My summer-long garage sale have concluded, so I’ll be offering new
goodies from my Vast Accumulation of Stuff to my online readers.
Here’s how these online sales work:
First come, first serve. In other words, the quicker you e-mail me,
the better your chance of getting the item or items. Only e-mail
orders will be accepted.
All the items are in very good or better condition unless otherwise
noted.
Items will be shipped via United States Postal Service. There is
a $5 shipping/handling charge for up to four items via media mail.
Add $1 for every two additional items. The charge helps defray my
expenses.
Payments are by check, money order or PayPal. My PayPal address is
the same as my email address. Purchases will be shipped within a
week of checks clearing, money orders received or PayPal payments
received.
Because this is a one-man operation done between family, household
and work responsibilities, these items are only available to buyers
within the United States and to APO buyers.
Here are this week’s new items...
1000 COMICS YOU MUST READ BEFORE YOU DIE: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO COMIC BOOKS, GRAPHIC NOVELS AND MANGA. Foreword by Terry Gilliam. General editor Paul Gravett. Hardcover. $18
CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN ARCHIVES VOLUME 1. Unopened. $20
DISTANT NEIGHBORHOOD VOL. 1 by Jiro Taniguchi. Softcover. $11
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA VOLUME 4. Reprints issues #157-186 with one story by Tony Isabella. Signed on request. Softcover. $15
MAMMOTH BOOK OF ZOMBIE COMICS (2008). Softcover. $10
MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE ANNUAL #2 (1977) by Jim Starlin. Features Thing, Spider-Man, Avengers and Thanos. $6
OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE 41st EDITION. Hero Initiative edition with cover by John Romita Sr. and Tom Palmer. Hardcover. $15.
PUNISHER: FRANKEN-CASTLE. Hardcover. $20
ROUGH JUSTICE: THE DC COMICS SKETCHES OF ALEX ROSS. Edited by Chip Kidd. Softcover. $13
SHOWCASE PRESENTS TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED VOLUME 1. Reprints issues #1-20. Softcover. $10
SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #27 (1979). First Daredevil art by Frank Miller. $6
STAN LEE’S SUPERHERO CHRISTMAS by Stan Lee, illustrated by Tim Jessell. Hardcover. $8
Thanks for your patronage.
Tony Isabella
Monday, October 15, 2012
FINDING YOUR PERSONAL COMIC-CON
From Comics Buyer’s Guide #1695:
“For most, Comic-Con is the one point in the year where we don’t
care what people think of us, because we are amongst family - the
more than 100,000 people who are “one of us.” That’s empowering.”
- Harry Knowles, founder, Ain’t It Cool News
There’s something about Comic-Con and it’s somewhat akin to magic.
My opening quote comes from a foreword to Comic-Con Episode IV: A
Fan’s Hope [DK Publishing; $24.99] by filmmaker Morgan Spurlock and
featuring photography by Alba Tull. There are also forewords by
Stan Lee, Joss Whedon and Thomas Tull, but they are but supporting
players to the book’s real stars: the hundreds of images of people
clearly having a wonderful time at Comic-Con.
I have not been to Comic-Con in years, the cost of attending being
incompatible with the expense of putting two kids through college
at the same time. The last time I was there, I thought it was the
biggest event of any kind I had ever attended and my friends tell
me it’s gotten bigger every year. Part of me fears that and part
of me wants to see it. I’m not at all surprised that, less than a
month after the 2012 Comic-Com, four-day passes for the 2013 event
are already sold out. For Americans and for many fans and creators
from around the world, Comic-Con is still the Holy Grail of comics
in specific and popular culture in general. I don’t think they are
wrong in thinking this.
Watching from outside, as I have done for several years now, Comic-
Con is a whirling blur of Hollywood celebrity, cosplaying, comics
news and, of course, the complaints. Given the size of Comic-Com,
it would be a miracle if someone couldn’t find something to bitch
about there.
The Hollywood stuff isn’t my main interest, but I understand the
desire to express to, say, the cast and crew of The Big Bang Theory
or Castle, how much pleasure their work has brought one. Even at
age 60, I can see the excitement of being able to do so in person.
I love cosplayers. Even the weirdest are wonderful to me. If you
can’t pretend you are rocking that Wonder Woman or Captain America
costume at Comic-Con, where else can you indulge in such a harmless
moment of fantasy?
Surprisingly, the comics news doesn’t interest me as much. Yeah,
yeah, Marvel and DC, tell me how wonderful your next big event is
going to be. That’s nice, children, but don’t expect me to get all
excited about it until I’ve read it and it’s proven to be even half
as good as you claimed it would be.
The comics news I found most interesting this year? That would be
how many creators who had made their bones at big publishers were
now exploring creator-owned projects elsewhere. Maybe the lessons,
the tragic lessons, of Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Bill Finger, Jack
Kirby and so many others are finally sinking in to the professional
comics community.
The complaints? Some are surely justified and others not so much.
It’s the nature of Comic-Con.
From comics fans, there are complaints that our sacred ceremony has
been invaded by outsiders, by fans of Twilight or whatever the big
teen angst fantasy is this year. There was a time when that would
have bothered me as well. But, really, are those fans so different
from you or I? In a world where so many groups and individuals do
everything they can to divide people, shouldn’t we embrace an event
that brings people together?
Looking through Spurlock’s addictive book, I see people very much
like me. Maybe they’ve never read a comic book, just as I’ve never
seen a Twilight film. But they love what they love as passionately
as I love what I love...and I think there’s plenty of room for all
of us at Comic-Con. Or, at least, a percentage of all of us until
Comic-Con can get a bigger boat.
Mark Evanier, my friend of four decades, has said many wise things
throughout our history. One of the wisest was his observation that
everyone can find their own personal Comic-Con within the vastness
that is the Comic-Con. You who will be fortunate to attend Comic-
Con 2013 should embrace that most excellent advice.
So when do the 2014 tickets go on sale?
******************************
DC’s Archive Editions are getting thinner and more expensive, so I
don’t buy many of them these days. However, since I had only read
five of the 16 adventures reprinted in Batman Archives Volume Eight
[$59.99], I went for that one.
This volume collects the Batman stories from Detective Comics #155-
170, dated from January 1950 to April 1951, all published before I
was born. It’s an interesting era in Batman history, an time when
criminals could still pay the ultimate price for their wrongdoing,
though never at Batman’s hand. They were crime stories, but never
as garish and violent as those found in actual crime comic books.
The writers of half these stories have yet to be identified, adding
to the mysteries in those stories.
The legend of Batman grows in a number of these tales. We see the
unveiling of the Batmobile of 1950, see a thousand and one trophies
of Batman and Robin’s crime-fighting career, learn untold tales of
the Bat-Signal and the previously unknown origin of one of Batman’s
most persistent enemies. One of these legend-building tales - “The
Strange Costumes of Batman” - is the source of one of my greatest
fan-fantasies. I dream of owning action figures of those costumes
and displaying them in a room-size model of the Batcave. Wonder if
I could get a Wayne Foundation grant for that?
The art in this volume is excellent. Cool covers by Win Mortimer.
Interior art by Lew Sayre Schwartz, Dick Sprang, Charles Paris and
Jim Mooney. Not as boisterous or dark as today’s Batman art, but
solid storytelling through and through.
These are fine stories from before Batman and Robin were burdened
with amateur psychoanalysis from writers who too often downplay the
simple goodness of heroes who have suffered great personal loss and
risen above it to become champions of justice and the protectors of
their fellow citizens. There is excellent writing in many modern
Batman comic books, but I miss those older incarnations of Gotham’s
guardians. There’s room for both in today’s world.
Batman Archives Volume Eight is pricey but still worth reading and
owning. Sign me up for volume nine.
ISBN 978-1-4012-3376-1
******************************
Adam Beechen has released a new edition of Hench [Sonnova; $14.99].
Drawn by Manny Bello, Hench earned a place in 1000 Comic Books You
Must Read. Here’s what I wrote about it there:
“Misfortunes lead a basically decent man into hiring himself out as
a henchman to villains. It’s one of those obvious ideas that
aren’t obvious until someone else comes up with them. Treasures
like Hench bring new life to the super-hero genre.”
For this new edition, Beechen has added a 64-page sequel drawn by
Ethan Beavers. In this new chapter, Mike Fulton’s life takes him
through some surprising changes, some dark, some hopeful. It’s a
thrilling exploration of the world of heroes, villains and henchmen
with a most satisfying conclusion and many nods to classic super-
hero comics. If you like super-hero comics that walk a different
route than their Marvel and DC counterparts without disrespecting
those counterparts, you’ll love the new and improved Hench. It’s
a terrific book.
ISBN 978-1477649572
******************************
Edited by Blake Bell, Mysterious Traveler: The Steve Ditko Archives
Vol. 3 [Fantagraphics; $39.99] reprints 41 Ditko-drawn stories from
1957. Originally published by Charlton, these fantasy, horror and
science fiction tales showcase the mind-stagging inventiveness of
the artist even when he was called upon to illustrate scripts that
didn’t make sense. Ditko’s eye-catching storytelling combined with
his expressive faces and figures elevated the least of these tales
and, when he got a good script, his work was even more powerful and
striking. This is great stuff, my friends.
A brief caveat. There are pages missing from two of the stories in
this volume. The publisher will be including complete versions of
those stories in the next volume.
Mysterious Traveler is a must for Ditko fans and pretty much anyone
who loves excellence and individuality in comics art. I love this
volume and this series.
ISBN 978-1-60699-498-6
******************************
Dark Horse has been publishing an impressive number of impressive
archive editions of vintage comics. Silver Streak Archives Volume
One [$59.99] with the original Daredevil, the Claw, and the speedy
super-hero the title was named for is the latest to cross my path
and it’s nearly 300 pages of wacky delight.
The volume reprints Silver Streak Comics #6-9, originally published
in 1940 and 1941. The Claw gets the cover of the first issue and
he’s a clawed and fanged caricature of an Asian. Dark Horse notes
the insensitivity of the character’s appearance while stating the
comics are being presented as they were in the name of historical
accuracy. I’m on board with that. Oddly enough, though the Claw
is called the Green Claw in his story’s logo, his coloring is John
Boehner orange throughout the episode.
Silver Streak featured a variety of characters and genre. Besides
super-heroes like Daredevil and Silver Streak, there are cowboys,
secret agents, pilots, adventurers, jungle heroes, detectives and
a wonderful boy inventor by the name of Dickie Dean. The kids of
the 1940s got a lot for their dimes.
The Daredevil/Claw battles are the highlight of this volume. The
action is frantic and often brutal. Daredevil rockets around like
he was in a pinball game. The Claw is a bloodthirsty giant whose
plans seldom get any smaller than world domination. I can see why
readers came back issue after issue.
Whenever something like this Silver Streak Archives falls into my
hands, I wonder what my youthful self would have made of it back in
the 1960s. I’d never have imagined that such comics, comics I had
heard of it but dimly, would ever find their way into my hands in
such a stylish format. Keep them coming, Dark Horse!
ISBN 978-1-59582-929-0
******************************
I finally watched The Three Stooges: The Movie [20th Century Fox;
$29.98] starring Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso as
Moe, Larry and Curly. Set in the present, the boys have spent all
their lives in an orphanage run by nuns Jane Lynch and Larry David.
Unadoptable, their antics and the painful consequences thereof have
left the orphanage sans insurance. To prevent the closing of the
only home they’ve ever known, the boys venture into the world with
the aim of raising the money the orphanage needs. Knuckle-headed
innocents that they are, the odds are against them.
This isn’t a great movie. I never expected it to be a great movie.
What I expected and what I got was a hour-and-a-half of wackiness
that transported me back to my childhood and to the Three Stooges
theatrical shorts I watched on TV. I had fun with this movie and
its many nods to those shorts.
Hayes, Sasso and Diamantopoulos are great as the boys. Lynch is,
as ever, a treasure. David’s Sister Mary-Mengele is a foil in the
mold of the classic Stooges shorts. Adding to my delight were fine
comedic performances by Brian Doyle-Murray, Sofía Vergara, Jennifer
Hudson, Isaiah Mustafa, Stephen Collins, Craig Bierko and, God help
me, the real-life cast of Jersey Shore.
Back in the day, the Stooges were often criticized as being bad for
kids. But, then and now, as much as I loved the slapstick, I liked
the characters for their fierce determination to succeed and their
loyalty to one another. Those qualities come through in this new
movie. Which isn’t great, but which is great fun.
This makes three columns in a row in which I’ve reviewed something
involving the Stooges. It’s mortifying. I wonder how far I can get
into my newly-received The Three Stooges: The Ultimate Collection
before next month’s column.
Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck!
I’ll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
© 2012 Tony Isabella
“For most, Comic-Con is the one point in the year where we don’t
care what people think of us, because we are amongst family - the
more than 100,000 people who are “one of us.” That’s empowering.”
- Harry Knowles, founder, Ain’t It Cool News
There’s something about Comic-Con and it’s somewhat akin to magic.
My opening quote comes from a foreword to Comic-Con Episode IV: A
Fan’s Hope [DK Publishing; $24.99] by filmmaker Morgan Spurlock and
featuring photography by Alba Tull. There are also forewords by
Stan Lee, Joss Whedon and Thomas Tull, but they are but supporting
players to the book’s real stars: the hundreds of images of people
clearly having a wonderful time at Comic-Con.
I have not been to Comic-Con in years, the cost of attending being
incompatible with the expense of putting two kids through college
at the same time. The last time I was there, I thought it was the
biggest event of any kind I had ever attended and my friends tell
me it’s gotten bigger every year. Part of me fears that and part
of me wants to see it. I’m not at all surprised that, less than a
month after the 2012 Comic-Com, four-day passes for the 2013 event
are already sold out. For Americans and for many fans and creators
from around the world, Comic-Con is still the Holy Grail of comics
in specific and popular culture in general. I don’t think they are
wrong in thinking this.
Watching from outside, as I have done for several years now, Comic-
Con is a whirling blur of Hollywood celebrity, cosplaying, comics
news and, of course, the complaints. Given the size of Comic-Com,
it would be a miracle if someone couldn’t find something to bitch
about there.
The Hollywood stuff isn’t my main interest, but I understand the
desire to express to, say, the cast and crew of The Big Bang Theory
or Castle, how much pleasure their work has brought one. Even at
age 60, I can see the excitement of being able to do so in person.
I love cosplayers. Even the weirdest are wonderful to me. If you
can’t pretend you are rocking that Wonder Woman or Captain America
costume at Comic-Con, where else can you indulge in such a harmless
moment of fantasy?
Surprisingly, the comics news doesn’t interest me as much. Yeah,
yeah, Marvel and DC, tell me how wonderful your next big event is
going to be. That’s nice, children, but don’t expect me to get all
excited about it until I’ve read it and it’s proven to be even half
as good as you claimed it would be.
The comics news I found most interesting this year? That would be
how many creators who had made their bones at big publishers were
now exploring creator-owned projects elsewhere. Maybe the lessons,
the tragic lessons, of Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Bill Finger, Jack
Kirby and so many others are finally sinking in to the professional
comics community.
The complaints? Some are surely justified and others not so much.
It’s the nature of Comic-Con.
From comics fans, there are complaints that our sacred ceremony has
been invaded by outsiders, by fans of Twilight or whatever the big
teen angst fantasy is this year. There was a time when that would
have bothered me as well. But, really, are those fans so different
from you or I? In a world where so many groups and individuals do
everything they can to divide people, shouldn’t we embrace an event
that brings people together?
Looking through Spurlock’s addictive book, I see people very much
like me. Maybe they’ve never read a comic book, just as I’ve never
seen a Twilight film. But they love what they love as passionately
as I love what I love...and I think there’s plenty of room for all
of us at Comic-Con. Or, at least, a percentage of all of us until
Comic-Con can get a bigger boat.
Mark Evanier, my friend of four decades, has said many wise things
throughout our history. One of the wisest was his observation that
everyone can find their own personal Comic-Con within the vastness
that is the Comic-Con. You who will be fortunate to attend Comic-
Con 2013 should embrace that most excellent advice.
So when do the 2014 tickets go on sale?
******************************
DC’s Archive Editions are getting thinner and more expensive, so I
don’t buy many of them these days. However, since I had only read
five of the 16 adventures reprinted in Batman Archives Volume Eight
[$59.99], I went for that one.
This volume collects the Batman stories from Detective Comics #155-
170, dated from January 1950 to April 1951, all published before I
was born. It’s an interesting era in Batman history, an time when
criminals could still pay the ultimate price for their wrongdoing,
though never at Batman’s hand. They were crime stories, but never
as garish and violent as those found in actual crime comic books.
The writers of half these stories have yet to be identified, adding
to the mysteries in those stories.
The legend of Batman grows in a number of these tales. We see the
unveiling of the Batmobile of 1950, see a thousand and one trophies
of Batman and Robin’s crime-fighting career, learn untold tales of
the Bat-Signal and the previously unknown origin of one of Batman’s
most persistent enemies. One of these legend-building tales - “The
Strange Costumes of Batman” - is the source of one of my greatest
fan-fantasies. I dream of owning action figures of those costumes
and displaying them in a room-size model of the Batcave. Wonder if
I could get a Wayne Foundation grant for that?
The art in this volume is excellent. Cool covers by Win Mortimer.
Interior art by Lew Sayre Schwartz, Dick Sprang, Charles Paris and
Jim Mooney. Not as boisterous or dark as today’s Batman art, but
solid storytelling through and through.
These are fine stories from before Batman and Robin were burdened
with amateur psychoanalysis from writers who too often downplay the
simple goodness of heroes who have suffered great personal loss and
risen above it to become champions of justice and the protectors of
their fellow citizens. There is excellent writing in many modern
Batman comic books, but I miss those older incarnations of Gotham’s
guardians. There’s room for both in today’s world.
Batman Archives Volume Eight is pricey but still worth reading and
owning. Sign me up for volume nine.
ISBN 978-1-4012-3376-1
******************************
Adam Beechen has released a new edition of Hench [Sonnova; $14.99].
Drawn by Manny Bello, Hench earned a place in 1000 Comic Books You
Must Read. Here’s what I wrote about it there:
“Misfortunes lead a basically decent man into hiring himself out as
a henchman to villains. It’s one of those obvious ideas that
aren’t obvious until someone else comes up with them. Treasures
like Hench bring new life to the super-hero genre.”
For this new edition, Beechen has added a 64-page sequel drawn by
Ethan Beavers. In this new chapter, Mike Fulton’s life takes him
through some surprising changes, some dark, some hopeful. It’s a
thrilling exploration of the world of heroes, villains and henchmen
with a most satisfying conclusion and many nods to classic super-
hero comics. If you like super-hero comics that walk a different
route than their Marvel and DC counterparts without disrespecting
those counterparts, you’ll love the new and improved Hench. It’s
a terrific book.
ISBN 978-1477649572
******************************
Edited by Blake Bell, Mysterious Traveler: The Steve Ditko Archives
Vol. 3 [Fantagraphics; $39.99] reprints 41 Ditko-drawn stories from
1957. Originally published by Charlton, these fantasy, horror and
science fiction tales showcase the mind-stagging inventiveness of
the artist even when he was called upon to illustrate scripts that
didn’t make sense. Ditko’s eye-catching storytelling combined with
his expressive faces and figures elevated the least of these tales
and, when he got a good script, his work was even more powerful and
striking. This is great stuff, my friends.
A brief caveat. There are pages missing from two of the stories in
this volume. The publisher will be including complete versions of
those stories in the next volume.
Mysterious Traveler is a must for Ditko fans and pretty much anyone
who loves excellence and individuality in comics art. I love this
volume and this series.
ISBN 978-1-60699-498-6
******************************
Dark Horse has been publishing an impressive number of impressive
archive editions of vintage comics. Silver Streak Archives Volume
One [$59.99] with the original Daredevil, the Claw, and the speedy
super-hero the title was named for is the latest to cross my path
and it’s nearly 300 pages of wacky delight.
The volume reprints Silver Streak Comics #6-9, originally published
in 1940 and 1941. The Claw gets the cover of the first issue and
he’s a clawed and fanged caricature of an Asian. Dark Horse notes
the insensitivity of the character’s appearance while stating the
comics are being presented as they were in the name of historical
accuracy. I’m on board with that. Oddly enough, though the Claw
is called the Green Claw in his story’s logo, his coloring is John
Boehner orange throughout the episode.
Silver Streak featured a variety of characters and genre. Besides
super-heroes like Daredevil and Silver Streak, there are cowboys,
secret agents, pilots, adventurers, jungle heroes, detectives and
a wonderful boy inventor by the name of Dickie Dean. The kids of
the 1940s got a lot for their dimes.
The Daredevil/Claw battles are the highlight of this volume. The
action is frantic and often brutal. Daredevil rockets around like
he was in a pinball game. The Claw is a bloodthirsty giant whose
plans seldom get any smaller than world domination. I can see why
readers came back issue after issue.
Whenever something like this Silver Streak Archives falls into my
hands, I wonder what my youthful self would have made of it back in
the 1960s. I’d never have imagined that such comics, comics I had
heard of it but dimly, would ever find their way into my hands in
such a stylish format. Keep them coming, Dark Horse!
ISBN 978-1-59582-929-0
******************************
I finally watched The Three Stooges: The Movie [20th Century Fox;
$29.98] starring Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso as
Moe, Larry and Curly. Set in the present, the boys have spent all
their lives in an orphanage run by nuns Jane Lynch and Larry David.
Unadoptable, their antics and the painful consequences thereof have
left the orphanage sans insurance. To prevent the closing of the
only home they’ve ever known, the boys venture into the world with
the aim of raising the money the orphanage needs. Knuckle-headed
innocents that they are, the odds are against them.
This isn’t a great movie. I never expected it to be a great movie.
What I expected and what I got was a hour-and-a-half of wackiness
that transported me back to my childhood and to the Three Stooges
theatrical shorts I watched on TV. I had fun with this movie and
its many nods to those shorts.
Hayes, Sasso and Diamantopoulos are great as the boys. Lynch is,
as ever, a treasure. David’s Sister Mary-Mengele is a foil in the
mold of the classic Stooges shorts. Adding to my delight were fine
comedic performances by Brian Doyle-Murray, Sofía Vergara, Jennifer
Hudson, Isaiah Mustafa, Stephen Collins, Craig Bierko and, God help
me, the real-life cast of Jersey Shore.
Back in the day, the Stooges were often criticized as being bad for
kids. But, then and now, as much as I loved the slapstick, I liked
the characters for their fierce determination to succeed and their
loyalty to one another. Those qualities come through in this new
movie. Which isn’t great, but which is great fun.
This makes three columns in a row in which I’ve reviewed something
involving the Stooges. It’s mortifying. I wonder how far I can get
into my newly-received The Three Stooges: The Ultimate Collection
before next month’s column.
Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck!
I’ll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
© 2012 Tony Isabella
Sunday, October 14, 2012
MYSTERY BOX AND OTHER UPDATES
Here's the mystery box sale stands:
The mystery box sale is suspended temporarily until I catch up with the orders I have in hand. My bum knee slows me, but I'm trying to get these orders filled as quickly as possible.
I have 27 orders in hand. One has been picked up, four have been shipped, four are ready to be shipped on (hopefully) Monday and four are ready to be shipped once payment is received.
I have not yet sent payment requests for orders #21-27. Once I have packed the first 20 orders, then I'll send out those payment requests.
Orders were only accepted via e-mail. When the mystery box sale resumes, I'll post a further update with more information. But only e-mail orders will be accepted.
In other Isabella news...
New bloggy things will return tomorrow with a CBG column reprint of about 2000 words. Tuesday will have one of my "Tony's Back Pages" mini-columns with some new material. Wednesday will be another Rawhide Kid column. After that...more views and reviews to delight and enrage you.
My online Vast Accumulation of Stuff sales resume tomorrow. Look for the first list of items to post on Monday after I post the regular bloggy thing.
The Akron Comicon is scheduled for Saturday, November 10, at the University of Akron Student Union. This will be my last convention appearance of the year.
It looks like I'll be doing more conventions next year and have already accepted two invitations. I'll post information on those when I feel it's appropriate. If convention promoters are interested in having me as a guest at their shows, they should contact me by email to work out the details.
My garage sales will resume in the spring of 2012. How soon and how often depends on the weather and what the rest of my schedule is like.
See you tomorrow.
Tony
The mystery box sale is suspended temporarily until I catch up with the orders I have in hand. My bum knee slows me, but I'm trying to get these orders filled as quickly as possible.
I have 27 orders in hand. One has been picked up, four have been shipped, four are ready to be shipped on (hopefully) Monday and four are ready to be shipped once payment is received.
I have not yet sent payment requests for orders #21-27. Once I have packed the first 20 orders, then I'll send out those payment requests.
Orders were only accepted via e-mail. When the mystery box sale resumes, I'll post a further update with more information. But only e-mail orders will be accepted.
In other Isabella news...
New bloggy things will return tomorrow with a CBG column reprint of about 2000 words. Tuesday will have one of my "Tony's Back Pages" mini-columns with some new material. Wednesday will be another Rawhide Kid column. After that...more views and reviews to delight and enrage you.
My online Vast Accumulation of Stuff sales resume tomorrow. Look for the first list of items to post on Monday after I post the regular bloggy thing.
The Akron Comicon is scheduled for Saturday, November 10, at the University of Akron Student Union. This will be my last convention appearance of the year.
It looks like I'll be doing more conventions next year and have already accepted two invitations. I'll post information on those when I feel it's appropriate. If convention promoters are interested in having me as a guest at their shows, they should contact me by email to work out the details.
My garage sales will resume in the spring of 2012. How soon and how often depends on the weather and what the rest of my schedule is like.
See you tomorrow.
Tony
Thursday, October 11, 2012
MYSTERY BOX UPDATE
Here's the bad news...
Effective immediately, the price of the mystery boxes are $28 each. Most of the boxes weigh more than the test box I used to set the original price. I didn't take into account the fee PayPal is taking out of the original price. I didn't take into account the tracking fee. The additional $3 covers most of these expenses, but not all of them.
The good news is that all orders received before this blog posted will be at the original price of $25 per box.
When I fill the first 20 orders, I'll send payment notices for the next 10 orders. Then, when those orders are filled, I'll send payment notices for the next 10 orders. While supplies last.
All other terms remain unchanged.
Thanks and have a great day.
Tony
Effective immediately, the price of the mystery boxes are $28 each. Most of the boxes weigh more than the test box I used to set the original price. I didn't take into account the fee PayPal is taking out of the original price. I didn't take into account the tracking fee. The additional $3 covers most of these expenses, but not all of them.
The good news is that all orders received before this blog posted will be at the original price of $25 per box.
When I fill the first 20 orders, I'll send payment notices for the next 10 orders. Then, when those orders are filled, I'll send payment notices for the next 10 orders. While supplies last.
All other terms remain unchanged.
Thanks and have a great day.
Tony
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
TAKING A FEW DAYS OFF
Hey, kids...
I'm taking a few days off from blogging to finish some paying work, organize some other work, and take care of some personal stuff. But it's all good.
I'm shooting to return on Sunday or Monday.
Tony
I'm taking a few days off from blogging to finish some paying work, organize some other work, and take care of some personal stuff. But it's all good.
I'm shooting to return on Sunday or Monday.
Tony
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
MYSTERY BOX UPDATE
I'm temporarily suspending orders at 20 mystery boxes. At this writing, I have 17 orders in hand.
This does not mean I won't accept orders, only that I won't request payment until I've put together those first 20 boxes. I don't want to get too far behind in fulfilling orders and, due to my knee problem, I am moving very slow right now.
As soon as those 20 boxes are all put together, I'll send out the payment requests on any orders that came in beyond that number.
As stated, this offer is only good until supplies last or until my wife insists we park both of our vehicles in the garage,
Tony
This does not mean I won't accept orders, only that I won't request payment until I've put together those first 20 boxes. I don't want to get too far behind in fulfilling orders and, due to my knee problem, I am moving very slow right now.
As soon as those 20 boxes are all put together, I'll send out the payment requests on any orders that came in beyond that number.
As stated, this offer is only good until supplies last or until my wife insists we park both of our vehicles in the garage,
Tony
BLACKMAILER’S DOOM WITH EXTRA GABBY HAYES
I know nothing about. In situations like this, I usually make up
something but the mere thought of “extra Gabby Hayes” frightens me.
Especially if it involves clones. However, if I can’t tell you
anything about this specific issue, I can tell you things about the
title’s history and its star.
Fawcett published 54 issues of Monte Hale Western from October 1948
to June 1953. The first issue of the title was #29, continuing its
numbering from Mary Marvel. The last issue was #82. When Fawcett
closed its comics shop, Charlton picked up the title with #83 and
published six issues from February 1955 to January 1956.
Hale was a singing cowboy who starred in B-westerns in the 1950s.
In addition to his own title, he also appeared in Real Western Hero
(Fawcett), Cowboy Western and Six-Gun Heroes (Charlton) and, in
more recent times, Best of the West and Men of Mystery (AC).
Fawcett adapted three of his movies: Pioneer Marshal, Old Frontier
and The Missourians.
Some notes from Boyd Magers’ Comic Book Cowboys:
Initially, Carl Pfeufer, best known for his exciting work on
Fawcett’s Tom Mix, drew Monte’s stories, with an inking assist from
John Jordan. Pfeufer captured a good likeness of Monte, but the
artist most closely associated with Hale as of #34 is Edmond Good
who pictured Monte with a dynamic, forceful flair for action.
Other artists who worked on Monte Hale from time to time were Max
Elkan, Al Bare, Gil Kane and Bob Laughlin, as well as a couple of
unidentified artists. But Good contributed about 75% of the Hale
work.
Gabby Hayes back-up stories began in Monte Hale with #34 and ran
through #80 with art often by Leonard Frank.
Monte’s exciting stories riding his movie horse Pardner featured a
series of recurring and unique villains—The Gravedigger, Minstrel
Man, Wolfman and The Coyote.
I just discovered Comic Book Cowboys and I suspect I’ll be visiting
it often. Very informative.
Keep watching this bloggy thing for more vintage comic-book covers
from my birth month,
******************************
Some notes on this and that...
If you’re sending a review item for my “40 Years and a Mule” offer,
be sure to include (if applicable) information on where my readers
can order said item. Not to mention your own mailing address so I
can send you your bundle of ten comics from my garage sale stock.
My mailing address remains:
Tony Isabella
840 Damon Drive
Medina, OH 44256
I expect to start writing and posting these reviews starting next
week. Sooner if I decide to post them as stand-alone items apart
from my regular daily blogging.
******************************
Orders for my garage sales mystery boxes are coming in as fast as
I anticipated. Please be patient waiting for confirmation of your
order. I have to process them around the other things I have to do
daily. I’ll do my best to keep confirmation delays at a minimum.
There may be additional delays in shipping out the orders because
it seems an unknown villain snuck up on me while I was napping this
weekend and took a baseball bat to my knee. At least that’s what
it feels like. Hobbling up and down stairs while screaming in pain
is not conducive to optimum mystery box production. I’m soldiering
on, but, if it gets much worse, I may have to call my old pal Steve
Austin for a referral. On my wish list...laser beams for whatever
body parts they have to replace.
******************************
I’ve reviewed and praised Bakuman on several occasions. Written by
Tsugumi Ohba and drawn by Takeshi Obata, it’s the ongoing story of
two young manga creators, fiercely dedicated to each other and to
manga. Of all the manga I’m currently reading, it is my favorite.
Bakuman Volume 15 [Viz; $9.99] was just released and it’s the best
volume to date. Not only does it conclude a storyline started in
the previous book, but it expands that storyline into a scary look
at one of the supporting character and introduces a new storyline
involving adverse publicity for our lead characters and the effect
it has them. It’s a satisfying hunk of comics for just ten bucks.
It literally left me breathless with excitement.
ISBN 978-1-4215-4291-1
******************************
While we were hanging out at Wizard World’s Ohio Comic Con, Roger
“Founder of Mid-Ohio-Con” Price and I were discussing how the beds
at the Hyatt Regency were the most comfortable hotel beds we’d ever
slept on. However, one night’s deep sleep resulted in perhaps the
strangest comic-book dream I’ve ever had...
Something I had written somewhere had angered some major executive
types at Marvel Comics. They sent me an angry e-mail complaining
about what I’d written. The message included and then repeated the
words “not helpful commentary” several times. However, each time,
the phrase was written backwards - ton lufpleh yratnemmoc - in big
bold letters.
Then, on Twitter, one of the executives tweeted that he always ate
healthy and then tried to prove it by linking to a picture of “the
healthy sandwich he just ate.”
The sandwich was an enormous multi-burger thing on what looked like
a foot long baguette dripping with cheese and bacon and some saucy
that resembled gravy. My heart almost stopped just looking at it.
Then I woke up.
I have no idea what this dream means. But it was too weird not to
share it with you.
******************************
The Dark Knight Rises has left my local movie theater and Dredd is
only playing at one inconvenient time a day there. Which means I
will be viewing them on DVD or Blu-ray, depending on which versions
of the films become available from my local library first. I’m #61
on the list for The Dark Knight Rises and Dredd doesn’t show up in
my search at this time.
I hadn’t intended to see The Dark Knight Rises in the theater when
it debuted because I pretty much hated the previous Batman movie.
I was considering seeing Dredd, but its apparent failure at the box
office made the decision for me. Well, that and a sudden influx of
paying gigs of one sort or another.
I’ll make time for a Marvel movie because those usually entertain
me. DC movies? Not so much. Dredd? If the local theater switches
that one daily showing to late morning or early afternoon, I might
see if after all. In any case, I’ll see these two movies whenever
they become available for home viewing...and more than likely have
something to say about them when I do.
I’ll be back tomorrow with more stuff.
© 2012 Tony Isabella
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