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With Further Ado #179: Five and a Half Questions With J.C. Vaughn

With Further Ado #179: Five and a Half Questions With J.C. Vaughn

Posted on by Ed Catto

J.C. Vaughn had a busy year – but every year is busy for him. You might know him from The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, Gemstone’s The Scoop, all the very best comic conventions (when we have them), or maybe even his comic book work. Ooops!  I almost forgot: he’s now a published mystery writer too.

I wanted to catch up with J.C. about a very cool upcoming project: The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide to Lost Universes. It’s more than just a price guide. It’s almost a passport to all your favorite comic universes.  I caught up with him and this is what he had to say:

 

Question 1: What a great idea! How’d you come up with this concept?

J.C. Vaughn:  There were four main things that went into the concept. First, we’re always looking for ways to build on the incredible foundation Bob Overstreet and Steve Geppi have given us through their combined fifty-one years of ownership of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide thus far.

Second, for whatever reason, I’m completely intrigued by the topic, which started when I got my first Atlas-Seaboard comics (Ironjaw #1 and #4) in 1976.

Third, I put a good bit of effort into helping out on a DEFIANT fanzine and spent a fair amount of time online in groups for the original Valiant, Marvel’s New Universe, and Malibu’s Ultraverse. I think these are small but hardcore, under-served groups of passionate collectors.

Fourth, with all the record prices being paid for many comics, suddenly these affordable and mostly accessible comics in finite sets are very appealing to collectors who might otherwise be priced out of the market. Put all that together, and you get The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide To Lost Universes. I think the fact that this book is also a Photo-Journal as well as a price guide means that collectors and dealers will be using it well beyond the shelf-life of its pricing information.

Question 2: What was the first “lost universe” you were most eager to research?

JCV: I’m relatively crazy for Atlas-Seaboard and have subjected most of my close friends and associates to it for years. I’ve been researching it for years. Discovering that other people shared my curiosity for it only made it worse. I’m also pretty fond of DEFIANT, since they introduced me to Bob and Carol Overstreet, but every one of the companies or imprints we covered has devoted fans, people who love the comics they produced.

Question 3: Do you feel, especially with the recent Marvel movies, that the general public understands the notion of interconnected series better than they have in the past?

JCV: It’s not as if Star Wars, Star Trek, and other franchises hadn’t introduced the concept to pop culture fans and the culture as a whole, but perhaps we could point to tighter continuity being an element significantly furthered by the Marvel films in particular. I think their financial success has certainly made the culture as a whole more aware of and more accepting of our characters, and they now have a great understanding that comic books are the source material for so much.

Question 4: Were there any lost universes that you almost forgot, but included at the last minute?

JCV: Not really because the list is still growing, and we’re already working on the second edition!

Question 5: What Lost Universe didn’t make the cut?

JCV: The only things that didn’t/won’t make the cut are things that aren’t universes. For instance, I love DEFIANT, but Broadway, which followed – and which had some wonderful comics – doesn’t seem like it was a single universe.

As far as things not being in this first edition, without a doubt this is NOT because they didn’t make the cut, but because they will be in the second edition. At 640, full-color pages, there was only so much room in the first one. The second one will include Fawcett’s Marvel Family, Timothy Truman’s Scout mini-universe at Eclipse, Marvel 2099 and Ultimate Marvel, and several others, so again we’ll be covering the Golden Age to the recent past.

And I’m sort of sketching out Volume 3 at this point, as well. More to come.

Question 5 and a Half: If you could resurrect any one lost universe, which one would it be? And why?

JCV: This is a bit like my favorite Beatles song. I could give you an emphatic answer, and then ten minutes later give you a completely different, equally emphatic answer.

EC: Thanks J.C.! We’ll let it be. Good luck with the book!

The book will be available on February 16, 2022, and can be pre-ordered on Gemstone Publishing’s website.

The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide to Lost Universes
By Robert M. Overstreet, J.C. Vaughn & Scott Braden

The highly collectible world of lost universes gets a brand-new specially focused, full-color edition of The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide that also serves as a Photo-Journal of all the comics featured. From in-depth looks at the original Milestone and Valiant to Tower’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents and Charlton’s superheroes, and from Topps’ Kirbyverse and the MLJ/Archie heroes to Malibu’s Ultraverse and Marvel’s New Universe, this full-color book dives deep into Atlas-Seaboard, Comics Greatest World, Continuity, Defiant, Future Comics, Triumphant and more. Not only is packed with images and prices, but it also includes creator and collector interviews and insights.

With Further Ado #167: The Return of Conventions…? NYCC in 2021

With Further Ado #167: The Return of Conventions…? NYCC in 2021

Posted on by Ed Catto

Conventions and trade shows are great places to find your tribe and celebrate your passions or professions. But for the first hours of New York Comic Con, just held last weekend at NYC’s Javits Center, I felt a bit out of place. At first, it felt, to me, like going to your college campus about 5 years after you graduated. The vibe was a bit weird, and I was constantly comparing and contrasting the show floor to what was there in prior years.

The good news is that I quickly ‘got over myself’ and really enjoyed the convention. There were so many good things bubbling up, and it felt terrific to see so many old friends in person again. Given the realities of the world, there were more fist-bumps than bro-hugs, but it was still invigorating.

Here’s a few highlights and observations from New York Comic Con 2021:

Serious About Vaccinations

I wasn’t surprised, but still happy that ReedPop, the company that runs the convention, took vaccinations serioucospsly.  The area that they had staged outside the Javits had rows of tents and workers, so it was quick and easy to prove you had the vaccination and that you were who you said you were. I had downloaded the Clear app, as was suggested, and it all was seamless.

Inside the convention center, just about everyone had their masks on and the crowd size was such that we weren’t all on top of one another. Part of that was smaller number of attendees, and part of it was the new Javits North Building

The new Javits building makes it seem like a real convention center.

So many convention centers worldwide, and stateside are grand and gorgeous. I am sad to say that the Javits Convention Center hasn’t been that way for a very long time. The joke has always been that the Crystal Palace, the main entranceway, is inappropriately named.

The new Javits North Building is spacious and grand. It overlooks the Hudson River and even the top of the ‘regular’ Javits building.  The openness and long areas to walk between conference rooms will surely help spread out the future attendees – and offer lots of opportunities for Cosplayers to pose for photos.

AfterShock was #1

Without the bigger, more established publishers (Marvel, DC, Image) officially participating in the show, the biggest comics publisher on the floor was AfterShock Comics. They’re a great company (full disclosure- I have many friends there) just celebrating five years in business and 100 published comics series.  Word was that they had their best convention sales day ever – on the Thursday of NYCC.  Sounds like a rousing success.

Captain America Cosplay

It was invigorating to see the many Sam Wilson Captain America cosplays on the show floor. As you may recall – I’ve been a big fan of the many iterations of Captain America (here’s an old column). And it was even nicer to just yell out “Hey, Cap” and have that instant connection.

Excited for Crime

My Hidden Entrepreneurs / Crime Fiction panels had fans lining up an hour ahead of time. That really surprised me, if I am to be 100% candid and frank. This panel was all about how authors, and crime/thriller authors in particular, have to not only be good writers but be also strategic marketers. Their publishers don’t really do the marketing anymore.   I was encouraged by the fans that were hungry to talk crime fiction and by my Hidden Entrepreneurs – J.C. Vaughn  and Charles Ardai.

Artist’s Alley Was Where It Was At

Another result of absence of big publishers was that Artist’s Alley seemed so vibrant.  Anchored by ComiXology Original’s debut of Scott Snyder/Best Jacket comic line, there was plenty of the usual suspects (amazing artists like Billy Tucci, David Mack, Art Baltazar & Franco – just to name a few) and new up-and coming creatives.

The coolest part of Artist’s Alley – for me- was buying old comics from longtime pro and visionary Denis Kitchen. How many hundreds (thousands?) of times has he done that? And he always seems to be “on” and happy to be there. There’s a lesson there for all of us.

 

With Further Ado #115: Overstreet and the Hero Initiative

With Further Ado #115: Overstreet and the Hero Initiative

Posted on by Ed Catto

I’ve often said that The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide is more than just a much-anticipated book release with a bunch of back issue prices. It’s really an annual book release wrapped up as a pop culture celebration. Every year, collectors look forward to the new edition and opine on which cover – Gemstone Publishing releases many cover options each year – is their favorite.

But there’s another tradition within this tradition- a special charitable tradition that’s been going on for a decade. I caught up with Gemstone’s J.C. Vaughn, Gemstone’s V.P. of Publishing, to get the skinny!

 EC: Can you explain to me exactly what these Hero Initiative Editions are and how they work?

 JCV: Each year, beginning with The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #40 in 2010, we produce a limited, hardcover-only edition of 500 copies of the Guide exclusively for the Hero Initiative, always with covers by top artists. Hero and their affiliates are the only source for these books. Gemstone Publishing does not sell them, and as a matter of fact, we don’t take a penny for them, and neither do our printers. All of the proceeds go to the Hero Initiative. Continue reading “With Further Ado #115: Overstreet and the Hero Initiative” →

With Further Ado #111: Let This Be Your Guide

With Further Ado #111: Let This Be Your Guide

Posted on by Ed Catto

Just like with sports or politics, there are many anticipated milestones throughout the year in Geek Culture.  As kid in the late ’60s and ’70s, I knew that summer meant over-sized Annuals and the Justice League & Justice Society of America team-up.

Before Covid-19 interrupted every aspect of business and culture, there was a rhythm to the convention season, kicking off in spring with shows like Emerald City Comic Con and C2E2, reaching a summertime crescendo with Comic-Con International in San Diego, and then celebrating one last burst with New York Comic Con in the fall before a handful of smaller regional conventions.

One highly anticipated tradition that’s been around for fifty years is the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide.  Ostensibly, the place to turn for authoritative price documentation on comics, it’s morphed into a scholarly celebration of all domestic comics, an exploration of retailing trends, the last word in listings, a showcase for top artists and a validation for nerds everywhere.

Defying Covid’s grasp, the Overstreet Guide has delivered again.

Got it Covered

Each year, the Guide invites a top artist to contribute illustrations.  Back when I was a kid, we were enthralled with 1976’s Overstreet #4 with the Justice Society heroes on a cover. (All-Star Comics, home of the JSA, was revered in those days). We also loved the Joe Kubert Tarzan cover and the Will Eisner Spirit of ‘76 cover.  I remember laughing with our local comic shop owner, Kim Draheim, how Overstreet #7, spotlighting Porky Pig, missed the mark.  And Bill Ward’s Torchy cover on Overstreet #8 forced that year’s volume into the hide-it-from-your-mother category.

This year again offers top artists contributing cool covers featuring big properties.  This year fans can choose from:

 

  1. Spider-Man and Spawn sharing a cover by Todd McFarlane
  2. The Valiant heroes by John K. Snyder III
  3. Wynonna Earp by Chris Evanhuis
  4. The Defenders by one of my favorite artists, Kevin Nowlan

Continue reading “With Further Ado #111: Let This Be Your Guide” →

With Further Ado #003: Challenging Reboots

With Further Ado #003: Challenging Reboots

Posted on by Ed Catto

Back in 1985 fellow Pop Culture Squad-er, Mike Gold, was one of the guys starting and running First Comics. In one of his editorial columns, he talked about reboots. He mused about how some characters would only be written or illustrated by their creators, while others, like Batman, actually blossomed once more talented folks took over. His insights still seem fresh and this column is worth a read.

You see this push-pull all the time.  I’m not sure how fantastic the original Domino Lady stories were, but I think there’s a lot of fine writers at Airship27 who are really having fun writing the character. Tarpe Mills’ Miss Fury was a perfectly lovely newspaper strip. But after talking to Billy Tucci at San Diego Comic-Con, I can’t wait for his new comic adventures of Miss Fury in the upcoming Dynamite series.

And it seems that there’s a whole section of modern day Sherlock Holmes who carry on the Consutling Detective’s tradition.

Sometimes we do get stuck on one creator’s vision of a character. I’ve been having trouble getting into the comics of my old favorite, Daredevil, after Mark Waid’s spectacular run.  And I have always loved Robert B. Parker’s Spenser books. However, I’ve been procrastinating on picking up recent entries by Ace Atkins, who took over after Parker’s death.  My fellow reader-fans, and a couple of authors, tell me ‘to get over’ myself because the new ones are great. I will, I will …I promise.  Continue reading “With Further Ado #003: Challenging Reboots” →