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DavidTai	Ask Mark Evanier!	Lead	[-]
Posts: 5055 (01/18/08 2:14 PM) Forum Moderator Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Tags : mark evanier Remove this ad With Mark Evanier's permission. Mark is willing to answer questions about comics, comics history, and whatever he's worked on. And everybody be sure to thank him for taking time out of his busy schedule! Thank you, Mark! -------------- Brother Eye is watching. -------------- Last Edited By: DavidTai 01/18/08 2:31 PM. Edited 2 times.
sterlling		#1	[-]
Posts: 3251 (01/18/08 2:24 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Hhmmm....how about a general run-down of what you're up to these days work-wise. What are you working on, plan to work on or hope to work on in the near future. Also any plans to make it back to the San Diego Con this year? Good to see you on these boards and hope you can continue to post as you have time. Nice to have someone around with a background in comics and TV. PS: Are they still asking you to do interviews on DVD sets of cartoons that you had nothing to do with? .. ... The Pick!
richard63		#2	[-]
Posts: 487 (01/18/08 3:08 PM) Registered Member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Mark, what is the meaning of life? Actually, one question that comes to mind has to do with him taking on Captain America back in 1975- was that Marvel's idea or Jack's? I've always presumed the former since it always seemed that Jack had a preference for developing new material. Tea Parties are for little girls with imaginary friends.
Raro		#3	[-]
Posts: 708 (01/18/08 3:13 PM) Registered Member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Any chances for DNAgents or Crossfire Omnibus editions ? Groo Archives ?
Mark Evanier		#4	[-]
Posts: 21 (01/18/08 3:56 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	sterlling wrote: Hhmmm....how about a general run-down of what you're up to these days work-wise. What are you working on, plan to work on or hope to work on in the near future. Also any plans to make it back to the San Diego Con this year? PS: Are they still asking you to do interviews on DVD sets of cartoons that you had nothing to do with? ME: I am one of only two people (I believe) who has been to every single San Diego Con and I have no intention of breaking my record and letting Scott Shaw be the only one. Besides, the con made me a Guest of Honor this year...which surprised the heck outta me since I was a Guest of Honor there last year. What I'm working on: Well, tonight, I'm finishing the dialogue for the second issue of The Spirit that Sergio and I are working on. Then I write the letter page for the last issue of the current Groo mini-series, then I write an episode of a new Garfield cartoon show that's currently being produced for French television. Next Wednesday, I'm voice-directing a Garfield recording session. I have to do some press interviews for my book on Jack Kirby, Kirby: King of Comics and I also have to go picket because believe it or not, as busy as I am, I'm on strike. Still doing interviews for DVDs I had nothing to do with. (Actually, I did one for a show I worked on...the DVD of the animated Dungeons and Dragons series. But I've done 14 others.) Thanks for asking.
Mark Evanier		#5	[-]
Posts: 22 (01/18/08 3:59 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	richard63 wrote: Mark, what is the meaning of life? Actually, one question that comes to mind has to do with him taking on Captain America back in 1975- was that Marvel's idea or Jack's? I've always presumed the former since it always seemed that Jack had a preference for developing new material. ME: Life is like a sewer. What you get out of it depends on what you put into it. (That's Tom Lehrer's joke, not mine. My serious answer was stated in a quote from Kurt Vonnegut's son. You can probably find it if you do a search on my blog.) Jack didn't want to be back at Marvel at all then, of course. But he especially didn't want to do characters where the management would have opinions about how they should be handled or would tell him he had to match someone else's continuity. Marvel insisted he do Captain America because it was in sales trouble and they wanted him on it so he took it on again.
Mark Evanier		#6	[-]
Posts: 23 (01/18/08 4:00 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Raro wrote: Any chances for DNAgents or Crossfire Omnibus editions ? Groo Archives ? There will be more Groo reprints shortly, not really in "Archives" format. We're talking about a big DNAgents reprint book now. A company called About Comics did some small, black-and-white reprints recently of Crossfire and DNAgents but they didn't get much notice.
Raro		#7	[-]
Posts: 710 (01/18/08 4:30 PM) Registered Member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thank you for your reply. Big DNAgents reprint book, great news. I hope big stands for oversized. I have all the original issues and the b/w reprints, but a nice HC book would be nice.
CrazyCecil		#8	[-]
Posts: 1457 (01/18/08 5:00 PM) Golden Age Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Any chance of nice thick Groo books appearing? Either a hardcover Omnibus or a Essential type phonebook? Edit: just noticed you answered that (kind of)
sterlling		#9	[-]
Posts: 3252 (01/18/08 6:05 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks Mark for your time. I forgot about you being on strike now so I hope everything goes well with you on that end. I have to catch a flight soon to go back east for the Chargers/Pats game this weekend but it was nice to see you posting here the past few days. I really hope you continue to check out the boards from time to time. If nothing else you make a great referee for all the "I love Kirby","I hate Kirby","Vinnie must die...",etc... threads that seem to pop up on a regular basis here. Every San Diego con, huh? Being from 'Diego I'd love to here about some of the history you have about the con. Maybe one day... I got your book pre-ordered on Amazon forever now. I hope it makes it out next month. Any chance of you signing it this summer? Later... .. ... The Pick!
artteacher72		#10	[-]
Posts: 592 (01/18/08 6:50 PM) Registered Member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Remove this ad No question yet, just wanted to show off my Evanier and Spiegle Blackhawk bound volume...hehe...it must have been a blast work with all of the great artists that contributed to the titles run.... Visit my website at www.chancefiveash.com
kirbyfanatic		#11	[-]
Posts: 48 (01/18/08 7:44 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	I have a question to ask Mark: when can we expect a huge book about your Hollywood experiences, like you used to write about in the letters pages to Crossfire? Or, a general interest book about your comics career, leaving out the Kirby material? Allen Smith
AussieStu		#12	[-]
Posts: 4968 (01/18/08 9:57 PM) Golden Age Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	NOT ME: Are you much of a comic collector Mark? Do you buy Masterworks, Archives and the like? What works catch your eye? (forgive me if this stuff is widely known) The Negative Zone Stan Lee, 1968: " ... And we talk it out. Lately, I've had Roy Thomas come in, and he sits and makes notes while we discuss it. Then he types them up which gives us a written synopsis. Originally-I have a little tape recorder-I had tried taping it, but then I found no one on staff has time to listen to the tape again later. But this way he makes notes, types it quickly, I get a carbon, the artist gets a carbon...so we don't have to worry that we'll forget what we've said. Then the artist goes home...or wherever he goes...and he draws the thing out, brings it back, and I put the copy in after he's drawn the story based on the plot I've given him. Now this varies with the different artists. Some artists, of course, need a more detailed plot than others. Some artists, such as Jack Kirby, need no plot at all. I mean I'll just say to Jack, 'Let's make the next villain be Dr. Doom'... or I may not even say that. He may tell me. And then he goes home and does it. He's good at plots. I'm sure he's a thousand times better than I. He just about makes up the plots for these stories. All I do is a little editing... I may tell him he's gone too far in one direction or another. Of course, occasionally I'll give him a plot, but we're practically both the writers on the things. "
JoeAnkenbauer	RE: Ask Mark Evanier!	#13	[-]
Posts: 216 (01/18/08 11:15 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Thanks for taking time to visit and answer questions! I was just watching Night Court (and more's the pity that there's only the first season out on DVD), and I saw a gag that I have seen several other places. A judge was citing Christine Sullivan (played by the hot Markie Post) for contempt of court, and each time Christine said something, the fine went higher. $50, $100, $200, $300. Then Dan Fielding (played by the excellent John Larroquette) shouted out, "Sold American!" As I mentioned, I've heard this gag before. Right off the top of my head, I can remember it from a Three Stooges short, but I can't specify which one. If you know, what is the basis of this gag? Again, thanks for your time! JMA
Mark Evanier		#14	[-]
Posts: 24 (01/18/08 11:17 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	sterlling wrote: I got your book pre-ordered on Amazon forever now. I hope it makes it out next month. Any chance of you signing it this summer? ME: Just bring me a copy and I'll write in it. And if you don't like my autograph, I can do others.
Mark Evanier		#15	[-]
Posts: 25 (01/18/08 11:20 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	kirbyfanatic wrote: I have a question to ask Mark: when can we expect a huge book about your Hollywood experiences, like you used to write about in the letters pages to Crossfire? Or, a general interest book about your comics career, leaving out the Kirby material? ME: I have three books out from TwoMorrows that reprint columns I wrote for The Comics Buyers Guide and some of them are about my comics careers. I've never thought of doing more than that on the topic. As for a book on my Hollywood experiences: About every six months, a publisher comes to me and says they're eager to do such a book. I say yes. They say, "We'll be in touch about the contract" and then I never hear from them again. You'd be amazed how often this has happened.
Mark Evanier		#16	[-]
Posts: 26 (01/18/08 11:23 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	AussieStu wrote: NOT ME: Are you much of a comic collector Mark? Do you buy Masterworks, Archives and the like? What works catch your eye? ME: I am quite a comic collector. I own more of them than you do. In fact, I probably own more of them than everyone who reads this forum, combined. I am, however, not much for recent comics. I get all the DCs and Dark Horses because they send them to me. I haven't gotten a Marvel publication in more than ten years unless I wrote something in it.
Mark Evanier		#17	[-]
Posts: 27 (01/18/08 11:29 PM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	JoeAnkenbauer wrote: I was just watching Night Court (and more's the pity that there's only the first season out on DVD), and I saw a gag that I have seen several other places. A judge was citing Christine Sullivan (played by the hot Markie Post) for contempt of court, and each time Christine said something, the fine went higher. $50, $100, $200, $300. Then Dan Fielding (played by the excellent John Larroquette) shouted out, "Sold American!" As I mentioned, I've heard this gag before. Right off the top of my head, I can remember it from a Three Stooges short, but I can't specify which one. If you know, what is the basis of this gag? ME: Yes. Back in the forties (and maybe earlier), there was an oft-heard radio commercial for a cigarette company called American Tobacco. The company claimed that they went around the world and bought the best tobacco...so in the ad, you'd hear a tobacco auctioneer doing the mumbled chant those guys do when they auction something, and then he'd shout, "Sold American!" That meant that particular lot of tobacco had been bought by the American Tobacco Company. The commercial was heard so often that it became a catch phrase.
Lightning and Chemicals	The Fourth World	#18	[-]
Posts: 1798 (01/19/08 12:08 AM) Golden Age Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Mark, If we could change history, and make it possible for Jack Kirby to have continued his Fourth World concepts past the eleven issue mark -- where do you think it would have gone? Did he plan it as a finite mega-story based on the Darkseid/Orion/Scott Free triangle that would eventually resolve ... or do you think that it would have maintained an equilibrium between the characters, albeit with the continual introduction of those great new concepts/characters that Jack came up with almost every issue?
richard63		#19	[-]
Posts: 490 (01/19/08 2:51 AM) Registered Member Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Mark Evanier wrote: richard63 wrote: Mark, what is the meaning of life? ME: Life is like a sewer. What you get out of it depends on what you put into it. (That's Tom Lehrer's joke, not mine. My serious answer was stated in a quote from Kurt Vonnegut's son. You can probably find it if you do a search on my blog.) Yes, Google is our friend. From Mark's blog... "We're here to help each other get through this thing, whatever it is." Not a bad answer. Thanks. Tea Parties are for little girls with imaginary friends.
Mark Evanier		#20	[-]
Posts: 29 (01/19/08 4:36 AM) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts	Remove this ad Lightning and Chemicals wrote: If we could change history, and make it possible for Jack Kirby to have continued his Fourth World concepts past the eleven issue mark -- where do you think it would have gone? Did he plan it as a finite mega-story based on the Darkseid/Orion/Scott Free triangle that would eventually resolve ... or do you think that it would have maintained an equilibrium between the characters, albeit with the continual introduction of those great new concepts/characters that Jack came up with almost every issue? ME: I think the former. I think he would have done the books for three or four more years and built to a climax. That story would have been edited down to a format that would have worked as one or more collections not unlike thick graphic novels.

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