Film & TV Adaptations book available

I got the proof copy and reviewed it today, so now Film & TV Adaptations of Comics - 2007 edition by Rhode and Vogel is available for order.

149 pages long, it's a listing of the thousands of adaptations to film and television of hundreds of comic strips and books. Worldwide, it includes the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Russia, the Netherlands, Senegal, India, Turkey, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia among others. Cross-referenced by cartoonist and translated titles, it includes a bibliography and index.

You can buy it via Lulu.com for $12.99 (plus shipping) or $3.00 for a pdf download at http://www.lulu.com/content/1677433.

This is not a book that you can sit and read - it's a reference book, and one that might spark a bit of curiosity. Lulu will let you see a preview, and here's a sample section of late additions from the Errata page:

Titles of strips samples:

Suramu Danku [Slam Dunk] (Takehiko Inoue)
Suramu Danku (Japan: Toei Animation, 1993-1996; 101-episode anime tv series)
4 DTV anime movies (Japan: Toei Animation, 1994-1995)

Oldboy (Nobuaki Minegishi)
Oldboy (South Korea 2003)

Scary Godmother (Jill Thompson)
The Scary Godmother, Vol. 2: The Revenge of Jimmy (USA 2005; animated DTV movie)

Wulffmorgenthaler (Mikael Wulff and Anders Morgenthaler)
Wulffmorgenthaler? (Denmark 200?; tv series)

Cartoonists cross-reference sample:

Eliot, Jan (Stone Soup cartoonist)
Oregon Art Beat Episode# 915 - Illustrator Jan Eliot (Oregon Public Broadcasting, 2008; segment on January 10, 2008 tv show)


Bibliography samples:

• Ehrenreich, Ben. 2007. “Comic Genius? Before there was even a comic book to adapt, 'Cowboys and Aliens' had a movie deal [Platinum Comics],” New York Times Magazine (November 11).
• Kohanik, Eric / CanWest News Service. 2008. “Painkiller Jane comic-book heroine,” Saskatoon Star-Phoenix (January 5).
• Takahashi, Rumiko and Stephen Ayres (trans.). 2005. The Art of InuYasha (2nd Edition), San Francisco: Viz Media.
• Unknown. 2008. “New cartoon series in ‘Wiener Zeitung’: Danish duo ‘Wulffmorgenthaler’ to feature daily on the new English page,” Wiener Zeitung (January 4).

Post letter on shrinking comics

Shrunk!
Washington Post Saturday, January 5, 2008; Page A15

Regarding the recent changes to the Comics pages:

Why not just eliminate the comics altogether? That would be far more humane than shrinking them to the extent that you have. Many readers, children included, have less than perfect eyesight; many of us now need magnifying glasses to read your comics. Our family has always enjoyed "Slylock Fox" together, but none of us can now "find the six differences" in the shrunken panels. This is almost sadistic and an affront to readers paying to subscribe to material we are now unable to read.

-- C. Randall Williams

City Paper's Faustian bargain?

Did the City Paper's editors make a Faustian bargain? This week's issue again has no strips beyond local Classen's -- but it does still have new artwork by Ullman and Belschwender! Was the trade the cost of the syndicated strips vs the original spot illos?

Zadzooks on toys again

"Comic-book characters take action as figures," by Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times January 5, 2008.

In this week's free papers

The City Paper has a surprise review of Frederik Peeters' Blue Pill, in which he discusses having AIDS. The online version is shaky now, but pick up the paper or try the link later.

Also, the Onion has its best comics list - six in the newspaper and more online. See "The Best Comics Of 2007," by Noel Murray, Keith Phipps, Tasha Robinson, Onion January 3, 2008.

Richmond's Chris Pitzer interviewed

Chris runs Adhouse Books in Richmond and has published some lovely stuff recently including books on Paul Pope and James Jean. Chris is a regular at SPX which is where I got to know him better this year, especially at the underattended Matt Wagner signing at Big Planet comics. He publishes absolutely gorgeous books. Check out Tom Spurgeon's "CR Holiday Interview #8: Chris Pitzer," Comics Reporter (January 4 2008).
Then go buy those two books in particular.

OT: Allan Holtz's Strippers Guide

On his Daily Cartoonist site, Alan Gardner put a link to Allan Holtz's Strippers Guide project. For years, Allan's been doing research on comic strips and in the 1990s he had a subscription cd service where you could buy a cd of his research. It was a great resource and I'm glad to see an update is going to be coming along. Click on the video and let him know what you think. Nobody has more information on obscure strips than Allan and I still use the earlier version regularly.

Oct 4-5: Small Press Expo

Announcing Small Press Expo (SPX) To Be Held October 4th and 5th, 2008

For Immediate Release
Contact: Warren Bernard
Phone: 301-537-4615
E-Mail: webernard@spxpo.com

Bethesda, Maryland; January 3, 2008 - Small Press Expo announces that its yearly festival of alternative comics, graphic novels and political cartoonists will be held Saturday, October 4th and Sunday, October 5th, 2008. The Expo will be once again be held at the Marriott Bethesda North Hotel & Conference Center, where we are pleased to announce that the 2009 Small Press Expo will also be held.

By popular demand, SPX 2008 is shifting its exhibition hours to a Saturday-and-Sunday show. The show will be open to the public Saturday from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm and Sunday from noon to 6:00 pm. Admission prices remain the same they have been for the last few years at $8/day, $15 for both days.

"The show has grown over the years to the point where we really need both days of the weekend to let exhibitors sell their comics," said Executive Director Karon Flage. "This makes it easier for attendees to come to the show and see what all of our creators and publishers have to offer."

Exhibitor registration is now open through the SPX web site at http://www.spxpo.com, where registration forms and guidelines can now be downloaded.

More information on guests, panels and other SPX information will become available in the succeeding weeks.

For further information, please contact Warren Bernard at webernard@spxpo.com.

SPX, a non-profit organization, brings together more than 300 artists and publishers to meet their readers, booksellers and distributors each year. Graphic novels, political cartoon books and alternative comics will all be on display and for sale by their authors and illustrators.

SPX culminates with the presentation of the 12th Annual Ignatz Awards for outstanding achievement in comics and cartooning. The Ignatz is the first Festival Prize in the US comic book industry, with winners chosen by balloting during the SPX.

SHOC: Hoiman & Douglas Aircraft

Warren Bernard contributes a Secret History of Comics bit to start off the new year right:

The first scan shows the cover of the book called "Hoiman", below it is the paper wrap around that was fortunately intact. This is because nowhere in the book itself is there any reference to where this stuff was published, which the wraparound says was for the Douglas Aircraft Plant in Chicago, IL.

Douglas Aircraft at this time had its main plants out in California, some others in Oklahoma, there were 7 total Douglas plants in operation during World War II. Now the question is, were these cartoons just done for only the in house mag for the Chicago plant? Did the other plants also use "Hoiman"? If not, what cartoons did they use? And who is Phil Brown? What else did he do? Where there other "Hoiman" books? How long did "Hoiman" run? Was "Hoiman just for Douglas Aircraft, or did other manufacturers also use the cartoons?

The Secret History of Comics does not give its secrets up easily...

Comics journalist Scott Rosenberg heading to NYC

Scott who has written many a comics story for the Examiner and then the Express reports, "I’m leaving for New York to become an assistant editor for amNew York, the largest circulated newspaper in Manhattan. It’s a free daily commuter, just like Express. The circulation is more than 300,000. But my byline will still be showing up in Express as a freelancer, hopefully covering comics still, but definitely still writing."

Best of luck in the New Year, Scott, although I'll miss running into you at Big Planet.

more Red Meat in DC

Apparently the Red Meat strip by Max Cannon will also be carried in the Onion starting this week. Or only in the Onion, if the City Paper really dropped its strips.

More bad news from City Paper?

The December 28th issue doesn't have any comics in it, except for local cartoonist Ben Classen's Dirt Farm. Unfortunately, I'm afraid this will carry into the new year as a cost-cutting measure. The Blade seems to be having similar issues, and certainly hasn't realized that Bechdel's gone back to bi-monthly for Dykes to Watch Out For, if they're even still running it.

On the positive side, they did hire Harvey Pekar-collaborator and nice guy Ed Piskor to do an illustration.

So the new year may bring far less reason to pick up two of the local free papers...

Local comic book contender John Reed

photo by Darrow Montgomery for the City Paper.

Catching up on some reading before the new year, I see John Reed of Alexandria was featured in "Shock and Draw: Jon Reed is suddenly a rising star in the world of superhero comics," by Josh Eiserike, Washington City Paper December 21, 2007. Reed is competeting in a Comic Book Idol contest.

Something to do on Jan 1

At the Renwick Gallery near the White House, the exhibit "Going West! Quilts and Community" has a Comics Quilt, circa 1935, with a bunch of comics characters sewn into it. It's on loan from the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer.

Another option would be the Uncle Scrooge and Carl Barks show that opened right before Christmas at Geppi's Entertainment Museum. I plan on seeing that in January myself.

Jan 1: Big Planet's New Year's Day sale

Bethesda's Joel P reports: Tuesday, January 1st, from 12-5. Everything in the store 20% OFF!

Jan 19: 3rd annual D.C. Counter Culture Festival

Cartoonist Matt Dembicki writes, The D.C. Conspiracy will hold its third annual D.C. Counter Culture Festival at Dr. Dremo's on Sat., Jan. 19. It'll be especially meaningful because Dremo's will close the following week. (I've been fillin' my pint glass there since it opened in 1993. It's a local institution.) For a list of vendors (comics, crafts, wares, etc.), bands and other entertainment (tribal bellydancers, freak show, etc.), visit www.dcconspiracy.com. There's no admission fee.

I'm going to try to make it this year!

Richard Thompson covers Post Magazine

See his blog for the story. I'm behind on reading the paper again which is why this post is a day late, but I'm looking forward to seeing this.

Comics Research Bibliography updated

My co-author John Bullough updated our Comics Research Bibliography over the holidays. We went from 18,500 citations to 23, 880 in our neverending battle to aid research on comic art. I don't check the email account listed on the site anymore due to literally thousands of pieces of spam, but feel free to post comments and suggestions here.

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE FRIDAY 01-04-08

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE FRIDAY 01-04-08
By John Judy

(NOTE: Comics are once again delayed two days because of the holidays. Happy New Year!)

30 DAYS OF NIGHT, VOL. 8: RED SNOW written and drawn by Ben Templesmith. Y’know, at first I was going to snark about how the vampires’ current prey seems to be dead horses, but then I noticed this was by the guy who drew the first “30 Days” series. This one’s set in Russia circa 1941 and looks very much worth a read. Recommended.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #10 by Joss Whedon and Georges Jeanty. Willow and the Buffster meet a demon while Dawn confides to Xander how she “filled out” and then some. Recommended.

DOCTOR SOLAR MAN OF THE ATOM VOL. 4 HC by Various Creators. This volume collects issues #23-32 of the original series, plus a guest-shot in “Occult Files of Dr. Spektor #14”, thus completing the entire Silver-Age run of this early Gold Key/Wilson hero.

DOKTOR SLEEPLESS #4 by Warren Ellis and Ivan Rodriguez. It was solicited for October of last year and sucks a lot less than the Avatar Press website which sucks quite a bit. Featuring a variant wrap-around cover and a 1-in-15 variant cover, which is the sure sign of a great (and highly collectable!) comic.

END LEAGUE #1 by Rick Remender and Mat Broome. From the creator of “Fear Agent” comes this new series about the last superheroes on earth and their quest for the hammer of Thor. Good thing mythological figures are public domain, eh? This one has a preview up on YouTube. Worth a look.

ESSENTIAL POWER MAN AND IRON FIST VOL. 1 SC by Lotsa People including Chris Claremont and John Byrne. “It’s so dark… I can barely make it out… is it…the Bottom of the Barrel?! What’s it doing up there?”

GRAVEL #0 by Warren Ellis & Mike Wolfer and Raulo Caceres. Okay, it’s “co-written” by Ellis which historically means the soggy cocktail napkin was handed to the interns to decipher and a room full of lemurs to type up. That said, it has a rave from Garth Ennis in which he says “It’s like someone made a comic just for me.” That and the art by “Crecy” co-creator Raulo Caceres elevate this to a must-read for the week. Recommended.

NORTHLANDERS #2 by Brian Wood and Davide Gianfelice. Prince Sven the Viking is back home and looking to square accounts with the uncle who’s taken all his stuff. It’s like “Hamlet” if Hamlet had less depression, more A.D.D., and no mommy issues. Recommended, but not for kids.

OMEGA THE UNKNOWN #4 of 10 by Jonathan Lethem and Farel Dalrymple. An interesting series featuring a new take on the classic Steve Gerber cult hero. Possibly it will read more smoothly in trade but for now it’s a good read for those who like a slow build.

PATH OF THE ASSASSIN VOL. 8: SHINOBI WITH EXTENDING FISTS SC by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima. From the guys who gave us “Lone Wolf and Cub”, it’s more stuff like that! For ages 18 and over!

POWERS VOL. 11: SECRET IDENTITY SC by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Avon Oeming. Collecting issues #19-24 featuring the adventures of two homicide cops in a world of super-heroes and trademark Bendis patter.

PRIDE OF BAGHDAD SC by Brian K. Vaughan and Niko Henrichon. Finally in soft-cover for all us cheapskates out here in Comicsville! From the gifted creator of “Ex Machina”, “Y the Last Man”, and “Runaways” this is the story of four lions who escape from the Baghdad Zoo after a 2003 bombing raid. Highly recommended unless you live in San Francisco. (Too soon?)

TEEN TITANS: YEAR ONE #1 of 6 by Amy Wolfram and Karl Kerschl. Pretty much what it says, notable for the vaguely manga look to the art and the scripting being done by the writer of the animated Titans series. Worth a look.

THUNDERBOLTS #118 by Warren Ellis and Mike Deodato. Dark Speedball beats up his shrink. Super-heroes are about the wish-fulfillment, kids…

ULTIMATE HUMAN #1 of 4 by Warren Ellis and Cary Nord. Finally a comic book about Chuck Norris! From now on there are no comic shops. There are only Chuck Norris shops! (Actually it’s about Iron Man fighting the Hulk. Don’t tell Chuck.)

UNCANNY X-MEN #494 by Ed Brubaker and Billy Tan. Hockey goalies dream of being padded like this latest X-crossover. Just remember: It’s this comic that helps make “Criminal” possible. (C’mon, you bought all the others….)

www.johnjudy.net

Zadzooks on Satchel Paige

A review of James Sturm's new book, among others at "Double Paige narrative looks at baseball, racism," By Joseph Szadkowski, Washington Times, December 29, 2007. He also looks at a Daredevil collection and JG Jones' 52 covers.