New York City Center has arranged for fans to get a special discount on tickets for It’s A Bird… It’s A Plane… It’s Superman! Seven performances are slated to run from March 20th through March 24th.
A fearless Avenger for Justice atop a blazing steed! The explosive blast of six-guns filling the air, punctuated by the sharp crack of a whip! A mask protecting the identity of someone fighting for Right in the Old West! All the elements to make a fantastic Pulp story came together decades ago in tales crafted by a prolific Pulp Writer. Now PULP OBSCURA, an imprint of Pro Se Productions in conjunction with Altus Press, proudly presents three new tales of this groundbreaking character from Pulp’s Golden Era!
Pulp Obscura’s THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SENORITA SCORPION, featuring Les Savage, Jr.’s Masked Mistress of the Range is now available, adding another stellar star to the lineup of classic, but often forgotten or underrated heroes now living again in Pro Se’s exciting imprint!
Created by Savage in 1944 for Action Stories, Senorita Scorpion is in fact Elgera Douglas, a young lady who became a legendary outlaw defending her family’s land and legacy, the fabled Lost Santiago Mine. Beautiful and deadly. A crack shot. A Fast thinking, daring fighter who is ruthless to those who threaten the land and people under her protection!
“Senorita Scorpion,” stated Tommy Hancock, Editor in Chief of Pro Se Productions, “is a wonderful character on several levels with so much potential. Masked heroes in the Wild West have a special place in the heart of fansof all sorts, from Pulps to old time radio to television and beyond. Senorita Scorpion fits right into the category. Then add in the fact that not only is this a female lead character created at a time when that wasn’t done very often, but that she was written to be as strong and capable as the very men she stood against. Les Savage, Jr. gave Pulp fiction a heroine that is just as relevant now as she was in the 1940s and we’re definitely glad to be a part of continuing her adventures!”
Nancy A. Hansen sends Senorita Scorpion into action to the ringing of THE BELLS OF ST. FERDINAND! Andrea Judy demonstrates that some jail breaks simply need AWOMAN’S TOUCH! And Brad Mengel posts a fantastic bounty with WANTED: SENORITA SCORPION! Three great writers bring a classic Pulp character galloping back to life in three daring tales of hard riding action and bold adventure!
If interested in review copies, interviews or further information, please email Morgan Minor, Pro Se’s Director of Corporate Operations at tommyhancockpulp@yahoo.com
The great innovators and popular entertainers of previous generations often fade from sight from they retire or die. A new generation discovers them afresh, either on their own, or someone has done some digging. In the case of the famed director Alfred Hitchcock, he has spawned a cottage industry with recent biographies and films. Hitchcock, with Anthony Hopkins nearly unrecognizable under the latex, is based on Stephen Rebello’s Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, and portrays a particular point of view about the Englishman.
Psycho is currently his best known work, especially with this week’s debut of Bates Motel on cable but critics tend to pick his other, earlier works as among his best. Sure, this thriller is terrifying and exciting and surprising thanks to the Robert Bloch story, direction, and performances. And the making of the film is worthy of exploration. Director Sacha Gervasi has a rich source of material and some fascinating players to explore but the end result is surprisingly slight. Rebello shone a much-needed spotlight on Hitch’s wife Alma (Helen Mirren), the secret engine behind his successes and Gervasi tries to milk tension out of the largely fictitious tension between spouses. When Universal refused to allow access to the source material, Gervasi needed something to hang the film on but clearly chose poorly.
The story picks up in 1959, with Hitch riding the success of North by Northwest and his popular television anthology series that made his silhouette the most recognizable in the country. Seeking his next project, he assigned the research to Peggy Robertson (Toni Colette), his assistant. She came up with Bloch’s novel, loosely based on the famed Ed Gein murders. It had just the right amount of lurid tension that would let him explore something different, something he did throughout his storied career.
Not everyone agreed with the choice with agent (Michael Stuhlbarg), Paramount president Barney Balaban (Richard Portnow), and Alma all thinking it beneath the director, who insisted he wanted the change of pace. When Paramount balked, he moved the film to Universal Studios which welcomed him with open arms. Hitch cast Anthony Perkins (James D’Arcy) as Norman, Janet Leigh (Scarlett Johansson) as Marion Crane and Vera Miles (Jessica Biel) as sister Lila. There’s plenty of behind the scenes intrigue, saving only the original film’s most famous moments for on camera action where we discover the tyrannical Hitchcock is as prurient as Norman himself. He later bullies Hays Office censor Geoffrey Shurlock (Kurtwood Smith) into approving the shower scene since more is implied than ever shown.
The movie’s more interesting dynamic is between husband and wife and here the film should sing but lacks spark which is odd considering how strong the performers are so the fault clearly lies in the script. There are other missteps along the way including Gein’s ghost, but by then, the film has lost its audience rather than gripped them.
The digital film is well-transferred to Blu-ray and sounds just fine. The combo edition comes complete with Audio Commentary from Gervasi and Rebello, and I wish the film was as interesting as their conversation. There is also a single Deleted Scene (1:41); Becoming the Master: From Hopkins to Hitchcock (12:28) all about Hopkins’ makeup and performance; Obsessed with Hitchcock (29:09), the usual making of documentary; Sacha Gervasi’s Behind-the-Scenes Cell Phone Footage (13:31) which is far more entertaining and informative than you imagine and gets credit for being a unique bonus; Hitchcock Cell Phone PSA (:41); The Story (3:54); The Cast (4:25) which features with interviews with the director, Mirren, Hopkins, and others; Danny Elfman Maestro (2:16) which is an all-too-brief piece on the evocative score; Hitch and Alma (3:15), which honestly needed to be more expansive and in-depth; Remembering Hitchcock (4:44): Hitchcock’s former cast and crew members trip down memory lane; Theatrical Trailer (2:33); and, Sneak Peek (14:31).
Overall, the extras bolster a weak production and makes it worth a look. Or, you might be better off reading the bios and watching the actual films from the great master. Hitchcock was terrific at building suspense, adjusting to new technologies and exploring the human psyche in ways his peers at the time avoided, giving him freedom to explore and entertain.
J.R.R. Tolkien was fascinated with language and mythology, scratching only the surface when he sat down in 1937 to pen The Hobbit. When his publisher asked for a sequel, the professor really dug deep and built on the foundations established in his children’s novel. As a result, he took over a decade to write what became Lord of the Rings and along the way, crafted new languages, cultures, and myths, creating Middle Earth from the essence of English and European folklore.
Tolkien mistrusted Hollywood, which certainly explains why it wasn’t until the 1970s before any adaptation of his works made it to the screen. There’s the somewhat cute Rankin-Bass take from the era, but really, the studios and technology weren’t up to the demands of the source material. Within the last two decades, though, that all changed. Once Peter Jackson struck gold with his trilogy of films, it was inevitable that the public would cry for the first book in the cycle to be adapted. Of course, there were the usual legal entanglements followed by MGM’s financial free-fall which cost the production the talents of Guillermo Del Toro. Jackson stepped behind the camera once more, helming an adaptation that was more in keeping with his interpretation of Middle Earth than del Toro apparently had in mind. Now, having seen The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journeyin the theater and on disc, the fresh eye may have been warranted.
Not that there’s anything wrong with the film — being released on home video in a variety of packages from Warner Home Video on Tuesday – but the familiarity with it all robs the story of its magic. Wisely, the opening is a frame, setting up the novel itself; using Ian Holm’s aged Bilbo Baggins with Elijah Wood once more as his nephew Frodo. Seeing them brought a smile to my heart but once the dwarves began to arrive, and the journey get underway, we’d seen the vistas, the mountains, and roads. As a result, the journey felt beleaguered and longer than necessary.
What did work, though, was really making this Thorin Oakenshield’s (Richard Armitage) story, aided by the dwarves and guided by Gandalf the Gray (Ian McKellan). The tension and suspicions the handsome dwarf had towards Baggins (Martin Freeman) is a nice undercurrent until it reaches a climax.
In watching the story unfold, it’s very much like a saga from days gone by and it’s interesting to note how many of the dwarf names were taken straight from Norse mythology. It’s a pretty straightforward tale with nice sets pieces such as the meeting with Gollum (Andy Serkis) and the forthcoming battles with Smaug. Expanding this initially to two films raised some eyebrows and then he came out with word that two had morphed into three. Suddenly, the single novel was being given the same weight at the trilogy and most howled. In watching the movie, it’s safe to say about 60 percent of it was the novel and the remainder was drawn from the appendices and notes Tolkien left behind. To be fair to the producer/writer/director, there’s tremendous material worthy of adapting and exploring cinematically. It worked with the emphasis on Arwen in the trilogy so he earns the benefit of the doubt for now.
He did take a throwaway line about Gandalf needing to speak with others and the book skipped that while the film uses that moment to being us to a council where familiar friends Galadriel (Cate Blanchet), Elrond (Hugo Weaving), and Saruman the White (Christopher Lee) provide wisdom and foreshadowing. It was fun seeing them as all one big happy family, knowing that even sixty years before LOTR, the dark shadows were already creeping from Mordor.
We also get to see some other wizards for the first time, including Necromancer (Benedict Cumberbatch) in the stronghold of Dul Guldur and the amusing Radagast the Brown (Sylvester McCoy).
Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Jackson used some magic to find ways to give each of the thirteen dwarves some personality and the cast and costumers ran with it. While you couldn’t necessarily name them on sight, you could tell one from another. Character reigns supreme once more for which we fans should be thankful. As fanciful as Tolkien was, he remained far more interested in lore and language than he did in interesting characterization.
Jackson is an old hand at the setting and pacing, which may be why he was more interested in the technical aspects, notably the 48-frames-per-second experiment that too few people got to witness as theaters, already paying the bills for 3-D and digital projectors, were reluctant to support. The film, therefore, is lush and rich in color, sight, and sound.
An extended edition with extra footage, which was anticipated before the film hit theaters, is now expected in time for the holiday season, following the previous pattern. So, be cautioned when getting this. So, what do you get with this edition? Well, the video transfer is most excellent, rich in color so Hobbiton to Lothlorien to the mines are sharp and clear. The visuals are equally matched by the amazing DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track.
While there some two and a half hours of bonus material, diehard fans have seen most of it online during the film’s production and release. Clearly, the most interesting stuff is being held back for the extended version. The specials are voluminous to merit its own disc, which is nice.
Early purchasers can use The Desolation of Smaug Sneak Peek Access Code: to watch the exclusive online sneak peek at The Desolation of Smaug, hosted live by Peter Jackson on March 24th at 3pm EST/12pm PST.
There’s another look at New Zealand: Home of Middle-Earth (7 minutes) demonstrating the challenge facing Jackson and his team as they had to find new countryside to show off new portions of Middle Earth.
The bulk of the extras are the ten Video Blogs (127 minutes):
Continuing to Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of Doc Savage and King Kong
Radio Archives has some great Doc Savage and King Kong products for you in the next couple months. Four exciting products in fact and you can order the second one, Doc Savage: The Forgotten Realm today! Here’s Will Murray to tell you more:
Last year, Altus Press reissued my 7th Doc Savage novel, The Forgotten Realm, after being out of print for nearly twenty years. Response to this tale of maddening mystery and mayhem was so positive that we decided to jump ahead In the more-or-less chronological release of my first Doc Savage adventures and record The Forgotten Realm for Radio Archives. Here it is!
by Will Murray and Lester Dent writing as Kenneth Robeson
Read by Michael McConnohie.
Back in 1933, Lester Dent outlined a great Doc Savage story involving a lost city of Romans hidden in the African Congo. For reasons unknown, he abandoned the best part of his plans, taking the tale in a different direction, to another part of the world.
Sixty years later in 1993, Will Murray dusted off that plot and turned it into his seventh Doc novel, The Forgotten Realm. It’s the bizarre story of a mystery man who escaped from a Scottish madhouse, who embroils archeologist Johnny Littlejohn in a quest that ranges from the British Isles to the impenetrable core of the Dark Continent. And whenever Johnny swings into action, the mighty Doc Savage is not far behind!
Here is another riveting exploit of the superhuman Man of Bronze. This is pulp high adventure at its most exciting. Tricks and traps propel the plot. Not everyone is who he seems to be. The colorful cast includes the mysterious X Man, the brutal Waterloo O’Neil, the mystic Goona Bey, and lovely Princess Namora. Doc, Johnny, Monk and Ham are on hand to pit their powers against the forces of evil. As always, the thrilling narrative grips straight through to the ultimate climax, and the final reveal.
Before it’s all over, Doc Savage will struggle against marauding sea serpents, murderous rogues, and end up in a gladiatorial arena battling ferocious lions in the best tradition of Tarzan of the Apes. All to unravel the riddle of the enigmatic individual known as X Man—who may or may not be a survivor of a lost Roman outpost still operating as if time had passed it by. A place beyond the fabled Veil of Silence called Novum Eboracum, which translates as New York!
The multi-talented Michael McConnohie again brings another fantastic Doc Savage adventure to life, one that takes the listener on a roller coaster of thrills and perils that you won’t want to end. This is the Man of Bronze at his most magnificent, using his might and mechanical skill to battle across two continents to a satisfying pulp conclusion. 10 hours $39.98 Audio CDs / $19.99 Download.
A great mind ready to help humanity. A savage monster bent on death and destruction. And both are the same person. Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic tale, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has thrilled and chilled readers for nearly two centuries in print, film, and on stage. One of the best adaptations of this classic tale of good and evil was actually for radio and the final 6 hours are now collected in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Volume 2 from Radio Archives.
The man behind Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was George Edwards and just the right person to bring this dynamic tale of split personality to life. An Australian actor and producer, Edwards lived many lives before coming to the career he is most known for. Vaudevillian, acrobat, stage actor, and comedian, Edwards shone brightest in bringing wonderful stories to life on Australian radio. The man behind other series, such as Afloat with Henry Morgan and Adventures of Marco Polo lent not only his production skills to Jekyll and Hyde, but shared his amazing vocal talents as well.
Edwards was well known as “The Man with a Thousand Voices.” Not only could he mimic multiple voices, Edwards could carry on complete conversations between characters he was playing. Many scenes in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde with multiple characters are all voiced by George Edwards. Edwards also brought authenticity to the roles he played, able to reproduce any tone or accent with his voice, save that of children or young women. The amazing aspect of this was that when not in front of a microphone, Edwards often spoke with a stutter.
The final 24 episodes of this classic Radio serial are collected in Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde, Volume 2. Stevenson’s story, Edwards’ performance and production, and the intense pacing of each episode make Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Volume 2 a necessary part of any Classic Radio fan’s collection! 6 hours $17.98 Audio CDs / $8.99 Download.
New Will Murray’s Pulp Classics eBooks
The best of timeless Pulp now available as cutting edge eBooks! Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings the greatest heroes, awesome action, and two fisted thrills to your eReader! Presenting Pulp Icons such as the Spider and Operator #5 as well as wonderfully obscure characters like the Octopus and Captain Satan. Will Murray’s Pulp Classics brings you the best of yesterday’s Pulp today!
New York lay helpless under the heel of the Black Police, and when men dared oppose this ruinous reign of the Underworld, they were struck down by a frightful plague! Nowhere, it seemed, was there succor for the defenseless. Even the Federal Government, which had stepped in to hold a New Deal, was beaten by intimidated votes at the polls. In this moment, one mad hope dawned. For Richard Wentworth, as the Spider, had come down from his mountain retreat. With him was Stanley Kirkpatrick, former Commissioner of Police, and a whole fugitive legion of honest fighting men — sworn to take the law into their own hands and strike blow for blow against the most monstrous criminal set-up known to modern man!Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. $2.99.
With his last camp of honest fighting men scattered by the Black Police, and the Underworld’s Master in supreme control of the state — Richard Wentworth had reached trail’s end! For nowhere was their succor for the thousands of oppressed, and even a duped federal Government was arrayed against them. Yet it was now that Wentworth knew, alone and unaided, he must strike one final desperate blow. As the Spider, in the dread disguise of his crime-fighting role, he took his stand. There, facing the legions of the world’s mightiest mass-murderer, the Spider struck again and again — to raise the Empire State from the dust and free an entire, despairing people from the scourge of living death!Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks. $2.99.
Purple armies from the prairies and a great Purple navy looming over the western horizon made ready to clamp the fetters of slavery on America’s last defenders. But a grim line of fighting men waited in the Emperor Rudolph’s path with a soldierly serenity that said, “Here we die.” And every life laid on this altar of freedom gave Jimmy Christopher, Operator 5 of the Intelligence, new respite as he followed a trail of desperate adventure studded with disgrace and death.Total Pulp Experience. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine. As a special bonus, Will Murray has written an introduction especially for this series of eBooks. $2.99.
In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a collection of stories from the pages of Terror Tales magazine by Arthur J. Burks, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. $2.99.
99 cent eBook Singles
Each 99 cent eBook Single contains a single short story, one of the many amazing tales selected from the pages of Terror Tales and Rangeland Romances. These short stories are not included in any of our other eBooks.
A tale of one dark night’s adventure that you will not soon forget…In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a classic story from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. $0.99.
When she saw savage blood-lust in the eyes of her lover, Nellie knew that he had become one of the lost children of the moon.In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a classic story from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. $0.99.
Why should a man who loved his daughter, send her, long after his death, into the clutches of an unearthly creature of satanic passions?In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a classic story from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. $0.99.
What secret horror was it that forced that group of fear-frozen people to hurl themselves, one by one, into the storm-lashed maw of the canyon far below?…In 1934 a new type of magazine was born. Known by various names — the shudder pulps, mystery-terror magazines, horror-terror magazines — weird menace is the sub-genre term that has survived today. Terror Tales magazine was one of the most popular. It came from Popular Publications, whose publisher Harry Steeger was inspired by the Grand Guignol theater of Paris. This breed of pulp story survived less than ten years, but in that time, they became infamous, even to this day. This ebook contains a classic story from the pages of Terror Tales magazine, reissued for today’s readers in electronic format. $0.99.
Alice came to Robber’s Roost to write a story — and found herself the kiss-besieged heroine of a big bad wolf… and a guitar-strummin’ ghost. She got first-hand savvy on romantic plots — when a phantom desperado haunted her house… and her heart. One of the most popular settings for romance stories was the old west, where men were men and women were women. As many a swooning damsel could attest, “There’s something about a cowboy.” The western romance became one of the most popular types of magazines sold during the early and mid-twentieth century. $0.99.
All eBooks produced by Radio Archives are available in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats for the ultimate in compatibility. When you upgrade to a new eReader, you can transfer your eBook to your new device without the need to purchase anything new.
Find these legendary Pulp tales and more in Will Murray’s Pulp Classics, now available at:
Receive an exciting original Spider adventure FREE! Part of the Will Murray Pulp Classics line, The Spider #11, Prince of the Red Looters first saw print in 1934 and features his momentous battle with The Fly and his armies of crazed criminal killers.
For those who have been unsure about digging into the wonderful world of pulps, this is a perfect chance to give one of these fantastic yarns a real test run. With a full introduction to the Spider written by famed pulp historian and author Will Murray, The Spider #11 was written by one of pulp’s most respected authors, Norvell W. Page. Writing as Grant Stockbridge, Page’s stories included some of the most bizarre and fun takes on heroes and crime fighting in the history of escapist fiction.
Even today Page’s scenarios and his edge-of-the-seat writing style are still thrilling both new and old fans everywhere. For those who have never read one of these rollercoaster adventures, you are in for a thrill. If you already know how much fun a classic pulp is, make sure you get a copy of this classic.
See what the Total Pulp Experience is for yourself. These exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading as an eBook and features every story, every editorial, and every column of the original pulp magazine.
Send an eMail to eBooks@RadioArchives.com and start reading your FREE copy of the Spider #11 within seconds! Experience The Best Pulps the Past has to offer in the most modern way possible!
Eighty years ago in February, 1933 the Street & Smith company released the first issue of Doc Savage Magazine, introducing one of the most popular and influential pulp superheroes ever to hit the American scene. Doc Savage was the greatest adventurer and scientist of his era, and while his magazine ended in 1949, he influenced the creators of Superman, Batman, Star Trek, The Man from UNCLE and the Marvel Universe—to name only a few.
While that first issue of Doc Savage was fresh on Depression newsstands, RKO Radio Pictures released one of the most important fantasy films of all time. Everyone knows the story of how King Kong was discovered on Skull Island and hauled back to New York in chains, only to perish tragically atop the world’s tallest skyscraper, the Empire State Building.
As it happened, that was where Doc Savage had his world headquarters. For decades, fans have wondered: Where was Doc the day Kong fell?
On the eightieth anniversary of these fictional giants, Altus Press is proud to release the first authorized clash between The Man of Bronze and the Eighth Wonder of the World—Doc Savage: Skull Island. Written by Will Murray in collaboration with Joe DeVito, creator of KONG: King of Skull Island,Doc Savage: Skull Island is a new pulp epic.
The story opens when Doc returns from his secret retreat in the North Pole to discover the cold corpse of Kong lying on his doorstep.
“I know this creature,” Doc tells his dumbfounded men.
Tasked to dispose of the remains, the Man of Bronze then relates the untold story of his epic encounter with Kong back in 1920, after Doc returns from service in World War I, long before Kong became known to the civilized world as “King” Kong.
Doc Savage: Skull Island is a multi-generational story in which Doc and his father—the man who placed him in the hands of scientists who made him into a superman—sail to the Indian Ocean in search of Doc’s grandfather, the legendary Stormalong Savage, whose famous clipper ship has been discovered floating, deserted, her masts snapped by some incredible force.
The quest for Stormalong Savage leads to the fog-shrouded Indian Ocean and—Skull Island! There, Doc Savage faces his first great test as he encounters its prehistoric dangers and tangles with the towering, unstoppable Kong.
“When Joe DeVito brought this idea to me,” says Will Murray, “I knew it had to be written with reverence for both of these immortal characters. So I used the locale of Skull Island to tell a larger story, an untold origin for Doc Savage. It all started back on Skull Island….”
“Pulling off the first ever face-off between Doc Savage and King Kong was both challenging and exhilarating,” adds DeVito. “Will’s unique take on the tale scatters the primordial mists surrounding Skull Island long enough to reveal secrets of both classic characters hidden since their creation.”
Doc Savage: Skull Island has already been hailed as “The Doc Savage novel that Doc fans have been waiting on for 80 years!”
Doc Savage: Skull Island is the fifth entry in Altus Press’ popular Wild Adventures of Doc Savage series. Cover by Joe DeVito. $24.95.
The legendary Master of Men returns in two classic stories from one of the pulp era’s most popular magazines. First, in “Emperor of the Yellow Death” (1935), an exotic women of the East, as deadly as she is beautiful, is servant to a criminal genius. More ruthless than any of his Mongol ancestors, Wang-ba stages a villainous uprising designed to enslave all of America. To defeat him, Richard Wentworth, alias The Spider, must face hidden death-traps, hordes of maddened gunmen and a pool of man-eating turtles. Then, in “Slaves of the Burning Blade” (1941), is a foreign sabotage ring responsible for a recent reign of terror or is a criminal genius known as The Knife really to blame? Only The Spider knows for certain, but will he survive being hounded by both the police and a vigilante band known as the Knights of Liberty so as to reveal the truth? These two exciting pulp adventures have been beautifully reformatted for easy reading and feature both of the original full color covers as well as interior illustrations that accompany each story. $14.95. On sale for $12.95, save $2.00
The Master of Darkness teams with Scotland Yard’s Eric Delka in two thrilling tales of international intrigue by Walter Gibson writing as “Maxwell Grant.” First, The Shadow investigates an international spy ring with the assistance of “The Man from Scotland Yard” (in his first appearance). Then, The Shadow and Delka’s investigation of missing submarine plans sets them on the trail of the legendary Parisian super-criminal, Gaspard Zemba, in Walter Gibson’s all-time masterpiece of misdirection! This instant collector’s item showcases both classic pulp covers by George Rozen and all the original interior illustrations of Tom Lovell, with commentary by popular culture historian Will Murray. $14.95.
The pulp era’s greatest superman returns in two action-packed novels by Lester Dent writing as “Kenneth Robeson.” First, what could cause an entire island to vanish into thin air? Doc Savage and his aides must unravel the strange secret of “Mystery Island” to save England from environmental armageddon. Then, the Man of Bronze (in a rare solo adventure) encounters a strange bearded giant floating in the Bay of Fundy. This double-novel collector’s edition leads off with a classic color cover by Emery Clarke, and showcases all of Paul Orban’s original interior illustrations and new historical commentary by Will Murray, writer of eleven Doc Savage novels. $14.95.
This is an authentic replica of an original pulp magazine published by Girasol Collectables. This edition is designed to give the reader an authentic taste of what a typical pulp magazine was like when it was first issued – but without the frailty or expense of trying to find a decades-old collectable to enjoy. The outer covers, the interior pages, and the advertisements are reprinted just as they appeared in the original magazine, left intact to give the reader the true feel of the original as well as an appreciation for the way in which these publications were first offered to their avid readers. To further enhance the “pulp experience”, this edition is printed on off-white bond paper intended to simulate the original look while, at the same time, assuring that this edition will last far longer than the original upon which it is based. The overall construction and appearance of this reprint is designed to be as faithful to the original magazine as is reasonably possible, given the unavoidable changes in production methods and materials. $25.00
Review of Emperor of the Yellow Death from The Spider, Volume 6
By David White
This counts as the third time I have read a story where The Spider battles a threat against the world from the Orient. They have been some of the finest Spider stories, in my mind, that have been written. There is always a high degree of treachery and cunning that pushes The Spider to the very brink of death. This story is no exception.
The Spider starts thing off battling a tiger and a tigress, the first being actually ten feet long and of the seven hundred pound variety. The Spider in this instance proves that not only is he the Master of Men, but deadly beasts as well. The tigress is an Oriental beauty, whose glamour is matched only by her deadliness. All this and then the diabolical Wang-Ba. He is known as The Turtle who will carry the world on his back. A stark raving mad genius that doesn’t care how many bodies he has to climb to take over the world, he has what seems like an unlimited amount of resources to help him, even a submarine.
Wang-Ba wastes no time in attacking the Spider. In one fell swoop, he not only captures the Lovely Nita, but also transforms Jackson into a raving lunatic. Wang-Ba is not your typical madman though. He feels that he is doing the world a favor by ridding it of all its criminals. Of course if a few hundred innocents die in the process…oh well.
Richard Wentworth plays his violin a bit to clear his mind before heading out against the powerful Oriental. The two literally lock in a struggle of wills, The Spider once again proving why he is called The Master of Men. Wang-Ba has already thrown his plans into action. He will literally hold New York hostage until his demands are met. For each demand the nation does not meet, he will kill ten officials and five hundred citizens.
The Spider is really in trouble this time. Wang-Ba seems to almost play with him at times. But in true Spider form, he shows that until he has breathed his last, the battle is never lost. Girasol Replica #GC181 $35.00 / eBook #RE027 $2.99 / Double Novel reprint #5506 $14.95 On sale for $12.95, save $2.00
Comments From Our Customers!
Jo Peters writes:
I got the Spider free ebook. Love it. No problems downloading or reading the Nook version. Would love it if you could create ebooks of the Shadow and Doc Savage books. Please????
Lee Roselli writes:
I would recommend to everybody to purchase their Shadow Magazines from you. Excellent and fast service, the books come in a secure and safe box to prevent damage during shipping. I want to thank you for the graphic Sherlock Holmes book you gave me. Excellent How did you know that I read all the Sherlock Holmes stories I can. I will be buying some more Shadow stories shortly.
Paul Gray from the United Kingdom writes:
I am very impressed with volume 1 of Cocoanut Grove recordings. The music is a good example what was being played by the dance bands of the time. It has charm and style and is very tuneful compared with a lot that is being pumped out these days. I am a musician and I play 3 nights a week at an up-market hotel down on the South Devonshire coast, about 35 miles away. The band is a four-piece group consisting of piano, electric guitar, bass and myself on drums. We have customers coming up to us saying that we are unique in playing genuine accoustic music, and playing plenty of good old standards and a few of the more melodic recent tunes, without all the contrived electronics that bombard the ears. I say all this because there is obviously still a demand for the sort of music that the Cocoanut Grove bands played all those years ago. The big thing that makes all the difference to your sets of recordings is the amazing clear quality of sound that makes you feel that you are actually there. I will certainly be ordering volume 2 very soon as a download. I am only buying downloads now instead CDs because I dont have to waste money on expensive postage and the extra customs and postage over here – with downloads I can buy three from you for the cost of one set of CDs and feel happier that all the money goes to you to carry out more amazing work in future.
Ernst H. Spellmeyer writes:
Once again I want to thank you for your prompt response in filling my last request for the three sets of Radio CD’s. I listened briefly to the first episode in each set of the three sets of CD’s. Dragnet, Volume 4 was wonderful, just like Volumes 1 and 2; Have Gun Will Travel also was really great. John Dehner makes a terrific Paladin, just as good – if not even better – than Richard Boone, the TV Paladin. Mr Dehner was quite an actor. His voice inflections and demeanor were totally different from his previous role in the Radio series Frontier Gentleman. Now, Luke Slaughter of Tombstone in a separate category all together!! Wow!! what perfect sound and sound effects, coupled with period characters. Sam Buffington is wonderful as Luke Slaughter. Everyone should have this set in their CD collection!! It’s terrific!! I wish you continued success with Radio Archives. I will continue to sing your praises to others! I enjoy doing business with you!
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Your service has always been top notch and it is always a pleasure to do business with you. Keep up the good work and thanks for the good reads.
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I’d like to receive the newsletter, please. I very much enjoy the Shadow, Spider and Doc Savage and look forward to more of their adventures. Oh and say hi to Will from me.
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How to Fake a Moon Landing By Darryl Cunningham 176 pages, Abrams ComicArts, $16.95
There has been a preponderance of memoirs as graphic novels filling bookshelves over the last few years but with the exception of Joe Sacco’s work, there has been precious little journalism done in the graphic form. Cartoonist Darryl Cunningham, therefore, is a welcome voice, shedding some much needed light on the darker areas of science and culture. He made his name with Psychiatric Tales and then turned his attentions to Science Tales; Lies, Hoaxes, and Scams, which was released in England. Since then, he added a chapter and this month Abrams’ ComicArts imprint releases it as How to Fake a Moon Landing.
Cunningham breezily takes us through some of the hot button topics that are used as bludgeons by No Nothing Conservatives or are blown out of proportion by a lazy media. As one expects, the Moon landing is just the beginning, with chapters also dedicated to the MMR Vaccination Scandal, Evolution, Global Warming and so on. Each chapter spells out the facts, sourcing them along the way, and then shows where fact goes off the rails and becomes fodder for others to misuse. While he takes the cranks and critics to task, he also often faults the news media for never digging deep enough or presenting the other side of the argument for a “fair and balanced” look at the issue.
In a sprawling interview with Tom Spurgeon in 2011, he explained, “The comic strip format is particularly good at presenting information in a concise and entertaining way. A comic strip is so easy to read, that you can often find that by the time you’ve decided not to read it, you’ve read half of it. It’s a very immediate format that engages straight away and can deliver a lot of information quickly. It’s the perfect medium for presenting complex information. I’m surprised it’s not done more often. I’ve never thought of myself as part of any social activist tradition. These social and political subjects have naturally evolved out of my own interests, and to some extent, my frustration and anger with the status quo.”
As a result, you might be surprised to learn that the MMR matter was the result of one doctor’s efforts to sell his own medicine or how much money the oil industry spent on lobbying; resulting in Vice President Dick Cheney ensuring a particular bill was effectively neutered. As usual, the common man is left to pay the price or suffer the consequences. Since its initial publication, Cunningham dropped “Electroconvulsive Therapy”, replacing it with “Fracking” which remains a current topic of debate. As a result, the book is exceedingly relevant as it digests the issues down into comprehensible chapters, pointing where you can look next for more detail.
Cunningham’s approach is pretty similar to how Scott McCloud educates us about graphic storytelling and it works. He infuses each chapter with black, white, and one other color, keeping things stark and letting the reader focus on the facts. On the other hand, those who automatically buy into conspiracy theories or refuse to allow facts into the discussion will dismiss the book which is a shame. Wisely, he closes the book with a prophetic chapter on “Science Denial”. Cunningham does a remarkable job with difficult material and for high school students, just opening their eyes to the world around them, this is a terrific primer.
Tommy Hancock, one of the seven founders and Editor in Chief of All Pulp since its inception submitted the following statement-
“This is a statement I didn’t think I’d ever write when we started ALL PULP just slightly less than three years ago. At that time, we were seven strong and we were going to bring a new voice to how Pulp news was delivered. Not that we thought anything was wrong with other sites delivering it at the time – Coming Attractions was a large part of the inspiration for what ALL PULP is now – but we wanted to bring ourselves into the spreading of the Pulp Gospel, not just our work or New Pulp, but anything and everything we could find that was Pulp News. And I think we did that from the get – go and although some of the Seven have faded into the sunset and other names have taken bylines as guest reviewers or interviewers, I think that same mission is still in place. All Pulp is still innovative, creative, and – based on the emails and messages I get – still a vital part of how so many Pulp fans get their news.
ALL PULP also has done something else, ALL PULP and a few other things. In the last three years, I have met many creators, fans, publishers, and more people who are interested in Pulp than I could have ever imagined. Out of those connections have come many opportunities for me as a Pulp Writer, a Publisher, a Commentator, and Event Organizer. Now, my typical mode of operation has been to just stack one job on top of the other, paid and unpaid alike, and bore ahead. The advice of many over the years has been not to do that, but I’ve done fairly well at keeping up with it.
But things have finally gotten to the point that not only do I need more time, but the truly necessary, important parts of what I do within Publishing, Writing, and New Pulp also need more attention than I’ve given in the past. Several projects I am working on are on the verge of breaking out in a variety of ways, but they won’t without the right care and attention. I do have others helping me, I’m not alone in any of them really, but I am the driver of many of the cars we have in the race. So, to that end, some decisions have been made. As of today, March 11, 2013, I am formally offering my resignation as Editor in Chief and regular staff member from All Pulp.
I will remain on board for a month and work with those who are still involved with ALL PULP to determine who the leadership will be and how it will be handled. If someone is found or a decision is made before the month is up, then I’ll take my fedora off the hook and put on my trenchcoat and be on my way. I do hope to continue to be a contributor here with a more regular review column (TIPPIN’ HANCOCK’S HAT) as being a reviewer is one of the opportunities I have been encouraged to explore on other levels, if the new bosses will have me, that is. But as for being a leader and a regular here, I’ll simply be another person who checks the site about three or four times a day.
I can’t begin to thank everyone who has been a part of ALL PULP’s success. The Spectacled Seven who started it all (Ron Fortier, Barry Reese, Bobby Nash, Derrick Ferguson, Sarge Portera, and Van Plexico, and some hack named Hancock) had a vision and I thank my six cohorts for making that vision happen. The creators of Pulp as well as the fans also have made ALL PULP not only a news site, but a repository collecting the history of the last few years of Pulpdom. The fact that I was allowed to be a part of that is just too cool.
So, that’s it. There’ll be other announcements about changes for me and maybe the new regime at ALL PULP will run them. If you want to say bye or complain finally about all the things I’ve done here that you don’t like or whatever, then drop me a line at allpulp@yahoo.com or post on our Facebook page. And stay tuned to here to see just who’s going to be driving this madcap crazy train in the future.
A Tip of My Fedora to Each and Everyone of You, Tommy Hancock 3.11.13
Hair Shirt By Patrick McEown Abrams/SelfMadeHero, 119 pages, $24.95
A second chance at love or happiness is often cause for celebration, but as Patrick McEown explores in his graphic novel Hair Shirt, it is not always for the best. From the murky cover color through the final page, the book’s emotional spectrum tends towards the dark and troubled.
We’re in a non-descript, unnamed city when John, a college student seemingly scared of everything, chances upon Naomi, a childhood friend who always represented the promise of more. As they take up with one another again, their other connections with the world drop away and McEwon tightly focuses on what they bring to the relationship and what they bring out of the other.
Growing up, John and Naomi’s older brother were best of pals, doing everything together. That is, until the family relocated across town for some unexplained by clearly sinister reason. Chris and John reconnected in high school and by then the damage was done; they were completely different people with little in common. Chris was a troubled adolescent, hinting at abuse which was masked through obnoxious behavior. As a result, John drifted towards a deeper, more interesting relationship with the shy, and equally damaged Naomi.
After Chris dies, a victim of a car accident, the mother and Naomi flee for the west coast and she vanishes from John’s life. McEown shows us that neither can fully let go of their personal demons but merely hints at them, without really showing us what makes them tick. As a result, the hair shirt he metaphorically knits, the symbol of penance, makes little sense. We’re at least given hints what happened to Naomi; what made turned John into an introspective loner is never explored or explained.
Similarly, McEown, whose work captured our attention with Grendel: Warchild and went on to a varied career that stretches from Disney Adventures Magazine to storyboarding Batman Beyond uses a very muted color palette from beginning to end. Despite the heavy paper stock, some of the pages are just too dark to properly make out what’s happening. The various flashbacks probably could have benefitted from
Neither character appears to have a direction with their studies, nor do they seem to attend classes or do homework, but instead try to figure out what has happened to them. Naomi is nowhere near as annoying or self-destructive as her brother, but the trauma she endured in the past also prevents her from properly loving John. Instead, she keeps egging him into a physical relationship with Shaz, a zaftig mutual friend.
Additionally, the razor thin balloon tails can disappear inside the dark colors so some of the conversations between characters can be difficult to follow. There’s a lot left unsaid and open for interpretation so this emotionally wearing story could benefit from clarity wherever possible.
This is anything but your typical romance given how damaged both protagonists are but it’s also hard to find someone to root for given how dysfunctional they are. For John at least, the story’s conclusion offers us a glimmer of hope while poor Naomi is left with her inner demons, the one person who understood her now driven away.
This is bleak, difficult territory and despite the dark colors, McEown’s artwork is emotionally evocative and his dialogue has a nice natural ring to it. Love is never simple but it’s clearly what most everyone is seeking, even in the dismal city where memories are as vivid as the people close by.
Last weekend, I was in New York City with the ever-wonderful Neil Gaiman and the extremely personable Adam Rex. Bestselling author and illustrator were in town to do a marathon signing at the delightful children’s book store Books of Wonder for Chu’s Day, their new children’s book. Although it was planned as only a signing (seeing as a million-billion people showed up), they did, in fact, decide to stand up on stepladders and do an impromptu reading of Chu’s Day first. It was exceptionally fun, with Neil, writer of the story, narrating the story and some illustrations, and Adam, the book’s illustrator, expertly doing Chu’s sneezes. (He’s very good at dramatic sneezing.)
They also answered some questions from the crowd, which is how we learned that Neil’s favorite picture books as a child included The Cat in the Hat Comes Back: “I didn’t have the first one, just the sequel,” he said, “so I thought, “‘Comes back?’ This is the first time I’ve met him! This is weird.” He was also a fan of the English Ladybird books, including Robin Hood, Snow White, and What to Look For in Autumn. Adam’s favorites included The Monster at the End of This Book (a favorite of mine, as well), which he proclaimed “an excellent postmodernist story, years ahead of its time;” as well as The Bike Lesson, a Berenstain Bears book; and Where the Wild Things Are.
I spoke with both author and illustrator during their NYC visit, and happily, have the pleasure of sharing those conversations with you now.
Interview with Neil Gaiman, author of Chu’s Day
On Twitter, the excellent cartoonist John Kovalic was saying it would be interesting to hear about the process of working with Adam Rex on Chu’s Day, and I agree. Please tell us a little about that.
Chu’s Day began when I was in China. It began with the Chinese telling me that none of my children’s picture books were in print in China, because they showed disrespect for authority, and children doing bad things and not being punished for it, and children being wiser than their adults; so they couldn’t be published in China. And I thought, I want to do a story that has all of that – and that the Chinese will like.
One of the things I’d loved most about being in China was actually having a panda sit on my lap, and going to a panda facility. I’m a sucker for pandas. So I was sitting around chewing this over in the back of my head, and then I pulled out a piece of paper, and wrote a story about a baby panda, using pretty much the words that are in the book. Then I got it home, and thought, “I don’t know how to write a children’s book, because the only way that I know how to do one of these normally would be like a comic script. But if I do it as a comic script, then it’s long and it’s big and it’s complicated and…let me do this the easy way.” The easy way for me was, I got a pen brush and a little book, and I drew the story out. Beat by beat, with the words that I wanted. Because I thought, “If I’m pitching this to a publisher, I want them to be able to see what it is.” So I did my drawings and they said yes, and once they said yes, then we had to find an artist.
And how did you end up with Adam?
Adam had been sort of crossing my path vaguely for many years, so I was kind of aware of him. In fact, he even crossed my path before I was aware of him crossing my path, because when he was an art student he gave me a Morpheus meeting the Kirby Sandman painting. After we were working together, he sent me a jpeg of it and said, “Do you remember this?” and I said, “Yes! That was in my house for a long time, and then it was auctioned, for the Fiddler’s Green (Sandman) convention, for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.” So he’d crossed my path, and every now and then I’d get a book from Adam, for a blurb, so I knew who he was. And I liked him. I’d never actually met him, but I liked his style and what he was doing.
Then I was talking to my agent, Merilee, and I said, “I have to find somebody who can draw really good animals. I have this vision; I know I want to do the world populated by animals, and I know they have to look like real animals. They can’t be cartoon animals; but they also have to do very funny, sort of human things.” And she said, “Well why don’t you go and look at Writers House [which is my agency]. We’re also representing illustrators these days. See if there are any illustrators on the website that you like.” So I looked, and thought, you know, Adam’s stuff is brilliant, and that’s absolutely perfect, so I asked Harpers if they’d be okay with Adam, and they loved the idea and said they’d ask him, and he said yes. And when he finished the book, we all looked at it and went, “Ohmygosh, this is great!” and I said, “Can I do another one?” and they said, “Sure,” so I signed a contract and Adam signed a contract to do another two Chu books.
The next one, which is already written, is called Chu’s First Day at School. And for the third one, I have two different ones in mind. I might want to do Chu Goes to the Beach, and I might want to do Chu’s Very Bad Day. The beach has some really surreal stuff in it. They’d both be a little bit older than the first Chu book, because the first Chu book is for kids who can barely read. You know, kids who get stuff read to them.
Are they being published in China?
There is definitely interest in China. I’m very much hoping that Chu’s Day will be published there. And that nobody’s actually going to notice that Chu doesn’t get punished, and he actually does kind of know more than his parents.
Where does Adam live, and how does that work when you’re working with an illustrator at a distance?
Arizona. It works pretty well. For Sandman, over the years, I would talk to people on the phone, and talk in email, and that all kind of works. Adam and I have actually never met. We’re meeting tomorrow morning for the first time, and then we’ll go over and start signing books and posters and things.
Since we’re speaking of Sandman; tell us about the new one. I just saw that someone has been reading the script for it, so I guess the first part is written now?
Yes, the first episode has finally been finished…probably about eight months late! Because I kept getting scared.
Well, it’s been years since you wrote the original series. I don’t even know exactly what this new story is about; do you want to talk about that?
No! I’m not telling anybody what it’s about! Other than, well, it begins before Sandman #1. Sandman #1 opens with Morpheus being captured; he’s traveled unimaginable distances, he’s dressed for war, and he’s exhausted. And one of the things that is kind of strange about Sandman is, I always thought a lot of people would want to know: why? Why was he dressed for war; where was he coming from? I kept waiting for people to go “Why? Why, tell us, for God’s sake!!” But nobody ever did! So I will be telling that story.
Well I will be excited to hear it, because when I first read it, I didn’t know you, so I couldn’t ask, but I did always wonder, “How did he end up there? You know; he’s Sandman, he’s Dream!”
He should not have been captured, exactly. And why was he dressed like that, and what was going on? So now people will find out.
Excellent. I can’t wait! So one more Chu’s Day question. The story is filled with talking animals. If you were a talking animal, what animal would you be and what would you talk about?
I would almost definitely be a large black cat. But what I would do is never talk when anybody had a microphone or a camera, or there was more than one person around; so it would always be deniable. Because the last thing you want to do if you’re a talking animal is talk in public, because at that point suddenly you’re a celebrity, and they’re taking you apart and they’re examining your brains…
What you want to do is just drive people nuts, by sort of padding over to somebody as they’re sitting there, you know, looking at their computer, and getting really, really upset about something not working; and you just sort of walk over, and you just say: “Ctrl+Alt+Delete.” And then you walk away. And they go, “What? What!! The cat is saying Ctrl+Alt+Delete, oh my God!”
That is truly Machiavellian. And awesome. (And thank you for the interview, Neil!)
Interview with Adam Rex, illustrator of Chu’s Day
Adam, tell me…is your last name really Rex?
It really is, yeah; I think I kind of lucked out. Everybody asks me if it’s a pen name; because it sounds like a pen name. Growing up, I didn’t think it was anything special, because I don’t think anyone ever thinks their name is anything special at that point, but now I realize it sounds kind of like a superhero alter ego.
It does! So when did you first start getting into drawing in the professional sense; and when you were a kid, were you always drawing?
Yeah, but you know, all kids start drawing at about the same age. I think all little kids are illustrators. They all draw, and they all draw to tell stories; so when people ask me, “When did you start drawing?” I feel like the real question is actually, “When did you stop drawing?” – and I’m good at it because I didn’t stop at the age of ten or twelve or fourteen like everybody else does.
At a very early age I decided I was going to be an artist when I grew up, because when I was about five years old, I overheard my older brother, who was eight at the time, complaining to our mom that it wasn’t fair that “Adam draws better than me even though he’s younger;” and I wasn’t at better than him at anything, so I just decided right then and there that this was what I would do. I don’t know that everybody gets that moment of clarity when they’re five! So I always wanted to be an artist. I didn’t really understand what that meant until I worked at a Waldenbooks when I was a teenager and kind of fell in love with picture books all over again. In my teen years I wanted to either do comics or picture books; anything that would let me synthesize telling stories and doing art.
When you first got started, did you do some work for comics, or did you start in picture books and stay there?
I never really did a whole lot of comics work. Where I actually got my start was in role playing and trading card games. I did a ton of stuff for D&D, and for Magic: The Gathering, and that’s what paid all my bills while I was trying to get into the kids’ book industry. Those were great clients to have, but what I really wanted to do was the kids’ stuff.
How did you end up doing the kids’ books?
It was persistence; but it was also lowering my bar a little bit. When I realized that nobody was giving me a book to work on, I started looking for work from the kids’ magazines, like Cricket and Spider, and that got me refreshing my portfolio with new pieces. I always think it’s important to refresh your portfolio with assignments that other people are giving you, because otherwise, you just tend to play to your own strengths, and you can be lazy with yourself. But it was actually a piece that I did for Cricket magazine that led directly to my getting my first picture book assignment. That was a book called The Dirty Cowboy, published by Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, and written by Amy Timberlake.
And when was that?
That came out in 2003. I got that assignment in 2001.
So you’ve been doing picture books for about twelve years now; and the latest is Chu’s Day, and you’ve signed on for two more Chu books?
Yes; Neil is on the short list of people I would drop everything for.
When you first got the job with Neil and Chu’s Day, what was the first thing you did when you sat down to think about how you were going to approach it?
This was kind of an unusual case, because Neil had actually sort of made a book dummy himself, where he had given some indication of where he thought the page breaks would be, and I don’t think I really messed with that too much. I may have stretched it out a little bit; or condensed certain parts. But usually when I sit down with a manuscript, I’m going through and drawing brackets around the sections of text, and deciding, “Okay, that’s a page; that’s a page; that’s a page,” and then I review it the first time, count them all up, and see if I actually ended up with a viable page count. All kids’ books are pretty much either 32 or 40 pages, so if you can’t make it work in that format, then you have to go back and try again. So I do that, and then once I figure out what text is going to go on each page, that’s followed by a bunch of really messy thumbnails; planning the whole book out on maybe one sheet of my sketchbook. Those sketches are so messy that really only I can tell what I’ve laid out there. And then it’s just refining from there. Larger messy sketches, and then a good sketch that goes off to the editor, and then the comments back, or lack of comments; and only then do I actually start painting.
I think my favorite part of the process is figuring out what all the characters are going to look like. So there are a lot of totally self-indulgent days of just character sketches. I realize I can spend way too much time doing that; so at some point I have to cut myself off.
When you got to the destruction scenes in Chu’s Day, what was your favorite part to draw?
I think I really enjoyed, not so much the actual action scenes, but the aftermath. Just the shell-shocked employees of and audience at the circus, with their various expressions. There’s a lion-tamer in the crowd who just has this soul-searching, thousand-mile stare. It’s clear he’s just, like, re-evaluating everything he ever thought about life and the universe. I think it was actually the reaction shot of everybody afterwards, after the dust settled, that was my favorite thing to draw.
I liked the gumball machine that was in mid-explosion. I like little details like that.
It’s funny you mention that, because I think my wife said the same thing. “That’s the sort of thing,” she said, “that I would have obsessed over. I would have wanted those gumballs as a little girl. I would have spent a lot of time looking at that gumball machine.”
Do you prefer drawing people or intelligent animals?
A little of both, really. I don’t know why I dig drawing animals in waistcoats and hats so much, but I really seem to enjoy it. It’s a total pleasure, because if you take certain liberties with panda bear anatomy, people are very forgiving. If you take the same liberties with a human being, people say, “That’s not right.” So it’s all the fun of drawing characters and getting at what’s important about each character, without having to worry too much about whether or not you got that perfect anatomy down.
You said you had originally been interested in comics. Do you want to stay with picture books? Do you want to keep branching out and do other things? And what’s your newest project? Well; I know you have the next two Chu books…
Right, another Chu project is coming. My first novel that I wrote actually has about fifteen pages of comics in it, that I just sort of shoehorned in there, and so one of my upcoming novels, which is a sequel to that one, will probably be the same way. Whether or not I actually ever commit to doing something like a genuine graphic novel, I don’t know. It’s really daunting. Although because I happen to be friends with Scott Allie over at Dark Horse, I did end up doing a cover to the Free Comic Book Day issue of The Guild.
Last question: One line of advice for young illustrators.
Keep your receipts.
That’s excellent advice. (And thank you for the interview, Adam!)
Well! I hope you all enjoyed these interviews…
But wait! There’s more! I also interviewed Neil regarding his myriad of other exciting projects! So if you’d like to read the rest of the Neil Gaiman interview, head on over to the DC Books and Authors Blog, an affiliate of The National Press Club, and check it out!
Every now and then you can tell someone is special. Every now and then you know just when something becomes an event, a trend-setter. That’s exactly who Bruce Lee was and his Enter the Dragon remains. All marital arts films are measured against this one and now Warner Home Video is giving us a 40th anniversary edition. Here are the details:
Burbank, Calif., March 4, 2013 – Enter the Dragon, one ofmartial arts icon Bruce Lee’s last films, will debut June 11 on Blu-ray™ in the Enter the Dragon 40th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition giftset from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. The film, which helped bring interest in the Asian martial arts genre to mainstream Western cinema,has been re-mastered for its 40th anniversary, and will now feature new bonus materials, such as the featurette, No Way as Way, on the legacy of Bruce Lee, plus other featurettes and commentary. Memorabilia — which includes collectible art cards, lenticular card and an embroidered patch –are also part of the giftset.
Bruce Lee was an incredible athlete and mixed martial artist who, despite making a limited number of movies during his short life, became a charismatic megastar and left a permanent mark on cinema and popular culture. Even Time Magazine agreed. They included Lee in the “100 Most Important People of the 20th century” issue (Heroes and Icons 1999*). Enter the Dragon continues to resonate with today’s audiences. It was a major theatrical hit 40 years ago, grossing approximately $25 million domestically – the equivalent of almost $180 million in today’s box-office. Enter the Dragon has sold more than 450,000 units on DVD and Blu-ray since 2004. In 2004, Enter the Dragon was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” It also received a 95% positive rating on the critics’ review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
Lee was born in San Francisco on November 27, 1940. As a young boy in Hong Kong, he acted in some 20 films there and first became known in the U.S. in 1966 for his role as sidekick Kato in TV’s “The Green Hornet.” He also appeared in TV shows like “Ironside” and “Longstreet,” with his most notable American role coming in the 1969 movie, Marlowe, starring James Garner. Returning to Hong Kong, Lee starred in a number of successful films for Raymond Chow’s Golden Harvest Productions and soon became a superstar in China. His enormous overseas success ultimately reached Hollywood and the attention of filmmaker Fred Weintraub and Warner Bros., who produced Enter the Dragon and tapped the actor to star. Lee died suddenly in Hong Kong, at the age of 32, of a cerebral edema. That was on July 20, 1973, less than a month before the film’s August 17 U.S. premiere. Posthumously, Enter the Dragon rocketed him to international superstardom.
Enter the Dragon producer Fred Weintraub, who also wrote the book Bruce Lee, Woodstock, and Me said: “If fans want to hail Bruce as the greatest and most influential martial artist who ever lived, you’ll get no argument from me. He was a shining star who streaked across the night sky of our collective awareness in a flash of white hot unsustainable intensity only to burn up in the atmosphere of fame, wealth, and worldwide adulation. Watching him again (this time even better on Blu-ray), you can see why he became the first international superstar from a third world country.
The plot of the Enter the Dragonrevolves around outstanding martial arts student Lee (Bruce Lee), who is recruited by an intelligence agency and then uncovers the evil Han’s (Kien Shih) white slavery and drug trafficking ring located on a secret island fortress. Along with martial arts champions Roper (John Saxon) and Williams (Jim Kelly), Lee infiltrates the stronghold and enters Han’s brutal tournament. Lee and his partners fuse skills in Karate, Judo, Tae Kwon Do, T’ai chi ch’uan and Hapkido, in a now classic fight-to-the-death epic battle, all staged by Lee himself.
Bruce Lee, John Saxon, and Ahna Capri star in Enter the Dragon, which co-stars Bob Wall, and Shih Kien and introduces Jim Kelly. Music is by Lalo Schifrin. Written by Michael Allen, the film was produced by Fred Weintraub and Paul Heller in association with Raymond Chow. Robert Clouse directed.
Special Features:
Commentary by producer Paul Heller
New Featurette No Way As Way
New Featurette The Return to Han’s Island
New Featurette Wing Chun: The Art that Introduced Kung Fu to Bruce Lee
Interview Gallery featuring Lee’s wife, Linda Lee Caldwell
Vintage pieces
Backyard Workout with Bruce Lee
Curse of the Dragon
Location: Hong Kong with Enter the Dragon
Blood and Steel: The Making of Enter the Dragon
Personal Profile Bruce Lee: In His Own Words
Five trailers
Seven TV spots
ENTER THE DRAGON 40TH ANNIVERSARY BLU-RAY DISC™ AND DVD
Street Date: June 11, 2013
Order Due Date: May 17, 2013
Run Time: 98 minutes
Rating: R
Pricing: $49.99 SRP
Catalog# / UPC: 1000351089 / 883929285693
Note: All enhanced content and memorabilia listed above is subject to change.
