Naked Baby Photos
Well...almost. Plus: are comics dying?
Buried in a recent NY Times story about Disney laying off Ike Perlmutter was the news that Marvel Entertainment no longer exists.
You read that right—the publishing division of Marvel is technically no more.
Yes, they still make comics (thanks Disney!), and yes, this was probably just a Machiavellian ploy to get rid of Ike and his minions, with no real impact on operations…
But I can’t help but feel like it was the end of an era.
Sort of like when DC Comics moved its offices to Burbank from New York, where it had been located since the industry was founded.
The move to the West Coast signaled a profound shift in the industry—to me, at least.
Not good, not bad, but a shift nevertheless. The comics business was changing—and nothing was sacred.
So as the business changes yet again, here’s a little stroll down memory lane, and a salute to the comics business of yesteryear…
When I was 12, my family visited NY and I dragged us all to the offices of DC and Marvel.
Long gone were the days when fans could just pop in and meet the people who made the comics, but what the hell did I know? I was 12.
Outside the DC offices at 666 Fifth Avenue, I stood in awe of the flaming sixes at the top of the building. And then inside (this was pre-9/11, when you could go in and out of just about any building you wanted), I was greeted with a Superman statue and a pedestal filled with comics.
And the very kind receptionist, named Ruthie, who gave me an envelope of comic books to take home.
(One of which may or may not have been the very age-inappropriate horror anthology WASTELAND, which had a big impact on NIGHTMARE THEATER.)
For those of you saying, “Photos or it didn’t happen,” here are two extremely awkward pictures for your enjoyment...
Years later, I wound up working at 666 Fifth Avenue in the early 2000s (ironically, it was where I was on 9/11, when suddenly you couldn’t just walk into any building you wanted…).
I always wondered where the DC offices had been in relation to mine.
So of course I recently went down the rabbit hole reading Todd Klein’s excellent blog about DC’s office space at 666 (part 1 here) when I came across a familiar name in the comments:
Eagle-eyed readers will spot the name Frank Pittarese, editor of DREAMQUEST and BLAZING BLADE OF FRANKENSTEIN.
When I told Frank the story above (along with the photo evidence), we discovered he started at DC the same month I visited.
Is it possible we were there on the same day?
Who knows. But I like to think we passed in the lobby, two people who’d become collaborators many (MANY) years later.
On what?
Well, thanks for asking.
It's the final days on Kickstarter for issue 3 of BLAZING BLADE OF FRANKENSTEIN, featuring a death match for the ages between Mary Shelley's monster and Lovecraft's Cthulhu...
If you've already joined us, thank you!
And if you've been meaning to jump in, you can click any of the images above or...
Meanwhile, the horror anthology that Wasteland wrought, NIGHTMARE THEATER, just slayed our first stretch goal.
As promised, we’ve added TWO new limited edition 11 x 17 posters for sale at the concession stand:
PLEASE NOTE: As with our other 11 x 17 posters, these cannot fit into a gemini mailer, so $15 of domestic shipping and handling is INCLUDED in the price.
If you already purchased one of our other posters and would like to combine shipping, simply increase your pledge by $10 or $15 for the respective poster (or $25 if you want both) and then drop us a line to let us know which one(s) you want. We'll happily ship them all together.
We also recently announced the Bloodline/Lone Wolf Comics crossover print, which we like to call…
Beauty and the Beasts!
Longtime backers will remember that Rob Multari was a volume 2 contributor (his 8-page short story with artist Justin Booth is called Hush Little Baby), but he is best known as the creator of NIGHT WOLF, an urban fantasy, werewolf coming-of-age drama.
Together, we are offering an awesome, exclusive 5x7" print by Evan Scale for everyone who backs both Rob's current NIGHT WOLF campaign and NIGHTMARE THEATER 3D:
Physical tier backers of both campaigns will get a physical copy of the print, and digital backers will receive a hi-res digital version. For FREE!
NIGHT WOLF is already up to issue 8, but Rob's made it very easy to catch up, and he always puts together a great selection of covers.
If you love stories about supernatural beings like werewolves, vampires, demons, witches, zombies and more (and, hey, you're here, so I'm pretty sure you do!), do yourself a favor and snag this free print.
CLICK HERE TO CHECK OUT NIGHT WOLF 1-8
And of course, if you haven’t already, don’t forget to…
CLICK HERE TO BACK NIGHTMARE THEATER 3-D
Hey Siri, turn off shill mode.
If the two books above prove nothing else, the comics business may be changing, but it sure ain’t dying.
Sure, the delivery method may not look like it did in the late 80s, but the medium is the same.
So if you love comics, get them wherever you can: at your LCS, on Substack or Webtoon, through crowdfunding, or—*chokes on vomit*—Amazon.
And who knows. Maybe in a few (or MANY) years, when the industry changes yet again…
You’ll be posting embarrassing photos of yourself, reminiscing about the way comics used to be.
- Clay