inker of the strip too. After about 3-4 issues of that I also lettered and inked another book from NOW that never saw print and eventually penciller on DAI KAMIKAZE! Before my work at NOW I did some illustration work on Mayfair Games’ DC HEROES role-playing game.
AP – Describe the feeling of seeing your work published for the first time.Were you happy with it, or are you one of those critical types who sees where you’d have done things differently?
RD – I always see the flaws. Ha! I’ve been told that as an artist if you’re ever completely satisfied with your work, or stop growing and improving then you’re “dead” as a creative person. I’d tend to agree with that assessment.
AP – What other companies did you work for during your career?
RD – After NOW I worked for a number of years at what became MALIBU Comics. Perhaps my biggest individual and creative success there was on R.A. Jones’ SCIMIDAR. R.A. and I developed what I called a “synergy” working on the book where he’d send me page by page plot breakdowns that I would then interpret and send back to him to script- very “Marvel-style.” It turned into a “the sum is greater than the parts” thing where we amplified each other’s creativity. R.A. and I worked on a couple of other projects, most notably MERLIN.
Shortly after doing MERLIN I moved over to David Campiti’s INNOVATION Comics for a few issues of QUANTUM LEAP and a black and white mini-series, STRAW MEN. I then jumped back to Malibu to work on STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE for its whole run there doing mini-series and backup work. At that same time I also did some work on DC’s STAR TREK titles, both the original series and Next Generation.
For Marvel I did a three-issue stint on PIRATES OF DARK WATER, a Saturday morning cartoon adaptation. This assignment grew out of conversations I’d been having with Marvel’s promotions manager, Carol Kalish. She was planning to start up a line of religious-themed comics there and I was in talks to be one of her stable of artists. We had all but sealed the deal. Unfortunately Carol collapsed and died from a heart-attack before we could get it going. It was her assistant who got me the connection to work on PIRATES.
AP – When did you leave mainstream comic works?Was it for purely economic reasons?
RD – Yeah. The mid to late 1990’s saw a collapse in the comics market. Marvel had bought out Malibu and initially promised not to shut it down, but after a couple of years they did. The started up their much-touted STAR TREK books which I had hoped to work on, but they decided to try a whole different approach to producing the books which meant using different artists. Just before that happened I had been tapped to be the regular artist on Malibu’s STAR TREK: VOYAGER comic- which would have been my first month-to-month work as regular penciller on any book since DAI KAMIKAZE! It would also have made me the only artist to work on every incarnation of STAR TREK up until then- STAR TREK, STAR TREK the NEXT GENERATION, STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, and finally STAR TREK: VOYAGER. Alas it never happened.
AP – Since then, you’ve actually illustrated several self-published projects. Tell us about those and how that came about?
RD – We need a bit of history here to explain it all, so bear with me. After I left NOW comics and went to Malibu NOW’S writer of THE GREEN HORNET, Ron Fortier, approached me to do a version of the character. I think I was being asked to do the 60’s TV version at the time, but my memory is a bit foggy. My break with NOW had not been amicable (a recurring theme there, I hear) so, though I would have loved to draw the character, I had to turn it down.
After that, Ron and I tried to put some other proposals together for various publishers, but nothing came of any of what I thought were some great ideas, sadly. Ron and I eventually lost touch, though we did trade Christmas cards for a while.
Then 5 or 6 years ago I was doing a weekly online comic strip called THE SPIRIT OF ROUTE 66 that Ron caught. He liked what I’d done and pitched me another strip for a startup comics site called ADVENTURESTRIPS.com. “Doctor Satan” lasted for about 32 episodes, if I recall, and then we folded up shop.
Ron being the idea guy that he is, he pitched me another project he’d been shopping around first as a movie script and then a graphic novel called DAUGHTER OF DRACULA. I knew I wouldn’t have the time necessary to devote to the book, though it was a worthy project. So, thinking Ron would reject the idea, I replied that in order to do the book it would have to come as one page per week. At 112 pages that meant it would take a while to complete. To my surprise Ron said “yes.” HA! Two years later I delivered the finished project pencilled, inked, lettered and gray-toned. Ron and I shopped it around, but we finally ended up publishing it ourselves through Ka-Blam and my own imprint: REDBUD STUDIO COMICS. Since then REDBUD has also published Ron and Gary Kato’s MR. JIGSAW. We’re up to seven issues now! We’ve also published a collection of Ron’s BOSTON BOMBERS mini-series from Caliber Comics.
AP – When did you first become affiliated with Airship 27 Productions?Was it your first exposure to the world of pulps?
RD – Initially Ron asked me to illustrate an online book HOUNDS OF HELL that eventually became Airship 27’s first printed book through WILDCAT BOOKS. As for it being my first exposure to pulp? No, that would have to be my initiation into pulp storytelling with TARZAN when I was in High School. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was pulp. One could also argue that comic books, which I’d been reading since I was eight, are essentially pulp. Then there’s Ian Fleming’s James Bond books and movies and similar stuff. Pulp is all around if you look for it. Ha!
AP –What is the big difference between sequential comics work and pulp illustrating, aside from the obvious number of images?
RD – Well, that’s a big part of it, but it’s more like doing a cover image with each illustration. You’re trying to tell a bit of the story in just one image as opposed to a series of images.
AP –What is it about pulp work that appeals to you as an artist?
RD – I’ve always loved telling stories and this is is just one more way to do it. It’s fun and challenging to try to figure out which scene to portray and then how best to present it. It’s some of the same challenges as comics work, but quicker.
AP – Beside artwork, you are also Airship 27 Productions’ designer.Is that a new hat for you and what kind of challenges does that particular task demand?
RD – It’s a “new hat,” as you say, but it’s an outgrowth of my early interest in design from my college days. I’ve really enjoyed learning to use the computer to do my illustration work, so it’s an outgrowth of that aspect too. Some days I’d rather sit down to work out the problems of a book’s design than sit at the drawing table. That’s saying something for someone who’s been drawing nearly every day for almost 30 years!
AP – You helped design the Pulp Factory Awards statue.Tells us a little about that?
RD – At the regular Sunday morning breakfast gathering of the Pulp Factory members at Chicago’s Windy City Pulp and Paper show it was proposed that we create and award for new pulp creators. As everyone else was talking the idea for what that award would look like popped into my head full form. I grabbed the napkin and sketched it out really quickly. Everyone approved it on the spot!
AP – Do you believe this renewed interest in pulp is a passing fad or do you believe it will be around for a long while?
RD- It’s hard to say. But I fully believe that pulps have never left us. It influences all sorts of things without us consciously realizing it. I mentioned James Bond earlier. Then there’s comic books and their attendant movie incarnations. Then there’s the pulp influence on action films. So, I don’t think pulp storytelling will ever go away, it just finds new was to manifest itself.
AP –Lastly, what’s coming down the road for Rob Davis and Airship 27 Productions that you’d like to give a shout out to here?Feel free to promote what you’ve got coming in the months ahead that will excite the pulp community.
RD – Well, I just finished up illustration and design for our next book: MYSTERY MEN (and Women) and sent it off to the proofreader. Once we have the cover finished up and the corrections made it will be off to the press! We’ve also got some great books in pipeline including sequels to our Sherlock Holmes and Robin Hood books that I’ll be illustrating and designing coming out next year. There’s never a moment to rest at Airship 27’s production facilities. HA!
AP – Rob, this has been both enlightening and a real pleasure. Continued success and many thanks.
The 1970s was not a kind decade for live-action television based on comic book heroes. First there was the Cathy lee Crosby misfire of a [[[Wonder Woman]]] telefilm then there were the Reb Brown[[[ Captain America]]] telefilms.[[[Spider-Man]]] made it to prime time as a series but it didn’t resemble the comic in tone or style and died a swift death. But the absolute most mind-numbing and cringe worthy hours featured DC Comics’ stalwart heroes and villains.
I’ve never seen an NBC executive explain what made them think the two specials that aired in January 1979. The Challenge and The Roast, aired as [[[Legends of the Superheroes]]], were probably the first time mass audiences were introduced to [[[Green Lantern]]] or[[[Flash]]] or Hawkman but they certainly knew Adam West’s Batman, Burt Ward’s Robin and Frank Gorshin’s delightful Riddler. As a result, the aging trio donned the tights once more to anchor the two specials. A veritable who’s who of B-list performers and outright unknowns filled the remainder of the costumes.
Comic book fans probably loved seeing Captain Marvel, Hawkman, Huntress, Black Canary, and others in real life but the shows did not earn great ratings and have been derided by those who recall seeing them. While illegal bootlegs have circulated for years, Warner Archive has collected them on a single disc from the best source material available.
You have to love kitsch, bad writing, awful acting, and comic books to enjoy (or endure) these specials.
The Challenge pits a gaggle of villains led by Mordru the Merciless to once more destroy the world. The heroes split up and run around like idiots in an attempt to find and disarm the doomsday device. Mike Marmer and Peter Gallay, who wrote the script for both specials, apparently never learned that humor is derived from character and situation. Not a single hero or villain has a personality depriving the story from any humorous opportunities. The heroes act like dim-wits and never use their powers when they would be needed. The laugh track is badly handled since it is triggered by the lamest of activities. The costumes are authentic but clearly done on the cheap as were the visual effects. (And why on earth is Batman’s cowl worn over his cape?)
The Roast, hosted by Ed McMahon, has some genuinely funny lines but far too few and again, mostly ignoring their characters so are generic jokes. The villains and others arrive to roast the collected heroes, causing mayhem and nonsense.
Nicely, the disc does contain some deleted scenes and outtake, making this a true collector’s item but this is really for the die-hard fans only.
AP: Thanks for taking the time to speak with us! How about we start with you telling us a little bit about yourself — where are you from and how did you develop an interesting in writing?
RB: Thanks for having me here to share my story with your readers. I’m a freelance journalist/photojournalist from Pembroke, Ontario, Canada. I have had a passion for writing since I was 10 years old. I started reading comics before I was in kindergarten. I love how a great storyteller can weave an epic tale. When I started writing in my school journal, I wanted to make my journal sound more like an adventure than a simple record of school events. My third grade teacher complimented me on my imagination. I continued writing and felt a fire inside me. I pursued that interest to North Bay where I studied journalism at Canadore College. I received the North Bay Nugget Journalism Award. My articles have appeared in newspapers all across Ontario and on the Internet. My most renowned piece was a five-part series on child pornography called, “They Hide in Suits. The feature appeared in Osprey newspapers across Ontario. Since then writing has been my mistress.
AP: In addition to writing, you’re also a photographer — do you think that helps you in any way as a writer? Are you able to look at things from a different visual perspective and then transfer that to the page?
RB: That’s an excellent question. Without a doubt, photography has played a key role in my writing. A photo is a visual account of an event or moment. It captures the essence of the scene and tells the story. Photography brings it all to life in front of our eyes. Before I take a photo, I follow three principle steps: What is the best angle to take a photo? Will the new angle change the meaning of the photo or add more detail to the story? And what can I do to add more feeling into this picture? In photography, as in writing, we change the angles of our characters, the scene, the plot, and the essence. A writer begins with a mental image of what he/she sees for the scene in question. As well, drawing is a form of photography, and it allows us to focus on what’s going on in the scene. I believe photography has been a faithful guide in my writing. One of the fathers of photography, Louis Daguerre said it best, ‘I have seized the light. I have arrested its flight.’ And that’s what writing is all about, capturing your readers’ attention by giving them a visual picture in their minds.
AP: You recently published your first novel (The Resurgence: Chronicles of the Shadow Chaser), which is actually the first book in a two-part series. What’s the story on The Shadow Chaser and are there plans to continue the series past the announced two volumes?RB: I created Shadow Chaser when I was 16 years old. Me and the guys were always getting together once a week to play a role-playing game (rpg). It was a few weeks after Christmas, and I just got this new super-hero rpg. So, we started a new campaign. The other players took all the cool heroes, so I decided to create my own. I started to draw a rough design, and then it was time to give my hero a name. The smoke was coming out of my ears; I wanted use something cool and original. So I decided, for now, I’ll call my hero Shadow Chaser. As the weeks went by, I started to expand on the story and the characters. It came to the point I had created a binder just for Shadow Chaser. Then about a few months later, I forgot to do an English assignment where you had to create a short fiction story. To save myself from the jaws of detention, I used a quick short story I did on Shadow Chaser, and I got an “A” for originality. Many friends told me I should write a Shadow Chaser novel. In 2005, I decided to put the character to the test. Five years and several rewrites later, The Shadow Chaser is ready to fight against the forces of evil. So, the first book is an origin story. We have the old Shadow Chaser, Dr. Arthur Brown, looking for a new Shadow Chaser to take on the evil Scorpion Syndicate. He chooses, Kevin Wolf, a dispirited seventeen-year-old, damaged by the brutal murder of a loved one, to reprise his role. But will Kevin be able to live up to the Shadow Chaser legacy? It’s a question readers will be asking at the end of the story.
At the present, we’re editing the second novel, The Reckoning: Chronicles of the Shadow Chaser, the conclusion of the two-book series. We’re gunning for a 2011 release, but rest assured, it’s not the end. I don’t want to add a spoiler alert, but you will see a big change in our hero’s life, and I don’t mean two fives for a ten. I’m also in the free writing process for a third Shadow Chaser novel; where we will encounter Shadow Chaser’s newest and most powerful villain, Deathlore. My nephew, Ron Belaire Jr. (who also did the inks for the cover), and I created this bad boy. And believe me; SC will have his hands full. I’m also in the talks with some artists to bring SC into the comic book world. So, I will be quite busy, but it’s a great busy, and I’m lovin’ every minute of it.
AP: Shadow Chaser certainly looks like he draws from both the classic pulps and also from the world of comic books. What influences went into the development of the character?
RB: I believe it goes back my years reading comics and the classic pulp characters such as the Shadow, the Spider, and the Phantom. Since I was a kid, my mom would tell me stories of when my grandfather used to listen to the classic radio series of the Shadow. She used to tell how Orson Well’s portrayal of the Shadow frightened her. She said his laugh echoed in their small wooden cabin. But my grandfather was glued to the radio and enjoyed every moment of drama and escapism. Times were tough in 1940’s Quebec; he worked hard and for just under a dollar a day. When he arrived home, he would turn on the radio and listen to the Shadow. I never met my grandfather, but the story always stayed with me. It would be a safe bet to say, in a way, Shadow Chaser has allowed me to be closer to my grandfather. Also, the classic Spider-man stories of the 70’s and 80’s really played a role in developing the character. What I loved about Spider-man was his humanity and he was a teen with real-life problems. So, I wanted Shadow Chaser to have the same realism. He’s far from perfect; he’s constantly making choices, and those choices have consequences. Consequences lead to conflict, and conflict leads to great storytelling.
AP: One thing that’s kind of unusual about your promotion of the book are all the trailers and videos you’ve posted — who creates those and what kind of work goes into them? Do you think this has worked in terms of attracting attention to the book?
RB: My nephew Ron and I have created them all to this point. We used a computer game called the Movies by Lionhead Studios. The software allowed us to create movies in a Sims type atmosphere. It takes many man-hours to come up with 3 to 4 minutes of footage, but I think it’s worth the effort; especially when I saw Shadow Chaser coming alive and knocking out a thug in front of my monitor. I stumbled on this by accident. At first, we were thinking of doing audio trailers with photo stills, but I happened to be checking trailers and spotted the word “machinima” during my search. The technology behind it is amazing. I checked out the forums and asked if anyone could create a Shadow Chaser costume template. I was fortunate that I found such a person in Mr. Michael Perkey. He created the template and the first teaser trailer went up in the fall of 2009. The reaction was amazing; I had responses from people from all over the world. The highlight was when former Marvel and DC artist, Michael Netzer added my teaser trailer to his favourites on his YouTube channel. After the creation and positive feedback I received from the teaser trailer, came the extended trailer. And I was surprised by another turn of events. I had supporters and Facebook friends, whom I have never met, asked me if they could take part in lending out their voices for characters. From that moment, I knew I had something special. The best part of all of is I met some awesome people as result of these trailers. So, I have spread the word about the book and made new friends. That alone is incredible. With YouTube and social media, book trailers have now become just as popular as movie trailers. Hopefully within the next year, I will be upgrading my software to increase the quality of the trailers. They’re a great promotional tool.
AP: This is a real boom time for modern pulp fiction: are there any authors or series out there that you’re currently a fan of? Do you see yourself branching out into other characters besides just the Shadow Chaser?
RB: I’m just starting to follow the modern pulp scene, but what I’m seeing so far is off the charts. One of these modern pulp characters I am following is Don Gates’s upcoming series, Challenger Storm. Recently, I watched a Challenger Storm tribute video, and it really brought the series alive. I can’t wait for its release. I believe there is a resurgence of interest in the classic pulp tales of the past. Many of my members have said that Shadow Chaser, and other new heroes like him, are considered to be within the “Neo-Pulp” genre. I’m honoured and humbled to be a part of this new and exciting universe, but at the same time, I feel the old pulp stories are still of tremendous interest to readers today.
As for branching out, I’m currently talking with Dan Barnes, the creator of Tree Frog Comics, to do a Shadow Chaser crossover with his flagship character, Vatican: the Angel of Justice. And I’m thinking of bringing in another creation of mine to the public. But for now, Shadow Chaser is my top priority.
AP: If people want to learn more about you or the Shadow Chaser, where should they go? And where can they buy a copy of the book?
The novel is available at Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk, Barnes & Noble online, and Lulu.com. Currently, if they go to Lulu.com, they can save 25% off the cover price. As well, if anyone is interested to have a signed copy, you can check out the official website and send me a message.
AP: Thanks for joining us!
RB: Thank you for having me. If I may, I want to take this moment to thank all my family, friends, and supporters. You’re all the best. For story is nothing without the reader.
AP – First of all, thanks for dropping by All Pulp HQ, Aaron and agreeing to sit in the hot seat for us.Let’s get cracking with some personal information. Who exactly is Aaron Smith, where do you reside and what’s your day job?
AS –Well, I’m 33 years old, so I seem to be one of the younger writers in the recent pulp revival. I live in Ringwood, New Jersey which is a nice mountainous town away from the noise of the cities that I lived in for most of the earlier part of my life, a great place to get the peace and quiet that I like. For my day job, I run a produce department for a large supermarket chain. I’ve been with the company for 17 years now and it’s not a bad job, although my goal would be to write full-time or, failing that, to make enough writing that I could just supplement my income with a part-time job. Actually, even if I was making a ton of money writing, I’d probably still have some kind of day job, just to keep myself from becoming a total hermit! After all, everybody needs some kind of interaction with other human beings to keep the inspiration coming. I also have to mention my absolutely wonderful wife who somehow…and I wonder if this qualifies as a superpower…manages to put up with all my eccentricities, my curmudgeonly moods, my mad rants about things that annoy me, and all my crazy mood swings that go from high-as-a-kite to the deepest bowels of crankiness. Really, she’s marvelous and I don’t know what I’d do without her. She’s also been incredibly supportive and motivating over the two years or so that I’ve really seriously been doing pulp writing work.
AP – Where in all that background did you first get the idea you wanted to be a writer?And was the transition from dream to reality an easy or difficult one for you?
AS –Becoming a writer was, in my case, a long process that evolved slowly over the entire first thirty years of my life. I suppose I always had a writer inside of me but it took a long time for that egg to really hatch and for me to really start doing what I do now. It started, I guess, with the things that really jumpstarted my imagination as a kid. My earliest memories of things really shaking up my mind include Star Wars which was probably the thing that did it for a lot of people of my generation. George Lucas created the great epic of our generation, I suppose. It’s too bad he dropped the ball with the prequels. Then there was my grandmother, who used to tell me bedtime stories about Jack the Ripper! Somehow, I didn’t grow up to be a serial killer, but I did become a writer. Some people might say that’s equally scary, but I think I turned out okay. I always made up stories as a kid, but they were mostly in my head and not on paper, but I was writing internally from an early age. Imagination was vital to my sanity in grammar school. I was a skinny little kid and considered a nerd. I didn’t have much self-confidence and sometimes the only thing that got me through those long days of being picked on and laughed at was pretending I was somebody else and that the school was part of an adventure, like James Bond infiltrating a base full of Spectre agents or Captain Kirk in disguise on a hostile alien world. Imagination was a defense mechanism for me and maybe that’s where the writer came from! But for some reason it took me forever to really decide to just write. Somehow I managed to try almost every other creative endeavor first. I wanted to be a comic book artist at one time and I could actually draw really well for a while there, but I just don’t have the discipline it takes to draw for hours on end, day after day. Writing comes easier to me because it’s so internal and mental. I can “write” all day and put ideas together, but I only have to sit and actually type for a short portion of the time that the creative process is actually taking place. When I was a little older, I got into music and played guitar for a few years, but I eventually realized that I liked being a guitar player more than I liked playing the guitar, if that makes any sense. In other words, I liked the feeling of being the character more than the act of playing. When I realized that, I decided to try acting. I studied it for awhile and did theatre for several years, did some Shakespeare and some other stuff, worked with some great people who are still good friends of mine now and even had a part in a movie that, unfortunately, was never released (but I got together with my wife during the filming of that movie so, in that sense, I was better paid than any Oscar winner ever was!). The acting was fun, but it’s impossible to pursue that type of work and have a regular life. When you have to work a full-time job, you can’t just drop things on the spur of the moment and go chasing after audition opportunities. So I stopped acting eventually. After that, I just kind of lived for the remainder of my twenties. I wrote a little but never anything too serious, never tried to publish anything. Then, two years ago, I was floating around on the internet and I saw this little ad on some site about some editor looking for pulp writers and I inquired and suddenly I was writing every day and things were actually getting published! Was the transition an easy one? Yes, once I got started it was, but it was a long road that I travelled to get there. But had the road been shorter I might not have had all the experiences that inspire my work now, so I guess it worked out perfectly.
AP –What was your first published work?Describe the feeling of seeing your work in print for the first time.
AS –My first published story was “The Massachusetts Affair” in SHERLOCK HOLMES CONSULTING DETECTIVE Volume One from Airship 27 Productions. It’s been almost 2 years and I still get a feeling of amazement thinking about the fact that my career as a writer began with the chance to write a Holmes story! What a great privilege to be able to work with the most famous character in all of detective literature! Seeing that story in print, on real pages, wrapped in that great cover by Mark Maddox was one of the greatest thrills of my life. And after the book came out, it only got better when several people told me that I had succeeded in capturing the essence of the world that Conan Doyle had created. I can’t really say that it was difficult though, and I can’t give myself the credit, because Doyle gave us such a great set of toys to play with. When you have characters as real and alive as Holmes and Watson and their supporting cast, they do tend to write themselves once you get your mind to Baker Street and the right mood is there.
AP –How did you become affiliated with Airship 27 Productions?What was the first work you did for them?
AS –That little ad I came across on the internet, the ad I mentioned before, was what led me to Airship 27. I wrote to Ron Fortier about his need for pulp writers and he replied asking me to send him a short sample of my prose writing. I sent him this short piece I had concocted about Adolph Hitler interviewing a vampire for a job in the SS. Ron liked it and asked me to work for Airship 27. It was only after the first few emails went back and forth that I realized that I was communicating with the guy who had written the great Green Hornet comics that I’d read nearly twenty years before! That just blew me away that a writer whose work I’d loved so much thought my stuff was good enough to publish! And Ron has been just incredible ever since. He brought me into the world of pulp writing and he’s a great editor and a great friend and the Obi-Wan Kenobi of my writing career. The first work he gave me to do for Airship 27 was a Black Bat story. I started on that but before I finished it Ron wrote me back and asked if I’d be willing to put the Bat on hold to do a Holmes story first and I jumped at the chance. I’ve had stuff coming out from Airship 27 pretty steadily ever since and it’s been a pleasure to have my stories published alongside work by great writers like my friends Andrew Salmon and Van Allen Plexico and Tommy Hancock and so many others and to see my stories illustrated by artists like Rob Davis and Pedro Cruz.
AP –Were you always a pulp fan?If not, how did you ultimately become one?
AS –I guess I could say that I met and was inspired by all of pulp’s cousins before meeting pure pulp. I’ve always been heavily into serialized adventure fiction, but not necessarily the actual pulp magazine characters. For most of my life I’ve been a fan of comics, especially the classics of the superhero genre, stuff by Stan Lee and all his collaborators like Buscema and Kirby and Gene Colan and Steve Ditko and also the DC side of things done by people like Gardner Fox and Dennis O’Neill and the great Joe Kubert who just doesn’t stop producing incredible work even now in his eighties! Every title that guy worked on in the 80s and 90s turned to gold I was reading Sherlock Holmes when I was 7 or 8 and I got into Ian Fleming’s Bond books not long after that. Then of course there’s the two great science fiction franchises of Star Trek and Star Wars and the classic science fiction authors who sort of sprang out of the pulps, guys like Asimov and Bradbury and Roger Zelazny. And there’s Bram Stoker who certainly solidified the whole vampire genre and probably influenced almost every horror writer who came after him. So I was into all these fictional worlds that have a pulp essence to them, but my interest in the actual pulps only came along after I started to write some of the classic pulp characters.
AP-What is it about pulp that you enjoy that can’t be found in other genres?
AS – Pulp strikes fast and hits hard and is all about telling the story with as much impact as possible. Pulp is, I think, perfect for me because I’m a pure storyteller. I don’t try to do anything except tell my stories. In other words, I don’t consciously try to create a style or be too artistic or fancy with how I do things. Sure, there are moments when I look back at something I’ve written and realize that I’ve done something or connected words in a certain way that surprises me, but all that happens subconsciously. I have a story to tell and I try to tell it as well as I can but I also work very quickly and hammer it out before the initial impact and whatever it was that appealed to me about the story is lost. That’s what makes pulp unique. It has an urgency to it that, I suspect, came from the old time pulp writers needing to bang this stuff out in a fast and furious manner in order to put food on the table! I recently read a novel which was very good and so I went online to see what else the author had written and there was nothing because she had apparently taken 10 years to write the book I’d just read! That would be like torture to me, to spend a decade on one story! I have way too many ideas to be stuck on one thing for so long. By the time I’m halfway through one story, I have the next one formulating in my head already. I like to fire all my bullets rapidly and reload right away and find another target to shoot at. Pulp is pure creative instinct and that may be one of the reasons why certain writers who came out of the pulps were so unique; they didn’t worry about stylistic choices as much as they just shot from the hip and their real, natural styles and ideas came out because of that. I mean, look at guys like Robert E. Howard and HP Lovecraft! Those guys weren’t intentionally planning out those incredible worlds that they managed to put on paper. Their universes are too real for that. That stuff came straight from their guts and that’s why it’s so effective and so influential even today. The best pulp writers dragged the lakes of their souls and put what they found out there for the world to see. Pulp doesn’t compromise.
AP – Give us a list of the classic pulp heroes you’ve written and which was/is your favorite?
AS – I’ve written the Black Bat, three stories, though only one has been published so far. I’ve done a couple stories with Dan Fowler, G-Man. I have two short stories out there about the Three Mosquitoes, who were World War I fighter pilots. I did a Wild Bill Hickok story for the Masked Rider anthology. I’ve also done a few other classic pulp hero stories with others, but those books aren’t out yet, so I’ll leave them for a future interview. Out of the ones I’ve just listed, I guess I’d have to say that Dan Fowler beats out the Black Bat by just a slight margin as my favorite. The reason for that is that because Fowler is an FBI man he sort of falls right on the borders of two great genres. A Fowler story can kind of straddle the line between a detective story and a spy story. Fowler investigates crimes like a Dick Tracy, but the whole United States can be his playground because he’s Federal and not tied to one particular city like a police detective would be. So a Fowler story can put him pretty much anywhere in the USA and be a detective story at the same time. In the two Fowler stories I’ve done so far, he’s been in a whole bunch of different cities, faced some twisted, exotic villains, and I’ve had a lot of fun writing about him. There are cases where I know I have one story to tell about a character and then the well runs dry, and there are those characters who I feel like I could write about over and over and over again. Dan Fowler falls into the second category.
AP – You wrote a short novel starring Sherlock Holmes’s friend, Dr.Watson. Tell us about this book and how it came about.
AS – SEASON OF MADNESS came about because I usually have several books that I’m reading at any given time. I like to alternate books. It had been years since I’d originally read the Sherlock Holmes stories, still not knowing I’d be asked to write one. At the same time, I was reading Stoker’s DRACULA, a book I’d started to read earlier and never quite finished. So I was reading Holmes and Dracula simultaneously and something clicked. I was thinking about the characters of Dr. John Watson from the Holmes stories and Dr. John Seward from Dracula and I realized that there are a lot of similarities between these two men. Both were medical doctors; both had a habit of recording their experiences, Watson in his written records of his adventures with Holmes and Seward in his phonograph journals; and both were “sidekicks” to their brilliant and eccentric mentors, Holmes and Van Helsing. They both lived in London at the same time too, so I decided that they should meet. I wanted to do a crossover between the worlds of Holmes and Dracula without either of those main characters appearing. With Dracula, I decided I wouldn’t use him because he’s dead. Stoker killed him off at the end of his book and who am I to resurrect him? I also wanted to use Watson without Holmes because I have this thing about defending Watson. One thing that’s always bothered me, and this came mostly from the Basil Rathbone /Nigel Bruce movies, is Watson’s reputation (among those who haven’t read Doyle’s original stories) as a bumbling idiot. Watson is NOT a stupid man! Sherlock Holmes would not associate with a moron! John Watson is a very intelligent, very courageous man in the medical field who is a trusted companion to an absolute genius. Watson is us. It is through his eyes that we see Holmes. Doyle used Watson as narrator so that we could see the genius of Holmes in a way that we could understand. There is nothing weak or inferior about Watson and I wanted to show that by placing him in the role of a man who could solve a mystery without Holmes being around and step into the lead role with Seward as the junior partner of this new crime-solving duo. My original idea was to do SEASON OF MADNESS as a graphic novel or maybe a comic book mini-series. I pitched the idea to my friend Pedro Cruz who is an excellent artist from Portugal. He liked it and I began to write a script. Halfway through that, I began my association with Airship 27 Productions and wound up doing my Sherlock Holmes story. The success of the Holmes book made me consider doing SEASON OF MADNESS as a prose novel instead. I pitched the idea to Ron Fortier and he liked it and I sent him some samples of Pedro’s work and he agreed to have Pedro illustrate the novel and also gave Pedro some other illustration work for other Airship books. It worked out great for all of us and SEASON OF MADNESS became a sort of sequel to that first Holmes volume. I’d like to say one more thing about this. Whenever someone asks me about SEASON OF MADNESS, I try to see if they’re familiar with the original sources of both main characters. I’ve been finding that almost everyone has read some Holmes, but there are a lot of people who have never read DRACULA. If anyone who’s reading this hasn’t read Stoker’s book, don’t be fooled into thinking you know the story already because of all the supposed adaptations and pastiches out here. It’s a great horror novel that climbs to far greater heights of creepiness and mood and atmosphere than anything that drew from it. You’re missing a great experience if you haven’t read it.
AP – Who is Hound Dog Harker?Where did he first appear and will we be seeing any more of his adventures in the future?
AS –Hound Dog Harker is my own original pulp character, but I can really only claim about a third of the credit for his existence. Not long after I began writing pulp, I discovered a series of movies from the 1930s starring John Howard as the character Bulldog Drummond. I loved those movies, sort of a cross between James Bond and Will Eisner’s THE SPIRIT. Drummond was created, in a series of novels, by Herman Cyril McNeile. The films came later. I immediately did some searching to see if the character was in the public domain to see if I could use the character in new stories. I learned two things. First, the character is still owned and unavailable. Second, the Drummond of the novels is quite different from the character in the movies and not in a way I’d be interested in working on anyway. So I put that idea down for awhile. Meanwhile, I was working on SEASON OF MADNESS. As I got to the end of that book, I began to realize that it just wasn’t going to be long enough to fill a whole novel. I had told the story I’d set out to tell and I wasn’t going to stuff it with filler just to get to a certain word count. I had to come up with another solution. I decided to make it a two-story book with SEASON OF MADNESS as a short novel, and a short backup story to fill up the remainder of the volume. I started to think about ideas for that second story and I decided it should somehow connect to either Holmes or Dracula. I thought about the various other characters I could use. I didn’t want to use Holmes or Van Helsing because I didn’t want their popularity to overshadow the main story. I thought about Lestrade, but he already had a major part in the Watson/Seward story. Then I thought about the various characters in DRACULA and I remembered the very end of the book where Mina Harker mentions that she and Jonathan, several years after the events with Dracula, have a son who they call Quincy after the one member of their group who died in the final battle with the vampire. That was when I realized I had the perfect idea to fill that book up. Hound Dog Harker is little Quincy all grown up. He’s raised by Jonathan and Mina, growing up with this feeling that his parents are hiding some dark secret about their past, but never really learning about the whole Dracula business. As a young man, he fights in World War I, rising to the rank of Captain and earning his nickname of Hound Dog. By the 1930s, he works for British intelligence as a character that is very much like the Bulldog Drummond that John Howard portrayed in those movies. He’s sort of a pulp-era James Bond with a knack for finding himself assigned to cases that have some sort of connection to strange or seemingly supernatural or super-scientific events. His first adventure, “Attack of the Electric Shark,” appears in SEASON OF MADNESS. There will be a new Hound Dog Harker story out soon, once again as the backup feature in another Airship 27 book, a book with a main story by one of my fellow Airship writers. I do have an idea for a third Harker story too, but I haven’t started to work on it yet.
AP -Who is Red Veil and where will she be appearing?
AS – The Red Veil is my other brand new pulp character to come out from Airship 27. She’s my first attempt at writing a pulp story with a female hero. She’ll be appearing in a new anthology called MYSTERY MEN. When I learned that Airship 27 would be putting out a book with new original pulp heroes, I of course wanted to be involved. Ron told me that he wanted a new female pulp character, so I came up with Red Veil. Her story is basically a tale of the American Dream coming true and then being snatched away, and how one woman deals with such a thing happening to her. The Red Veil is Alice Carter, a young woman who survived a rough childhood in England, made her way to America, married a handsome young police officer, and then had her heart broken when her husband was killed in the line of duty. Without saying too much, because I want people to actually read the story before they know the story, Alice reacts to this tragedy by taking the law into her own hands. It’s a pretty dark story and she’s a pretty dark character once she really gets going. I created her and I’m not even really sure if she’s sane or not! She’s got a little of the Shadow in her, a pinch of the Spider, and a lot of the terrible wrath that comes when a woman gets really, really pissed off at the world and its injustices.
AP –Besides your pulp work, what else do you have coming from other publishers?
AS – The main thing that I’m waiting to see the release of is my science-fantasy novel GODS AND GALAXIES. It’s been attached to a certain small publisher for quite a while now. There seem to be ongoing delays to its release, but I hope that will all be sorted out sooner rather than later. It starts out as a love story about a man who meets a woman who is quite different than any woman he’s ever encountered before. Eventually, he finds out just what makes her so different. The book eventually turns from that quiet beginning into a full-out, fast-paced, brutal space adventure. Somebody compared it to a modern variation on John Carter of Mars. All I can really say is that it’s among my most personal works so far. There are big parts of me in that main character and there are a few people I know who might recognize themselves in the story too, although the names have been changed to protect both the innocent and the guilty writer! I really hope that whatever the publisher is going through gets resolved soon so that I can see that book available. It will be my first full-length novel and I hope it has enough cross-genre appeal for a lot of different people to give it a shot. That’s the only thing I have definitely coming out that’s not really pulp work, but I always have other stuff in progress. I have a long horror novel that’s not far from completion, but it’s on hold at the moment. I actually dug a little too deep into the pits of my own soul for that one and had to take a break!
AP –Is there anything you would like to plug here?Feel free to give our readers a sneak-peek at what’s coming from Aaron Smith in the year ahead.
AS –I have plenty of new stuff coming out in the next few months. From Airship 27 Productions, there’s the second Hound Dog Harker story, there’s the Red Veil debut in the MYSTERY MEN book, and there’s SHERLOCK HOLMES CONSULTING DETECTIVE Volume 3 in which I have two short stories. Then there’s the line of magazines being published by Pro Se Productions. Tommy Hancock was kind enough to offer me a position as a staff writer for his magazines and he’s done an amazing job of getting pulp stuff coming out on a monthly basis again. I have the first stories of two different series out there already. In MASKED GUN MYSTERY # 1 we have the first of my stories with my character Lieutenant Marcel Picard, a former NHL hockey player who retires from the game to become a homicide detective. I’ve already written the second Picard story and I’m working on a third. Picard was inspired by a conversation I overheard in a restaurant one evening, so ideas can come from anywhere. Also, just last week Pro Se released FANTASY AND FEAR # 2 which includes my “100,000 Midnights,” which is the first in my new series of vampire stories. This is a series that just grabbed me by the throat and wouldn’t let go and it’s going to be a series of eight stories which I eventually hope to see collected into one volume after they’ve run in the magazines. It’s partially inspired by all the vampire material that’s come from Stoker and others and it’s also my own take on vampires and other supernatural lore. So I’m trying to pay homage to what’s come before while still infusing it with my own unique point of view. In addition to those two series, there are also a few standalone stories in the adventure and fantasy genres that I hope to see included in the Pro Se magazines in coming months.
AP – Aaron, this had been a lot of fun. Thanks so much for joining us here at All Pulp.
AS –Thank you for having me and I hope I’ve been an interesting enough subject that some of the people reading this will want to check out my work.
MONSTERVERSE, BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE HORROR COMIC and FILMS EVENING at the AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE in Hollywood, CA. AN EVENING WITH BELA LUGOSI at the AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE. Celebrating the career of horror icon Bela Lugosi and the launch of MONSTERVERSE’s new horror anthology comic book, BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE.
Thursday, 7:30 PM October 28th, 2010 The Egyptian Theaterhttp://www.americancinematheque.com/egyptian/egypt.htm Two Feature Films starring Bela Lugosi in THE BLACK CAT and THE RAVEN. With Boris Karloff. Mainstream news coverage will be in effect for the Halloween weekend in Los Angeles, the media capital of the world. This is a major launch for the first issue of BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE horror anthology comic book.
Special Guests from Hollywood and the Comic Book Industry will be announced. Other featured guests are Bela Lugosi, Jr., and Kerry Gammill including contributors to BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE horror anthology comic book series.
There will be a Special Panel on Lugosi examing his career and the new comic book between films and a MONSTERVERSEComic Book Display with contributors featured in the lobby.
An Exclusive Preview Trailer will be screened with art of the upcoming MONSTERVERSE graphic novel, FLESH AND BLOOD, written by Robert Tinnell and illustrated by Neil Vokes. To be unleashed Halloween 2011.
TRAILERS FROM HELL. Commentaries from directors Mick Garris and Joe Dante on Bela Lugosi and his films.
Poster design by artist Charlie Largent.
This exclusive event image may be Tweeted with:http://twitpic.com/2mxwhx MONSTERVERSE is a new independent comic book company with a horror anthology book coming out in October 2010 and entitled, BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE.
Here is a direct link preview of the book and its pages posted on YouTube. LUGOSI HORROR COMIC YOUTUBE PREVIEW The comic will be available at comic shops everywhere and online and is distributed by Diamond. For a new independent transmedia company MONSTERVERSE enjoys having the top talents in the world such as John Cassaday, Bruce Timm and the legendary Basil Gogos creating covers for its books. Writer/director (of the upcoming THE WALKING DEAD), Frank Darabont, gave this quote about cover artist Basil Gogos. “Basil Gogo doesn’t paint pictures of monsters, and never has. What he does is conjure their essences on canvas like a magician. More than that, he conjures our love of these subjects in a manner that defies description or analysis. How does an artist infuse an entire fan community’s love of a whole genre into his brushstrokes? I’ll never be able to explain it, but I know I’ll always be grateful for it. Seeing Gogos’ portraits is revisiting the best friends of my childhood.” – Frank Darabont Monsterverse was chosen the FEATURED COVER STORY on COMIC SHOP NEWS 1207 a few weeks back (distributed to over 500 of the top comic book shops nationwide and given out to customers with purchases). This article beat out the top comic companies in America, an impressive feat for a new independent publisher. Take a look at our official website. We are quite proud of the amazing talents involved. http://monsterverse.com/ MONSTERVERSE and BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE will receive special coverage in the upcoming double-sized Halloween issue of RUE MORGUE.There is a feature story on MONSTERVERSE andBELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE also being prepped for their special Halloween issue of FAMOUS MONSTERS MAGAZINE. MONSTERVERSE publisher Kerry Gammill is creating a terrific new feature cover for the January FAMOUS MONSTERS. BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE is published by Kerry Gammill who is internationally known for his artist work at Marvel and DC Comics on titles like MARVEL TEAM-UP, INDIANA JONES, POWERMAN/IRON FIST and SUPERMAN. Kerry has also worked as a make-up effects designer on studio genre films such as VIRUS and TV programs such as STARGATE and THE OUTER LIMITS. Here is a link to Kerry’s professional art website:http://gammillustrations.bizland.com/monsterart/ This FANBOY PLANET article can give you a quick update on what is going on with the history of the company and its future plans:http://www.fanboyplanet.com/interviews/mc-monsterverse.php This link takes you to our first issue cover by the legendary FAMOUS MONSTERS cover artist, Basil Gogos.http://twitpic.com/1doadj Our variant cover is by one of the hottest artists working in American comic books today, John Cassaday, and who recently directed an episode of Joss Whedon’s DOLLHOUSE television series. Whedon has been tapped to direct Marvel Studios’ epic feature film, THE AVENGERS.http://twitpic.com/25v1o3 The back cover is by Warner Brothers animation executive producer and Emmy-winning designer/artist Bruce Timm. To reserve a copy of the Lugosi comic book at a comic shop you need to supply them with the Diamond Item # Code, AUG101080, with the title, BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE. The first issues of the Lugosi comic book will be shipped in October to celebrate both Halloween and Lugosi’s 128th birthday. A special celebration of Lugosi films, the new comic book and its contributors is set for the American Cinematheque in Hollywood at its Egyptian Theater on Thursday, October 28th. BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE will be a double-sized 48-page color quarterly and retailing for $4.99 and with no ads (except for a house ad announcing a serial adaptation of the novel DRACULA and starring BELA LUGOSI by Kerry Gammill and beginning in issue two). It is pure comic book fun and frights from front to back with a brief article on Lugosi.
BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE will feature some of the most talented storytellers working today in comic books and horror films. No other comic book series has this kind of industry talent nor do other comic book companies have these kinds of horror film heavyweights working on any comic book. This is a first in comic book publishing and dedicated to the fun and classic horror of Bela Lugosi but made for today’s audiences. Movie directors like John Landis (An American Werewolf In London, Burke And Hare) and Joe Dante (Gremlins, The Howling) along with make-up genius Rick Baker (American Werewolf In London, Michael Jackson’s THRILLER, Men In Black), will be providing stories and art for future issues. More Hollywood horror film creators are also working up stories. The most acclaimed creators in comics will be writing and drawing stories such as Steve Niles (30 Days Of Night), artist John Cassaday (Planetary, Astonishing X-Men) and Mike Mignola (Hellboy).
The first issue contains stories and art by such notables as Kerry Gammill (SUPERMANand SPIDER-MAN ), James Farr (whose XOMBIE online animated and comic book series is being brought to theater screens by Dreamworks in a live-action production by top writer/producers Orchi and Kurtzman), Chris Moreno (WORLD WAR HULK), John Cassaday, Rob Brown (voted online as horror artist of the year for BANE OF THE WEREWOLF), Derek McCaw, Rafael Navarro (creator of the Xeric Award winning series SONAMBULO), Martin Powell and Eisner Award- winning artist Terry Beatty (THE BATMAN STRIKES), Brian Denham (IRON MAN, ANGEL), Bruce Timm and more. The book also features an article by leading Lugosi researcher and author Gary D. Rhodes.
MONSTERVERSE ENTERTAINMENT is a transmedia company headed by its publisher and editor, the comic book and film design artist, Kerry Gammill.
Keith Wilson, formerly of DC Comics, is an editor and writer/artist.
Producer/screenwriter Sam F. Park is the west coast editor and a writer/artist.
We’re very proud of BELA LUGOSI’S TALES FROM THE GRAVE and what has been accomplished within our growing independent publishing venture, MONSTERVERSE. This is our first comic book project with several more in development. We plan to make MONSTERVERSE the go-to company for horror projects in all media.
I’ve included links below to help with graphics, photos or information. Please contact me with any questions. Sincerely, Sam F. Park West Coast Editor MONSTERVERSE ENTERTAINMENT “Bela Lugosi’s Tales From The Grave”http://monsterverse.com/ park@monsterverse.com 818-605-2181 Links:
AP: Art, thanks for stopping by ALL PULP to visit with us about you and your adventures as a pulp fan, writer, and podcaster. First, though, give us some insight into who Art Sippo is.
AS: I am 15 years old with 42 years experience.
I started reading comics in 1958 shortly after I learned to read. By the time I was 10 years old, I found the plots in comics too fantastic and longed for something more realistic. My Aunt Helen introduced me to Doc Savage in the Bantam reprints on a bus trip to Florida in 1965 and I was hooked. I later went to Xavier Military Institute in Manhattan for High School in the late 1960s. It was there where I developed my love for books and for the pulp genre of literature. I attended St. Peter’s College in Jersey City, NJ and graduated Magna cum Laude with a Bachelor’s of science in Chemistry in 1974. On Military scholarship, I went to Vanderbilt University Medical School and after graduation in 1978, I was an Intern at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington DC. I spent three years as a Flight Surgeon with the 101st Airborne division before entering an Aerospace Medicine residency. I received a Masters in Public Health form Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health in 1982 and completed training at the School of Aerospace Medicine, Brooks Air Force Base, San Antonio Texas. I got Board Certified in Aerospace Medicine in 1984. For three years, I was a medical researcher at the US Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory and eventually became the Director of the Biodynamics Research Division there. I next spent three years as an exchange officer in England at the RAF Institute of Aviation Medicine in Farnborough, Hampshire. I married my lovely wife Katherine in 1987 and we took off to England to start our family.
In 1990, I returned to civilian life but remained in the National Guard. I was a partner in the Occupational Care Consultants of Toledo and was Board Certified in Occupational Medicine in 1994. In the Guard I eventually commanded the 145th MASH Hospital at Camp Perry, OH. In 1995, I was appointed the Assistant State Surgeon.
For 36 years I wore the uniform of the US Army until I retired in 2000 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. I currently work full time in the Emergency Room at the John Cochran VA Medical Center in St. Louis Missouri.
I have had a lot of adventures along the way. I had been on assignment in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean. I even was one of the physicians trained for rescue and egress for the Space Shuttle program and worked 2 launches in 1985.
All during that time I was an avid reader of adventure fiction and more serious topics in science, religion, and philosophy. I think all of these experiences developed a deep regard for the concept of the hero.
The single defining moment in recent times occurred in September of 2003 when a lumbar disc in my spine ruptured and crushed my spinal cord leading to paralysis and numbness below the waist. I had an emergency decompression done, but I still have lost function and sensation in my legs. It took me three months to learn to walk again, but at the end of that time, I went back to work in the ER. During my down time I began writing stories and they helped to keep me sane during a very frightening time. Kathy and I have been married for 24 wonderful years. We have two girls and one boy all of college age and we are currently raising Kathy’s teenaged granddaughter.
AP: You’re a pulp writer. What have you written and published that falls within the pulp field?
AS: I have published several stories in the last 7 years that would count as pulp stories.
I have written 3 stories in what I call my “Loki Companions” series which has been published in the Zine of Bronze #3, #4, & #5. These are about a group of six men (who may be familiar to pulp fans) during their service in World War I. His Last Hand is about a poker game at the Moulin Rouge in Paris as the six companions prepared to return to the United States after the Armistice. It is really a character study with a twist at the end based on a little known fact. Long Tom Robber relates the true story what really happened when a certain electrical genius used an antique cannon to thwart a German advance during that same war. Andy and Ted’s Excellent Adventure is about the friendship that developed between two very different American soldiers serving with the French Foreign Legion and how the practical jokes they played on each other changed their friendship.
I also wrote a short story for the collection Two Fisted Tales of LaPlata, Missouri that was entitled The Supreme Adventurer. It is a fantasy about a young Lester Dent growing up in LaPlata that shows how his experiences there may have contributed to the creation of Doc Savage.
I also have written 5 short stories about the German pulp character, Sun Koh who was the Aryan equivalent of Doc Savage. Three of these were originally published in Professor Stone Magazine # 1 and #2, and Thrilling Adventures #140. These have all been collected in a single volume Sun Koh: Heir of Atlantis, Vol. 1.
I had another short story in the Glimmerglass Writer’s Annual entitled Destiny or Choice: Shall Any Valiant Act Gainsay Extinction. It is about a child genius who confronts a great evil during a Archaeology convention in St. Louis in 1908.
My latest pulp story is The Perils of Patricia which in the Zine of Bronze #7 & #8. It is an adventure of a certain bronze-haired spa owner whose famous cousin is a well known world-wide troubleshooter.
All of my stories have homages to other action characters and some pulp crossovers. Some even have references to some of my own characters I haven’t yet written about.
AP: A project you undertook and have completed one volume on and are working on the second for concerns a character of some controversy. Before we discuss that, share with our audience who the character Sun Koh is historically.
AS: Sun Koh; Heir of Atlantis! Sun Koh was a character created by Paul Mueller for Germany’s pulp magazines who was based on Doc Savage. He was intended to be the Nietzschean Übermensch. He was an Aryan prince from ancient Atlantis who came to the future and descended out of the sky to land in London. He had come to prepare for the coming of the next Ice Age when Atlantis would rise gain from the ocean. He would save all those who were fit to survive and use them to repopulate the lost continent. Of course, those he considered to be most fit were of Aryan/German extraction according to the theories of the Theosophists whose mythology had been taken over by the Nazis.
Sun Koh went to Germany and collected around him a colorful group of aides that included science detective Jan Mayen, buckskin wearing Alaska Jim Hoover, WWI veteran Sturmvögel, and an Afro-American Boxer James “Nimba” Holigan. Sun Kho became to Germans what Doc Savage was to Americans.
Between 1933 and 1938 there were 150 Sun Koh stories published. Sun Koh epitomized the Aryan ideal and fought all sorts of villains and super-science threats very similar to those from the Doc Savage stories.
Strangely enough, the Nazis found these stories frivolous and in some cases subversive. Nazi censors made Mueller kill off Nimba because it was unseemly for an Aryan hero to have a black associate. Eventually they forced the series to end and Mueller had Sun Koh discover and conquer the newly risen Atlantis inside the Hollow Earth in 1938. That brought an end to the series.
The Sun Koh stories were full of adventure imagination and racial slurs. Expurgated versions were republished after WWII at least 3 times. Currently the original versions with annotations are being printed in Germany.
Sun Koh was the most successful of all the Doc Savage clones (if we exclude the comic characters like Superman and Batman). I was fascinated by the idea of such a character having so many adventures in a language that I could not read. I became frustrated and decided to write my own stories about Sun Koh preserving as much of the original adventure ideas as possible and excluding all the Nazi nonsense.
AP: Now, to the controversy. Have you had anyone complain or attack your direction with the character, that being your decision to write about a character who many identify with a Germany many would like to forget?
AS: Well, Jess Nevins who is a world-wide pulp expert was appalled that I was resurrecting the Sun Koh character whom he considered to be a poster child for Nazi ideology. My publisher for the Sun Koh series is Wayne Judge from Age of Adventure. He has had problems finding artists to do illustrations and covers for the Sun Koh stories because of the character’s roots.
I find it kind of funny to have such an edgy character. I am a very conventional person and I have no love for the Nazis and their dysfunction system of hatred. I like the noir ambience that you can get with this setting. It gives you a truly heroic character seen from a different perspective which raises ambivalence in the reader. It is the same experience you get while watching movies like The Usual Suspects, LA Confidential, and Payback.
It also gives me a chance to do a dark kind of Doc Savage-like character and explore what it would have been like to be a real superman in a culture that allegedly revered such beings. As my Sun Koh has been finding out, the dreams of the German leadership were delusory and did not match up to his own standards.
AP: What are your plans for Sun Koh? Will you redeem him and if you do, what then?
AS: Sun Koh was never part of the Nazi war effort. He was long gone before the invasion of Poland. I am intending to show how a true superman would not remain deceived by Hitler and his cronies for very long. It would soon become apparent to him that the Nazi were degenerates. I envision Sun Koh being part of the conspiracy in the Wehrmacht before Neville Chamberlain signed the pact with Hitler allowing the occupation of the Sudetenland. Had Chamberlain stood up to Hitler, the planned coup would have toppled the Nazis and Word War II might have been avoided. It will have been Sun Koh’s involvement in this conspiracy that leads him to disappear from Germany in 1938. Where he went at that point is still not know at this time.
AP: You’re also quickly becoming a podcasting legend. You are one half of the hosting team for THE BOOK CAVE (ALL PULP’S official Podcast, by the by). This is your chance, Art-How did you come to team up with your partner Ric Croxton and why do you think the relationship you two have works so well for a pulp podcast (It actually works very well, ALL PULP just wants to know why you think it works).
AS: Ric and I met at the 2006 LaPlata DocCon. The folks at that Con formed a bond and we have kept in touch over the years. When Ric launched The Book Cave podcasts, he had me on as a guest to talk about Sun Koh and some other topics. We worked well together and we got positive feedback from the audience and so Ric made me his permanent co-host.
The Book Cave is a show by fans for fans. We cover mostly pulp fiction but we also talk about Sci-Fi, Wold Newton, Lovecraft, comics, movies, TV-shows, and other things that adventure fiction fans really enjoy. I have been kicking around for a long time and I have had an interest in these things for almost 50 years… Let’s be honest. It has been OVER 50 years. I have taken these things very seriously and I love to talk about them.
This also gives us an opportunity to talk to the authors, producers, and creators of these entertainments and get to know them. I have always been interested in the creative process and how these stories came to be written. The fan base seems to enjoy this as well. And one thing about writers is that they LOVE to talk about themselves.
Ric and I have been privileged to meet and get to know folks like Will Murray, Ron Fortier, Andrew Salmon, Barry Reese, Paul Malmont, Derrick Ferguson, Josh Reynolds, William Preston, Jeff Deishcer, Win Eckert, Tommy Hancock, Jean Marc L’Officier, Tom and Ginger Johnson, Jim Campanella, Wayne Reinagel, Chris and Laura Carey, Paul Spitieri, Mike Croteaeu, James Sutton, and so many others who are creative forces in this field. These folks are great people and it is fascinating to talk with them. I learn so much and it gives me greater insight into the work they do.
I think the formula works because we come to the interviews with respect for the people and their work and I think our enthusiasm shows. We also remind our guests that we advocate them to give “shameless plugs” for any things they want to let the fan base know about. We also make it clear that we are a friendly show that is upbeat and pro fun. That is why we are all here.
AP: Ric often picks on your ‘special ability’ to know major details about your guests. Seriously, what sort of prep work do you put into getting ready to interview a guest in The Book Cave?
AS: It is amazing what you can find out from Googling someone’s name. Even before the internet, I was very good at ferreting out information. I also have a relatively good memory (not as good as it used to be, I’m afraid) and I tend to link together all sorts of disparate facts.
Ric and I always read the material we are going to discuss and we try to do some other background checking as well.
AP: Do you think podcasting in general and your podcast in specific is having any positive impact on pulp? If so, what? How can that impact be increased or improved upon?
AS: Podcasting allows us to do some things we never could before. It is now possible to do interviews with folks anywhere in the world record them, edit them, and put them on the world-wide web for anyone anywhere to listen to at their leisure. This means that pulp aficionados can hear their favorite authors talk about themselves and their work and send them feedback. Plus we can bring information about future projects to the pulp audience and help to spread the word about good books and how to get them. We have links on the podcast website that fans can follow for more information. Back in the 1960s I was the only Doc Savage fan that I knew. Today, I know dozens of Doc fans and pulps fans and we converse regularly. And information moves quickly through the pulp community. Our podcasts are routinely mentioned at Bill Thom’s Coming Attractions web site which is a gold mine of information for pulp and adventure fiction fans.
In the future, we may add video links to the show. I am not too keen about this since I don’t look all that good in real life and I do not dress smartly for the shows.
Another possibility is to have live call-in shows where fans can call in and talk to our guests. This would be a chancy thing and would require some kind of time delay so that we could weed out the disruptive calls.
AP: Another area of interest you have that falls squarely in the pulp field is the work of Philip Jose Farmer. Would you share how you came to be a fan and devotee of Farmer and his work?
AS: I first ran across Phil Farmer in the late 1960s as I began reading science fiction. The themes of his books seemed to be very controversial and I was put off by them. Then in the old Bookmaster’s store at Times Square in 1969, I saw a paperback by Mr. Farmer with two naked men on the cover who looked suspiciously like Doc Savage and Tarzan. It was entitled A Feast Unknown and it purported to be the memoirs of Lord Grandrith and his epic battle with Doc Caliban. The book is not tame fare. There was plenty of gratuitous sex and violence, but also a fascinating story. I was hooked. I began to read more of Farmer’s work. That was also the beginning of his Pulp Period where he was writing pastiches on pulp characters and themes. This period would last for over a decade and Phil became my favorite SciFi author.
AP: On the Book Cave, you often speak of how you became a fan of pulp, initially with the Doc Savage books and such. How has pulp helped shape you as a person, if its had any impact at all?
AS: For 36 years I wore a uniform and thought of myself as a soldier. My understanding of what that meant was shaped very much by the heroes I read about in books and comics. Doc Savage was in many ways my ideal and I tried to emulate him especially in academics. He was my inspiration for going into medicine. I attended Johns Hopkins for my masters because that was where Doc Savage had gone for his medical degree. (In fact I have a story in mind about Doc as a medical student in Baltimore in the 1920s.) Above all, Doc Savage and the pulps in general were ‘good guys’ who consciously sought moral uprightness. They did not always play by the conventional rules but in the end, their actions benefited more than themselves.
AP: You’re a doctor. Has your career contributed in any way to your ability as a pulp writer?
AS: You learn a lot in medicine about human nature and human limitations. You also learn a lot about science and math along the way. I have tried to make the fantastic elements in my stories at least plausible. I have also travelled the world and practiced medicine in some unusual circumstances. It all has contributed to the background in many of my stories.
AP: So, what does the future hold for Art Sippo? Any writing projects in the works you want to talk about? What about Book Cave plans?
AS: I have a Sun Koh novel currently under way. I eventually want to write the story of how Sun Koh is ultimately saved from Nazism and what becomes of him. I also plan to do some more Loki Companion Stories for Renny and Johnny and at least one more Pat story. And there is the story of Doc Savage at Johns Hopkins and the girl that ALMOST stole his heart. When I have enough of them, I’d like to publish them in a single volume along with some essays from my Speculations in Bronze website.
Ric and I plan to continue doing the Book Cave as long people enjoy it. We are always seeking new authors to interview and new material to pass on to the fans.
Ric and I both plan to be at the PulpArk con in the Spring of 2011 and to do shows from there.
AP: Dr. Sippo, it’s been a wonderful time talking to you. Thanks for the opportunity!
AS: It has been my pleasure as well. Folks should drop by the Book Cave site and drop us a line. We love to hear from the fans. Keep reading!
– Ronald D. Moore, Executive
Producer of Battlestar Galactica
(2004) and Caprica
Comics are
always filled with over-the-top superpowers, bright spandex costumes, and
universe-spanning storylines. While these flashy props were enough to sustain
the comics industry in its infancy, the modern comic reader expects more. Many
of the biggest, most complex stories are known for their iconic moments with
their characters.
DC’s Final Crisis saw the return of Darkseid
and a time-travelling bullet, but we all remember it for the simple image of
Superman holding the lifeless body of his best friend – Batman – in his arms,
sorrow filling Big Blue’s face. Marvel’s Civil
War brought heroes toe to toe with one another, splitting teams and
friendships alike. What became iconic was the bitter struggle between two men
who used to be best friends: Iron Man and Captain America, then Stark’s grief
over his actions leading inexorably to the death of Steve Rogers.
Imagine a
photo in a frame. A couple is standing in front of the Eiffel Tower, quite
happy. The frame is a fun pewter souvenir from the Tower itself. The focus –
however – is still the couple. Stories are just the same. We may set it in a
creative, dramatic setting. We may dress it up with superpowers, costumes, or
deep philosophic meanings. None of this works, however, without the characters
to drive the story. If the characters don’t ring true, the entire story falls
apart. Characters are how we – the reader – access, understand, and empathize
with a story.
When dissecting your characters, whether protagonist,
antagonist, or a mere cameo appearance; they need to feel real. The
three-dimensionality of a character can make or break your story, no matter how
brilliant of a plot you’ve devised or how epic the setting. Creating a
believable character involves a precarious balance between two not-so-small
aspects: uniqueness and universality.
DOC SAVAGE #10 Written by IVAN BRANDON Art by PHIL WINSLADE Cover by J.G. JONES It was the war that changed everything and brought Clark Savage, Jr., and Ronan McKenna together. But the things those men had to do as soldiers would one day tear them apart! Don’t miss this thrilling flashback to the history of the First Wave universe; a story that sets the scene for the deadly conclusion of Doc’s adventure in the Middle East! On sale JANUARY 12 * 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
FIRST WAVE #6 Written by BRIAN AZZARELLO Art by RAGS MORALES & RICK BRYANT Cover by J.G. JONES 1:10 Variant cover by JIM LEE This is it – the cataclysmic conclusion of the miniseries that launched the FIRST WAVE universe! Every life on Earth is threatened by Anton Colossi’s mad ambition. But The Spirit is at death’s door, The Batman is near his breaking point, and Doc Savage is at the mercy of a mad scientist! The stakes couldn’t be higher – and in FIRST WAVE, anything can happen! Retailers please note: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the Previews Order Form for more information. On sale JANUARY 26 * 6 of 6 * 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US
One the most pleasant developments with Warner Premiere’s line of animated movies featuring DC Comics’ heroes has been the addition of [[[Showcase]]], shorts based on the lesser known characters from the countless characters lingering in the library. To date, we’ve been treated to [[[The Spectre]]],[[[ Jonah Hex]]], and[[[Green Arrow]]] with two of them proving more satisfying than the main features. Now, the three have been collected, along with a fourth, all-new feature in the just released [[[Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam]]].
DC Comics had grand plans for its 75th anniversary but most of them were shelved when the company evolved into DC Entertainment and the mandate was to look ahead, not back. Still, there’s the mammoth book coming from Taschen and this month we’re being treated to the documentary [[[Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics.]]] Narrated by next summer’s [[[Green Lantern]]], Ryan Reynolds, the 90 minute feature explores the company from beginning through today but given the wealth of subject matter, at best, this is a surface study.
The 1970s was not a kind decade for live-action television based on comic book heroes. First there was the Cathy lee Crosby misfire of a [[[Wonder Woman]]] telefilm then there were the Reb Brown[[[ Captain America]]] telefilms.[[[Spider-Man]]] made it to prime time as a series but it didn’t resemble the comic in tone or style and died a swift death. But the absolute most mind-numbing and cringe worthy hours featured DC Comics’ stalwart heroes and villains.
“It’s the
