SUBSTACK 03
1. Stan Lee’s Party
2. Kickstarter
3. They Live tree topper
1. STAN LEE WAS A PARTY
Stan Lee made creating comics look like a party. He included himself and Jack Kirby as characters in the comics. They were always having a great time. Even the credits were exuberant. “Sensational Story by… Astonishing Art by… Incredible Inking by…”
Stan’s Soapbox, the editorial column, was great despite the terrible writing. A simple description would take a paragraph. Adjectives and adverbs were everywhere. He’d opt for alliteration over clarity and use big words when small ones would do. I’d struggle getting through a single column. As terrible as it was, that’s where the party was. In addition to hyping his comics, he chatted about culture and gossiped. Artists worked with friends, joked around, laughed. All while creating great comics. It was a party. I wanted to go.
Stan Lee was a salesman. He could sell a bicycle to a fish. But there was genuine storytelling in the comics. The Fantastic Four fought villains but they were a family. They fought amongst themselves, bickered, and teased each other. Underneath it all there was affection. The Hulk had a profound loneliness. The Silver Surfer lost his ability to traverse the universe and was trapped on Earth. Each story was silly but they rested on genuine emotions. Stan tapped into dualities of human nature, an intertwining of hope and despair. He had oddly insightful literary insights for a salesman.
The last time I time I met Stan Lee was on a panel called ‘Comics for Phones.’ GoComics was promoting a service to read comics on flip phones. At the time it was a marginal idea with a small audience. As we set up the panel, the moderator whispered an apology to me. Stan Lee was coming. It would turn into a Stan Lee panel and I could forget any attention (ie. sales) I’d hoped to get from the 100 or so people that were there.
Stan Lee wanted a dramatic entrance so he arrived late. The moderator feigned shock, “Oh my! Look who it is. I can’t believe it. It’s Stan Lee!”
The panel ambled along with Stan promoting a phone version his rehashed web-comic and failed TV show, Stripperella. Stan said, “Most superheroes work in the day, you see, and fight crime at night. Stripperella, you see, fights crime at night because… (dramatic pause for comic effect)… she works at NIGHT!” Crickets. He waited for laughter that never came.
Stan’s hearing was shot so I was tasked with repeating the audiences questions directly in his good ear. The panel ambled along until there was time for one last question. It came from a guy in a Spider-Man shirt, “Everyone here (gestures wildly at the convention center) is here because of you. How does it feel to be the guy who created all of this?” I imagined two ways to answer. Aw-shucks-you’re-too-kind or I-stand-on-the-shoulders-of-giants. Stan picked a third option. He stood up, pointed, and yelled, “We need more fans like you!” The fan threw both arms in the air and hollered at the top of his lungs. The room erupted. Stan Lee was brilliant.
Once, Stan Lee was at a convention in my home town of Portland, OR. I brought a comic Jack Kirby had signed to add Stan’s signature. He was charging $50. Forget it. There was no way I was going to pay money for a signature.
Happy Birthday, Stan Lee. Thanks for the party.
2. Neurotic Life of Kickstarter
The Too Much Coffee Man Kickstarter is over. I’m waiting on the printer for the books. The local union shop I used took the holiday off.
The Kickstarter funded in a couple of days which was a relief but it didn’t stop me from being neurotic. How much should I charge for shipping? Are ads on social media worth it? Should I use a fulfillment company? Everyone I talked to had different answers. Considering that I guessed on most of the decisions it went really well. The book looks great so far and the rewards should ship by the end of this week. I’m already thinking about new books for next year.
3. ANGEL MAKING
They Live is John Carpenter’s anti-materialism movie. Put on special sunglasses and you could see the aliens disguised as humans and the subliminal messages in advertising. All of which conspire to oppress humanity. But wearing the sunglasses allows people revealed the conspiracy.
Last year people shared a pic of an alien Christmas tree angel holding a CONSUME sign. I wanted one. I found the creator, Blain Hefner, on ETSY. Sadly, he’d only made one but he did walk me through making my own. I took the short cut of buying a pre-made angel body. Cutting off her head was harder than I thought. The saw on my Leatherman did nothing. A hack-saw barely made a scratch. The electric jig-saw slid around precariously and scuffed the paint. Finally, the bolt cutters did the trick. The video of the trials looks contrived but is 100% real. A foam ball as a base with DAS clay as modeling started the head. Then acrylic paint to finish it. Brian Hefner’s model is perfect. Mine is pretty funky. But I muscled through and got it done. If one is going to have an anti-materialism message for the holidays it’s only appropriate to go DIY.
Check out the video - with an Eric Din’s Fear of Everything as a soundtrack
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