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'G.I. Joe': The Forgotten '80s Filecards From Dennis Culver & Moviefone [Art]

Eric Larnick — 2013-03-27T17:00:00+00:00

G.I. Joe: Retaliation hits theaters this weekend, and the early word on the sequel (that's more like a reboot) is good news for die-hard Joe fans. The film proudly wears its influences on its sleeve and actually feels like a real-life recreation of the comic books and filecards written with pain-staking dedication by Larry Hama. If you're a child of the 1980s, you're finally getting the Joe movie you always imagined with your Hasbro 3 & 3/4 inchers.

With '80s nostalgia on the brain, ComicsAlliance's sister site Moviefone has recruited Edison Rex artist Dennis Culver to imagine a collection of forgotten Joes -- featuring Saturday morning cartoons, beloved movie characters and rock 'n' rollers donning the Joe fatigues -- all in the spirit of those bombastic days when Sgt. Slaughter and William "The Refrigerator" Perry could call themselves "Real American Heroes."

Check out a few of Culver's filecards after the jump, and get lost daydreaming about your most epic toy battle ever.

Codename: A.L.F.A. (Alien Life Form Assassin)

Codename: CHUNK & SLOTH (Truffle Shuffler & Freebooter)

Codename: SCARE BEAR (Cobra Morale Officer)

Head over to Moviefone to see the full gallery of '80s icons locked in the fight for freedom.

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Preview the First Pages of the 'Django Unchained' Comic Book from R.M. Guera and Vertigo

Eric Larnick — 2012-11-27T15:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Vertigo, Movies, Previews

Quentin Tarantino and comic books go together like chocolate and peanut butter, and yet it's taken us until now to get the four-color equivalent of a Reese's Cup, with Django Unchained.

Announced at Comic-Con International in San Diego, the Django Unchained miniseries from Vertigo will adapt the complete screenplay to Tarantino's latest feature: a bloody Spaghetti Western set amidst the American Civil War. The book comes with gorgeously gritty artwork from R.M. Guera (Scalped) and will be the only way to see some scenes cut from the film, which comes out this Christmas. Moviefone and ComicsAlliance have an exclusive preview of the first issue showing you how Django, Jamie Foxx's vengeful freed slave who is on a path to rescue his wife, meets up with the trigger-happy bounty hunter, Dr. King Schultz (played by Christoph Waltz).

The first issue of the Django comic book arrives in stores nationwide on Wednesday, December 19. Django Unchained, the movie, hits theaters on Tuesday, December 25.

Now that you've checked out Jim Lee's variant cover for issue #1 and the opening salvo, head over to Moviefone to see what happens next (hint: it involves guns).

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Vertigo's 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Comic To Be Supported With TV Ad Campaign [Video]

Eric Larnick — 2012-11-08T16:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Vertigo, Television, Graphic Novels, Previews, Video, News, Novels

Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy of crime novels first rocked best-seller lists with millions of copies sold; then it became a big-screen success -- twice -- with both Swedish-language and Hollywood movies; and it plans to take on comic books when Stieg Larsson's The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo Vol. 1 arrives next week from Vertigo.

The mystery series concerns the investigation of a long-dormant missing persons case, conducted by Mikael Blomkvist, a troubled journalist, and his partner, the tattooed and pierced punky goth hacker Lisbeth Salander. The first installment will be adapted by Scottish award-winning crime novelist Denise Mina (who's written comics before with Hellblazer and A Sickness in the Family), features art by Leonardo Manco and Andrea Mutti, and is wrapped up nicely with a smoldering cover by Lee Bermejo.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is bound to encourage some potential first-time comics readers to jump down the rabbit hole. All Vertigo parent DC Entertainment needs to do is get the word out, which they intend to accomplish with a massive TV commercial campaign. Get a first look at what national audiences will be seeing in the video after the jump.

With the notable exception of DC's New 52 promotion, it's incredibly rare to see graphic novels and comic shops get airtime on the highly-competitive world of television advertising; certainly on the national level. But with commercials scheduled to run on channels ranging from SyFy to Lifetime, Dragon Tattoo and its high quality creator pedigree could make for a crossover hit with a variety of audiences.

Volume 1 of TGWTDT arrives in comic retailers and bookstores everywhere on Tuesday, November 13.

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Five Things We Learned From Genndy Tartakovsky About Popeye, Samurai Jack & The Future of Animation

Eric Larnick — 2012-10-01T12:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Movies, Interviews, News, Animation

Genndy Tartakovsky has amassed a passionate fanbase by creating the Cartoon Network programs Dexter's Laboratory, Samurai Jack, Star Wars: Clone Wars and Sym-Bionic Titan, and now he's made the leap to the big-screen with Hotel Transylvania. It's not quite the theatrical debut his audience was expecting, given that he's been long-attached to audacious projects like a Samurai Jack movie and a sequel to Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal entitled Power of the Dark Crystal. And his career is taking another surprising turn with his next project: directing a 3D animated feature adaptation of E.C. Segar's iconic comic strip hero Popeye. His new take on the sailor man is another example a burgeoning partnership with Sony, and as the L.A. Times reported, expect his Popeye to be as "artistic and unrealistic as possible."

While speaking to Moviefone on his promotional trek for Hotel Transylvania, Tartakosvky gave further insight into what fans can expect from his new Popeye interpretation, as well as provided updates on the status of the Samurai Jack film and the possibility of a Dexter's Lab movie.1. Tartakovsky's Popeye is done in the style of Max Fleischer.

For me, it's the original early '36 to '40 range of the Fleischer Popeye cartoons. I think since they were based out of New York, it was very different. I don't want to say underground, but it was more racy, more edgy. And I think while everyone was warming up to Disney, Fleischer made huge marks in animation, with Popeye, Betty Boop and Superman. They were doing amazing stuff and for me it's the exaggeration and the silliness, the laughter, the movement, the physical comedy. And that's one thing I'm after for Popeye. It's the whole reason I agreed to do the feature; I said "If I'm going to do this, I want it ten times more physical and crazy than we did in Hotel and ten times more character." And [Sony] were like, "Alright." The funny thing is that CGI was designed to mimic reality, but I'm going to use this realistic tool in a completely different way.

2. Don't count out the Samurai Jack film, just yet.

It's been eleven years since Jack came out, but it's still kind of in the ether. People talk about it and I still get emails if someone mentions something. Doing all this press that I've been doing, it's amazing how many people mention it and ask about the movie. I feel like it's good timing.

3. But don't expect him to ever revisit The Dark Crystal.

I haven't heard from the Dark Crystal people in a long time, so I feel that's gone.

4. Same goes for a Dexter's Laboratory movie.

I have considered it but the original voice of Dexter retired and I can't foresee doing Dexter without her.

5. Tartakovsky hopes to change the concept of American animation.

For whatever reason, I think we have one type of animated movie and it's so wrong. I want to do a drama, I want to do an action, a comedy. In live-action, there are all sorts of movies. There's independent movies, big movies, action movies, funny movies, and for us we have one movie. And there is no reason why we can't have the same range as live-action. It has proven itself in other countries and I think we need to be a little bit more original with our storytelling and graphics for America and American audience.

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Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige On Jack Kirby And Bill Mantlo Film Credits

Eric Larnick — 2012-09-24T16:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Marvel, Movies, Interviews, News

Most Marvel hardcores know the name Kevin Feige, but if you need the super-short bio here it is: Producer of every Marvel-based movie since X-Men. President of Marvel Studios. Big deal.

Comic book movies are the hottest trend in Hollywood, pumping unprecedented profits into the companies that supply characters for the next big summer blockbuster. But not all profits are shared equally. With this new world of global pop culture success, super-hero publishers Marvel and DC Comics are being re-evaluated for their business practices with respect to dealing with comic book creators. Decades of work-for-hire contracts, written in varying language, for an industry that never planned for this kind of fortune, have created a situation where many older writers and artists are now fighting for their share of a pie worth billions in ticket sales, DVDs, Blu-rays, action figures, video games and more. By being the head of the biggest comic book movie factory, Feige has an interesting perspective on the situation.

During an interview with ComicsAlliance sister site Moviefone, Feige touched on a variety of subjects, and was asked for his thoughts on the issue of creative royalties for movie adaptations of comic books. After Moviefone cited the specific cases of Jack Kirby on The Avengers and Bill Mantlo's Rocket Raccoon in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy, Feige explained where he stands on the matter.Moviefone: When The Avengers came out there was a vocal fanbase of Avengers co-creator Jack Kirby that thought his role in this big pop culture event was being underplayed in the press materials and marketing. And with Guardians of the Galaxy coming up, there's already hype around those characters -- especially Rocket Raccoon, who is a really unique character that his fan base is excited to see on the big screen. Unfortunately Rocket's creator, Bill Mantlo, needs full time care from a hit-and-run accident and he's struggling to receive health benefits. Personally speaking, what kinds of safeguards and policies do you want to be in place for Marvel to protect the comic creators who are in their older years now, but whose work is entertaining millions of people around the world?

Kevin Feige: Well, it's a complex question, but I will say that [Marvel Chief Creative Officer] Joe Quesada and [Marvel Comics Publisher] Dan Buckley will take the lead on a lot of that and they are actually quite, quite good in acknowledging and letting us know as we share the scripts and character lists with them [by saying]: "Here are the creators of this. Here is where they are. Here is who they are," and figuring out what we can do in terms of recognition. If you look at the special credits sections of all the Marvel Studios movies, you'll see lots and lots of names, probably half a dozen or so, that apply to even the small characters, much smaller than Rocket, that are included in the movie. In terms of Kirby, I always thought of the Thor movie as one of the biggest testaments to what Kirby did because at every turn with the production design, we wanted to embrace it. The helmet design, those horns on Loki. "Do you really want those to be that big?" "It's gotta be that big." I love that stuff, it's tremendous.

For more thoughts from Feige, including what kind of risks the studio will take with their billion dollar Avengers windfall, check out the full interview on Moviefone.

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'V/H/S' Poster Art From Esad Ribic, Tony Moore, James Stokoe, Jason Latour and R.M. Guera

Eric Larnick — 2012-09-19T16:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Movies, Galleries, Art

We're willing to risk the danger of over-hype by telling you that V/H/S is one of the scariest films in years. In the movie, a group of low-rent thieves -- who love to document their exploits -- get hired to break into a dead man's house and steal a videotape. Without any clues beyond "you'll know it when you see it," the crooks are up s**t creek without a paddle when they discover a decrepit house filled with thousands of unmarked VHS tapes. Forced to go through them one-by-one, they witness horrific recordings of killers, ghosts, demons and a lot more in a found-footage anthology that's somewhere between The Blair Witch Project and Creepshow.

In anticipation of its release, Magnet Releasing has created a gallery of posters for each of the movie's five terrifying tales. And to give each poster that extra "eek!" they've hired some of the best comic artists working today. Moviefone premiered the final poster this week, highlighting the slasher-in-the-woods story Tuesday the 17th. The poster is illustrated by none other than Esad Ribic, who had a moment to serve up some Jason Voorhees-style gore, before he relaunches Thor in November with Jason Aaron.

Tuesday the 17th by Esad Ribic

Ribic's poster joins the four previously-released posters from James Stokoe (Orc Stain, Godzilla), R.M. Guera (Scalped), Jason Latour (Wolverine) and Tony Moore (co-creator of The Walking Dead). Check them out below and get a taste for what's in store for V/H/S:

Amatuer Night by James Stokoe

Second Honeymoon by R.M. Guera

The Sick Thing That Happened to Emily When She Was Younger by Jason Latour

10/31/98 by Tony Moore

V/H/S is currently available OnDemand and hits theaters on October 5.

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Genndy Tartakovsky on The Status of His Luke Cage Comic

Eric Larnick — 2012-09-17T12:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Marvel, Interviews, News, Animation

It sounded so cool. Way back in 2007, Marvel announced CAGE!, an out-of-continuity mini-series celebrating Luke Cage in all his '70s Power Man glory. The book was to be written and drawn by Genndy Tartakovsky, the creative mastermind behind Dexter's Laboratory, Samurai Jack and Star Wars: The Clone Wars (the good version). As explained at the time, the series wasn't just going to serve up pulpy "blaxploitation" fun but would also take a "super-satirical look at 1970s Marvel comics... packed with plenty of nostalgic Marvel characters and costumes [and] loads of deliciously-dated pop culture references to boot!"

And then... nothing. Tartakovsky's plate filled up pretty fast; while fans waited for an update, he launched a new series on Cartoon Network (Sym-Bionic Titan) and then prepped a move to the big-screen. His theatrical debut, Hotel Transylvania, will arrive in theaters on Friday, September 28. And before he has a moment to catch his breath, he's already returned to the drawing board with an upcoming 3D movie version of Popeye.

So what happened to CAGE! then? During an interview with Moviefone, to promote Transylvania, we asked Tartakovsky for an update on the series. He explained the cause of the book's delays, and revealed that it still may see the light of day.CA: What is the status on the Luke Cage comic that you were developing with Marvel?

GT: [Laughs] I can't believe you're asking me this.

CA: I just have to know.

GT: So it's all written, it's all drawn, it's finished. It needs to be inked and I never got a chance to ink it and color it. I haven't talked to Marvel in forever and I don't know if the editor is already gone, the one that I was working with. (Note: Aubrey Sitterson, the editor overseeing CAGE! left Marvel in a full-time capacity in 2008.) Every time I turn on my computer and I see some images from it, I get so sad because that is the one thing I really want to finish and the hard part is done -- that is the crazy part. I've got all four issues done and they're just sitting there and it's killing me.

CA: Are you going to finish it come hell or high water?

GT: I'm going to try. I'm going to finish it when I get a free minute, when all of this subsides. I'm going to call them and see if they're still interested in finishing it.

CA: Well I'm definitely still interested in reading it, so you can tell Marvel that there is an audience demand for it.

GT: Well if it doesn't work out, I'll just send you the pencils and you can read it.

The full interview with Tartakovsky featuring updates on Popeye and the possibility of a Samurai Jack film, will premiere on Moviefone, closer to release date.

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Aaron McGruder of 'Boondocks' on Working with George Lucas and His Future In Comics

Eric Larnick — 2012-01-20T16:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Movies, Television, Interviews, Anime, Animation, Comic Strips, Culture

Red Tails, the George Lucas action adventure about the Tuskegee Airmen, opens this weekend after twenty years in development. The project features a cast and crew of notable black talent, and one of the names on the project that has drawn the most eyebrows is co-writer Aaron McGruder, creator of the popular comic and cartoon The Boondocks, which courted acclaim and controversy with McGruder's biting satires and blunt opinions on everything from Ronald Reagan to corporate media to Tyler Perry. One of his favorite targets was none other than George Lucas and the "Star Wars" franchise, a property McGruder had grown up loving and repeatedly took to task for becoming soullessly corporate and racially insensitive. In spite of his critiques, he jumped at the chance to work on Red Tails when Lucas personally sought him out, and their complicated relationship has made the creative team-up a unique pairing.

During an interview with CA sister site Moviefone in promotion for Red Tails, McGruder spoke in detail about his collaboration with George Lucas, offered his thoughts on the changing audience of geek culture and explained why he and The Boondocks probably won't return to the world of comics.Moviefone: I had no idea you were involved in "Red Tails" until your name came up in the credits and it took me by surprise, honestly.

Aaron McGruder: A lot of people didn't know. I came on to the project kind of late so it really wasn't public knowledge until the trailer and posters started coming out.

MF: It's interesting that it was actually George Lucas who personally reached out to you.

AM: Yeah, this was after principal photography; [director] Anthony [Hemingway] was already done with all his duties, and I was brought in in 2010 to initially to do some minor tweaking and punch-ups, but I started working with George and I had some ideas, he liked those ideas, so we ended up doing more. It was very cool.

MF: How crazy was the experience of working one-on-one with George Lucas?

AM: It was a big deal. I followed this project, pretty much for the twenty years that it existed. I first heard of the Tuskegee Airmen when I was ten years old, and I was probably a teenager, when I first read that George was doing it. You never think you're going to work on it, you just think "Oh, this will be cool." You look forward to seeing it, and be happy that somebody is going to tell the story on that scale. They called and a week later I was there at the ranch. What I did a lot of, was listen to George in terms of what he wanted out of the movie and I think the more he talked about it, it was not exactly the movie he had. I think the movie he had was a very serious historical drama, and I had always envisioned it more like Star Wars, particularly the old Star Wars, the first one. I think that's what George wanted to. It was a question of "How do you get there while still respecting the weight of the subject matter?"

MF: You're a huge Star Wars fan but you're also someone who parodied Star Wars calling Lucas out for the racial stereotyping of Jar Jar Binks. In the NY Times profile on George, they asked if Jar Jar ever came up and you said "no." But did you get any indication of his sense of humor regarding Star Wars parodies and criticisms?

AM: No, I really didn't. It's obviously the elephant in the room, and I get why you're asking, but I went there with: "He's the boss, he's giving me this huge opportunity, and he's the studio." He's the actual studio. They didn't need me on this project; I was asked to show up and I genuinely wanted to do the best job I could for the movie. I really appreciated the opportunity. I was really happy that George and I clicked creatively, and I had that experience. He allowed more changes to be made than originally intended. I went there with the idea: "I am not going to deviate from the plan at all, not go into fanboy mode, I'm not going to go there." [Laughs]

The movie is bigger than George because it is about the Tuskegee Airmen who were heroes to me most of my life. This is going to be their movie, and I wanted to do the best job I could. Being a Star Wars fan -- I mean come on. I got plenty of Star Wars fans to talk to about Star Wars.

MF: In the Times profile, you're quoted as saying the black audience hasn't had "the John Wayne treatment." And this movie very much feels like a John Wayne throwback. The challenge to me is how you can get a modern audience -- especially a young audience -- to buy that sincerity without rolling their eyes and laughing at it. Is America too cynical to accept clear heroism like that at the movies?

AM: It is a very serious tonal choice that George had made already. I was the cheerleader to that. "Yes, go in that direction, do that." Nobody's more cynical than me. About everything.

But my first memory in life was three years old: my dad took me to see Star Wars and it's not just the first movie I remember, it's my first memory. If you ever watch Boondocks, a lot of times it does become more of an action comedy than just a pure comedy. I've always had a passion for all that, and it was a big deal to get the call. In terms of the tone, coming from the comic book world, that's what I wanted to see. I think that part of me weighed over the cynical satirist. When it came to these guys, you had the opportunity to tell a clean story with over-the-top heroes and a simple Star Wars good vs. bad thing. The more comic book-y the better.

The big challenge with George knowing so much about the history and having a very personal relationship with these pilots for so long, was I think he just got overwhelmed with trying to do right by these guys. I came in with fresh eyes and ears, as someone who still loves the first movies and I wanted to do anything I could to get George back into that place of capturing that charm. I feel there's a charm to Red Tails that I haven't experienced in a long time at the movies. I'm hoping that kids go to this movie without that grown-up cynicism. If you're my age, just enjoy the ride and have the experience that we had when we first saw Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark. That would be 100% the goal. I feel like the history is easy to put out there, there's already a familiarity with it, or at least the broad strokes of racism and segregation. Some people are going to like this tonal choice and some people are going to say, "Oh it should've been heavier and it should've been more dramatic." But there's a version of this that doesn't have to be Saving Private Ryan. We can be Star Wars, as crazy as it is.

Watch the trailer for Red Tails:

MF: We've seen so many clear anime influences on "The Boondocks" and so many references to Star Wars in the original comic strip. What else shaped your your geek upbringing?

AM: The biggest thing is Star Wars. It was Star Wars and comic books, mostly because I was into illustration, I wasn't the guy who knew everything about the X-men or Superman or Spiderman. I used to work at a comic book store in high school, but I was more interested in the illustration side. The other big thing was Charles Schultz and Peanuts. And all of those animated specials together. As a kid, there was a lot of Jim Henson and a lot of Speed Racer. As I grew up I developed an interest in Garry Trudeau, and that's what took me into the direction of being a syndicated cartoonist. Anime obviously was a big influence; anime is really Japanese animation directors imitating American cinema, so it all ties together in a sense. Boy, I really was a geek.

MF: Do you have any plans to return to cartooning in the near future? I was a big fan of Birth of a Nation. Are you looking at another graphic novel?

AM: Birth of a Nation was a script; we really wanted that to be a movie. We had the opportunity to turn it into a graphic novel, and that was great, but my focus is pretty much entirely on television and films, and to continue to be employed in Hollywood.

MF: Where do you think the creative opportunities lie in cartooning right now? Pundits say "print is dead." Did that push you away from the Boondocks strip?

AM: My issues were totally about: one, I just burnt out on the strip and the deadlines were brutal. Two, I didn't feel like there was much of a future in print. I thought I needed to quit because I saw the newspapers slowly going away. I didn't want to be caught off guard. I felt more comfortable being a screenwriter, and as I learned how to become a producer, it seemed like a more natural fit for me than cartooning. I still do animation, and I think animation will always be a part of what I do, but I'm trying to do more live-action stuff and I think that's really going to be my focus.

MF: Do you have a preference between animation and live-action?

AM: It's whatever is the best tool to tell the story. I don't nearly have as much experience with live-action as I do with animation, but ultimately storytelling is storytelling.

MF: Talking about the broader idea of geek culture: I feel like it's predominantly driven by white older males. It's marketed to them first, and then it trickles down to every other demographic. The white older male is the stereotype of geek culture. Do you see that evolving?

AM: I don't think the word is "stereotype." I think you're more referring to a center of gravity. Just look at the epicenter of what that world is, between George Lucas and Marvel and DC comics, that whole world is predominantly white men. But the truth is, now, particularly because of the last decade where it became very profitable in Hollywood, geek culture is so all-encompassing. It has become this pervasive thing through American pop culture as a whole. Everyone has their different versions on it.

There's a lot of geek girl stuff: Tokidoki, Hello Kitty, it's creeping into the fashion line with Black Milk, which is just super cool. You go to Comic-Con and see a cross section of everybody. It used to be niche, and now it's so enormous that it's hard to categorize. But ultimately, the epicenter of who's creating this stuff still ends up being the comic book companies, the Hollywood movies or whatever. All of that is very much white male-centered. That's what it is. I don't look at it as a bad thing. Most of Hollywood is like that. I don't trip on it.

What makes Red Tails so remarkable is that it's an all-black movie. That's unique in this world. Boondocks the same thing. It's our attempt at anime, but it's very, very black. [Laughs] I think it's a world that cultivates people's imagination, allows people to be themselves even if it falls outside of what can be sometimes a very narrow definition of what is hip and cool. It's a world that accepts people more for who they are, and whoever you are, at this point, you can find your thing.

MF: In an interview you did with HardKnocksTV in the summer of '08, you were asked about the upcoming election and why you pulled away from critiquing the Bush administration. You said, "We're no longer at a point where people don't know what the problem is." In the last year, looking at the Wisconsin labor protests, Occupy Wall Street, the changing cultural discussion about class warfare with corporate control, how would Huey Freeman would respond to these changes?

AM: Well the only way for you to know would be through The Boondocks. I decided a long time ago to stop engaging in the conversation. If I had anything worthwhile to say, I should say it in the work. I stopped running around and arguing on Bill Maher. I lost an appetite for it. I feel like my personal passions are elsewhere. What happens to this crazy world is going to happen.

But I think there's as much impact doing movies like Red Tails that are not controversial in any real sense, but can still have a real effect on the audience and affect people's perceptions of themselves. I try to imagine what it would be like if I was six going to see this movie, and I tried to keep that in mind as I was working on it. That's the really cool thing that "Boondocks" can't inspire. The Boondocks can be a rough education of satire, politics and social issues; it's hardcore and brutal. This is a sweet, charming movie. That also has it's place in society.

MF: Will "Boondocks" ever return to TV in some kind of format?

AM: I'm just going to have to pass on that question. [Laughs]

MF: Looking back on the Adult Swim show, what lessons did you learn for the next time you mount a TV production?

AM: Too many to name. I had not worked a day in television when I showed up to work and had my own show and my own staff. I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I still probably couldn't function on a real production. [Laughs] I think I'm a better writer now than when I started. I certainly know more about producing and working with actors. You take every single bit of it into the next project.

MF: Have you ever thought about mounting -- directing and designing -- an animated feature? Making an American anime for American audiences?

AM: All I can say, um [Laughs] All I can say is, I can't say anything.

MF: Did I stumble on something?

AM: What did you say: "interview's over"? Interview's over!

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Counterpoint: 'Super 8' is The Best Comic Book Movie of the Year

Eric Larnick — 2011-12-29T12:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Movies, Opinion

But how can that be?! 'Super 8' isn't based off a comic book. Article FAIL!

You're right, 'Super 8' has nothing in common with a comic book. In 'Super 8,' lovable outcast Joe Lamb (Joel Courteney) is caught up in an amazing adventure where an other-worldly threat descends upon his neighborhood; armed with his wits and a few limited resources, he fights to save the life of the girl of his dreams (Elle Fanning), all while trying to live up to the lessons imparted from his deceased parent. The movie cleverly juggles the duel conflicts of young angst and sci-fi spectacle, using beautifully detailed art design and breath-taking action sequences. It couldn't have less in common with Spider-Man.

But in all seriousness, 'Super 8' contains all the same bullet points as a comic book movie: thrills and chills, charming heroes and melodrama designed to appeal to the young and young-at-heart. Does "comic book movie" forever have to mean "A movie that was adapted from Marvel Comics issue #233"? A comic book movie should be something that looks and feels like the best comic reading experience, but is transformed into something new and unique on the big screen. And if more projects like 'Super 8' come along, hopefully future comic book movies won't have to be weighed down by the boundaries of pre-existing comics.(With all due respect to Chris Sims, consider this an alternative perspective on 2011's cinematic offerings.)

Why do I consider 'Super 8' to be the best comic book movie of the year? Because unlike 'Thor,' its romance was more genuine. Unlike 'Captain America' it didn't feel like it was sprinting to set up the sequel. Unlike 'X-Men: First Class,' its band of teen heroes were better developed with more personality. It wasn't made by a hired gun looking to collect a paycheck; it was made by a geek auteur (and former comic shop employee) who was writing a love letter to a certain kind of story. I don't let a little thing like "no actual 'Super 8' comic" get in the way of proclaiming it the best comic book movie of the year.

Watch the trailer for 'Super 8'

2011 was a prolific year for comic book movies: in addition to Marvel's three releases, 'Green Lantern,' 'Dylan Dog: Dead of Night,' 'Cowboys & Aliens,' 'The Adventures of Tintin' and 'The Smurfs' all saw theatrical release this year. But did each of these adaptations truly capture the spirit of their comic book origins? A comic book movie aims to mash up genres like sci-fi, action, horror, comedy or romance with lots of bright, colorful visuals. Why can't comic fans itch that scratch with movies like 'Super 8,' 'Attack the Block,' 'Hobo With a Shotgun' or 'Drive'?

'Hobo With a Shotgun' does over-the-top vigilantism and moral caricatures better than the three 'Punisher' movies that have been attempted. Ryan Gosling's calm, cool and brooding Driver persona feels like it was plucked straight out of a Vertigo mini-series.

Compare 'Green Lantern' with 'Attack the Block.' Both movies deal with bad-ass, wise-cracking humans fighting off alien invasions. But 'Attack the Block' was made by Joe Cornish and Edgar Wright, a creative team that grew up with geek pop culture, and sought to pay tribute to their influences, while still saying something new. 'Green Lantern' was designed to be a Warner Bros. tentpole franchise that would replace the now-concluding 'Harry Potter' and 'Dark Knight' series with lucrative merchandising opportunities. The ultimate end goal of 'Attack the Block' was to give sci-fi fans something they had never seen before. 'The ultimate end goal of 'Green Lantern' was to develop a new entertainment brand that could appeal to various demographics that have never read a 'Green Lantern' comic (in the form of action figures, video games, clothes, school supplies and Halloween costumes). Which movie do you think would be the more satisfying experience for comic book fans?

And no matter how big this year felt, 2012 will actually be bigger, with the release of 'The Avengers,' 'The Amazing Spider-Man' and 'The Dark Knight Rises.' Hollywood is always going to chase trends and film something that's already proven to work. But as box office receipts continue to plummet and the entertainment industry struggles to harness profits in the wake of a financial depression, they're going to mine the source material harder and faster than before. Spider-Man fans are complaining that this summer's reboot is wasting time telling an origin story that everyone already knows; all they need to see is Peter Parker swinging through New York City, punching out Doc Ock and getting yelled at by Jameson. Well that's not going to happen -- because Sony wants to target the current teen market that is obsessed with 'Twilight.' The only thing Sony needs to do is not piss off Spider-Man fans too much; your devotion to Spider-Man is so complete, that Sony knows your ticket purchase is already a guarantee. They don't need to make a movie that sells to you; they just need to remind you of their brand.

Die-hard 'Green Lantern' or 'Spider-Man' fans will stick by their franchise no matter what; these characters have been with the readers since childhood, and the readers will stand by them through better or worse. Simply getting to the adaptation stage isn't the victory, and neither is getting a movie that fits into a pre-existing template without compromising too much. The victory is a unique movie that embodies the virtues and infinite possibilities of a comic book. Comics have never been for the masses -- they've always appealed to the weird, the geeky, the outcast and the daydreamers. And their movies should strive to be as audacious.

There's going to be a time (probably sooner than later) when movies based on comic books are not special anymore. They will be just another formula that clogs up movie theaters like schlocky horror movies and bad romantic-comedies. That can be averted if fans and filmmakers alike start thinking outside the four-color box and start changing the definition of what it means to be a "comic book movie." It can be its own genre and style free from any technological boundaries; it should be pulp fiction for a certain type of filmmaker and a certain type of audience. 'Scott Pilgrim vs. The World' shouldn't be looked at as the risk that failed; it should be the creative standard that lights a fire under the ass of movie directors and comic artists alike. What's to stop J.J. Abrams or Joss Whedon from forgoing the monthly floppy altogether and bringing an original superhero to the big screen? Conversely, why couldn't Grant Morrison or Mark Millar draw from their years of scripting sequential art, and film their own sci-fi blockbusters?

If the label is too rigid to shake, then keep 'Steel,' 'Elektra' and 'Fantastic Four' as your definition of "comic book movies"; I'm going to replace them with 'Robocop,' 'Big Trouble in Little China' and 'The Incredibles' for mine. As a lifelong comic reader, I'll always check out the latest superhero adaptation from the Big Two (though not necessarily pay for it). But as a fan of the artform, I'm much more excited to see a project that re-invents the storytelling tools, and moves like a living, breathing 3D comic book that pops off the theater screen.

What is your definition of a "comic book movie"?

Eric Larnick writes for Moviefone.com. Follow him on Twitter.

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The Animated Oscars: What If the Academy Truly Honored Cartoons?

Eric Larnick — 2011-02-25T18:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Movies, Animation, Opinion

From Moviefone: There's still a weird, ignorant stigma that animation is just kids' stuff, but oftentimes, it is just as captivating, impressive and entertaining as any live-action movie. You want proof? Check out what we named as the best movie of 2010.

This year, three movies will compete for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. And while all three movies are worthy of praise, we can't help feeling that the Oscars could have done more. The award for Best Animated Feature didn't begin until 2001, and due to the way the rules are structured, usually only three movies get acknowledged. That just isn't enough.

We thought it was time to honor the impact animation has made in the world of film, with a fun look at what could have been. In our alternate history, beloved classics, genius voices and the kings of animation would have been receiving awards for decades, side by side with their "real" counterparts. To see how different the world of movies could have been, check out our list of animation history's Oscar winners.

THE RULES
Imagine a world where animation could receive Oscars for (voice) acting, direction and writing. We tried to make it as simple as possible, and hold the cartoons to the same eligibility rules as live-action films. The following list presents highlights in each category, from each decade in our alt-history.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' (1937)
The animated Oscars came into play at the 1938 Academy Awards, honoring the release of Disney's pioneering fairy tale feature, the first full-length animated film. With men like Walt Disney, Max Fleischer and Friz Freleng pushing animators to innovate at studios ranging from MGM to Paramount to Warner Bros., the Academy deemed it necessary to acknowledge the creative work of all those in the animation field.

'Fantasia' (1940)
'Fantasia' would beat out fellow Disney film 'Pinocchio' for the top award. The dazzling collection of images with classical music, from the work of Disney's top animators, would be indicative of the studio's grip on these early Oscars. Disney would receive Best Picture honors for films like 'Dumbo,' 'Bambi' and so on.

'Sleeping Beauty' (1959)
'Beauty' would mark a stylistic departure for Disney, featuring incredibly lavish painterly designs. Due to 'Beauty''s elaborate goals, it became the most expensive film in the studio's history up to that point. And while it would win our award for Best Feature, it also underperformed at the box office, contributing to Disney's declining profits; as they were forced to begin laying off animators and cutting budgets -- and after Walt Disney passed away -- the quality of Disney films would slowly begin to slip and they would no longer remain as dominant at the animated Oscars.

'The Phantom Tollbooth' (1970)
Chuck Jones still stands as an influential figure, thanks to his pioneering visual efforts, in the world of the Looney Tunes. 'Tollbooth,' the first feature-length film he produced (and co-directed with Abe Levitow and Dave Monahan), would provide the Academy with another chance to reward his entire filmography. Additionally, an Oscar victory for this adaptation of the clever children's classic would give veteran voice actors like Mel Blanc, Daws Butler and Thurl Ravenscroft another notch in their belts, as the three men alone voiced over half a dozen characters between them.

'Fritz the Cat' (1972)
'Midnight Cowboy' became the first X-rated movie to win the Best Picture Oscar and 'Fritz the Cat' would soon follow suit, as not only the first X-rated cartoon, but also the first X-rated cartoon to win an Oscar. The adaptation of underground comic legend R. Crumb's satire, starring a neurotic, anthropomorphic feline, shocked and titillated audiences with its send-up of the sex-and-drug-filled counter-culture. The film marked the feature debut of Ralph Bakshi, an alternative-skewed animator who reigned for two decades afterward, creating acid-like sci-fi and fantasy (including a 'Lord of the Rings' adaptation) and scathing social parody. The film divided critics and Crumb himself disowned it, but 'Fritz' had an immediate impact signifying the changing voices in animation.

'Watership Down' (1978)
This British production came from an adaptation of the best-selling fantasy novel, an allegorical tale about a society of rabbits searching for peace in a world filled with animal bloodshed. 'Watership Down' resonated with audiences upon its release, thanks to its lush water-colored design and realistic characters. The film not only shocked viewers with its depictions of brutal violence in the animal kingdom, but also displayed a mystic, lyrical atmosphere.

'The Secret of NIMH' (1982)
At a time when Disney was suffering from a creative lull, 'NIMH' swooped in and provided a new voice to the world of animation, offering up this fantastical tale of a widowed field mouse who must find a cure for her son's illness before their home is destroyed. The movie also marked the feature-length directorial debut of Don Bluth, a Disney expatriate who tirelessly worked to eschew cheaper animation techniques, in favor of developing 'NIMH' in a classical animation style. 'NIMH''s hypothetical Oscar victory would provide healthy competition to Disney for the remainder of the 80s.

'Beauty and the Beast' (1991)
You might recall that 'Beast' became the first animated feature to be nominated for Best Picture, but in our animated Oscar world, that was just one of many accolades bestowed upon the film. In addition to being a worldwide blockbuster, the film's combination of technical wizardry with brilliant story telling would push it to dominate that year's animated Academy Awards. It served as one of many highpoints in Disney's 90s renaissance.

'Toy Story' (1995)
Everything that could be said about the impact of 'Toy Story' and Pixar has already been said, but by winning our animated Oscar, perhaps audiences would have sooner realized that the story of Buzz Lightyear and Woody the Cowboy was a wonderful peak in our collective artistic experience. By being both modern and American, and timeless and universal at the same time, 'Toy Story' was not just Pixar's debut feature, but a new addition to the world's collection of fairy tales.

'Toy Story 2' (1999)
And the second installment would go on to do more of the same. In our fictional history, 'Toy Story 2' would do what only 'The Godfather II' could do before it: become a Best Picture-winning sequel. Now that it looks like 'Toy Story 3' is poised to win the Academy Award this year, imagine a world where each part of the 'Toy Story' journey was rewarded with a deserving Oscar. Not even the 'Godfather' series could culminate in as satisfying a note.

BEST VOICE ACTOR

Phil Harris as Balloo the Bear in 'The Jungle Book' (1967)
A man of many talents -- from big band singer to actor to radio comedian opposite Jack Benny -- the barrel-toned Harris would be honored for his distinctly joyous and lovable work as the carefree bear who performs the movie's most lasting musical number.

Robin Williams as the Genie in 'Aladdin' (1992)
The manic comedian took what should have been a traditional supporting player and turned the magical character into a dominating, scene-controlling force of nature. Disney took a big chance by allowing Williams to improvise and ad-lib during voice recording sessions. The Academy would reward such an usual departure for animated films with an Oscar win.

Tom Hanks as Woody in 'Toy Story' (1995)

'Toy Story' would sweep all the major awards, and Hanks would rack up yet another Oscar for his acting talents, leaving an impact with just his voice.

Johnny Depp as Victor Van Vort in 'Corpse Bride' (2005)

Depp has become one of the Academy's oft-nominated, never-won actors, but this animated team-up with director Tim Burton, his most successful creative collaboration, would finally provide Depp with another opportunity to indulge in his own off-beat mannerisms and finally earn some kudos.

George Clooney as Mr. Fox in 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' (2009)
The charming, fast-talking schemer in the unique adaptation of the Roald Dahl classic finally gave Clooney some award recognition as a leading man, and also gave director Wes Anderson another avenue to display his talents at orchestrating a comedic ensemble.

Can't Fool A Fox
Fantastic Mr. Fox at MOVIECLIPS.com

BEST VOICE ACTRESS

Adriana Caselotti as Snow White in 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' (1937)

Walt Disney signed the opera-trained singer to a studio contract to prevent her from performing elsewhere and spoiling the illusion of Snow White's voice. As her only credited screen performance, the connection between her voice and the fairy tale character were inseparable, giving her an Oscar win.

Kathryn Beaumont as Alice in 'Alice in Wonderland' (1951)

Walt Disney personally cast Beaumont to star in his long-desired, madcap adaptation of the Lewis Carroll classic. At 13-years-old, she became the youngest woman to win the Best Voice Actress Award.

Junko Iwao as "Mima Kirigoe" in 'Perfect Blue' (1997)

While critics are raving this year about Natalie Portman's performance in 'Black Swan,' Satoshi Kon's anime thriller told a similar story 13 years prior. As the pop star Mima gives up the music world to pursue acting, she quickly finds herself stalked by a ominous stranger. Soon Mima begins to lose her grip on reality, unsure who to trust, and finds herself mysteriously connected to the dangers around her. Iwao's portrayal of a young woman on the verge of a breakdown was so unnervingly effective that the Academy awarded her with the Oscar, making her the first Asian woman to win the award and the first foreign-language-speaking recipient as well.

Ellen DeGeneres as Dory in 'Finding Nemo' (2003)

Like Robin Williams before her, DeGeneres took what should have been a supporting part and commandeered each scene she appeared in; by using her hilariously genial approach to such a broad character -- a fish with frustrating short-term memory -- she infused Dory with genuine sweetness.

Janeane Garofalo as Colette Tatou in 'Ratatouille' (2007)

The acerbic, dry comedian was provided with an opportunity to step outside her usual range of screen types and deliver an energized screwball performance that delighted Academy members, who were not afraid to reward a performance that made them laugh.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE ANIMATED FEATURE

'Fantastic Planet' (1973)

'Fantastic Planet's' psychedelic, surrealist sci-fi parable served as a perfect model for all the amazing animation work being produced around the world. The pure vision of French artists Rene Laloux and Roland Topor has remained colorfully captivating and thematically entrancing for almost 40 years.

'Grave of the Fireflies' (1988)

Anime has impacted not just the world of international animation, but all of pop culture. And 1988 would have proven to be a banner year for the Japanese art form; Academy voters had the chance to acknowledge the ground-breaking, cyberpunk thriller 'Akira' or the blockbuster phenomenon 'My Neighbor Totoro' (which launched a globally iconic cartoon character). Instead however, they shocked audiences by bestowing the award on the lesser-seen 'Grave of the Fireflies.' Telling the story of an orphaned brother and sister trying to survive the fire bombings of Kobe in the last days of WWII, the film's hauntingly beautiful approach to heartbreaking material demonstrated all the humanistic potential in animation. Roger Ebert has opined that it serves as one of the greatest anti-war movies ever made.

'Princess Mononoke' (1997)

In the real world, 'Mononoke' became the first anime to win Best Picture at the Japanese Academy Awards and was the nation's highest-grossing movie (until 'Titanic'). Unfortunately, it failed to reach a large audience stateside due to a poorly received English dubbing and an almost-spiteful lack of advertising from the Weinstein Brothers. But in our award show, the epic fantasy battle between man and nature would have been given the proper spotlight.

'The Triplets of Belleville' (2003)

We remember 'Belleville' losing to 'Finding Nemo' in 2003, and it looks like Sylvain Chomet's subsequent film, 'The Illusionist,' will have to place runner-up to Pixar again this Sunday. But our animated Oscars found a deserving accolade for this quirky, expressive story of junkyard musician grandmothers, sad cyclists and the Mob. This may end up being the most wordless foreign language winner ever, but when words are spoken, it's through infectiously-catchy jazz numbers.

'Paprika' (2006)

Filmmaker Satoshi Kon developed a following in the world of cinema fairly quickly, captivating audiences with stories that blurred the line between reality and imagination. 'Paprika's' sci-fi tale of a psychiatrist who must prevent thieves from invading people's dreams offered up a visual cornucopia of trippy, mind-bending imagery. While in the real world, genre fans are upset at 'Inception's' snubbing by the Academy, our animated Oscars rewarded the imaginative material in 2007. Sadly the Oscar victory would be bittersweet, as 'Paprika' became Kon's last finished film before passing away in 2010.

Continue reading the rest of Eric Larnick's picks at Moviefone

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The Rutland Halloween Parade: Where Marvel and DC First Collided

Eric Larnick — 2010-10-30T09:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Culture

This Saturday October 30, Rutland, Vermont will host its 51st Annual Halloween Parade. The attraction is the largest and longest-running Halloween parade in the United States -- and it owes its birth to comic books. The parade got off its feet thanks to Tom Fagan, a local reporter and super-fan of comics. With each year that he ran the parade, more comic creators got involved, creating an ahead-of-its-time cosplay showcase that eventually made its way to the pages of Marvel, DC and beyond. In fact, Rutland holds the distinction for inspiring the first crossover ever between Marvel and DC Comics.

ComicsAlliance spoke with legendary comics scribe Steve Englehart -- one of the architects of that landmark crossover and the man who wrote more Rutland stories than anyone -- as well as with parade organizers to learn about the complete comic book history of Rutland's Halloween Parade.

HOW IT STARTED

Following the first Rutland Halloween Parade's lackluster showing in 1959, a motivated Tom Fagan went to Rutland's Recreation Department, where -- as he later remarked to Alter Ego magazine -- communicated, "We should have a theme for this. Because it's Halloween and these are creatures of the night, you should have Batman as parade marshal to lead off the parade."

Fagan was allowed to shape the parade in his vision, starting in 1960 with a Batman float. Soon, as Fagan recalled, "I wrote letters to Detective Comics saying Batman was now the leader of the Rutland Halloween Parade and we were establishing a tradition."

Alter Ego

It wasn't long before Fagan's correspondence as a fan turned into an even friendlier relationship with the creators of his favorite comics, much to the benefit of the parade. "As a long-time contributor to comic book fanzines, Fagan began to form relationships with several staff writers at DC Comics in New York City, ultimately inviting them up to Rutland to join in with the festivities," said Dom Cioffi, Marketing/Outreach of Rutland's PEGTV.

RUTLAND'S COMIC BOOK DEBUT

After visiting the parade, comic book writer Roy Thomas was inspired to set a story there. In Avengers #83, "Come On In, ...The Revolution's Fine!" (Dec. 1970), Tom Fagan -- dressed as Nightwing of The Defenders -- invites the Avengers to be his guests of honor at the 11th Annual Parade. The parade is attacked by the Masters of Evil, who hijack Fagan's float. The fight turns into a three-way battle when the Lady Liberators enter the fray. The issue was not only set at the parade, but also featured appearances from Roy Thomas himself, along with wife, Jeannie.

The next year in Batman #237, "Night of the Reaper!" (Dec. 1971), creators Denny O'Neil and Neal Adams were inspired to craft a story set at Rutland. In the tale, a vendetta between a concentration camp survivor and a fugitive Nazi plays out in the backdrop of the Halloween parade. Batman and Robin try to stop the violent bloodshed that ensues, as innocent revelers dressed up like the Caped Crusader and the Boy Wonder get caught in the middle. Dick Grayson attends the parade with his friends -- comic book creators Alan Weiss, Bernie Wrightson and Gerry Conway. Batman's fight spills into Tom Fagan's mansion, where Denny O'Neil, Len Wein and Mark Hanerfeld are in attendance.

THE FIRST EVER MARVEL/DC CROSSOVER

As more comic book creators ventured north, their stories about the parade grew grander. Englehart explained: "[Tom Fagan was] just a real friendly guy... [and] areal friend to everybody. He could get you caught up in his enthusiasms and share yours... Denny and Neal [said] 'this is a cool evening' and they drew that story, wrote that story and made it look like a cool evening. So next year it's like 'let's just go.'"

Along with Len Wein and Gerry Conway, Englehart made comic book history by writing the first Marvel/DC crossover (albeit unofficially) by setting it at the Rutland Halloween Parade.

In Englehart's Amazing Adventures #16, "...And the Juggernaut Will Get You... If You Don't Watch Out!" (Jan. 1973) Gerry Conway, Steve Englehart and Len & Glynnis Wein come across Hank McCoy a.k.a. the Beast, on their way to the Rutland Parade. The blue-furred mutant finally gets to town, just in time to stop a rampaging Juggernaut, who has lost control of his powers. He attempts to steal Englehart's car but in intercepted by Beast, and disappears into the woods.

Then in Len Wein's Justice League of America #103, "A Stranger Walks among Us!" (Dec. 1972) the four comic creators make their way to the mansion of Tom Fagan, who is sporting his best Batman costume. The Phantom Stranger leads the Justice League to Rutland, on the suspicion that Felix Faust is attempting to take advantage of a weaker dimensional state and summon ghosts to our reality.

The JLA meet up with Tom, who asks them to ride in the parade. While waving to the crowd, Faust's plan kicks into effect, and the JLA must contend with a town full of citizens gaining the powers of their costumed characters, including Glynnis Wein, who turns into Supergirl. Len, Steve and Gerry go after Glynnis, while the Phantom Stranger intervenes to save the League. With his plan foiled, Faust escapes town -- by stealing Englehart's car.

Finally in Gerry Conway's The Mighty Thor #207, "Firesword!" (Jan. 1973), Tom Fagan has switched into into an authentic-looking Nighthawk costume, but has fallen under the mind control of Loki, who is summoning Absorbing Man to destroy the town. Thor, Sif and Hildegard intervene to defeat Absorbing Man and Loki, blinding the trickster god in the process. Loki hears the Faust-driven stolen car of Steve Englehart and rushes after it, but his blind state leads him right off a cliff. Len, Steve and Gerry locate the missing (and now human again) Glynnis, who doesn't quite remember what just happened.

Meanwhile, comic fans had their mind blown after reading the very first DC/Marvel crossover. For Englehart, Wein, and Conway it was the chance to try something new. As Englehart told ComicsAlliance, "I guess the first year, the comic book guys were just a handful amongst the revelers, but the second year there were a whole bunch of comic book people who thought it would be a good idea to go to Vermont for Halloween. Len Wein, Gerry Conway were up there with me, Glynnis Wein was up there -- Gerry and Len and I got sitting around talking about the whole Rutland thing and we figured Denny had done an interesting story and we wondered could we do something interesting with it, and somehow out of that came the crossover."

Most amazingly to Englehart, the crossover idea had modest, yet imaginative motivations. As he elaborated: "The idea of doing a crossover between Marvel and DC, I'm not sure anything like that had been done before, but it certainly seemed like a radical concept and we knew that we had to be subtle (laughs) and each story had to stand on its own, but we really worked it out. It's really worthwhile to read those stories back to back to back -- It didn't matter to us that one was at DC and two were at Marvel -- I think it was us being creative, thinking what would be really cool to do and the spark of all that was the Rutland parade which was really cool and it deserved something cool."

THE LEGENDARY COSTUME PARTIES

Alter Ego

In addition to the parades, the comic-friendly after-parties were another legendary component of the Rutland Halloween experience. Dom Cioffi from Rutland admitted: "Ironically, the earliest parades were known more for the late night parties than for the actual downtown processions. Fagan's friends, both local and from out of town, went to great lengths to build interesting floats and highly involved costumes, but the after-hours parties are where most of the 'trickery' occurred."

As one of the costumed revelers, Englehart has vivid memories of the parties, which took place in an old mansion: "It's not all that unusual today if you go to a comic book convention today, you're going to see a lot of people in costume. But in the early '70s, that was not a common situation. And even at conventions, [they] were a lot more button-down. So on Halloween night, well after midnight, walking around this mansion in Lovecraftian Vermont and seeing Dracula and the Hulk and Wonder Woman walking around. t was a unique situation and on Fagan's end, handled extremely well."

KEEPING A TRADITION ALIVE

Steve Englehart has a unique distinction of writing more stories set at the Rutland Halloween Parade than anyone else. For him, the motivation was simple: "It continued to be fun, and after awhile... [I thought] there should be a Rutland parade story every Halloween.I thought Tom Fagan was a very cool guy; I thought what he was doing was very cool. I just wanted to remind people of it and thank Tom for it, for a little while longer."

MEMORIES OF THE PARADE
Although Fagan passed away in 2008, the parade has endured as his legacy. As the Rutland Herald wrote in its October 23 issue that year, "Tom Fagan was a number of things during a lifetime of newspaper reporting, raising a family and assuming legendary status in the comic book community. But in Rutland, where the 76-year-old lived before his death on Tuesday, he was known as 'Mr. Halloween' -- the man who helped create an All-Hallows-Eve procession of ghosts, ghouls and costumed greats in the 1950s that endures today as the biggest Halloween parade in the state."

Englehart still reflects fondly on not just the parade and the season, but on the positive effect that came from seeing so many comic book fans out in attendance. As he explained: "This is Halloween night, so it has its own vibe to it and seeing all these people having a wonderful time, but all in costume, and good costumes. These were pretty much homemade costumes. You weren't just able to drop down and buy yourself a Captain America costume at the store like you could do today. People got into it and as young comic book people we appreciated it and really vibed off of people who got into it. My memories of it are just the panorama of it, being on the main street of Rutland and seeing floats go by and the cars and the costumes and the Halloween vibe and little kids watching and candy to be had. I remember the whole thing, the spectacle of it -- And afterward, we'd get to the mansion and party until dawn and crash (laughs)."

WHAT TO EXPECT THIS YEAR

The Rutland Halloween Parade begins at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 30, followed by the Center Street block party. Curious fans can tune into PEGTV.com later in the week to watch the full parade online. As for what costumes and attractions to expect this year, according to Cioffi, "The float creators always try to one-up each other. It drives their creativity and pushes them to produce better material. But each year's floats are kept under cover by the creators who maintain strict codes of silence. So no one knows what to expect."

In addition to the parade, the weekend will be filled with activities including: the Hathaway Farm corn maze, Deadnberry Mortuary haunted tour, Fright Nights at The Wilson Castle, the Bones Brothers Band, Holiday screenings, Campus Trick-or-Treating, Pumpkins in the Park, the "Running Scared 5K" road race, and more.

Special thanks to Cindi Wight, Rutland Recreation Director, Dom Cioffi of PEGTV Marketing/Outreach, Marcy Galligan and Steve Englehart. Englehart's two novels 'The Point Man' and 'The Long Man' are available from Tor Books. For more information, check out SteveEnglehart.com.

Photographs by Al Bradford. Reprinted from "Hi, I'm Your Host, Tom Fagan!" by Roy Thomas in Alter Ego: The Comic Artists Collection from TwoMorrows Publishing (March 2001).

All comic images courtesy of Royal Barnard and The Mountain Times, Killington, VT

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