Death

It took me a while to type this blog out. Death is the one thing that everyone understands. Even the worst of worst bosses understands that one would need (at least) a few moments to themselves when someone close to them dies.

Now Death means different things to different people and Death isn't just a family or friend dying it can be anything. I look at it as a loss. Such as death of a childhood, death of ones happiness, death of a friendship, even death of "things" such as TV, a home, even a car.

Now to me, every one's death is just as important as anyone elses. So I feel for a person who lost someone the same way I feel for myself. Not saying that if "Bob's" mom died I feel the same way I did when my mom died, I'm saying that I feel for Bob the way I felt for myself when it happened. Does that make any sense to you guys?

But this is not about my views on death (or is it seeing as how it's my blog....). It's about a death that just happened (or is going to happen). As I sit here my dog of 15 years is about to be killed. People like to say "put to sleep", but not me. Because that is not what I'm doing. I'm going to kill my dog. Yesterday, he got to a point where he could not stand up on his own. His front leg gave out. Now yes he's old, and he had "problems" but in my mind, as long as he could stand up on his own, he was gonna keep on living....

I spoke to a lot of my friends. And to them (mostly) it's not killing my dog. It was being selfless and putting him out of his misery. He was in pain which is why he couldn't stand up. That doesn't really help me. The fact is that he is gone. Dead. And I will miss him.

My home is a bit quieter now. and a little more empty......

EDIT: here I am 4 months past, and still I have dreams and continue to feel the emptiness. What's interesting is that as I dwell of one loss, the other losses in my life seem to jump up in my mind.

this is incomplete....and with death, the feelings, like this post will remain incomplete for a long time....



10/21/08 update: All this time later and I am still constantly reminded about death and all who I have lost. I read somewhere that the human mind has a failsafe regarding death where they can only take so much before putting it out of thier mind. I guess that's why there is humor at a funeral. People laugh at times where most are crying. I gues that is how people carry on.

Zombies on the radio

Tonight Live on "The Comic Book Novice" radio program, Peter Palmiotti, Hassan, Jennifer (back from cap watch 2007) and myself will be reviewing the movie "28 Weeks Later" SPOILERS TO FLOW FREELY. Seen it? Join us and let us know what you think. Havent seen it yet and plan to? Wait 'till after you see it and download our show from the archives! 9pm est www.am1240wgbb.com

A little more behind the scenes

So, 2 weeks ago (our 5-3-07 show) was another crazy one. More so than our previous one. The show was supposed to be about the movie "The Invisible". New girl Jess, wasn't going to be able to do the show and Hassan had major car trouble that week, so it was most likely that he hadn't seen the movie, and Jennifer was going to be on a Cruise. So it was up to me and Pete to see the movie and do the show.

Because of scheduling, Pete and I had to see the movie the day of the show. as an added bonus, after the show we were going to see special screening of Spidey 3 at the movie theater I work at on the weekends. So the day was to be like this:

Meet Pete
go see Invisible
Go to radio station
race back to see Spidey 3 (the screening was at 10pm)

Pete had to work his regular job that morning so we had to see the early afternoon show of Invisible. No problem, still have plenty of time to make it to the station.

I get a call at 4:30pm when we are supposed to meet.

Pete tells me that he just got up and there was no way he could get to me to see the show. Frantic, I told him to get there ASAP and I would figure something out. He had no minutes on his phone, so I told him to call me at a payphone when he was near. So during this time I decided to eat, make some calls and play bowling on my phone as I waited.

I get a call at 5:45pm.

It's a fellow employee from the theater asking me for a ride and informing me that the Spidey 3 screening is at 9:30 instead of 10!

Then my phone dies.

So now I have to go into the subway and hope that I see Pete come out of the train.

It's 7pm. No Pete, no movie.

So at this point I have to figure that Pete came, didn't see me, couldn't contact me and went home. So I left.

Now I had to think of a new show. At best it would be me and Hassan (if he actually made it to the station). So I had to go to the mall and get a car charger for my phone (it would take me to long to go home and charge the phone there and then make any phone calls and then head to the station).

Got the charger. It's almost 8pm now.

Turns out that Peter tried to (well, he actually did) call me 7 times. He was still there! So I had to go get him. Made a few calls, and got a Penciler to be a call in guest. Also made sure Hassan was going to be in the studio.

So here I am , past 8 and going in the opposite direction of the station to go and get Pete. AND I still have no idea exactly where he is, cause in each message he says "I'm gonna walk around". Rule #1 when you don't have a cell phone and you are meeting someone who is not answering his phone. Stay put by the phone.

It's 8:30 now. I decided that there is no way I can get Pete and make it to the station in time. Since I didn't want a repeat of the previous weeks show (see the last Tuesday's post), I had to turn around and leave him there hoping he would call again so I could tell him to go home.

As soon as I turn around he calls. I tell him the situation and also tell him about Spidey 3. He's like "Screw you guys, I'm going home!"

Not more than 2 minutes later He calls back. Turns out that he didn't bring extra cash with him b/c I usually drive him home after the show and he used up all his change trying to call me. So he was stranded. Rule #2 when ever going anywhere, make sure you have train/bus fare on your metrocard.

I just made it to the station.........


10/21/08 update: Boy, what a day that was. I should have just did my own thing. Saved myself the hassle. Looking back, I regret all the little extra things I did. I think I made the business too personal.

Spidey's on the radio

Tonight (Live) on "The Comic Book Novice" radio show, New Girl Jess joins Hassan, Peter Palmiotti, and myself as we talk about the record breaking Spiderman 3. Spoliers included! If you've seen it, join us and call in and share your thoughts. 9pm EST www.am1240wgbb.com, if not, wait to see it then download our show from the archives. Afterwards, leave your comments here!

A little behind the scenes

So the last two weeks were...interesting regarding the show. Normally, Peter Palmiotti takes the L.I.R.R. to the radio station and I pick him up from there. Sometimes I am late and I have had others give him a ride from the (train) station to the (radio) station. On our 4/26 show, Pete was the one who was running late. He missed his train and the next one (which he was on when he called me) would not arrive until 9:35pm. Hassan (at the time) was also running late (traffic). He was coming from work from Wizard and everything was backed up. Jennifer had off, and The new girl Jess wasn't able to come in. We had a call in guest for that show, so that meant that Pete, Hassan, and our guest could not all call into the show. So I had to try and meet Pete at an earlier station and race to the studio.

I got him at 8:53pm.

So I told Hassan not to call in and I called the radio station and told him the situation. We decided to do the show from the car until we got to the station. Despite all that, I think the show went pretty well, even Jennifer called in towards the end as a pleasant surprise.



10/21/08 update: That was a drain on me...Picking up (and dropping off people) on Thursdays. I tried to do that to make up for not paying them. That took its toll on me. Calling in to the show was always meant to be a back up. It was easier to do, but it encouraged bad practices. To be a regular on the show you had to be in the studio.

Tonight's show

Tonight (Live) on "The Comic Book Novice" radio show we will have a movie review of the film "Invisible". Spoilers abound! 9pm est. www.am1240wgbb.com. Seen it? tell us what you thought! Afterwards leave your comments here.

Pirates of the Burning Sea

MFC Studios produces The Comic Book Novice, a comic book themed multi-media experience. We have a radio show, blogs, and video interviews. This is an interview with Jess LeBow, the content manager of the upcoming MMO "Pirates of the Burning Sea" from Flying Lab Software, that was shot at the 2007 New York Comic Con.

tonight's show

Tonight (live) on "The Comic Book Novice" radio show, our guest will be comic book writer Dave Ryan. He is also the brain child of the upcoming "War of the Independents" comic which will be published by Arcana Comics (www.arcanastudio.com). Also this will be part 3 of our 3-part listener appreciation shows. Listen in! 9pm est. www.am1240wgbb.com afterwards, leave you comments here about this weeks show.

Late meet

Today I had a meeting with my web master. It went really good (except for the drive back!). Things are moving forward. We talked about getting more than one intern (which boggles my mind), were going to try to do some live video recordings and put it right up on the site (at the philly con) and we talked about all the stuff needed for the con and the general direction of the web site. Looks good!

10/21/08 update: The live video feed....a good idea, but we just couldn't get it to work. I guess (for now) it will remain a dream of mine.

Tonight's show

Tonight our guest will be Theresa Pudenz (http://www.burningsea.com/) she will be discussing her new MMOR game "Pirates of the Burning sea". Also tonight is part 2 of our listener appreciation segment. Listen in and leave your comments here.

Random Thoughts

As I sit here recovering from my (for now anyways) final dentist appointment. I am thinking about many things. The Don Imus thing...If you actually heard it, it really wasn't racial, nor was it started by him...Don Ho...He died the other day at (I believe 76) I saw him once in Hawaii (got the photo to prove it). It was a good show....Getting ready for the Philly and Big Apple Con...It's gonna be a race to have everything done in time. But things are moving in the right direction....The new girl for the show...Jess is doing fine, but her availability is crappy.....The intern...Will I get one, how exactly will that work out? The bus tour..it's still a year away, but it seems like we are way behind schedule...My comic book that I'm slated to write. It's called "Triple Threat" a tie-in to the "War of Independents" cross over that Dave Ryan is doing (featuring my character)...more on that next week!


10/21/08 update: Ah, the bus tour. The only good thing I can say about that is: It wasn't my idea, and (thankfully) It didn't cost me a dime. Once I saw that it wasn't going to happen (due to the timetables and lack of co-ordination). I Simply distanced myself from that and just focused on me going to the SDCC.

Tonight's Show

Tonight as our guest in the studio, we will be talking to Mark Mazz (www.mazzstudio.com). Check out his site and tune in. www.am1240wgbb.com 9pm est

Internal affairs (part 3)

Ok, I went today and spoke to the "Intern guy". Turns out that I didn't need any forms (which I was led to believe). All I need to do is give the guy an...well, I have to advertise about my company to get an intern. Like a REAL JOB! So now (while I sit here in pain from my root canal) I have to think of a way to sell myself. I mean I have been doing that (with trying to get advertisers, and listeners) but this is different. this is someones life, their career......I'll keep you informed!



10/21/08 update: I made my pitch and got no hits.

Internal affairs (part 2)

Yep, it's April already and I'm supposed to (well, I already went) go to Nassau Community College to see if I can get an intern. I went to both NCC and Hofstra in January and NCC told me to come back in April (Hofsta didnt pan out).
So here we are and I have a follow up appointment tomorrow. Now I'm just eager to get anyone to be an intern. Before I was concerned about the "filtering process" but I think it's gonna be slim pickings....
I think that if I'm lucky, not only will I find a creative person, but someone who's personality fits in with the crew.
Oh, and someone with a car... I'll post a follow up on wednesday...

Turtles Tonght!

Tonight on "The Comic Book Novie" radio program (live!), We will be reviewing the new Ninja Turtle movie. Seen it? Call in 9pm est www.am1240wgbb.com

Preparing for the con

After last week's show, I was talking to Peter Palmiotti about the upcoming conventions. In June there are 3 (so far) that I know of. The MOCCA, the Philly Wizard con, and the Bigapple con. so that's 3 weekends out of 4. We started to brain storm about attending (at least) two of them. Pete said "If we are going to do that, then we should have stuff to sell there."

As many of you may or may not know, having a table cost money, and it would be unwise to not try and recoup some of that money.

So here's what we are working on so far. We are going to have Bill Tucci do a print promoting my comic (due out next year, maybe sooner....) "The Chosen Few". I figure a color print can go for $10 bucks. We plan on having Bill sit with us or next to us so that he can sign the prints. I have Penciler Brian Kong working on a cover for our new CD that we plan to release in June, Our new "Best of" "The Comic Book novice". It will have all new clips from past shows and if I manage to pull it off, we will also have our old CD's for sale as well....


10/21/08 update: Due to contracts, We never got Bill to do the promo piece. I instead turned to (Savage she-Dragon artist) Franchesco! to take up that duty. He did a bang up job and the art was turned into our cover for the book.

Tonight's show

Tonight on "The Comic Book Novice" radio show, Hassan, Pete and I (along with the new gal Jess) will be talking about The graphic novel (or trade paperback) vs. publishing a monthly comic. Feel free to give us your thoughts! 9pm est www.am1240wgbb.com after you listen in leave any comments here!

This is now

I was just thinking over the weekend how things have changed. I was remembering how I had given myself 6 months to see if this endeavor would be feasible. Last time I really didn't give myself a time line, I just went for it sink or swim.

I sank.

Hard.

But I didn't drown. I took what i had learned and waited "until things were "as good as they were going to get" before trying this again.

So here we are. Before I didn't have a web site, I do now. Before I was focusing on money coming in, this time i am focusing on marketing, promotion. Last time I used to have difficulty booking guests or getting the show ready before Thursday, now I am weeks (and in some cases) months ahead. Before I had little or no help from people on the show (Except Jennifer, she really was behind me on this), now Hassan has stepped up to the plate and Peter (who replaced Todd, for those of you who remember) is now a big part of the show. I now have contacts and made business relationships that I didn't have before. Things look like they are going in the right direction.

With Jennifer leaving the show, i will not have her unique perspective that she brought to the show. Jess will do fine, but she wont be there all the time.

So if you see us at a convention with new faces, and new stuff to promote/give away/sell and wonder (hopefully in a positive way) "what happened to them?" Just remember that was then, this is now.....



10/21/08 update: I swam a little longer this time. I think I actually have stuff to show for it. My comic is being published, and who knows, the radio show may come back one day.....

Tonight's show

Tonight on the radio show, our call in guest will be James Rodriguez from Nova Star Studios, Dreamchilde Press, and C.A.G. (the comic artist's guild). Listen to the show and post your thoughts/comments here.

Captain America Dies (again)

Many of you don't know that I am waaay behind on my comic book reading. So while at my "day job" I take the time and read as many comics as I can. Some I can't read because I am missing some issues, and I like to get the whole story. But I have so much to read that really isn't an (pardon the pun) an issue.

Anyways...I just finished reading Marvel Comic's "Last Man Standing", "Last Planet Standing", and "A-Next" second series. It was an uneven tale, by Tom DeFalco, but still a good read if you want to know the whole story. In it, Captain America died and gets turned into a star by Thor. This series of books are set in the M2 Universe which (at one point in time) was supposed to be the "official" future of the Marvel Universe set (about (10 years ahead). Seeing as how I still haven't read "Civil War" or "Captain America" issue 25, It was a weird feeling to see him die even tho he was just killed. I wonder if that lessened the effect of the story.....


10/21/08 update: Death in comics have seem to lost it's meaning to me. You know they are going to come back. Since comics (at least now-a-days) are less...fluid, you can always go back and tell more stories about a character who has died without brining them back. So I say if you kill them off. Keep them dead.