The Sunday Spotlight: The ‘Well, You Thought Wrong Then, Clever Dick’ Edition
by Richard Bruton
It’s Sunday, shouldn’t I be spotlighting some comics stuff? Well, what the hey… it’s Sunday Spotlight time…
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Second edition of Lakes International Comics Festival magazine available now…
We have two insanely good UK comics festivals – there’s Harrogate’s Thought Bubble, and there’s the Lakes International Comic Art Festival, happening this year on 27-29 September at Bowness-on-Windermere. Each has their own particular delights, each attracts a wide range of Brit and international guests, and I’d highly recommend both of them.
One very interesting and very good thing the Lakes/LICAF has started this year is Between The Lines, their new magazine focusing on Festival guests and other matters comic. Issue two features the second part of their interview with award-winning Italian artist Gigi Cavenago, an insight into the life and work of the remarkable Junko Mizuno, an exclusive cartoon by Dickie, a feature on the National Cartoonists Society, and more!
Want to get your hands on a copy? Download it right here.
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Support good comics sites… the Down The Tubes Gofundme…
We all love a good comics’ site, right? After all, you’re here reading this, aren’t you? Well, running a site ain’t cheap and way too many of them get by on a wing and a prayer, relying on volunteers giving their time. And then comes a big server host bill and they’re gone… way too many of them.
Which is why it’s vital to look after the good comic sites, of which John Freeman’s Down The Tubes is definitely one. Down The Tubes has been running for 25 years now, covering comics in general, but with a focus on Brit comics, with John’s writing supplemented by a team of volunteers. And they’ve set up a Gofundme page here to cope with an unexpected server hosting fee increase.
So, go support it, because we need all the good comics sites we can!
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Thought Bubble, Harrogate – new guests announced, new mid-con party venue… average toilets…
And speaking of the two big UK comics festivals, Senior Editor, Olly MacNamee, threw up the news of the next wave of Thought Bubble guests (and there are many of them, and they are good guests) earlier this month.
He also mentioned the Thought Bubble mid-con party on the Saturday night, which was previously found in the luxurious environs of the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate, site of toilets so spectacular that they even had their own successfully Kickstarted comic book – Secrets of the Majestic. This year it’s moved to Mojo in Harrogate, giving the organisers the spectacularly silly tag line… “Great Music, Great Drinks, Average Toilets”… congratulations TB for having a damn fine sense of humour and a damn fine comic festival!
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Thought Bubble to host the Steve Dillon Exhibition for 2024…
And more from Harrogate’s Thought Bubble Comics Festival now – they’re hosting the Steve Dillon Exhibition throughout the Festival this year.
The Steve Dillon Exhibition is a labour of love for the Dillon family, dedicated to keeping the life and work of Steve alive to new generations of comics readers.
At Thought Bubble, you’ll have the chance to view 50 original pages dating back to the late ’70s, including Preacher, Judge Dredd, and Punisher. As with all the Steve Dillon Exhibition events, if you do attend (and you should) make sure you do the right thing and get yourself a print or a t-shirt (hell, get both), as they pay for keeping the exhibition touring.
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And speaking of Steve Dillon – the 2000 AD Thrill-Cast pays tribute…
An essential comics podcast for you if you’re a 2000 AD fan, an essential comics podcast if you’re a comics fan – the 2000 AD Thrill-Cast put up a new, hour-long episode celebrating one of the finest artists, and finest men, in comics, the sadly gone from us, Steve Dillon. It’s all tied in with the release of the much-deserved Art of Steve Dillon Apex Edition, the episode features a chat with Steve’s daughter-in-law and organiser of the Steve Dillon Exhibition, Tanya Celine, plus a deep dive by David Brothers into one of Steve’s greatest stories – ‘Judge Dredd: Cry of the Werewolf’, from 2000 AD Progs Progs #322–328 in 1983.
You can either go with SoundCloud audio of YouTube audio and video – links to both here.
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How would you like to be Phoenix Comic’s Star In A Comic?…
One of the best kids comics around, The Phoenix is running its annual Star In A Comic competition once more.
Young comic readers send in their own ideas for a new story and the winner will get to see it published, with art this year by none other than Neill Cameron, creator of Mega Robo Bros:
A bit of exciting news: I am happy to announce that this year I will be taking another crack at the Funnest Job In Comics, and drawing the winner of the Phoenix’s STAR IN A COMIC competition!’
Pick up a copy of The Phoenix for details on how to enter!
And if you aren’t already, go subscribe!!!
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When death came for Frank Miller… Vanity Fair interview worth a read…
Miller might be a polarising force in comics, with a lot of us still smarting over the utter insanity and incomprehensible Islamophobia of Holy Terror, but he’s still a big name, and Vanity Fair have a fascinating interview with him here – ‘When Death Came For Frank Miller’ by Anthony Breznican.
‘The comic book icon behind The Dark Knight Returns, 300, and Sin City reveals the addiction that nearly ended his life—and how his loved ones (and a determined documentary maker) pulled him back.
‘Miller actually was dying, as he reveals in a new documentary, Frank Miller: American Genius, which confirms that his debilitating illness wasn’t anything that his fans guessed. He was an addict, ravaged by years of alcohol abuse. In an exclusive new interview, Miller explains that he used to drink to unlock his inhibitions, fueling the morbid creativity that made him such a powerhouse storyteller. His stark imagery, innovative use of silhouette and shadow, and willingness to plumb the darker recesses of the inhuman heart made him a superstar of the comics world. But as his alcoholism intensified, his body withered, and Miller’s own story took a grim turn.’
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Bob Wayne, a legend of DC Comics – in conversation at SDCC 2024…
Bob Wayne’s not necessarily a huge name in comics, but he’s been incredibly important for nearly three decades as DC Comics head of sales and marketing, a friendly face guiding comics retailers through some troubling times.
He’s retired now, but sat down at SDCC 2024 with Andrew Sumner of Forbidden Planet TV for a good chat. It’s packed full of great things. Go have a watch/listen.
‘Comics industry legend and Comic-Con Inkpot Award winner Bob Wayne spent 28 years being the friendly face of DC Comics, as their head of sales & marketing. Bob was there at the birth of the direct market and worked at DC through an extended era of supercharged industry-revolutionising creativity. Bob sits down with his old pal (and one of his favourite Englishmen), Forbidden Planet TV’s Andrew Sumner, at San Diego Comic-Con 2024 and talks through his wildly eventful career – from his secret origin in Fort Worth, Texas, to his early years attending conventions & selling comics professionally, to his almost three decades marketing some of the greatest comic books of all time! Along the way, Bob remembers his friendship with DC president Paul Levitz, discusses working with Will Eisner and encountering Steve Ditko and receives some surprise guest questions (from Diamond Comics overlord William Schanes, Inkpot Award-winning art historian David Siegel and his old DC Comics staffers Fletcher Chu–Fong & Stuart Shreck)!’
