In Memoriam: Dwayne McDuffie

In 2009, I get a call from my mother, wanting to go to a comic book convention, in Novi Michigan, near Detroit. After brushing the the carpet fibers from my jaw, and placing it firmly back where it belongs, I looked it up online. And there found out everything one needs to know about the Motor City Comic-con, except the appearance roster. It was no big deal, I was still reeling from the prospect of going to a comic-con with my mom.

After meeting up with my mother at her Hotel, and getting settled. We went to lunch, had some laughs, and headed to the Con. It was fairly, underwhelming. There were a few notable exceptions, Doug Jones being one, and the other, Dwayne McDuffie.

I’d read everything he did at Marvel Comics (I was and still am, very much a Marvel Maven), and I am a rabid fan of his Static Shock, Milestone Media (at the time Milestone Comics), as well as his work on everything from the animated JLA, to his Ben 10 work. So, it was with a dry mouth and a sweaty palm, that I shook his hand, introduced my Mom, and croaked out my sputtering utterance of fanboy admiration. He was completely aware of my nervousness, and mused reassuringly, and then joked with me about attending a con with such a cool Mom. After stealing 15 minutes of his time, I walked away elated and giddy, because I’d just met a man whose work gave me a place to go, when sometimes as a kid, being in my world, was not a great place to be.

The next day of the Con, I made it a singular priority, to attend his panel. What the panel was, I can’t accurately recall, but it was 30 minutes of Q&A, with a man so knowledgeable about his art-form and his craft, and so very much in love with the medium in which he works, that asking inane, and often, silly questions, just to hear his point of view, was well worth the embarrassment of asking the same question twice.

There is no way I knew him as well as his colleagues, and now, never having a chance to work with him, I will hold onto the coolest moment, thus far, in my burgeoning comics career. The time I met Dwayne McDuffie, and he turned out to be a class act.

Cabblog 01.27.11

A day after the BIG FLAKE, the city and the streets are getting back to normal, and the great gladitorial battle for available cabs begins anew.

As I sit, victorious in a taxi on my way to work, the dejected waifish NY debutant flashes me a look of defeat and disgust.

Although I wonder who the real victor is, as it seems my driver is overly fond of "easy listening". As he sings, in robust tones, to Bon Jovi. And as a short cab ride, will rack up a fee the size of Liberia's deficit, I wonder if walking would not have been more prudent.

Bryan Adams seems to be a particilar favorite, at the moment.

Cabblog 01.26.11

The heat and the funk inside the cab, battled for dominance against the gaping maw of a wide open window.

It's hurting my eyes

Cabblog 01.14.11

There are any number of foriegn languages flying through the air in NYC. All are quite beautiful, that is when they're not being utilized to question the lineage, or the species of one's mother.

The vitriol would be less concentrated on a bus (surprizingly), but far less entertaining.

...I had an epiphany in my coffee

I’m at work, taking a break from what it is I do (web design wage slave), and getting my daily dose of “what’s going on in comics, film, and video games”. I do this everyday, to renew my inspiration and enthusiasm, which normally happens while I’m at work...

important aside: I’ll tell you about the significance of that statement later, for now, let’s get back to the epiphany.

...So, as I was saying, I’m at work, projecting my mind to the day when the work I do on a daily basis, will be the work I love to do now, in my spare-time - Comics, Films, and Videogames.

That’s when it hits me...

There are literally MILLIONS of people, energetically, and oft times frantically, working towards the same goals as I. They engage in the same rituals, recite the same mantras, seek out the same inspirational tidbits, and dream of the same same, ambrosia filled grail.

Then I wonder. What makes me different? How is my dream any more or less golden, what is it about me, that makes me shine brighter than the rest? What gives me a luster, that few others have, or will ever hope to have?

Now in the private moments of our own minds, we do one of two things, and I firmly believe this. One, we’re brutally honest, and have thoughts unmarred with past regret or issue. And two, we have thoughts based on learned behavior, past triumphs, and failures, consciously ignoring past regret and issue.

And that was the birth of my epiphany for today, and it is as follows....

It doesn’t matter what makes me different, I bought the ticket, I’m taking the ride, I’m having fun, and I’m not getting off until I’m good and ready.

End Epiphany.

Aaron Huey: America's native prisoners of war | Video on TED.com

Aaron Huey: America's native prisoners of war | Video on TED.com

It's just so damned exciting!

On October 10, 2010, I attended my second day of the New York Comic-Con. It was the last day of the con, and I was determined to not have that day end, without accomplishing a few goals.

Goal #1 - Meet Mark Waid, and Sean Gordon Murphy

Goal #2 - Meet a comic artist legend (or two).

Goal #3 - Talk with C.B. Cebulski.

Goal #1: Meet Mark Waid, and Sean Gordon Murphy

the connecting theme in meetiung with both Mark Waid, and man who's writing I've followed, but never thought I'd get a chance to meet, and Sean Gordon Murphy, an artist who I had no knowledge of until very recent. His work makes me redefine what I want to accomplish as an artist. I dig people who challenge me, and his work is the first time in a long time where I feel challenged. And meeting Mark Waid, an icon, and a real down to earth guy. Apart from sputtering like a leaky radiator, I gave him my card, and I will stalk him forever, because he challenges me as well.

Goal #2: Meet a comic artist legend (or two)

I met Joe Kubert. Those are simple words to type, and in that simplicity, lies greatness. Let me type it again...I MET JOE KUBERT!! Icon of icons, a living, breathing working, legend in the comic industry. This man has done it (literally) all! From superheroes, to true life tales, he draws, inks, writes, instructs, inspires, and puts to shame many in the industry today. I can't say enough about him. I spoke with him briefly, and his answers were short, concise, and perfect. He's the man. And I also met Bob "Freakin" Layton, the man who truly defined the look of "The Invincible IRON-MAN". You cannot look back over the course of IRON-MAN, and not see the genius of this man's work, in the evolution of the character, in bot look, and the stylized nature of his signature armor. He's down to earth, really funny, and still a very vital force in the industry, who is now venturing into feature films.

Goal #3: Talk with C.B. Cebulski

This was the one that I was the most anxious about. i wouldn't say nervous, because there wasn't any fear involved, but anxious because of who the man is, and who/what he represents. Now, i do not want to give the impression, that he's anything more than a man. From meeting him, and following his Eataku and Chesterfest blogs, he's the kind of guy you could hang out, grab beer, a spicy Szechuan fish taco, and talk endlessly about comics with...he also just happens to be Marvel Comics premier talent scout. That, and the fact that drawing for Marvel has been a long postponed dream of mine, for as long as I could remember. It was the very reason (that and starting a blues/rock group) was the reason I moved to NYC.

So, I met the guy, talked to him, shared a laugh, and he gave me his card, told me when I've got something to show him, he'd be happy to see it. Now when I say, that when I left that venue, you could not touch me... I mean you could not TOUCH me! I was ordained, I was made of celestial stuff, I was like a herald of Galactus, and no one could tell me different. Now, its not so much because of the man, who was gracious, jovial, friendly and patient. But because it touched the heart of a 10 yr old kid, who made paper cutouts of Iron-Man, Captain America, The Black Panther, and concocted fantastic adventures in the quiet of his room.

The kid who used to do that, who is still alive and kick-flipping inside of me, striving to not only be a good writer, but a better artist. That kid, will one day say "I draw comic books for Marvel"!

Nuff said.