The Incredible... Yawn

The Hulk trailer went live today. I've never been much of a fan of the character and after watching the preview nothing has changed.

Jim & Mike & Cartoons I Liked

One of my highlight's from MegaCon was getting to spend a bit of time with two old friends. That's Jim Ivey on the left and Mike Kott on the right. I've known these guys for over 30 years. Jim is an award-winning political cartoonist and founder of the original Cartoon Museum. Mike is the founder and co-owner of The Intergalactic Trading Company. Together they [along with Bill Black] put on OrlandoCon, one of the best comic book conventions you'd find anywhere. I knew them because of their respective business enterprises, but we became friends over countless hands and hours playing cards. I only get to see these guys about once a year now. But when we do see each other, it's like the years melt away.

It's hard to believe that I'm almost the age that Jim Ivey was when we first met! And speaking of Jim Ivey, he has a new book out called Cartoons That I Liked. It features some of his favorite cartoons from the thousands that he did over the years. It's available as a or $3.00 pdf download or $9.95 for the actual book. You can even order one from Jim which will come autographed and with a sketch for $20.00. If you're at all interested in political cartoons, then I'd appeciate it if you'd order a copy. The pdf is a steal at three bucks and getting the autographed copy at $20 is a bargain. If you order a copy from Jim, please tell him I sent you his way. Who knows, I may need some goodwill from him should we ever get into another poker game.

Dave Stevens - RIP

Dave Stevens, illustrator/comic book artist, died yesterday. Probably best known for creating The Rocketeer, Stevens was also known for his "good girl" art and love for Bettie Page. Stevens didn't have a prolific output, but each piece he created was a beauty. Mark Evanier explains why and writes a worthy remembrance.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dave Stevens' family, friends and fans.

The 4 Stooges

Since everyone here loves The Three Stooges [and don't try to tease me by saying you don't], I thought that you'd get a kick out of a clip of the only time that Larry, Curly, Moe and Shemp played a scene together. Mark Evanier explains here how this scene came about. Thanks to M.E. for the link and explanation.

Costumes or Wardrobe?

As we were waiting for MegaCon to officially start, we were surprised by the huge number of fans in costume. Men. women and children in all sizes and shapes were parading around in costumes adapted from characters in comics, cartoons, movies, video games, tv and perhaps outer space. At some point I noted that some of these folks weren't in costume. My contention was that if they dressed this way daily, their attire would no longer be considered a costume, but instead wardrobe. Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, the remaining minutes until the show opened were spent debating whether or not an identified person was in costume or wardrobe.

I thought you might like to see some of the better costumes, so I took several photos. I was tempted to also take shots of folks that I felt were probably in wardrobe, but then thought better of it. So off we go with comments as needed... the photo above is dedicated to Judge Monty!

This photo cracks me up. You have a huge group of super heroes [and a couple of villains] just kind of hanging out and then this fella in the far left decides to dash across before the pictures were snapped. Maybe he was trying out for a place in their group since the Flash couldn't make it. My guess is he wasn't fast enough.

Here's another group of heroes that I caught lounging around before heading out on the convention floor. The guy playing Nightwing must have Spidey-sense because he snapped into a pose without me saying I was going for a photo.

The guy in the photo above and the couple in the picture below may have something to do with the fact that I didn't see anyone at the show who looked like a real Batman. Perhaps these three were in wardrobe and bumped him off!

The guy playing Ghost Rider was probably 6'6" and looked more menacing in real life. Mr. Freeze was my favorite costume of the show. Look closely and you can see the glass head covering and the ice coming off his blaster. Indiana Jones made an appearance as well.

This is a photo of the design on a fan's shirt. It's done by the very popular artist, Alex Ross. I'd never seen the design before. Although I try to keep politics out of the ZONE [since I want to focus on fun stuff], you have to admit that the image quickly sums up the feelings of a lot of people in our country. Now back to more costumes...

Perhaps the guy in the middle is hoping for a try-out to join the Green Lantern Corps. Then again, maybe he's a sidekick to the second Lantern.

Yeah, I know... Who Ya Gonna Call...

Three of the 300 showed up with a couple of their babes. Things were going well until, and I kid you not, a guy dressed up as Jesus was "attacked" by them for a photo op. Somehow I think the line, "Tonight we dine in Hell!" may come true for these "warriors."

More on the show to come...

MegaCon

Friday and Saturday I was at MegaCon in Orlando. Florida. I had a good time seeing some old friends and meeting a few new ones. The crowd seemed much larger this year and the number of fans in costumes, especially good costumes was the biggest ever. As you can see Wonder Woman and Superman also made the trip to the show.

Dave Johnson signed and sketched in my copy of Drink and Draw. That's Rev. Dave in the photo above. Darwyn Cooke signed my copy of his classic take on DC Heroes in The New Frontier. I was able to get a few sketches for my Stallone theme collection -- Ron Salas did a Rocky and Joe Peaker worked up a Deke from "Nighthawks." I'll post photos once I get them scanned. Chris Moreno was finishing up a humorous take on Freddy from "Cop Land" and Jason Walker still needed to add color to his very cool "Rambo" at the close of day two, so my buddy The James is going to pick them up for me today.

I'll be back later to tell you more about the show.

MegaCon Bound

One more day and I'm MegaCon bound. I'll be there on Friday and Saturday if all goes as planned. I'm really looking forward to hanging out with my bro, John Beatty and friends I don't get to see nearly enough. My goal will be to have a great time, take some photos, discover some new artists, meet some old favorites, and get a few sketches. It'll be a fun weekend... hope some of you can make it!

Two for the Show

Joe Bluhm is going to be at MegaCon this weekend. So is Keelan Parham. Life is good.

UFC and the Best Fighter

If Anderson Silva isn't the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, then maybe Jon Fitch is. Yeah, I know. I'll explain in a minute, but first let's take a look at last night's UFC highlights.

The main event had Anderson Silva going up against former PRIDE and two time Olympic wrestler, Dan Henderson. Henderson dropped 20 pounds to take on Silva, who has totally dominated his division. To Henderson's credit, he won the first round. Silva came on strong to win by submission in the second after scoring on big knees and punches. I don't see anyone out there who can beat Silva at this point. Unless he decides to go up a weight class [and why would he], he could be in for a long title run.

The upset of the night was Heath Herring over Cheick Kongo. Nobody expected [well, outside of Herring] the fight to go all three rounds or for Herring to win. The guys I watch the fights with usually bet a buck on each match. Someone is usually willing to take the underdog since it's just a buck and once in a while you can even get 2-1 if you take the dog. Last night NO ONE wanted Herring. I ended up taking him on a 2-1 bet where I won if he lasted through the first round [Whoooo-hooo, I won 2 bucks] and a 5-1 bet for a win [Yipppeee-ki-yaaa, five more came into the till]. Herring won a split decision and actually looked better than ever doing it.

Jon Fitch won a tough match against Chris Wilson and extended his winning streak in the UFC to 8. Believe it or not, that ties the longest winning streak ever in the UFC, putting Fitch in the same strata as Royce Gracie. Who'd a thunk it? Ask anyone who the best UFC fighter is and you'll hear: Anderson Silva, George St. Pierre, Matt Hughes, Rampage Jackson, Randy Couture, and many others before you'd hear Fitch's name called out. Well, Jon Fitch needs to be in there because if he wins his next fight he owns the record.

1 Bank. 1 Job. One Million Evil Dead

See the today's header? That is part of a poster that rocked my morning. I love everything about it. You can read more about it HERE. Let's hope that whatever it was made for gets made.

He Ain't Heavy...

I gotta admit that THIS TRAILER made me chuckle even though you can see the jokes coming from a mile away. Maybe it's because I can imagine Beatty and I playing the lead roles. And Big John knows which of the brothers that I'd be.

Criminal Thoughts

ZONErs have heard me repeatedly talk up my love for Criminal by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. Click HERE and see what Sean Phillips has to say about his work with Ed Brubaker on the award-winning series [Coward, Lawless, Second Chance in Hell].

One Step Closer!

Congrats to my brother, John Beatty and Bella who are one step closer!

Good Vibrations

THIS TRAILER for "Street Kings" is givin' off a "Training Day" / "LA Rex" vibe. And that's a very good thing.

Sketch Society

Yesterday, the February Sketch Society meeting was held. Although I'm not an artist, I enjoy hanging out with friends who are. Big John Beatty [in the corner] was there working on a really nice Doctor Strange commission. He also showed me progress on a Modok piece for a fan that really rocks. Rob Smith drove over and brought work with him. Rob travels the state, seems to know everyone and is always fun to hang with.

Sean Shaw [left] and Mark Dail [right] made the meeting. Both guys live in Daytona. It was a blast hanging out with everyone. There were a lot of laughs as the discussion ranged from art to politics to movies to... well, just about everything. The next meeting is scheduled for March 29th. More details will be posted as we get closer to the date. Hope you can make it!

So Who's the Crybaby?

1. Brian’s Song (1971) - Yes.
2. Rudy (1993) - Nope.
3. Saving Private Ryan (1998) - Yep
4. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) - Kind of.
5. The Natural (1984) - Never saw it.
6. Shawshank Redemption (1994) - Nope.
7. Shindler’s List (1993) - Nope.
8. Old Yeller (1957) - Yes.
9. The Pride of the Yankees (1942) - Nope.
10. Terms of Endearment (1983) - Never saw it.
11. The Iron Giant (1999) - Close…
12. Philadelphia (1993) - Nope.
13. Big Fish (2003) - Nope.
14. Million Dollar Baby (2004) - Yeah.
15. Life is Beautiful (1997) - Never saw it.
16. Love Actually (2003) - Never saw it.
17. Rocky (1976) - No, but when Mick dies in “Rocky III”…
18. The Pianist (2002) - Never saw it.
19. Mystic River (2003) - No.
20. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) - No.

So, you've read the list. Who's the bigger crybaby?

MegaCon is Coming!

If you can make it to Orlando, March 7th through the 9th, you might want to check out MegaCon. There will be a bunch of media guests on hand signing autographs. A ton of artists will be there sketching and selling their originals. And there will be panels, gaming and much, much more.

If you can make it, swing by John Beatty's table and say, "Hi." I'll be the guy not drawing.

The Electric Church

The Pitch: “Blade Runner” meets “The Dirty Dozen”

The Overview: In the near future the two most powerful organizations on the planet are the United Federation of Nations and The Electric Church. The United Federation of Nations controls the population through the use of their brutal and corrupt System Security Force [think elite military police]. The Electric Church is a new religion growing at an exponential rate due to its promise of salvation through eternal life [as a cyborg]. Avery Cates is a “gunner” - hired muscle available for a price - trying to stay under the radar of both groups. When he mistakenly kills one of the SS cops he finds himself given one option for survival: break in to the stronghold of the Electric Church and assassinate it’s leader.

The Good: Jeff Somers' writing. Avery Cates and his band of outlaws. The story moves. The cover illustration by Jae Lee.

The Bad: What happens to converts to The Electric Church.

The Ugly: The way most of the population lives.

The Summary: My guess is the The Electric Church will make my list of Best Books of 2008. I can’t wait to read its sequel, “The Digital Plague.”

The Lurch on My Mind

On Monday, Mark Evanier posted THIS VIDEO on his site. I haven't been able to get the song out of my head. Maybe now it'll leave me and head over to you.

The Happening Now Open

The official site for "The Happening" is now open.

Abbott Tanks

Kimbo Slice knocked out Tank Abbott last night in about 43 seconds of the very first round. You can see the fight on Youtube for free. I don't think that anyone was surprised by the outcome. Not even Tank.

It probably would have ended sooner, but the ref pulled Kimbo off Tank after Kimbo repeatedly punched Tank in the back of the head after the first knockdown. The ref walked Kimbo to the other side of the cage and allowed Tank to stand up and regain some composure. Then when the ref started to allow them to fight again, Kimbo's mouthpiece was found in the center of the ring and the ref once again held up the action. Kimbo threw his mouthpiece into the crowd and the fight was again started. Three more quick knockdowns followed and the fight was stopped.

So what did this fight prove? Not much. Maybe two things: 1] Kimbo can put fans in the seats. The 7,000 seat arena was sold out and the place went crazy when Kimbo entered. 2] When Rick Flair retires from professional wrestling Tank Abbott can take his place because he definitely has Flair's patented "front fall" down pat.

Until Kimbo fights a ranked fighter, we're really not going to know how good he is or how good he can be. My guess is that Ken Shamrock [as old as he is] would have given him a much better fight. I'd really like to see Kimbo enter the cage with Brock Lesner. I'd even pay money to see that.

Sketch Society is Coming!

Next Saturday is the next meeting of Sketch Society. The festivities will be at Java Junction Donut and Coffee. Big Beatty is going to roll in between 12:30 and 1. I'll probably get there between 2 and 3 [hopefully earlier]. For more details click HERE and I hope to see you there!

Kimbo vs Tank

Kimbo Slice fights Tank Abbott tomorrow night on Showtime.

Kimbo is a youtube legend thanks to his quick knockouts of big and mostly tough [but unskilled] backyard fighters. Kimbo has had one official MMA fight which lasted all of 19 seconds. He had [what is now being called] an exhibition fight where he chocked out Ray Mercer [an old boxer] in less than one minute.

Tank Abbott fought in MMA fights back when the Earth was just starting to cool. Less rules and less skills needed then. Tank would come out swinging and if you weren't knocked out and could last until Tank gassed [which usually didn't take too long] odds were you could beat him. Still, Tank was popular with the fans. Much more popular than his 9-13 record would lead you to believe. Tank's had 6 fights in the last 5 years [losing five of them and none going past the first round].

Looking at their records and who they've fought it's hard to imagine Kimbo vs Abbott as a main event. But I gotta admit that I'd tune in if I had Showtime.

What's Happening?

Click HERE if you want to see the second trailer for M. Knight Shymalan's Happening!

Indy in Glorious Quicktime

If THIS TRAILER doesn't make you want to see the new Indiana Jones movie, you're either too young [or too old] to remember how cool he is.

A Lot Can Happen OVERNIGHT

"Overnight" is a documentary that covers the rapid rise and fall of Troy Duffy, who in 1997 scored a million dollar deal to direct his screenplay, "The Boondock Saints" for Harvey Weinstein's Miramax pictures. Duffy's story was the stuff of legend. He was a bartender and part time musician who had written a screenplay that was getting lots of notice. When the dust settled Duffy was given over a million dollar deal that included his band getting to do the soundtrack for "The Boondock Saints," Duffy getting to direct WITH FINAL CUT and the bar that Duffy worked at purchased for him.

Most people in this position would count their blessings and hope that they could live up to the hype. Not Duffy. It was amazing to hear him talk down to his friends and family. To hear Duffy tell it, his talent was going to take them all to the top. He thought nothing of making sure that his mother knew that HE was right and his brother would have to listen to him now. Duffy made sure that everyone in his band understood that he was in charge and thanks to him they would be able to make a living with their music. He was ego gone mad... burning bridges and destroying friendships. And before too long Duffy alienated the man who made it all possible, Harvey Weinstein.

Soon the movie deal was dead in the water... same with the soundtrack. To Duffy's credit, he regrouped and found some backers to finance "The Boondock Saints" which he directed [at a greatly reduced rate]. And his band did get an album produced. It sold 690 copies... TOTAL. "The Boondock Saints" was made but when Weinstein and Miramax passed on it, so did every other company in Hollywood.

"The Boondock Saints" was never given wide theatrical release and eventually made it's way to cable tv and video. Where a funny thing happened... it's popularity began to build. Word of mouth spread and it became even more popular. Unfortunately the deal that Duffy agreed to in order to get the film made did not provide him any compensation for video or dvd. Duffy's advance from Miramax was long gone as was his payment for "The Boondock Saints." To this day he's never gotten another project made.

Just as quickly as his star had risen, it fell... "Overnight."

I Almost Forgot to Mention...

And I can't wait!

What Up, Raf?

Rafael Kayanan [Raf to his friends] is an extremely gifted artist to the second power.: See, he's an artist as in creating artwork, and an artist as in can kicking butt [martial arts]. In the comic field he's worked on everything from Conan to Star Wars. In the film industry he's done everything from storyboards and conceptual art to serving as technical adviser and fight choreographer on major films.

Click HERE and you'll get an interview with Raf and you can find out what he's been up to lately.

RIP - Roy Scheider

Roy Scheider died yesterday at the age of 75.

Although Scheider appeared in several dozen films over the course of his career, it is his work in three that is most remembered: "The French Connection," "Jaws," and "All That Jazz." He received an Best Supporting Actor nomination for "The French Connection" and a Best Actor nomination for "All That Jazz" but it was "Jaws" that made him a household name.

Chris Mills said it best with: "He was part of that last generation of character actors who could play leads, before the movie industry became obsessed with pretty boys and grunting beefcake."

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

Hotshot Rambo

I'd never seen THIS before.

Citizen Soldier

I don't know how old the song is, but I saw this video playing before a movie a couple of months ago and it stuck with me. Well done video and song.

Perfectville 1 or 2

Perfectville.

Many of you probably saw THIS after the Superbowl. Ah, but what if the Patriots had won? Then you would have seen THIS. [Thanks to Mike Zeck for the original link.]

007 Guesses Who is Back

I was a huge fan of the last James Bond film "Casino Royale." I thought Daniel Craig perfectly nailed the thugish qualities needed for the early Bond -- you know, the Bond he was before he became the ultra-cool superspy.

Of course I am looking forward Craig's next outing as 007 despite the somewhat blah title "Quantum of Solace" and the fact that a new director is at the helm.

I was surprised to see a teaser poster and a behind the scenes video for QoS today at AICN. Click HERE and you can be just as surprised.

Not Too Taken

Honestly, I'm not too taken with THIS TRAILER.

Tell Me What's Happening

It would appear, after checking out THIS TRAILER, that what is happening is M. Knight Shymalan is back on track.

Thoughts on the Superbowl

The Patriots play the Giants today see who will be the Superbowl Champion. I really have no dog in this race.

On one hand I'd like to see the Giants win because they're the underdogs and I like to pull for the 'dog. On the other hand, the Pats have had an amazing run. If they win it today will finally quiet the Dolphins fans who keep yappin' about their perfect season 36 years ago.

Now don't get me wrong. I have nothing against the Dolphins and I loved the 72 Dolphins that set the mark. But what many Dolphin fanatics don't want to recognize is that the 'fins went 14-0 during their regular season, while the Pats went 16-0. Oh, I can hear the 'Finatics saying, "Well, don't blame us because the season was shorter. We'd have beaten anyone that year." Maybe, maybe not.

We really don't know. What we DO know is that year Miami only beat two teams with winning records during their regular season run [Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets], and both of those teams were just 8-6. This year the Patriots have beaten two teams that were 13-3 [Dallas and Indianapolis], one that was 11-5 San Diego, three that were 10-6 [Cleveland, the Giants and Pittsburgh] and one, Washington, that was 9-7. Talk about strength of schedule! Also remember that while facing these tough teams New England set a new NFL record for scoring 589 points!

So who do I want to win? I guess it's safe to say, let the best team win. If it's the Patriots, it will be a great capper to a great season. If it's the Giants, then more power to 'em.

Most likely the Dolpfanatics will keep yappin' anyway it works out.

Drive-Through Bartle Doo

There was a time [probably when I was in junior high] that I would have thought that THIS was really funny. I'm much more mature now.

Brock Lesner vs Frank Mir

Tomorrow night Brock Lesner fights former champ Frank Mir at UFC 81. It should be an entertaining fight. I'm leaning towards Mir because of experience, but Lesner is the real deal as an amateur wrestler. He's also a beast.

Raf, please weigh in.