Jul
22

Hey, Kids! E-Books!

Paul Kupperberg on July 22nd, 2010

I am a proud member of the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers (IAMTW), consisting of all the fine women and men who write your favorite media tie-in books and stories, from novels based on Monk, Burn Notice, Murder She Wrote, or the latest blockbuster movie novelization, to the comic books and coloring books featuring Dr. Who and the Penguins of Madagascar.

It’s only natural that you get almost 200 writers together, you’re gonna wind up with a book! In this case, it’s Tied In: The Business, History, and Craft of media Tie-In Writing, featuring articles by such tie-in luminaries as Tod Goldberg, Jeff Marriotte, Max Allan Collins, Elizabeth Massie, Donald Bain, Robert Greenberger, David Spencer, Greg Cox, Burl Barer, Jeff Ayers, Nancy Holder, John Cox, Brandie Tarvin, William C. Dietz, Alina Adams, William Rabkin, and my own humble self (“Pictures to Prose: Comic Book and Comic Strip Tie-Ins,” page 77). It’s a fairly complete survey of the American media tie-in scene from early on through today, written by the folks who write these things and is edited by our illustrious co-founder, Lee Goldberg. I’ve been learning a bit myself reading through it!

Tied In: The Business, History, and Craft of Media Tie-In Writing is currently available as an e-book at Smashwords or Amazon (you’ll find a link to the right). An ink and paper edition will be available in a few weeks, published through Amazon CreateSpace. I’ll let you know when that happens!

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Jul
21

Hey, Kids! Books!

Paul Kupperberg on July 21st, 2010

Two new books from my friends at Stone Arch Books, part of their DC Super Heroes line! First up is my fourth Superman book, The Shadow Masters, featuring art and color by two old buddies from my DC editorial days, Rick Burchett and Lee Loughridge.

Next, my one and only Wonder Woman book in the series, Dr. Psycho’s Circus of Crime! (clowns really are creepy!), with art by Dan Schoening, a name that’s new to me but who did an outstanding job!

If you’re interested, just find the link on the right and you can order straight from here!

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Jul
17

The Rest of the Glory!

Paul Kupperberg on July 17th, 2010

And now, the thrill-packed conclusion to, “I Fought Groout, The Creature Who Came From the Cracks in the Earth!” (click on images to see them at a readable size) by myself, Rick Stasi, and Dick Ayers…

(c) DC Comics

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Jul
15

Glory, Glory, Hallelujah!

Paul Kupperberg on July 15th, 2010

In one of the myriad versions of the Justice League that DC Comics did during the 1990s, they introduced a World War II character named General Glory. General Glory was supposedly the comic book superhero that Green Lantern Guy Gardner grew up reading, but, in reality, the General really did exist and his comic book adventures where actually part of his elaborate cover created by the U.S. government.

I wrote a bunch of General Glory stories for the pages of Justice League Quarterly. These stories were supposedly reprints of GG stories published over the decades, so I would do stories in the style of a 1950s Mort Weisinger-edited Superman story (penciled, for verisimilitude, by 1950s Superman-artist supreme, Curt Swan), a 1990s Image story, a riff on Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns…or, this puppy, in the style of a 1950s Marvel Stan Lee/Jack Kirby monster comic, originally opublished in Justice League Quarterly #16 (the All-Glory issue, all by me). While we couldn’t get Jack to pencil this particular story, his being dead and all, we called on my old buddy and brother-from-another-mother Rick Stasi, who jumped in to create a perfect pastiche of a King Kirby tale, and then got Dick Ayers, who actually inked most of the Kirby monster stories this was derived from, to finish the art! So, without any further ado, here is “I Fought Groout, The Creature Who Came From the Cracks in the Earth!” Click on images to see them at a readable size, and tune in tomorrow for the stunning conclusion…

(c) DC Comics

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Jul
7

Still Crass and Commercial After All These Years

Paul Kupperberg on July 7th, 2010

Just a reminder that over on Crass Commercial Kupperberg, I’m selling copies of scripts and proposals, signed books and comics…and, while it lasts, the few pages of original comic book art I’ve acquired over the years. Most of my art was ruined in a flood a couple years back, but some survives. I’m starting with pages from my run on Vigilante in the late-1980s. Three pages of art (penciled by Tod Smith, one inked by Rick Magyar, the others by Rick Burchett) went up this morning. They all feature Vigilante, and one page also features Peacemaker.

Hope you’ll take a look!

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Jul
7

Let’s Do The TIME WARP Again

Paul Kupperberg on July 7th, 2010

In 1979, DC launched a science fiction title, Time Warp. It was a 64-page $1.00 and tried, bless its heart, to be “real” science fiction. It was closer than anything DC had done before, like Strange Adventures, and featured some good writing and lovely art. It last all of 5 issues.

I wrote a story that appeared in the last issue, “Union In Steel,” that actually made the cover, by Michael Kaluta (!). Don Newton penciled and Steve Mitchell inked. I’d have to go back and reread it, but all I remember about the story is the guy is a cyborg vampire, or something.

I also wrote “The Man Who Would Be Conqueror,” a 5-pager, drawn by Michael Adams and, I believe, Steve Mitchell again, that was sent to the inventory drawer with the death of Time Warp. Looking at the science fiction gimmick cliche it wound up being, I should be grateful for that…instead, in my never ending quest to entertain you (both of you, in fact!) and to embarrass myself (and please click on images to see them at a readable size to maximize my embarassment), I present:

(c) DC Comics

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Jul
5

Hembeck and Other Strange Stuff

Paul Kupperberg on July 5th, 2010

More discoveries from the bottom of the file cabinet!

A file folder labeled “Autographs/Sketches,” containing, among other things, personalized autographs from Gumby & Pokey creator Art Clokey (“Hi, Paul–Have a Gumby life, Art Clokey”…words to live by, my friends) and Mickey Spillane; a postcard from author and Elric creator Michael Moorcock (signed “Mike”); signed notes from Joe Simon (as in …& Kirby), Dick Sprang (where the “good” Batman artist of the 1940s and 1950s thanks me for a short bio I wrote of him and calls me a “superb editor”!!); an envelope with a Bill Sienkiewicz Joker scrawled on it, waving and speaking my name; a thank you note from Lynda Fox Cohen, daughter of Golden and Silver Age great, writer Gardner Fox; a Brent Anderson drawing of the villain in the Judge Dredd story he was then drawing for me on a note that accompanied new pages he had sent in; an illustrated note from Sergio Aragones that he sent along with a late voucher for a Wonder Woman pin-up he’d done for me…and the piece below, a fan letter from Uber-fan and cartoonist, Fred Hembeck on an issue of The Flash that I edited.

(c) respective copyright holders

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Jul
3

Now THAT’S the Spirit!

Paul Kupperberg on July 3rd, 2010

The archaeological dig through my past continues as old files are sorted and full closets are emptied, yielding all sorts of wonderful and forgotten (or, in some cases, wonderfully forgotten!) treasures, personal and historic. Including an amazing and previously unknown piece of work by a seminal creator of the comics business; a Google search of said work produced zero results; I’m in touch with the creator’s official biographer and we will be pursuing, at some point soon, a way to get this into publication with the family’s blessing…but that’s neither here nor there! We were, after all, talking about me.

Circa 1987, I apparently wrote up a hunch of ideas and sample scripts to submit to Cracked Magazine, the long-running Mad impersonator. One was a general piece, “What If Everybody Got In On The Max Headroom Craze?” (My guess is the result would have been that they too would be a forgotten pop cultural reference by now.) I also pitched a couple of ideas, “Wrestling From the Dark Side” and “The Cable-Ready World of Skeeter Kornfeld,” an ongoing feature that would have allowed for all sorts of TV parodies. AND, “The Spookit,” a parody of Will Eisner’s The Spirit! My guess is the late-1980s TV movie had recently aired and, being an Eisner fan (although, who isn’t?), I probably just went with it.

At any rate, I never did sell to Cracked, but my efforts at funny survive. Here, for you to mock and judge harshly (click on images to view them at a readable size), the unpublished script of “The Spookit”:

(c) respective copyright holders

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Jul
2

Stuff For Sale

Paul Kupperberg on July 2nd, 2010


See that link to the right? It leads to my new sister website, Crass Commercial Kupperberg, my own little stab at ‘e-commerce.’ I’ve uncovered some interesting artifacts from my career in recent months, including old comic book scripts, series proposals, signed books and comics, and whatever else I think might be of interest.

I hope you’ll check it out…maybe even pick something up. This stuff makes great Bar Mitzvah and graduation presents!

Okay, maybe not. But look anyway.

And thanks!

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Jun
27

Vague Memories of Mr. T Past

Paul Kupperberg on June 27th, 2010


Another unpublished script found in the files…one appropriate to the month in which we saw the release of the A-Team movie. It’s for a 2-page strip called “Mr. T’s Commandment”. From the address on the manuscript, this was written some time between 1985 and 1987. I only vaguely remember the job, which was for a custom comic but I don’t recall in connection to what. I pity the poor fool that hadda write this!!

Click on the images below to see them in a readable size. Everything here is copyright by the people what hold ’em!


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