BCC2012 Panel: Spotlight on Frank Quitely

Panel: Spotlight on Frank Quitely

(Recorded on Sunday, September 9 at the 2012 Baltimore Comic Con)

José Villarrubia (r) interviews Frank Quitely (l) - Roughly two-thirds of the panel was a discussion between the two artists. The audience got a chance to ask some questions during the last 20 minutes. Both men talked kind of quietly, no pun intended.

Audio (51:44)

Other 2012 Baltimore Comic Con Panels
- Spotlight on Phil LaMarr
- The History of Censorship in Comics
- Tribute to Joe Kubert

BCC2012 Panel: Tribute to Joe Kubert

Panel: Tribute to Joe Kubert
(Recorded on Sunday, September 9 at the 2012 Baltimore Comic Con)

Panelists: Thom Zahler, Tim Truman, Robert Greenberger (moderator), Tom Raney, and Paul Levitz

Three of them (Zahler, Truman, Raney) are alums of the Kubert School. Levitz worked with him going back to the early 70s. Greenberger leads them in a discussion centered around their memories of Kubert, mostly as a teacher and mentor.

Audio (56:44)

Other 2012 Baltimore Comic Con Panels
- Spotlight on Phil LaMarr
- The History of Censorship in Comics

BCC2012 Panel: The History of Censorship in Comics

The History of Censorship in Comics with Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) Deputy Director Alex Cox and Comic Book Author and Historian Fred Van Lente

This was recorded using my iPhone and the audio is less than perfect. It may be necessary to adjust the volume in order to hear everything.

Audio (1:03:26)

BCC2012 Panel: Spotlight on Phil LaMarr

Panel: Spotlight on Phil LaMarr
(Recorded on Saturday, September 8 at the 2012 Baltimore Comic Con)

There was no moderator for this panel. Phil just answered questions from the audience for an hour.

The audio is broken into two pieces. This was recorded using my iPhone and the audio is less than perfect. It may be necessary to adjust the volume in order to hear everything.

Part 1 (1:18) - Part 2 (51:44)

2012 Baltimore Comic Con - Final Thoughts

I am very pleased with my purchases. I spent considerably less than I have at previous cons. I spent roughly $100 on art and $50 on comics. I also came home with considerably less stuff (2 prints, 3 pieces of original art, 3 collected editions) than I have in the past.

Driving in both days, instead of getting a hotel room in Baltimore, saved me at least $240 and didn't really inconvenience me at all. It is a relatively short drive, when there isn't heavy traffic.

I'm undecided on the expanded show room floor. Last year artists alley was incredibly crowded because the aisles were much narrower. In that respect, at least, it was better. Oddly enough it seemed a little too open this year. I'm not sure what to suggest but I'm hoping that they at least tweak the layout of artists alley next year. I'm also curious to hear and read what the artists thought of the new layout.

What I would really like them to do is add big banners hanging from the ceiling like they have at Heroes Con. Those banners at Heroes Con make it much easier to figure out where you are and where artists' tables are located.

So far I've listened to two of the four panels that I recorded. Both turned out ok, not great, but okay. There is a fair amount of ambient noise on them, especially the one that took place in a very large room. I am surprised by how well the microphone on my iPhone picked up voices in all sorts of directions from where I was seated. I will have to try this again in the future.

That's it for Baltimore Comic Con for this year.

Up next: Small Press Expo

2012 Baltimore Comic Con - Day 2

I had Thai food at the Baltimore Farmer's Market for breakfast this morning: Pad Thai, Coconut Chicken (on a stick), and a spring roll. It was very filling and tasty. I thought about also having some mango and sticky rice but I felt full enough.

Aside from breakfast I also bought apples, cucumbers, tomatoes, and mixed nuts at the market. I think I spent as much today at the market as I spent on breakfast alone yesterday.

I parked in a garage near the farmers market that I originally thought had free parking. There was a parking lot where I could have parked for free, it was across the street from the garage and very full. While at the farmers market I misplaced my parking ticket. I should have left it in the car. I took it with me because I thought that maybe they would have parking validation at the market.

I didn't realize I had lost the ticket until I got back to my car. I quickly abandoned all hope of finding it and drove down to the booth to pay. At first the guy in the booth told me I had to pay the maximum, $18; then he told me he would only charge me $11; then after having some trouble with the credit card machine he told me he would only charge me $9. I thought about saying something sarcastic but I bit my tongue and just thanked him.

The garage where I parked my car for the rest of the day was a little further from the show. I was going to catch the circulator but I decided that I could use the exercise.

The line to get in was much shorter today and already moving by the time I showed up. I walked out on to the convention floor for a few minutes. It wasn't very busy. Some of the artists I wanted to see weren't at their table yet so I left the floor and found a place to sit on the 2nd level.

Panel: Tribute to Joe Kubert (11-12) with Thom Zahler, Tim Truman, Robert Greenberger (moderator), Tom Raney, and Paul Levitz - Three of the five panelists (Zahler, Truman, Raney) are alums of the Kubert School. Levitz worked with him going back to the early 70s. Greenberger led them in a discussion centered their memories of Kubert, mostly as a teacher and mentor. I enjoyed listening in but I could not help but think how different the discussion would have been if the panel consisted of long time readers of Kubert's comics.

From 12-2 I wandered the convention floor some more. I stopped at a number of tables and bought some items that I had planned to buy and a couple that I had not. I picked up the commission that Thom Zahler did for me of Batman and Kitty Pryde (dressed as Robin). I bought Flesh and Blood (Book One) from Neil Vokes, Dames in the Atomic Age #1 from Chris Ryder, and All New Issues (Volume 1) from Bill Ellis and Dani O'Brien. I also ordered a sketch card of Galactus from Bill Ellis.

I stopped by Bradd Parton's table again. We chatted some more. I bought an alpha-sketch of Plankton (from Sponge Bob Square Pants) from him.

Panel: Spotlight on Frank Quitely (2-3) with José Villarrubia - Roughly two-thirds of the panel was a discussion between the two artists. The audience got a chance to ask some questions during the last 20 minutes. Both men talked kind of quietly, no pun intended.

I went for one last walk on the convention floor after the Quitely panel. I picked up the Galactus sketch card from Bill Ellis. I stopped by Brian J.L. Glass' table; at Heroes Con he had told me that the hardback edition of The Mice Templar (Book 3) would be ready in time for Baltimore Comic Con. Apparently the printer was running late in delivering the finished product. I still haven't read the previous volume so it wasn't a great loss. I will get it the next time I see him which probably won't be until sometime next year.

I wandered around a little more finally leaving the convention center around 4:30. I considered sticking around and having dinner in Baltimore but I wasn't hungry at the time I left the show. I didn't see the point in hanging out for a few hours so I could spend some more money.

The drive home was slow going. It took forever to get out of downtown Baltimore. Even after I got on to I-95 the traffic was still stop and go. It took me over an hour from the parking garage to my apartment. By comparison, the night before it only took me 40 minutes. Not withstanding the drive home, it was a very good day.

Up next: Final Thoughts

2012 Baltimore Comic Con - Day 1

I arrived in Baltimore little later than I meant to but not by much. I was seated at Miss Shirley's and had ordered breakfast by 8:17. Unfortunately it took a while (26 minutes) for my order, Sunrise Benedict, to materialize. I did not short change on the tip but I did point out the deficiency on the customer satisfaction survey.

After breakfast I headed to the convention center. I arrived roughly 20 minutes before the show was due to open. I got my wrist band and got in the line which wrapped halfway around the block at that point. Eventually I got into the convention center. Until noon I wandered the Artists Alley section of the show floor, occasionally stopping to look at artwork and chat with artists. I bought one piece of art: Casper, Spirit of Friendship by Bobby Timony. At noon I left the convention floor for a couple hours.

Panel: The British Invasion (12-1) with (l-r) Mark Buckingham, Robert Greenberger (moderator), Barry Kitson, Brian Bolland

Panel: Spotlight on Phil LaMarr - At the Phil LaMarr panel, which consisted entirely of Q&A, I asked Phil how far back he went with comics and which stories he looks back on nostalgically. In his response he spoke about inheriting a long box of comics from a neighbor or relative when he was very young. He also remembered owning and reading New Teen Titans #1 and Days of Future Past (X-Men #141-142) when he was about 10 years old and sick and how it blew him away. Both panels were a lot of fun.

From 2-4 I walked the floor. I looked for Michel Fiffe. He wasn't listed on the program guide but neither was Sara Richard and I found her table. I'm pretty sure he said he was going to be here when we chatted at Heroes Con. I walked probably 75% of the floor without finding him. I did stop at a few tables as I wandered.

Neil Vokes - I perused his stack of original art. I considered buying a page but I couldn't find one that stood out. I liked them all. I am planning to go back and buy the first trade collection of the horror series he currently works on: Flesh and Blood.

Tom Zahler - I ordered a commission from him of Batman and Kitty Pryde. The color price seemed a little too high for me so I paid him for a black-and-white commission. He said I can still change my mind and get color added tomorrow, if I so desire. I'm thinking about buying a copy of the first trade collection of his web comic, Love and Capes. I've never read it but it is in the same vein as some other books that I often enjoy: books that mix everyday soap opera with superheroes.

Bradd Parton - He does these neat alpha-sketches. He uses all the letters in the alphabet once to create a sketch of a character. I may go back and buy a print or two tomorrow. I asked him about Samurai Jack but he said he wasn't familiar with the show and had never done an alpha-sketch of any character from that show.

Drew Moss - He did a commission for me earlier this year at Heroes Con. It was a color picture of Batman and Wonder Woman sharing a milk shake. I showed him the Caspar piece I picked up earlier in the day and the two sketch cards that Mike Schwartz did for me a couple weeks ago. We chatted about the show a little bit and his con schedule for the year ahead.

Panel: The History of Censorship in Comics with Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) Deputy Director Alex Cox and Comic Book Author and Historian Fred Van Lente - great overview of the subject. For the most part I was familiar with most of the history they covered. When they asked for questions from the audience I asked about Warren Publishing which they had not mentioned at all. Specifically I asked if Marvel had followed Warren's lead in publishing monster magazine, which is what happened. I was a bit concerned that they were giving Marvel and Stan Lee too much credit for bringing back horror books.

I wandered the show floor for a little while after the Censorship Panel. It was considerably less crowded than it was earlier in the day. I was still unable to find Fiffe's table. Maybe tomorrow.

Once again I made a few stops as I wandered.

Tony Fleecs - I really liked some of his prints. I think I'm gonna buy one tomorrow. The ones I liked are mash-ups of pulp novel covers and well known sci-fi and superhero characters like Princess Leia and Wonder Woman. At $10 they are too nice to pass up.

Chris Ryder - I'm very intrigued by his 64-page book, Dames in the Atomic Age, which is a mash up of noir fiction and sci-fi. I didn't want to spend anymore today but I will probably stop by his table and buy a copy tomorrow. It is a little pricey ($9) for a 64-page book but the packaging is really nice.

I left the show floor 10 minutes before it was scheduled to close for the night. I walked a little over a mile to Land of Kush for dinner. I didn't realize it was a carryout place until I got there. Instead of having a sit down meal I walked back to my car with my dinner, drove home, and ate there.

I recorded two of the panels (Phil LaMarr; Censorship) on my iPhone. I missed recording the first few minutes of both panels. The audio is probably going to need to be cleaned up a bit. If and when I get that done I may post them or hand them over to someone else to post on the internet.

2012 Baltimore Comic Con Panels Announced

The Baltimore Comic Con is just over a week away. The list of panels was announced on Wednesday. I'm pleased to see that there are quite a few that interest me. As usual there are a couple cases where I will have to pick and choose because I can only attend one panel at a time. Here are the ones that interest me the most.

SATURDAY

12-1 / Room 302-303 / The British Invasion

1-2 / Room 307-310 / Spotlight on Phil LaMarr

1-2 / Room 301 / Spotlight on Paul Levitz

4-5 / Room 302-303 / The History of Censorship in Comic Books


SUNDAY

11-12 / Room 302-303 / Tribute to Joe Kubert

11-12 / Room 301 / Future Approaches to Teaching Comics in the High School Classroom

2012 Baltimore Comic Con Panels

Comic Cons 2011

I've started to make my comic book convention plans for 2011. I went to 3 cons in 2010. I'm planning to double that number in 2011. I'm a little worried that I may be taking on too much but it's a risk I'm willing to take. In the first half of 2011 I'm planning to attend 4 shows.

- Emerald City Comic Con (Mar 4-6; Seattle, WA)

- Wild Pig Spring Con (Apr 3; Springfield, NJ)

- Comic Geek Speak Super Show (Apr 29 & May 1; Reading, PA)

- Heroes Con (Jun 3-5; Charlotte, NC)

In the second half of the year I'm planning to attend a couple more cons...

- Baltimore Comic Con (Aug 20-21; Baltimore, MD)

- Small Press Expo (Fall; North Bethesda, MD)

My plans may change but I'm already locked and loaded for Emerald City and Super Show. Wild Pig is a little less certain, although it will probably be the least expensive trip, after SPX which is just a 1/2 hour drive from my apartment. I'm still in the planning and logistics stage for the other conventions.