December 28, 2008
Bring on 2009 already!

   If your year was half a crappy as mine and a whole lotta people I know, then you'll understand the sentiment. Holidays are always intended to be sentimental, but not quite this way, if you catch my drift.

   Hope you like the homepage makeover. Chris actually did the heavy lifting, I just gave him the scans. Didn't want to go too busy and interactive, as providing new content takes a buttload of time. I mean, should I make a video blog? No, I think I should spare you my nasal voice and mumbling. I'd probably obsess on retake after retake, like I used to on my answering machine before I was married.

   My Christmas movie recommendation? The original Die Hard

   A classic still 20 years later. Even though it came out theatrically in the Summer of '88, it starts with John McClane going to his estranged wife's Christmas party! Remember the scene after McClane took out his first killer/thief? He sent the body back down the elevator with a Santa hat and note for Hans Grubman (Alan Rickman).. The slow, deadpan way Richman reads the note aloud is priceless "Now I have a gun too. Ho. Ho. Ho." in that deep snarl of his. I took Rickman's "Ho. Ho. Ho." and made it a ringtone for my phone! Trust me, it's cool!

   Quick aside about Blake Bell's book, The World of Steve Ditko by Fantagraphics (Strongly recommended!)... Although I agreed to have parts of my 2/17/04 blog quoted, I wish Blake hadn't cribbed my best line without crediting me or this website in proper quotation marks...

   ...Burden contacted Crossgen employee and inker Drew Geraci, who promptly phoned Ditko. Geraci melted in a pile of fanboy jelly and handed the phone to Art Director Bart Sears...

   When read this way, it appears that Blake is goofing on me, but "melted in a pile of fanboy jelly.." was MY phrasing! It should have read According to Geraci,"melted in a pile of fanboy jelly". If you bring this book to a convention, I'll be glad to add complete the sentence and punctuation, free of charge! Speaking of which, I had to buy my own damn copy! But enough nitpickery: it's definately worth it: Lots of obscure and iconic art in a large hardcover that does Ditko justice.

   I am out-and-out thrilled to see Klaus Janson finally get co-starring cover credit on the latest back-to-print Daredevil trade paperbacks. As instrumental as Frank Miller was in making DD top the sales charts (during Frank & Klaus's last year, DD even muscled out X-Men as the #1 comic-no lie!), Klaus already had a long history with The Man Without Fear. The late Bob Brown, who's brief Marvel work was usually cursed with rushed inking, saw his art pop into 3-dimensional life under Klaus's divine pen & brushstrokes. Klaus kept Daredevil consistent through such varied talents as Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino and a return visit by Gene (The Dean) Colan. Lest we forget, Klaus also did a lot of coloring on the book during the limits of the four-color process and shoddy printing. His finishes and colors pulled the night down to the street as no one had before. Here's a sample of Janson's greatness. I didn't grow up a western fan, but I HAD to buy this comic for the Gil Kane/Klaus Janson cover alone

   I've been looking for an excuse to post this cover from my spinner rack.

   Salutieren, Klaus!

   Time to wind down and appreciate the GOOD things that life brings.

   1) Despite being financially strapped like a lot of Americans, Karen and I remain in good health and always have each other's backs.

   2) I'm still working in an industry that has become increasingly competitive, with inkers being in less demand than ever before, particularly at Marvel, where the trend is scanning straight from pencils for color. I can't say if 'old-school aesthetics' of inking will survive ten years from now (unless we adopt the cheaper-to-print black & white Manga format - ah ha!). Nonetheless, I continue to adapt, give it my all, and have great editors who entrust me with high-profile books, such as Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #2.

   3) Early Christmas gift: We found our missing dog Valentine, who had bolted out the groomer's backdoor and was lost for two uncharacteristically-cold nights. The five-mile span between the groomer and our house is heavily populated with businesses and traffic. After we, along with friends, the groomer and his employees blanketed the area with Lost Dog signs(with photo), we received a lot of calls from those who'd spotted her but couldn't catch her. She's a lot like the Gingerbread man that way. Finally, one morning at 5:00 am, Karen got up early to the last location Valentine was spotted, and found our exhausted and shivering dog, who wouldn't come to her, as Valentine was worn out and confused. Karen called me at home, I came with a box of treats, and Valentine came right to me, ignoring the treats. She really is a Daddy's Girl.

   And Old Man Gromit (our 14-year-old Bichon) is still hangin' in there, just a lot slower.

   What else could we ask for?
 
 
All characters & their images are property of their respective copyright holders. All original content (c) Drew Geraci. Please request permission before reprinting or reposting elsewhere.