VAMPIRE, PA #1 in April PREVIEWS

Vampire, PA #1 (of 3)
J.C. Vaughn, Brendon Fraim, Brian Fraim

Vampires in suburbia? Dean Marklin didn’t think so. In fact, he didn’t believe in vampires at all. Then he met one. Then he met lots more, and they all wanted to kill him! Now he’s a vampire hunter, and he’s pursued by a beautiful vampire while he tries to hold onto what’s left of normal life. How do you think that’s working out for him? From the writer of Zombie-Proof comes this trip to Western Pennsylvania’s oddly vampire-rich environment. Cover A by Mark Wheatley. Cover B by Jacob Jordan.

VAMPIRE, PA #1 will be listed in the April 2010 PREVIEWS from Diamond Comic Distributors under MOONSTONE BOOKS and is set to go on sale in June!

It's based on my short story "Vampire Hunter Dean," which appears in the prose anthology VAMPIRES: DRACULA AND THE UNDEAD LEGIONS, also from Moonstone, and which is on sale now.

BRENDON and BRIAN FRAIM are the artists on the series. In addition to working with me previously on Antiques: The Comic Strip, the have also done The Odd Squad, America, Jr., and other cool stuff.

The mini-series is being colored by multiple award-winning creator MARK WHEATLEY, the driving force behind such projects as Breathtaker, Blood of the Innocent, Mars, EZ Street, Lone Justice, Radical Dreamer, and more.

VAMPIRE, PA #1 Five-Page Preview

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY OVERSTREET

As even the establishment media has been forced to notice over the last few years, Free Comic Book Day has become a sensation. Fueled part by the success of the comic book movies and record prices paid for high grade back issues, the social acceptance of comic characters has never been higher.

So, wouldn't this be a great time to introduce some new people to the notion of reading, enjoying and collecting comics?

The Overstreet Guide To Collecting Comics FCBD 2010 Edition tackles comic book collecting, grading, storage, conventions, prices, and more. It showcases the issues facing new collectors and experienced enthusiasts alike.

Free Comic Book Day is May 1, 2010.

It's written by me, illustrated by Gene Gonzales (it's a comic book-text hybrid), with lots of photos, a cover by the Fraim brothers, and I hope it's some fun.

THE ROCKETEER RETURNS

The publishing history of the late Dave Stevens’ most famous creation almost takes longer to tell than it does to read, but even though the volume of the output is relatively small, its impact on the imaginations of its readers has been just the opposite.

The Rocketeer first appeared on an ad on the back of Pacific Comics’ Starslayer #1. The feature itself ran in Starslayer #2-3, and Pacific Presents #1-2 before Pacific went under.

The Rocketeer Special Edition #1, which had been intended to be Pacific Presents #5, was published by Eclipse, as was an album-format collected edition of those installments.

The Rocketeer Adventure Magazine #1-2 were published by Comico, and then #3, the final issue, was published by Dark Horse Comics, which subsequently collected the three issues into the a second album-format graphic novel subtitled “Cliff’s New York Adventure.”

The story, of course, spawned the 1991 feature film and sparked the renewed interest in pin-up Bettie Page, but it became a cherished favorite of many of its readers.

For those who have never experienced it, the tale of pilot Cliff Secord and his friends is steeped in pulp and classic adventure strip style. It’s set in the rip-roaring 1930s, with aerial circuses, tough guys, heroes, Nazis, and more, including Cliff’s beautiful girlfriend, Betty.

The Rocketer: The Complete Adventures collects all of the previous installments in a single, hardcover volume. The work has been completely re-shot from Stevens’ original art pages, giving it the best reproduction it has ever had. The beautiful paper stock combined with all new coloring by Laura Martin, who Stevens picked before his untimely death due to Leukemia, makes the book a treasure that is hard to put down.

There are two editions, both in hardcover. The standard edition is beautiful .

The deluxe edition is simply dizzying. Larger and including more than 130 pages of supplemental material, it’s actually hard to describe how cool a package this slipcased version is. The extra contents include rough pages, earlier versions, revisions, script notes, cover roughs, interviews with various contributors, unused covers, and more. For Rocketeer fans, it’s not to be missed.

Bravo to editor Scott Dunbier and everyone at IDW Publishing for presenting this important portion of Dave Stevens’ legacy in such stunning fashion!

MARK CHIARELLO'S OVERSTREET COVER

One of the great pleasures for me since my move to New York is the ability to hop a train and be at the offices of DC Comics just a few minutes later.

When DC's Adam Philips let me know that DCU Editorial Art Director Mark Chiarello was a big Overstreet fan, I asked to meet him.

Adam introduced us, and I'm happy to say he turned out to be a great guy. The reason that made me particularly happy was that I've been a big fan of his work for a long time (I think the Terminal City covers were the first time I noticed is work).

At any rate, we chatted and I asked if he'd be interested in doing a cover for the 40th anniversary edition of the Guide. He said yes rather emphatically, and here we are!