Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
I know that many ZONErs are fans of movies, comic books, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Conan the Barbarian. So I just had to link to a video short called Conan the Barbarian: The Musical.
Thanks to Miss Cellania for the link.
That’s Otis Frampton getting ready for his close-up. Most regular ZONErs know Otis from my many posts about his 7-7 Sundays.
That’s Sean Gordon Murphy holding up the Rocky & Butkus sketch that he did for me at the convention. I was really excited to get on Sean’s sketch list and even happier when I saw the end result. You know that I’ll post a scan of it in the coming weeks.
Here we have Wayne Osborne and Uko Smith. I’d never met either of these guys before. They were set up almost directly across from Big Beatty’s table. I noticed that Uko was the artist and Wayne just seemed to be hanging out at the table… sort of like I do with Beatty. Then I noticed that Wayne looked a bit like me (or is it that I look a bit like him?).
So I told Beatty, “that artist brought his own Zablo“. Beatty looked across and did a double take. He got to chuckling. That’s when he noticed that Wayne saw him looking and laughing. So Wayne mouthed something that I won’t repeat. Now Beatty didn’t know what to do. He’d been caught making fun of a stranger, or at least it seemed that way. That’s when Big John realized who it was. John had met Wayne before years ago. Wayne didn’t think Beatty was talking about him, he was just being silly to get John’s attention. At any rate, it was pretty funny if you were there.
Starting tomorrow, I’ll post some photos of some of the art that made it to the auction. Hope you’ll be back.
A fun part of conventions is the fans who dress up in amazing costumes. Heroes Con always has a large number of fans who do just that and this year was no different.
The photo above is of Gene Gonzales and Joe Pekar. Contrary to what you might think, those aren’t costumes.
Andrew Chairpar made a surprise appearance at the show. I was fortunate enough to get not one, but two pieces from Andrew. He worked up Sly from The Expendables and Sly from Spy Kids 3-D. I’ll of course post scans in the coming weeks.
Luckily it won’t be weeks until my next batch of Heroes Con photos. Until tomorrow…
I can’t think of a better way to jump start Part 5 of my 2010 Heroes Con report than with a photo of Dave Wachter holding a commission of Sly from The Expendables that he did for me at the show. I first met Dave at Heroes Con 2009 and got a head sketch from him. Since then I’ve been back for several other sketches. As you can imagine, I hope that the one pictured won’t be my last. You can bet I’ll post a scan of it soon so you can see it in all it’s glory.
Mick Foley was a guest at Heroes Con this year. I took along my copy Have a Good Day so that I could get Mick to autograph it. Mick was only going to be at the show on Saturday. Since he’d never been at any convention I’d ever attended, I wasn’t sure what kind of crowd he’d draw.
Saturday rolled around and still no buzz about Mick being at the show. Perhaps getting his autograph would be a piece of cake. I went by the booth where Mick was going to sign and asked when he could be expected. They said he had just arrived in town, was getting lunch and should be at the booth around 1:30. They said if I showed up then, I’d be right on time. I checked my watch and saw that I had time to run across the street, grab a bite and still be back before 1:30.
So that’s what I did. In fact I got back about 1:25. I headed over to get in line and was surprised to find Mick already signing. I started back tracking the line which wrapped around a corner and then down a long aisle and then out of sight. Before I had taken 3 steps I was stopped by a young lady working at the show. She said, “If you’re wanting to get in line for Mick Foley, you’re too late. The line has been capped.”
I was stunned. She repeated herself. I explained that I had checked at the booth and was told if I returned by 1:30 I would be okay. She said the demand for Mick was more than anyone anticipated and the line was capped. I thought about arguing my case, but realized it would do no good and it wasn’t her fault. The line was huge, by far the biggest I’d seen at any show for any guest.
I hought, “Good for Mick Foley.” I was happy that so many people wanted to meet him and get a photo or autograph. Perhaps I’d meet him at another show. How could I complain? The day before I had gotten the most amazing sketch from Brian Stelfreeze for my Stallone art collection. I’d also received a call from my boss saying that I was getting a promotion! Heck, maybe I really would get a chance for Mick Foley’s autograph at another show… little did I know that my good luck wasn’t over (and I’ll tell you about that in another post soon)!
I wish I knew more about this piece. It was donated to the HEROES CON art auction. I don’t know the artist or who won the art, but I did think it was a pretty cool piece. Hope you like it as well.
Today we start off Part 4 of my 2010 Heroes Con report with a shot of Adam Hughes. Most times when I post a photo of an artist it is because i got something from him/her at the show [sketchbook, sketch, autograph, etc.). That’s not the case this time.
So you’re probably wondering, “Why the photo of Adam Hughes?” I posted it because the show ran for three full days and the shot above lasted less than a minute and i just happened to be there! There for what you ask? (And I’m glad you did!) That photo proves that Adam didn’t have a line of fans in front of him the entire show. Now I’m sure that some folks are going to say that the crowd was photoshopped out and that there is NO WAY that Adam had even a second when he wasn’t 3 deep in a crowd of fans. All I can say is, I wouldn’t have believed it, if I hadn’t seen it myself.
The shakey cell phone photo above shows two of the nicest (and most talented) artists you’d ever want to meet. The fellow on the left is Sean Gordon Murphy and the gent on the right is Casey Jones. I was very fortunate to get a wonderful sketch of Rocky Balboa and Butkus by Sean. And, as you guessed, I will post it in the not to distant future.
You’re probably wondering why the photos suddenly got better. No, it’s not just because of the subjects. The photos up to this point had been taken using my cell phone. We’re done with them. From here on out it’ll be digital camera work. This one was taken by my buddy John Beatty. He was kind enough to allow me to post it here instead of his site.
Tomorrow starts Heroes Con 2010, Part 5. I hope you’ll join me. At least the photos will look better.
Can you believe it’s already time for Part 3 of my report on HEROES CON 2010? So today we kick off with a photo of Andy Kuhn. Andy’s blog is a daily stop on my internet travels. I love his bold sense of design and unique art style. I was fortunate to get a sketch from Andy at Heroes — he riffed on Sly as Jack Carter and I plan to post it soon.
I first met Chris Stevens at a con last year. Chris was there as a fan although his work had been making a big splash over at Deviant Art. When I heard that Chris was going to debut his first sketchbook at Heroes this year, I knew I had to get one. I pre-ordered and Chris even included a headsketch of Sly as Jack Carter. [As you probably guessed, I’ll post it in the near future.]
You’re probably wondering why Laura Martin, the best colorist in the business, is in such a great mood. You would be too, if you were so good at your job that if someone looked up what you do, there’d be a picture of you. Don’t believe me? Click on this link: Best Colorist in Comics.
What’d I tell you?
Jay Potts, the creator of the very hip blaxplotation web comic World of Hurt, worked up a Jack Carter sketch for me. Yeah, he definitely caught the tough guy image that Jack Carter projected!
Before you click over to Jay’s web comic, be advised that World of Hurt is suggested for MATURE READERS due to violence, profanity and a bunch of other stuff that can be found in the best blaxplotation movies.
Okay, here we are with Part 2 of my report on HEROES CON 2010. No, that’s not Lois Lane posing with Superman. It’s actually John Beatty’s wife, Bella. You gotta give her credit since she made the drive up with John and me. Surviving THAT trip would take superhuman effort on the part of anyone.
That’s Bella posing with The Black Panther and Captain America. Or maybe it’s them posing with her. You can make that call.
Take a close look at the photo above. Why does Ron Salas have the surprised look of someone who just sat in something? Now swing your sights over to Joel Carrol. Why does Joel have the satisfied smile of a man thinking “mission accomplished”?
Again, you make the call.
It’s hard to believe that HEROES CON 2010 was three weeks ago. Usually within the week following HEROES, I post my con report and photos. Of course, most years, the con is held later in the year and so when I return home I still have at least a week of vacation left. This year HEROES was held earlier in the month and I didn’t have the luxury of vacation when I returned home.
Enough with the excuses. In an effort to get my con report and photos up before next year’s HEROES CON, I will post three pictures a day along with some comments.
That’s Chris DiBari. He’s worked on some pretty neat comics including adaptations of The Warriors and The Crazies (especially cool since Chris is a big movie buff). Currently Chris is working on the very well received western comic Pale Horse. Chris is also a Stallone fan and he did a cool take on Sly from Nighthawks which I will post in the near future.
That’s Jay Potts, the creator of the very hip blaxplotation web comic World of Hurt. As you can see from the photo above, Jay rocked a Jack Carter sketch for me. I’ll post a scan soon.
Today’s post is about a few things; one of which you may find surprising. But first, some introductions, the handsome fellow on the left is professional wrestler [and best selling author] Mick Foley aka Mankind, Cactus Jack, etc. The lady on the left is Linda McMahon, wife of billionaire and WWE owner, Vince McMahon. There will be another post, later this week, about Mick Foley. Today’s post concerns Linda McMahon.
Last year Linda McMahon stepped down as CEO of the WWE. It wasn’t part of a storyline or a gimmick to do with the professional wrestling company. Ms. McMahon decided to run for the US Senate. Really. Here’s her website. I kid you not. Kinda surprising, right.
Today TVGuide.com posted a piece on Ms. McMahon’s campaign ad that calls professional wrestling,,,
“a soap opera that entertains millions each week”.
TVGuide says that in the ad Linda McMahon…
…lets it slip that the wrestling “isn’t real.”
The article goes on to say…
That sound you hear is grown men all over the country weeping.
Will someone please send Gina DiNunno, the author of the article, word that pro wrestling fans have known for years that professional wrestling is scripted. Make that decades. If this was the 1950’s, 60’s or even the 70’s, perhaps some fans would think that pro rasslin’ was real, but c’mon, let’s get, uh, real. Professional wrestling is scripted. Anyone who doesn’t know that probably doesn’t have the intelligence to read the TVGuide article.
So what’s more surprising:
My vote is for #3.
This trailer for Predators does exactly what a good trailer should. It makes me want to see the movie.
If you’re a fan of those Brisk Iced Tea commercials (you know, the ones with Bruce Lee, Rocky Balboa, Frank Sinatra, Babe Ruth, Elvis, Bruce Willis, and others) then you owe it to yourself to check out UFC’s Chuck Liddell and Little Chuck in Way of the Brisk.
Last night SPIKE TV featured The Ultimate Fighter Finale. Here are my predictions along with the results:
Rich “The Raging Bull” Attonito vs. Jamie “chosyn-1” Yager.
Prediction: Attonito by decision.
Result: Attonio won by ref stoppage due to punches in the second.
My Record for the Night: 1-0
Spencer “The King” Fisher vs. Dennis Siver.
Prediction: Fisher with a fairly easy win.
Result: Silver won by a unanimous but close decision.
My Record for the Night: 1-1
Chris “The Crippler” Leben vs. Aaron “The A Train” Simpson.
Prediction: Simpson with the tough decision win.
Result: Leben wins via TKO in the 2nd
My Record for the Night: 1-2
Matt “The Hammer” Hamill vs. Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine.
Prediction: Hamill by KO.
Result: Hamill wins a close contest by majority decision.
My Record for the Night: 2-2
Court “The Crusher” McGee vs. Kris “Savage” McCray.
Prediction: McGee will once again find a way to win.
Result: McGee won via 2nd round submission (choke)
My Record for the Night: 3-2
Final Thoughts:
Tonight SPIKE TV will broadcast The Ultimate Fighter Finale. Here are my predictions:
Rich “The Raging Bull” Attonito vs. Jamie “chosyn-1” Yager. I’m not a Yager fan. I think if Anttonito can get past Yager’s kicks and pressure him, Yager will fold.
Prediction: Attonito by decision.
Spencer “The King” Fisher vs. Dennis Siver.
Prediction: Fisher with a fairly easy win.
Chris “The Crippler” Leben vs. Aaron “The A Train” Simpson. I’m not a Leben fan, but he is tough and is probably favored.
Prediction: Simpson with the tough decision win.
Matt “The Hammer” Hamill vs. Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine. This should be a good fight. I like both of these guys. Jardine will try to stick and move and stay away from Hamill’s power punches and takedowns. I think that eventually Hamill will tag Jardine and it will be lights out.
Prediction: Hamill by KO.
Court “The Crusher” McGee vs. Kris “Savage” McCray. Again we have two likeable guys facing off. Both have found ways to win when the going got tough. This should be a good scrap.
Prediction: McGee will once again find a way to win.
Today while I was checking out Bookgasm.com, I came across a review of Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth. I’d never heard of the book or author before, but the tag line intrigued me:
The Ultimate Secret. The Ultimate Agent. The President’s Vampire.
So I read a little further and was told…
Christopher Farnsworth’s book is an amalgam of the HELLBOY comic and the men’s adventure series THE DESTROYER.
The book sounded interesting and then I came across this trailer that made me want to learn a bit more. So I went to the Amazon page and saw that it had 36 customer reviews with an overall 4 1/2 star rating and with no rating lower than a 3 [and only 4 of those]! I’m putting Blood Oath on my To Be Bought List… or perhaps even my Father’s Day Request List [Hint! Hint! to my sons].
