Category: Art

Almost Time for Tampa

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If all goes according to our plan, in two weekends [November 12th to be exact], I will join my buddies, “Big” John Beatty, John “Star Wars” Higashi, and “The James” Howell for our tri-annual trip to Tim Gordon’s Tampa Comic Book and Toy Show. That’s Tim pictured above. He’s the guy not wearing a mask.

The show is always a blast. If you’re a long-time ZONE reader, then you’ve heard me speak about the show many times before. If you’re new to these parts, then click HERE and you’ll get a preview of the fun.

Hope to see some of you at the show. I’ll be the guy looking for Stallone sketches!

Chaykin’s Blade

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If you’ve been keeping up, then you know that I’m looking forward to Howard Chaykin’s art on the soon to be released Blade comic series from Marvel. Heck, you’ve probably read my post about it here and here. And since you’ve been keeping up, you probably already read this interview with Chaykin.

I guess the only thing left is to buy the comic!

 

Beatty & Carter @ the Society

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Last Saturday, Big John Beatty called together the second monthly [at least so far] meeting of the Sketch Society. I first told you about Sketch Society here and posted my reports on the first and second meetings here and here. Big John has posted pics and his report of the second meeting over at his blog. I’ve also posted the quick sketch that John did [without reference] of Sly as Jack Carter.

The next Sketch Society meeting will be held in October at a date and place to be determined. One thing is for sure though, my birthday is in October and I’m going to push for the Sketch Society meeting to have a Stallone theme! ; )

Atomic Pulp and Other Meltdowns [2006]

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Tonight I want to tell you about a blog run by Chris Mills. It’s called “Atomic Pulp and Other Meltdowns” and it’s definitely worth bookmarking. Chris writes about pop culture as well as occasional glimpses into his life as a struggling writer.

The fact that Chris is “struggling” speaks volumes about how hard it is to make it as a writer. You see, in 2004, Chris wrote a universally well-received one shot, Gravedigger: The Scavengers [which remains my favorite single issue comic of the last 2 years].

Chris was also the editorial director on Mickey Spillane’s Mike Danger [where he worked with Spillane and Max Allan Collins]. Chris was also the editorial director on Neil Gaiman’s Lady Justice. Chris wrote a year-long run on Leonard Nimoy’s Primortals comic series.

Chris was also the creator and editor of Noir, an illustrated crime fiction magazine that featured art and stories from some of the biggest names in both the comic and mystery fields. I could continue to list Chris‘ credits, but you’d probably prefer me to shut up so you can check out his blog.

But one more thing before I close… if you ever get the opportunity to pick up a copy of Gravedigger: The Scavengers [with art by Rick Burchett], please do. I first wrote about the one shot here and then again here.

I love this comic and would love to see more Gravedigger stories by Mills and Burchett. If after reading it, you feel the same way, please let your local comic dealer know… and it wouldn’t hurt to drop Chris a line as well!

Higashi’s Kindness Knows No Bounds

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John “Johnny Star Warz” Higashi is one of the nicest guys you could ever meet. In addition he has one of the most unbelieveable art collections you’ll ever see [if you click HERE].

John hits more conventions than many pros and is constantly getting new additions to his collection. The cool thing about John is despite the fact that he’s one of the most active collectors you’d ever meet, he’s a real down to earth guy. And his kindness is legendary. Last weekend he was at Baltimore Con. John took 125 artists, their relatives and friends to the Orioles vs Yankees game. Can you imagine?

So of course when Johnny SW came to Sketch Society today, he treated everyone to donuts. Yeah, it ain’t a trip to a pro baseball game, but then again Sketch Society ain’t the Baltimore Con either! – Snort –

Sketch Society Round 2

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That’s Big John Beatty getting caffined up before he starts sketching away at the second gathering of his Sketch Society. This time we’re meeting at Java Junction in Holly Hill, Florida. As you can see in the shot below there’s already a dozen folks here drawing away. I’ll post more as the session goes on!

Sketch Society II

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That’s Lon Midnight in the pic with me. I’m the mug on the left. I’ll tell you more about Lon sometime…

… but right now I just want to remind you that John Beatty is bringing together the Sketch Society this Saturday at 2pm. If the gathering is anything like last time, it’ll be a blast. For full details click HERE. I plan to do some live blogging during the get-together so even if you can’t be there, you can take part via the internet!

Andrew Robinson Gets Carter [2006]

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I first met Andrew Robinson when he was crashing at my buddy John Beatty‘s joint years ago. Andrew was just breaking into comics with his creation “Dusty Starr.” A blind man could see that this kid had TALENT. Andrew was also cool to hang with because he was so friendly and humble. I wasn’t back in to collecting original art then and so I missed my chance at a Andrew Robinson “Stallone.”

 

I was excited to see that Andrew was going to be a guest at this year’s Heroes Con. I figured that if I was lucky Andrew might agree to a Stallone drawing [if I could get on his sketch list]. I shouldn’t have worried. Beatty stopped by Andrew‘s table and it was as if the years melted away. They were like brothers who hadn’t talked in months. As it turned out, after Heroes, Andrew was coming to Florida to visit his family [who now lived less than an hour from Daytona]. One thing led to another and Andrew decided to ride back with Beatty and John Highasi. The bad news was that I would miss out on the drive back since I had other commitments. The good news was that Andrew was going to do a Stallone drawing for me… and he wanted to wait until he got to Florida to do it!

 

Andrew ended up drawing Sly as Jack Carter during one of his visits to Big Beatty’s. Not only did Andrew do a killer job, but he was having so much fun that he decided to throw some colors on it as well! Here’s the original, the first color piece the second color piece and even the third!

If you like what you’ve seen of Andrew‘s art, then be sure to check out Next Exit Productions which is Andrew‘s home on the web. You’ll also be glad to hear that Dusty Starr #1 is now available. If you can’t get it from your local comic book shop, you can get it straight from Andrew by clicking HERE. Be sure and also check out the first ever Dusty Starr Sketchbook. Like everything else that Andrew works on, it will make a fine addition to your collection!

"Jazzman" Does It All

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Ernest “Jazzman” Resendes is something of a throwback. He’s a talented artist, musician, actor, director… and a heck of a nice guy on top of everything else. Jazz still has that childlike wonder about the world, no, make that the universe. He’s constantly branching out and using his talents on various projects.
Want to see what Jazz has been up to? Then check out his site, you’re sure to find something that appeals to you!