Touched by a man (I barely knew) on my birthday!

Yeah.  OK.  Calm down.  Yes it is my birthday. But no …

The comic title that I published
that “non-comics” people know

The suggestive headline is true … but it is also a joke and doesn’t mean what it seems to mean. I was trying to come up with a clever headline for this (mostly self-serving) post … and this amused me. So sue me. And please accept my apologies in advance Marty.

Facebook is a terrific tool to stay in touch, especially if you are part of community or family separated by geography. Such is my life, both personally and professionally. I live in Southern California. My family (and extended family) mostly live in the Midwest. Many others are scattered to the four winds.

Comics professionals are distributed all over the globe. When my birthday rolls around friends and acquaintances use the opportunity to check-in and say “howdy.” It is really great to hear from people I like and love on my birthday.

The ULTRAVERSE is how most comic
fans would know my work.

It is better yet, when someone you’ve only met a small number times uses your birthday as an opportunity to say something really thoughtful. So this is me sharing a private message I got from comic industry stalwart, writer supreme and all-around good guy Martin Pasko.

I fully admit this is self-serving. But I wanted to share. I did what I did in comics for a number of reasons. Let’s see how many I can name on the spur of the moment. (1) I love comics and have for nearly as long as I can remember (2) I have wanted a career in comics since my early teens (3) I went to college hoping to find a career path into comics (4) I needed a paycheck to feed my family (5) I wanted to provide for my employees as well as myself (6) I wanted to make a positive impact on the comic book industry and be “in the club” (7) I wanted creators who trusted me and worked with me to be glad that they did and (8) I wanted to do the right thing and be able to look at myself in the mirror.

Grade: B- (mostly successful, but with huge and noticeable shortcomings)

Getting this message from Martin Pasko was an amazing surprise and warmed my heart. It touched me. I wanted to say THANK YOU in the most public way at my disposal. And if I’ve violated your privacy by publishing your message to me, please forgive me.

That’s my version of the story.

It isn’t my fault that Alan Davis retired

Alan Davis seemed like a very nice man when I talked to him in England. He was being polite, that’s the only excuse that I can up with. I had come a long way to talk to him and he didn’t want to just come right out and say it. So he lied to me. It was a reasonably small lie and who knows maybe he even meant it when he said it … or time passed and he changed his mind.

The Talented Mr. Davis

How did I put one of the best pencillers in comics and myself in this position requires a little background.

As publisher of Malibu Comics, I had just returned from Palm Springs (a truly horrible place) and an event to be known as the First Ultraverse Conference. The executives and editors at Malibu, along with the writers who had been tapped to come up with the Ultraverse bible had spent a number of days hold-up in a hotel working out the details of our new universe.

Miscellaneous Monday: Dec. 1, 2008

FANATIC QUIZ OF THE WEEK

Name both the publishing company and the person who served as publisher for this blast from the past title. Sure, you could search the internet and get the answer, but how many of you have the answer trapped in the recesses of your minds?

* * * * * * *

 

BEST TURKEY DAY CARTOON

FANATIC READER QUESTION & ANSWER

Question from JASON:

“Dave, I have a question about the Prime video game that was released for the Sega CD. Was the mini comic that was advertised as being included with this game actually included? I’ve bought several “factory sealed” copies of this over the years (the Prime/Microcosm double pack, I’ve never actually seen or heard of the Prime game being sold as a standalone game) and none have ever included the mini comic. I’m a big Ultraverse fan and have managed to collect all but 6 books, this mini comic being one of them.”