The “Burn” Poster and Trailer are Here!
Here is the Burn poster and trailer!
The “Charlie’s Angels” (2019) Trailer is Here!
Well… this isn’t my Charlie’s Angels (original tv show era) or the next generation Charlie’s Angels (Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu) but it is the new Charlie’s Angels…
The “Midway” Poster and Trailer are Here!
I like the old time feel to the Midway poster. They trailer isn’t bad either.
Midway — In theaters November 8, 2019. Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Luke Evans, Aaron Eckhart, Nick Jonas, Etsushi Toyokawa, Tadanobu Asano, Luke Kleintank, Jun Kunimura, Darren Criss, Keean Johnson, Alexander Ludwig, with Mandy Moore, Dennis Quaid and Woody Harrelson.
Coffin Bound by Waters, Dani, Simpson and Bidikar
Coffin Bound by Dan Waters (writer), Dani (artist) and Brad Simpson (colorist) is a new series coming from Image Comics. It doesn’t look or sound like a typical comic…
Chased by an unstoppable killer, Izzy Tyburn has decided that if the world won’t have her in it, it can have nothing of her at all. She’s retreading her life, leaving nothing but burned rubber, ash… and the sun-scorched bones of those who get in her way.
“This is a book all about the inevitability of death, and the choice each of us faces between coming to terms with it, or trying to deny it,” said Watters. “This is a book drawn beautifully by Dani, with Brad Simpsons’ filthy bright colors. This is a book about cars, guns, and sex—and how each of those things does little to stave off the bottomless void waiting just beyond the veil of our known existence. What was the question again?”
Image has an eight page preview that you can see here. I’m on board.
Things Learned from Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ Commentary
Film School Rejects presents 26 Things We Learned from Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’ Commentary. Here are three of my favorites and some of my thoughts at the end…
3. People expected him to take a goofy tone with the film, “but that was the furthest thing from my mind.” He wasn’t a big comic book fan, but he loved Batman and the psychology of the character meaning he knew he wanted to stay true to that idea.
5. He met with numerous actors for the title role who fit the traditional “square-jawed” and heroic look, but he eventually realized “there’s a reason why a guy dresses up as a bat, he’s trying to create a menacing persona.” Michael Keaton has the crazy eyes, but physically he’s someone who would need costuming to make him seem scarier.
24. He took older films like The Man Who Laughs (1928), vampire movies, and the work of Val Lewton as inspirations for Batman.
I wasn’t a fan of Michael Keaton being cast as Batman. I get now why Burton went with MK after reading #5 above.
The Poster and Trailer for “Hold Your Breath” are Here!
I like the poster and the trailer (even better) for the French apocalyptic film Hold Your Breath!
The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time
Jim Vorel at Paste came up with his list of The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time. Vorel’s list is a good one. Here’s his top ten and mine (using just the films on his list).
The 50 Best Zombie Movies of All Time |
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Jim Vorel |
Craig |
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10. Dawn of the Dead (2004) |
10. Day of the Dead (1985) |
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09. Zombi 2 (1979) |
09. Planet Terror (2007) |
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08. Night of the Living Dead (1968) |
08. 28 Weeks Later (2007) |
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07. Evil Dead 2 (1987) |
07. Shaun of the Dead (2004) |
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06. Shaun of the Dead (2004) |
06. Zombieland (2009) |
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05. Day of the Dead (1985) |
05. Dawn of the Dead (2004) |
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04. 28 Days Later (2002) |
04. Train to Busan (2016) |
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03. Re-Animator (1985) |
03. 28 Days Later (2002) |
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02. Return of the Living Dead (1985) |
02. World War Z (2013) |
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01. Dawn of the Dead (1978) |
01. Night of the Living Dead (1968) |
Although it didn’t make the list, I’d have added The Crazies.
The “Black and Blue” Trailer Looks Great!
Wow! Black and Blue looks great.
Neal Adams’ Savage Sword of Conan Painting and the Theft That Didn’t Happen
The cover above is to the Savage Sword of Conan #2 and was created by the legendary Neal Adams. It’s always been one of my favorite Conan and Neal Adams’ covers.
I had the good fortune to see the original painting at an OrlandoCon. The year was 1978 or ’79 (to the best of my memory). Mike Kott, a buddy of mine, had it on display for sale. He was asking $10,000.00 for it. Although that was a ton of money back then (and is still a lot today), the painting in person was so nice, it had more than one person saying, “If I was a rich man…”
I’d see Mike Kott on a fairly regular basis. He’d come into Jim Ivey’s Cartoon Museum or over to my apartment (we had a weekly card game) or I’d go by his place. It was on one of those get-togethers that Mike said his house had a break-in and thieves had made off with some cash (not a lot). Nothing else had been taken. Mike said that they had to have seen the painting but obviously hadn’t known the value of the art. Not long after that Mike sold the painting.
$10,000.00 was a small fortune back then. As to what the painting is worth today… I won’t venture a guess, but I will say that Neal Adams gets $50 for his autograph and fans line up all day long.
Deep Silence by Jonathan Maberry / Z-View
Deep Silence by Jonathan Maberry
Hardcover: 480 pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
First sentence…
“We’re coming up on it,” said the pilot.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
A series of earthquakes rock the eastern seaboard and are accompanied by outbreaks of temporary madness causing people to attack each other or commit suicide. Joe Ledger and his team soon learn that terrorists using advanced technology are behind the strikes. The terrorist have plans that will leave the United States and much of the world helpless unless they can be stopped and the clock is ticking!
Maberry’s latest outing for the DMS team is perhaps their toughest yet and will lead to the end of the Joe Ledger series as we know it. As you can imagine, series regulars (who survive) will be forever changed.
Deep Silence is another great Joe Ledger tale and like all of the others in the series is highly recommended.
Rating: 5 of 5 stars.
The Best On-Screen Duos
Nate Williams and ComingSoon came up with their list of The Best On-Screen Duos. Here’s their top ten…
- Paul Newman and Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
- Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in Fight Club (1999)
- Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in Hot Fuzz (2007)
- Mel Gibson and Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon (1987)
- Steve Martin and John Candy in Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
- Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in Step Brothers (2008)
- Jonah Hill and Michael Cera in Superbad (2007)
- Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in The Notebook (2004)
- Tom Hanks’s character Woody and Tim Allen’s character Buzz in Toy Story (1995)
- Mike Myers and Dana Carvey in Wayne’s World (1992)
Williams’ list is a good one. Click over and check out his comments for each choice.
If I was going to make an addition to the list I’d put in one or both of the following…
- Sly Stallone and Carl Weathers in Rocky III
- Sly Stallone and Talia Shire in Rocky
Who’d I miss?
The “Killerman” Trailer is Here!
I like this trailer for Killerman.
Blue Fox Entertainment
In theaters on August 30thCast: Liam Hemsworth, Emory Cohen, Diane Guerrero, Nickola Shreli, Suraj Sharma, Mike Moh, Zlatko Buric
Directed By Malik Bader
In KILLERMAN, a New York City money launderer named Moe Diamond (Liam Hemsworth) desperately searches for answers after waking up with no memory, millions in stolen cash and drugs, and an insane crew of dirty cops violently hunting him down.
HeroesCon 2019 – Craig’s Report
It’s hard to believe that it’s been a week since HeroesCon 2019 kicked off. We’ve been going to the show for decades and it’s always a treat. Here are the highlights…
I went to the show hoping…
- to get a Richard Cox commission of either Rocky or Jack Carter
- to pick up a Rocky sketch that Matthew Childers gifted me
- to pick up a Jack Carter piece pre-ordered from Chris Visions
- to get Mark Evanier to autograph my Jack Kirby: King of Comics hardcover
- to get a sketch from Pat Quinn of Jack Carter
- to pick up Dan Panosian’s new sketchbook and get a Rocky head sketch
Friday
My first stop was Richard Cox’s table. My buddy, Little John had told me that Richard’s list filled up on Thursday night. I thought LJ was messing with me and it turns out he was. I was able to get on Richard’s list.
I was also able to get on Pan Quinn’s and Dan Panosian’s lists. Matthew Childers’ had my sketch ready and also shared some cover commissions that he was doing for fans. Little John had ordered a cool one to add to his Search for Superman theme. Matthew also was working on a Batman & Godzilla cover. Inspired pairing, that one!
I met Shane Douberly for the first time and commissioned a Rocky head sketch from him. I then spent the bulk of the day visiting with old / new friends and walking the convention floor. My sketch commissions were set up, so the pressure was off.
Little John and his wife Patricia, along with my better half, Doralya, and son Chris headed over to the Red Ginger for a great hibachi dinner. LJ repeated his feat of draining the saki sprayed from the bottle. Luckily, there were no college kids at our table this year to try to replicate this feat.
After dinner we headed over to the HeroesCon Drink and Draw for charity. LJ and Patricia scored a few very nice pieces. Chris Flick created 3 sketch cards for the charity. LJ picked up two and I scored the other (Stallone from Expendables). Yeah, Chris knows what I like.
Saturday
Because of flight issues (detailed at ME’s blog), Mark Evanier and Sergio Aragones weren’t able to arrive until Saturday. So ME was my first stop. I was able to meet Mark Evanier and get his autograph in my Kirby hardcover. I also attended a panel that ME moderated. The panel featured my best bud, John Beatty along with Mike Royer and Klaus Janson. The panel was informative and it was nice to see so many people there to hear inkers talk about their craft.
Today was art pick-up day. Richard Cox had a great Rocky (III) painting waiting for me. Dan Panosian’s piece was ready as well (Rocky II). Dan’s sketches are second to none. (By the way, Dan was turning all of the proceeds of his head sketch commissions over to the Heroes Initiative charity.) When I picked up my sketch, I also purchased Dan’s second sketch book. Pat Quinn created a very cool Jack Carter sketch for me. Chris Visions was still working through his sketch list but assured me it would be ready by Sunday.
Hainanu Saulque goes by the name Nooligan. I’d never met him before, but after seeing his Rocky: Once and Future Champ print, I knew he was an artist I wanted to meet. Nooligan is an amazing artist with a unique style. We spoke about Stallone, films, comics and more for the better part of an hour. I usually don’t buy prints, but I purchased both Nooligan’s Rocky and John Wick prints. Hopefully some day I’ll get a Nooligan original for my Stallone art collection. Meeting Nooligan was a definite HeroesCon highlight this year.
Dinner that evening was at the Redeye Diner with my wife, son, Little John & Patricia, Richard Cox and his wife. My only regret about eating at the Redeye Diner is that we only made it there once this trip. Great atmosphere and food.
Our next stop was the HeroesCon Art Auction. LJ showed a lot of restraint purchasing just one piece — a painting by Josh Greathouse. I made it most of the way through the auction but called it a night before it was over since we were heading home early Sunday.
I proud to say that I was able to complete all of the things I had hoped to get done. It was great meeting Mark Evanier after following his blog daily for nearly 20 years. I was happy that my son Chris joined me at the show on Saturday. Comics aren’t his thing, but he had fun at the panel (he’s known John Beatty his whole life) and art auction.
It was great seeing old friends and meeting new. The art on display was, as always, jaw-dropping. I need to give a special shout out to Casey Jones. His art book was filled with page after page of beautiful art ranging from sketches to inked pieces to published pages.
I’ll be posting my art pick-ups in the coming weeks.
A few years ago, we began going to Charlotte on Thursday night to meet with friends before the show starts on Friday. Sadly, we usually cut out before the show ends on Sunday. Little John has convinced me that we need to stay for the full experience. Starting next year, that will be the plan. Let the countdown begin!
Pandemica by Maberry, Sanchez and Fotos is Coming!
Jonathan Maberry is teaming with artist Alex Sanchez and colorist Jay Fotos to present Pandemica a new comic series coming from IDW. Maberry describes Pandemica…
“Pandemica reflects a lot of fears about the direction in which our country and the world is going,” says Maberry. “It deals with a diverse group of people who discover that a secret organization is selling designer pathogens for use in ethnic cleansing. My story is about the kinds of people who take a stand against this, who find the courage to fight back, who put themselves in harm’s way to protect the innocent.”
IDW’s press release states…
The first issue of Pandemica, slated for release in September, will depict an America on the verge of war, as a shadow government prepares to launch “purity bombs” for ethnic cleansing, and a small group of scientists and former SpecOps shooters bands together to avert this disaster.
If this sounds like something you’d like be sure to let your local comic shop owner know.
The 50 Best Comedy Movies Ever
Film School Rejects posted their choices for The 50 Best Comedy Movies Ever. It’s a good list. Using just their list here are my top five choices along with a few thoughts…
5. Airplane (1980): I saw this on it’s initial theatrical release with a full theater. Rarely have I ever seen and heard so much laughter. Granted, repeated viewings are still funny, but there is nothing like watching for the first time with an audience that gets it.
4. Blazing Saddles (1974)
and
3. Young Frankenstein (1974) Again, two more films I saw in packed theaters on their initial release. Mel Brooks was on a roll with his comedic love letters to westerns, movie-making and horror films. They still hold up!
2. Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) A comedy with a message and neither suffers at the expense of the other. Remember, “There is no fighting in the war room.”
1. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944): I love this movie. It’s one I like to share with folks who’ve never seen it. It’s also one I like to revisit every so often.
Two movies that didn’t make the list but should have: Richard Pryor Live and Step Brothers.
