Last Stop Kickstarter by Trey Walker and Hoyt Silva

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Last July I talked up the web comic Last Stop by Trey Walker and Hoyt Silva.  Here’s the premise…

Time is ticking for the World’s last superhero. Disillusioned, Lincoln Adams (AKA Unstoppable) must make peace with the changing world around him—can there truly be a place for him in a world without Supers? After learning of his terminal disease, Lincoln sees an easy way out; however, the re-emergence of an old Arch-Nemesis, and a new shadowy masked figure, turn Lincoln’s plans of an easy passing on their head. Can Lincoln stop this new threat before the disease stops him?

If this sounds like something you’d like, you should check out the Last Stop Kickstarter.   I’m on board.  I hope you’ll consider joining me.

Very Rare “First Blood” Poster by Drew Struzan with Stallone & Kirk Douglas!

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This comes to us from my collection. It is a rare advertisement for First Blood from when the project was first promoted. Yep, Kirk Douglas was set to play Colonel Trautman. 

Douglas left the production when he learned that the original ending (in which Douglas’ character killed Rambo) had been changed to allow Rambo to live.  Richard Crenna was brought in and the rest, as they say is history.

The great Drew Struzan did the poster!

– Craig

Click on the photo to see a bigger version.

Larry Cohen – RIP

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Larry Cohen, the writer – director – producer who made his mark in television and feature films, has died at the age of 77.

I first became aware of Mr. Cohen when he wrote and directed the low-budget horror cult classic It’s Alive.  After that I saw Cohen’s name pop-up from time to time but it wasn’t until Cohen’s adaption of Mickey Spillane’s I, the Jury that I really began to take notice.

Cohen’s I, the Jury, directed by Richard T. Heffron starred Armand Assante as Mike Hammer.  That film really hit a sweet-spot for me.  As I learned more about the people behind the making of the film I discovered that Cohen had created two television series that I loved as a kid: Branded and The Invaders!

Cohen broke into the business writing for television creating scripts for The Fugitive, The Rat Patrol, Custer (3 shows I loved as a kid) and many other series.  He went on to create Branded and The Invaders.  Cohen’s tv work led to theatrical films where he wrote and directed Black Caesar, Hell Up in Harlem, Q and others.

Had Cohen just been known for Branded or The Invaders or I, the Jury, his impact on my youth would have warranted a mention here, but to think that he did those and so much more…

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Larry Cohen’s family, friends and fans.

DNA May Have Revealed the Identity of Jack the Ripper!

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It’s hard to believe, but DNA evidence may have led to the discovery of Jack the Ripper’s actual identity!  Probably the most infamous of all serial killers, Jack the Ripper killed at least 5 women, mutilating their bodies and then writing letters taunting the police to catch him.  Of course they never did despite having several likely suspects.

DNA was found on a shawl believed to have belonged to Ripper victim, Catherine Eddowes.  Using DNA evidence found on the shawl and a sample from Eddowes great grand daughter, it was confirmed the shaw contained blood from Eddowes.

Additional DNA evidence was found on the shawl.  This additional DNA was tested against the DNA of a descendant of Aaron Kosminski and they got a match!  Kosminski was one of the prime suspects at the time of the murders, but police were unable to generate enough evidence to prosecute him.  Kosminski was committed to an insane asylum where he died in 1919.

Source: Bleeding Cool.

Robert B. Parker’s Angel Eyes (A Spenser Novel) by Ace Atkins is Coming!

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I read my first Spenser novel, The Godwulf Manuscript, sometime back in the mid-70’s.  My grandfather passed the paperback on to me.  From that point on I was a die hard Spenser / Robert B. Parker fan.  Every year a new Spenser novel came out and it was like catching up with an old friend.

When Robert B. Parker died in 2010 I was afraid that Spencer had died as well.  I was pleased to learn that novelist Ace Atkins had been selected to carry on Spenser’s adventures.  Spenser was in great hands and the series continued to be a favorite.

On November 19th, a new Spenser novel, Angel Eyes will be released.  Here’s the synopsis…

In the latest thriller featuring the legendary Boston PI, Spenser heads to the City of Angels to meet old friends and new enemies in a baffling missing person case that might shake Tinseltown to its core.

Ellie Sharp left her Boston family with big dreams of making it as an actress in Hollywood. But two years later, she disappears from her Silver Lake apartment without her friends or police knowing what happened. Soon after the Sharps hire Spenser to find her, another person goes missing–this time Spenser’s protege-turned-L.A. investigator, Zebulon Sixkill.

Spenser and Hawk must hit the ground running on the West Coast to follow a twisted trail into the world of drug cartels, casting couches, hedonistic parties, and a whisper network of industry players looking to take down a legendary producer. In a town where glitz and glamour are only a thin veneer over a dangerous underbelly, even Spenser will have his work cut out for him.

I can’t wait.  My pre-order is in!

‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ Trivia

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Film School Rejects presents 25 Things We Learned from the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Commentary.  Here are three of my favorites…

2. We see the number 42 early on — and will see it in the film again — and it’s a reference to Miles Morales’ (Shameik Moore) origin story involving a lottery that landed him at his elite prep school. It was also Jackie Robinson’s jersey number, but “it has nothing to do with Douglas Adams.”

9. It was Ramsay’s idea to hold off on the visual comic language — word bubbles, panels, etc. — until Miles is bitten by the spider.

“If you hit pause anytime a train goes, because everybody wanted to animate Stan [Lee], he’s in almost every single train.”