Everyone likes to meet a celebrity they respect and admire and have the type of experience they can share with friends and family. A photograph and story that is unique to them, about sharing their appreciation with the actors for their work, musicians for their songs, artists for their crafts, writers for their stories and characters or comedians for their humor.
Gary Sohmers has been producing these experiential events in New England since 1985, when he talked Adam West into appearing at his Collectibles Extravaganza. Over the years, hundreds of celebrities, artists, authors, actors, musicians and sports stars have appeared to meet, sign autographs and pose for photos with their fans. The cast reunions of Lost In Space in 1990 and 1995 at Bayside Expo were the first large scale celebrity events on the east coast. He also produced reunions of the Munsters and kids from Willie Wonka.
The demand and sometimes the cost of the this kind experience continues to grow, as more talent appears at more events, and more people attend for the unique opportunity to say thank you to the talent and get the treasured souvenir.
At the NorthEast ComicCon & Collectibles Extravaganza happening Nov. 29 through December 1, 2019, celebrity guests are chosen by producer Sohmers on numerous criteria assuring their fan-friendliness. The celebrities chosen are extremely happy to meet their fans, spend time with them and are there for more than the money. The costs are kept low compared to other events and the celebrities are not kept away from people who just wish to say Hi and Thank You.
Appearing for the first time at an autograph show in New England will be Peter Scolari (Bosom Buddies, Newhart, Gotham), Charles Shaughnessy (Soap Operas, The Nanny), Nicholle Tom (The Nanny, Beetoven movies), Denny Laine (Moody Blues, Paul McCartney’s Wings), Dana DeLorenzo (Ash vs. The Evil Dead), Marty Ross (New Monkees), Brianna Denski (Wonder Park) and others.
The VIP Experience is an added value offering limited number of special opportunities for several of the guests. This VIP treatment allow early entry admission all 3 days of the event, an autograph and photo op with your favorite celebrity, a reserved seat at their Q&A, and special laminated pass.
The VIP Experience is available for Peter Scolari, Charles Shaughnessy, Nicholle Tom, Denny Laine and Dana DeLorenzo.
General admission is as low as $15, and children 10 and under get in Free with adult supervision. Autographs and photo ops also available sold separately by individual celebrities setting their own prices. Most celebrities charge $50 or under for their combo of Photo op with autograph.
More info on VIP Experiences available at https://necomiccons.com/november-29-december-1-2019-vip-packages/
Hotel Room Nights at the Boxboro Regency Hotel where the event occurs are on sale in advance and include one weekend admission for each room night booked. Call the hotel and use the code ComicCon or book online at our website: https://necomiccons.com/november-29-december-1-2019-hotels/
Free Parking and children 10 and under admitted free with adult supervision.
BILLY WEST - NOV. 26-28 show
MICHAEL GOLDEN - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
CAMILLE & KENNERLY KITT - THE HARP TWINS - Nov. 26-28 show
MICHAEL WINSLOW - November 26-28 show
KAYLEE HOTTLE
MARTA KRISTEN - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
ROBERT WUHL - NOV. 26-28 show
KRISTINE DeBELL - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
LISA LONDON - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
FRANCOIS CLEMMONS
DIANE SALINGER
MARIANNE PLUMRIDGE
BOB EGGLETON
KEITH WILLIAMS - NOV. 26-28 show
WILL MURRAY - NOV. 26-28 show
TIM CLARKE - NOV. 26-28 show
Cowboy MACH BELL - NOV. 26-28 show
PATRICK A. REED
MIKE LOPEZ - NOV. 26-28 show
JIM STERANKO - Postponed till 2022
DAN PARENT - July 2021 show
NICHOLAS BRENDON - March 2022 show
JEFF KLINE - March 2022 show
BARBARA FRIEDLANDER - March 2022 show
-
BILLY WEST - NOV. 26-28 show
Billy West is best known for his work on Ren & Stimpy, Doug and Futurama, West has a career in radio and television that began in the 1980's when he did comedic impersonations for Charles Laquidara's Big Mattress morning show on Boston's WBNC FM radio network. By the mid-90s, he had moved to doing impersonations of Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott on The Howard Stern Show, giving him greater exposure. From there, West became involved with the Nickelodeon shows Doug and Ren & Stimpy. Portraying the title characters on both shows, Billy West saw his voiceover work reach an even larger, yet younger audience. This led to Warner Bros. hiring him for the film Space Jam in 1996. Featuring Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan and the cast of Looney Tunes, West voiced Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd, two characters whom he has sporadically voiced throughout the next decade. He is also known for his portrayal of Philip J. Fry, Professor Fanrsworth, Zoidberg and Zapp Branigan among others on the cartoon Futurama. In addition he is also the voice of the iconic Red M&M and many other roles in advertising, television and film. As guitarist and singer-songwriter for his band Billy West and The Grief Counselors, he released their first album, Me-Pod in 2004. His band, The Shutdowns (playing Oldies from 1980 to 1984) opened for Roy Orbison, The Shutdowns also opened for: The Association, The 4 Seasons, and Jan and Dean. Billy supplied lead guitar and vocals. "I played a a little bit of guitar with the great Pete Wolf, frontman vocalist for the Mighty J.Geils band. When Aerosmith separated in the 80's, my old Fender Telecaster and I were honored to play live with the inimitable Steven Tyler on a couple of occasions." In 1982, West sang lead, doing an impersonation of Mike Love, on a Beach Boys-inspired tune, "Another Cape Cod Summer This Year," by studio band ROUTE 28, written and produced by Erik Lindgren on his Arf! Arf! Records label. West has collaborated with Los Lobos, as well as Penn Jillette, Kramer and Deborah Harry of Blondie on Tattoo of Blood, played live with Brian Wilson, including the guitar solo on the Beach Boys tune "Do it Again" on Late Show with David Letterman, in the mid 1990s. -
MICHAEL GOLDEN - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
Mr. Golden is best known for his late-1970s work on Marvel Comics' The Micronauts, as well as his co-creation of the characters Rogue and Bucky O'Hare, among others. After starting his illustration career in commercial art, Michael Golden entered the comics industry in late 1977, working on such DC Comics titles as Mister Miracle and Batman Family. His first work for Marvel Comics was "The Cask of Amontillado", a backup story in Marvel Classics Comics #28 (1977) adapting an Edgar Allan Poe short story. In 1978, he collaborated with Bill Mantlo on Marvel's Micronauts which he illustrated for the series' first 12 issues. He drew a number of Marvel series throughout the 1970s and 1980s, including Doctor Strange, the Howard the Duck black-and-white comics magazine, and Marvel Fanfare. Writer Chris Claremont co-created Rogue with Golden in The Avengers Annual #10 (1981). At Continuity Comics, Golden and writer Larry Hama introduced Bucky O'Hare in Echo of Futurepast #1 (May 1984). Back at Marvel, The 'Nam series was launched in 1986 by Doug Murray and Golden. Golden drew covers for the licensed series G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Rom, U.S. 1, and The Saga of Crystar. Golden also penciled parts of the Marvel No-Prize Book . In the early 1990s, Golden was an editor for DC Comics and later in the decade served as Senior Art Director for Marvel Comics. In the 2000s, he drew covers for DC Comics' Nightwing, Superman: The Man of Steel, and Vigilante. Despite his considerable amount of work in comics, Golden has stated that he still finds advertising and commercial design work to be more fulfilling than comics, because "it's something different each time. Golden's art style later inspired a number of later comics creators, including Arthur Adams. Golden's work was also appropriated by Glenn Danzig as a logo for his bands Samhain and Danzig. -
CAMILLE & KENNERLY KITT - THE HARP TWINS - Nov. 26-28 show
NorthEast ComicCon is pleased to welcome The Harp Twins Nov. 26-28, 2021 performing at the Boxboro Regency Hotel in Boxborough MA for a concert each day, along with photo ops and autographs. They have recently released a comic book “Legend of The Shaders” and a new recording “IceBorn.” Identical twin harpists Camille and Kennerly Kitt, known as the HARP TWINS, have achieved extraordinary success by taking Electric Harps and Concert Grand Harps to unprecedented levels and smashing boundaries between different genres of music. The twins’ ability to reinvent the harp has given them the opportunity to represent the United States at four World Harp Festivals, tour worldwide as a duo, and be featured guests on the 2020 nationwide PBS special, Celtic Heart. The duo has amassed over 1.5 million fans across their social media sites and over 120 million views on their YouTube music videos, making Camille and Kennerly the most followed and recognizable harp duo in the world. The Harp Twins have headlined countless concert series, festivals, fairs, comic-cons, and conventions – with audiences that include former U.S. Presidents and Vice Presidents, tech titans, fashion moguls, dignitaries, and world leaders. Mixing their virtuoso harp skills with their stunningly complex arrangements of classic rock, metal, Celtic, and soundtrack hits - as well as Nordic inspired original songs - the Harp Twins deliver exciting, comedic, and interactive family-friendly performances that audiences cannot forget! As the world’s only identical twin professional harpists, Camille and Kennerly were trained classically (with University degrees in Harp Performance) but have a passion and flair for arranging and performing rock, metal, Celtic, Nordic-folk, and soundtrack music for Harp Duet. The Harp Twins have also shown themselves to be formidable composers, lyricists, and storytellers through their full-length all-original album, ICEBORN. Their Nordic-inspired original songs harken to their Scandinavian heritage and serve as a soundtrack for the continuing story of their original comic book, Legend of the Shaders. Camille and Kennerly perform on statuesque Acoustic and Electro-Acoustic Concert Grand Harps as well as Electric Harps. With no backtracks, no studio, no production crew, and no record label, the Harp Twins are the archetype of true trail-blazing and inspiring independent artists. In addition to their Nordic-inspired original songs and stories, Camille and Kennerly are recognized for their remarkable duet harp arrangements of some of rock and metal’s most iconic hits by the likes of Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osbourne, Megadeth, Aerosmith, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, The Rolling Stones, Blue Oyster Cult, Scorpions, Eagles, Bon Jovi, Pink Floyd, U2, Journey, Evanescence, Billy Idol, Deep Purple, and many more. Showing the breadth of their arranging talents, the twins also arrange and perform TV and Movie Soundtrack, Anime, and Video Game hits. Some fan favorites include their renditions of music from Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Elder Scrolls, Final Fantasy, Star Trek, Star Wars, Vikings, Doctor Who, Zelda, Mario, Silent Hill, Harry Potter, and The Lord of the Rings. Most recently, the twins self-funded, recorded, and produced an album of Celtic, Classical, Sacred, and Original music titled “Harp Reflections”. The album was fan-funded on Kickstarter in just 90 seconds. Camille and Kennerly have released 8 self-produced full-length albums: Harp Attack, Harp Attack 2, Harp Attack 3, Harp Fantasy, Harp Fantasy 2, Winter Lights, Harp Reflections, and Iceborn. -
MICHAEL WINSLOW - November 26-28 show
It is with sincere pleasure, along with tongue-in-cheek sound-effects galore, that NorthEast ComicCon welcomes comedian and actor Michael Winslow to our event Thanksgiving Weekend, Nov. 26-28, 2021 at the Boxboro Regency Hotel for autographs, photo ops and making noises with his mouth. Michael Winslow is billed as The Man of 10,000 Sound Effects for his ability to make realistic sounds using only his voice. He is best known for his roles in all seven Police Academy films as Larvell Jones. He has also appeared in Spaceballs, Cheech and Chong's Next Movie and Nice Dreams, Gremlins, among others and in 2021 made it into the Semi-finals of the America’s Got Talent TV program. In 2021, Winslow auditioned for the sixteenth season of America's Got Talent. Following the airing of his audition, he had a guest appearance on the Talent Recap Show where he showed viewers how to make some of his most signature noises. Winslow made it all the way to the semi-finals. According to his own account, Winslow had few friends growing up. To pass time, he would imitate the sounds of engines, animals, flatulence, anything that made noise. Following his high school and college periods, he performed in nightclubs and theaters, where his sound imitation skills won him positive appraisal and enough money to move to and perform his act in Hollywood. His first television appearance was on The Gong Show in which he squeezed in sound-alikes of Benji the movie dog, Star Trek, and Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze". He is best known for his role as Larvell Jones in the Police Academy series of movies and TV shows. He was cast in the role after he was seen opening for Count Basie. In 1985, Island Records released a 12" of Michael Winslow entitled "I Am My Own Walkman". The song peaked at number 60 in Australia. In 1986, Winslow presented the Best Sound Effects Editing Oscar to Charles L. Campbell and Robert Rutledge for their work on Back to the Future. In 1987, Winslow appeared as a radar operator in the movie Spaceballs, in which he performs all the sound effects during his scene himself. Mel Brooks (who wrote, directed, produced, and co-starred in the film), stated that by doing so, Winslow saved the film money. Winslow has hosted the motion-picture television series called "Way Back Wednesday with Winslow" on the cable superstation WGN America, which features movies mostly released in the 1980s. He continues to perform stand-up comedy around the globe. Winslow is also a motivational speaker. Michael Winslow debuted his own iPhone and iPod Touch apps in 2010, bringing his sound effects and comedy to a mobile platform. That'sKungFu generates Winslow's kung fu fighting sounds when the device is swung in a fighting motion. NoizeyMan, billed as the "World's Noiziest App", contains video, ringtones, sound effects, and mini games, all created by Winslow. In 2011, Winslow worked with Orlando, Florida-based game development studio Phyken Media on a mobile game for iOS and Android platforms entitled Wizard Ops Chapter 1, providing all the sound effects for the game. He also lent his voice on Wizard Ops Tactics, a turn-based tactical game and spiritual successor to the previous game. He was also featured in a commercial for GEICO Insurance during their "we hired a celebrity" ad campaign. -
KAYLEE HOTTLE
NorthEast ComicCon & Collectibles Extravaganza is pleased to welcome, for the first time in New England, the 12 year old star of the monster movie of 2021, “Godzilla vs Kong,” Kaylee Hottle to meet fans, sign autographs and pose for photo ops at the event Nov. 26-28 at the Boxboro Regency Hotel in Boxborough MA. Kaylee Hottle comes from an all-Deaf family, spanning four generations of Deaf relatives on her father's side. Her native fluency in American Sign Language has provided her with opportunities to perform in commercials such as the Glide app public service announcement (directed by Jules Dameron, 2016) and "Mother's Day" (for Convo Relay, 2017). She also appeared in "10 Deaf Children: One Powerful Message" (directed by Sheena McFeely and produced by ASL Nook, 2018), and starred in the film Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) as Jia. We encourage everyone to learn some ASL (American SIgn Language) to “speak” to Kaylee, and we’ll all learn from her about her path to her career in the creative arts. Kaylee will be appearing all day Friday Nov. 26 and Saturday Nov. 27 but will only be at the show on Sunday Nov. 28 between 9:00 and 11:00 am. -
MARTA KRISTEN - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
Marta Kristen was born Birgit Annalisa Rusanen in Oslo, Norway, to a Finnish mother and a German father. She spent her first years in an orphanage in Norway, and was then adopted in 1949 by an American couple from Detroit, Michigan. Reflecting her Scandinavian heritage, she adopted her stage name. She first appeared in a 1961 episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, "Bang! You're Dead", alongside Billy Mumy, who later co-starred with Kristen in Lost in Space. Her first successful film role was that of Lorelei in the 1965 movie Beach Blanket Bingo. She later starred in Lost in Space and made numerous guest appearances on television shows. When her daughter was born in 1969, she began making television commercials and eventually appeared in more than 40. She also made the occasional film appearance in movies such as Terminal Island (1973), Once in 1974, appearing as a bare breasted 'Humanity' in the science-fiction film Battle Beyond the Stars (1980); and had a cameo role in the 1998 movie Lost in Space. She also appeared in the A&E biography Jonathan Harris, Never Fear, Smith Is Here in 2002. Kristen also provided voice work for the 2009 animated theatrical short "The Bolt Who Screwed Christmas" which also included voice work from her Lost in Space co-stars Harris, Mumy, and Angela Cartwright. -
ROBERT WUHL - NOV. 26-28 show
Special Guest Announcement for Nov. 26-28 NorthEast Comic Con & Collectibles Extravaganza ... Please join us in welcoming the incredible Robert Wuhl for autographs, photo ops and fun. He is best known as the creator and star of the television comedy series #Arliss (1996–2002), Wuhl's first role in movies was a starring role in the 1980 comedy The Hollywood Knights along with other fledgling actors Tony Danza, Michelle Pfeiffer and Fran Drescher, followed by a small role in the film Flashdance (1983). Wuhl then had larger roles in movies including Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) with Robin Williams, Bull Durham (1988) with Kevin Costner, Tim Burton's 1989 Batman (as reporter Alexander Knox) with Michael Keaton, Blaze (1989) with Paul Newman, Missing Pieces (1991) with Eric Idle, Mistress (1992) with Robert De Niro, Blue Chips (1994) with Nick Nolte, and Cobb (1994) with Tommy Lee Jones. He wrote two of the six episodes for the TV series Police Squad! in 1982, and did an audio commentary for its release on DVD in 2006. In 1992, he appeared in The Bodyguard as host of the Oscars. In reality he won two Emmy Awards for co-writing the Academy Awards in 1990 and 1991 with Billy Crystal. In 2015, Wuhl portrayed himself on American Dad!, in the episode "Manhattan Magical Murder Mystery Tour". He then returned in 2017 to play himself again in the episode "The Talented Mr. Dingleberry". In 2019, he returned in the episode "One-Woman Swole" portraying himself as a judge in a bodybuilding contest. -
KRISTINE DeBELL - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
Kristine DeBell was raised on a small self-sufficient farm in upstate New York. As a young girl, she took ballet and studied voice. At 14, she began modeling for Macy's. During her freshman year of high school, Kristine auditioned for and won the part of Marta in the musical The Sound Of Music. The following summer, the now-famous Mac-Haydn Theatre opened in DeBell's hometown, featuring The Sound Of Music as its last show of its season. Kristine auditioned for the part of Marta again, however producers felt her voice was too mature and cast her as the naughty postulant. This was the beginning of a fruitful four performance seasons with The Mac-Haydn Theatre. After graduation from high school and a year at Berkeley College studying Fashion Merchandising, Kristine began modeling for Ford Models in NYC. She was on the April 1976 cover of Playboy, photographed by Suze Randall, and appeared in the Helmut Newton pictorial, "200 Motels, or How I Spent My Summer Vacation"( August, 1976), from which 11 original prints were sold at auctions of Playboy archives by Butterfields in 2002 for $21,075 and three by Christies in December 2003 for $26,290. Kristine starred in a number of motion pictures including Meatballs (Bill Murray's first film and Ivan Reitman's directorial debut), Blood Brothers (Richard Gere's first film, directed by Robert Mulligan), and The Big Brawl (Jackie Chan's first American film). Kristine also starred in a number of television pilots throughout the early 1980's, and enjoyed many guest-star appearances in episodic television and movies of the week, including Night Court, and the award-winning soap opera The Young & The Restless. DeBell left the film and television industry in the mid-1980's to raise her children on a thoroughbred farm in upstate New York. Her passion for theater brought her back to the stage, and she began starring in many regional theater productions. One of her most memorable performances was as Blanche Dubois in Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire. She continues to enjoy steady work as a film and television actress. -
LISA LONDON - Nov. 26-28, 2021 show
Lisa London is an accomplished actress & singer who hails from Palm Springs CA, and has basked in the limelight since a teen. In high school she was a Bob Hope Classic Girl and had her own weekly column in the Desert Sun newspaper and interviewed local and international entertainment & sports celebrities for CBS radio. Lisa has starred in many films & TV roles and produced critically acclaimed theater productions she also acted in. Lisa’s first film may be one of her most memorable, the sex comedy “H.O.T.S.” in 1979 portraying O’hara. She appeared in almost 100 films and continues to be acting currently with numerous projects streaming now or in post production. Lisa has been directed by Clint Eastwood, Michael Bay, Burt Reynolds, Oliver Stone and Mimi Leder. Her many acting credits include starring in cult classics “Samurai Cop 2,” “Deadly Vengeance,” Savage Beach” and “The Naked Cage” as well as blockbusters “Sudden Impact” with Eastwood, “Dragnet” with Tom Hanks, Dan Ackroyd and Christopher Plummer, a starring role in “Private Resort” with Johnny Depp, and “Firetrap” opposite Superman Dean Cain. Her current TV roles include “The Morning Show” and “Law & Order:SVU.” As a singer Lisa performed and recorded with the CBS/Sony artists "The Pinups" , sang in Dragnet and on The Naked Cage soundtrack and has a song she co wrote and sang in the upcoming Jim Wynorski film she also stars in, “Bigfoot Or Bust.” Lisa is a New York International Film Festival Best Actress Nominee in short film and has a library of film roles now streaming. She is all over the internet in the smash hit “I Don’t Care” with Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber as featured actress in their music video. Other credits of note include "Midlife" with Billy Wirth, “Divorce Texas Style" with Daniel Baldwin, "A Star For Rose" with John Savage and Debbie Allen, and a recurring role with William Katt on "Rick's Parking." Lisa now lives under the Hollywood sign in a 1916 silent movie era home where she loves to throw parties to show off her culinary skills and enjoys hiking, yoga, reading, kayaking and traveling the world. -
FRANCOIS CLEMMONS
François Clemmons is a singer, actor, playwright and university lecturer and is perhaps best known for his appearances as "Officer Clemmons" on the PBS television series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood from 1968 to 1993. When it was discovered that he had an excellent singing voice, he began performing locally at church functions, becoming choir director of his church at the age of 10. His first songs were the spirituals of pre-Civil War America, passed down to him by his mother. He soon branched out across genres, singing with various community groups. For a while, he was the lead singer of a rock 'n' roll group called the Jokers.Clemmons received a Bachelor of Music degree from Oberlin College, and a Master of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University. He also received an honorary degree of Doctor of Arts from Middlebury College. In 1968, Clemmons won the Metropolitan Opera auditions in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He went on to Cleveland, Ohio, where he won a position in the Metropolitan Opera Studio. He sang there professionally for seven seasons, performing over 70 roles with companies including The New York City Opera, Los Angeles Civic Light Opera, and Washington Civic Opera. Clemmons sang with numerous orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. In 1976. he won a Grammy Award for a recording of Porgy and Bess; he performed the role of "Sportin' Life" over 100 times. For 25 years, Clemmons performed the role of Officer Clemmons, a friendly neighborhood policeman, in the "Neighborhood of Make-Believe" on the children's television show Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. In the neighborhood itself, Clemmons ran a singing and dance studio located in the building diagonally across the street from Mister Rogers' house. He was one of the first African Americans to have a recurring role on a kids' TV series, and his presentation – as both a beloved neighbor to Mister Rogers and as a respected authority figure – has been described as a ground-breaking message in race relations. In 1969, when racially integrated community swimming pools were still controversial, Mr. Rogers invited Officer Clemmons to cool his feet with him in a small, plastic wading pool. Mr. Rogers lent Officer Clemmons a towel to dry his feet and then used the same towel to dry his own feet, breaking a well-known color barrier. While attending Oberlin College, Clemmons realized that he was gay, but remained closeted, fearing disapproval from his religious family and the community. In 1968, Fred Rogers told Clemmons that while his sexuality did not matter to him personally, Clemmons could not be "out" and continue appearing on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, because of the scandal that would arise. In the late 1960s, Rogers and others suggested that Clemmons get married as a way to deal with his sexual orientation, which he did. His marriage to his wife Carol did not work out, and Clemmons divorced in 1974 so that he could live openly as a gay man. Rogers remained personally supportive of Clemmons, but required him to avoid any indication of his homosexuality – such as the earring he began to wear as a signifier – on the program. Rogers later revised his counsel to Clemmons as countless gays came out more publicly following the 1969 Stonewall riots. Rogers even urged Clemmons to enter into a long-term, stable gay relationship, and he always warmly welcomed Clemmons' gay friends whenever they visited the television set. Clemmons lives and works in Middlebury, Vermont, where he is the Emeritus Artist in Residence of Middlebury College. -
DIANE SALINGER
NorthEast ComicCon welcomes actress Diane Salinger to the Nov. 26-28 event at the Boxboro Regency Hotel in Boxborough to meet fans, sign autographs, do photo-ops, discuss her career in the creative arts on stage and have a lot of fun. Diane Salinger's striking features and offbeat nature make her a sought after character actress to several inventive filmmakers, particularly Tim Burton who directed Salinger at the start of her career in Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985). She played Simone, a roadside diner waitress determined to move to Paris to find eternal love. To date, Simone is Salinger's personally treasured and most watched movie role. She also is recognizable as having played with Paul Reubens as The Penguin’s parents in Batman Returns (1992). Diane Salinger is the voice of Borghak the Steel Heart in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Diane is cousin to President John F. Kennedy's Press Secretary, the late Pierre Salinger. She directed "Anna Karenina" for Oprah Winfrey and her Book of the Month Club and was honored as President of the Jury and Mistress of Ceremonies of the 2007 Monaco International Film Festival. She was directed by two Academy Award winners: Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen. Appeared in three films with Paul Reubens: Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), Batman Returns (1992) and Pee-wee's Big Holiday (2016). Tim Burton directed her in two of his films: Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985) and Batman Returns (1992). There is one scene in Creature (1985) when Salinger's character (Melanie Bryce) is groped by Hans Rudy Hofner (played by Klaus Kinski). It was not in the script, but an invention of Kinski's. When Salinger had to leave the Edgemar Theatre's production of Henry Jaglom's Just 45 Minutes from Broadway (2012) to complete a project in she was previously committed, Jaglom asked Karen Black to step in the for actress--Black quickly agreed to play the part, but only for a few months. Diane received the LA Drama Critics Circle Award and Drama-Logue Award for her portrayal of a schizophrenic in Zephyr Theatre's production of Standing On My Knees and was the Winner of the 2015 Independent Theater Award for her performance as an inebriated Tallulah Bankhead in Ensemble Theatre Company's production of Looped. Off Broadway Theatre credits include, Phantasie (Vineyard Theatre), Agamemnon (I.R.T.) Stage Door (I.R.T.), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Riverside Church Theatre), and Desire Under the Elms (Mamaroneck Theatre). Filmmaker Henry Jaglom cast her in five of his films: Venice/Venice (1992) (1992), Last Summer in the Hamptons (1995) (1995), Queen of the Lot (2010) (2010), Just 45 Minutes from Broadway (2012) (2012) and Ovation (2015) (2015). -
MARIANNE PLUMRIDGE
Half of the Dynamic Duo of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Bob Eggleton and Marianne Plumridge return with new original artwork, prints, books and commissions. Marianne Plumridge is an Australian-born artist and writer who lives in Rhode Island, USA, with her husband, illustrator Bob Eggleton. They share their home with over 1,000 Godzilla monster toys, and just as many dinosaurs, dragons, and other odd beasties and creature figurines. The rest of the house is occupied by numerous books, paintings, art materials, and CDs. It really is a creative atmosphere, where inspiration is never lost for long. In the last few years, Marianne has returned to her fine art roots by refining her oil painting techniques. As well as painting natural subjects, Marianne has combined birds and robots into an ongoing series of ‘technology lost in nature’ paintings that include quirky tin toy robot adventures, to great acclaim. Her other ongoing concurrent themes of cosmic whales and pointy rocket-ship paintings still enjoy success and popular favor. The results can be found online at: ‘Daub du Jour’ – http://daubdujour.blogspot.com/ Even more recently, Marianne has revived her interest in painting figurative works and portraits. Her experimental, ‘self-testing’ exploration of painting people again continues apace. In connection with her long held writing ambitions, Marianne writes book reviews and notes on her second Blog, ‘Muse du Jour’ – http://musedujour.blogspot.com/ Finished works of fiction have found their way into magazines and anthologies over the years, as well as articles and essays. Currently, Marianne continues to work on writing the nearly complete text for a book called “Bob Eggleton’s Ice Age America” for Impossible Dreams Press, in collaboration with her husband. It will feature essays and epic artwork and visions of prehistoric peoples, megafauna, and flora…and especially Mammoths and Mastodons. Marianne and Bob’s first collaboration as writer and artist, a children’s picture book called IF DINOSAURS LIVED IN MY TOWN was released in November 2013 from Sky Pony Press. Late this year, one of Marianne’s ‘more than doodle’ rocket paintings will grace the cover of Analog Magazine in the November/December Issue. -
BOB EGGLETON
Half of the Dynamic Duo of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Bob Eggleton and Marianne Plumridge return with new original artwork, prints, books and commissions. Bob Eggleton is an American science fiction, fantasy, and horror artist. Eggleton has been honored with the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist eight times, first winning in 1994. He also won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book in 2001 for his art book "Greetings From Earth". He has also won the Chesley Award for Artistic Achievement in 1999 and was the guest of honor at Chicon 2000.Eggleton's drawing and paintings cover a wide range of science fiction, fantasy, and horror topics, depicting space ships, alien worlds and inhabitants, dragons, vampires, and other fantasy creatures. His view on space ships were that they should look organic, and claimed that as a child, he was disappointed with the space shuttles and rockets NASA produced; they were nothing like fantasy artists of the twenties and thirties had promised. His fascination with dragons originated with his childhood interest of dinosaurs, which can be seen in the book Greetings From Earth. His paintings are commissioned and bought at science fiction conventions, and used as book covers. Eggleton has illustrated cards for the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game. Eggleton received massive encouragement from his father, in the form of books, supplies, visits to museums of space and aeronautics and support during the career choices he made. Eggleton dropped out of his art college, because he felt it was not for him. Eggleton is a fan of Godzilla, has illustrated numerous comics, magazines and children's books based on the character and worked as a creative consultant on the American remake. While in Japan he appeared as an extra in one of the more recent films.Asteroid 13562 was named Bobeggleton in his honor. -
KEITH WILLIAMS - NOV. 26-28 show
Keith Williams, comic book inker, enrolled in the School of Visual Arts in New York City from 1976 to 1980. Majored in Media Arts and studied under Will Eisner, the creator of the Spirit comic strip. He received a Bachelor of Fine Art. With the help of Marvel comic book artist and mentor Don Perlin, Keith started working for Marvel Comics in 1982 as a background inker. He worked for inkers including Joe Sinnott and Mike Esposito. At Marvel, he became the first John Romita Raider, an art correction group. Keith later became an assistant editor under Jim Owlsley (Christopher Priest) on the Spider-Man group of books. The two became the first all black editorial team in Marvel's history. He later became John Byrne's background artist on Alpha Flight, The Hulk, Superman and Action Comics. Keith began inking regularly with the Web of Spider-Man, which lasted for four years. In between that time and after he worked on many other books at Marvel. Some of which were The Silver Surfer, She-Hulk with John Byrne, Warlock, Quasar with Greg Capullo, Star Trek and the X-men. At Dark Horse Comics, The Mask and Walter with artist Doug Manke and Star Wars Droids. At DC Comics, Superman, and the Lobo/ Mask graphic novel with Doug Manke. For Valiant, he worked on Quantum and Woody and the covers of X-O Man. At Moonstone Comics, The Kolchak Night Stalker Chronicles, Buckaroo Banzai and Domino Lady. For ten years he had worked on The Phantom for King Features Syndicate. And at Avatar Press he inked Lady Death and Crossed covers. A Crossed webisode comic, "Wish You Were Here" and the cover and interiors of the comic book Uber. He has also inked Avatar Press' recently published graphic novel Max Brook's Harlem Hellfighters. -
WILL MURRAY - NOV. 26-28 show
William Murray is an American novelist, journalist, and short-story and comic-book writer. He has written numerous tomes about "Doc Savage," "Tarzan," "The Phantom" and "The Shadow." Several of his fiction had been published under pseudonyms. A contributor to numerous prose anthologies, Murray has written short stories of the characters Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, Ant-Man, the Hulk, the Spider, The Avenger, the Gray Seal, the Green Hornet, The Secret 6, Sherlock Holmes, Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, Honey West, Zorro and Lee Falk's the Phantom. For Marvel Comics, Murray co-created the superhero Squirrel Girl with artist Steve Ditko. He scripted The Destroyer black-and-white magazine, as well as single stories starring Iron Man and the Punisher. Murray wrote the introduction to the Marvel Comics Omnibus volume, which celebrates the 70th anniversary of Marvel Comics, as well as introductions to Volume 2 of Daring Mystery Comics, Mighty Thor Masterworks Volume 9, Mystic Comics Volume 1, Young Allies Volume 2 and Golden Age Captain America Volume 6. -
TIM CLARKE - NOV. 26-28 show
For over 30 years Tim has been Inventing, Designing and Sculpting some of the most unusual toys to ever be marketed in the US and abroad. Once known as the "King of Gross" after co-creating in the 80's Sectaurs (Coleco) and Boglins (Mattel). Tim now launches his new line of Boglins with TriActiontoys! funded by Kickstarter fans for over a quarter million Dollars. I love creating my own mythology. The world is filled with modern day mythological creatures you can find them in every nook and cranny of your bedroom closet. Tim Started his career designing and building puppets for the Muppets. Most notable were the Mystics and the Slaves that he sculpted and designed for the movie the Dark Crystal guided by the incredible drawings of Brian Froud. He also worked on puppets for Sesame Street, Muppet Show and Fraggle Rock for which he built Uncle Traveling Matt. After Dark Crystal was launched he garnered his first toy sculpting gig with Hasbro creating the Garthim, Mystics and Lanstrider toys. He has also created toys for Melissa and Doug toys, EK Success, Hasbro, Mattel, Coleco, Kenner, Ideal Lossirs, to mention just a few. -
Cowboy MACH BELL - NOV. 26-28 show
Sing with Cowboy Mach Bell during Celebrity Fan-Tasy Karaoke, Friday July 2 at 8:30 pm in the Courtyard. Sign up with Mach during the day Friday. Ohio-born rock singer “Cowboy” Mach Bell has recorded and toured extensively with numerous famed rock bands including: The Joe Perry Project, Wild Bunch, Last Man Standing, Mach 5 and the legendary Thundertrain. “Cowboy Mach Bell was a rock’n’roll singer who grew up in the next town over from me (Holliston, Massachusetts) and had a group called Thundertrain. He loved to rave and be in a band…” - Joe Perry Mach Bell made his bones fronting the glitter-rock turned proto-punk group Thundertrain. Appearing in 1977 on both the “Live at the Rat” album as well as their own “Teenage Suicide” lp, which featured their original song “Hot For Teacher,” Thundertrain became regular headliners at Max’s Kansas City and CBGB’s in Manhattan, the Cleveland Agora, Boston’s Paradise Theater and of course the Rat. “All leather and attitude, Thundertrain sat poised on the brink, a local hit album in its saddlebag and full support from the local media. Fronted by the irrepressible Mach Bell, who took no lip from anyone and took command at every venue, Thundertrain peddled and pummeled its metal ditties of thigh school love and lust with a basic two-guitar, bass and drums attack that also, surprisingly, featured a generous share of hooks to hang a hit on.” - Carter Alan By 1982 Aerosmith lead guitarist-in-exile Joe Perry needed a new lead singer for his Joe Perry Project. Mach Bell (who Joe always calls “Cowboy”) was selected for the job. Bell and Perry wrote seven of the original songs for the 1983 Joe Perry Project album Once a Rocker Always a Rocker (MCA/Geffen). As of last year, the recording has been re-released 18 times (and counting) in North America, Japan, Europe, Australia and Russia. The video for their song Black Velvet Pants appeared regularly on MTV and later on VH1 Classics. The Project performed hundreds of concerts all over Canada, South America and the United States, rocking packed houses at venues like the Bottom Line, El Mocambo, Hollywood Palace, New England Dragway, El Poliedro and the Agora Ballrooms. “ Cowboy Mach, Joe Pet and Danny Hargrove. Without a doubt the wildest and most fun bunch of guys I ever played with. It was rocking as close to the edge as I will ever get. Truly a band of pirates.” - Joe Perry In late 2019 Panther Rock Books published the long talked-about road diaries that were meticulously kept by Cowboy Mach Bell during his years as a member of the Joe Perry Project. In his book, the Cowboy shares his adventures and times spent with stars including Joan Jett, Stiv Bators, Ric Ocasek, Jim Dandy, Ric Nielsen, Steven Tyler and Bo Diddley. Mach’s new book “Once a Rocker Always a Rocker: A Diary” has been met with immediate critical acclaim. -
PATRICK A. REED
Patrick A. Reed is a New York City based pop culture historian, curator, and journalist who specializes in the fields of comics, popular music, and Hip-Hop culture. He has written for clients including MTV, IDW, Sony Music, and ComicsAlliance; directs the University of Oregon's biannual Hip-Hop And Comics conference; conducts programming at universities, conventions, museums and festivals around the country; and is the Curatorial and Marketing Consultant for the Marvel: Universe Of Super Heroes exhibition. Patrick will be interviewing Jim Steranko and the other Celebrity Guests on the Main Stage and in the Seminar Room throughout the weekend. -
MIKE LOPEZ - NOV. 26-28 show
Mike Lopez is the host of the webseries "INCREDICHAT" and Co-Founder of “INCREDIKIDS” & “INCREDICON” as well as an educator, speaker, author and artist. "INCREDICHAT" is a weekly WebShow spotlighting education & the arts that has welcomed such guests as Bob Bergen (the voice of Porky Pig), Cherie Johnson (Punky Brewster), Tom Rueggar (creator of Animaniacs) and many more! www.incrediconhv.com As an accomplished educator for more than a decade, it has been Mike's mission to reach & creatively inspire as many young people as possible. Bringing his passion for the arts into the classroom, giving students the opportunity to meet, learn, & work with professionals in arts and media. Through “INCREDIKIDS” and "INCREDICON", Mike has assembled talent from companies such as Archie Comics, DC Comics and The Jim Henson Company, and has traveled up and down the East Coast, enlightening educators and inspiring young people with family activities & providing programming at various conventions and charity events. Mike also provides his “Careers In The Creative Arts” interactive panel and workshop for libraries, schools and summer camps. Mike is also the co-creator & writer of “Life’s A Beach”, which follows the adventures of the good-natured kids of Avalon Beach. Along with artist and co- creator Gary Eckerson, drew inspiration and fun from the classic Frankie & Annette beach flicks, with a little bit of “Happy Days”, “Archie” & “Scooby Doo” thrown in for good measure. Mike is an avid fan, consultant and expert of classic animation and pop culture, leading conversations and moderating panels featuring some of the top voice actors in the industry. Mike also has been able to share his Hanna Barbera cartoon knowledge in two appearances on the hit AMC series “Comic Book Men”. -
JIM STERANKO - Postponed till 2022
Attention - Message from Jim Steranko re: NorthEast ComicCon Nov. 26-28, 2021 event It’s been a rough year or more for most of us—and I’ve had my share of difficulties, particularly with recent major windstorm damage, some still yet unresolved. When the pandemic began, I cancelled 19 appearances, and had hoped to reschedule most. However, there seems to be no agreement on conditions from all venues and promoters. Had both Pfizer shots with zero reaction, but I find the idea of being masked for days at a time at an event terminally oppressive. NorthEast ComicCon had set up protocols that allowed me to only be around vaccinated people without having to wear a mask at the show.. But, due to circumstances beyond anyone's control except Mother Nature, it is with deep regret that I’ll miss one of my favorite shows, the NorthEast ComicCon—and especially hanging out with my friends and fans. Pandemic fear is a national disgrace, but I’m certain the right people will get it under control eventually. Until then, take no chances out there. Be SAFE! - Jim Steranko, September 26, 2021 -
DAN PARENT - July 2021 show
Dan Parent is an American comic book artist and writer[ best known for his work for Archie Comics. A graduate of The Kubert School, Dan has been working at Archie Comics for 35 years. His writing of the Love Showdown series from 1994 received widespread attention. Dan has also written and/or illustrated for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Felix the Cat Productions, Mattel, IDW,Boom, Valiant Comics, Chapterhouse comics and Harpercollins to name a few. Dan created Archie’s first openly gay character, Kevin Keller. . Kevin Keller has become Archie Comic’s most popular character in decades, who is also a key character on the TV series, Riverdale. Kevin Keller was given his own solo book in 2011. Other notable series Dan has worked on are Archie Meets Kiss , Archie Meets Batman ’66 , Archie vs. Sharknado! And Red Sonja and Vampirella Meet Betty and Veronca .Dan won the 2013 GLAAD award for outstanding comic book (Kevin Keller) and is also a Harvey Awards nominee. Dan is co- creator of the hit series, DIE KITTY DIE , which was a huge kickstarter success and is now being published by Chapterhouse Comics. Dan’s current project is handling the art chores on many of Archie Comic’s 80th Anniversary projects, including a revamp of Everything’s Archie and a series of “What If” stories featuring Betty and Veronica. @parentdaniel on twitter and instagram -
NICHOLAS BRENDON - March 2022 show
Nicholas Brendon is best known for playing Xander Harris in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003) and Kevin Lynch in Criminal Minds (2007–2014). Brendon played Xander Harris for seven years and appeared in all but one of 144 episodes. For his role as Xander, Brendon was nominated for Saturn Award in 1998 and 1999 for Best Genre TV Actor and in 2000 for the Supporting Actor.[3] He continues to regularly attend comic conventions and sci-fi conventions. He has been involved in development of Xander's character in follow-up comic books, and has been credited as a writer for several issues. Nick is currently becoming proficient at his passion of painting and will be displaying his artworks, while also signing autographs, doing photo ops and Singing Karaoke with Fans during FAN-tasy Karaoke Friday night as part of the afterparty. -
JEFF KLINE - March 2022 show
As founder of Darby Pop Publishing and writer of Bruce Lee: The Dragon Rises, Bruce Lee: The Walk of the Dragon and Indestructible, Jeff Kline has for nearly two decades, has been one of the fortunate few “genre nerds” able to move freely between primetime and daytime television, motion pictures and the Web, and the East and West Coasts. He formed Darby Pop Publishing so he could play in the sandbox of comic books, and do so alongside some friends. As both Writer and Showrunner, Kline has been responsible for more than 40 animated and live-action series and pilots. He was an Executive Producer and co-developer of TRANSFORMERS: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE, a follow up to his previous project, the multiple Daytime Emmy® Award-winning CG series TRANSFORMERS: PRIME. Over the years, Kline also co-developed and Executive Produced both TRANSFORMERS: RESCUE BOTS and G.I. JOE: RENEGADES for Hasbro Studios and The Hub as part of an exclusive multi-year pact. Previously, Kline has been Showrunner on a slew of fan-fave animated series including JACKIE CHAN ADVENTURES (Kids WB), MEN IN BLACK: THE ANIMATED SERIES (Kids WB), ROUGHNECKS: THE STARSHIP TROOPERS CHRONICLES (Syndicated), BIG GUY AND RUSTY THE BOY ROBOT (Fox Kids), DRAGON TALES and GODZILLA: THE SERIES (Fox Kids). -
BARBARA FRIEDLANDER - March 2022 show
Ask me how I got started writing an article for this blog and I'll tell you it’s because I happened to Google myself on the internet. And so, there I was, that is, there I was under the name of Barbara Friedlander, a name I had two last names ago. So, to the world of DC Comics during 1963-1970ish, I was the Mother and Creator of the comic Swing with Scooter (not exactly the Mother of Dragons, but just as daunting) and I wrote and edited romance comics along with Jack Miller. I knew most of the editorial staff, the bullpen, and the talented freelance writers and artists. Let’s not forget the then President of DC (called National Periodical Publications at the time), Mr. Jacob S. "Jack" Leibowitz, the Vice President, Mr. Harry Donenfeld, and the folks in the accounting and clerical department, which is where I started. I consider myself a relic of that time. When I was nineteen I began as a fish out of water taking subscriptions and any odd job, Mr. Aurthur Gutowitz, the head of clerical, handed me. He hired me, but he often said, “Barbara, you don’t belong here. You should be married.” He echoed my Mother’s sentiments, and so there I was in the mindset of most young women of the time; get married and have kids. At nineteen, you want to find yourself, but you don’t always know where to look. So, here I am many years later and I go ahead to find myself again, this time it's with Google. It gives me an update on just who I was back then, and it dawns on me, that the stuff I discover is amazing! I then tell my kids about my life in comics and they say, “How come we didn’t know about this?” It was very exciting to rediscover my past life so naturally, I went back on the net and started buying back some of the issues I wrote and edited. I tell my kids, “See that’s me Barbara Friedlander!” The next thing I did was go to Heritage Auctions. I had bought antiques from them in the past when I was an antique dealer and I remembered they had a comic book division. As luck would have it, I got to speak with comic aficionado, Joe Mannarino. Joe knows all about comic books; he evaluates them and the original artwork and like all the smarties in the field, he knows everything past and present. We reminisce and I'm reminded of all the DC folks walking the halls of the Grolier Building, where DC was once located in NYC. He puts me in touch with Richard Arndt, who is heavy into comic lore and loves the darker side of the field. He knows many of the writers and artists I worked with, and more info starts flooding back to me; BINGO! Richard soon interviews me for Alter Ego, Roy Thomas’ holy grail comic history magazine which is a who’s who in the comic book world. Roy had met me years ago in passing at DC. He even remembered me! Now I am stoked, and so I put together a kind of “Look Book” and email it to a few people who I think might find it a missing link to DC history. Along the way, the Look Book goes to Jacque Nodell, creator of Sequential Crush, an online blog dedicated to all things romance. We click and do an interview about the silver age DC romance titles, which of course are my special baby...Snap! I get invited to TERRIFICON in 2018, where I meet Roy Thomas again and do a Romance Comic panel with Paul Kupperberg. He had met me, quite by a fluke, years back, at an Antique Show, and he knew my name from comic book history. I was flattered but the importance of the meeting eluded me at the time. Paul, as I learned, was an editor at DC and has written romance and action stuff. He was kind and totally into comics, too. I began to notice that people are so involved in this special field and are interested in moving it forward and preserving the genre. This time my kids are there with me and I'm blown away by the sincerity of all the comic fans. My kids are astounded and wonder, “Why did you give this up?” Naturally, I have no good answer. These serendipitous turn of events lead Roy Thomas to introduce me to his manager -- John Cimino! So, I fasten my seat belt and come along for the ride because he likes driving fast. More than anything, I want the readers to know what the DC mindset was back then, hell, it was the mindset of the time. So, Baby Boomers gave me my title and then there was a thing called the Korean Conflict. We were busy keeping America safe, fighting bad guys around every corner, this was what the comic books were made for -- good guys versus bad guys. DC had SUPERHEROES, and with very, very few exceptions, men wrote and drew those heroes. Lois Lane and Diana Prince may have hit home for a few females who took typing and had a smart nose for a good story. As you might have guessed, most of their actual talents were, ordering coffee, working switch boards, taking dictation and adding numbers. Back then, high schools and secretarial schools offered typing classes, and later dictation, for those who wanted to be secretaries or bookkeepers. I don’t recall any guys in those classes, most took shop, forget about home economics. So, as a female, you were destined to be a Betty the homemaker, Marilyn Monroe Sex Goddess, or file clerk extraordinaire. Being a stinky typist, and out of the running for sex goddess, I was on the hunt for me. One thing I've learned over the years, we can fry eggs and fly to the moon, but if we’re lucky we can make our own choice. We are not, and never have been, one trick ponies. There was one huge computer, it resided on the other end of the DC building. It handled all the subscriptions, and at the time, including the distribution of Playboy, and other publications. It was a very huge thingy and was so sensitive to dust, heat and bad input, let’s face it, it was a relic, but it was DC’s step into the future. Meanwhile, while the 20th century was forging ahead on the distribution, DC itself was run like a "mom and pop" shop. Printing operations and all the operation kudos with pats on the back never happened. Creators and artists were expected to hatch ideas and plot twists without exception or big Daddy would raise hell and make you feel like kryptonite kicked you in the butt. Most comic book groupies have heard the sad tale of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster ownership battles with DC over Superman. It ain’t pretty and it doesn’t have a happy ending. I’ve heard what I consider the “real” version of the story, and although I knew most of the people involved, you create something fresh and original, you damn well better protect it. Intellectual property is the right to claim and reap the momentary benefits that you “gave your heart and soul” to, and if you are considering a career, don’t sign your genius away. Sheer luck had propelled the Donenfelds and Liebowitz’ company into what every red blooded kid needed at the time -- red, white and blue good guys. By using capes and muscles, and a group for talent they often took for granted. They had let two, down on their luck guys, Siegel and Schuster, print what they thought was another piece of junk so that their unused printers would get a workout. For $130 bucks gold was printed in Action Comics #1. One day, I'll tell the full story in detail. The other comic book horror story was concerning Batman. Bob Kane was the artist and I met him numerous times. I also met Bill Finger, but even though he was the main creator and writer, he was treated like dirt by editor Mort Weisinger and a few others. Mort was not known for kindness; I think he was envious of talented people (he was a mega bad guy) and got a kick out of creating conflicts where there were none. But DC had its fair share of good editors and a few of them liked working for sales. I knew this because I worked in that division. And I knew comic books are sold by their covers and without distribution you’re dead in the water and that’s why the pressure was always on. You may have heard that DC stood for “Detective Comics”, I think, knowing the nature of the men behind the scene, “Donenfeld Comics” was a more accurate name. The company was a small, down on their luck (due to the Depression), lack of business, little "mom and pop" operation. This also meant they employed relatives, and guess what happened next? Skip ahead a few years and some of those lucky ducks made it to the big time at DC. READ THE REST AT THE LINK