In an effort to promote CO2 Comics‘ ongoing, monumental project, David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW The Complete Collection, we have established a COMICS INTERVIEW Facebook page. Please, if you have not done so already, stop by and “LIKE” the page and share it. It is becoming quite a trip down Memory Lane.
Random posts of quotes and photos of comic creators who were interviewed in the magazine have evolved into a photo feature that we like to call the Quote of the Day. The positive buzz generated by this feature encouraged us to generate more content and so began a staggered release of cover images from the issues that have been reprinted in the first two volumes of David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW The Complete Collection.
COMICS INTERVIEW #5 surfaced quickly and brought back a tidal wave of memories. That was the issue where Bill Cucinotta and I, as part of the fledgeling Comico crew that also included our former partner Phil LaSorda and SKROG inker, Bill Anderson, were interviewed by David Anthony Kraft, himself, in a New York coffee shop.
The event is so much like a dream that we often have to remind ourselves just how it came to be. We were all young guys full of hopes and ambition living the best times of our lives. Those were the days that, as comic creators, Bill and I look upon with the greatest fondness. We were taking chances, creating our own material and attempting to do what others said we couldn’t; build a comic company from scratch.
Primer #1
We had published our first black and white comic, Primer #1 in October of 1982 and a few months later, in February 1983, David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW #1 hit the stands. We knew right away that this was a magazine that we wanted to be associated with and Bill, who was always focused on ways to promote our comics in the Direct Market, was quick to contact David Anthony Kraft to set up advertising arrangements.
It was very easy for all of us to be star-struck. Dave was one of our heroes, having written and edited for Marvel for years. We had all cut our teeth reading his work and suddenly we were dealing with him on a regular basis. It was not long before we were referring to him as DAK.
Dave was much more than a business associate. To us, he was a mentor, filling our heads with knowledge about the comics industry including inside stories and tons of “of the record” anecdotes. More than that, he was a friend. Dave understood that we were possibly biting off more than we could chew but he was always willing to nurture our enthusiasm and offer respected criticism.
This support started with that first conversation he had with Bill regarding advertising which resulted in a trade deal where we ran Interview ads in our comic books and Dave ran Comico ads in his magazine. This allowed us to build a respected presence in the market with no cash expense and to have more reasons to call Dave on a regular basis.
The first Comico ad ran in Comics Interview #3 and our ads became a staple in the magazine for years to come. Lucky for us, we really hit it off with Dave and suddenly we were on a train to New York to be interviewed in issue #5.
Dave must have really been amused by us. We were a bunch of goofy kids with big dreams that only seemed possible because we didn’t know better. Our naiveté was our biggest strength; that and an unbridled enthusiasm to create comics.
Gerry Giovinco, Bill_Cucinotta & Phil_LaSorda
We dove into our interview with such a flurry that a half hour into it Dave realized his recorder had not recorded a word we said and we would have to start over. It was typical of our hit-and-miss approach to making comics. If we didn’t get it right the first time, learn from the mistake and make it better next time.
It is embarrassing, now, to read our ramblings, recognizing in hindsight how amazing it was that we would be able to steer Comico to become a powerhouse in the industry and establish standards and milestones that would influence the creation and success of future companies like Dark Horse and Image.
Dave, in all his wisdom, was able to see in our comics what he referred to as “a contagious enthusiasm that transcended their shortcomings.”
Of the entire interview the most significantwords were written by Dave in the introduction where he recognized Comico for the pioneers that we were as publishers.
“Comico, the comic company, is among the newest and most ambitious of the independent publishers springing up in the field. Comico’s five titles – AZ, SKROG, SLAUGHTERMAN, GRENDEL and PRIMER – are distributed through the direct-sales system and are available exclusively in comics shops or by subscription.
What is, perhaps, most surprising about such an enterprising endeavor is that all of the comics creators are ( at least, for now) essentially unproven and unknown. Starting from scratch, on such a scale, is virtually unprecedented under the circumstances.”
Our presence in COMICS INTERVIEW #5 marked a coming of age for us. We shared the issue with industry legends, Stan Lee, Dick Giordano, Wendy and Richard Pini! To be included with this iconic group, for us, was a dream come true. It was time that we were taken seriously by the industry, fans and, most importantly, ourselves.
Future issues of COMICS INTERVIEW would chronicle our achievements as our line grew. Features about The Elementals in issue #17 and ROBOTECH in issue #23 were evidence that we were a company on the move, adapting to survive and prosper. More would follow and Comico, as a company, managed to maintain a lifespan as long as COMICS INTERVIEW itself.
Comico, unfortunately has gone the way of every other independent publisher of that era. Bill an I however are still plugging away, as enthusiastic as ever but with quite a few battle scars to show for it. We still look to Dave as a mentor and friend and knew that when we started publishing as CO2 Comics we had to re-establish our relationship with COMICS INTERVIEW.
We are now on a long journey to package the entire 150 issue run of that memorable magazine in an eleven volume set. Two volumes are complete and the third is in production.
As Dave says, “It is a labor of love.” And what’s not to love? For us, everyday is a trip back to the “good old days” and a reminder of the enthusiasm that keeps Bill and I making comics just because we want to.
John Workman could not have a more suitable surname when it comes to making comics. He has done it all and for almost everybody. One healthy read of John’s Wikipedia bio and it is clear that his influence on comics is vast. Clearly he is an unsung hero of the comics industry, in part, because much of what he has done has been behind the scenes as an Art Director or in the production room.
Make no mistake about it, Workman is a Jack of all Trades when it comes to making comics. He has worn so many hats in his long career that it is hard to tag him with any single title. Writer, Penciler, Inker, Letterer, Colorist, Designer, Art Director, and Publisher are all roles that he has claimed professionally since he began in comics, working on fanzines as early as 1967.
Since then, John has left his indelible imprint throughout the industry, having worked for Archie Comics, Star*Reach, DC Comics, Heavy Metal, First Comics, Marvel Comics, Topps Comics, Image Comics, National Lampoon, Playboy Hamilton Publishing, Two Morrows, and Dark Horse. Unbelievably the list does not stop there and happily continues as CO2 Comics announces the presentation of two short stories by John Workman, “The Gold Mask” and “Revenge.”
“The Gold Mask“ is a concept that had been percolating in Workman’s mind for years before realizing itself as an overview of much of his career’s work serving as an introduction to readers unfamiliar withhis creative impact on Star*Reach and Heavy Metal.
John hopes the that the story would be a sort of “visual encouragement” to those comic creators who are walking the same road that he had travelled in creating comics material and presenting it to the public.
“Revenge,” also a brief study in the power the comics medium, has an interesting back story:
According to John, “the work began as one of the “June 2050″ stories in Heavy Metal. Dick Giordano had missed his deadline on the story that he and Jack Harris were doing, so… knowing that we needed to fill that page… I went home and wrote, pencilled, lettered, and inked this story and brought it in to the HM offices the next day. John Lennon had just been killed, and I used this as an opportunity to say something about his death. It was also a way of telling a somewhat complicated story by way of the comics form, a story that would be different if done in any other medium.”
Bill Cucinotta and Gerry Giovinco, publishers at CO2 Comics could not be happier than to have the opportunity to present these two short pieces by John Workman. John’s early work at Star*Reach and Heavy Metal were significant influences, inspiring them to maintain a broader vision regarding quality, variety of subject matter and creators rights when they began publishing as Comico in the early 1980′s. That vision that continues today with their new venture CO2 Comics that features serialized web comics, publishes, in book form, graphic novels and an eleven volume set of David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW the Complete Collection.
An interview with John Workman appears in the first volume of the COMICS INTERVIEW collection and highlights John’s pet peeve regarding the number of people involved in creating a page of comics. Workman prefers to do it all himself but he is ready to jump in a moments notice to take on any creative responsibility with the utmost ability.
It is that sensibility that proves, though may take many to create great comics, there is only one John Workman and now you can read his great short stories at CO2 Comics.
We at CO2 Comics are on a mission to preserve comics history one volume at a time. We are collecting the entire 150 issue run of David Anthony Kraft’s popular COMICS INTERVIEW magazine that exclusively featured interviews with everyone and anyone that was involved in the comics industry in any shape and form.
Originally published from 1983 to 1995, COMICS INTERVIEW gave voice to the comics industry at a pivotal time in its history. The magazine was able to provide insightful interviews with writers, artists and editors that were active in the earliest days of the industry as well as the young Turks whose careers since continue to shape the industry today.
Page by page, volume by volume, David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW The Complete Collection is an accurate, candid, and authoritative perspective of the history of comics that comes directly from the mouths of the people that lived it.
Amazingly relevant to current issues that affect the industry today, every volume is a necessary source of vital information for anyone who wants a complete understanding of the comics industry today.
Planned as an eleven volume set, CO2 Comics is delivering David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW The Complete Collection one volume at a time. Previously released and currently available, the first volume, proved to be impressive. Featuring 680 pages of incredible content the huge book meticulously preserved issues 1-14 of the historic magazine, bound in either paperback or hard cover editions and reasonably priced at $34.99 and $54.99 respectively.
Volume 2 continues the tradition of excellence, delivering 688 pages that compile issues 15-28 and is immediately available for purchase direct to customers online through CO2 Comics’ Comics Interview portal, www.comicsinterview.com where, as an added bonus, sample interviews from over a dozen industry legends can be reviewed.
Carl Macek Interview
Scott McCloud Interview
Flo Steinberg Interview
Bill Willingham Interview
As with volume 1, a Premier Edition featuring the classic Comics Interview logo will be available for just a limited time in both paperback and hardcover editions. Standard editions of both featuring the traditional Comics Interview logo are and will continue to be available for both Volume 1 and Volume 2.
Comics Interview Volume 2 Premiere cover
David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW The Complete Collection is a massive and beautiful centerpiece intended for any comics library. Accumulated one volume at a time it continues the tradition of anticipation and fulfillment that is experienced by every comic collector. If you love comics, now is the time to begin your own collection of the greatest interviews in the history of comics. Order your copies today!
The Holiday Season has begun and for many it also kicks off a shopping frenzy marked by two of the busiest shopping days of the year, Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Black Friday, of course is the day after Thanksgiving when shoppers, enjoying the day off during a long weekend, line up in front of retail stores at ungodly hours so they can savagely storm the store for “doorbuster” deals. This has become a holiday tradition for many and usually results in flaring tempers, small riots and of course a lot of bargains for the not so faint of heart.
Cyber Monday is for civilized folks who have discovered that shopping online is the way to go. Perched in front of their computer, tablet or with cell phone in hand, they can shop for anything they want on the World Wide Web and have it shipped to their doorstep. Online retailers have taken note and offer their own deep discounts that Monday after Thanksgiving.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday are not the only days with creative monikers. Religion has supplied some of the most notable like Ash Wednesday, Holy Thursday and Good Friday. Professional Football has given us Super Sunday, the busiest television day of the year where the world parties and gather’s around the tube to watch the Superbowl.
Let’s not forget Small Business Saturday, in this tough economic environmentwhere small, local vendors are struggling to survive, Small Business Saturday is a wonderful reminder that they are out there and desperately need your business throughout the year. Small businesses, whether they are local or on the internet, generally will offer you personalized customer service and genuine appreciation of your patronage. Remember that this group includes all those small press independent comic publishers and creators, your favorite web comics and your local comic shop!
Tuesday, however, has been earning its own nickname on the comic scene now for the last three years. Here at CO2 Comics, Tuesday is a big day! We like to call it “C-O Tuesday!” It is the day that our weekly blog comes out pontificating on all aspects of the comics medium including history, technique, news and opinion. It is also a day when we take time to promote creators and projects that appear here on the CO2 Comics site.
Fans have discovered that CO2 Comics is a place they want bookmarked in their browser and to follow on facebook and twitter @co2comics. Updates are posted throughout the week as reminders for comics that are continually serialized on a weekly basis here but CO Tuesday has become our weekly kick-off and a chance to get into the heads of Bill Cucinotta and I as we direct the publishing duties of CO2 Comics.
Black Friday and Cyber Monday, of course, are all about retailers getting their hands on your money. Hey, we’d like your money too, but at CO2 Comics you can read tons of great comics for FREE! In fact, we hope that you will enjoy what we offer so much that you would love to own some of it in beautifully bound books available in paperback and hardback editions. Each book is delivered directly to you hot off the press in immaculate condition!
Right now you have four great titles to choose from:
The huge first volume of an eleven volume set of David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW the Complete Collection, an incredible 680 page collection of the greatest interviews in comic book history. Volume two is in it’s final production stages and will be released shortly.
HEAVEN And DEAD CITY Cover
Heaven and the Dead City by Raine Szramski – This gothic fantasy is a tale of two cities, one beautiful and flourishing… the other, not quite as dead as it would seem. Raine Szramski lavishly hand-paints each panel in her unique style that brings both cities to life with a Victorianesque, Deco quality that will absorb readers into this world of magic, mystery, and adventure! 64 pages.
The Heavy Adventures of CAPTAIN OBESE Cover
The Heavy Adventures of Captain Obese! by Don Lomax - Finally collected in one handsome volume the adventures of Don Lomax’s favorite fat boy, originally published by WARP Graphics in the 1980′s, chronicles the amazing story of the world’s fattest super hero. Don Lomax is a long time veteran of adult comics, celebrated creator of Vietnam Journal and author of Marvel Comics’ The Nam.108 pages.
Ménage à BUGHOUSE cover
Ménage à Bughouse by Steve Lafler – The highly acclaimed Bughouse trilogy of graphic novels, formerly published by Top Shelf Productions, comes together in one giant package! Bughouse, Baja, and Scalawag combine to paint a full picture of life as an improvisational jazz musician set in an obviously fictional world where all of the characters are insects living in early fifties era Manhattan. On their road to success, the members of the band are tempted by the music, sex, money and the ever addictive “bug juice.”Ménage à Bughouse is an authentic look at the lifestyle of musicians and the challenges they face in an effort to satisfy their desire to create incredible music. 408 pages.
Monkey and Bird… a Love Storyby Joe Williams and Tina Garceau is another feature from the CO2 Comics site that has ventured into print as a mini comic, self published by the creators themselves! This tiny gem is lavishly colored, beautifully drawn, and written with intelligent humor worthy of any inter-species relationship. It’s a small comic, 32 pages including cover and only 4″ x 5.5,” making it the perfect opportunity to support the “little guy.”
If you are already proud owners of these books ad still feel compelled to to support CO2 Comics with your hard earned cash you can purchase some of the slick Marvel and DC parody Death FatigueT-shirts designed by Bill Cucinotta ora variety CO2 Swag available at our onlinestore.
There are also handy little donation buttons on each comic page where you can choose to support the creators individually or toss a little coin the way of CO2 Comics in general. Here is an easy access donation button if you have the urge to contribute right now!
Enjoy the rest of the Holiday Season! Please be safe and responsible because we look forward to your visits and we want everyone to enter the new year happy and healthy.
I recently acquired a DC Comics Production Handbook that was produced in 1989. It was quite clear from the contents that the industry then was clearly moving away from newsprint and focusing on the finer production qualities of better paper stock that we are now used to. Some explanations in the handbook contradicted information that I posted in Stop the Presses Part 3 and, being that I am always happy to stand corrected, I am sharing these new insights.
As mentioned in Part 3, World Color Press’s Sparta plant played a dominant role in comic book production from the 1940′s to the 1990′s but, though I credited this to their use of the web offset press, the DC Handbook claims that all the Sparta newsprint comics were printed on letterpress which used plastic coated plates to press ink onto the absorbent stock. The letterpresses at Sparta could print two 32-page comic books at a time and would produce up to 15,000 copies of each interior an hour.
By the late 1980′s, DC Comics, along with every other comic publisher at the time, were exploring other printers who were producing comics on better paper stock allowing for greater color capabilities. DC used the offset presses at Ronald’s Printing out of Canada. The manual sites that Ronald’s M1000-B offset press could produce 60,000 16-page sections (signatures) an hour which according to my math is the same speed as the letterpress. (1 32-page book = 2 16-page signatures X 2 books = 4 16 page signatures. 4 signatures times 15,000 = 60,000 signatures an hour. No?)
According to the manual color adjustments on the offset press had to be done while the press was running and could waste as many as 10,000 copies before a proof was okayed. Sheet fed letterpresses stop while color adjustments are made and waste far less paper.
The 1989 manual also makes a startling claim that, with all factors involved, they could not make any money on a comic book selling less than 20,000 copies! There seems to be a lot of titles below this number on current sales charts, so either production costs have dropped or the higher prices of today’s comics can support this decline in figures. I’m sure it’s not because DC likes losing money.
The DC Comics Production Handbook went into a lot of other now obsolete but fondly rememberedproduction techniques such as color separations, blue boards, coding for flat color, photostats and even pasting up word balloons. The Digital Age of art production has changed all of those things and the comics industry got its initial taste of that with First Comics‘ 1985 publication of the all digitally produced comic bookSHATTER by Peter B. Gillis and Mike Saenz.
Nearly thirty years later coloring, lettering, and even artwork is being done digitally. This is true of printing as well. Though digital printing may not be the cheapest way to print it is giving many publishers an opportunity to be able to publish in very small print runs because of the lack of set up costs. Previously much of the initial cost in printing was tied up in the production costs of films and plates requiring minimum runs in the tens of thousands before a comic could recover those costs. Now it is possible to print just one copy of a comic book and, though the unit cost is much higher than a comic printed on an offset press, there is no need to have a warehouse of unsold comics to meet the limited demand of a niche product.
Print on Demand (POD) providers have created an opportunity for independent publishers to create beautiful editions of their publications in nearly every format imaginable. Creators and publishers just need to upload digitally formatted content to the POD providers site, usually at no cost, and order a printed proof that generally takes no more than two weeks to arrive. Once the proof is reviewed and and any changes made the books can be made available for sale or ordered in quantity for distribution.
David Anthony Kraft's COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Volume 2
CO2 Comics has taken advantage of this POD production process and has been able to produce the beautiful 640-page David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW the Complete Collection Volume One of this eleven volume project has already been made available and Volume Two is currently in production. Other new print projects will be announce very shortly so please stay tuned for the exciting news HOT OFF THE PRESS!
Can you believe it? Two years have gone by since we launched CO2 Comics hoping it would become a unique cooperative of comic talent featuring a collective of great comic features. Naturally we initially turned to our long time friends and allies that have had ties with us since our days as founding publishers of Comico the Comic Company.
Comico The Comic Company owners, Top: Dennis LaSorta, Phil Lasorda, Bottom: Gerry Giovinco, Bill Cucinotta
Chris Kalnick, Joe Williams, Andrew C. Murphy, Reggie Byers, Bernie Mirealut, Bill Anderson, Rich Rankin and Neil Vokes all contributed to the early success of the realization of our goals for CO2 Comics. The faith that they all had in our ability to present their work while respecting their rights as creators, supporting their complete ownership and actively promoting their features and services as artists was a complete and humbling honor.
It became our duty to surround their works with with other great features and talent. CO2 Comics was always intended to be a place where readers could come to enjoy one feature and discover other comic treasures that they may not have found if those works had stood by themselves.
In just two years the list of contributers has grown to include twenty-two talented creators and two dozen exciting comic features. The impressive list of talent yields a number of nominated and award winning creators along with brilliant new talent that will deserve recognition for their mastery of the medium.
Take a look at the roster of creators here at CO2 Comics and you are bound to be amazed at the comic book pedigree and variety that exists on our site:
Besides having published over 800 pages of comic art in the last two years we have also taken on the monumental task of publishing David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection. The first of the eleven volume set had 680 pages that were painstakingly cleaned and reproduced in both paperback and hardback editions. Volume two is currently in the works. This project is the testimony to our love of the comics medium and its rich history.
COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection
Our commitment to the history of comics and the current state of the industry is also highlighted weekly on our CO2 Comics Blog where we feature a weekly article covering everything from our Comico history, production techniques, creator’s rights and frequent editorializing on the state of the market have drawn a lot of attention industry wide.
As if publishing a ton of great comic related material on the web and in print is not enough for two guys, we needed to create a new imprint, CO2 Publications so we could publish a 372 page literary book, FOR THE CONVENIENCE OF THE GOVERNMENT A Memoir of Veteran discharged from the Navy for being Gay written by George Richard Phillip Zimmerman, Jr. which was just released over Memorial Day Weekend.
For The Convenience Of The Government
Over our first two years we have published nearly 2,000 pages of material and maintained a rigorous schedule on an exciting site that has attracted over 4.6 million hits to date.
The best part is, WE ARE JUST GETTING STARTED! Last year, as we celebrated our first anniversary, we compared our accomplishments to our early publishing days with Comico and noted that we were far out front and we still are, thanks to the support of all the great talent that joins us and allows us to present new work daily.
We also need to thank our readers who continue to grow in numbers. Thanks for stopping by and for sharing with your friends. We became comic publishers nearly thirty years ago because we believed our comics were not finished works until they were experienced by the readers. We recognized early on that as publishers we played a significant role in the realization of a comic as a completed work and we intend to continue to be that conduit. CO2 Comic’s mission is to get great comics in front of as many eyes as possible. Please help us with your enthusiasm by continuing to share the comics you enjoy here with your friends and by returning often.
Finally, it is no mistake that we celebrate our anniversary over the Fourth of July weekend. As publishers we have always been motivated by the spirit of the Independent movement with our emphasis being on creator’s rights. Comics, for us, are a medium of freedom. Free thought, free speech, free enterprise.
We want to turn Independence Day into Independents Day for comic fans and make it a time to celebrate the diversity that all of the Independent comics publishers have brought to the world. There are a lot of great comics out there that are not brought to you by the usual pair of suspects and we hope hat you will continue to find some of the best of them right here at CO2 Comics.
2011 is just days away and the whole world is brimming with hope for better economic times. That’s what New Years is all about after all, a clean slate, a new beginning, a new resolve.
Personally, I hate the word hope. It is such and ineffectual state of mind. Hope, to me, is the most meager last resort in an effort to achieve or acquire a goal. If it is necessary to resort to hope, then it is assumed that all other efforts have been exhausted and failed.
Hope has managed to achieve a state of popular acceptance because of its blind faith nature. Those calling upon hope can equate it with placing their aspirations in the hands of God, a higher power or the Universe.
We are much too quick to resort to hope. It is too convenient and too acceptable.
So, I am unwilling to hope that 2011 will be a better year. I am determined that 2011 will be a great year especially for CO2 Comics.
New beginnings require change if we intend to see improvement. This is not Groundhogs Day where we can afford to keep repeating what has gone before.
Change is good!
The biggest change is how readers are going to get their comics.
Direct!
Not Direct Market but Direct to Customer.
I know I just blasphemed the market that has supported the entire industry for the last thirty years and made it possible for independent publishers to be able to sell their comics to a target market but it is time to acknowledge that for the comics industry to grow we are going to have to step outside of the comforts of the Direct Market to reach new audiences.
Dak Franklin
Direct to Customer is not really change it is the embracing of the oldest form of marketing with the most modern tools available. Ben Franklin did just this when he created the first mail order catalog to sell directly to his customers without ever meeting them. He could not have done it without a printing press and a postal service.
Today we have something better than a printing press and the postal service, we have the internet and digital downloads. In the blink of an eye comics can be delivered to your computer, cell phone or e-reading device.
Just a few of the comics at CO2 Comics
CO2 Comics delivers free content via our website with new updates daily. Award winning comic creators like Bernie Mirault, Mike Baron, Mitch O’Connell, Don Lomax and Frank Thorne top off a list artists that present two dozen features and hundred of pages of comics for your reading enjoyment.
The printing press and the post office still offer an opportunity to put physical book in our readers hands. Digital printing presses now give us the opportunity to print one book at a time. This Print on Demand method of publishing gives us the opportunity to produce books and ship them to you hot off the press.
Comics Interview On Sale, Premier Editions retire New Years
CO2 Comics first print publication, David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Volume 1, is a beautiful 680 page black and white book that is offered in two different paperback and hardback editions. The Premier editions which feature a classic style logo that has been available for a limited time only are set to expire on New Year’s Eve. Be a Direct Customer and get your limited edition while you still have a chance.
Direct to Customer comics, whether they be digital or print have the opportunity to find comic readers that may never make their way into a comic shop. Good comics will light a fire in the new readers making them want more and inspire them to share their interest with others.
Sharing the experience of good comics will promote the industry better than any marketing strategy. Word of Mouth is always the best promotion and thanks to social networks like Facebook and Twitter Word of Mouth spreads faster than ever before.
It will be the sharing experience that drives the customer back to the comic shops. Comic shops and comic conventions will be the homes of the culture of the comic enthusiasts. Comic shops will become cultural institutions where fans of the medium gather to share, educate and communicate face-to-face with others that enjoy the same interest.
2011 will be a dynamic year of change in the comic industry as digital content develops a stronger foothold. We all need to work together to enthusiastically promote the medium rather than resist the dramatic changes in format and marketing. A unified front will benefit everyone and ensure economic success for creators, publishers, distributors, and retailers alike.
This is the greatest opportunity for a new beginning since the first comic book was published let us all take advantage it. You can bet CO2 Comics will.
A number of comic book companies today fill their product line-ups with licensed properties. IDW, Boom, Darkhorse and Ape are among the most significant publishers outside of Marvel and DC who have found value in acquiring licensed properties from other media outlets.
The idea is simple and is a marketing tool used by scores of merchandising companies in nearly every industry. Find an intellectual property with high visibility. Purchase the rights to make an exclusive product featuring the property. Benefit from the sales generated by the customer recognition of the popular property.
Badda Boom, Badda Bing!
Licensing and merchandising is nothing new. Saint Paul built Christianity on its basic premises by marketing the popular teachings of Jesus as a new religious product.
“Merry Christmas,” two thousand and ten years later!
Comic books have used it since the beginnings of the industry. The first comic books featured licensed syndicated newspapers comics that were reprinted in color.
It shouldn’t have been a big deal in 1983 when Comico licensed the rights from Harmony Gold to publish the English adaption of the popular Japanese animated series MACROSS. But it was and it became an even bigger deal that put Comico on the map as a major player in the comic industry.
Robotech/Macross #1 cover, Comico 1984
At the time, and please correct me if I’m wrong, Comico was the first independent comic company to enter into a licensing deal other than one that was of a creator owned property. Only Marvel and DC had a lock on that side of the market and, to the best of my knowledge, no one else was even considering it.
Comico’s deal was innocent enough. It was built on the enthusiasm of Carl Macek for his project that he was working on with Harmony Gold and the Comico crew’s collective interest in Anime. Comico enthusiastically became the first American licensee of MACROSS.
At the same time DC acquired the rights from Revell to publish ROBOTECH, based on a line of toys designed around assorted transforming robot molds that Revell had purchased from a toy company in Japan. When the first issue was published by DC it was clear that a number of the robots in ROBOTECH were from the MACROSS series and many of the other robots were from other series that Harmony Gold also held the rights to.
Needless to say there was lot of wrangling going on but Carl Macek and Harmony Gold held the trump card. They had an entire animated series that could be adapted to TV in the American market. As Stan Lee would say, “‘Nuff said!”
Revell and Harmony Gold worked together to build the ROBOTECH franchise that took America by storm. Harmony Gold proved their honor by awarding Comico the rights to the comic book resting it from DC since we had the original deal for the actual story.
Comico's 1st Color Books
Comico had already established its ability to produce quality product with its first color offerings, MAGE, EVANGELINE, ELEMENTALS and MACROSS. Our production and success of the ROBOTECH comics helped the marketing team behind ROBOTECH to attract more licensees and before long the ROBOTECH logo was everywhere.
Others took notice and soon we were being contacted others, most notably Hannah Barbera who was looking for a publisher for Thundarr the Barbarian. Our interest, however, was in one of their long dormant properties,Jonny Quest.
Jonny had been off their radar for so long that the people we were dealing with thought that it was a Filmation property and were surprised to discover it in their own archives.
Jonny Quest was a huge success for Comico and other properties were soon to follow. Space Ghost, Gumby, and Starblazers were all big hits. We also set our sights on Max Headroom and though we did initially acquire the property and began marketing it, creative differences arose between the editorial staff, creative team and the owners of the property, Chrysalis Records. Max Headroom never became a Comico comic book.
Other comic companies picked up where Comico left off, finding success in licensed properties. Others found even greater success in licensing their own properties following in the insanely successful footsteps of Eastman and Laird’s nearly immortal Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Now, more than ever before, with the advent of digital content and the internet, we have to closely examine what is the true value of the comics that we make. Is it the comics themselves or is it the intellectual property they are derived from?
We all would love to make money selling our comics and I can tell you from experience that you certainly can but folks, the real money is in the properties themselves.
Disney and Warner Brothers both know this and are in the process of redefining the IP of Marvel and DC for success in the long haul while producers throughout Hollywood are rummaging through comic properties regularly looking for the next Mutant Turtle.
The Internet is the comic creator’s opportunity to develop and establish rights to a property while reaching an audience that is global. Protect your assets, invest your skills and let the best properties sell themselves. This is the greatest time ever to be a comic creator. Take advantage of it!
Hey, I know the economy sucks and the market is in tremendous flux but guess what? That is exactly how it was when Mickey and Superman showed up both borne on the backs of failure and surrounded by the Great Depression. Their strength was the brilliance of their property which still shines today.
Comic properties can have tremendous economic power and there is plenty of proof. Don’t be discouraged if you are a creator or a fan. The future for comics is bright.
David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Vol 1
But our biggest achievement is the honor That Bill and I have of posting the great comics that have been trusted to our site by creators that we love and respect so that all of our valued readers can enjoy them.
Thank you everyone for this opportunity to do what we enjoy most.
Will Eisner’s CONTRACT WITH GOD, published in 1978 is most often noted as the first graphic novel mostly because it was the first to declare the name.
The term graphic novel has come to be associated with any collection of comic works that is perfect bound though many would be more aptly distinguished simply as trade paperbacks.
Eisner’s graphic novel itself was actually a collection of four stories rather than one long story generally associated with the word novel.
The first “graphic novel” that I remember reading was Archie Goodwin and Walt Simonson’s adaption of the movie ALIEN published by Heavy Metal in 1979. Titled ALIEN: The Illustrated Story this 64 page, full-color, perfect bound package was a riveting masterpiece of comic art that sold for only $3.95!
I am always surprised that this book is overlooked when the topic of graphic novels is discussed. For me personally, it was a benchmark. I had read trade paperback collections of comics from pocket sized collections of Charles Schultz’s PEANUTS, to Burne Hogarth’s TARZAN of the APES and all of Stan Lee’s Origin books but the ALIEN book, more than any other, spoke to me about format.
It was my first look at what the future of comics could be.
When we began publishing comics as Comico in 1982 we started from the ground up with black-and-white comic books that looked more like fanzines and quickly grew to publish a line of full-color comics that rivaled anything in the market at the time.
Along the way we published a number of graphic novels, two featuring Matt Wagner’s GRENDEL, Harmony Gold’s ROBOTECH, Doug Wildey’s RIO, Mike Baron and Mitch O’Connell’s The World of GINGER FOX, and Harlan Ellison and Ken Steacy’s NIGHT and the ENEMY.
Comico Graphic Novels
Before them all was an unusual graphic novel collection called MAGEBOOK. What made this book unique was that it was NOT a reprint of the first four issues of Matt Wagner’s critically acclaimed comic MAGE.
In 1984 it was apparent that there was a new trend in comics. The miniseries was becoming popular with titles like CAMELOT 3000 and WATCHMEN. It was inevitable that these would be collected and re-published as graphic novels after the initial run.
Matt had informed us early on that MAGE, likewise, would be a limited series. The idea of collecting it in graphic novel format as well became a goal.
Then we were presented with a production issue. In an effort to minimize unit costs, our comics were being gang-printed and though MAGE was a critical success it sold in smaller numbers than most of our other books, resulting in an overstock of the title to be stored.
There, warehoused on a skid, was the opening chapter of what would become our first published graphic novel.
After the first issue we began not binding the interiors of the books, storing the excess signatures for future use. After four issues of MAGE had been published we collected the signatures and the overstock of the first issue and had them neatly bound in a graphic novel format producing MAGEBOOK for merely the cost of the cover and the binding.
Magebook 1
MAGEBOOK was a collection of the original print-run of the first for issues; ads, letter pages and all. Due to its success, we repeated the process for the second volume which has notably larger size dimensions than the first volume because of the availability of trim area that was lost on the first volume due to the first issue of MAGE having been previously trimmed and bound as a comic book.
Magebook 2
These two volumes of MAGEBOOK were probably the only graphic novels ever produced this way! If anyone has any knowledge of others I would love to know about them.
MAGE was later licensed to Starblaze Graphics who repackaged it into a beautiful glossy three volume set that was released in paperback and deluxe, sleeved, Hard Cover editions.
Bill Cucinotta and I still like the idea of repackaging material that we enjoy.
co2comics.com
While we are determined to seek out exciting new features by talented comic creators to post here on CO2 Comics, there are a number of features found here that are digital repackages of previously published material which we are proud to introduce to a new audience on the internet.
David Anthony Kraft's COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Vol 1
We have also made it our mission to repackage a very important part of comics history. David Anthony Kraft’sCOMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection will be a eleven volume set and is, without doubt, “The Greatest Collection of Interviews in the History of Comic Books.”
Where does the year go? 2011 is right around the corner and soon we will all be looking back examining this past year that has seen a lot of dramatic shifts in the comics industry.
Most folks think of Thanksgiving as Turkey Day, a chance for the whole family to gather and give thanks while feasting on the juicy bird packed with stuffing and served with a harvest banquet reminiscent a of a meal shared between the Pilgrims and Native Americans.
Believe it or not, turkeys and comics have a close connection for me. I actually think about it often when I peer out my window here in a very rural area of the the South Jersey Pinelands where I live. Besides being on the constant lookout for the Jersey Devil, and dodging deer that prance in my headlights, I experience wild turkey by the dozens as they flock through my yard on a daily basis.
The site of them always conjures back the memory of a giant print of an Arnold Roth illustration that was on display promoting a show of his work at the Philadelphia College of Art. He was an alumnus there, and it as were my Comico and CO2 Comics partner Bill Cucinotta and I attended college during the early 1980′s.
John "Bondo" Rondeau settles in front of a huge print that we had "aquired" from a show at PCA that featured a famous cartoonist alumnus, Anrnold Roth, who ironically had been expelled from the school when he was a student.
Bill and I were also instrumental in publishing a student newspaper, DUCKWORK, at PCA and managed to appropriate the photostat print that was mounted on foamcore after the show was over. We displayed it in proudly in the DUCKWORK office until it later migrated to the Comico Studio in Norristown where, unfortunately, it has since been lost.
Duckwork Covers 1 & 2
The image depicted two contrasting iconographies of America in passing. On one side was a valiant looking Madame Liberty with a stoic Bald Eagle by her heal. The other side depicted a more humble and much less arrogant interpretation of Americana, a haggard, pipe smoking, frump of a woman content in her baseness, accompanied by a lowly turkey.
Ben Franklin actually preferred the turkey over the bald eagle as the national symbol.
“For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America . . . He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage…”
That turkey, as presented by Mr. Roth and described by Mr. Franklin, came to symbolize comics for me.
Colorful and defiant, native and common, comics find their strength of power in their ability to access the masses and deliver the purest presentation of the message of a sole creator simply using words and pictures.
Underestimated by other media, artists and literati, comics open a unique dialog between to the common folk and the creator who respectfully wishes to communicate directly to them.
As the year quickly comes to a close I am thankful to be reminded by the humble turkey why comics are so important to me. The gobbler primes me for all the comic related resolutions I have in mind for the New Year.
I still, however, have a lot of expectations left for 2010. With the Christmas season upon us, we at CO2 Comics are anticipating that many of you will deem our first print publication, David Anthony Kraft’s COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Volume 1, a top pick on your list to Santa.
David Anthony Kraft's COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection Vol 1
We were surprised to discover that the beautiful Hard Cover edition of CI ranked #3 in Lulu’sComics and Graphic Novel category this week!
David Anthony Kraft is still drooling over the book himself, exclaiming on facebook, “Knocked out byCOMICS INTERVIEW HARDCOVER! Getting up from ground — it’s that good! Lays open flat, like a bible. Can’t BELIEVE how great it is!”
Of course, DAK is biased as are we but we have been thrilled and thankful for the generous response and collective appreciation of the book from people who have had the opportunity to hold one in their hands.
A quick reminder that the Premier editions of both the Hard Cover and the Paperback featuring the Platinum version of the classic, original COMICS INTERVIEW logo will be available only until midnight of New Year’s Eve 2010. So, if you are a collector and want to guarantee that you have this limited edition in your library, act soon!
Comics Interview Premier Edition
One last note regarding COMICS INTERVIEW: The Complete Collection. Lulu has been offering generous discounts of up to 20% off for books available on their site. These limited time offers are well worth benefitting from and we will do our best to keep you informed here on the blog and on the CO2 Comics facebook page.
Become a fan of the page and you will be sure to receive these promo updates and be the first to know what is going on here at CO2 Comics.
While we are on the subject of Christmas lists make sure you stop by and check out our newly released DEATH FATIGUE t-shirt line. If you are tired of watching your favorite heroes die the temporary super-death get your very own DEATH FATIGUE swag now!
Captain Obese
I hope that you all have had a chance to check out our latest addition to CO2 Comics, Don Lomax’s The Heavy Adventures of CAPTAIN OBESE. Don’s comic feature is sure to make a large impression on you and make you hungry for more.
Don’t worry! CO2 Comics won’t disappoint you! There will be at least one more big content announcement before 2010 becomes just another space odyssey.
Nearly thirty years later coloring, lettering, and even artwork is being done digitally. This is true of printing as well. Though digital printing may not be the cheapest way to print it is giving many publishers an opportunity to be able to publish in very small print runs because of the lack of set up costs. Previously much of the initial cost in printing was tied up in the production costs of films and plates requiring minimum runs in the tens of thousands before a comic could recover those costs. Now it is possible to print just one copy of a comic book and, though the unit cost is much higher than a comic printed on an offset press, there is no need to have a warehouse of unsold comics to meet the limited demand of a niche product.
Personally, I hate the word hope. It is such and ineffectual state of mind. Hope, to me, is the most meager last resort in an effort to achieve or acquire a goal. If it is necessary to resort to hope, then it is assumed that all other efforts have been exhausted and failed.
It will be the sharing experience that drives the customer back to the comic shops. Comic shops and comic conventions will be the homes of the culture of the comic enthusiasts. Comic shops will become cultural institutions where fans of the medium gather to share, educate and communicate face-to-face with others that enjoy the same interest.
The first “graphic novel” that I remember reading was Archie Goodwin and Walt Simonson’s adaption of the movie ALIEN published by Heavy Metal in 1979. Titled ALIEN: The Illustrated Story this 64 page, full-color, perfect bound package was a riveting masterpiece of comic art that sold for only $3.95!
