The Hits Keep on Coming

While surfing the web, I came across this great little interview with Robert B. Parker. It's a brief interview, but packs in a ton of interesting information about Parker; how he writes, the surprisingly little research that he does, and why he and his wife live on different floors in the same house.

Parker has been writing novels for over 30 years and at the age of 72 shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, this year alone, Parker's had three books published and each of them hit the best seller list!

Bad Business was the 31st Spenser novel [and if you like to read you owe it to yourself to check out the entire Spenser series].

Melancholy Baby was the fourth to feature female detective Sunny Randall.

And last, and definitely not least was Double Play.

Double Play is one of my all-time favorite books by Robert B. Parker. Set in 1947, the novel focuses on the relationship between Joe Burke [a hardened WWII vet with a death wish who has been hired to bodyguard Jackie Robinson] and Jackie Robinson [the first black man to break into the major leagues]. Along the way there's gangsters, dames, double-crosses, murders and more. It was truly a great read and I hope that Parker writes more Joe Burke novels.

Knowing how prolific Robert B. Parker is, I'd say that's a good bet!

New Sin City Posters

Yeah, I want to see Sin City more than any other movie coming out in the next year or so.

Why wouldn't I?

I love Frank Miller's Sin City comics. And Frank's co-directing this baby.

I'm a huge fan of Robert Rodriguez's direction.

Bruce Willis is da man.

MIckey Rourke as Marv is inspired casting. And you know Marv is one of the coolest characters ever.

And let's not forget that Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Michael Clarke Duncan, Josh Hartnett, Michael Madsen, Clive Owen, Nick Stahl and Elijah Wood are co-stars.

What's that? You need just two more reasons to be convinced that Sin City is gonna rock?

OK. 1] Check out the poster above of Bruce Willis as Hartigan. and 2] Click HERE to see the new Rosario Dawson poster.

Now are you convinced?

Nightscape

I've been a David Morrell fan ever since I read First Blood, way back in the early 70's. [Yeah, long before I even knew who Sylvester Stallone was!]

It doesn't matter if it's all out action, a thriller, horror, suspense... Morrell can write it all.

I just discovered that his second volume of short stories, Nightscape, has been published.

I'm putting in my order tonight.

Dawn of the 300

I'm a huge Frank Miller fan.

The Dark Knight Returns.
Daredevil.
Ronin.
300.
Sin City.

Classic stuff. And as most of you know, Miller is teaming up with Robert Rodriguez to co-direct Sin City for the big screen.

How could it possibly get any better than that?

How about director Zack Snyder ["Dawn of the Dead" - which I liked better than the original!] bringing 300 to the big screen?!

Yep, it's true. And you can read about it HERE.

Trick or Treat?

Ah, Halloween is here.

And since I have a TON of work to complete before the Trick or Treaters begin to arrive... Let me leave you ZONErs with just this little treat.

Click HERE and see how many differences you can find in the pictures.

You may be shocked at the answer!

Dr. Jekyll has Two Secrets

In the spirit of Halloween, I've been watching [and enjoying] quite a few horror movies lately. As most of you know, I'm a big fan of the genre especially the classic monsters... Wolfman, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Creature from the Black Lagoon...

Until this week I was never a fan of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde [in any of the many movie versions]. I decided to watch the 1931 film starring Frederich March and Miriam Hopkins. I know I had seen it before when I was a kid and it didn't impress me. Watching it again the other night was like seeing it for the first time.

Fredric March won a Best Actor Oscar for his role[s]. Miriam Hopkins is just right as the saucy barmaid who adds fuel to March's fire. The special effects were excellent.

What suprised me most was the movie used Jekyll's sexual frustration as the focal point of the duality of man's battle with good vs evil. For a film made in the 30's it was pretty surprising.

At any rate, if you're looking for a good movie for Halloween, give the 1931 version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde a view. You might discover that there's more to both Dr. Jekyll and the movie than appears at first glance!

"Dr, Jekyll and Mr. Hide" [1931] rates a B

Chicklis Gets Close

The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Glenn Close will join "The Shield" as a series regular for the upcoming fourth season.

Close, who won an Emmy for "Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story," will appear in all 13 episodes. Production is set to start in January with new epsiodes airing by May.

Close will play the new captain [What about Aceveda?] who will probably butt heads with Detective Vic Mackey (Emmy-winner Michael Chiklis).

Close will next appear on the big screen in the Merchant Ivory production "Heights" and Chicklis is currently playing the Thing in the big screen version of "The Fantastic Four."

Man, I can't wait for the new season of "The Shield" to start... and May is so far away!

The Beatles, Led Zepplin and...

Yesterday I came across a listing of the top-selling albums of various decades. Nothing really surprised me about the top selling albums of the 70's or 80's... but the 60's was a different story.

Almost everyone knows that The Beatles dominated the charts in the 60's. Now here's the surprising thing... only two other groups busted into the top ten with The Beatles.

One was Led Zepplin. Can you guess the other?

Click on the HERE for the correct answer.

Rain is Great Stuff

Way back in July I posted a piece on how cool the first two John Rain novels were [Rain Fall and Hard Rain]...

... and that I was really looking forward to Rain Storm, the third in the series.

I ordered it.

Read it.

And found it to be the best of the three! David Montgomery of the USA TODAY agrees.

And maybe you will too.

RIP: Christopher Reeve

Early this morning, while on my way to work I heard that Christopher Reeve had died.

It was like a gutshot.

Christopher Reeve's death was so unexpected ... despite the fact that he had been a quadriplegic for the last nine years of his life. Yet, it was in these last nine years, when Chris' health was at his worst that he was at his best.

Christopher Reeve is most famous for his role as Superman. And rightly so. Although a virtual unknown actor when chosen for the part, Reeve vaulted to the ranks of one of the most identified stars in the world once the movie was released.

Reeve was the perfect choice. And not just because he looked like Superman when in the suit. Christopher Reeve not only understood the difference between Clark Kent and Superman but had the chops to make the difference come alive with just a pair of eyeglasses and his acting ability.

Christopher Reeve went on to other starring roles, but none had the impact of him playing Superman. But how could they, Reeve and Superman were such a perfect fit.

Then nine years ago when Christopher was injured he took on another role, that of role model. Christopher Reeve dealt with his paralysis with grace, dignity and determination. He became the focal point of hope, not for just those who sufffered from spinal cord injuries, but for anyone who thought about feeling sorry for him/herself. How could you, if Christopher Reeve could face his troubles with such a positive outlook.

Christopher Reeve will always be remembered for his role as Superman, but I believe that the true super man was Christopher Reeve.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends.

Yesterday my wife and I drove up to Jacksonville to spend the day at the Cavalcade of Comics 2nd Annual Bennefit to fight Tourette's Syndrome. Comic's legend Don Perlin and his wife spearhead the event and this year looked to be even bigger and better.

The show had been moved to an elementary school because it had grown so large. Outside a children's chorus was starting to line up, there were games for kids, people in costume, and the artists were setting up.

We headed into the artist's room and the first person that we saw was Don Perlin. Don came over and thanked us for coming and for posting info about the benefit here at the ZONE. How cool is that?

Doralaya and I were checking out the art that was up for auction, and we ran into Robert Smith. Robert's an old buddy (and one of the guest artists) and he said that he wanted to do a Cobra piece for my gallery. Cool! The con hadn't even officially started and things were already going great!

Jason Sobel was set up with Alex Saviuk, Bob Layton and Don Perlin. I met Jason at last year's event and he did a Judge Dredd piece for me so I've kept an eye on his work. The sketches Jason was turning out yesterday were leaps and bounds ahead of last year. Keep an eye out for this guy!

Alex Saviuk is not only a great guy but also a very talented artist. Before he was even seated he had a list of eight or ten sketch requests. Bob Layton's list was swamped as well. Since I didn't have a Stallone from either Alex or Bob, I asked if they'd put me on their lists. They agreed.

Doralya and I went back to check out more of the auction art. My prediction was that the Kubert "Sgt. Rock" would get the highest amount, but the piece with the most buzz was the Neal Adams' Batman and Robin piece?! My favorites were a Wrightson pencil sketch called The Reaper and a print by Lee Ames called The Magician.

Doralya bought several raffle tickets then it was lunch outside with music from a middle school jazz band. As we settled down with some Mexican food we watched a karate presentation and several Jedi sword battles.
; ) The food was good and the jazz was even better.

When we went back into the artist's room we hooked up with some fans and spent time sharing art and stories. Robert Smith came over and gave me my Cobra sketch!

Bob Layton's wife came over and asked if I would mind if Bob did my Stallone piece at home.

Bob was getting tons of requests and it's take longer to draw Sly (for the first time) than Iron Man or Spider-Man for the 1,000th time. By doing my piece at home more fans would get a piece of art and the benefit would raise more money.

How could I argue? I told her that would be no problem.

I'm just excited to be getting a Stallone piece from Bob!

Robert Smith taught a wonderful session with little kids who want to be artists. While that was running I had a chance to speak with Ed Hall and thank him again for the Stallone piece he did for me last year. Ed was sitting with Dana Sumers [Politcal Cartoonist for the Orlando Sentinal] and Tom Armstrong [Marvin]. I asked Dana if he'd like to do a Stallone piece for my gallery. Tom said he'd give it a shot. I thanked him and headed back to catch the rest of Robert's sketch session.

After the session I headed over to put in my donation for my Bob Layton piece. Alex said that he'd also like to do my piece at home so I kicked in that donation as well.After a bit of visiting I headed back to get my Stallone piece from Dana Sumers. Dana said that after five or six false starts he came up with one that worked. I agreed with him; it does work! Dana said that Tom Armstrong also did a Sly drawing. As Tom was signing it for me, he added a little Marvin peeking over Sly. How cool is that?

The show was starting to wind down.

It'd been a great day. We made our way around and said our good-byes (and although it looks like Alex is begging us not to go, that's just an illusion).

Then it was back on the road home.

Hopefully, the benefit made even more money than last year. It seemed to be better attended. I know that everyone I talked to had a super time and are planning to attend again next year.

I know, I'll be there!

RIP: Rodney Dangerfield

Rodney Dangerfield passed away this afternoon.

Man, I really enjoyed Rodney's comedy. Most people really became aware of Rodney Dangerfield after he appeared [and got the best laughs] in Caddyshack.

But I remember him first from his standup comedy on variety shows in the 60's that I used to watch with my grandparents. Rodney's trademark line, "I don't get no respect" was always followed by several great one-liners.

"I don't get no respect. When I was born I was so ugly the doctor slapped my mother."

"I don't get no respect. I was in a bar and a guy asked me if I had any naked pictures of my wife. I said, 'No.' He asked me if I wanted to buy some."

After Caddyshack, Rodney graduated from co-star to star status and headlined several movies. But it was always his standup that appealed most to me.

Now Rodney's gone. I'm going to miss seeing him pop up from time to time with another spin on his "I don't get no respect" lines. But I'll always have great memories of watching Rodney perform and all of the laughs he gave us.

And you have to respect that.

Our prayers go out to Rodney's family and friends.

Bill "The Raytrix" Marimon

My buddy, Billy Ray ["The Raytrix"] Marimon dropped me an e-mail with his latest painting attached.

Yeah, that's it... well, a small jpg of it anyway.

You can see a larger version of it by clicking on the picture or HERE.

You can also see more of Bill's work HERE at his website.

Bill's a talented artist and his prices are very reasonable. If you decide to visit his site, please tell him I sent you his way!

Hurricane Jeanne and Rain Storm

Hurricane Jeanne came and went without causing as much damage to our area as initially predicted. Still, I spent most of the last three days helping to run a hurricane relief shelter.

One of the best parts of that whole experience was that in my downtime I had an opportunity to finish Barry Eisler's third novel, Rain Storm.

All of Eisler's novels feature John Rain, a Japanese-American "struggling with his own divided nature: Japanese / American; soldier / assassin; samurai / ronin." Rain, as written by Eisler is "a remarkable creation, a multifaceted killer with the soul of a poet."

Eisler's first book, Rain Fall, put him on my favorite author's list. His second, Hard Rain, proved that the first book wasn't a fluke. Rain Storm cements Eisler's place as one of the best series writers working. Don't take my word for it, check out what EVERYONE is saying.

Yeah, Eisler's that good. [So is John Rain, for that matter!]

Gravedigger

One last entry before the Hurricane...

When I was a kid one of my favorite things about going to the movies was the Coming Attractions. For some reason I just loved [and still love] getting a preview of something really neat... and then the feeling of anticipation of just how cool it's going to be.

Tonight as I was putting together my comic order, I came across this really cool-looking comic, Gravedigger.

The first thing that caught my eye was the cover by Rick Burchett. Rick's a very talented and under-rated artist whose work has appeared in Batman Adventures, Blackhawk, and many, many other comics.

Surprisingly, when you mention Rick's name the first thing that comes to my mind is the character Inigma that he created over twenty years ago for a fanzine. I've always liked Rick's art and I absolutely love what he's doing with Gravedigger. The Lee Marvin-looking lead character and 60's style design to the promo piece had me hooked.

Then I saw that the comic was created and written by Christopher Mills. I knew the name but couldn't immediately place what Chris had written. A little web search and I quickly remembered that Chris had served as editor of Mickey Spillane's Mike Danger for Techno Comics. Chris was also the creator and editor of the excellent crime fiction magazine, Noir. I was a fan of both of these series so I decided to dig a little deeper.

Then I found Chris' webpage.

Surprisingly we have a lot in common. Chris also lives in Florida. He, too, is getting ready for a visit from another hurricane [I have to go in to open the shelter in seven hours -- oh, what fun!], and he has a passion for old movies, crime fiction and comics.

I ended up spending a lot of time checking out his site. Not only are there cool previews of Gravedigger, and other comics that Chris has created, but he also has an interesting blog. [Any one who not only knows about Larry Cohen and Armand Assante's version of Mickey Spillane's "I, the Jury" but wants it on dvd earns a spot on my Blogs to Read list!

As you can probably tell, I'm jazzed about Gravedigger. Check it out and if you feel the same way, then be sure and let your local comic shop know that you'll want a copy. You might even want to drop Chris a line and let him know that you're on board. If enough of us write, I'll bet that Hurricane Jeanne won't seem so bad!

New Sin City Collectibles

You all know how much I love Frank Miller's Sin City.

I have all of the Sin City Graphic Novels and comics. My bookcase proudly displays my Marv bust by Randy Bowen... my "Death Row Marv" and my Sin City Marv "Black and White." But you just know I want more Sin City...

Well, more Sin City stuff is coming. Everyone knows about the movie, but you are going to be one of the first to hear about the new limited edition Marv statue. It'll stand 12" tall, over 13" wide, 7" deep and retail for $199.

Dynamic Forces is also going to put out a limited edition lithograph of Marv drawn by Sin City creator Frank Miller. It'll retail for $19.99.

Hopefully these will just be the first of many new Sin City collectibles.

Well, what'd ya expect me to say... you know how much I love Sin City!

Another Hurricane

Believe it or not, Daytona Beach is in the direct path of the third hurricane in just over a month! [It would have been four but the last one turned.]

I'll be assisting in getting a shelter open on Saturday morning and hoping that Jeanne takes a sharp turn to the right!

If the SZ is late with an update this weekend, you'll know why.

Cavalcade of Comics Benefit

On Saturday, October 9th, the 2nd annual Cavalcade of Comics' benefit to support the Tourette Syndrome Association will be held in Jacksonville, Florida.

I had a blast last year and am looking forward to more fun this time around.

Dick Giordano (DC Comics), Bob Layton (Marvel, Acclaim & Future Comics), Don Perlin (Marvel & Acclaim Comics), Alex Saviuk (Marvel), Howard Perlin (artist, caricatures & storyboards), Tom Armstrong (creator & artist, MARVIN), Don Edwing (MAD Magazine) , Ed Hall (political cartoonist), Robert Smith, Jr. (political cartoonist and caricatures) and Jason Sobol (comics artist & writer) are just a few of the artists who will be on hand sketching for fans.

There will be an auction of original rare comic and cartoon art, live music, entertainment, raffles, door prizes, and many other exciting events. Heck, Big John Beatty may even be there sketching and kickin things up a notch! Click HERE for full details.

And if you can make it, be sure and look me up. I'll be the guy in the StalloneZone shirt looking to score more art for my Stallone Gallery!

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

I saw Sky Captain today.

If you're a fan of Fleischer Superman cartoons, old sci-fi, cliffhangers, or "B Movies," then give it a go.

I liked it a lot, but I have an affinity for the genre. I wonder how it will rate with "normal" folks.

"Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" rates a B.

White Noise

Some people believe that the dead can speak to us and their voices and images are sometimes captured in pictures and recordings.

There's even an organization dedicated to the study of the phenomena. And whether you believe it's possible or not, I'll bet that you spend a bit more time than expected if you visit their site.

I always try to keep an open mind to things and love the idea that it may be true. But true or not, the concept does make a great springboard for a movie.

Check out this trailer. I'll bet you agree.

Blade Trinity

I didn't care for Blade but loved Blade 2. The question now is... what about
Blade Trinity. The new trailer is on-line looks pretty good. What'd you think?

The Return of Sable

Sable, one of my all-time favorite comics is coming back in March of 2005!

That's right, Mike Grell's Sable will be back in a story written and drawn by Grell himself.

And to make it even better some of the original stories will be released in trade paperbacks.

Take a look at Mike's website and read about the new series here and here. The if you like what you've seen, let your local comic shop now that you're interested.

Transporter 2 Filming

One of my favorite movie surprises of the last few years was Jason Statham and the movie "The Transporter."

If you feel the same, you're probably happy that "The Transporter 2" is currently filming in Miami.

And to make you even happier, JoBlow.com posted behind the scenes shots that you can see HERE.

The "Sin City" Trailer is On-Line!!

The "Sin City" trailer is on-line thanks to Moviebox.net.

It looks great.

I mean really, really great.

What are you waiting for? Click HERE and see for yourself!

To Be the Man... Unforgiven

WWE's pay-per-vue, Unforgiven, was held last night. My sons, nephew and I were able to watch it from the comfort of the local wing house, and we had a blast.

It's suprising that although everyone knows that wrestling matches are pre-determined the sport is as popular as ever.

Rick Flair, the guy in the pic to the left, is currently my favorite wrestler. Flair's 56 years old and still puts on a great show. The highlight for me is when he does his patented "front fall." If you've ever seen Flair wrestle, then you know what I'm talking about. The Flair "front fall" alone is worth the price of admission.

If you're a wrestling or Rick Flair fan, then you might want to check out his autobiography, To Be the Man. It, too, is worth the price of admission.

Randy Orton is the young guy next to Flair in the picture. The kid is a third generation wrestler [I used to watch his dad wrestle when I was a kid]. Although he lost his title tonight, he has a bright future.

I could give you a rundown of the matches, but if you're that interested, you'll probably watch RAW tonight and I don't want to spoil it for you. And wrestling isn't really about who wins or loses anymore... instead it's about how good the performance was.

And as I said, we had a blast.

More "Sin City" Pics

A couple of days ago I posted some pics from "Sin City" and links to more.

At that time I told you that I couldn't wait to see "Sin City."

I'm happy to say that more screen caps from "Sin City" have surfaced over at JoBlo.com. You can see the others by clicking HERE.

JoBlo also reports an April 1, 2005 release date for Sin City. I hope their not foolin'.

It's Not Your Parents' "Little Red Riding Hood"

I like Kiefer Sutherland, Reese Witherspoon, Dan Hedaya, and Michael T. Weiss. So when I saw that they all starred in a movie called "Freeway" [along with Brooke Shields, Amanda Plummer and Brittany Murphy], I decided to give it a look.

And although I'm glad that I watched it, it's not a movie I can easily recommend. It was well done. I have no complaints with the acting, directing, or editing. In fact I would commend most of the actors for taking on roles which allowed them to stretch.

It's such a dark, dark comedy and at the same time a modern day take on "Little Red Riding Hood." Siskel and Ebert gave it two thumbs up, so maybe my recommendation isn't needed.

Let me just say, that if this is the sort of thing that you like, then you'll like it. And if you don't like it, hey, blame Siskel and Ebert!

"Freeway" rates a C

Remembering 9-11

Today is the third anniversary of the terrorist attacks which took down the twin towers, destroyed part of the Pentagon and took the lives of thousands of citizens from around the world.

It was the most shocking day of my life.

The History Channel is running a very interesting documentary called "The Twin Towers: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon." It's extremely well done and worth a look.

The picture above is of family members of victims who have returned to the site to pay their respects. And because the day had such an impact me, I felt it appropriate to pay my respects as well.

My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who lost someone on that terrible day.

Sin City Photos

I can't wait to see Frank Miller's Sin City on the big screen.

It's still hard for me to believe that it's being made. Especially when you add Robert Rodriguez [one of my favorite directors] to the mix.

When the topic of comic adaptations to movies would come up, my first choice was always Sin City.

But the fly in the ointment was that Sin City creator, Frank Miller, had said that Sin City would never be made into a movie. Frank didn't want to turn over his creation to a studio that would Hollywoodize it and turn it into something else.

But that was before Robert Rodriguez showed Frank exactly how he would adapt Sin City to make it faithful to the comics. Robert even brought Frank on board to serve as co-director!

When it was announced that Rodriguez and Miller were teaming to create Sin City, I thought, "How can it get any better?"

Then the cast began to form... Mickey Rourke... Bruce Willis... Jessica Alba... Rosario Dawson... Benicio Del Toro... Michael Clarke Duncan... Josh Hartnett... Michael Madsen... Clive Owen... Nick Stahl... Elijah Wood.

Ain't It Cool News just posted some screencaps from Sin City. You can see them by clicking HERE. Cool aren't they?

Now if we could just get a release date for the movie!

Happy Days Are Here Again!

ABC has announced that The Happy Day 30th Anniversary Reunion, will air later this season.

All major cast members [Ron Howard (Richie), Henry Winkler ("Fonzie"), Tom Bosley (Howard Cunningham), Marion Ross (Marion Cunningham), Erin Moran (Joanie), Scott Baio (Chachi) Anson Williams (Potsie), Don Most (Ralph Malph)] and even the two cast members who played Riche's older brother in the first season [but then quietly disappeared in the second season] are set to appear.

Happy Days was on my MUST-SEE TV list for a few seasons. It was funny, Fonzie was cool, and the series was fun. A lot of people say the show went down-hill when Fonzie [literally] jumped the shark, but I think it was when Chachi came on board.

Still, I'll probably tune in to the special if only to see if a short, skinny guy who says, "Ayyyy!" was as cool as I remember.

I'm Back!

Two hurricanes hit us in three weeks. The odds against this are astronomical.

But it happened.

We had plenty of warning. We knew that Frances was coming.

The crazy thing is, hurricanes quite often change their paths. And Frances was so big if you planned to leave, where could you go to be safe?

I worked at a shelter on Thursday and Friday and then came home to ride out the worst with the wife and kids. It had been raining a little bit each day since Hurricane Charley hit three weeks ago, and on Saturday, it really started coming down... and down... and down.

We lost power on Saturday morning. Then the winds picked up. From about 10 AM until well after midnight the rain fell and strong winds blew. On Sunday the winds finally began to die down but the rain just kept coming.

Monday came and so did more rain. The entire county went under a curfew. Most people were without electricity and parts of the city [and many homes] were flooded. Hurricane force winds had destroyed homes and businesses. And many streets were under so much water that they were impassible. You can imagine what that much water did to homes. Luckily no fatalities have been reported.

We finally got our electricity back on today. Our house had very minor damage and just a bit of water came in. We had to cut down some trees, but other than that we were spared. I have friends who weren't so lucky, but each of them has said it could have been so much worse.

And they're right.

It's amazing how spoiled we've become and how lucky we are. After four or five days of being trapped in a house without electricity... no AC, no phones, no internet, no hot meals or hot showers, you begin to suddenly appreciate the small things.

Believe it or not, there's another hurricane out there brewing. The odds of it hitting the same part of Florida again so soon after the last hurricane are astronomical...

... but unfortunately not impossible.

Frances is Coming!

I've lived in Florida for 30 years. And in those 30 years we've had our fair share of hurricane scares. We've even been grazed by a hurricane or two in my area. Now it looks like we're going to get hit with the second one in less than three weeks.

The good news is that hurricane Frances' path has shifted a bit. Last night it looked like Daytona Beach was going to be dead center of Frances' trip through the Sunshine State. Now we'll probably just get a glancing blow. And this blow will be stronger than Charley who came through a couple of weeks ago.

With Charley we lost power for three days. And we were lucky. Some people lost their lives, others lost their homes and personal possessions. Beatty's house had two huge tree limbs come through the roof ... and he considers himself lucky since no one was hurt.

You're probably wondering why we don't just leave when there's a hurricane coming. The fact is that many people do. The highways have been backed up all day. The traffic crawls and tempers rise. When we attempted to leave five years ago, we got caught up in the traffic crawl and saw more accidents and people arguing and bad behavior... the roads ended up being more dangerous than the weather.

The other fact is that most hurricanes are so big and change their paths often enough that you really don't know where they're going to end up. For Charley some people headed to the Daytona Beach area and wound up right in the path after Charley shifted. Frances is as big as the state of Texas...

The bad weather is supposed to start tomorrow with the worst of it hitting us on Saturday [and going into Sunday]. We're probably going to lose power for a while [and nothing else I hope]. At any rate, I'll post an update as soon as I can after that.

And if Frances shifts even father away from Daytona that loud noise you hear will be my sigh of relief. ; )

Risso Batman Statue

I recommend Eduardo Risso's work every chance I get. Although best known for his art on the monthly crime comic 100 Bullets, Risso has also done outstanding work on Batman, Spider-Man, Cain, and other lesser known comics.

If Risso worked on it, then I say, "give it a look."

See the cool looking Batman statue to the left. Yep, you guessed right. That baby is based on Eduardo Risso's Batman.

It's a limited edition statue which will stand nearly seven inches tall and be painted in a monochromatic black and white style [evoking the best of Risso's work]. This bad boy is going to be the first in a series of Batman statues.

Now want to hear the really cool thing? The retail price is just $45.00! I've already put in an order for mine. Click on the picture and you'll get a larger view of the statue. Then If you're going to want one, let your local comic shop know now!

Scout is coming back!

Man, am I stoked! Tim Truman's character SCOUT is coming back... and in a big way!

Scout was set in the near future and followed the adventures of an Apache, Emanuel Santana, who was on a mission to kill four "monsters" who were in positions of power in the United States. The original series ran for 24 issues.

The next Scout series was set ten years in the future and followed Scout and his two sons as they tried to stay alive on the barren frontier.

Scout was one of my favorite comic series and I can't wait to see everything that's being planned [Scout Collections, Posters, Lithographs, Statues, and Action Figures.]!

"Dr. Strangelove" Frighteningly Realistic

One of my all-time favorite movies is Stanley Kubrick's dark comedy "Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb."

If you love it as much as I do, then you'll be happy to know that a special 40th Anniversary Two Disc set is being released on November 2nd.

And whether you love "Dr. Strangelove" or not, you'll probably be surprised to read just how realistic it was. Read THIS ARTICLE and suddenly the comedy seems even darker.

Thanks to Mark Evanier for posting the link.

Dr. Strangelove rates an A+

Suppose Josey Wales rode into Salem's Lot...

Suppose Josey Wales rode into Salem's Lot... isn't that one of the best tag lines ever?

The Wicked West re-teams Neil Vokes, Todd Livingston and Robert Tinnell [the
guys that brought us The Black Forest] in a story of vampires and the old west.

This graphic novel is going to be a winner. I've already pre-ordered my copy. Check out the Wicked West website and I'll bet you'll soon be doing the same!

Wachowski Brothers' Next Project

The Wachowski brothers, the guys who created The Matrix, are back and I'll bet their next project will surprise you.

It's a comic series called Doc Frankenstein [created by Geof Darrow and Steve Scroce]!

The Wachoski brothers will write and Steve Scroce will draw the bi-monthly series which begins in November from Burlyman Entertainment.

The tagline says: Resurrected from the dead! He is the MESSIAH OF SCIENCE who has returned to Save Our World from the MONSTERS currently running it! Click HERE and you can see a preview of the art.

I'm going to pre-order Doc Frankenstein through my local comic dealer and you should too if you want to be sure to get a copy.

Carlito's Way

One of my favorite Al Pacino movies is Carlito's Way.

If you haven't seen it, you should give it a look, especially if you're a fan of Pacino, Sean Penn, or gangster movies. It's directed by Brian DePalma and is really, good. [I'd place a link to the dvd, but they're coming out with a Special Edition in the near future so you should wait if you'd like a copy for your collection.]

At any rate, Carlito's Way is one of my favorite movies. So you think I'd be excited to hear that a prequel may be in the works, right?

Well, unfortunately what JoBlow is reporting, is that if there is a sequel it doesn't look like Pacino, Penn or DePalma will be involved!

The cool thing is that no matter what happens with the prequel we'll always have the original.

"Carlito's Way" rates an A

"One Busy Horror Writing Machine"

Steve Niles is one of my favorite writers.

Niles writes screenplays, novels and comic books. If that sounds like a lot of writing, it is.

But so far I've enjoyed everything that Niles has written [especially the Cal McDonald novels].

Steve's got a lot more stuff coming out in the next year.

Click HERE and you can get a peek at what he has planned.

Who knows maybe you'll become a fan too!

Liam Sharpe & Conan

Liam Sharp is a really talented artist.

He'd love to draw Conan now that Dark Horse has started publishing new Conan stories.

Click on the picture to the left and get the full effect of Liam's Conan.

After seeing that don't you agree that Liam should get his Conan assignment today?

C'mon, Dark Horse... it's a "no-brainer!"