My Tweets for 2012-02-04
- At the end of the day, I’m tired of hearing sentences that begin with “At the end of the day…” #
- My new catch phrase: “That’s the biggest waste of money since Sheldon Adelson gave Newt Gingrich $10 million to run for president!” #
- Bogus death rumors about Eddie Murphy. Right now, some actor is asking his own P.R. guy, “Why can’t you get me that kind of publicity?” #
Sergio on Hiatus
Fans of Groo the Wanderer and/or Conan the Barbarian were gladdened to hear recently that the long-awaited mini-series crossover of those two swarthy swordsmen was finally coming out. Issue #1 of four comes out in April…but then we’re going to hit another delay.
The series is being done by Sergio Aragonés, Tom Yeates, Tom Luth and me. It could be done without either of the Toms or me but it can’t be done without Sergio who is currently suffering from back troubles. You apparently get this condition if you sit at a drawing board sixteen hours a day for 50+ years drawing silly pictures. Anyway, Sergio is unable to draw at the moment, which is a little like you or I being unable to breathe, only more serious. He finished #1 of Groo Vs. Conan, most of #2 and about half of #3…and then the problem hit him. He could probably finish #2 and maybe #3 before they’re due at the printer but…
Well, I’ll let you in on a secret. After that first issue comes out, the others will be delayed until his back is better. This is a secret in the sense that Sergio doesn’t know it yet.
He’s recuperating in a hospital at the moment, doesn’t have internet access, and won’t know for a few days that I made the decision to yank the book off the schedule. This is to force him to take it easy and get better rather than to scurry back to the drawing table and work ’round the clock to make the deadline and by so doing, not recuperate. So if you’re pissed about the delay, blame me or blame the backache…but don’t blame the guy with the backache. Groo Vs. Conan #1 hits stores on April 18. Then the understanding folks at Dark Horse Comics will stick it back on the schedule as soon as Sergio is back to full drawing strength and you’ll get the rest of the story. I’ll announce here when that will be as soon as I have some idea when that will be.
When you see #1, you’ll find at least one thing particularly amusing. As in Sergio Destroys DC, Sergio Massacres Marvel, Sergio Stomps Star Wars and other like series we’ve done, the Señor and I are characters in the tawdry drama…and in the first issue we did some time ago, Sergio winds up in the hospital, unable to work. I am well aware that Life often imitates Art but I worry when it imitates Groo.
Sergio’s handiwork will be seen in the next issue of MAD and I think there’s stuff already completed for the one after. He has not missed an issue of that magazine since #111, which was dated June of 1967 and he’s not about to stop now. There may be some delay in Sergio Aragonés Funnies, the book he does for Bongo Comics…and again, I’ll let you know when I know. I’m not sure if he’ll be at WonderCon this March in Anaheim but we’ll be playing Quick Draw! Friday afternoon at 2 PM with or without him. I’m hopeful for “with.”
P.S., Added ten minutes later: I’ve already received three e-mails from folks asking me to forward Get Well messages to my partner. I’m sure he’d appreciate them but let’s hold off for a little while. I’ll post an address later where you can send such things.
Recommended Reading
Michael Kinsley on what the Buffett Rule would accomplish and what it wouldn’t. It wouldn’t wipe out America’s financial problems says Kinsley and I’m sure he’s right. But this country is going to have to do a lot of things that on their own won’t wipe out the deficit…and it’s going to have to do a lot of them and maybe not just the ones that inconvenience other people.
Great Photos of Stan Laurel and/or Oliver Hardy
Number one hundred and forty in a series…
Worth Reading
R.C. Harvey unpacks the history of the newspaper strip, Mary Worth. Mary has been around a long time and while her feature doesn’t have a huge subscriber base, the folks who follow it really follow it. I was never able to read enough of it to see what they saw in it but there must be something.
Recommended Reading
Matt Duss tackles the question “Who lost Iraq?” and points out that everyone’s answer is finger-pointing at their political opponents. Personally, I don’t see that it was ever “winnable” by any meaningful definition and that we all lost the moment the U.S. decided to invade. I think almost all our leaders screwed-up — the ones who led and the ones who nodded in agreement.
Today’s Video Link
From a 1966 episode of Hollywood Palace: Carl Reiner interviews the Two-Thousand (plus) Year Old Man, Mel Brooks. I keep hearing rumors that they’re about to record a new album (or CD or whatever you call ‘em these days) of this character…
My Tweets for 2012-02-03
- Roseanne has announced she's running for president. Hey, don't laugh. She'll get the same number of electoral votes as Rick Santorum. #
- I have a new campaign. I want to take everyone who uses the phrase "throw them under the bus" and throw them under a bus. #
- Comforting to see Mitt Romney and Donald Trump together today. I'd been suspecting they might be the same person. #
Recommended Reading
Remember how some used to suggest with regard to Vietnam that the U.S. just declare victory and go home? Fred Kaplan says that seems to be what President Obama is doing with Afghanistan.
Great Photos of Stan Laurel and/or Oliver Hardy
Number one hundred and thirty-nine in a series…
Recommended Reading
Lizz Winstead, one of the creators of The Daily Show, writes about the current controversy surrounding Planned Parenthood and the Susan G Komen Foundation. I’m with her on this one…though I wonder how much of it is the cowardice of those who run the latter organization and how much is the misguided (and sometimes mysogynistic) crusade in this country against Planned Parenthood. This is not just about abortion. Some folks out there have a real problem with the concept of couples being allowed to plan their parenthood.
Stuck in Neutral
A group calling itself One Million Moms, which I’ll bet doesn’t actually speak for one million moms, is demanding that J.C. Penney fire Ellen DeGeneres as its spokesperson. This is because Ms. DeGeneres is, you may be shocked to hear, gay.
It’s worth noting what One Million Moms is not doing. They’re not petitioning all the TV stations that carry Ellen’s popular TV show to stop carrying it. Why? Because Ellen is so popular and they’d lose that battle to public opinion. Most of this country has moved past that straight/gay battle and the fact that they couldn’t get the show off the air is proof of that. They probably can’t get J.C. Penney to fire the lady either but that loss wouldn’t be evidence of America having no problem with her sexuality. That could just be explained as J.C. Penney’s Board of Directors being a bunch of left-wing deviants.
A statement from One Million Moms said, “The majority of J.C. Penney shoppers will be offended and choose to no longer shop there.” Let’s see if J.C. Penney goes out of business in the next six months. If it doesn’t, One Million Moms is wrong.
But the most inane statement they made is this one: They want the retailer “to replace Ellen DeGeneres as their new spokesperson immediately and remain neutral in the culture war.” In other words, you can only be neutral if you fire gay people and hire heterosexuals. How bizarre to see discrimination characterized as neutrality.
