Like every single person on this planet — including it would seem, people who are supposed to be experts at this kind of thing — I have no idea how bad or threatening the coronavirus is or may be. It's one of those times when in my head, I hear the Mel Brooks song, "Hope for the Best, Expect the Worst."

What we need of course is for science to save us, primarily doctor-type folks who are even now figuring out how to handle this pandemic. At any time, this would be a scary thing but it's scarier because we have leaders now who don't believe in science and who have slashed funding for exactly the kind of response we now need. Laurie Garrett, a former senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, lays it all out in this article and I'll quote just this much of it…

For the United States, the answers are especially worrying because the government has intentionally rendered itself incapable. In 2018, the Trump administration fired the government's entire pandemic response chain of command, including the White House management infrastructure. In numerous phone calls and emails with key agencies across the U.S. government, the only consistent response I encountered was distressed confusion. If the United States still has a clear chain of command for pandemic response, the White House urgently needs to clarify what it is.

That was written almost a month ago and it still applies. Trump has put Mike Pence in charge of coordinating the White House efforts, which sure suggests he's treating this as a political problem and a threat to his own popularity, not as a medical problem and a threat to human lives. We've been saying on this blog for months now that the 2020 Presidential Election would be about all sorts of scandals and issues that were not yet on our radar. Here's one that nobody was mentioning a few weeks ago.

Have you watched Desus & Mero on their Showtime series? It's a talk show but with an energy quite unlike talk shows we've seen before. I don't watch it all the time because I don't know who the hell some of their guests are, even after I see them interviewed…but I know who David Letterman is and he was a guest on a recent show. (And if you're going to watch it, watch it here instead of Showtime because this version is a few minutes longer.)

You know what talk show I haven't been watching? Letterman's. And it's not just that I'm disinterested in his guests. He rarely makes me feel like he's interested in his guests. He just recorded a show for next season — a whole hour with Kim Kardashian and you just know he was dying to have her on. Here's what I think they oughta do with that series: Bring in a different guest host each week to interview Dave. He's more interesting than anyone he's had on with the possible exception of Barack Obama.

So here he is with Desus & Mero. They fawn a little too much but that's kind of required on talk shows these days. The big thing is that they keep things moving and don't ask the same old questions, thereby prompting the same old responses. Make sure you stick around for the Quentin Tarantino story…

I watched as much of the South Carolina debate as I could take, which was a little more than half. The "talking over" one another was not conducive to understanding anyone's positions and they often seemed to be forgetting that they have a common enemy and it isn't each other.

I'm sure that four years ago or eight or twelve, I must have written how I think the wrong way to approach these debates is to try and determine who "won." It ain't like a baseball game where you can look at a scoreboard and see how many runs one side scored. The goal is to improve one's standing with the voters and that's not something that's easily measurable, nor is it something that only one person can do. The main poll I saw after the Las Vegas debate indicated that both Sanders and Warren were up two points, Biden stayed the same, Buttigieg and Klobuchar each lost one and Bloomberg lost three.

You could say, I suppose, that Sanders and Warren tied in that meet-up. You could also say that Warren "won" in that she needed the boost more and may have saved her entire candidacy by reminding the voters who liked her why they liked her. But then you look and see that that poll had a two-point margin of error so maybe in reality, it was closer to a five-way tie with Bloomberg only slightly behind the pack. Hell, you could even argue that considering how many shots to the head Bloomberg received in that wrestling match, he "won" by not being knocked out.

I didn't think anyone last night markedly improved their position or harmed it. I would have loved it if someone had because I'm still wrestling with my decision on who to vote for. My reservations about Sanders flow from reading too many articles about why he can't win in November and might even hurt Democratic chances in the House and Senate — even with the all-important Dick Van Dyke endorsement. Some of those articles are hard to dismiss and nothing I heard in last night's debate changed that. I may have to write-in Fred.

Dick Van Dyke endorses Bernie Sanders. If Bernie's the nominee and Dick keeps campaigning for him, we're going to hear Trump say that Dick Van Dyke is a loser who never did anything anyone cares about and his English accent in Mary Poppins was terrible and he couldn't even enter a room without tripping over a footstool…

…but I'm going to defend Donald Trump about something…

Donald Trump and his entourage reportedly failed to eat a single item of a special vegetarian feast prepared for him during his trip to India. The American president and his wife, Melania, were presented with the menu during their visit to Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, one of the former homes of the Indian independence hero.

In an effort to please the famously carnivorous tastes of the president, the chef — a well-known award-winning chef called Suresh Khanna — adapted a number of famous Indian delicacies to make them more recognizable for their guests and even included more familiar items such as chocolate-chip cookies and apple pie. But neither Mr. Trump nor the First Lady touched anything from the special high tea menu.

The article goes on to say that many people were outraged that they didn't eat what was served while others were outraged at the selections offered to them. The menu can be read at that link and there's not one thing on it that I would have (or could have or should have) eaten.

Having many food allergies — and having occasionally suffered greatly when I ate something I sensed I shouldn't — I am quite militant on this point: No one should ever be pressured even socially to eat what they think is wrong for them, nor should they be criticized for their decisions. The fact that the Trumps may not have any food allergies does not change that. It's your body and you need to be the sole arbiter of what goes into it. "I don't think I'd like it" is a perfectly valid reason.

In Trump's position, I would have refrained. I might even have been a little ticked-off at my staff people for not anticipating this problem and preparing for it. There are vegetables I can eat and someone could have arranged something. But Trump did the right thing…for once.

It's 148 days until Comic-Con International in San Diego but it's only 45 days until this year's WonderCon in Anaheim. WonderCon is run by the same folks. It's their "smaller" convention since it "only" has a turnout of 66,000 or so people. If you're new to convention-going and the prospect of attending the monster in San Diego is intimidating, you might be comfortable "breaking in" at WonderCon. It's also humanly possible to get admission badges for WonderCon.

I will be at both and at WonderCon, I'll be hosting six panels which I'll tell you about after March 20, which is when the complete programming schedule will be posted on the convention website. (Hint: My schedule for the 2020 WonderCon will look a lot like my schedule for the 2019 WonderCon.)

WonderCon is April 10-12 and this may or may not be a drawback: Attending WonderCon on Easter Weekend means you'll be going very close to "The Happiest Place on Earth," aka Disneyland. This website tracks and predicts when Disneyland is most crowded and it says "Yup, it's packed" to April 10 and 11 but "Hey It's Alright" to April 12.

You might figure that into your travel plans. Also, a mere sixty miles south of Anaheim, my friend Frank Ferrante is performing his much-lauded An Evening With Groucho on the evenings of April 13 and 14. That's at the Northeast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach, California and you can get info and tickets here. This will probably be the only time this year in this state you'll be able to see this guy do his uncanny facsimile of Julius "Groucho" Marx.

You'd have a great time seeing Frank. You'd have a great time at WonderCon. And hey, you might even have a great time at Disneyland if you bring lots of money, real comfortable shoes, either a child or the mind of one and the good sense not to go there on Friday or Saturday. You can probably get on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride late the afternoon of Saturday, April 11 if you get in line sometime this week.

And here we have Lou Christie's 1965 hit "Lightnin' Strikes" as performed the right way by Klaus Nomi…

Sitting here watching coverage of the verdict in the Harvey Weinstein case…or maybe I should say "the first Harvey Weinstein case." He's got sentencing, appeals, appeals of the appeals, the other charges in California, civil cases and many other courtroom visits ahead of him. Above and beyond whatever time he spends in cells, the guy may have a lifetime sentence as a prisoner of the legal system…and the ongoing, unceasing "fine" of paying legal fees. This is all probably a good thing.

Hearing the talk, my mind goes to two kinds of people. One is women I've known — actresses, mostly — who endured the kind of deeds for which Weinstein is now paying a price. In most cases with my friends, they were unsuccessful attempts at those deeds but they were still chilling and upsetting and injurious to the career of those who fought off a predator. I'm thinking of one lady in particular who was constantly propositioned, groped, flashed, chased around desks, fired or "not cast" because she refused to "play along." She's not here today to see the Weinsteins and Cosbys brought somewhere close to justice…but boy, would she have been happy.

And I'm also thinking of all the men who did these kind of things and got away with them…so far, at least. Some of them, maybe all of them have to be terrified, as they were when Cosby was led away in manacles. Most of 'em have to be cleaning up their acts and sweating about things they did back when powerful and/or wealthy men thought the rules could never apply to guys like them them. Making it clear that those rules do apply…well, that's a good thing too.

My pal Jim Brochu has been mentioned many a time on this blog. He's mainly an actor and playwright these days but in his lifetime, he's done just about every job in show business apart from playing Mama Rose and topless dancing. Knowing Jim, he's probably at this very moment trying to figure out how to blend those two things before the next time I get to New York.

In the meantime, he sent me this which I quote with his permission…

I've enjoyed your featuring Lou Christie the last couple of days. In 1980, I produced a show at the Tropicana in Las Vegas which was a rock-and-roll show called "Let The Good Times Roll." The two headliners were Anthony and the Imperials, and Lou Christie.

We did fourteen shows a week and every night, Lou gave it his all. His voice was amazing. And to hear it up close was far more impressive than the records.  I am also happy to report that he was one of the nicest guys I ever worked with. Very accessible, very friendly and always 100% professional. He always had time for the fans afterwards and he and I spent early morning hours in the coffee shop together having a good laugh.

I'm very happy that he's still working and so happy that you're giving him these tributes.

Nice to hear he's a nice man — and I know Jim well enough to know he wouldn't say that if it wasn't true. I'm glad to send some attention to a guy who recorded some of my favorite songs of the sixties.

Mr. Christie's website doesn't say where he's appearing these days but if anyone hears of him appearing in Southern California — or I'd go as far as Vegas — please let me know. Here's my second-favorite hit of his…

Bernie Sanders may indeed wind up the nominee of the Democratic Party but despite what some corners of the Internet are saying, that ain't happened yet.  And I say that as someone who's about 88% decided on marking my ballot for the guy in the California Primary.  But we're living in the era when everything in the news is clickbait.  All news is Breaking News.  All disputes are someone "eviscerating" someone else.  All election developments are so significant you dare not look away.  And all contests have to be decisive proof of a Bigger Victory…until the next contest.

Many backers of that guy I'm not mentioning this weekend have come to regard all news as bogus.  I tend to regard most of it as exaggerated.  The big victories probably aren't that big.  The crushing defeats probably aren't that crushing.  Just because I'm already sick of this primary ballot doesn't mean I'm ready to believe it's over before it really is.

It's the same thing with the pending verdict in the Harvey Weinstein trial in New York.  No one outside the jury room knows how the jury's leaning but as the late journalist Jack Germond said of his profession, "The trouble is we aren't paid to say 'I don't know' even when we don't know."  A lot of experts — some of whom are only experts because we're told they are — have predictions based on the jury's questions to the judge. Some of these predictions may turn out to be right but the only certainty is that some of them will certainly turn out to be wrong. I can wait for the real answer.

We're getting an earlier start this year on the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing…

Each year at Comic-Con International in San Diego, we hand out two of them — one to someone we hope will be with us to accept it and one, posthumously, to someone who left us but is worthy of recognition. The award was founded by the late Jerry Robinson and it recognizes a writer of comics who produced a splendid body of work but who did not receive proper recognition and/or financial reward. At the time Jerry proposed this award, that was all too true of his late friend, Bill Finger.

Mr. Finger's name now does appear on his great co-creation Batman but since others do not receive their due recognition, the awards continue. This is the annual announcement that as its Administrator, I am now open to receive nominations and suggestions for the 2020 presentation. Here's what you need to know…

1. This is an award for a body of work as a comic book writer. Every year, a couple of folks doggedly nominate their favorite artist. One guy steadfastly refuses to understand how we haven't given it to Curt Swan already. It might have something to do with the fact that Mr. Swan, though a brilliant artist. never wrote a comic book in his life. Here, once again in boldface and italics: It's for a body of work as a comic book writer.
2. "A body of work" is not one or two comics you liked written by someone relatively new to the field. Our judges do not take seriously nominations for someone who's been in comics less than twenty years.
3. This award is for a writer who has received insufficient reward for his or her splendid body of work. "Reward" can mean insufficient recognition or insufficient financial compensation or it can be, and often is, for both.
4. And it's for writing comic books, not comic strips or pulps or letters to your grandmother or anything else. We stretch that definition far enough to include MAD but that's about as far as we'll stretch it.
5. To date, this award has gone to Jerry Siegel, Arnold Drake, Harvey Kurtzman, Alvin Schwartz, Gardner Fox, George Gladir, Archie Goodwin, Larry Lieber, John Broome, Frank Jacobs, Otto Binder, Gary Friedrich, Bob Haney, Del Connell, Frank Doyle, Steve Skeates, Steve Gerber, Don Rosa, Robert Kanigher, Bill Mantlo, Jack Mendelsohn, Don McGregor, John Stanley, Elliot S! Maggin, Richard E. Hughes, William Messner-Loebs, Jack Kirby, Joye Hummel Murchison Kelly, Dorothy Roubicek Woolfolk, Mike Friedrich and E. Nelson Bridwell. Those folks, having already won, cannot win again.
6. If you have already nominated someone in years past, you need not nominate them again. You can if you want but either way, they will be considered for this year's awards.
7. If you nominate someone for the posthumous award, it would really help if you also suggest an appropriate person to accept on the honoree's behalf. Ideally, it would be a relative, preferably a spouse, child or grandchild. It could also be a person who worked with the nominee or — last resort — a friend or historian who can speak about them and their work. And if it's not a relative, we would also welcome suggestions as to an appropriate place for the plaque to reside — say, a museum or with someone who was close to the person we would honor.

Here's the address for nominations. They will be accepted until March 15 at which time all reasonable suggestions will be placed before our Blue Ribbon Judging Committee. Their selections will be announced soon after and the presentations will be made at the Eisner Awards ceremony, which is, as it always is, Friday evening at Comic-Con. Thank you…and please stop nominating your favorite artists.

Hey, for a change let's enjoy Lou Christie performing his 1965 hit "Lightnin' Strikes"…

The comic book community (which now includes the animation community and a certain amount of the live-action movie community) was jolted yesterday by the news that Dan DiDio was "out" as co-publisher of DC Comics.

The phrasing of the announcement suggested it was not a resignation without saying it was an involuntary departure.  My own contacts with Dan were always pleasant and professional and I'm sure he will thrive and succeed wherever he lands.  You have to be a smart person to have been at a company like that as long as he's been at that company like that.

I received a few calls and a number of e-mails asking me why he's out, what it means, what's going to change and so on.  I will give you a firm, almost-certainly-correct answer: Nobody knows.  And one of the things that makes me confident in that answer is that some of those questions to me came from people at DC who, if I cared more about this than I do, are the folks I would have called to ask them why he's out, what it means, what's going to change and so on.

My life and career occasionally touch some portion of the vast WarnerMedia LLC and like many big companies these days, if you work there at a desk in an office on the fifth floor, you breathe a tiny sigh of relief each workday morning to find that your desk is still there, your office is still there and that the building still has a fifth floor.  And then you sit and work, wondering if all that will still be true when you return from lunch.

We live in a time when corporations get bought and acquired the way my friends and I traded baseball cards when I was ten. In fact, right now if you had a 1955 Topps Sandy Koufax rookie card in mint, you could probably swap it for the entire Pier 1 Imports company.

And when the top jobs at such firms command huge salaries, those comes with huge expectations and demands for results.  Back in 1983, the writer William Goldman wrote a non-fiction book about Hollywood called Adventures in the Screen Trade that is still actively read and quoted. Mostly, people quote a line he wrote that said — and I quote — "NOBODY KNOWS ANYTHING."

That's said a lot since he said it. You'll notice I plagiarized the first two-thirds of it in my third paragraph above.

It was in reference to how unpredictable the business of making movies can be, and of course everyone applies it to programming television or producing Broadway shows or any corner of the entertainment industry. It certainly pertains to comic book companies that have bled into movie studios. The section of the book in which Goldman said that much-quoted line began like this…

Studio executives are intelligent, brutally overworked men and women who share one thing in common with baseball managers: They wake up every morning of the world with the knowledge that sooner or later they're going to get fired.

That is true and it would also have been true if Mr. Goldman had written "…sooner or later, the company is going to be purchased or acquired by some other company and everything will change."

When I was starting out in writing, which I did in 1969, a lot of folks I knew thought I was nuts to try and be a freelancer. They all wanted the security they thought would be theirs if they could just somehow hook up with a Big Company. If they did, they could spend the rest of their lives working for that Big Company. One told me he wanted a job at Hanna-Barbera because Hanna-Barbera would always be there. Hanna-Barbera, needless to say, is no longer there. Hanna is gone. Barbera is gone. And the hyphen was acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb.

This kind of volatility exists everywhere in business these days. It's nerve-wracking for some people, probably most people, but it's not completely bad. When a screaming, incompetent maniac ascends to a position of power as screaming, incompetent morons often do, you can take some comfort in remembering what Goldman said about studio executives.

And hey, turnover can sometimes even be a good thing. About a dozen times in my career, someone at some outfit has told me, "You'll never work for this company again" and I usually think, though I do not say to this person, "You seem to be under the delusion that you'll be here forever." I have worked again for any number of those companies after the guy who told me that got canned.

But yeah, it isn't healthy to think of your permanent job as just less temporary than some others who are explicitly hired as temps. I'm still to this day a freelancer and I keep feeling like I have more and more in common with my friends and associates who report for work each Monday to their one job at one company. The ones at DC are now wondering what the departure of Dan DiDio will mean. It might mean very little to them. It might mean absolutely nothing. Or they might come in next week to find there's no more fifth floor in their building. That's how it works these days, people. Get used to it.

Here's Lou Christie singing his '65 hit "Lightnin' Strikes" at an appearance last year. I miss the back-up singers but isn't Lou in great voice? Wikipedia says he was born in 1943 so he was 76 when he did this performance and I think that's him singing live, still hitting those high notes. I worked once with a singer from his era who was unable to replicate the high notes on some of his big hits so they had to do electronic trickery when he performed in concert. Lou's still got it…

The obit earlier today for Nick Cuti prompted a friend of mine to say to me, mostly tongue-in-cheek I hope, "Gee, Evanier…maybe you're a jinx. It seems like every time I go to your blog, I find out that someone else you know has died." Well, that's one way to look at it. Another is that I know an awful lot of people. If I knew half as many people, then you'd read about half as many people I know dying.

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Back in this message, I recommended a little Italian cafeteria out in Canoga Park, CA called Grandi Italiani. I just deleted a more recent message that said the place was closing due to lack of business. That was true enough when I posted it but the owner changed his mind and it's still open. If you get out that way, give it a try. Here's its website.

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Fans of Stan Freberg should be alerted that Heritage Auctions is about to offer some items from his past including script and photos. Take a look. It never hurts to own something from a genuine comedy genius…and for my money, there aren't that many of them around these days.