Category: Art

Neal Adams, John Beatty & Conan

Posted on by

The sketch above comes from the Zablo vault with a bit of a story.  The sketch was a copy of a Neal Adams original.  The colors [by John Beatty] were done on a copy of the sketch.

I was at an OrlandoCon back in the late 70’s.  I was just starting to collect original art.  I was approached by a guy about my age who had a pencil sketch of Conan by Neal Adams that he was offering me.  The sketch was in a mat covered by acetate.  It was a really nice sketch, even if it was a bit costly.  I showed it to my buddy John Beatty.  John looked at it and then took a closer look.

“It’s a xerox.  It’s a good copy, but it’s definitely a copy.”

The guy acted surprised… with acting being the key word.  I couldn’t swear that he knew the piece was fake, but you’d be hard-pressed to convince me otherwise.  Needless to say, I didn’t buy the piece, but I think the guy gave me a copy because I’m pretty sure that’s it posted above.  The colors were added to the copy on one of Beatty’s visits to my apartment in Orlando when I was still in college.

At least that’s how I remember it.

Dave Wachter’s Rocky

Posted on by

Dave Wachter joins us this week with his take on Sly pounding the beef from Rocky. I’m a huge fan of Dave’s art and own several pieces [and hope to get more in the future]. He’s a tremendous artist, but more importantly an all-around decent guy. You can see more of Dave’s art at his site. – Craig

Mike Torrance Presents: Sly as Dracula

Posted on by

Mike Torrance aka The Krayola Kidd did this for me last year. I thought I had posted it, but…

Mike Torrance is an artist who does it all — he pencils, inks and colors. You can see more of Mike’s art at The Daily Sketch with The Krayola Kidd and his Deviant Art site. You’re also going to be happy to know that once a month Mike has a contest for someone to win a free sketchcard! Mike is available for commissions and his prices are very reasonable. Check him out.

CigarBox Guitar, Blind Willie Johnson & Thomas Boatwright

Posted on by

I like something in almost every genre or type of music.  Pop, rock, blues, disco, gospel, oldies… you name it and I can tell you artists and/or songs I like.  Truth be told, I really didn’t know much of anything about cigarbox guitar music.  One thing I do know is if the genre as a whole is a good as “If I Had My Way: A Cigarbox Guitar Tribute to Blind Willie Johnson” then I’ve been missing out big time.

Oh, and by the way, Thomas Boatwright did the very cool CD Cover.  You can see more of Thomas’ art here and here.

Batman: Year One – Feature Length Animation

Posted on by

One of my all-time favorite graphic novels is Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli. I was pleased to read in The Hollywood Reporter today that a feature length animated adaptation is in the works with Bruce Timm on board to executive produce.  Timm indicates that the production will closely follow the graphic novels story and look when he says:

“The source material is surprisingly cinematic; it’s a pretty straight forward literal retelling… Mazzucchelli’s artwork is beautifully composed and we were able to refer to the comic for about 80 percent of the camera setups.”

Ben McKenzie will provide the voice for Batman/Bruce Wayne and Bryan “Breaking Bad” Cranston will do the same for Liet. James Gordon.  You can read more about the production here and here.

Bring Back Black Cross

Posted on by

The drawing above is of a character created by Chris Warner called Black Cross. He made his first appearance [Black Cross, not Chris Warner] in Dark Horse Presents #1. DHP #1 was an anthology and the first comic published by the folks who would go on to give us Frank Miller’s Sin City, Eric Powell’s The Goon, Hellboy by Mike Mignola, and on and on and on.

Black Cross was popular enough to spin off into a mini-series, a couple of stand alone short comic stories and a one-shot. At one point, Black Cross was close to becoming a big screen feature with Howie Long in the title role. At about the same time another Black Cross mini-series was in the works called “My War.” Neither it or the movie ever happened.

I always hold out hope that one day Chris Warner will bring back Black Cross.

Lee Marvin, Mel Gibson & Jason Statham

Posted on by

Variety reported today that…

  • Jason Statham is in negotiations to star in the thriller “Parker” with Taylor Hackford directing… based on the book series by Donald Westlake [aka RIchard Stark], [and] revolves around a thief who, though at times is forced to be a killer, still lives by a code of honor that includes never stealing money from people who need it. His word is his bond, and if he is crossed he will strike back relentlessly.

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Richard Stark’s Parker novels as well as the graphic adaptations by Darwyn Cooke.   I also enjoyed Lee [“Point Blank”] Marvin and Mel [“Payback”] Gibson in movies based on the Parker character.  I have little doubt that Taylor Hackford directing Jason Statham will be welcome additions to the Parker legacy.

Return to Ape Greatness?

Posted on by

The original “Planet of the Apes” is still one of my all-time favorite movies.  Unfortunately, as with most movie series, the sequels got progressively worse.  And let’s not even talk about the Tim Burton remake.

So, with that said, I have no idea how good the new “Apes” movie, “Rise of the Apes” will be.  I do like the concept art that I’ve seen, so maybe there is hope for a return to greatness.

Matthew Warlick’s Sketchbook Deal

Posted on by

Want to hear about the best deal in comics today?

It’s Matthew Warlick’s 2011 Sketchbook.  Longtime readers will remember when Matthew drew Jack Carter and videoed the process.  Ah, but I digress, you want to hear about the great deal Matthew is offering on his sketchbook.  Okay, here’s the skinny.  The sketchbook is 48 pages for five bucks, PLUS you get a free quickie sketch in the back of the book!

How can you beat that?  You can’t.  My sketchbook came today with a drawing of Rocky. [I’ll post it soon.]  As they say on tv, get your orders in quick, because this deal is too good to last long!