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Cartoonist Johnny Hart Dies

Cartoonist Johnny Hart Dies

Johnny Hart, of B.C. and Wizard of Id fame, died Saturday while working at his storyboard in Endicott NY. He was 76. 

B.C. appears in more than 1,300 newspapers worldwide – quite an achievement in these days of newspaper mergers and disappearing strips.

No stranger to controversy, some of Hart’s cartoons had hard Christian themes. A Sunday page published on Easter, 2001 was deemed by many Jews to be quite offensive – a menorah transformed into a cross, accompanied by Jesus Christ’s dying words. According to the Associated Press, critics said it implied that Christianity supersedes Judaism. Similar themes have appeared in the strip since, leading to a number of cancellations.

Nonetheless, both B.C. and Wizard of Id (produced by Hart and Brant Parker) will be remembered as two of the funniest and most clever newspaper comic strips launched since World War II.

Ironically, he quotes Jesus in today’s Easter strip (reprinted below) saying "Assuredly I say to you today you will be with me in Paradise." Here’s hoping for you, Johnny.

Blades of More Box Office Gold

Blades of More Box Office Gold

For the second week in a row  Will Ferrell is the top box-office draw as Blades of Glory remained the highest-grossing picture of the holiday weekend, according to the Associated Press.  The film took in $23 million, followed by Disney’s animated Meet the Robinsons with $17 million.  Ice Cube’s Are We Done Yet was third, with $15 million.

Grindhouse, the hilarious send-up of B-movies made by Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez, earned $11.6 million, according to early estimates.  This is considered to be a disappointing showing, as it was expected to top the box office with grosses in the $27 million range. 

"With these two filmmakers’ pedigree and the overall cool factor that this film had going for it, you would have figured it would have done a lot more business," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.  However, with a three-hour-plus length, the movie could be shown only half as often as the other films.

Grindhouse played to big crowds on the East and West coasts but failed to click with audiences in the Midwest and South, Weinstein said.

With theatrical receipts, overseas sales, television and home-video revenues, Grindhouse"will turn a profit on its $53 million budget, Weinstein said. The company hoped that word of mouth from those who did see it would sustain it at theaters in coming weeks, he said.

Our week in review

Our week in review

This is the week ComicMix went interactive, adding our comments feature and Active Conversation/Latest Comments windows at the right.  Rest assured there’s much more to come, but in the meantime here’s your weekly catch-up on our regular columns:

And I think it’s high time I got caught up myself on Mellifluous Mike Raub‘s latest podcasts:

Listen to ’em as you work on your taxes; that’ll take the edge off!

(more…)

An August primer

Writer John August notes, "Ever since I announced that I’m writing Shazam!/Captain Marvel, I’ve gotten some great questions and comments from longtime fans of the character, many with detailed pleas to include a specific cherished piece of the mythology. But when I tell people face-to-face that I’m writing a Captain Marvel movie…their eyes go up and to the left as they try to remember, who the hell is Captain Marvel?…

"So, in the interest of spreading general knowledge about Captain Marvel and why he kicks ass, I thought I’d share a reading list. Don’t worry; there’s no test. In fact, consider this a gentle education (or re-education) on why some of the best writing today is inked and colored."  And he goes on to recommend in detail a step-by-step list for folks new to comics, new to the DC Universe, and new to the specific character.  It’s always a good sign when a writer’s done his homework!

More 300 views

More 300 views

You know something’s become a cultural phenomenon when it’s used as a springboard for humor pieces, on the assumption that viewers and readers will "get it" because the source material has become firmly embedded in our collective consciousness.  So it was with great amusement that I read Dr. PZ Myers’ take on 300 wherein he reveals that the movie is really about "a retelling of the creation-evolution struggle!" Next up, his similar interpretation of Grindhouse!

On a more serious note is artist Chris Weston’s I Hate 300 analysis, in which he pulls no punches in finding the movie "the most racist, homophobic and conservative film that I’ve ever had the misfortune to endure."  Weston later confesses that it took him about a week to get over the experience, so for good or ill the movie seems to be making quite an impact.

Tasty Easter videos

Tasty Easter videos

ComicMix would like to wish all our readers a very happy Easter, wherein we pay tribute to Eostre, the Great Mother Goddess of the Saxons — otherwise known as Astarte in ancient Greece, Ishtar in Assyria, Ostara in Norse myth, and Peeps in modern times — by eating questionable foodstuffs high in sugar content.

And comic book peeps are no different.  Paul Dini interviews the Easter Bunny on his latest Monkey Talk, wherein he can’t resist nibbling on his interview subject’s chocolate relative; and Rich Johnston tries repeatedly to give away a free Cadbury’s Creme Egg, below:

We have a theory as to why Rich was having trouble.  Here’s hoping your holiday is sweet and springtime fresh!

 

Virgin Galactic’s new home

Virgin Galactic’s new home

Auntie Beeb confirms that the Virgin Galactic spaceport proposal is a go.  Residents of New Mexico have voted their approval of "a new tax to build the nation’s first commercial spaceport."

Virgin Galactic will be building in Dona Ana County, described as " a relatively poor and bleak swathe of desert in southern New Mexico with fewer than 200,000 residents," who will be supporting billionaire Richard Branson via a 0.25% increase in the local sales tax.  This increase is expected to raise about $50 million towards the project’s estimated $200 million pricetag.  Presumably the rest will come from Branson’s petty cash drawer.

The spaceport, whose supporters are spouting the usual "bring thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in space tourism revenue to the area" lip service, is expected to open in 2009, catering to elite members of Branson’s tax bracket which will pay about $200,000 each for a 2.5-hour flight.  Not including sales tax, presumably.

Bureaucracy of robotics

Bureaucracy of robotics

When it comes to robots, it’s fairly well acknowledged that Japan’s been kicking other countries’ butts since the days of Astroboy.  Now, reports IESB, "the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has drafted a hugely complex set of proposals for keeping robots in check. The document, entitled Draft Guidelines to Secure the Safe Performance of Next Generation Robots, extends to nearly 60 pages of civil service jargon."

The document calls for the formation of a special study group — including lawyers — to draw up a set of firm proposals to govern the development of robots.  But they’re not counting on robot lawyers!

According to our step-sister website Engadget, "Under Japan’s plan, all robots would be required to report back to a central database any and all injuries they cause to the people they are meant to be helping or protecting. The draft is currently open to public comment with a final set of principles set to be unveiled as early as May." 

And did you know Japan is not the first country to draft ethical robot legislation?  South Korea and Europe had already unveiled their versions.  Apparently South Korea in particular has been wrestling with this for awhile.

For the Birds

For the Birds

Sean McKeever notes, regarding his takeover of writing chores on DC ‘s popular Birds of Prey series with the departure of long-time writer and fan favorite Gail Simone: "My first issue will be #112, and the commitment is open-ended."  He also links to his latest interview with Newsarama’s Vaneta Rogers.  For her part, Simone says she’s leaving the book because "I was simply offered a project I couldn’t turn down. A dream book with a dream art team, and a real chance to reshape comics’ history."  Let the speculation commence!

(Full disclosure: My husband inked Birds of Prey for about a year.)