Episode 24: My Ethical Conundrum About Owning Original Comics Art
Release Date: 06/23/2025
Episode 29: What Steve Ditko's Family Wants You to Know
Why Not Say What Happened?
I grow a bit verklempt this time around while I rap about the Spider-Man rock album for which I made sure the band didn't miss a note, remember watching Dave Cockrum and Len Wein create<em> Giant-Size X-Men</em> #1 out of thin air, pass along the surprising truths Steve Ditko's family most wants you to know, critique the Metropolitan Opera's production of <em>The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay</em>, choke up while praising Marie Severin's posthumous induction into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame, walk the exhibit hall at Baltimore Comic-Con where...
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Episode 28: The Fantastic Four Panel That Solved a Childhood Mystery
Why Not Say What Happened?
In which I track down the <em>Fantastic Four</em> panel which caused me to first enter comics fandom, look back at a 1975 <em>Planet of the Apes</em> contents page where I was credited for no reason I can remember, remain confused about <em>Daredevil</em>'s Matt/Mike Murdock subterfuge, laugh at the way "Fabulous" Flo Steinberg gave The Thing a super headache, and more.
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Episode 27: Why I Should No Longer Feel Guilty About Omega the Unknown
Why Not Say What Happened?
Having survived my trip to the Seattle Worldcon, I share a few comic book dreams, learn why I should no longer feel guilty about one aspect of my <em>Omega the Unknown</em> fill-in issue, read up on how Marvel Comics artists felt during the mid-'70s about writers receiving original artwork, explain why the Comics Code Authority didn't seem to understand how to read comics, reveal the way a wolfman was responsible for me being credited on my DC Comics mystery stories, and more.
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Episode 26: The Reason I Should Never Have Been Allowed to Write Comics
Why Not Say What Happened?
Rereading my mid-'70s run of <em>Captain Marvel</em> teaches me why I should never have been writing comics in the first place — but it also causes me to reminisce about how I rescued Rick Jones from the Negative Zone, the way the success of <em>Crazy Rich Asians</em> caused <em>Captain Marvel</em> reshoots, the travesty of the Teen Brigade's return, George Tuska's unseen Wonder Man, why I believe in back-shadowing, not foreshadowing, and more.
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Episode 25: The Time I Almost Ate Superman Co-creator Jerry Siegel's Hair
Why Not Say What Happened?
Tragic events and happy anniversaries cause me to reminisce about the convention where I last saw Jim Shooter, how my immaturity cost me my <em>Captain Marvel</em> gig, my sudden realization DC Editor Mort Weisinger could have had a connection to my quitting comics, the time I considered eating Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel's hair, how the Dreaded Deadline Doom discolored original artwork, my continuing regrets over accepting an assignment to write an issue of <em>Omega the Unknown</em>, and more.
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Episode 24: My Ethical Conundrum About Owning Original Comics Art
Why Not Say What Happened?
After three conventions in four weekends, I finally catch my breath to celebrate several important personal comic book anniversaries, sort through Marie Severin's classic covers, realize my discovery of horror comics was topsy-turvy, fail to answer a question about how to break into comics, remember Stan Lee's fear of the word "horror," appreciate the increased respect professional writing organizations are now paying comics, look back at the day Jim Shooter stopped sharing original art with writers, wrestle with the morality of my original art collection, and more.
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Episode 23: Why Howard the Duck Was the Silver Surfer of the '70s
Why Not Say What Happened?
Join me for a rambling panel about Howard the Duck in which I share the Marvel Comics chaos which caused me to be hired there in 1974, my regrets over having written an issue of <em>Omega the Unknown</em>, my ethical queasiness about owning original art, what it means when I say I knew Stan Lee before he had hair, my terrifying Bullpen encounters with "Jumbo" John Verpoorten, what Howard the Duck has in common with the Silver Surfer, my Times Square street theater with Steve Gerber, the time Howard the Duck had to be hatched instead of laid, how immaturity cost me Captain Marvel,...
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Episode 22: The Conundrum of Condensing Marie Severin into 1,200 Words
Why Not Say What Happened?
This time around, I grow anxious over a dream discovery of long-lost original comic book artwork, realize I was wrong about a certain Alan Moore/Frank Miller memory, contemplate the difficulty of condensing the life of Marie Severin into a mere 1,200 words, share the meager remains of what was once a massive comic book collection, remember there's an issue of <em>Fantastic Four</em> I need to track down to solve an early fannish mystery, rededicate myself to Marie Kondo-ing my creative life, and more.
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Episode 21: My Long Weekend Annoying MAD Magazine Publisher Bill Gaines
Why Not Say What Happened?
My latest look back at what I was doing in comics during the '70s has me remembering the weekend I couldn't stop myself from teasing Bill Gaines about the <em>National Lampoon</em>'s satirical slam of <em>MAD</em> magazine, why famed con-runner Phil Seuling castigated us fans one afternoon for mistreating our mothers, the words Gerry Conway wrote for Daredevil's girlfriend Karen Page in the basement of a Times Square Nathan's, how my 1980 DC Comics vampire story ended up as an episode of <em>Tales from the Darkside</em>, the continuing mystery of the martial...
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Episode 20: The Barry Smith Comic Book Which Caused Me to Disobey My Parents
Why Not Say What Happened?
In my latest look back at the comics field of the '70s, I share about the home away from home Phil Seuling built for fandom which earned his recent much-deserved accolade, whether the Ethics columns I wrote for <em>The Comics Journal</em> during the '80s burned any bridges (and if I even cared those bridges were on fire), the kung fu comic book series I'd completely forgotten I'd pitched to Marvel, why my job in the Bullpen stunned writer/editor/artist Bob Budiansky, the Barry Smith <em>Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.</em> comic which caused me to disobey my parents, my initial...
info_outlineAfter three conventions in four weekends, I finally catch my breath to celebrate several important personal comic book anniversaries, sort through Marie Severin's classic covers, realize my discovery of horror comics was topsy-turvy, fail to answer a question about how to break into comics, remember Stan Lee's fear of the word "horror," appreciate the increased respect professional writing organizations are now paying comics, look back at the day Jim Shooter stopped sharing original art with writers, wrestle with the morality of my original art collection, and more.