SLAM BANG COMICS

Travis Shredd podcast interview!

2010-11-16T07:00:00.003-06:00

My Slam Bang Media podcast had the guest Travis Shredd of the band Travis Shredd and the Good Ol' Homeboys. You can listen to two of their songs and hear Travis (aka: Eric Wilson) talk about the days of the band, and where he is now, and what he is doing. (Audio for events in Las Vegas!) He has a special announcement which ties into the music he did for Travis Shredd.....so go and listen to it now!

You can hear some of their songs here: Travis MySpace.

And do a search for Travis Shredd on YouTube so see some of the videos they made to some of the songs.

Also check out www.travisshredd.com and order their 3 CD's. Do it now, they are so funny and talented.

We had a mix up and I waited for Travis to call in and he was waiting for me to answer an email I didn't get. So I ended up talking with some callers instead, made that Episode 11. Meanwhile Travis was kind enough to answer my questions and send me the audio file of it. I used that to create the Episode 10 show with Travis. So check them all out.

Also you can hear the shows through iTunes, a free upload to your iPhone or iPod, or iPad by visiting iTunes, then doing a search for Slam Bang Media.

---A

Night Shooting Photo Class

2010-11-04T18:57:00.012-05:00

Introduction to Night Photography--Mark Holmes.

(Photo above shot while crossing the bridge.) Took a one time photo workshop last night in Coronado, CA. It was only 15 minutes or less from me as I shot down I-15 to the end of it, then north a short hop on I-5, then over this massively tall, winding bridge to the island of Coronado. What a beautiful place this is. I drove to the Ferry Landing and there were people walking around, sitting in outdoor cafe's, water, beach, pier....

I had about 45 minutes to take it in before I was to meet the Photographer putting on the class at 6:00pm. I got a few shots before the class started

I got my backpack full of gear and was carrying my tripod and sure enough right on time was Mark dressed all in black with a black cap on his head. There was one other girl waiting with her camera and tripod. Mark was very nice and mentioned that we both used the Nikon D300 and the same zoom lens (18-200 VR Nikkor) most of the time. The girl had a nice Canon camera. We waited for about 10 minutes for the other 4 to show up and one lady did finally make it, the others didn't. So the 4 of us walked down the beach area a bit and set up our tripods. It was already past the blue sky stage and quickly moving into the black night sky stage. I usually try and get shots during this blue before black time as that is the best for night shots. The shot above I took before the class. Mark knows a lot about cameras and settings. I think I do but I don't know all the f-stop equivalents and I rely on my meter too much, as I was to learn during this class. We learned that the light meter in the camera tends to under expose trying to make up for the lack of light in the scene. This makes things brighter than you want them to be. You have to adjust for this. Same is true when metering off snow in a winter scene. it wants to under expose to make up for all the lightness.

I did bring my shutter release cord that hooks into the front of my camera so I can take shots without shaking the camera. We shot some photos with the mirror locked in up position, also to keep the camera from shaking. I got most of his questions right...like what f-stop would be best for the night shots. I said f-16. This gets a nice sharp shot and it closer to the sweet spot on most lenses. Some tend to not be as sharp in the wide open or very nearly closed positions. Better in the middle zones usually. Mark also noted that you get a nice "star" pattern coming off the highlights in the scene, the bright light from lights in the scene with f-16.

I also was correct in saying I shoot at ISO 200. 200 is my lowest setting mostly used for bright scenes but I knew since we had the tripods we could do long exposures and thus use any ISO setting so why not use the one that gives you the least noise. The Canon cameras can also go down to 100 ISO. One girl had a very expensive Canon but she had just bought it (so she said) and didn't know anything about it. She also didn't know how to set up her tripod. She was a beginner and admitted so. That's fine we all have to start someplace. Since the class was so small Mark had more time to deal with her issues than he normally would. The other girl was more experienced and had even taken some of Mark's other classes.

I had not shot very much night photography. Only a handful of times did I ever remember to bring my tripod with me. Two or three times I'd go out with a friend of mine Tim Jensen in Seattle and he was a master at it. He'd help me. I got some nice shots of the Tacoma bridge with him on one accession. Last 4th of July I read all about the settings to shoot fireworks and took my tripod and went to the Owensboro, KY (where I was living then) fireworks. I took a nice folding chair, set up my tripod. Followed all the things I'd read and it worked like a charm. My best fireworks shots ever. So it does pay to take notes. Oh, I just remembered that in 2009 I went up in the Space Needle (there on a visit) and took a short tripod and it fit just right on this ledge where I could shoot between some bars to get the skyline of Seattle from the top. I was there way too early and my son Dustin was with me. It took hours before the sun finally started going down. I got plenty of shots before, during and after the sun was down. Worked out great. I really just kept experimenting with different settings, didn't know as much about it as I do now, that's for sure.

We also played around with flash. I'd brought my SB-600 flash and Mark's flash he realized had been on stand-by so long (by mistake) that his batteries were down. So he just used my flash. He showed us some slow-sync flash, and 2nd-curtain flash. Most folks have someone stand in front of some great night scene. Then they blast the person with the flash. The background is all black. You have to manipulate the flash to take in the background as well as evenly light the subject. My little S90 Canon has a setting for this. You'll see it as a flash icon with a person, and the person icon has a star or building behind them. This is forcing the camera flash to do a slow sync to take in the surroundings. Try it if you haven't already. I'll have to experiment more with using my SB-600 as I've only been using it to shoot indoor events.

To see the full skyline stitched together from 6 shots go here: PANORAMA.

We did some fun slow exposure flash shots.....I drew the word PHOTO with a pen light and then posed next to it with my arms folded....all taken in one shot. Mark also tried it and did it the first try.

I can't wait to take another class with Mark!

----Allen

Disneyland

2010-10-31T14:35:00.007-05:00

Happy Halloween!

Yep, I went to Disneyland (10/23/10) for the first time. I'd been to Disneyworld two times. This was a blast. I Drove 1 hour north to Temecula, CA. Met up with my pal Dean LeCrone (star of stage and screen) and his son Paul and Paul's friend Troy. We hop in Dean's car and drive 1 hour north to Anaheim, CA, home of Disneyland. On the way there we recorded a funny little free-form podcast. SLAM BANG MEDIA.

We had to board a bus to take us from the parking lot to the park. We ride on the Toy Story bus from the Woody area.

To see all the photos I took and posted on Facebook go HERE.

I've been watching just about every season of WEEDS. Don't know why I'm hooked on this. Even got my wife watching it. We have Netflix and can use the wii to stream movies and shows onto our TV. Pretty cool. Someday I'll use the wii to play more games...who has the time?

I got a iMac a few weeks ago and I'm having some fun figuring out stuff. Lucky for me I don't get frazzled easily....I do have a book "iMac for Dummies" but so far haven't cracked it open yet. I've been figuring out how to do the simplest things...make a new folder...etc....it's like the PC but turned on it's head. I've pretty much totally started doing all my photography work on it already, using Lightroom 3, and all the other Adobe programs....I even edited up some audio for my podcasts and some video. I'm starting to really like it. Especially the 27" screen. I like the fact the Mac is helping me correct my spelling even in this program! Makes me look smarter.

I'm looking forward to a workshop I signed up for Wednesday night (Nov 3rd) to help me with night shooting. I have to drive out to this island (Coronado) which I have been out to once before when Bonnie and went out exploring. I'm to get there at 6:00pm but I'm going early to catch some sunset shots. Seems the sunset starts about 5:45pm....or is it 6:15? Either way I'll get there on time. We will shoot night shots of buildings and models and use a tripod etc... I have two tripods yet rarely have them with me. This session could help me out, plus I'll meet some folks that like photography.

Still haven't started on the web site www.slambangmedia.com. Will soon. Dean and I will team up and work together on some projects and help bring in clients, etc.... the site will showcase pretty much the stuff I have up at www.allenfreeman.net and add in cartooning and acting videos by Dean. Together we can do everything an ad agency can do, pretty much.

Also hoping to add up some new little videos to my YouTube account. Dean and I shot some funny footage at Disneyland that I need to edit up.

My podcast today has been moved from the usual 5:00pm EDT to 8:00pm EDT as I need a nap. Stayed up too late last night...should be asleep now to catch up. Call in: www.talkshoe.com/tc/89106

The sun came back out after a few weeks of all white sky....one day it is in the mid 70's next day high 60's.....well, at least last night we went out to get something to eat and it was 60 degrees! I was not prepared. I had on shorts, short sleeve t-shirt....yikes!

===A

It's About Time

2010-10-22T06:33:00.003-05:00

This is the view from my patio a few weeks ago when the sun was still coming out. We got a few weeks of sunshine before late summer hit. They say here in San Diego the weather has seasons, like early summer, summer, late summer, etc....

We are now in late summer I guess. It is still in the high 60's so no worries. Nothing like it will be this winter back in KY I presume.

It's about time I added something here. How about a photo of a store window all decked out for Halloween? This is from the Mission Valley Mall where we like to hang out. The malls in San Diego are "open air" or no roof malls, which is fun. Especially when it is sunny out. We arrived here Sept 18th and it was bright and sunny for a few weeks, then it got hazy, and we haven't seen much of the sun for the last 2 weeks. We anticipate it will return eventually.

Here is the cover to my next issue of SLAM BANG, #6 vol III (or issue #46). Out early 2011.

Contributors so far: Dan Burke, Clint Basinger, Matt Feazell, Nathan Corrigan, and more!

I'm going to Disneyland with my pal Dean and his son Paul and his friend Troy. I'll be documenting the trip with photos and video.

My next comic con will be Stumptown Comics Festival in Portland, OR. It is in April.
Hope to see you there.

====Allen

SPACE 2010 is the PLACE. Con Report of the 11th Show!

2010-04-28T13:20:00.099-05:00

A small sampling of the comics I brought back from SPACE.

On the road to Columbus, Ohio (from Kentucky).

I went to the SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo) for the 7th time last weekend April 24th and 25th in Columbus, OH, at the Ramada Plaza Hotel and Convention Center. This was the first time Space has been at this location. The last few shows were at the Shriner Convention Center and that was one huge hall with all the tables in about 10 long rows. It was sort of too spacious and loud with all the noise bouncing off the hard floors and walls. Tables along the sides had lighting that didn't hit their tables. This year was like a welcome flashback to the years SPACE was in a Holiday Inn. This year was even better as that Holiday Inn was looking very old and going under some extreme work the last time the show was there. The Ramada Plaza was much more homey, as the tables were closer, the isles were roomy but not spaced extremely apart. This made the show seem more cosey to the fans and there was probably a lot more interaction between the fans and the creators than in the larger convention hall of the last few years.

My table (Fan-Atic Press) was just inside the entrance to the event. Next to me was my pal Clint Basinger who has made the trip with me to the last few shows. He has his own table sporting his excellent, highly creative comics and art under the company name, Cosmic Moustache Comics.

Here we see Dan Taylor holding my Slam Bang #5 vol III, which he contributed to. Dan does some fantastic mini-comics and art. His company is Weird Muse Productions.

Here is a look at 2 of his mini comics. (I plan on contributing to Time Warp Comix.)

One of the new, younger fans of Small Press. (Ben James)

Christina Wald is a frequent contributor to Slam Bang. She is a very busy illustrator in Cincinnati, OH, and the book The Little Red Bat just came out showing off her brilliant art. See her site HERE.

Here is your reward for reading this far. Click this link to watch the full 35 minute SPACE DOCUMENTARY! That's right. This was shot by Allen Freeman and Christopher Moshier in 2007 and edited (masterfully I should add) by Christopher Moshier in April 2010! In fact this was done right before SPACE 2010. I made 25 DVD's and handed them out around the convention. Let us know what you think of it HERE.

Adding some style to the show--- Joseph Morris of Torc Press. See his work HERE

Nathan Corrigan (Oldest son of Tim Corrigan) shows off his publishing empire! Gumshoe Comics! I purchased his book of sketches and you get one of the originals free with each purchase of the book. How crazy is that! I also bought his comic called Weird Comics Drawn Weridly, and it has some very strange and wonderful character drawings and comics in there. Well worth $3.00.

Plastic Farm, writer and artist Rafer Roberts with his better half.
I've seen him at every Space show I'm been to. I always buy his lastest books. You can too, right HERE.

Tim Corrigan of New Voice Media on the left, Matt Feazell famous creator of Cynicalman on the right! Send Tim $15 for a year subscription to his Tim Corrigan's Comics and Stories, a monthly comic book digest with color covers!

Find out about Cynicalman at Matt's site HERE. These are some of the most talented guys at SPACE each year. I come to this show particularly to visit with them and check out their newest books.

Eric Adams is a writer, illustrator and designer, best known as the creator and self-publisher of the comic book series LACKLUSTER WORLD and a partner / creative director with the Cincinnati-based TURNSTYLE CREATIVE. He hosted a panel I was on a year or so ago at SPACE, and did a fantastic job. I didn't have time to check out all of his books this year, but will catch up by checking out his SHOP online.

Bob Corby of Back Porch Comics is the mastermind behind the Space show. Thanks to him this is all possible! Thank you again this year Bob!

A completely shocked Larry Blake is checking out a copy of the stellar second issue of Strange Space Stories put out by Main Enterprises. Larry is a fantastic artist and can be reached only at: Larry Blake, 69360 St. Rt. 124, Reedsville, OH 45722. He has lots of great comics, write him and ask how you can buy them! Larry was also recently showcased in a beautiful hardcover KISS book about all the Kiss Fanzine editors and publishers over the years. He had a write up and a color photo in the book!

Jim Main of Main Enterprises poses with a black and white original portrait of himself, by Larry Blake. As soon as I walked into the show room, Jim returned 3 pages of my original artwork I'd sent him back in 1988. HA! True story! If I looked hard enough I'm sure I'd find some things I've got hidden of others works that got misplaced so no hard feelings. In fact we talked about putting out a top secret project that has been talked about for years. Catch Jim's books (and he has many of them!) HERE
Jim puts out the excellent Comic Fan. #6 is another thick issue full of reviews and articles for people that love comics!

Bruce Chrislip. Bruce could just be the most prolific small press creator that step foot into the SPACE show this year! I mean, come on....check out this bibliography of his work. He came over to my table (behind it actually) and showed me some super rare art and posters from the very early days of small press. Wow! He said he has a collection of over 900 mini-comics. I think that is what he said. I should have been taking notes. Bruce also helped out on the book about the Underground Comix of the 80's that just came out by Fantagrphics. He is also working on his own book about the early days of small press. Wow.

Here is Clint having his harty Hardees breakfast before the show on Saturday. He will tell you he ate all this, but I know he left one bite.

Clint and I saw that every table at Hardees had one of these on the wall next to it. We argued about what it could be. Clint thought it was an early phone device. I dissagreed, as it was too large to fit on your belt, and didn't seem to play any mp3's. He agreed when he realized there was no LED screen to view apps.

These were the billboards that were facing the parking lot when we arrived and left each day. I never knew that glass could be so comfortable, and....no comment on the other one.

David Branstetter of Dim Light Graphics home of Straw Man. David is a member of the Comic Creators Alliance a group that meets once a week at the comic store The Comic Quest in Evansville, IN. Allen (me) and Clint Basinger are also members as well as about 10 to 15 others. Ask us about the comics this group has put out in the last few years.

About Straw Man: Straw Man is an independent comic about a guy that thinks he has super powers but doesn't. Is he crazy? Maybe. To get copies http://www.comixpress.com/ or email: strawmancomicbook@yahoo.com

Ava Ann of http://www.a2alien.com/. She was selling alot of these head pieces, "antennae" at the show as I saw just about every lady and girl walking out with one.

Mike Indovina is the writer and illustrator of TIMELESS a web comic at: http://www.satyrplayproductions.com/ He recently collected these into a printed comic and he has lots of other comics such as; Satyr, Chimera and cards, shirts....I see him every year at SPACE and he just keeps adding to all the great products at his table. Check out his books! (Same link as above.)
Left to right; Tim Corrigan, Larry Blake and Allen Freeman (me). Tim has his wallet out so he must be making change! HA! Wait, now I can't say I took all of these photos. Ratz!

Mike Kitchen with Ultraist Studios. http://www.ultraist.net/ Spy Guy #1 (unlimited series) is a fantastic comic and everyone should see it! Really. I'm also reading his The Possum. Wait, this is by Blair Kitchen and it's from Possum Press. So, which one is in this photo? Either way they are both very talented writers and cartoonists, both comics are very, very good. Spy Guy even has a 16 page text Ultraist Manifesto! Can't wait to read that. (Update: Mike is the one in this photo. Blair was at the show but not around his table at this time.)

Matt Feazell is drawing in a sketch book.

Suzanne Baumann of Fridge-Magnet. She and Matt are from Hamtramck, MI.
Didn't get the info on this character but thought it was interesting.

Tony Goins of PANEL. A Columbus, OH group that put at PANEL the anthology. It's always very original and PANEL #15 has a movie theme and comes in a DVD case. Put out by http://www.ferretpress.com/ Tony also just put out Downs #2. He is a great artist and writer. You have to check out his work. http://www.itradedmyeyes.com/

Kassandra Heller, artist. See more of her work at http://www.kassandraheller.com/

Randy Pare on the right. Contact him about his RKYV digital magazine. It is great. randy.pare@rodgers.com

Steve Peters of Awakening Comics. http://www.awakeningcomics.com/

Here is his character Sparky as Spider-Man (A request from me.). If you buy one of his books he would do up a cool color drawing of Sparky as anyone you wanted. Cool!

Blink Strips vol. 2 by Max Ink. http://www.maxinkcomix.com/
I have to have everything that Max works on and so will you when you get one look at his comics.

The blissful Kel M. Crum of Dangerousbird.com with his Cornelia Catroons. Kel has an amazing singing voice as you'll hear when you watch the SPACE DOCUMENTARY listed above!

I'm still trying to locate all the info I was going to post here about the groups that are helping students learn to create comics and get scholarships in the graphic arts. The man and woman in costume above are models in some of their classes.

Space Prize 2009 Webcomics Category 1st Place: Introspective Comics http://www.introspectivecomics.com/ Ryan Dow

Mini-Comics Short Story Category 1st Place: Aliens poop on Your Children, Chris Garrett. http://www.ninetimesnine.com/

General Category 1st Place: The Dreamer #1-5 IDW. Lora Innes-Artist Writer, Tom Waltz-Editor. http://www.thedreamercomic.com/

Space Anthology 2010 free at http://www.comicsxp.com/

I can't wait till Space 2011! Maybe I'll get out all the books I'd planned to have at Space with me this year. I'll start working on them now!

---Allen Freeman
http://www.fanaticpress.com/

All the photos I took at SPACE 2010 will be posted HERE eventually. Check it often. Once they are in this set on Flickr, you can download any image at any size, on up to the original.

More photos by Allen http://www.afreemanphotography.com/

Small Press Newsroom. Send your comic to get a review by me! See the blog here: http://smallpressnewsroom.blogspot.com/

My photos of Space in 2004!
My photos of Space in 2007!
My photos of Space in 2008!
My photos on Flicker of Space in 2008!
My Space blog 2009!

Part III of III. APE (Alternative Press Expo)

2009-11-15T19:18:00.042-06:00

Got everything ready the night before so just had to basically jump in the rental car and speed off for APE. This was the first day of the 2 day show. Saturday, October 17th, 2009. I saw the sign out to the side of the place and grabbed a quick shot with my little Canon camera. Parking was around the building to the other side. Both days I left I got lost leaving as I was all turned around, but I got a nice shot of the city at night because of that. (See photos at the end of this posting.)

The trip of everlasting, "surprise costs" continued to find me as parking next to the building, even for exhibitors, was $12 a day. I already had my badge from the night before so just went right to my table and it was where they said it would be so it was just a matter of remembering how to set up my banner stand (have to relearn how to fit it together each time I use it.) and get everything out for the show. I was near a side door which turned out to be great because the first day in the convention center was very hot. They opened those side doors at some point and that was a relief. I'd brought some water bottles, snacks, and my Pocari Sweat so I was all set.

My table is all ready for the crowd.I found a familar face, the creator of Bob the Angry Flower (Actually it is artist creator Stephen Notley). http://www.angryflower.com/He was in the movie I shot with Dean LeCrone at the 2006 San Diego Comic-Con. I told him about the movie Dean and I had made and he was excited to see it. So I gave him a copy. Eager to find out what he thought of it. He told me on the 2nd day of the show that sales were much slower than what he was used to at San Diego Comic-Con. He didn't know if it was because he has lots of loyal customers at that show, or if it was the economy, or that he didn't have a new issue for sale of his book for APE. Maybe that was part of the reason he was so angry.

Stephanie was promoting Shish Kaboom http://www.shishkaboom.com/ a company that will be hosting a comic book contest and the winner will get published by their company and have their books sold at all the comic cons at the Shish Kaboom booths. Their sight only has a newsletter sign up area so far but you can email them for more info: mailto:comics@shishkaboom.com I hear from their co-founder and CCO, Chris King that their first contest will be in the next few weeks. As soon as she came over to my table she looked familiar to me. I couldn't figure out why. Only now do I realize that I've been watching too much Dexter, and she reminds me of the actress that plays Dexter's sister. (In real life the actor that plays Dexter and the one that plays his sister are married.) It was great to have someone come over to my table at all, as for a while there was just the usual, running of the con. Folks that only glanced for like .001 seconds at my area as they raced by. Eventually I'd see some artists that I knew, and knew me. Some had contributed to my anthology Slam Bang. I had a husband and wife come over and look through my complete portfolio. They seemed to have fun asking me tons of questions. I'd only brought my smaller portfolio and not the super thick one I usually bring but they seems to love looking through it. It mostly has samples of my 3D work that I did for gaming companies.

Matt Voss, a fantastic comic artist, found my table. He had contributed to Slam Bang #1 vol III, the first large issue. He says he will contribute to my #5 vol III, Fast Food issue. I sure hope he does. See more of his work here: http://www.vosshogg.com/

Another creator familiar with Slam Bang and who I'd worked with before, Paul Allen. People see that name on his book Doc Paradox that I put out, and they think I made that name up, and I really did that book. I have to try and assure them, no, Paul Allen really exists and here is a photo to prove it. He did a series of one page cartoons called Brains for Slam Bang a few years back and now he has a small publishing company putting out his BRAINS comic book. That company doesn't have a web site yet but I'll scan and show the cover of his book here as soon as I locate it. (Yeah, my office is a mess.) I later went over to his table and shot some video, that I'll post here in the future.

I'll post a look at his cover to his comic Doc Paradox #1 (still available from http://www.fanaticpress.com/) in the meantime.

I also taked quite a bit with the very talented artist Allan Angel. He did the art for Lost Legends. It is a square bound graphic novel he drew and all of the art looks to be done with pencil or pastels in shades of black and white.Check out http://www.integritycomics.com/ He is very good and I got a shot of him on the floor drawing comics during APE. He can just sit anywhere and be creative.

He and I talked quite a while during the show as he was helping the booth to my left. He also drew a small digest comic with writer Chris Perguidi. Here is Chris working the table next to me.Here are some random shots around the convention:This was in front of the Integrity Comics booth.

Shane White an old friend of mine from back in the days when I was working for the gaming companies. At Boss Game Studio around 1999 and 2000, we worked on Stunt Racer 64 for the Nintendo 64. Shane has been doing more and more comics over the years and has two fantastic comics out now from NBM Publishing. Things Untold is his latest book. See the video I shot interviewing Shane here:

Shane says that he is working on two new graphic novels at the same time! He also likes to try different art styles. I can't wait to see what he is working on. I bought his 2 new books and read Things Untold right away and I love it. I reviewed the book on my Small Press Newsroom blog here: http://smallpressnewsroom.blogspot.com/

After having fun talking to comic artists, looking at their books and interviewing some on video, day one was over. I got lost after leaving the parking lot and went out of range of my maps. I didn't panic, I just looked around and saw a great night view of the city. Wish I had my tripod with me. I did get these shots:
I then found my way back to the hotel and hit the In and Out Burger. The line was so long they were taking your order from the window of your car in the parking lot.I made it to the hotel and rested up for Sunday, the last day of the show.

SUNDAY
I get to the show 1 hour early to set up and walk around the tables before the crowd arrived. I walk around to the front of the show and there is a mob of people all with boxes, backpacks, etc....I find out the APE folks will not let us in until just minutes before the show starts. In all of my years of going to shows like this, this was the first time I wasn't allowed in as an exhibitor to get my table set up before the mob were let in. Everyeone just stood around looking confused for most of an hour. It did give me time to take some shots of the front from accross the street showing the angry exhibitors, etc... I get in and have 10 minutes to get everything from under the table and set up. Weird way to run a show. Some, I'm sure, didn't have enough time. I wondered around the show more on Sunday and went to the very back of the back 500+ tables and found BikiniKat. I saw this funny pink head and asked the girl to put it on and I'd get her photo. She went to put the head on me! I said, "No, No, I'm the photographer." So she got a friend sitting with her to put it on. The guy was so funny posing that I kept shooting and assembled this set of poses. For info on BikiniKat visit: http://www.bikinikat.com/I went back to Shane's table at some point and got this shot of him signing his books for me.

Another artist that I'd published in Slam Bang. Now, if I could only remember his name....I made notes someplace...arggggh.To wrap this all up, I had a great time. Sure, I'd of had much more fun if my wife or Dan and his wife had been able to make it, but I think I made the best of it. I met lots of new artists to contribute to Slam Bang. Got to see some old friends and took many photos and some video. I also shot an interview with Jim Blanchard, a very talented artist who has tons of books out. He has been at this for years. I'll post the video I shot of him here in a future blog and on YouTube. My area there is http://www.youtube.com/maknbacon Subscribe to my video channel.

I also forgot to mention that Friday at some point I rushed over to The Cartoon Museum and got in about 40 minutes before they closed that day. (Thank you Christina Wald for telling me to check this out.) I saw some great comic book art and it was well worth visiting. I bought a book in their book store: : Gene Colan: Visions of a Man Without Fear! I got the last copy they had in the store. It was a publication that the Cartoon Art Museum put out itself.

OK, that is it for now. Thanks for reading all of this. One last shot of me flying back to KY....

Contact me at:

http://www.fanaticpress.com/

http://www.allenfreeman.net/

http://www.allenfreeman.us/

http://www.mutantsmovie.com/

See more of my photos at:

http://www.afreemanphotography.com/

www.jpgmag.com/people/maknbacon

www.flickr.com/photos/maknbacon

Last Gasp Comix Warehouse or Part II of III

2009-11-13T12:33:00.020-06:00

OK, let's recap. It is Friday, October 16th, and I'm in San Francisco. I've just survived an action packed, gut wrenching climb up 100's of steps and back down. I then locate a fantastic Japanese Resturant for some Phai Thai. Now, all full, rested and ready for action, I locate the offices of Last Gasp Comix Warehouse. It is very fortunate that I write down everything, like the address of LG. They have no logo, name, anything on the building except for the large 777 on the side. I park nearby and walk around to the front where I'm told the entrance to the party is. I see a small handwritten sign by the alley in the back telling me that, yes, this is the place. I'm to get my badge at 5:00pm for the next two days of fun, and sales, at APE (Alternative Press Expo). I've never been to APE and I'm all psyched. I get to the front of the building and there is one guy standing outside smoking. Nothing else is going on. No signs for anything, no giant Last Gasp logo on the building...OK, I already said that. The guy looks up, sees me stranding there thinking, and he says, "You here for the APE party?" I say, "Yeah." He points to the stairs and says, "Next floor up." I make my way up some light colored wood stairs with white walls. Looks newly remodeled. At the top of the stairs is a simple wooden door, with a door knocker. Like a door to someones house. A small house. I see a little note on the door.

On the little post-it note it says, "This is APE, Come In." And I see the Lasp Gasp Please Knock gold plate over the gold eagle door knocker. I open the door and see a medium size lobby that is crammed with books, and stuff all over the walls. I see no one at this desk. I look left and see more stuff but no one there. I look right and down a short hallway I see some guys behind a table. Before I can say anything, I'm told that the badges are not ready and will be ready in one hour. "Please have something to drink and eat and wonder around the warehouse." I see 4 or 5 guys sitting at the end of this table. On the table is a huge cake with the logo of APE on it. I get a shot of it. The guy behind the table tries to jump out of the shot, but he is too late. I've stolen his soul. (For my collection.). I have a copy of Slam Bang the Explosive Comic Anthology in my hand and I show it to one of the guys sitting at the table. He looks at if for a second and hands it back. No comment.

I walk down the hall which has offices in cubicals on the left and giant circus canvases on the right. Looks like a cool place to work. The offices remind me of when I worked at Sierra and Microsoft, where everyone has comic books, figures and robots, etc....all around their rooms. (See, I'm cool. I guess I don't look cool enough.) These guys have strange posters that look like something during War War II. "Stay Productive, Wasted Time is helping Hitler." Or something like that. I figure these guys are pretty hip. Though, so far I'm not getting that feel from the people working here. These guys are all shy and only sit looking at each other. They have a guy and girl walking around with trays of food and I grab some. I see a sign telling me to go farther back for drinks etc...I'm having a blast just looking the place over. I see some cool/strange stuff, and a wall of famous art by some famous underground artists. Crumb, Robert Williams, etc...

I don't see very many other guys walking around at first but it starts to pick up. They are all doing the same things I'm doing. eating, drinking and looking at the interesting decor. I walk up to a guy and say, "How's it going?" He walks away, looking at a book. I walk up to another guy, about my age, and take his photo. He looks at me like I have some evidence on him, I shouldn't have. I say, "How's it going?" He looks at me and blinks, and turns and walks away. I wonder around some stacks of comics on metal shelves. They have quite a selection of underground and different comics and books, that is for sure. I find some cardboard signs on a wall beam leading me to the restrooms and other areas. I find a room with a long table of food, and a guy tending a drink table. This guy is friendly and I get a beer in a bottle. This will relax me. I don't drink, so I'll have to sip this and take it slow. I see a girl with a tray of sandwhiches and she has me take one. I go and sit down in a room with some pinball machines and lots of images on the walls. Some guy is talking to 3 or 4 other guys and girls who are sitting and drinking. I sit down in a plush, cooshy chair. I almost lose my beer as the seat is a foot deeper than I thought, or the chair is worn completely out. So, I'm a bit jarred but ready to get in on the conversation and.....they see me and shift positions. The guy talking moves closer to the group, and one of them scoots their chair so that I'm now only seeing the back of them, and can't see anyone else. OK, it's a private conversation, I assume. I then just lookaround, taking photos, eating, and watching a guy playing a Capt. Fantastic penball machine.

I've now walked around pretty much all of the place and see a girl talking to one of the employees that is at his desk in one of the interesting cubicals. She tries to include me in the conversation but no one else can get a word in. It's about where she lives and my mind is going blank...time to switch to ice water. No more beer for me. I make another run for the food and look at my watch and it has been one hour now. I go back up to the front and some of the cake is gone and I look up and see a long line now for the badges. Sheeeeet.

I get in line and comment to someone else looking at the line, who also arrived on time. And we make some comments about, "Good thing I was on time, so I'd have to wait an hour to wait in line." etc....I get a chance to see the clearance rack of books, some good deals. I can only check one bag at the airport and not sure how much of my books I'll sell at the show, I can't really grab a bunch of books right now. I'm also way over budget for this adventure but what else is new. I'm here to try and have fun, also, right? I get to the end of the line, tell them who I am, and get a package with my badge, my wife's badge and Dan Burke and his wife's badge. Now I'm reminded again, that I'll only need one. So I tell them and they say, "Just give it out to someone." So that is what I ended up doing. The guy at the hotel that helped me to my room was asking about my trip and I said something about the comic convention and he was all excited. He liked comics and I told him when the show was etc. The guy that brought me my $30 sandwich was also talking about comics as the other guy had told him about me. So when I get back to the hotel I give the first guy two tickets for the show. He thanked me and looked like he would try and go. He was off during the days, and worked nights.

After getting my badge, I didn't see any reason to hang around any longer so made my silent exit back to my car. I did see a very cool painting in the alley behind their office. A bunch of portraits in color. I did my best to get a shot of it, as it was behind some locked bars and I had to shoot between them.

So getting my badge early was great. I got the program book (they had put in everything I told them, exactly! Wow.) and was all set for the next two days at APE. It was worth it just to look around and for all the photos I got.

Next: Part III, the actual APE con. My report with photos and video!

Jump to Part III (APE convention): http://slambangcomicsnews.blogspot.com/2009/11/part-iii-of-iii-ape-alternative-press.html

San Francsco, Last Gasp Offices and APE-Part 1

2009-11-08T12:39:00.058-06:00

San Francisco----or Part 1 of 3.

This will be a long rambling report with lots of photos. I hope. APE (Alternative Press Expo) in San Francisco is probably the largest Small Press and Alternative press show in the world. (I've not been to SPX yet though.) I figured I had to check it out someday. Plus, I love San Francisco. This would mark my third trip there. Frist in 2000, my adoring wife and I went there when she was an adoring girlfriend. We drove down the coast from Seattle, WA. Beautiful trip. The second time I went we met my parents there and stayed a few days then took a cruise to Hawaii! Our best vacation ever. That was in 2005. This time we planned on flying to Seattle again, visiting my three kids that live there, and then recreating that photo-op trip down the coast to San Francisco! Also, an old time friend of mine, who I'd never met in person, only dealt with through the mail, Dan Burke and his wife were to meet us there. They live in Oregon. Dan had recently gotten back in touch with me after about 19 years. He used to contribute to my Slam Bang anthology back in the 80's, and send in some hilarious strips about how my company, Fan-Atic Press, were at war agianst a rival small press anthology. Great stuff. Everyone still talks about that and wants it all collected in a new book someday. Anyway, Dan had contributed to my latest issue of Slam Bang recently, plus he created a comic called Odd Comics (get yours at http://www.fanaticpress.com/) and my company is putting it out. And it would premiere at APE! How cool is all of this??

Well, most of all of that fell through. So if I whine too much during this report, it is possibly because my wife first decided she was too busy. Sure, too busy doing homework and taking classes for a post Master's degree. Some excuse! OK, a ligitimate excuse, but I'm still very upset. So I cut my trip short and decide to just fly to San Francisco and party with Dan and his wife and have a blast at APE, right? We'd also planned out a very funny video we'd shoot while we were there about the worst comic book artist in the world selling his books at APE, etc....(We even tried to get Dean LeCrone to star in it! But he was also busy. Something about his son having a Birthday party. No, excuse. OK. It was a good excuse.)

No, all of this fell through when Dan decided he couldn't make it. Sure, he had some great excuses and all but, sheeeeeesh. My plans were falling through faster than a sprinter chased by Warewolfs. Or something.

So now I've already booked my flight, bought my table at APE, booked my hotel at the Weston (Swanky!) and a rental car at Dollar. No turning back now.

Also I had gone to great pains to redesign an eye catching business card for Fan-Atic Press and have them delilvered to me before I left on the 15th of October. I wanted to have the 16th of October to just drive around San Fran and see the sights and get lots of photos. Also that was the day that I was to attend the party at Last Gasp Warehouse and get my badge for the show the next weekend.

The cards didn't arrive. I'd paid an extra $17 for 3 day postage but there was a holiday I didn't figure on....sheeeeesh. Anyway, I had found a printer for Odd Comics #1 the new Dan Burke book, since my printer of like three years had decided to stop printing comics right after he sent me the proof copy of Odd Comics. Things were not going well. This new printer promised he have the comics to me before I left on that Thursday (the 15th of Oct.). So at least that was on track.

Ok, you guessed it. The printer never got back to me and Thursday came and I had to leave without the books. So, let's recap: No--- books, new business cards, my wife, or Dan and his wife.

Oh, and I forgot to tell you that I'd been diagnosed with Gout about a month before all this. That is simply a condition where the knuckle of your big toe on your right foot gets so sore, you would pay someone to shoot it off. (Or do it yourself if you knew how to handle a shotgun.) It is basically a seviere form of arthritis. It was to have gone away after a few weeks and now it was like 4 weeks and it was just well enough that I could walk about 15 steps before I'd start walking like a cripple, then start walking like Chester (from the old Gunsmoke show.), then I'd have to sit down and prop up my foot as it would start to throb all over. What made me think I was ready for walking through airports and comic conventions?

Also I was forced to check only one bag at the cost of $15 at the airport and keep it under 50lbs or else get slapped with a much higher fee. So I packed carefully, just putting in the Slam Bang books mostly and a few of everything else. I had to ship a tall box to my hotel that held my banner and frame that held it, that I sit behind my booth. And the table cover and other table stuff. Don't ask me what all this cost for this trip as I'm in denial over it and have blocked it out. At least till tax time. (The airport actually charges $20 if you don't pre-pay in advance. Hidden cost tip #256.)

I bought a nice midsized carry-on bag to hold my camera, video camera, and all the chargers and batteries and some clothes to stuff in around them to protect them. The carry on bag fit perfectly in the overhead compartment, finally, something went right. I'll skip over all the people putting their seats back so far I almost brusied a lip. And the crying, kicking kids in the back of me. That is a given, and I expect it when I fly.

I forgot to tell you that at the first airport where I took off from which is about 1 hour from my city, I got my tickets and then went to the gate (only two gates in this small place.) and went through the process of security. Now, security for me is a 10 step process. Take off my shoes, take off my cell phone from my belt, take off my little camera I take everywhere from my belt, take my mini-laptop out of my carry-on bag, and I have to take a C-Pap machine everywhere I go (I can't sleep without it.) and I have to take that out of the backpack it comes in and put it in a tray. And take out my wallet, take off my belt, and my hat. Holding up my pants with my hand I walk through the security door, then I have to put all this stuff back on while others are trying to push me out of their way. (OK, more than 10 steps.) Then put my C-Pap back in the backpack and etc.....I've gotten to where I can do all of these things in about four minutes. This is two minutes longer than anyone behind me can wait. They grab the trays that I'm trying to grab....I feel like turning around and saying, "You cannot go anywhere until I'm done first. I'm in line in front of you. You have to wait. Taking the tray I'm to use, holds you up even longer. Enjoy your wait....."

So I do all this and I have to get me a watter bottle since my ears try and plug up on take off and landing (I'm getting old.) and I swallow water to keep them clear. So I pull out my $2 and buy my water and sit down in the gate area, and start to relax. Then after about 10 minutes they annouce that my flight is not in gate B but now in gate A. So I go up to the employee and ask, "Does that mean I have to go through security all over again?" "Yes" is their reply.

I have to throw away my water, do all of the stuff I mentioned before.......buy another water.....etc.... I'm now hating Evansville, IN airport. I decided to fill out a comment card! That will show them!

I get to the next stop which is Cinncinati airport. This is Delta's way of comedy. Flying a few hundred miles East to get 3000 miles West. That airport makes me walk miles to the next gate. But to my surprise my Gouty toe is not upset. Miracle. I get a huge salad and graze on it till my flight.

After some delays we finally take off and later I get the photo that you saw at the top of this report, of the plane flying over the Sierra Navada Mountains. I arrive about dark in San Francisco. I get my rental car which is a nice midsize car, after I refused to upgrade to a midsize car. So didn't pay extra. I also refused the insurance on the car, something I always take a risk on. Scarry stuff.

Room With a View, of the airport.

I get to my hotel and find out that my $100 a night at this very high class place is due to the fact almost all of the charges are hidden. Like the $18 a night to park right next to the hotel. You get a ticket when you pull in, and use your room card to get out. I do find out that my box did arrive safely at the hotel. So I will have my banner behind the table after all. I'm so tired and want to rest up for the next day (My only day to see San Fran) that I decide to order room service. The cheapest thing on the menu, other than one slice of pizza, on the kid section, is a Panini turkey sandwich for $15.00. It comes with fries. I'm starving, so I order it. I get it and it is fine, cold, but OK. Later I find out there was a 20% gratuity fee, a $3.50 room service fee, and then tax, etc....I paid just under $30 for that sandwich. I'm living the high life! I guess.

I get some good sleep, since the bed is wonderful. Really makes a difference to old folks like me. I wake up at noon the next day and feak out. This was my one day to see San Francisco. I'm very comfortable, and could sleep all day....but my photo adventure calls to me, and I get up and out.

I keep lots of Mapquest print-outs all around me. I've memorized a good deal of the city, at least the main roads. I get to the Bay and see tons of tourists running around taking in the sites. It's a 70+ degree, sunny day. Perfect.
I see a sign Lumbard St. I remember that the Coit Tower is on that street along with that crazy downhill road that ever one takes photos of. I pull over and put in enough change for 1 hour. The max it will take. Then I see that I'm to climb hundreds of stairs to get to that tower. I'm at the base of the hill that is sits on. What the heck? I've got a bum toe, but this is for the sake of photography! People have climbed much higer for shots above the city or mountain range in worse conditions for a photo. Don't be a woose. Just do it! It doesn't even look that hard. So I start up the stairs with my large camera around my neck. (I was smart enough not to take my camcorder also.) I quickly realize that the steps are quite steep. I'm lucky that they are mostly in shade but the temperature was a nice 74 or something feels more like 84 when you are climbing stairs, are overweight, have a 10lb camera, and haven't done any exercise whatever for over a month due to a very sore toe. But the toe is still not upset over all this. I stop now and then to look around and see some fantastic views of the Bay Bridge and some sailboats. The stairs are going streight up and some lead off to small porches where people are living in apartments and houses with super awesome views of the bay. Not sure where they park as this is one step hill. Guess they walk down the steps to the level ground or up to some level ground I don't see yet.

I stop now and then to get photos of the bay and the houses around me. Sometimes I just pretent to stop and take photos so people can't tell I'm really stopping because I'm toally out of breath. My thighs are like jelly now. I'm starting to wonder why I'm doing this. Oh, yeah, for the photos. I have climbed so many stairs I can't begin to guess how many. I turn a curve and can see up about 5 more flights of stairs all at once. This lady in the red top, is near the top of that batch of stairs. I get a shot of her. I can't begin to show all the steps I'm to climb. I'm crazy, no doubt about it now. I finally, after many stops for air, see a landing, or level area above with no more stairs. I'm about 10 more steps from that area. A guy is coming down and must see how hard I'm working to get up these...he says, "You are only about 1/2 way now." I laugh and figure he is quite the jokester.....I get to the top of those last few steps and they just lead over to a house that looks like a yellow castle with a flag on top. Pretty fancy. But next to that are stairs leading up, up and up.

He wasn't joking.

I push ahead and just keep stopping more and more often. Not sure how, but I make it to the top! It has been 40 minutes. No way I'm going to make it back to my car before that hour on the meter is up.

So I make it to the top and see a concrete base with about 30 more steps. So I wonder around this circle at the top with a statue in the center of it. I get shots of other tourists looking at the view is very high up. And I'm catching my breath. My heart is starting to beat at least half as fast as it was. That's a good sign.

I go up the 30 steps and enter a very small, quicky mart, sort of, store. There was to be some murals and other things to see but all that seems to be ropped off. And you have to pay to take the elevator up to the top. No problem, I'm starting to really appreciate elevators. I pay my $6 for a ticket, and get 2 bottles of water. I'm more than a little dehydrated at this point. I can still almost focus my eyes and my thighs have turned from jelly to more of a strong rubber substance. I get in line with about 5 other folks and we hand over our ticket and get in this very small (heated?) elevator. This teenage kid is working the doors. He gets in and works the elevator. As we go up this lady in her mid 50's (About my age) says outloud, "Look theres a tip-box on the wall, can you imagine, paying a tip for someone to just work the elevator?" No one says a word. This is clearly something you keep in your head and don't release to the outside public. Especially with the person you are talking about working the very elevator that you are using. She doesn't seem to think that this guy is doing a "real" job. This tells everyone else in the elevator at least 2 things. One: This lady has never had to work a day in her life for the public or in any "job" that's not a "career". And Two: This lady says everything that pops into her head, right or wrong. Meaning she hasn't learned much in her 50+ years about social customs in public...etc.... The guy working the elevator, after a long pause....says,

"That's not for old ladies."

More silence. Then the same lady, still proving that she can't control that thin line between her brain and her mouth...., "Well, I'm not that old, I guess that was meant to hurt me." No more words are spoken. We get to what we think is the top, at long last, only to discover there are two more curving rows of stairs! Sheeesh. I make it up these and the last step is like an extra 4" of metal sticking up....just to test me, but I make it. The windows are sort of scratched and some have foggy areas. I somehow find some clear areas to shoot out of. Here are some of the shots I get at the top:

Once I think I've got as many shots as I can, I take the elevator back down.
Time for the decent. Going down all the stairs I thought would be a breeze. What I didn't figure on was the chance of falling to my death. One slip on the slightly wet stairs and I'd do a head first drop 30 feet before I'd even bounce down more stairs.....So I pretty much go down granny style. Screw the haters, and critics watching me, or jogging up or down like it was level. I held onto both rails and went down one step at a time.So be it. It only took me about 10 minutes to go down, but it was a harrowing 10 mintues. I kept pictureing me on the 6th page of the next days newspaper with a one-half inch column stating how some dumbass from KY, flew all the way to CA, to fall to his death for a handful of photos of the top of the city. Well, that didn't happen, I'm pretty sure. I got down to the bottom and found the car and didn't get a parking ticket. Life was still sort-of on my side! (The year before I'd gone up in the Space Needle in Seattle to later discover I'd gotten a parking ticket. Cost me $45.00 if I remember correctly.)

I drove around some more and decided to find my next destination. I'd plotted out how to find this Thai resturant that had Chicken Phai Thai......Hey, I deserved it!

I parked near the place and it was right next to JapanTown. Saw some interesting achitecture. The Thai place was to be closed from 3:00 till 4:30 or so. I was in a rush. I went in and the place was open but no one was there. I asked a nice lady if they were open, she said yes. It was right before 3:00. She could have turned me out. I sat near the window so I could keep my eyes peeled for an interesting shot if people walked by. I called my wife and gave her an update of everything. I'd already ordered my Chicken Phai Thai. It was a perfect day. Sunny but not too hot, and I'd just survived my first extensive exercise since I'd hit the gym back over a month ago. My toe was still not yelling at me. Everything was fine. I had two hours before the party at Last Gasp was to start, where they'd give me my badge to get into the show Sat and Sun.
I asked the lady at the resturant if I could use their restroom. It was in the back. I was sent through the kitchen and out a back alley to some restrooms in some hallway. Shared by other businesses I assume. Got this shot as I was going back to my table. Rushed it a bit so it's not totally in focus. Wasn't sure what they'd do if they noticed me taking the shot..The lady that was helping me was also eating and another older lady was with her. They asked me how I'd come to their resturant. Was I from the hotel accross the street? I said I'd looked them up on the internet, printed out the directions and found them. They were surprised at this. They thanked me for coming and said, "Tell all your friends to visit us."I saw a lady working on paying a parking meter outside my window. She was there for what seemed like 10 minutes. She came into the resturant and asked about the meter. She was told it only took quarters, and went back out to work with it some more.
I really enjoyed my meal, the small salad and about 5 glasses of water....and started my way back to my car. I saw a Japanese food store and went in. I wasn't able to read anything in the store except for this bottle of sweat. So I had to buy it and try it. I bought two bottles of regular water, two extremely good apples and the sweat . It was their version of Gateraid, and was pretty good, actually.

I got a few more shots around that area then headed on to my car. I got out my MapQuest maps and made my way to the Last Gasp Warehouse

UPDATE: I totally forgot that after I went to the Japanese Grocery that I rushed to The Cartoon Art Museum! It was closing soon so I had to rush. I got there 40 minutes before they closes so the girl gave me a big discount on the admission. It wasn't all that much anyway, like $6 I think for full price. I loved that place! (Christina Wald suggested it to me, thanks CW.) I saw some original Peanuts strips and so much more. I rushed into their store and bought a book with pencil art of Gene Colan. I'd tried to meet him twice at San Diego Comic Con but both times couldn't find his area in the Artists Alley. Great book. Here is a shot I took near The Cartoon Art Museum: They wouldn't let me take any photos in the museum, of course. Every time I go to San Francisco I'll be sure and go back and see it again.

Jump to Part II: http://slambangcomicsnews.blogspot.com/2009/11/last-gasp-comix-warehouse-or-part-ii-of.html

Last Gasp Warehouse and Party

APE REPORT

2009-11-08T12:36:00.001-06:00

Working on my APE con report. Meanwhile here is one you should read:http://javiersblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/2009-ape-report-pt-1.html

SPACE 2009, Columbus, Ohio--by Allen Freeman

2009-04-20T17:00:00.079-05:00

My booth at the SPACE show. May have to get 2 tables from now on! http://www.fanaticpress.com/

Above photo is about 1/3 of what I picked up at SPACE.

My friend and fellow publisher and artist Clint Basinger picked me up at 7:30am (Central Time) for our trip to SPACE this year. We had the car full to the brim with boxes, suitcases full of books and more as usual. The trip never seems to take 5.5 hours since we are talking the whole way. We did get stuck for maybe 1 hour between Louisville and Cinncinati where a huge tractor trailer full of boxes of bread had gone off to the left and took out the middle of a guard rail and went down into a rivine. As we went by I grabbed some quick shots of the mess. The truck was up on the road again hooked up to a large wrecker. It was missing the two front tires and most of the back end of the trailer part. Huge piles of bread packages and boxes were tangled up with wreckage. Of course as soon as we passed this the road was clear both lanes.....the hold up was all the watchers slowing down to view the damage.
We arrive at the ExtendedStay America on schedule around 3:00PM Eastern Time. We get checked in and the key card for the room is a grey rectangular plastic card with holes punched out of it. Like working the first computers back in 1958 or something. And they didn't work very well. Didn't want to open the door and when it did, it almost totally refused to let go of my card. The room was just average but did have a little kitchen and refridgerator that we never used. The beds were as hard as concrete and the tv in the room was about 15". I felt like we were back in time to like 1980 or something. We were told at the desk that there would be no room service. Well, you get what you pay for, uh, less than you pay for these days. And no free little bottles of shampoo in the bathroom either. I think I found an empty one.

Entering Columbus.

Clint monkeying around on the OSU campus.

We check in and rush to the OSU campus as they have a special opening of the Cartoon Museum and it only lasts from 3 to 5. Not a very convient time for us but we finally make it there with 10 minutes before they close! Clint and I see some other small press creators there and we enter the small museum and see an original Calvin and Hobbes sunday page, and a Charles Shultz "Peanuts" strip from April, 1956 (It was created 4 months before I was born.)

Some early artists on the giant art board that will be shown at SPACE the next day.

Those items alone were worth the rush to get there. The rest of the place looks great but we are escorted out by a not all that friendly lady and hit the road back to our hotel, ExtendedHell.

> Clint and I took off with Ryan and Joe Morris of http://www.torcpress.com/ They are looking over their menus at a resturant near the OSU campus called Mad Mex. They love this place. Now we do too!

On the wall near our booth at Mad Mex.

Near Mad Mex.

I go out to the lobby looking for a coke/water machine and find Larry Blake and a friend of his sitting in the lobby. Seeing Larry is one of the main reasons I go to SPACE each year. We used to see each other at the Chicago Cons in the 80's. Then the elevator comes down and it's Tim Corrigan! The "MAN" of small press. I'd just printed up a new MightyGuy comic book for Tim and later he comes to the room and I load him up with 1/2 the print run. He is impressed with the slick cover and loves the book. He will sell about 12 of them at the show and I sold 3.

Larry Blake in the lobby taken with my iPhone3G.

Day 1 of SPACE.

The Shriner's Convention Center. Under the statue: "No Man Stands So Tall as when he Stoops to Help a Child"

Clint Basinger (http://www.cosmicmoustachecomics.com/) busy working at his booth next to mine.

After going to McDonalds for breakfast Clint and I get to the Shrine Center and start unloading the car. This is probably the worst part of it all. You have to carry and drag tons of stuff into the event and set up your table. We were at the very back of the event in the right corner. So lots of walking involved. By the time the show starts at 10:00 I'm a sweaty mess......Oh well.

David Branstetter and wife of http://www.strawmancomics.com/

Bob Corby con organizer, publisher and artist, and I think that is his daughter running the SPACE sign-up booth.

Allen Freeman (me) and Christina Wald-- Illustrator extrodinaire from Cinncinati, OH.
http://www.christinawald.com/

Nic Havert of Pickle Press (http://www.picklepress.net/) Nic and I are going to co-produce a limited edition print of my art of his Witch character.) I also bought his new comic The Three Keys #2. Can't wait to read it! Tim Corrigan of New Voice Media http://mightyguycomics.tripod.com/index.html Tim is the reason I started going to the SPACE show, along with Larry Blake and Matt Feazell, etc...but mostly to see Tim.

The Old Folks of Small Press (Left to Right) Jim Main, Ian Shires, Wade Busby, Tim Corrigan, Larry Blake, Allen Freeman (me) and Jim Pack.

The annual giant art board with lots of creators work from SPACE covering it.

I handed out some of the contributor copies of Slam Bang #4 vol III, which I'd just gotten from my printer on Thursday, the day before we left for SPACE. That was cutting it close. But cutting it even closer was that the printer shipped the Mightyguy books, and #3 and #4 of Rock and Roll Death Wagon to my hotel. They were waiting for me when we arrived on Friday. That was a relief.

Nate Corrigan (Tim's older son) is a fantastic artist also, and publisher of Gumshoe Comics! Email him: mailto:natecorrigangumshoe@hotmail.com

I gave one to Tim Corrigan, Larry Blake, Jim Pack, Clint (of course), Brian Hagen and David Branstetter. Sam Gafford had contributed but it turns out when I was laying out the book I'd gone to move his strip from one part to another and it got skipped. Sam was crushed and I was very upset about it. I told him I'd put his story in the next issue no matter what the theme is (it's FAST FOOD).

Kel M. Crum http://www.dangerousbird.com/

The memorable display for the comic Left Handed Sophie.

So I'm hoping he forgives me in time. He put out Small Press Extra with my cover art on the front and back. it's a great magazine about small press and this is the SPACE special issue. Go to http://www.trufanpublications.com/spe.html to read about Small Press Extra. Don't see anything about this new issue on their site yet, so email them and ask about it.

Randy Paré on the right http://www.terikryder.com/

Mike Indovina of Satyr Play Productions: http://www.geocities.com/mikeindovian/Satyr.html

John Wilson of Comic Related.

Chuck Moore (Owner, Comic Related) interviewing Randy Paré. http://www.comicrelated.com/

Brian Hagen see his portfolio: http://www.brian-hagen.com/

Chris Martin artist on SCRAP by Studio Akumakaze http://www.myspace.com/akumakaze
(His art is so HOT I had to censor it....)

I met with lots of new artists and creators and tried to steer them towards contributing to my Slam Bang anthology. And then it was the end of day one. Clint and eventually get back to the hotel and check over our bounty of new comics. Then crash out.

DAY TWO

Clint and I hit the McDonald's for breakfast then rush over to the convention to set up. The crowd wasn't all that bad for a Sunday, at least at the start of the day. 10am till 5pm is the times for the show.

Matt Feazell artist and pubisher known for Cynicalman! http://www.cynicalman.com/

Clint Basinger's drawing in a fan's sketchbook.

Max Ink. Artist and Publisher: http://www.onwardstudio.com/

I got to announce over the intercom to everyone about the movie I made with Dean LeCrone called: "Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con" ….I did a great job doing that.

More info about the movie at: http://www.mutantsmovie.com/

Then about 5 people showed up. Sigh. And they had a small laptop playing the movie into a digital projector to a pretty good size screen. But the laptop didn’t want to start the movie at first…..but eventually did. But it didn’t take away the play buttons at the bottom, and about a 3” strip on the right from top to bottom was playing the movie but from a different section of the movie at the same time….weird…oh, there was no RED color in any of the movie….the digital projector must have been on the blink or they didn’t know how to adjust it……sheesh….but the worst part was they had part of the room partitioned off with some tables and chairs. As soon as the movie started this guy, girl and another guy sit down in those tables and they start talking….they talked all through the movie, and were still talking when I left. I’m too nice. I thought several times to go back there and tell them to move the meeting someplace else….sheesh.

But the few that saw it loved it!

Craig Bogart http://www.theineffables.com/

Wade Busby of Mr. Emergency! Hey, I inked his 3rd issue!

Weird Muse Comics cool table display and card holder. http://weirdmuse.ecrater.com/
Dan Taylor of Weird Muse Comics and Jim Main of Main Publishing. http://www.poopsheetfoundation.com/profile/JimMain

Larned Justin http://www.freewebs.com/candidcartoons

I sold more books and some of the Mutant DVD's and I'm pretty sure I got more people interested in contributing to Slam Bang #5 vol III, the FAST FOOD theme issue. (Deadline end of 2009.) So I had a great time and was just about the last person to leave. I had to go out to the car and get even more of my Slam Bang #4 vol III books out as I was selling them right up to the end of the show.
Larry Blake received a SPACE Lifetime Achievement Award, framed art of him in the center. The frame was signed by creators that really dig Larry and all his comics! Congratz Larry!

George Lane is a huge fan of small press, and a great artist too!mailto:KingGeo3@comcast.net

Russell Merritt of Banshuwa Studio. Russell contributed a great strip to Slam Bang #4 vol III, the music issue. Russell and I plan on working together one some comics in the future. Hope so. http://www.comicspace.com/banshuwa/

Left to right: Larry Blake, Jim Pack (Comet Tales)

Well the taking down the tables isn't all that much fun but Clint and I got the stuff back in the car, said goodbye to a few last minute folks and drove to the Wendy's and ate our lunch/dinner. Then just as it started to rain down pretty hard....head out for the 5.5 hour drive back to KY.

Now I've got to gear up for Free Comic Book Day, as Clint and I'll be setting up our tables in Evansville, IN at the Comic Quest in the morning, and then leaving at noon to set up in Owensboro which is where I live and near where Clint lives. We feel we should help out our own town as much as we can. Wish us luck.

Join:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SmallPressPalaver/ Small Press Palaver

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UltraZine/ UtraZine

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/skeetsmonstersandheroes/ Steve Keeters Monters and Heroes

http://www.poopsheetfoundation.com/ Poopsheet Foundation

See you at SPACE 2010!
All the comics I picked up will eventually be reviewed in my Small Press Newsroom blog. http://smallpressnewsrooom.blogspot.com/

Send your comics for review to: Small Press Newsroom, c/o Allen Freeman, 6668 Waterford PL, Owensboro, KY 42303

Allen Freeman (http://www.fanaticpress.com/)

SPACE 2009 (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo

2009-04-19T09:22:00.004-05:00

I'm typing this Sunday at the start of day 2 of SPACE in Columbus, OH, April 19th. Yesterday was great with lots of people talking, and buying small press comics. My Fan-Atic Press booth was doing well, mostly selling my newest books, especially Slam Bang #4 Vol III the music theme issue. I also for the first time put out the complete 4 issues of Rock and Roll Death Wagon the series by Ed Bolman. Issues #3 and #4 arrived from the printer to the hotel I was staying at. That's cutting it close. Also Tim Corrigan's Mightyguy book that I published arrived. It's selling very well and looks pretty sharp. Tim Corrigan is set up this year at the show and was impressed with the printing of the books. Terry Huddleston of http://www.heroespress.com/ published all of my books again this year. Great job.

Yesterday I went around the convention buying books for review later on my http://smallpressnewsroom.blogspot.com/ site. I'll also be sending some of the books to Dan Burke for him to review in his YouTube show.

Next to me is Clint Basinger of http://www.cosmicmoustachcomics.com/ who is doing well at the show as usual. We came to the show together from the Owensboro, KY area. We got stuck in traffic for about 40 minutes along the way to Columbus as they were pulling a simi trail truck out of a ditch next to the road. It had taken out the guard rail and it lost all of it's load of bread products and the front wheels of the cab.

I'll be posting photos here soon as I get home of Dan Taylor, Matt Feazell, Tim Corrigan, Clint Basinger, Nate Corrigan, Larry Blake, Wade Busby and many more from the show.....along with some covers of the books I picked up.

Stay tuned.

---Allen

Mid-Ohio-Con 2008

2008-10-12T14:33:00.020-05:00

It was a fun show. I drove to the show with Clint Basinger and set up next to him http://www.cosmicmoustachecomics.com/ and we sold some stuff and made lots of contacts on Saturday. Sunday was much slower but I did have time to get interviewed by John Wilson of www.comicrelated.com Go here to listen to my interview which is part of a longer podcast. http://www.comicrelated.com/audio/relatedrecap041.html

If you only want to hear my interview go to www.fanaticpress.com "News" page and see a link at the top right....hit it.

I also shot about 15 mini interviews with my camcorder and will be posting them on YouTube soon. Email me at: fanaticpress@yahoo.com and I'll let you know when they are on there. Or just check: http://www.youtube.com/maknbacon off and on or just subscribe to my area and you'll be notified of each new video.

Drawings #2 was delivered by my printer Terry (www.heroespress.com) and they look awesome! 60 color pages of art by Anton Bogaty. Get it here: http://www.fanaticpress.com/ of course.

The Fan-Atic Press Films movie Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con was selected and shown at their Indy Movie Film Festival. Even though they didn't put in the movie titles in there convention book, and emailed me the wrong time for it on Saturday, it still had a decent turnout and everyone loved it! Some folks afterwards congradulated me on a very funny movie! I even sold a few of the DVD's on Sunday. And some fans walked by and said they already had bought one and loved it!

---Allen

Free Comic Book Day - May 3d

2008-05-06T15:28:00.018-05:00

DEAD RANGER covers.

Well it was a long day for Clint Basinger of Cosmic Moustache Comics (http://www.cosmicmoustachecomics.com/) and Allen Freeman (me) Fan-Atic Press (http://www.fanaticpress.com/) as we were guests at two place on the same day!

First we set up our booths at the Comic Quest in Evansville, IN. A great store that got a nice crowd to come by and get their free comics and see all the guests. The comic Dead Ranger #1 was debuted at this event with lots of the contributors to the issue in attendance as guests to sign the books.
Clint and I also unveiled out new comic: The Cosmic Norseman verses Morgana X #1. It sold very well. It's a comedy about a confusion that my character Morgana X thinks she has a contract to kill The Cosmic Norseman (Clint's character.). It is a true collaboration between Clint and I. With Clint writing the story and drawing most of the book and me doing the MX parts and coloring the cover etc.... (get it at http://www.fanaticpress.com/)

I sold some of my Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic Con DVD's and some of my other comics such as Slam Bang. So I did well. I also got to see artist Jason Craig draw on an expensive Les Paul guitar....and he did a great job.

Later in the day Clint and I went to give a presentation on how to create a comic book page at the Coolectors Mall in Owensboro. They also had a great turnout and we had a nice crowd eager to see our display of the process of how to create a comic book page. They asked questions and looked over the boards we had showing the verious stages of what it takes to create a comic page. We also sold well at this event. They did a great job and I got to even use the wireless mic and give the talk. Clint and I should take this show on the road!

See all the photos here:

So busy the only shots I got at the Coolectors Mall are Clint and I in front of the place. Clint is in the red shirt.

Dead Ranger

2008-03-29T14:03:00.004-05:00

Dead Ranger is a book that I helped work on. The Comic Quest Creators Alliance meets once a month and together we are putting out this comic. It will have 4 covers to chose from. This is the one I worked on myself. I also wrote the story for the 24 page comic and inked 2 pages.

This is the cover that Clint Basinger created. I did the colors.

I took a sketch by Jeff Lindell and inked and colored it and came up with this cover idea from it.
This book will be a 26 or 28 page comic out by Free Comic Book Day. Soon available from my web site. www.fanaticpress.com

Dave Stevens Interview from 1988. SUPER RARE

2008-03-12T22:59:00.009-05:00

The following is an interview that I did with Dave Stevens in 1988 over the phone for the first issue of the Rocketpack Newsletter (With Chuck Haspel). To my knowledge it has never been seen anywhere else till today:

Allen: How, when and where did your career begin? (Your interest in art, The Rocketeer...any formal training.)

Dave: My interest in art began when I was a tiny, tiny kid. My dad drew all the time and I grew up copying his stuff. I kept drawing and drawing. This Rocketter business came out of the blue in 1981--the story for that I'm sure I've told 100 times.

Allen: But not here...

Dave: Yeah, but you know it was a question of Pacific needing a backup feature--telling me I could do whatever I wanted to.

Allen: It wasn't something you gave a lot of thought to or...?

Dave: Not really.

Allen: You just came up with it when they asked you for something?

Dave: I just came up with the visuals for it. I had the image in my head and I had no idea how I was going to handle it or what kind of strip it would be. I had that image---that was it.

Allen: Why did they ask you for a backup?

Dave: They knew my work from when I lived in San Diego. They always liked my work, so I gave it a shot.

Allen: Any formal training?

Dave: No, unfortunately that was something that if I had it to do again I would certainly have gone to art school right after high school.

Allen: But you worked with someone?

Dave: I apprenticed with Russ Manning. But it was such a short stint. I really would have rather gone for a longer stretch with someone. It was just a job. It didn't involve him teaching me things, as I would have liked. What I did was on the job experience.

Allen: What year was this?

Dave: 1975, and it was great for what if was, but as far as him telling me what was wrong with my drawing and that kind of stuff, he really didn't correct me. All I was doing was pretty much technical things--inking incidental stuff that didn't really figure in as prominently as the lead characters do. It was basically a crash course in production.

Allen: Are you doing what you want and are you happy with the way your career has gone so far?

Dave: I've always done what I wanted in the sense that I've made a living off of art. I've never had to be a fry cook or anything. I'm happy that what I've done in comics so far, as as little as it is, has gotten me a lot of attention in all different areas. In that respect I'm happy. I'm tickled to death. I never could have gotten that kind of attention from anything else, really. I was laboring in animation and films (live action) for years and would probably still be there today.

Allen: Who did you work for? Different companies?

Dave: Everybody. In animation I worked at every studio in town.

Allen: Disney?

Dave: I was about to go there, but they wouldn't pay the wage I was currently getting. You see, at that time, Disney considered it a "privilege" to work for Disney. I think that's clear enough. They just had an attitude. Still do.

Allen: Can you tell us a couple of projects that you worked on animation-wise?

Dave: Probably just about every Saturday morning animation show that was done in the late '70's. I styled some shows, storyboarded some.

Allen: Is there any one in particular that you had your hand in where people could see your style?

Dave: Not really because that stuff goes through so many hands by the time it reaches the TV screen it isn't like you originally drew it. But there was an animated Godzilla series on in 1978 that I did a lot of work on. That was Doug Wildley's show. He also did a show Jana of the Jungle--which was like a modern day Sheena, and I did a lot of the rotoscoping on that. Unfortunately who knows where you're gonna find copies of some of those things. And I worked on Scooby-Doo, Super Friends, and all that other garbage.

Allen: You probably made quite a bit in animation from what I hear?

Dave: You mean money?

Allen: Yeah

Dave: Oh, no. Uh-uhh. Any money I made was gone right away.

Allen: Just to survive?

Dave: Well, it's espensive to live here and at the time I was earning apprentice scale wages in animation. I gradually got bumped up, so that by the end of my animation stay, I was making a pretty good dollar. But it wasn't until I got into live action that I made good money again. Once I started sharing a studio with Stout and Hescox, then I started to go whole hog into advertising.

Allen: What type of hard times did you go through?

Dave: Well, when I first went back to L.A. I went through some, uh, fairly hard times.

Allen: Where did you come from?

Dave: Well, Idaho, Oregon, then San Diego, then L.A. I was originally born in L.A., but grew up elsewhere. Once I got here it was a little tough. I didn't have any training in any capacity as far as tools, or techniques.

Allen: So how did you break into animation?

Dave: Well, I just went in on an interview and Wildley hired me right there. But that was just due to drawing ability. When I first came to L.A. I spent about my first year, or year and a half, hiring out as a storyboard artist and sketch artist, freelancing for advertising agencies. I actually had periods of really good earnings and really horrible slumps. I went through my periods of eating beans, tortillas, etc. But I'm sure everybody does. I was not feeling sorry for myself at all, I was happy to be there.

Allen: What would you do different and why? (As far as your career choices.)

Dave: I probably wouldn't have stayed in animation as long as I did. That life's a velvet cage once you get in. The money is good, the hours are cushy. They don't force you to tow-the-line. I mean you can get away with murder.

Allen: Did you punch a clock?

Dave: You do and you don't. Some places you do, some places you don't. I really abused my privileges. But it was one of those jobs where I would literally take other work in there and work on it.

Allen: And they didn't care?

Dave: Well, of course they cared, but I had no respect for the animation industry. I fought it tooth and nail. After I had been there a year and a half I hated it. I got to the point where I was hopping from state to state trying to find some place where I'd be happy. But they all operate at about the same level of incompetence. So, that's one choice I made, that looking back, wasn't a real good one.

Allen: It's scary making moves.

Dave: Well, I was used to a certain amount of money each week and didn't really want to get back into the grind of taking my portfolio around. If I had done that, if I had gotten out earlier, I probably wouldn't have gone into comics at all.

Allen: You mean if you wouldn't have left the animation studios?

Dave: No, if I had left. Well I did. I went straight to the A-Team building which was Spielburg and Milius and worked on the first Raiders. And I would have stayed there probably. But I kept flirting with animation. After I worked on that picture I went back to another animation studio for a while and then I got out of it altogether.

Allen: If you weren't an artist, what do you think you would be doing now?

Dave: I guess I've be restoring old cars.

Allen: Can you tell us what your plans for the future are?

Dave: Uh, restoring some old cars. Restoring the one I wrecked. I've got one more issue to wrap up on The Rocketeer, then I've got two graphic novels to do. One of them right away, one of them later.

Allen: Can you tell us about the one coming up?

Dave: I don't want to at this point. It's a subject that hasn't been done before in comics and if I blab about it now, I'm sure some brilliant soul at DC or Marvel may try and ace me, before I can get to it.

Allen: Will it be a Comico comic?

Dave: At the moment it's not going to be a comic, it's going to be a book. An illustrated book. No word ballooons. I'm trying to integrate text with illustrations.

Allen: You are writing the story?

Dave: So far, yeah. I may recruit someone to help at some point, but we'll see.

(This was the end of part 1. Part II promised to cover The Rocketeer movie, upcoming books, the convention scene, Marvel, Dave's coupe and much more.)

If I can find issue #2 of the Rocketpack Newsletter...I'll post the rest of the interview here.

===Allen
http://www.fanaticpress.com/

Dave Stevens passes away......

2008-03-12T22:39:00.012-05:00

OK, I just heard about the passing of Dave Stevens. He was 52. I'm sure most of you already know about this and have read all about Dave. I'll just stick to what I know.

In 1988 I assisted a fellow artist Chuck Haspel in putting together the first issue of The Rocketeer Newsletter. Here is the cover I did for that first issue.

I also called Dave who was helping us with new news about his work for the newsletter and interviewed him for like 2 hours or so. I had tons of audio to transcribe and I think we used it in issue #2 or something. If I can find that I'll post it.

Dave was very generous and sent us lots of pages and art long before it was seen anywhere else.

I met Dave around 1989 at the Chicago Comic Con. He was very friendly. Later during that show I was with Chuck at a resturant and Dave walked in for lunch. He didn't mind that we went all fan-crazy over seeing him there.

In 2004 I saw his booth at the San Diego Comic con. He remembered me!

In 2007 they had a 25 year tribute to the Rocketeer and they printed my cover art in that collector issue!

Here is another fan piece that was used for a small press cover that Chuck penciled and I inked and grey toned back in 1988.

I'll sure miss him. Chuck and I tried to draw more like him and I'm sure that improved our work tremendously!

Goodbye Dave.....I will never forget you or your work and you will always be one of my heroes!

===Allen Freeman (03/12/2008)

SKETCH CARD Benefit SALE on eBay!

2008-03-08T17:54:00.003-06:00

SKETCH CARD
GALLERY SHOW
& AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY BENEFIT AUCTION

Nearly 200 Artists and over 1,000 pieces
of Original Art Work!

Space Girl by Allen Freeman: HERE
Rocketeer by Allen Freeman: HERE
Captain Optimist (not Optimus...) by Allen Freeman: HERE

Baron Gator (needs to be rotated 90 degrees clockwise) by Allen Freeman: HERE

SPACE CON 2008 was GREAT!

2008-03-03T13:49:00.031-06:00

SLIDE SHOW ABOVE updated with more images:March 8th, 2008.

I went to the con with Clint Basinger of Cosmic Moustache Comics (http://www.cosmicmoustachecomics.com/) and we stayed with some of his relatives which saved us tons of money, thanks folks! The first day of the convention was Saturday, March 1st, and from the start I could tell this was going to be better than last years show, as far as the crowds, as people were coming it right at the start of the show, starting to buy stuff and talk it up. Sunday was slower but I was on a panel ANTHOLO-GEEZ. See more about it below.

SLAM BANG #3 vol III premieres at SPACE!
http://www.fanaticpress.com/

See all the photos I took at this show: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maknbacon/sets/72157604116752517
Last year the show was on very sunny, beautiful day and apparently was the first nice day outside since last Fall in Ohio so everyone wanted to get out in the sun avoiding our show most of the time. I did fine over all last year, but much better this year actually.

Mark Inneswho I'd known since 1989 or so was here from Canada, --my first time to meet him in person. A great guy. I'd helped him get his comic anthology THE COMIC EYE assembled for his printer and I'd contributed to the book. The book turned out fantastic and by the fact I saw lots of folks walking around with one and having me sign them, I'd say they sold well for him. They are a full size comic, square bound, 176 pages, with a Dave Sim cover. That cover didn't hurt him at all since Dave Sim was there and I got a signed one from Mark near the end of the show....cool scoop on that one!
----Rafer Roberts of Plastic Farm

I talked with Dan Taylor who had his booth and we always compare cameras as ours are similar. OK. his is a little better than mine. There Dan, happy now? His Weird Muse comics were there and I have another batch to review for him on my http://smallpressnewsroom.blogspot.com/ site. He will get a high rating even though he did try to bribe me. (Joke). See his stuff at: http://hometown.aol.com/taylordwt/index.html UPDATE: I just reviewed a batch of his new Mini Comix on my Small Press Newsroom!

Talked to Max Ink, Matt Feazell, Larry Blake, Dave Sim (for a sec), Bob Corby, Cal Crumb, the guys from http://www.comicbooknoise.com/ who I send audio to for their Indy Comic Podcast every Tuesday, check it out. (I'll dig up their names soon I promise.)
Dave Sim and some art on his table. Dave unveiled some amazing art from his new project Jewdenhass (Jew hatred). I got to see the book and most of the original art pages! Wow.

I was on a comic panel on Sunday afternoon about Anthologies. Mark Innes (Blind Bat Comics), Rafer Roberts (Plastic Farm) , Dara Naraghi (Ferret Press) and Bob Corby (Back Porch Comics and organizer of the Space Con). That was fun and Matt Dimbicki was the host. Great job Matt! Matt is busy working on his own anthology TRICKSTER. Check it out here: http://trickster-anthology.blogspot.com/

--Dan Taylor, Weird Muse Comics
I'll think of all the other folks I talked with soon and update this but just wanted to say the show was a big success for me as I premiered my new Slam Bang book 3 vol III, "Mostly True Stories" issue. Everyone loved it and some even said it was my best issue of the title so far. "blush". http://www.fanaticpress.com/
Stay tuned for more here soon!

Year Wrap Up / Mid-Ohio-Con Report 2007 -Allen Freeman

2007-12-03T18:47:00.000-06:00

2007 Wrap Up

Well this year I put out Slam Bang #2 vol III and I just put out Morgana X the paperback novel written by Christopher Moshier. I also put out Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con (DVD).

My father-in-law passed away in August, this was rough on my wife for sure but we knew it was coming since he was diagnosed with cancer in April. And it was advanced. We are planning a trip to Michigan between Christmas and New Year for her to see more of her relatives and for me to see MI for the first time. (I'll take tons of photos.)

I’m assembling a large 176 page anthology The Comic Eye, for a comic company, Blind Bat Press. They don’t know Adobe In-Design so I’m helping them out. The book looks great with lots of fantastic contributors. It is already mentioned in Diamond's Previews I think. I’m also starting to put together Slam Bang #3 vol III, the Mostly True Stories issue. Hope to have it out early 2008.

DEAD RANGER for The Comic Quest Creative Alliance group in Indiana that I’m a part of. Should be very interesting. The comic will be out by Free Comic Book Day (May 2^nd I think.)

Mid-Ohio-Con REPORT

I had a blast at Mid-Ohio-Con, Nov 23-25th. I was to split a table in the Artist Alley with Clint Basinger of www.cosmicmoustachecomics.com but the guy next to us never showed up so I got a full table to myself! I sold lots of Slam Bang and a few of the Mutants movie! I was sitting on Sunday drawing an alligator with goggles and outfit like a WW1 pilot flying some old contraption and people kept saying, "Wow, that's pretty cool." And

---Clint Basinger

before I had it inked in someone bought it from me! Clint is always drawing and getting attention so I tried it and it worked. Usually I'm too lazy to do it but will do it from now on. On Friday the day the vendors get to look around Clint and I bought a comic from Steve Rude and he signed it. Wanted an autograph from Micheal Golden, as I've always been a big fan of his. But he was charging way too much for it. You had to buy something $20 to $30 to get the autograph. I was stunned. No matter how famous I get. (Or don't get.) I'll never do that. You can't piss off your fans. That is #1.

I got photos of lots of stars from the Bronze Age Marvel days as you'll see from the photo links I have here. I got to meet Max Ink, who gave me his BLINK digest, who says he will contribute to my Slam Bang book. His work looks great! I saw Matt Feazell who bought my Mutants DVD. I went over and spent the money at

---The elusive Matt Feazell

his booth getting his Official Death of Antisocialman BODY BAG. A collection of 12 mini comics for $7 and I got two color sketches for $1 each. Plus a few other minis. I'll be reviewing all this at my Small Press Newsroom soon. I got to talk to long time small press creator and publisher Bruce Chrislip. He was telling me how Steve Willis was having a bad year. Got a divorce etc....Saw Chad Lambert, a great comic book writer for many different projects and companies. My booth was back to back with Bob Corby's Back Porch Comics booth and he and I got to talk. His daughter was going to run the booth (Attracting more comic buyers than Bob.) but she was sick so Bob had to do it. He had a new anthology out that looked good. I didn't get a copy since he was almost sold out. I'll see more of him in 3 months at the SPACE Con which he organizes every year. Love that show.

I got some photos of the original Santa and Rudolf from the 1963 cartoon! My wife is crazy about that cartoon and collects Bumbles. You know, that adorable, goofy abominable snowman.

--Bruce Chrislip

Other names at the con: Brian Hurtt, Craig Boldman, Hamtramck Idea Men, Herb Trimpe, Keith Pollard, Mark Evanier, Nic Halvert (Pickle Press Comics), Rich Buckler, Sergio Arogones,
Steven Black, Steve Rude, Terry Huddleston (a very funny new comic book printer, Imaginary Concepts Printing Solutions), Tony Isabella, actor who played The Silver Surfer, The Defuser, Jesse Rubenfeld, and more! Whew!

Comics I got at the show to review: The Faustians #1(Pennydreadfull Press), Into The Dust #1, #2 (Jesse Rubenfeld), Safewords, The Serial Squad, Woodboy, The Invisible World (Bad Place Productions), The Gardian Line ALPHA, Joe and Max #1, The Seekers #1, #2, CODE, Genesis #1, #2 (The Guardian Line), Runner's Paradox with music CD (Steve Peters-Awakening Comics), Blink-Barefoot in America-Breakfast in the Park (Max Ink), Official Death of Antisocialman BODY BAG, The Amazing Cynicalman #18m, #19 (Matt Feazell-Not Available Comics), The Wrecking Crew #1 (Triumvirate Publishing).

---Bob Corby signing the annual T-Shirt of the con.

I'll be making a point to attend and probably setting up a table at the Mid-Ohio-Con in the future as I had a great time and saw a lot of great comic creators there. Now, if I can only figure out why they didn't have a "free table".

---Your average fan of Slam Bang

Nick Halvert helping out a Booth Babe

---Original Santa and Rudolf from the cartoon of 1963. Here is the story: After the cartoon was made the puppets were thrown in a pile by the door of the studio. A worker there asked, "What is going to happen to the puppets?" They told him they were to be thrown away. So he grabbed up 9 of them. Unfortunately he still didn't know quite what he had. He gave them to his kids to play with and they eventually destroyed all but Santa and Rudolf, which were in bad shape. The puppets were not made to last or be played with. Years later the guy sold the 2 puppets and they were purchased and refurbished by a company that knew what they were worth!

---Chad Lambert

--Max Ink

Slide show of photos from Mid-Ohio-Con:http://www.dotphoto.com/Go.asp?l=maknbacon&P=&AID=4981373&Show=Y

Or just the images (for slower internet connections):http://www.dotphoto.com/Go.asp?l=maknbacon&P=&AID=4981373&Pres=Y

Interview with Cint Basinger of Cosmic Moustache Comics

2007-09-25T13:33:00.000-05:00

Interview with Chuck Haspel

2007-09-24T23:44:00.001-05:00

EK Card and Comic Show (With Reptiles!) Morehead, KY

2007-09-24T16:08:00.000-05:00

This what took place over the last weekend (September 22nd and 23rd) as Clint Basinger a comic artist and publisher of Backseat Drivers (Who I'd been emailing back and forth but was meeting for the first time, and I (Allen Freeman of Fan-Atic Press) drove from Owensboro, KY to Morehead, KY for the EK Card and Comic Show. Clint drive to Owensboro (He lives just outside Owensboro) and together we drove to Lexington. We went to Chuck Haspel's house where Chuck rents the downstairs of a nice house (1970’s?) in a nice neighborhood. Chuck and I had worked together on many commercial art projects over the years and comic books as he even helped me put out Slam Bang for a while. I'd not seen him since I moved to WA back in 1996. As we were following our MapQuest directions we were in his neighborhood and it said to go to the end of the road and take a left onto the road Chuck's house was on. We got to the end and the other road had no sign on it. But the house right there was the correct house number. So we called Chuck and he said, "Is there a old Cadillac parked out front." We said, "no". He said, "There is one in front of his house." We said, "Well it's not there now. " He said he come out front and look for us. We waited and no one came out from this house. Finally I called him back and we figure out that we needed to go around that corner and down a few more blocks, and then saw the correct house with the same house number as the one we were at. Oh, well.

--Left Chuck, right Clint.

He has two cats and no room for us to stay with him but we knew that and had planned to get a room at a hotel nearby. We saw his old west hand guns, and his shotgun and some of his art work here and there, under a pile of papers, against a wall, and some were on the wall. We also saw where he'd finally started working on the comic Captain Optimist #1 bringing back the character that we worked on (and put out 5 issues) back in the late 80's and early 90's. I take some photos and then we plan to all go see a movie.
--Chuck showing off his pistols.

Clint and I got a nice room at this place down not far from Chuck’s place. We got the room lined up then, with Chuck with us, go to see the movie 3:10 from Yuma. I’d seen it before but liked it so much I wanted to see it again.

--Boo, one of Chuck's cats

The movie was only $5 which was very cheap. Chuck loved it since he is a big Western movie fan (And Western History buff) and even owns 3 real pistols like the type from back in those days! With holsters! And Chuck owns a double barrel shotgun which he also keeps loaded…..(Another reason not to sleep over there.) Clint also liked the movie. Oh, and Chuck showed us his 3 guitars and even a ukulele someone had built for him.

---Captain Optimist (Chuck pencils/Allen inks)

We drop Chuck back at his house then go to our hotel as we are very tired. Clint and I talk comics and stuff till about 1:00am then decided we’d better get some sleep as we have to get up at 8:00 and get Chuck at 8:30am for the drive to Morehead, KY.

I’m shocked out of my sleep at 2:00am as there is a huge frat party going on right outside our door, to our right and above us. Seems we are in the middle of it. Super loud talking and laughing till about 3:00am….I kept thinking I’d stick my head out and tell them to get the hell out of here. But that would probably lead to the van getting smashed up. So that concluded my second night in a row with very little sleep.

Next morning we get Chuck and drive off to the show. Chuck assures us we don’t need the MapQuest page I’d printed out as he used to drive some delivery truck of some sort to that area all the time so he just tosses it down between the seats. We are still driving at 10:00am which is when the show starts. I asked if we missed the turn or something? Chuck says no as he is looking for exit 137. I then keep a watch on the mile markers and they go from 140 to 141 etc…and I mention that we must of passed 137 as the numbers are getting larger. Chuck agrees and we then drive another 8 miles trying to find a place to turnaround on this expressway. There is nothing. Finally a turnaround area but a policeman is right there having just pulled someone over…shit. So a few more miles and we see another turn around and illegally take it. Anyway we get to the show and it’s a nice new convention center. We go in and if you go to the right of the main table it’s the Card and Comic Show. If you go to the left it’s the Reptile Show! No kidding!

People are walking around in the comic show carrying snakes in containers they’d just bought at the Reptile Show! What a hoot! I can’t resist and go to the other side and take photos of the snakes, turtles, cats, toads, and other creatures for sale! That side is booming, hardly anyone is at the comic show. I see a guy with a flying squirrel on his arm, some people holding snakes, large tanks holding mice (Snake food I guess), and we see large snapping turtles and other interesting creatures. I'm also told there were some huge spiders on display and a python. One snake I saw had a price tag of $3000 on it.

---Allen tries out Clint's Cosmic Mustache

Meanwhile back at the comic/card show, I only sold some comics to Clint, Chuck and one other guy. But I did talk to a guy that says he has connections to getting stuff distributed internationally! Movies on DVD, and music CD’s for sure but he will look into books and comics.

---Clint's table

Clint on the other hand was doing OK and I saw him selling his comic series of 4 issues: Backseat Drivers. I read it all the night before and loved it. Very funny stuff. Strange but funny.

The event organizer had found a copy of Fright Night #12 and had me sign it. I donated a copy of Slam Bang to the event to be won from a drawing of the tickets sold but never hear them announce it. They do announce every 30 minutes about a snake they are giving away and pick a ticket and call out the winner. They do this at ear bleeding sound decibels all day long off and on.

--One of the many reptiles, this one cost $3000

We take Chuck back to his place in Lexington, KY, say good-bye, then drive to Frankfort, KY were I meet with a client and pick up some items to do art for another collector print. This time for Hygienists. So I now have all the dangerously sharp tools they use. I offer to give Clint a free cleaning but he just won't go for it so we drive off for Owensboro.

--Chuck's reptile mascot for next year's show. (Inks by AF)

=Allen 9-24-2007

Morgana X- The NOVEL is now OUT!

2007-09-14T13:30:00.000-05:00

ALL NEW STORY! Yeah, baby, the Morgana X, 162 page novel (6" x 9") written by Christopher Moshier with a cover by me (Allen Freeman) is out at last! This tells an all new story about Morgana X including an origin! Finally! You thought you'd never see it? Well here it is. Morgana was created by me back around 1987 or so. With the help of Quinton Hoover providing the art for the comic books and with me doing the inking etc...we put out Morgana X for Cat's Paw Comics and later for Sky Comics. So she was in about 6 comics between 1987 and 1994. And finally here is her story! Chris has taken the best characters from the comics and added even more! A super space adventure of the sexiest, galaxy spanning, assassin ever! Oh, and that's not all. There is a 14 page comic story by Allen Freeman and Quinton Hoover from the Sky Comics Special #1 way back in 1994! Not enough? How about a 5 page art gallery of covers used and unused! Get this while it's hot! www.fanaticpress.com

Books I like

2007-09-04T22:32:00.001-05:00

Wow, it is September.....

2007-09-03T16:40:00.000-05:00

I'm getting some great strips for Slam Bang #3 vol III. Most of them are true stories or just so darn good I'll have to use them anyway! Don't forget end of this month is the deadline. Be in the issue! Do some good. Hug a tree. Draw on a tree, and send it in.

=A

San Diego Comic-Con 2007.....

2007-08-05T00:32:00.000-05:00

Hey, I think I survived the 2007 San Diego International Comic-Con. I ran a booth in the small press zone and sold some Fan-Atic Press comics and mostly I sold the Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con DVD's. Yeah, I had a small DVD player running at the booth. Dean LeCrone the star of the movie also helped with the booth and we had tons of fun talking to the "stars" of the movie we shot there last year. They loved it! We even got them telling us what they thought of the movie on video. I'll be posting up lots of great comments and video at www.fanaticpressfilms.com soon. You can go there and see all the photos I took at the show this year. Got 200 photos up on Dotphoto. We really wanted to shoot another movie there this year but couldn't find anyone to relieve us long enough from the booth to do it. So we just shot a little here and there and I'll post it on YouTube and you can see it at the link above also.

The crowds were great on every day but Saturday. Yeah, that was a surprise. Turns out they were so afraid that the crowd was going to be too thick on Saturday they didn't sell any tickets at the door. So it was the least crowded day of the show. And everyone's day for slow sales so I heard. And it was true for us, Saturday was a bust. Sunday was very busy and we made up for Saturday.

We hooked up with Pirate Girl, Klingon, Girl that was with Fantastic Boy, Button Dude, Old Jedi, and more.....I even saw the guy that was at the end of our movie that Dean goofed on about missing the show and asking, "Where's my ticket?" And he had on the same shirt!

We sold a nice batch of the DVD's even though quite a few people would watch some of the movie and laugh and tell us how funny it is...only to wonder off and not buy one. We had the usual folks that say they will be back later. On Sunday there were a few of them that did just walk up and hand us money, so they actually meant what they said.

I saw lots of great costumes and got photos of most of them. Dean and I tried to go to one of the panels at the end of Saturday for the cast of the Sara Silverman show but the line was around and around the hallways and we gave up. That was the closest I've come to attending a panel in the 4 years I've attended the show. I did watch some of the panels highlights on www.ifc.com
site. I saw the one about the 25th anniversary of Blade Runner movie...that was cool.

I did have a celebrity sighting....I was just walking along and saw an interview in progress and it was Rosario Dawson! I got some great photos of her. I felt like paparazzi!

I had to buy another Teddy Scares bear for my wife Bonnie which was my only request from her this year. After lots of searching and looking in the program to no avail...I found them on Saturday and got the one she wanted. If you are not familiar with the Teddy Scares bears look http://www.teddyscares.com

I shot about 10 very crazy vader helmets and it turns out there are tons more and you can see them HERE!

I walked so much the first day getting the booth set up I'd rubbed my legs raw. I could hardly walk without pain. It was like a super atomic wedgy....this was so strange it had been a long time since that had happened to me. I'd been working out on the treadmill and to some Billy Blank's DVD's (TaeBo) and was in pretty good shape anticipating all the walking I'd be doing and lifting and dragging stuff around...but didn't prepare for the atomic wedgy! Anyway, I took it easy on the second day and soon recovered....I was very worried I'd miss the second day as walking only made it worse. But I was tough and pressed on.

On Thursday night of the con Dean took me to the meeting of the Southern California Cartoonists Society like we did last year. This year it was just a few blocks from the con so we walked there. Also this time there was no formal talk like before so we just met other members and chatted. Though they may have had more going on later, Dean and I had to split after a while since our hotel was 45 miles away and we needed sleep! I talked with Stan Yan, Michael Aushanker and Craig Boldman at our table and had a great time.

I really missed not having the time to see everything like I did last year but still had fun and was glad our booth was so popular. All the stars that discovered we had the movie out flocked to our table and I'm sure that peaked some interest in the crowd to check out what we had going on there, thus increasing our sales even more.

There were lots of Artist Alley tables this year more than last time I think, and there was still a strong group of small press and Indy comic companies. I was really glad to see that it wasn't shrinking like I thought it would since the cost of the tables had gone up so much....in 2008 the prices are the same as 2007 for a Small Press Table so that is also good news.

I'll be reviewing tons of comics I picked up for review in my Small Press Newsroom Blog: http://smallpressnewsroom.blogspot.com and I was showing a copy of Ka-Whump! #2 around the tables and they all wanted to buy one. Unfortunately I didn't have any with me at the show. But I did give out info on how they could order one. I also played up Small Press Extra and showed off the cover I just did for their issue #6.

Before the Comic-Con I was in Seattle, WA seeing my kids who still live there, Brigitte 19, Alaina 22 and Dustin 24. I gave a talk to the Cartoonist Northwest group on Saturday the 21st and saw John Lustig and Wade Busby there. We had about 15 or more at the meeting and I gave a talk about my years in the gaming biz, commercial art work, and comics. (My son Dustin shot it all on video) Then I showed them the movie Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic Con....and they loved it! I even sold some afterwards. They clapped at the end and all told me how impressed they were with Dean and my editing work etc....

After the meeting some of us met at the Hurricane Cafe for food and more talking. John Lustig showed me the newspaper cartoons of his Last Kiss I'd been coloring for him.

After this my son Dustin who was with me and driving me all round, took me to Kenmore, WA where I saw his band Violence Unfolds blow the roof off a small venue that also had two other bands play that night.

My friend Tim Jensen had joined us there and being a crack photographer he took photos of the band as I shot video. Then we played pool there for quite a while! What a night!

I'll be posting up some video very soon!

Now on to Wizard World Chicago Con in just a few days! This is my year of comic cons! I'm also now planning to have 1/2 a booth at the Mid-Ohio-Con in November in Columbus, OH.

==Allen
www.fanaticpress.com
www.fanaticpressfilms.com

Movie Premiere Huge Success!

2007-06-06T17:34:00.000-05:00

Or see the Slideshow larger: http://www.dotphoto.com/Go.asp?l=maknbacon&P=&AID=4553260&Show=Y

On June 2nd in Fallbrook, CA at the Mission Theatre at the "Comic and Animation Film Festival" was shown, for the first time on the big screen.....Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con! And it was a huge hit. Why? Because everyone there said so! They said, "I laughed till I had tears in my eyes!". No lie! They said that! And you can bet that Dean LeCrone, star of the movie, writer of the movie, and director (Plus the host for this event), was in tears. I'm Allen Freeman, the writer of this blog, and I was the cameraman/editor/designer/marketing guru/webmaster for the film and I was in tears! I couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing! There was about 80 people in the audience and they were cat calling, whistling, laughing, and having a blast from the very start to the very end of the movie! They also loved Dean's hosting of the event, as he made fun of his helpers on stage (Robin: Brandon), commented about the guy in the booth (Chris) running the videos and movies, and kept the crowd in stitches right on up to the showing of the movie.

This movie was shot on location at the San Diego Comic-Con in July of 2006. Tons of time, airfare, blood-sweat-and-tears, went into this 41 minute movie and finally, on this day, it was all worth it! They liked it, they really liked it! I had thought they would as I'd shown the movie on a tiny 10" DVD player at my booth at the SPACE con in April to about 5 to 8 comic attendees and they loved it! They went on and on about how great, funny, inventive it all was. And sure, my relatives, parents and wife all said it was funny. But they had to. But having total strangers come up to me at the after-party of the Premiere saying,
"It was really great!"
"It should be on TV!"
"I was blown away!"
"I laughed till I cried!"

I'll post some photos here very soon to prove we had a crowd there. We had a storm trooper, and Robin and Batman, and the Autumn Fairy, and other costumed people in the crowd. Some for the show, some for the Masquerade contest etc....

I also got to ride in a limo for the first time. A very long black 2006 stretch limo. With Dean and me in the limo was Julie Coffman, Dean's date for the evening, and she sang two of the original songs for the movie! And we had Paul LeCrone in the limo, Dean's son of 13 who was in some of the extra features on the DVD. (You'll just have to see it.) One of my favorite stories (I have a bunch now) is where we needed some small bills to make change for when we sold the DVD's after the show. So the limo pulled up to a large grocery store in the very front. Bob the limo driver got out, came to the back near the store, opened the door and I got out. I went in and everyone in the store was looking at me. They were frozen....trying to figure out what star I was. Quickly I'm sure, they didn't recognize me, but they still were waiting to see what I was doing. I grabbed some water bottles and went to check out. The girl at the cash register was just starring at me. So was the girl waiting to bag the stuff. Then the cash register girl said, "That's all you came in for?" I said, "Well, actually I need some $5's for these $20's. She laughed and shook her head at the other girl. Then I ran out....I swear I didn't see anyone move the whole time.....HA!

I'll have some video clips of some of our limo experience here soon!

I flew in to San Diego from KY on May 31st, and Dean and I hung out at the Fallbrook Lodge. The hotel was so bad that Dean and I had to shoot a mock advertising commercial for the hotel! Right! I'll edit it and post it here soon! Yeah, it is pretty funny. The funniest part is that all the screwed up, missing, worn out, stuff we showcase about the Lodge is true! It was there! Ha!

I will probably add some of the footage of the Premiere and it's aftermath and put it on an extra DVD that we will sell separately from the movie. (The movie already has tons of extra features).
And in case you didn't already know, you can get the movie at: www.fanaticpressfilms.com

And yes, we are already getting orders online! And some emails praising the premiere and our movie! As we had a table set up at an after-party near the theater to sell the DVD's, which we did sell! Wow! Cool comments about the show, Dean's expert hosting job, our comic and cartooning portfolios and questions like: "Will you be shooting another con movie next month at the San Diego Comic-Con?"
Answer: YES!

Dean LeCrone LORD of COMIC CON!

==A

Dean LeCrone vs The Mutants of Comic-Con PREMIERE!

2007-05-24T12:21:00.000-05:00

Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con --AT LAST!

2007-05-01T11:51:00.003-05:00

(This is just a mock up of the box, may not be final design.)

I've been working day and night for the last few days (not to mention off and on for the last year) and I'm officially announcing that the DVD, "Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con" is finished. Well, the main 40 minute movie is done. Shot on location at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2006, this movie has been in production for almost a year!

Break out the beer!

The DVD will have tons of extra features that are not yet finished (extended interviews, a funky quiz, outtakes, and surprises!)....but I'm so excited about the main movie being done! A few lucky persons like Larned Justin, saw most of the movie at SPACE this year at my booth and from the responses I got it will be a huge hit! I'm not kidding, when 5-8 people all stand, eyes locked to the little DVD player, laughing every 2 minutes for almost 40 minutes....you know its got to be good! This is no ordinary con film. No, this is pure comedy by the masterminds of Dean LeCrone and Allen Freeman. Ok, I must admit that I only added to the fun factor with my creative editing skills, and by adding some of the ideas, most of the credit has to go to Dean LeCrone who improvised the interviews and antics on the film. And he later wrote tons of bits to enhance the footage taking it even farther! Even writing and singing songs! (But I don't want to give it all way...) I was mostly just the cameraman/tech-geek/designer in the background making all his ideas happen!

Anyway the movie "Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic-Con" will have an official premiere in San Diego on June 2nd in a real theater thanks to the Fallbrook Film Club. (Checking to see exactly what the name of that group is...) More details as that happens! Oh, and it is planned to have showings in another location in May in San Diego (San Diego Cartoonists Society), and showings in a theater in Seattle, WA (Historic University Theater)....isn't that crazy? We are also trying to sneak it into some programming at the San Diego Comic-Con this year (but that's a secret)....wish us luck!

Anyway, the DVD will be taking advance orders at www.fanaticpress.com and www.fanaticpressfilms.com soon....and will be sold at our booth at the San Diego Comic-Con this year in July!

More news as it happens!

===A

SPACE CON #8 a Two Day Event! April 21, 22. Official Report.

2007-04-24T16:09:00.000-05:00

Well where should I begin? First of all I had a very bad cold for almost 2 weeks before the SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo) convention this year. (Held every year in Columbus, Ohio.) I had to get the video ready and make up some boxes to sell at the show. Chris Moshier had shot most of the footage last year at this convention and even edited the footage into a great 2 disk package! All I had to do was make up a box cover design, and a label design for the disks. I did get it all done but it was very tough when you are blowing y0ur nose and your head feels like it is the size of the EPCOT world display. I also had just gotten a new camcorder to try out at the con this year. So was busy trying to learn how it worked. To top it off my dad was in the hospital with a weak heart. Everyone told me to go ahead and make it to the show. I always love this convention and can't wait to see my old friends in small press like Tim Corrigan, Larry Blake, Matt Feazell, Bob Corby etc....and to meet up with writer Chris Moshier who writes for Fan-Atic Press. He and I met up there last year where he and his friend Mike Hutchings video taped interviews for me last year.

Anyway, I decided to make it to the show and it was as much fun as always and I'm glad I made it. I had to drive 5 hours that Friday, but the weather was great. In fact the weather was almost too good.

Chris Moshier on the left with Ken Henson of the comic HORACE on the right.

SATURDAY:
The first day of SPACE con was a slow start. We figured that most people were so grateful for the nice weather at last that they wanted to go outside and enjoy it. Sales on my books was an alltime low for SPACE con at least for Saturday.

The highlight of my day was when I played the DVD I'd been working on: Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic Con. Where I filmed Dean a cartoonist who is also an actor who can improv extremely well. I filmed him interviewing costumed folks at the 2006 San Diego Comic con and we have the DVD movie about 90% done. Anyway I played it on my little DVD player at my booth and about 8 or 10 folks gathered around and laughed their heads off for the next 40 minutes! Some needed to be elsewhere and would start to leave but come back as they couldn't get enough of Dean and what he would do next at that con. It really will be a huge hit, I believe! A cult classic!

The crowd did increase and I also had a fan that had me sign about 10 of the comics I'd worked on and book covers I'd not seen in 20 years! That was a treat! I forgot to ask him where he found those comics.....

Craig Boldman writer for ARCHIE, and writer/artist for his own comics, gets interviewed.

Chris Moshier ran around to find certain creators that were on a list he had made up. He wanted this next DVD of SPACE to focus on the history of SPACE con, and have some more focused interviews on the founders of the convention and found out how it all got started. We used his tripod and my micraphone to get a more professional look to the video this time. We got some great interviews with such creators as: Bob Corby, Dave Sim, Tim Corrigan, Matt Feazell, and many, many others! I also ran around here and there and did some more mini interviews and tried to capture the look and feel of the convention this year. With 144 tables we were as usual only able to cover about 40 or 50 people if that. It is very hard to get around to everyone and we regret that we can't get to everyone, even when it is a 2 day event this time.

The night of the first day was to be the party at a place called MOMO2. Chris and I went to this party with Mike Huchings (who was in the POST SPEAK in the 2006 DVD) who helped us with the interviews a bit on Saturday afternoon and his girlfriend. MOMO2 was a teen hangout with computer games, bowling etc.....but we eventually ended up at the Applebee's resturant where we talked about the con and other pop culture.
Mike sporting his Fan-Atic Press t-shirt with his girlfriend. (I'm bad with names and can't remember her name right now, sorry.)

SUNDAY:
Chris had to leave and drive back to NY early on Sunday, so that left me to man the booth and try and video. Also I was on the panel "Old Timers Rant". Matt Feazell, Allen Freeman (that's me) and Larry Blake were to be on the panel but Larry couldn't make it so Tim Corrigan took his place. I tried to tape it but not sure if it turned out since I just set it up on a tripod and left it on. I think I got 1/2 of it before the tape ran out. Anyway the presenter or guy running the panel did a very good job. I'll find his name in the program and add it here later. Matt did most of the talking I think, and he was very entertaining. He even acted like an old man now and then, "You young folks don't know how great you have it now..." which was pretty funny. So the crowd which consited of Bob Corby, Dan W. Taylor and about 4 or 5 others were entertained and asked some great questions. It was the most fun I'd ever had being on a panel and I wasn't even nervous. My only problem was that my cold was still with me even though I thought I was getting over it. Halfway through the panel my throat went inside out on me and I felt like I had to cough. You know, the sort of cough that you feel will not ever end? I tried to hold it back and evidently wasn't doing very well and Tim gave me some of his drink. The water bottle machine was empty when I tried to get one right before the panel.

Dan W. Taylor artist and publisher

Then still struggling with the cough, Matt gave me a throat losenge! So they saved me. I recovered and was able to continue adding my great insight to the panel. We talked about some of the creators we wished were still producing comics like, Steve Willis, Ted Bolman, David Miller and more....

Larry Blake (L) with Tim Corrigan (R).

So I ended up selling enough books and DVD's to pay for my hotel for 3 nights (I only had to split it with Chris which also helped a lot!) and for my gas and food. So basically I broke even but made lots of new friends and contacts for future contributors to Slam Bang. I handed out flyers for the new Ka-Whump! #2 fanzine about small press comics, sold about 10 copies of the mag, and handed out my new postcards for Fan-Atic Press.

Microcosm Publishing were accross from my booth and seemed to get a nice crowd around their table off and on.

I'll be posting up some of the interviews and video footage here and there as I work on editing the DVD for SPACE CON 2007. Wish me luck! And sure, I hope to make it back to SPACE con in 2008! I love it! I still have my dumb cold a little as I can't shake it completely, my dad got out of the hospital and is doing better right now....in case you were wondering.

Here is an unknown comic fan with Larned Justin on the right. Larned and I went out to eat after the con on Sunday and chatted it up at Max and Irma's. Great hamburgers! And thanks Learned for helping me load my car after the show. I always bring too much stuff to this show.

Here is Tim Corrigan holding up a copy of Ka-Whump! #2. He said he was very impressed with the magazine and was hoping the small press community could support 3 zines about small press right now.

I have a few more photos that I may include here later. Mostly I was shooting video and will post up some of the clips here and there of the footage, so stay tuned!

----Allen Freeman 4/24/2007 www.fanaticpress.com

Additions and SPACE CON DVD 2006!

2007-04-15T16:47:00.000-05:00

Yep, I finally finished SPACE CON 2006 the 2 Disk Set DVD. Chris Moshier actually filmed most of it, and edited all of it. A nice hand of applause for the man Chris!! Truly a masterpiece and the best film about a comic con ever. Yeah, maybe even better than the one I made of this convention the year before, just maybe. I created a cover similar to the 2005 one as they are a nice set for your DVD shelf. Hint, hint. And I made the labels for both disks. Yeah this is a 2 disk set. On Disk 1: PRE PARTY action at a hip night spot the night before the con. INTERVIEWS with over 40 creators at the show! With some samples of their work and their names pop up so you know who is who. POST SPEAK: this is where Chris, Mike Hutchings, Todd Ritter and I (Allen Freeman) just chatted about the convention after it was over and some other shows we have attended etc....while eating Italian food. DISK 2 contains; COMIC PANEL, the one called "The Business of Comics" hosted by Eric Adams, starring, Rafer Roberts, Allen Freeman (me), Pam Bliss, and Paul Hornschemeier. Fun and informative! DAY PRIZE: is where Dave Sim and Gerhard handed out some awards to books submitted to them last year. (Fan-Atic Press won one for a story in Slam Bang #7 vol II!). And last but not least PICTURES; which is a cool slide show of photos taken during the show! Whew! Now you see why it had to be on 2 DVD's! Read more about it at the official site: www.fanaticpress.com

And we are gearing up to attend SPACE CON 2007 this coming weekend! Woooo, and Chris and I'll be video taping some interviews again and this time it will be sort of a documentary of SPACE CON itself! This is year 8 of the show and we will have some footage on our next DVD sh0wing some of the old days as well as the latest show! We will have a booth again this year mostly showcasing the new DVD and some other Fan-Atic Press and Making Comics Studios books! Haven #2 will be out at this show! Chris will debut the book and have issues #1 and #2 for sale!

I'm getting a new camcorder to capture all of this footage starting this coming weekend and continuing to San Diego Comic Con, and Wizard World Chicago! It's the brand new Canon HV20 and I'm very excited. Shooting in HD will be new, and we will have the appropriate mic's etc...and lighting and do this stuff up right!

More news as it happens!

My Best Buy experience.....

2007-04-05T13:50:00.000-05:00

My experience at shopping at Best Buy this week is so interesting I think that I'd like to share it with you.

On Monday I purchased a new router to speed up the connection to my wife's computer. We also asked them if there was anything that would allow her to see the internet anywhere she went with it. They said the SlingBox. After talking to them for 30 minutes and they even got their "expert" in on the conversation, we got the SlingBox AV. We also got me a new external hard drive call My Book. Ok, yeah, we maxed out the Best Buy credit card.

I get home and take everything out of the boxes. As I'm taking out the My Book I hear it rattling like a kids toy. Something is broken off and loose inside. Not good. I call them and they say bring it back. So I put it all back in the box and drive back over there. They have me go and look for another one on the shelf and there is one more. So I get home and it works fine. Then I hook up the router and it does work just not completely right. So after hours of messing with it I finally call tech support and Raji finally gets it all working. We only had one moment when I couldn't understand him at all. After having me click this, and that, he said now click AFLAG. I said what? He said, "AFLAG". I said what is "AFLAG". He said no, it's "AFLAG". I look over the page in desperation and see the only word starting with "A" and say, "is it APPLY?" and he says "Yes".

Now it is Tuesday and I go to hook up the SlingBox. It has a cool little window to play TV shows from your TV. But nothing ever mentions the internet. Finally after reading everything in the manuals, and their online info.....I realize it is only for watching TV or movies not internet. Their "experts" were on crack. So I get all the stuff and put it all back in the box as it was before and find my receipt.

Now it is Wednesday and I take back the SlingBox and tell them that I was "missinformed" by their staff. The girl doesn't care and gives me a refund. I go looking for a portable DVD player to use at the conventions I'll be setting up this summer to advertise the DVD's I'm selling of other comic conventions etc....I ask one guy and he finally says, "I only know how to figure up how much the tax will cost you. Let me get an expert." So this other guy just reads off the cards in front of the players (Like I can't read them?) as he also clearly knows less than the tax configuation dude. I finally decide on this nice black one with a 10.2" screen. I buy it and leave.

I get home and think that 3 hours of battery will not do me much good at the convention, it will have to last more like 8 hours. I go to the Best Buy web site looking for an add-on battery pack and see my same portable DVD player I just bought at the store, here online it is on sale for $38 less, and get this, PLUS a free leather case worth $35! Holy cow!

Now it is Thursday, I have the DVD player all boxed up like it was before, I go back to the store and tell them I'd rather take this back and order online. (I should have not said anything about online.) They go, "you can order it online right here!" So they punch in the web site and put my name in and bring up the same DVD player. And then they inform me that there is no sale! I see the screen and sure enough the sale is gone! They do have the free travel case still included though. The girl says, "The sales on the online store, change constantly, with no warning, sorry." Discouraged and confused, I say "OK." Then they tell me it has to be delivered as they don't have the case in the store. Both the player and the case have to be mailed seperately to my house! Gezzz....and that is an extra $8 shipping. (They can't hand me back the player I just gave them, I guess.) My "deal" is going to hell in a handbasket. So they ring it up at the same price I'd paid in the store the other day but with the free case, and $12 shipping and $11 tax.

All confused and a bit pissed I get home and jump on the site and to my super astonishment THE SALE IS STILL ON! Yes sportsfans, the sale never was gone. It was always there, save $38 and get the free case worth $35. Right in front of my face it is still on! What is going on with this store?

I call the store all confused and explain it all, and they put me on hold. 5 minutes later, they say, "hello can I help you.?" So I have to start the story all over. Then they say, "Just call our 1-888 number and tell them to cancel the order and then reorder it from your computer. We don't know why it didn't show up on our screen here at the store. Sorry."

So I call the store's 1-888 number and explain it all to the lady and she said that the store's don't see what you see on the screen as they have "special deals" they do or don't get. Sounds to me like a huge rip-off if you order from the store's online site from a store. And they figure most people will not go to all the trouble I did to get it straighened out. (Compare it to when you go to a grocery store and see signs stating 2 for $2 etc...then when you check out and later see the receipt there was no sale. If you complain they always say, "Must of been a computer glitch." But did you ever wonder why the mistake is always in their favor? Never to your advantage?)

The phone lady then cancelled my order, put it back on my card, then reordered the DVD player at the $38 less amount, and included the free $35 case. I still had to pay shipping, another $4 for the case. (The store didn't charge me for the free case shipping and when I looked over the receipt they gave me, no mention of the case! Woah, they were going to rip me off for the free case and the discounted price! Yikes!)

So as it all stands now I went from paying $208.64 including tax and shipping (no mention of the free case in the receipt) to paying $172.35 total, with the case clearly in the order. Even by paying an additional $4 for shipping the case seperately, I still paid $36.29 less? I think I paid even less for tax by not buying it at the brick and mortar store. Wow, it sure pays to stick to your guns and second (and triple) check everything they do.

Moral of the story is:

1.) never purchase anything from the store itself unless you have already checked the site and desperately need the item that very day.

2.) get all your info online from reviews and customer testimonies, never the sales staff.

3.) no matter what they say, never let them place your order to the online store for you or, you yourself, use their instore computer to order from their online store.

Sheesh.......

=A

Slam Bang #2 is out! Yeah baby!

2007-04-01T12:12:00.000-05:00

Slam Bang #2 vol III (or issue #42) is now out! It's 210 pages, largest issue of Slam Bang ever! And besides that it is 6" x 9" so it is even taller and wider than ever! Super slick printing job by RapidPOD. Yeah, this issue has it all, 50 or so contributors and a spanking new interview with Tim Corrigan as well. The cranky letters pages and the ads from the contributors in the back....didn't have room for the bio pages like last issue but thought I'd just post them on the www.fanaticpress.com web site eventually. To read all about the book check that same site. Cover by Doug Chaffee back cover by Mark Martin. So if you want an issue just go to that site and hit the STORE button or send $10 + $2. Make checks and money orders out to: Allen Freeman. Send it all to: Fan-Atic Press, 3106 Dade Cove, Owensboro, KY 42303-4567 You'll be glad you did!

Issue #1 vol III is getting rave reviews still. Check www.fanaticpress.com/reviews.html for some of the printed reviews I've gotten on the book. Then you'll be sure it's a quality book, you don't have to just take my word for it anymore!

To contribute to Slam Bang #3 vol III (Deadline June 2007) just send some web size comic pages to fanaticpress@yahoo.com and I'll get back to you about them. Make the pages image size 5.5" x 8.5" to fill the page up nicely. And make the story a TRUE STORY as that is the theme for this issue. Make the comic at least 4 pages long and can be up to 8 pages or so. Keep it PG-13 and have fun! Only send your best work, as you can imagine lots of people want to get in on this. It will be at least 200 pages, black and white interiors, color covers as usual.

--A

New Developments at Fan-Atic Press

2007-02-19T18:48:00.000-06:00

Ok, so not a lot has been happening at this blog for months, but I hope to get back on track with it and keep it going. First of all I've decided not to publish Ed Pun's comic Scarlet Fields. Why? Because I need the time to devote to Slam Bang #2 vol III, Drawings #2, and a host of other projects I'm trying to finish up from last year! But Ed promises to put the book out himself which is great because it's a fantastic comic and I know everyone will love it. That's right there will be an Anton Bogaty Drawings #2 this Spring! And boy does it look great. It will also be a 60 page color comic format. This sketchbook sure sold lots of copies and #2 will keep everyone happy that wanted more!

Also a new site www.fanaticpressfilms.com will cover the movies I've been shooting (Some with Chris Moshier of www.makingcomicsstudios.com ) such as the about to be released SPACE CON 2006, a two DVD set! Tons of extras like the awards ceremony, and the after con discussions! And the almost a year in the making: Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of ComicCon! Where I filmed Dean interviewing costumed folks at the 2006 San Diego Comic-Con. Dean does lots of crazy things and this 40 minute movie will be a cult classic! Why take a year to get it done? Well Dean flew from San Diego to KY to help design the movie while I did the editing....Dean wrote most of the cool/crazy stuff you'll see that tied in all the cool footage from the convention. No, you haven't seen a convention film like this one. Tons of laughs and the extra features alone are as good if not better than what you see on most Hollywood DVD's! No lie!

Also on this site you can see the weekly updated VLOG by Chris and I. We have themes and we each shoot video based on that theme. Like "Introduction", "Pets", "Tricks", etc...and we have lots of them planned. At the site we now have 3 already up for your enjoyment. This site will soon have lots of free films, and more information on the DVD's I have for sale such as: SPACE CON 2005, North End Mafia "Axis of Evil" the DVD/CD set, and San Diego Comic-Con 2004.

So check that site often for more updates as it's in production right now.

New items have been added to www.fanaticpress.com as well. I have a new opening art screen each week that takes you into the site. Michael Wurl will be contributing a new wacky image where he makes fun of conventional comics and newspaper strips each week.....and there is a weekly updated web comic called MIAC by Ed Mulreany. 11 pages so far!

And until later check out this cover I just did for KA-WHUMP! The cool magazine about small press comics. This is issue #2, first mag size issue with color covers! Also this issue has an interview with me! So worth the cover price! Email me for how to get a copy. This comes out very soon. No, I'm not the publisher.

Slam Bang #2 vol III is almost done at last! Yeah! And it sports a long interview with Tim Corrigan! But don't forget the other comics and stories in this 200 page digest! This I plan to have out in early March! Woooooo. Yeah, I'm excited.

The theme for Slam Bang #3 vol III, is TRUE STORIES! Anything that you believe to be true, or read someplace and think could be true, or something that happened to you! Should be fun! Go for it. Deadline is around May 1st.

And now a photo of me to leave you with....

My list of Comic and Cartoon Credits!

2006-12-11T10:25:00.000-06:00

Allen Freeman's List of Comic and Cartoon Credits (That he can remember):

Kentucky Press Newspaper Syndicate (1982)
Editorial Cartoons (also edited the weekly features for a few months.)

Comic Buyer's Guide (1983)
Cartoons published

Many covers and short comic strips for other small press comics: 1984-1990.

New Frontiers Comics (1986):
New Frontiers #1 and #2 (Airbrushed the covers and created 2 color overlays)

(First comic book work besides printing my own comics.)

(Future Beat #1 Cover airbrush black and white. Can't remember publisher) (Also painted a color cover to #2 but never published)
Cat's Paw Comics (1987):
Morgana X #1 (Painted cover, wrote and inked the interior. Designed the logo and interior editorial pages and ads.) (a second issue was completely finished, I did the inking, painted the cover and centerfold....never published.)
Spectrum #1 (Inked and colored the cover, wrote one story and inked 2 stories in the anthology.)

New Voice Media Publishing (1989):
Floyd Flamdoozle #1 (Painted cover)

Jabberwocky Graphics (1988-90)
Fever Pitch #8 (Painted the wrap-around cover)
Best of Fever Pitch (Designed and Painted cover)

Fantagraphics Books (1989):
The Ultimate GnatRat (Painted cover)

Haspel Design (1989):
Rocketpack #1 (Newsletter for Dave Steven's Rocketeer, cover art, interviewed Dave Stevens)

Blind Bat Press (1989)
Wavemakers #2 (I designed and painted the color cover)

NOW Comics and Now Video (1989-1992):
Fright Night #11 and #12 (Painted covers)
Speed Racer Classics #2 (wraparound cover)

Ralph Snart Adventures Vol 3 #10, #17 (and one poster)

Now Video:
Painted the first 3 VHS box covers for Speed Racer Video Collection

Also created and produced The Ralph Snart Fan Club! Put out 4 issues of the newsletter. (1988-89)

Brady Games (1992):

Donkey Kong Country 2 (Designed and painted cover to guidebook)
Super Mario RPG (Designed and painted cover to guidebook)
Mortal Kombat Card Game (I designed and painted 9 cards in this set)

NME (1992)
Battlelords Card Game (I designed and painted 12 cards for this set)

Caliber Comics (1987-89):
Frankenstein (Full color comic 48 pages, I did the inking and background art. This was Caliber's all time best selling comic)
The Realm (inked part of 2 issues.)

SKY Comics (1990-92):
Seeker #1 and #2. (Colored the cover to #1 and inked it. Also inked the interiors of both issues and designed the logo for the book.)
Morgana X Special #1 and #1 regular series. (Painted the covers and inked the books and wrote some of the stories.) Sky Comics Presents (A Morgana X story in each issue, that I inked)
Sky #0 ashcan (Inked a Morgana X story)

Arena Comics Magazine (Colored almost all of the covers for this magazine)

Comics Conspiracy (2004):
Tie Teddies #3 (Inking)

Last Kiss Comics (2004-present)
(Comic strip coloring, clean Up, and more)

Wunderman Comics (2005-06)
E.I. #1 (Designed and computer painted the cover. Designed the logo, lettered the 64 interior pages)

Sean McGrath Publishing (2006)
Frater Mine #2, #3 (lettering)

Fan-Atic Press (1984 to present):
MINI comics in 1984: (Zappy Pinhead and the Beatles from Neptune, Evil Doll)

Digest comics:
Captain Optimist #1-5 (Artist and inker, editor, publisher) (1987-1990)

Plus more books back in the 80's I can't remember right now. (Alien Bondage #1, Video Blues #1)

Slam Bang vol 1, #1-33 (Artist, writer, editor, publisher) (1985-1990)
Slam Bang Annual 1999 (Publisher)
Slam Bang Vol 2 #1-7 (2003-2005)
Slam Bang Vol 3 #1 (Artist, letter, writer, editor, publisher) (2006)
Slam Bang Greatest Hits #1 (2004) (Artist, writer, co-editor, publisher)

Full Size Color Comics:
Anton Bogaty Sketchbook (2005) (Editor and publisher)
Doc Paradox #1 (2006) (Editor and publisher)

DVD's I've shot, edited and produced:
San Diego Comic Con 2004 approx 35 min
North End Mafia "Axis of Evil" (2005) 6 live song set (edited MTV style) DVD + a 9 song studio CD (+Easter egg of a full live show.)
Chicago Comic Con 1988 approx 35 min (I just converted the video shot by Matt Feazell, to DVD, and added a commentary bonus feature track) (released 2005) Shows me on my very first comic book panel.
SPACE CON 2005 approx 45 min (Small Press and Alternative Press Expo. I shot it, edited it and created the DVD and Box.)
SPACE CON 2006 1 hour (done, just not on the web site yet, 2 DVD set. I shot some of it, I'm in some of it, and creating the DVD and Box.) Shows me on my second comic book panel ever.
Dean LeCrone vs. The Mutants of Comic Con 40min (Shot at the 2006 San Diego Comic Con) Finished just adding extra features. I shot it, wrote some of it, edited it, and created the DVD and Box.)
This is does not cover my work in commercial art, gaming 3D art, web site design or Photography, just cartoon and comic related projects. Ok I did add the DVD work.....

Photos by Allen

2006-11-15T23:37:00.001-06:00

Just some photos I took last week in Newburgh, IN. Enjoy. If you want to see the images larger click HERE.

Dean's Entry in the Yahoo Talent Video Contest

2006-11-15T22:20:00.000-06:00

Dean's 3 Minutes of Fame

2006-10-05T11:35:00.000-05:00

Ok, so now Dean the Comic Con "Jerk" Host of the DVD, wants to be a big shot. Well he deserves it! So he is entering a 3 minute video to the Tonight Show via their search for hosts..... see it here and tell us if he should get the job? Progress should resume on the DVD of this major project of comedy madness next week. It'll be worth it!

Dean LeCrone visits KY

2006-09-26T12:36:00.000-05:00

That's right Fan-Atic Press FILMS division was happy to have Dean LeCrone visit from San Diego Sept 14-18th. Dean and the crew from Fan-Atic Press (Allen) worked night and day to edit the over 6 hours of footage they shot at the San Diego Comic Con back in July of this year. Dean had worked up many lists, and ideas, bits and funny stuff for the DVD and Allen was ready to get it all into shape. Together they have so far produced over 30min of prime hillarity that they can't wait to unleash on the general populace. They only were interrupted from their work by Allen's wife Bonnie having to be rushed to the ER for breathing problems due to her coming down with Brochial Flu and Laryngitis etc...She is much better now and after 2 weeks of feeling bad she may be going back to work soon. (RN at the hospital.)

Anyway, even with all that excitement Dean and Allen were able to get 90% of this project done. Just a little more at the end of the show and it'll be finished. So expect it in October! Watch this space or www.fanaticpress.com of more info on the DVD now with this title:
Working 15-18 hour days for 3 and 1/2 days Allen and Dean did all they could to make this the funniest video ever made of the San Diego Comic Con. Really! No lie! It will be about 40 minutes and have at least 30 minutes of extra features and extended interviews with pro's from the convention. It's a no brainer that you'll really want to see this DVD!

Here is Dean working on the floor (Yes I had a table for him but he wanted it this way.).

Yes, all of those pages contain Dean's extensive list of what was on all the footage we shot, his ideas of what to add to tie them all together, and how to make it even funnier! Sure I threw in my 2 cents here and there with my crazy banter skills, but Dean was the mastermind. He threw me the ideas of what he wanted and when and using Photoshop, Premiere and Adobe Encore pulled it all together.

In all that time we didn't really try and kill each other but this was taken by a paparazzi at some point during production:

But no one was seriously injured. Here are some classic Dean LeCrone poses. This one is his Jack Kirby art pose:

And here is Dean's pose for his someday to be released action figure:

And here is how the action figure will look:

Deadline -End of October- Slam Bang #2 vol III

2006-09-12T12:22:00.000-05:00

Cover art copyright Doug Chaffee 2006
See more of Doug's work at http://www.chaffeestudios.com

art copyright 2006 by Chuck Haspel

Deadline MOVED for Slam Bang #2 vol III.
New deadline for comic submissions for Slam Bang #2 vol III is END OF OCTOBER. That is the last extention! Finito!

So send your stuff to: fanaticpress@yahoo.com

Some contributors so far (Some have projects they are working on.):

Doug Chaffee (cover and illos)
Mark Martin (back cover and comics)
Chuck Haspel (illos and comics)
Agata Laguniak (comics)
Matjaz Bertoncelj (comics)
Nick Andreychuk (comics)
Christopher Moshier (comics)
Christina Wald (comics)
Renzo Soto (comics)
Rory McConville (comics)
Brad Foster (illos)
Stan Yan (comics)
Steve Rasnic (comics)
Tony Smith (comics)
David Johnson (illos or comics)
Paul Swain (comics)
Robin Ator (comics)
Dean LeCrone (comics)
Jacob Warrenfeltz (comics)
Larry Miller (comics)
Charlene Chua (comics)
Daryl Hutchinson (art)

If you sent something and think you should be on this list email me!
If you plan to send something email me!

and do it now! Thanks a bunch.....

-A

Doing the Con with Dean LeCrone Teaser #4

2006-08-23T19:32:00.001-05:00

No One Demanded it but yeah, Here is Teaser #3!

2006-08-20T15:20:00.000-05:00

Dean LeCrone, who is this guy? Here is a little more insight into his mind....if you dare!

Doing the Con with Dean LeCrone, SECOND teaser trailer!

2006-08-11T16:23:00.000-05:00

More cool, funny, nerdy stuff from San Diego Comic Con 2006....

Doing the Con with Dean LeCrone, first teaser trailer!

2006-07-29T00:24:00.000-05:00

San Diego Comic Con Report #1

2006-07-26T18:15:00.000-05:00

Dean LeCrone on the right
with cartoonist and Comic Buyer's Guide Columnist R. C. Harvey on the left.

Hey, this is Allen again, this time it is Wednesday and I've only been home from the San Diego Comic Con for 2 days. I got back late on Monday the 24th. I'm still sore and tired from all the crazy running around I did at the show. You see my cartoonist/actor friend Dean LeCrone drove my wife and me all around and Dean and I spent most of the time at the show interviewing fans, celebs, and crazy people. (The photo here is Dean with Darth Vera, Darth Vader's Jewish Grandmother.) That's right, we put together a very small DVD of some of the fun we had at the 2004 San Diego Comic Con but this is a full blown low budget production! We filmed interviews with actors, comic book artists, aerospace engineers, costumed fans, and just fans in line. You name it we got it! Oh, and the knights in armor going into battle with each other! Ha! Rocking fun! And even I can't wait to see all the footage again! Dean LeCrone out did himself by dancing by himself, chatting it up, commenting on the con's history, and getting the craziest interviews this side of that dog on The Conan O'Brian Show.....

I did it! I got all the photos posted to DotPhoto! First link is for a show that plays or if you want to see the thumbnails of the shots and click on one for a larger one hit the second link in each row. Enjoy!

I wasn't at the convention on Friday as I went to the Zoo but
I have some photos of that also! HA!

DotPhoto Show of Comic Con Preview Night July 19th 2006

DotPhoto Images of Comic Con Preview Night July 19th 2006

DotPhoto Show of Comic Con Thursday July 20th 2006

DotPhoto Images of Comic Con Thursday July 20th 2006

DotPhoto Show of The San Diego Zoo Friday July 21st 2006

DotPhoto Images of The San Diego Zoo Friday July 21st 2006

DotPhoto Show of Comic Con Saturday July 22nd 2006

DotPhoto Images of Comic Con Saturday July 22nd 2006

DotPhoto Show of The Last Day of the Con Sunday July 23rd 2006

DotPhoto Images of The Last Day of the Con Sunday July 23rd 2006

---Allen

Fan-Atic Press to be at San Diego Con this week!

2006-07-17T17:21:00.000-05:00

Fan-Atic Press didn't get their mega booth but they will have a small portion of the Last Kiss Comics booth #2205! Check it out!

E.I. #1 by Wunderman Comics just hit the streets. You can order one from me here by sending $10 + 2 shipping (Checks and money orders made out to Allen Freeman) to: Fan-Atic Press, 3106 Dade Cove, Owensboro, KY 42303. The book will be added to the online store at www.fanaticpress.com soon. Allen (me) did the cover, and lettered all 64 pages! It's square bound and full color. Story by Nate Wunderman, and pencils by Ron Fontes, etc...you know you want it. More news on this soon. (Has a comic ever come out that the cover artist and logo designer only also did the lettering on the inside? I think never.)

---Allen

Biz Cards for the Con!

2006-07-14T02:20:00.000-05:00

OK it's almost time for San Diego Con. Since I don't have a booth I'll be handing out lots of cards....and postcards...wait! I need new biz cards! I get a sweet offer from Vistaprint and get 500 color cards with black and white on the back side. Then they offer me another 500 for just $10 more! If I didn't wait so long to do this and need to pay for rush delivery I'd of hardly paid anything! And they are heavy, coated gloss! Let me know what you think.

Frater Mine #2 and #3 will be at the San Diego Con! I get to see all the lettering I did on them! Wooo, and I have an ad in the back. I'll also soon see E.I. from Wunderman Comics...I did the cover, the logos and lettered this 64 page color book!

More news soon!

--Allen

Holy Crikies! It's almost time for San Diego Con 2006!

2006-07-12T15:58:00.000-05:00

Let's see lots of things have happened since I bloged last. Sorry about that. I went to Seattle to see my kids, and one graduated High School. Anyway, you want news about Fan-Atic Press so here you go....Slam Bang #1 vol III got a rave review from Karen O'Brien in The Comic Buyer's Guide! Issue #1621 October 2006 issue. It'll be the one that gets handed out at the San Diego Con! What timing! And you can read the review on my news page at www.fanaticpress.com And I added some new news to that page today. Like www.blodcomics.com dedicated their front page this month to Fan-Atic Press stuff.....wow! And there is an interview with me there someplace. I know you don't want to miss that!

I didn't get a booth at San Diego Con. First of all I was going to share a large booth and do this up right. The con organizers didn't see fit to give it to us, so I bought out Dean LeCrone's small press site to use. They decided to give that to someone else also...must of been a long list ahead of me this year. Anyway, thanks to John Lustig of www.lastkisscomics.com I'll be able to use a tiny corner of his booth! Thanks John!

Everyone that goes find the Last Kiss Comics booth and say hi to John and leave him a message on where to meet you. He will be my home base I guess. Or email me for my cell number, I'll have it with me on vibrate as I'd never hear it ring in that place
fanaticpress@yahoo.com

Work is progressing on Scarlet Fields #1, by Edward Pun. I've got some help now on the "flats" so I can then color the book for him, and get it out this summer! It will be a great comic that everyone will want, I'm sure of it!

Plus Doc Paradox #1 got a 5 star review at HeroSpy.com!

-Allen

SPACE Con Party Video. May 12th 2006

2006-05-27T17:13:00.001-05:00

Here is a taste of what will be on The Second Annual Space Con DVD 2006. Chris Moshier and Allen Freeman manning the camera with such stars as: Mike Hutchings, Bonnie Freeman, Matt Feazell, Dave Sim, Gerhard, Stan Yan, Bob Corby and more.
Hit the play button. Then hit pause. Wait till the grey bar gets over 1/2 way for a smoother play though.

Tim Corrigan Draws Mightyguy SPACE CON 2006

2006-05-27T14:26:00.000-05:00

Yeah, here is another video of Tim Corrigan this time drawing MIGHTYGUY at his booth at Space Con May 13th, 2006.

Tim Corrigan Wins Lifetime Achievement Award at SPACE CON 2006

2006-05-27T12:19:00.001-05:00

Tim Corrigan Wins Lifetime Achievement Award at SPACE CON 2006, May 13th Columbus, Ohio. Video shot with my camcorder by Mike Hutchings. More video from this show will be posted here today! Be patient and let it load all the way or 1/2 way and back up the bar and then start watching. Hopefully you have a good internet connection!

SPACE CON 2006 a Success!

2006-05-15T23:04:00.000-05:00

Well I had a great time at the SPACE Con 2006. I had tons of help this year, Todd Ritter, Chris Moshier, Mike Hutchings, and Bonnie (my Wife)....We took (they sometimes stole my camera) about 100 photos. I'll be posting up a link here soon for where you can see the good ones. It was the premiere of Slam Bang #1 vol III, the 200 page digest, and Doc Paradox #1. So people had a reason to check out the booth. Saw some old friends such as; Tim Corrigan, Nate and Matt Corrigan, Larry Blake, Matt Feazell, Jim Pack, Larry Neibert, and Bob Corby to name a few. At the pre Con party I got to talk to Crebus creators Dave Sim and Gerhard. So naturally showed them Slam Bang #1 vol III. They seemed to love it, and they remembered me since I submitted Slam Bang #7 to the Day Prize Contest last year. Gerhard spilled the beans that the Anton Story that was nominated didn't win. He said it was a close call. This let to something later I'll just go ahead and tell. They gave out plaques at a cerimony later at the con to the winners of the Day prizes of books sumitted last year. Since I already knew that Anton Bogaty's story, "Justin's Last Chance" didn't win, I didn't go to the ceremony. And because someone else wanted the event filmed so I sent Mike and Chris to do it leaving me at the booth. Anyway, after the ceremony they all came back and Gerhard said, "Where were you! We had an award for you!". And sure enough I was to have gotten an award plaque and given a little speech.....so again missed my 15 min of fame. (I'm up to about a whole hour now.) So I have a Plaque for Anton and for myself. (Mine says: "Fan-Atic Press where his has his name.)

We shot over 4 hours of video! Yeah, putting together the second annual SPACE CON DVD. So that will take me a while to produce but I'll let everyone know when that'll be done and available.

Here is Dave Sim (Known for his comic Cerebus.) at the Friday night party. He said, "This looks great! I hope you sell a bunch of them!"

Gerhard (Also of Cerebus fame.) said: "I remember the DVD you made last year, great work."

SEE ALL THE PHOTOS HERE.

---More news after I recover
....Allen

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY at Comic Quest

2006-05-07T21:33:00.000-05:00

Hey, I survived FCBD. I was a guest and set up all my stuff at the Comic Quest comic store in Evansville, IN. They had a nice turn out, with about 100 people lined up at the start of the day- 10:00 am. They had lots of great free stuff to hand out, and raffled off some nice things as well. There were others guests like a stormtrooper advertising the Star Wars Club, and some other artists like Michael Kasinger and Nathan Bonner from IL. I had some genuine interest in my new Slam Bang, with everyone asking when will it be out. And I kept saying, "Any day now." And for the Doc Paradox #1 color comic I'm putting out. Same replay, "SOON". And I did put together a FCBD Edition of Slam Bang and handed them all out by noon. Yeah, should have made more. But did have the new Fan-Atic Press postcards and handed those out as well.

I also had people signing up for John Lustig's http://www.lastkiss.com/ mailing list where he'll send you a cool color web comic each and every week in you email. This time I got 30 more subscribers for him! He'll be proud of me! I sold a few books here and there but mostly had people looking for free stuff as expected. But I think I made good use of promoting my web site in the process. And getting some new artists to contribute to Slam Bang never hurts. So it was well worth it.

Jim Jones the owner of the store (Best comic store owner ever!) helped out and supplied free food and soft drinks, thanks again!
Here is Bonnie my wife watching over the table. She was a huge help in me setting up the table and talking people into signing up for the www.lastkisscomics.com sign up sheet. If you didn't sign up for a free web comic in your email every week, go there now and do it! Its very funny stuff, trust me.

Spider-Man was there. This helped get a few of the younger kids into the store. Some of the mom's even said to me that they saw in the paper where Spider-man was going to be here and so they brought their kids.
Artist Creator Nathan Bonner was there from IL, and he was handing out INDAVO a great comic that he published as a digest but also has as a web comic.
This is me (Allen) trying to look awake, I'm not a morning person. Notice the first appearance ever of the stand for the logo banner in the background for Fan-Atic Press. My cuz Harry Lee Hottle from Evansville made that for me and it works great! Michael Kasinger artist/illustrator was there from Lawrenceville, IL. He did some free sketches and sold some of his art. He also did a Morgana X drawing for me! Hope to have him in Slam Bang sometime soon.

Here is the store before the crowd was let in!

A Stormtrooper at the Star Wars Club table! A cool Spider-Man Sculpture display in the store.

Its the free comic book table before the crowd was let in.

Artist Jeff Lindall on the left is showing off his portfolio and handing out some HeroClix Wolverines....Jeff is another artist I'll have to convince to contribute to Slam Bang!

And here is a shot of just part of the Comic Quest store before the crowd was let in. Yeah, this is one large place with just about everything you could want in figures, comics and related stuff!

News about the upcoming SPACE CON in my next blog......

Evansville (IN) Currier & Press Article (Graded: "D")

2006-05-05T10:07:00.000-05:00

The Evansville Currier & Press did put a small article online about the Creators Alliance Meeting, but they didn't talk about FREE COMIC BOOK DAY (which was why we wanted the article) or most of the members that attended the meeting. Turns out the writer of the article didn't show up and evidently didn't talk to the photographer that did. Also they didn't run any of Elizabeth Fisco's photos that she took that night with the online article. (Thank you for showing up EF!) So all in all I'd give it a "D-". But since any publicity is better than none I'll bump that up to a "D". Here is the link to the article that I'm talking about: Evanasville Currier & Press

And while you are there hit the "Comments" link at the bottom. There you'll see my comments back to them. I think I was very good in staying calm about the whole thing. In closing, maybe they will try and do a better article later to make up for this? Or will they let someone submit the article for them next time?

---Allen Freeman

CQ Creator's Alliance Meeting -April 26th- Comic Quest Comic Store

2006-04-27T12:17:00.000-05:00

I went to my first meeting of the CQ Creator's Alliance Meeting at the Comic Quest comic store in Evansville, Indiana last night. Seemed to be a good turnout of about 15 people or so, all eager to hear my talk about Fan-Atic Press and my history of working in commercial art and comics for the last 28 years or so.... I met some great artists and writers there who I hope contact me as I was too nervous to take notes as to names and email addresses. But I'll be seeing most of them again on Free Comic Book Day on May 6th at the Comic Quest as they will also be setting up a table and talking to the comic fans, and shoppers on that day.

I really want to thank my cousin Harry Lee and his wife Brenda for showing my wife Bonnie and I around Evansville. It had been years since I'd been downtown or to the mall and shopping areas and couldn't remember how to get there. They gave us a grand tour of the downtown where we checked out some antique shops and pawn shops and let me get some photos of the area. They also help me carry stuff into the comic store for the meeting and actually stayed and listened to my rant about doing your own comics etc...Thanks again!

And I have to thank Bonnie for also being such a help and patiently waiting after the talk while I answered some questions from the group about comic coloring, and inking and stuff. She is so supportive and that was what really got me to bring back Slam Bang in 2003 from it's 13 year hiatus! And to get Fan-Atic Press going as a real comic publisher! (And thank you Jim Jones the owner of Comic Quest for also waiting while I hung around a little too long last night.)

Also there was a girl from The Evansville Courier and Press! She took photos of us and talked with me for a bit. I should see something in that newspaper on May 4th. I'll post it here or link you to it if they have it on their web site!

Of course I mostly talked about Slam Bang #1 vol III, as it will be out in a week or so....and people are already asking, "When will it be out?" So I'm assuming they are itching to buy one. I did some research at a large Borders book store and I see that most of the digest, square bound books like my Slam Bang are less pages and a bit more expensive. So I was glad to confirm that I have the price right at $9.95. My book is 200 pages, and I saw books that were the same size with 170 pages or less for $10.95.

So I'm going to put out another Free Comic Book Day Slam Bang edition. (#2) this week, and have it to hand out on May 6th. If you can't make it to the Comic Quest in Evansville, IN then visit your local shop on that day and grab the free books they are offering on May 6th. Or wait another year.....

I'm about to unleash my new "STORE" area on my web site later today....with a PayPal Shoping Cart no less.....finally all the cool stuff I have to offer for sale in one place!
http://www.fanaticpress.com

More shots of Evansville, IN

Peace out!

---Allen

Violence Unfolds Slideshow

2006-04-11T13:48:00.000-05:00

VIOLENCE UNFOLDS

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY May 6th!

2006-04-02T19:28:00.001-05:00

Looks like I may be a guest, and set up again this year at a comic store on Free Comic Book Day. This time I'll be in Evansville, IN of all places...at the Comic Quest. (Have to meet with them first.) It's a cool place, large, and gets tons of traffic, so I've heard. Wish me luck. And I may even have Doc Paradox #1, and Slam Bang #1 vol III, with me to sell by then....
Comic Quest
812-474-1133
2260 E Morgan Ave
Evansville, IN

Read this BLOG NOW! Christopher Moshier just posted this great blog about Morgana X and stuff he is working on for Fan-Atic Press!!

www.fanaticpress.com

And get your free area at www.myspace.com
And the blog there is: http://blog.myspace.com/fanaticpress
And I've found some places to store or host my videos and music files (or anything) for free! As much space as I want for free. That's a great price. Just ask me.

And I'm already gearing up for SPACE CON (May 13th, Columbus, OH. SPACE).....got my banner all set up with a free standing stand finally. And I hope to have some T-shirts, and something to hand out free, like a postcard, pen, or button....

And yes, I'll be roaming the halls filming my second video documentary for another DVD of the show. This time I'll have another team to help me! So two crews, two cameras to roam the halls...be ready with your 15 second spot....to advertise your stuff for free!

==Allen Freeman

Video Test (The Intruder)

2006-04-01T05:10:00.000-06:00

If this works it's a short movie I made with my 2 daughters 5/2001 just for the heck of it.

Enjoy! And if this works, I'll be posting more comic related videos I have here!

Slam Bang #1(vol III, or #41) is at the Printer! 200 pages!

2006-03-30T19:02:00.000-06:00

(TWO COVERS) Slam Bang #1, vol III, is a digest, square bound book with color covers and will be printed by Dream Weaver Press. Front cover by Charlene Chua, and the back cover is also a cover, by Christina Wald! Here is the complete contributor list (in order of appearance) for the book (200 pages!): Charlene Chua (Cover)(“GothGirls: Deadline” Pages 54-55) Brad Foster (art Page 2) (art Page 189) Stan Yan ("Mr. Flingpoo in Press Corps Whore" Pages 3-7) Jim Siergey ("National Identity Card" Page 8) ("Kielbasa Nova" Pages 38-39) Kevin K. Hanna ("Random Frog Children" Page 9) ("Ad" Page 188) John Lustig ("Lastkisscomics.com" Page 10) ("Lastkisscomics.com" Page 53) Matjaz Bertoncelj ("Baraho LKA" Page 11) ("Feed The Beast"- Pages 21-26) ("Nigerian Business" Page 33) Scott Nickel ("Zombie Girlfriend"- Page 12 & 94) (cartoons Page 58) Marianne R. Petit ("716"- Pages 13-17) Casey Camp ("My Life as a Robot" Pages 18-20) Buck Weiss (writer- "Angry One" Pages 27-32) (story "Sleepbringer: Manifest Destiny" Pages 41-42) Ben Ferrari (artist- "Angry One" Pages 27-32) (artist/creator- "Sleepbringer: Manifest Destiny" Pages 41-42) Paul Allen ("Brains" Page 34 & 182) ("Monsters" Page 93) Steven Mannion ("Zombie Island Party" Pages 35-37) Larry Blake (inks- "Paul Stanley" Page 40) ("Breath of a Gunslinger" Pages 73-78) Allen Freeman editor/publisher and: (lettering- "7 Deadly Sins" (Pages 1-8) (lettering-"Photograph" Pages 122-126) (pencils- "Paul Stanley" Page 40) (art- "Deer Hunting With Bears" Pages 183-187) (writing- "Feel Lucky?" Page 200) Ron and Justine Fontes ("Tales of the Terminal Diner" Pages 43-52) Matt Levin ("Politics" Pages 56-57) Anton Bogaty ("A Science Fiction Situation" Pages 59-63) Dan Lauer ("Iron Chef Funnies" Pages 64-65) Renzo Soto ("Supervaca" Pages 66-68) Mark Monlux ("The Return of Stickman!" Pages 69-70)("Comic Critic Page 71) All Smash Funnies ("Ad" Page 72) Matt Voss ("Chuck’s Bad Day" Pages 79-84) Jonathan Gilbert (writing- "Mercury Origin" Pages 85-92) Rob Jones (artwork- "Mercury Origin" Pages 85-92) Mike Rickaby (letters and tones- "Mercury Origin" Pages 85-92) Craig Boldman ("A Visit to Rural Pennsylvania" Page 95) ("Tailipoe" Page 145) Rob Meier (Destro) ("Girl Fixing Robot" Page 96) Daryl Hutchinson ("Artwork and Tarot Card Art" Pages 97-100) Tim Corrigan ("Fred and Marvin Comics" Pages 102-119) Dan Taylor ("Dr. Henderson’s" Pages 120-121) Kriss Salieri ("Photograph" Pages 122-126) Tyler Sticka ("Flies" Pages 127-129) John Sow ("When You’re Different" Pages 130-1353) David Johnson Jr. (assist- "7 Deadly Sins" Pages 1-8) Christopher Moshier (writer- "7 Deadly Sins" (Pages 136-143) Andrea Blanco (artist assists- "7 Deadly Sins" Pages 136-143) Alejandro Alvarez (artist- "7 Deadly Sins" Pages 136-143) Eric Lundgren ("Space Pirates" Page 144) Jason Jones ("Slam Bang Farm" Pages 146-148) (story- "Deer Hunting with Bears" Page 187) Paul Morgan (story- "Plethoric Man" Pages 149-158) ("Doctor Stiletto" Pages 164-167) Eliseu Gouveia (art- "Plethoric Man" Pages 149-158) Shelton Bryant (art- "Plethoric Man" Pages 149-158) Simon Bowland (letters- "Plethoric Man" Pages 149-158) Russ Maheras ("The Lotta Gall Show" Pages 159-162) Dean LeCrone ("Retribution" Page 163) ("Wacky Old People" Pages 176-177) Mau Russo (letters- "Doctor Stiletto" Pages 164-167) Kevin Brockschmidt ("Cartoons" Page 168) Ron LeBrasseur ("Blood Moon" Pages 169-174) Jeff Gaither ("Head" Page 175) ("Zombie" Page 199) (See some web news about JEFF. Edward Pun ("Under the Surface" Pages 178-180) Robin Ator ("Godzilla" Page 181) Douglas Chaffee (painting- "Feel Lucky?" Page 200) Christina Wald (back cover-cover.) and a special shout out for their moral support to; Todd Ritter, Chuck Haspel, Dennis Feeback, Gerry Freeman (mom), Bonnie Freeman (wife). Visit: www.violenceunfolds.com for all your heavy metal music of the future With PayPal $10.00+ $2.50 shipping. Or mail check or money order made out to Allen Freeman to: Fan-Atic Press, 3106 Dade Cv, Owensboro, KY 42303

Doc Paradox is ready! Willie Wonka on Steroids!

2006-03-05T00:09:00.000-06:00

That's right, the 20 page full color comic by Paul Allen called Doc Paradox is done! Written, penciled, inked, colored, lettered and everything by Paul. He is sending me all the pages via CD and I'll make sure they meet the comiXpress requirments and off they go! You could be reading the first in a series of Doc Paradox comics, in time for the SPACE Con, May 13th. Yeah, it could happen! Doc Paradox and his companion Trixie roam the Intergalactic Spaceways, Time Traveling around, trying not to screw up the Time Space Continuum in the process...... Go to this link and look at the first comic strip of Doc Paradox. Now he's 10 times cooler and has his own comic!

Slam Bang #1 vol III, is in production! Get it on!

2006-03-03T14:26:00.000-06:00

Send in those contributions pronto as I'm assembling the book now! There is still a chance I need more stuff as I'm never completely sure how its going to go until I get it assembled. More new contributors: Matjaz Bertoncelj (Solvenia), Ron and Justine Fontes, Christian S. Aluas (Canada), big promises from Christina Wald, John Lustig, Sygnin and a few others I'm patiently waiting on...seems true quality work takes time, or something like that. So I've heard.

Berserker:Brother Assassin has 16 pages penciled! (With about 20 more to go.)Wooooo, and I've started inking them. I'm doing the coloring, and lettering....hope to get this done before July. Wish me luck! Christopher Moshier wrote the script adapted from the Fred Saberhagen novel of the same name. (In case I forgot to mention that every blog entry...) And this will be issue 1 in a 3 issue series!

I drove to Evansville, IN which wasn't really that far from Owensboro, KY. And checked out 2 great comic stores there. Comics Unlimited which was a great little shop. Well organized and clean, and easy to find things. Then I went to Comic Quest. Wow, is that place big. Lots of back issues and 20% off the old stuff all the time! Sweet. No, I forgot to take any DRAWINGS to show them...but will next time for sure. As I'll be hitting the road off and on to visit the local comic shops. Fantasy Limited is the store in Owensboro, and they ("Jazzy" Jeff Peyton) bought everything I had out! Even the Space Con DVD! Wooooo, the big surprise is they still let me in their store. Go figure.

----Allen

www.fanaticpress.com

Morgana X Makes Progress! Slam Bang #1 vol III, is filling up!

2006-02-22T14:59:00.000-06:00

Rob Schneiders, the artist on one of the three, ten page stories that will be in Morgana X the graphic novel, has completed his pages! I just got the CD in the mail! Can't wait to see it! And Anton Bogaty is working on his 10 page story and plans to have it out to me middle of March! Wow! And I found an artist for the last of the 10 pagers! He is from Hong Kong and his name is Jim Lai. Wow is he great! Check this out: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/pictures?a=67b0de21b30fe4dcc4ab&sid=8CatmTFy0cuNA

See where the writer of Morgana X the graphic novel, Christopher Moshier has added some Morgana X pages by Rob Schneiders to his web site...http://makingcomicsstudios.com/upcomingreleases.html

And I'm getting some great contributions for Slam Bang #1 vol III. WOW! My ad at www.digitalwebbing.com is really pulling in some great comic artists and writers! New to the line up is: Scott Nickel (yeah, even more cool stuff from Scott!), Renzo Soto, Marianne R. Petit, Casey Camp, Mike Rickaby, Matt Levin, and more.....

For those that don't know....if you have a comic strip in Slam Bang #1, vol III, you get a free ad in the back of the book, 2" tall x 5" wide. And send me a short BIO and a little image to represent you to go with it. And your address for your free copy of the book....I plan to have it printed in April.
But deadine for this issue is March 7th now.

---A
www.fanaticpress.com

CONTRIBUTORS to SLAM BANG #1 vol III.....so far....

2006-02-15T13:39:00.000-06:00

First of all Slam Bang gets more stuff every day from some great contributors! I ran an ad in digitalwebbing.com and it's working! I'm making sure I can fill the 200 pages planned for Slam Bang #1 (Vol 3). It's looking better all the time!
So far:
Christina Wald, Anton Bogaty, Russ Maheras, Pat Aulisio, Jim Siergey, Stan Yan, Quinton Hoover, Tim Corrigan, John Lustig, Mark Monlux, Dan Taylor, Steve Mannion, Casy Camp, Robin Ator, Jason Jones, Paul Allen, Paul Morgan, Tylor Sticka, Scott Nickel, Jacob Warrenfeltz, Eric Lindgren, Edward Pun, Doug Chaffee, Craig Boldman, Sygnin (Charlene Chua) and more I'll keep adding....

To contribute: EMAIL ME

SPACE CON All LINED UP! LUSTIG GETS PUBLISHED By MARVEL!

2006-02-08T11:45:00.000-06:00

One of my latest photos. See more at: http://www.afreemanphotography.com

First of all I've signed up for the SPACE Con 2006. It's in Columbus, OH, on May 13th and spills over into May 14th. It's usually a very fun show and keeps getting bigger each year. This will be my 3rd year to attend and have a booth, in a row. Last year I even walked around and filmed 30 of the booth attendees, asking them why they publish, write or draw comics....turned out to be a very fun DVD. It's for sale at www.slambang.us if you want to check it out. Anyway, this year I'll have Chris Moshier the writing guru on lots of Fan-Atic Press books you'll see in the future, in front of my camcorder interviewing the creators at SPACE. Along with his friend Mike. (I think that's the friends name.) So should be an even better production than last years. Todd Ritter who was co-editor on a lot of the Slam Bang books in the 80's-90's, will return to the con and help run the booth as well as Christina Wald who also has shown up the last 2 years to help me. She also did the cover to Slam Bang #1 Vol III, which I plan to have out at this show!

Next on the agenda is John Lustig's made the big time. Again. He's already a big name in the comic industry with working with comics from Disney and his Last Kiss comics but now he's written comics for Marvel! Read a bit about it here. I'm glad to say I colored the image on that article and have been coloring panels for John for about 2 years or so....and I colored two of the advertisments for this Marvel project! Maybe I can ride his coat-tails into more work at Marvel! It could happen!

The cover for E.I. by Wunderman Comics is done. I did the pencils, inks and colors. And the logos on the cover. I'll see if they will let me show the cover here and then I'll post it. It will debut at the San Diego Comic con I believe. And there will be posters of the cover that I'll sign. I also lettered that 64 page comic! It's full color and has pencils by Ron Fontes! Wow.

--AF

DRAWINGS COMIC A SUCCESS! SWAMPED WITH ORDERS!

2006-02-05T12:12:00.000-06:00

I just paid for my booth at the Space Con, Columbus, OH. It's May 13th this year. And in a much larger nicer building. http://www.backporchcomics.com/space.htm">
Went from $25 to $45 but still worth it I'm sure. I plan to make another video of the show this year. Had lots of fun making the 2005 DVD, this time I'll have 2 assistants with me. Chris Moshier from NY and a friend will do the interviews and I can stay working the camcorder out of sight and sound, where I belong.

http://www.boingboing.net one of the most read blogs on the net, mentioned my comic - Anton Bogaty DRAWINGS. The 60 page comic size all color sketchbook of Anton Bogaty's cool girls, monsters and mad magazine type work.. I put out. I had a limited edition of 100 signed and numbered and still had 1/2 of those when this hit. I ended up getting over 100 orders in 2 days from this. Now I'm back to Comixpress to get more copies (regular issues, not signed and numbered limited edition this time). They lowered their rates on color comics so I may actually make a profit on this book yet!

I'm getting lots of great contributions for my Slam Bang #1 volume III. More Robin Ator and more Jim Siergey, etc....wow! New deadline for contributions is end of February. I'll have the book to dreamweaver press in March and get them in April in time for the SPACE con etc... It'll be a color cover, 200 page square bound book this time. Black and white interiors. Dreamweaver has the best price and specialize in this type book it seems. Still digest size as Slam Bang should always be that size I think. I will print up 500 copies for the first run. Will try and get Diamond to pick it up etc... I'll have a bio of all the contributors in the back and they all get a 2" x 5"wide ad to do what they want with. And of course they get a free copy of the book.

That's it for now....off to watch the Super Bowl. I've moved recently from WA (back to KY) but would still love to see the Seahawks win this!

Oh, and I cut my hair short and shaved off my beard for my new look this millinium.

---Allen
http://www.fanaticpress.com
http://www.slambang.us
http://www.allenfreen.us
http://www.afreemanphotography.com my new best photos site.
http://www.tigergrafix.com my old company is back....(site under construction but works.)

Some Updating

2006-01-12T13:18:00.000-06:00

I made a few changes at www.slambang.us so check those out. Mostly I'm announcing the new Fan-Atic Press Forum. http://p4.forumforfree.com/fanaticpress.html So run over there and get the party started.

David Johnson is penciling one of the Morgana X stories. I'll have a big interview with David here very soon, watch for it.

Arcana Studios has loaned me one of their artists. We are working out a deal for this artist from their studio to pencil Berserkers: Brother Assassin! More news as it happens. All this thanks to the writer of the script for this comic, Christopher Moshier. He's a deal maker and a writer! Of course Berserkers is a series of novels by the great Fred Saberhagen! Check them out at your local book stores if you haven't already.

Interview with Writer and Creator Christopher Moshier

2006-01-03T16:15:00.000-06:00

Let's Meet a Writer Working with Fan-Atic Press.......Christopher Moshier......

So what is all this Making Comics Studios stuff anyhow?

Making Comics Studios is a place for comic creators to hang their hats. The site started with a great artist named Gerry Brophy and myself as we teamed to make a comic called Weapon: Sonic. It was a place to post news and art for the book. From there it kind of grew on its own. As I moved forward in this kooky world called “comics” I met a lot of great talent who had the same ideals I had. Let’s get the books done and then shop them around. Before MC Studios I had been involved in a “self proclaimed” comic book imprint that did a lot of talking and not actually making the books. So MC Studios was also created through pure frustration. I decided if things were going to happen I need to get them going and it has been a learning experience ever since.

What comics have you published?

HaVeN #1 was published back in October 2005. It was a giant step. Just the fact that we put together 9 people in all parts of the country to make this happen is awesome. 9 different personalities brought this book together in a two year time frame through emails and about 6 phone calls. That is amazing to me. What made it work was the fact that every single one of them wanted to publish a piece of work. All of them put in 110% of what they had and got it done. We didn’t have to talk nonstop about it. We didn’t have to have nine million meetings. We just did the work. Outstanding people with outstanding class and I must list them all; Will Jamison (artist), Yul Espinosa (inker), Cathy Hartford (colorist), Jay La Valley (letters), Sean McGrath & Percival Constantine (editors), Tim Priebe (web designer) and Jerry Rascoe (artist and ear piece!) I can’t praise them enough. I had to deal with zero ego. Just a great experience!

What comics do you have in the works?

How long can this be? I have a lot on my plate. I like to keep busy. As you know I wrote a Morgana X one shot and adapting the novel Berserker: Brother Assassin for your very own Fan-Atic Press. Very, very soon I will be starting a Morgana X novel that will probably fill up a big chuck of time in this first quarter of 2006. I’ve never written a novel before so this will be a welcome challenge and if all goes well I plan on writing a HaVeN novel.

Speaking of HaVeN, MC Studios will be publishing HaVeN #2 and #3 in the future. Hopefully we can get both issues out in 2006. Fellow “twin tower” Jerry Rascoe and I are working on a one-shot called Urthe. He is turning out some amazing pages and we’ll be shopping that around this year. Gerry Brophy and I are still working on Weapon: Sonic.

It was the first comic I wrote and the first he drew, but he feels his work is not up to “snuff” as they say and I feel the same about the writing so we will be tweaking the idea. I’m not sure I am really supposed to say on the next two, but what the heck. Atlantis Studios will be publishing a one-shot for an idea of mine so as the old story goes if it does well it will be turned into a regular series. I don’t think it is my place to say anything else at this point until they make an official statement. Another book I wrote last year was a three part mini-series and a six minute cartoon for Nickelodeon called Ninja Monkey.

The concept was created by exceptional artist Terrell Bobbett (http://bobbett.deviantart.com/). That is in limbo right now as Terrell works on his other projects and of course he has to get the bills paid. Nothing against any of the talents I have listed so far, but this guy has the tools and the talent to go main stream. There’s more, but what has been listed are projects really moving forward. Beyond that I will do what I can to get the rest of the books at MC Studios in print.

What got you interested in the comic biz in the first place?

My first comic I ever bought was Batman and the Outsiders #1 when I was 13 years old. Growing up I had always been a superhero and sci-fi nut, but that one issue really drew me into the world of comics. From there I began collecting as many titles as my allowance could handle. We are talking 65 cent comics back then and now they are $2.95. GOD I SOUND LIKE MY FATHER! I stopped collecting a few years back and sold most of my collection. When I was younger I loved to write. That stopped once I got married many, many moons ago. It was when I was about 32 I had my mid, mid life crisis. A lot of personal stuff happened around this time and on top of that for the first time I realized the very thing that gave me joy, writing, I never practiced. That’s when I met Tim Priebe who ran a comic, movie, toy website called Cool Collecting (http://www.coolcollecting.com/). If you go there today it is a DVD site. Anyways, somehow I contacted him and started writing for his site. It was silly stuff; fan fiction, interviews, I wrote a fan film column, etc. It was on the Cool Collecting message board where Sean O'Reilly posted a link to his Arcana Studios and a comic book titled Kade. I was really interested because all I was used to was DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, or Image comics. So I loitered on his message boards for a while (as I still do today!) and thought to myself, “What is the easiest and cheapest way to get my ideas out there?” COMIC BOOKS! All the movie ideas or TV show ideas I ever had have now been written as comics. I’ve had a blast ever since!

What's your family and friends think of MCS?

My wife has always been supportive. I really want to succeed for her. Most wives would probably nag with the amount of time I spend trying to get my ideas out there. I’m not sure my parents completely understand what it is I am trying to do, but they love the pretty pictures. All my friends are supportive. My buddy Frank makes fun of me. He is a football jock type, but our common ground is beer and XBOX. If you think about it Football Fans are geeks too. They dress up in their fan colors and go to conventions. So I make fun of football and he makes fun of comics.

How can artist's and writers and such contact you?

You can always email me at cmoshier@rochester.rr.com or AOL AIM me at Spark1701. I may not always respond right away because I am in the middle of something, but I will get back with you. There are people that IM me for advice or to look at their work as I do others so it is important for me to help people in that manner.

What comics do you like to read now? Most favorite ever comic?

Right now I read Outsiders and Titans. They are the two books I started with and I just love the dynamics of both teams. My favorite comic ever I have to say is Batman and the Outsiders #1. It is in poor, read the heck out of condition, but it is what started me into this crazy realm. I must say my favorite story arc was The New Teen Titans the Judas Contract. Marv Wolfman is king!

What about your web radio station?

You can find it here for another month (http://www.live365.com/stations/spark1701) as the account has almost run out. I still think it is a good idea, but time is a factor. Live 365 is a site that hosts streaming radio. The concept was to play sound tracks from superhero or comic related movies, old radio shows, the Power Records stuff, and all the great BBC content as well as interviews with people in the industry, blah, blah, blah. As I began to get more into the writing there was no time to update the station. I put a few ads on the Digital Webbing site for someone to take the station over, but only got a couple nibbles. If I didn’t have my day job and were making my primary income as a writer then I could be home to update the content. At this time I am still working for “the man.”

Any hobbies we need to know about?

I collected toys for well over ten years. I stopped last year for the same reason I stopped collecting comics in the 90’s. I’m a big Star Wars fan and collected the action figures and vehicles.

Text book geek except I don’t live in my parent’s basement I only sleep down there when my wife kicks me out of the bedroom. Where was I? Too many dang exclusives! Every store and website had a Star Wars exclusive. It became to overwhelming to keep up so I decided that was it. I mean how many times can Hasbro release another R2-D2? I love season sets on DVD. I love sitting down for an entire day with some beers and watch half a season. It doesn’t happen very often, but to me that’s the cat’s ass (that means good). Right now I am on Smallville season 3. Is that a hobby?

What is your most favorite cuss word?

I would never cuss. That would be wrong!

Photo Gallery

2005-12-24T10:20:00.000-06:00

My little gift to everyone for Christmas is this photo gallery: http://www.imagestation.com/album/index.html?id=2115803539

Ok, it's not much, just where I pulled some of my best photos from the last year or two and bunched them up. And as always they have some clunkers in there but whatever...

Enjoy!

---Allen

Almost Back in Action

2005-12-22T22:27:00.000-06:00

This is a shot I took near the golf course where my parents live. It was about 7:30am as I was driving to pick up my wife Bonnie from work that morning. Yeah, they get snow here in KY.

Well it's been a very trying move to KY from WA. Had to stay with my parents for about 2 months. That was OK, but our 3 cats and their one cat didn't get along till the last week or so. We had to work out selling our house in WA which we finally did. Sold it to the one offer we got. They got everything in the deal, my pool table, washer and dryer and other stuff that my son was going to get. So he wasn't happy. And they got lots of kitchen stuff that went with the decor that we remodeled it to. So they were pretty happy I bet. And we turned around and got a nice house in Owensboro, KY. Not far from my parents and not far for my wife Bonnie to get to work. And I have a nice office in the upstairs and room to store my comics and stuff....looks like I designed it myself.

The only hitch was that we had some very high prepayment penalties we had to pay to get out of our mortgages in WA. Seems that they slipped in some things that we didn't know we were signing. But now had no choice but to pay them. This is a financial set back for Fan-Atic Press but we are not down for the count. Just another delay till we can recover. So I may just put out a few copies of Slam Bang #1 Volume III, enough to sell at the SPACE con and maybe San Diego Con. But will have to wait on my larger quantity publishing bonanza. And I'll do the same for Morgana X etc....

Morgana X is moving along with 4 pages all done by Rob Schneiders, so far. They look great! See all 4 pages below. And sales of Anton Bogaty's DRAWINGS have been fantastic with about 70 of the 100 printed copies remaining! Almost all of these sold through the web site and with refurrals from Anton's site (www.acb3.com) helping the most.

I plan on making more progress on Solitare and updating the web site at www.fanaticpress.com very soon with more new developements.

More news as it happens!

Happy Holidays...

---Allen

Still in Transition

2005-11-15T09:12:00.000-06:00

Well there has been some progress with all the Fan-Atic Press projects.....just slow progress. Scarlet Fields by Edward Pun has been all sketched out and he is working on the inks. It'll be a fanatistic comic, just wait and see! I'll try and show a bit more of it at www.fanaticpress.com soon. Slam Bang #1 (Volume III) is still in production....latest contributor is Brad Foster! Of course the issue wouldn't be complete without something from the master. He has contributed to just about every issue of the rag and I'm very glad to see he is continuing the tradition. Daryl Hutchinson will also have a gallery of images in the issue. I'd love to get ahold of his brother Joe as I've heard he has alot of comic pages that are begging to be published. I plan to have this book to a printer by the end of November. Wish me luck, as I also plan to be moved into a new house by then. Yeah, we are still living in my parents spare room (it's not really that bad) and are itching to be in a house. We will close on the selling of our house in WA on the 30th of November. Wish us luck in having it all work out as planned. We are looking at more houses this week but have our eye on a nice one with room for the Fan-Atic Press studios and storage for all the soon to be published issues....

Also on the plate is Morgana X the graphic novel. 3 stories by Chris Moshier are being done by 3 different artists. Anton Bogaty, Rob Schneiders, and Dave Johnson. This is turning out to be a fantastic book! Full color of course. There is also talk of a Morgana X novel by Chris, with more details soon.

Berserker Brother:Assassin the novel by Fred Saberhagen that is being adapted to comics is also moving along. The script by Chris Moshier is in it's final stages of being approved by the Saberhagens. We are still trying to tie down an artist for this series, then things will really get rolling.

Anton Bogaty's Drawings, is selling very well. We only printed a limited edition of 100 and have sold about 60 of them in just a few weeks! Next step is to submit the book to Diamond and see if we can get this out to all the stores! Depending on the orders we will go back to press and the name Anton Bogaty will be a household word. This book deserves to be seen!

Solitaire "The Witch" is still in production with over 1/2 the book penciled in great detail by Thiago Carvalho. Written by Michael Berry who just can't wait to see this out (Neither can I!) More pages are on their way and then it's up to me to ink/color/and letter this baby. Wish me luck!

The Adventures of Strange Boy has been in need of completion and hopefully I'll finish this up in early 2006. Written by my wife Bonnie, based on a true story of her younger brother, and illustrated by me. This will be in a children's book format but for all ages of course.

Doc Paradox by Paul Allen will be well worth the wait. Sort of a Peter Max meets Doctor Suess, this book will amaze everyone with it's intergalactic time traveling story, and original art and design. I can't wait!

So watch this space for more details of progress here at the house of idears.

===Allen

Guest Speaker --Ron Fontes

2005-11-04T07:52:00.000-06:00

I think this email from Ron should be shared (He said I could) so here it is:

Have you ever extended a helping hand to a fanboy and had it chewed off while he climbed over you, intent on The Top? It's sad to see so many half-baked comics and the greedy "creators" who dream of the merchandising and mega-budget movies they think will spring up in mere months. It's even worse when these starry-eyed egomaniacs are in their 40s. Damn, boys, it took 50 years to get Batman in a big movie. Even Hellboy has been around for 10 and Mignola paid his dues for years before that. Frank Miller has been working since the 70s. And they earned the privilege by working for other people, deferring their pet projects until they proved their worth.If you've spent 20 years being a cop, then you're a cop, not an artist or storyteller. I would never presume to tell a cop how to do his job. As for the initial hero-worship (which never fails to creep me out), that was his wish-fulfillment working overtime. Yeah, I worked at Marvel for a few years, but so what? I was hired by Special Projects because I didn't want to draw the superheroes. They wanted a skilled, competent, reliable, experienced person to stay in the job, not use it to platform a Career. It was a strain and boring at the same time. The ridiculous politics were unbearable. And all that stuff in COMIC WARS? Started then, got worse, so I got out.I'm not the world's greatest artist, actor, writer or film-maker, but I am better than average. That does not oblige me to try to exploit my talents or ideas to the max in a frantic rush to Fame and Fortune. I like a nice, quiet, steady life. I don't want to be idolized or make millions of bucks, I just want to live by telling stories and die in my sleep at a very advanced age. I want to be good to people, but I have found I can only be good to good people. The other sort just grab and boss and stuff themselves like pigs and they'll never feel gratitude. --rf

It's Almost Halloween night! Well tonight it is....

2005-10-31T06:50:00.000-06:00

But this posting is about meeting up with co-editor of Slam Bang, Todd Ritter (on the right)and his pal Lincoln Farmer (on the left) in Louisville. We met at The Great Escape, a huge comic store in Louisville. I picked up some of my old Marvels. (Avengers this time.) and Todd got some cutting edge new-wave books and we then took off for the movie theater where we saw the new movie DOOM. I've been a huge fan of the game since it was just a demo disk back in 1993 or so.....I learned DOS just so I could work with some of the free game editors out there which you could get from BBS sites. Yeah, the dark ages. I eventually made Doom, DoomII, Duke Nu'kem, Heritic, Quake, Quake II, levels......and all that time wasn't wasted as I was eventually hired by Sierra On-Line in Redmond, WA to work on 3D games! But I digress.....

We liked the Doom movie but I thought it was just a rip off of Aliens 2. It had some nice parts but they really just dragged out the search for evil in dark, creepy places.....They should have had the cool flying skulls, the teleporting on fire beast and some of the other great evil from the game. Oh, well, at least they tried. Oh, but they did have the BFG weapon. And they called it the Bio-Force Gun or something. But when "The Rock" saw the gun, he knew the real name of the weapon! The movie has some twists and turns that kept you wondering what would happen. And there was the coolest part where you see the fighting as if you were in the game. Nice touch.
The sets were very well done and you felt you were in the game most of the time. I couldn't help feeling that the movie was a Doom/Half-Life storyline. But that was ok. Having the dead scientists with names like Carmack was a nice touch. (John Carmack was one of the two heads of ID Software.) And Steve Willits was a game designer, level creator I believe....

Then we had some food at a great BBQ place. And I gave Todd his copy of Anton Bogaty's DRAWINGS. (He bought my meal for it!)

So I'd like for us to meet up once a month.

---Allen

2005-10-27T10:50:00.000-05:00

Just a few strange photos today: http://www.flickr.com/photos/88965341@N00/show/
Enjoy!

---Allen

2005-10-25T08:08:00.000-05:00

The wacky crew at Altered States Entertainment.

2005-10-25T08:07:00.000-05:00

I'm on the left and Robin Ator is on the Right.

2005-10-25T08:06:00.000-05:00

Bonnie helps run the Fan-Atic Press Table at Stumptown Comic Fest