The Jonny Quest song I play for myself at least once-a-week.

I don’t have the time this evening to write a long diatribe about my deep and abiding love for all things Jonny Quest. I’ve written of it many times here before.

This animated classic got under my skin as a young fan who depended on television to be both my friend and my window into the worlds of the fantastic. And then as an adult my interest continued. I was beside myself with fanatic GLEE when Comico got the rights to publish comics featuring the further adventures of Jonny, Race, Hadji and Co.

As luck would have it, at that time, I was working at a fan magazine called Amazing Heroes, back when comic fans actually read fan magazines. The offices for the publisher of Amazing Heroes was less than fifteen miles from the home of Doug Wildey, the man responsible for the creation of Jonny Quest. Exercising my editorial prerogative, I assigned myself the job to get an interview and write a feature about Doug for the launch of Comico’s series. Besides being amazingly talented, Doug Wildey was soft-spoken and incredibly generous with his time. Doug even did a painting that we used for the cover of Amazing Heroes.

Then, he gave me the painting. And it hangs on the wall of my office where I can enjoy it every day.

At the bottom it reads, “For Dave, a fine writer and a nice human being. – Doug”

Many years later, I got a CD (we still have those, right?) called Saturday Morning, it featured many songs from my television-polluted youth by popular bands (of the time). If you enjoy this blog, you should own this CD. Then something happened this evening that drove me directly to my blog to write this new post.

I found a video featuring Reverend Horton Heat’s version of the Jonny Quest theme song. It segues in the middle into “Stop The Pigeon,” the theme song from Dastardly & Muttly, but I still play this song for myself at least once a week. If I had a guarantee that the good Reverend would play this song live in concert, I would travel across a time-zone or two to hear it in person. Now you can ENJOY!

That’s my version of the story.

Alan Moore isn’t Obama’s official biographer. Don’t you wish he were.

Alan Moore at a party

A Funny Book Fanatic can dream can’t he?

And so can the humor dudes in Wisconsin.

From the “too good not to pass along file” comes the following story from America’s finest daily humor source, The Onion.

Click on the graphic below to read the whole “story.”

CLICK ME !!! • CLICK ME !!!

Consider this an official Funny Book Fanatic plug. Read my blog first (just in case I update it more often … sorry about that regular readers!) then go directly to read The Onion, which is full of great stuff every day and often makes extremely funny comic book references.

Too bad Moore would probably never let Vertigo publish this non-existent biography. But it is good for a “mass media meets geek” inside-joke giggle nonetheless.

That’s my version of the story.

— Dave Olbrich (DWO) Tue. Nov. 4, 2009

Thank you Wolverine … or Hugh Jackman is the holy grail of comics

OKAY … HE’S PROMOTING A MOVIE … BUT STILL …

I’m assuming that at this point, with the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie opening just days away, that most comic book fans have already seen the Public Service Announcement that was recorded by MOVIE STAR Hugh Jackman. If you haven’t, I’m including it here and now because there are many longtime comic book professionals that wondered (mostly in the past) if it would ever happen.  

JOE FIELD HAD TO WAIT 25 YEARS FOR THIS 

When the news broke many days ago about this video combo promoting the Wolverine movie that included a PSA for Free Comic Book Day, I got on the phone and called one of my favorite retailers, Joe Field. Joe’s store, Flyer Colors is, regrettably, one of those great comic book retail outlets that I’ve never had the good sense or good luck to actually visit.

MARVEL’s Black Widow, Thundra, Deathlok and more Gene Colan Project

SEND THE BLOODHOUNDS HOME … OR OUT FOR STEAK

Strap in. I’m back. If you need an explanation, that’s fine. But be careful what you ask for. I’m going to do this is the dreaded ask yourself a question and answer it format that is so annoying when you see someone do it live. It may even be more annoying when you see it in print.

Dave Olbrich (me) San Diego 2009

Am I glad that I quit smoking? Yes, of course I am.

Was it easy? No, it wasn’t easy. I used comfort food to make up the lack of nicotine, but I did it cold turkey. And I gained about 18 pounds. 

Am I glad that I started Weight Watchers about three weeks ago? Yes, I’ve lost 12 of the 18 pounds that I gained, but it completely wrecked me in ways that I didn’t expect. My mood has been really REALLY crappy. It is now very difficult to work in my office where I enjoyed my cigarettes and chocolate. 

What am I doing to turn things around? Exercise seems to help a little, releasing much needed endorphins. Time used for exercise also leaves less time for this fanatical blog.

Robotech, Grendel featured in this week’s FANATIC Quiz Question

The other day in my fourth installment of my Secret Origins of Malibu Comics series, I posted a cover of Jonny Quest published by Comico in 1986. This is the second time that I’ve let me fanatic dedication to this great animated show of my youth hang out in random ways. There is also a Jonny Quest illustration hiding in a post about comic creator jack-of-all-trades Jeff Parker.

Posting that Dave Stevens cover got me to thinking more about Comico. So I’ve decided to make it the subject of this weeks quiz question.

 

FANATIC QUIZ QUESTION OF THE WEEK 

A few weeks ago we played this game with First Comics, now it is time to turn our attention to Comico. Look at the five covers below and then put them in the chronological order in which they were published. And just to make it easier, each one of them was published in a different year.

Elementals #1  •  Grendel #1  •  Maze Agency #1

Night and the Enemy GN  •  Robotech: The Macross Saga #2