Word Balloon Podcast Denver Con's Women In Comics Flash Panel W Crystal Skillman, Hilary Barta and Pants ep 550

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Great conversation starting with Crystal Skillman, fresh from the Denver Comic Con where women creators dissatisfied with a Women In Comics History panel made some history by putting together their own panel. Crystal talks about rallying the troops  including such creators as Trina Robbins Amanda Connor Joelle Jones and Marguerite Bennett. It's a great story and I'm glad she joins us to share it.

check out the flash panel for yourself here

Hilary Barta is back to talk about 2 new books coming out in June. The Sponge Bob Annual from Bongo Comics, and The Garbage Pail Kids from IDW both with a science fiction flair.

Finally Brian "Pants" Christman from Comic Geek Speak is back to mshare his experiences iun the audience of Late Show With David Letterman, including last week's final broadcast.  

Word Balloon Podcast In Memoriam Seth Kushner

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Comics writer artist and photo journalist Seth Kushner has passed away. We listen back to past interviews from 2012 and 2014 remember him and his contributions to the comics community in his web comics like Schmuck, and his photographs of creators from the golden age to the present.

There is a GoFundMe acct set up for Seth's Family 

Word Balloon Podcast The Geek Theater Movement With Playwright Crystal Skillman

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New York Playwright Crystal Skillman is back! She and her husband comics writer Fred Van Lente wowed audiences and critics last year with the off-broadway debut of KING KIRBY, the biographical look at Jack Kirby's life.

Skillman brings her new play, ANOTHER KIND OF LOVE to Chicago's INFusion Theater company with a month long run at The Chopin Theater 1543 W Division.

We talk about the play featuring a grunge rock family group of women reuniting their band for a festival that celebrates the music of their Punk Rock Mother . I'm in  the play as the radio host Crash Murphy, whose festival news bulitens keep the real world moving along as the sisters work out old family issues.

We talk about the play, get a KING KIRBY update,  and the curent Geek Theater movement

Word Balloon Podcast C2E2 pt 2 w Jimmy Palmiotti Jonathan Hickman Gene Ha Nick Dragotta Gabriel Hardman Corrina Bechko and more

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Word Balloon Podcast CON-versations View From The Floor at C2E2 pt 1 with Gail Simone ME-TV's Svengoolie, NFL star Israel Idonije and more!

The first of 2 podcasts featuring interviews and panels from last weekend's C2E2.

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00:00-5:50     Intro and show notes

  5:51-11:23   Rich Koz, AKA Svengoolie Me-TV's Legendary Horror Movie Host 

11:24-26:05   Fantasy Author Alane Adams (The Red Sun) , on her novel series Legends Of                                 Orkney, and incorporating mobile games to introduce and engage new readers to the                            books!

26:06-34:09   Dan Parent Archie Comics The creator of Kevin Keller, the newest member of the                              Riverdale High kids.

34:10-41;53   Israel Idonije Fmr Chicago Bear talks about his comic creation The Protectors from                        Athleta Comics making its motion comics debut on Madefire

41;54-50:31   Mike Choi Marvel Comics Artist (X-Men)  talks about returining to comics doing                             Iron Man Covers, doing creator owned vs corporate comics  and leaving the video game                       world

50:32-59:04   Onrie Kompin Comic writer talks about is creator owned comic series Yi Soon Shin                          the true life adventures of a Midieval Naval Korean Hero

59:05-104:45 Tony Bedard DC Comics Writer talks about his work on the DC Convergence books                        Aquaman Green Lantern, and more

104:45-end    Gail Simone talks Red Sonja Nightwing and Oracle and the evolution of Women                             Creators in Comics

Word Balloon Podcast The Origin Of Jim Zub

Fun first chat with Jim as we talk about the wrap ups to Image's Skullkickers, IDW's Samurai Jack, and Dynamite's Conan/Red Sonja crossover , plus we talk about his new Images series Wayward. 

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Word Balloon Podcast Marc Bernardin from Playboy.com and author Rob Salkowitz on The Hugo Award Nominations

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Playboy's Marc Bernardin talks about his Top Cow series Genius, who's first arc is collected in a trade comming up in June. We talk about Playboy.com's current status as a men's lifestyle site reclaiming the tradition Hef set up with the first issues. Marc has given the site a strong nerd culture voice, including making the Wil Wheaton-Patton Oswaltt coversation the January 2015 playboy interview. We also talk about Marc's podcasting with the Nerdist Writer's Panel and Kevin Smith's Fatman On Batman

The Hugo Award Nominations are discussed with auth Rob Salkowtiz. Rob has been a geek industry anaylist since the release of his book omic Con and The business Of Pop Culture. We talk about not only the infighting of geek factions within the Hugo nominating process, but more importantly how pollitical sites are using the "controversy" as red meat to get their ideological bases rilled up. Both left and right wing sites are stirring things up, and from our point of view its bad for all of geekdom.

Word Balloon Podcast EP 543 Gene Ha Live In Studio

Download The MP3 Here  Gene & I preview his C2E2 panel in a few weeks (which I'll be moderating) , and just talk 

Word Balloon Podcast Janelle Asselin On Romance Comics and The Gender In Comics Debate

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Janelle Asselin (a former editor with DC Comics currently a senior editor at the Geek News site Comics Alliance) is back to talk about her kickstarter campaign for Fresh Romance, a new digital Anthology of romance comic stoires.

Asselin is an outspoken advocate for the employemnt of more women comic creators to the extent of starting a regular feature at CA called "Hire this woman" spotlighting emerging new creators. 

We discuss some of the recent issues that have popped up concerning the female readership and creators of comics. 

Word Balloon Podcast Brian Buccellato On Sons Of The Devil Batman Injustice Earth-2 & The Black Bat

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Word Balloon Podcast Declan Shalvey On Injection His New image Book w Warren Eliis & Listener Calls From The Word Balloon Hotline

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Word Balloon Podcast Comic Book Writing Tips From Matt Hawkins and Tom King

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Matt Hawkins the publisher of Top Cow discusses the evolution of the company, from it's Darkness & Witchblade beginnings to the lean operation of today. Matt is a military tech enthusiast and uses that interest to inform his books like Wild fire and Think Tank, he also has a new cyber-caper heist story, The Tithe about cyber crimes at a Mega Church. Matt shares many writing tips, and lots of insight into today's comics market.

Tom King joins us to talk about Grayson, the DC book he co-writes wirth Tim Seeley, and gives us his impression of the recent DC talent summit in Burbank. Tom also tells us a bit about his plans for Teen Titans, co-written with Will Pfiefer and A revamp of The Omega Men 

Word Balloon Podcast Super Hero TV talk w Arrow's Marc Guggenheim & Greg Weissman Of Young Justice & Star Wars Rebels

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Great chance to talk with 2 TV writer producers who are at the top of live action television and animation. Both will be at Long Beach Comic Expo this weekend and have great insight on the current superhero explosion television is experiencing.

Writer- Exec Producer Marc Guggenheim talks about Arrow Flash. Given the success of both shows, it's no surprise that it was annouced this week that the characters Atom, Professor Stein and Black Canary are being devolped for their own future CW TV series. NOTE- This conversation took place before the announcement , but Marc did give insight about the success of introducing these new characters and in theory about expanding the DCU TV universe on The CW.

Then, Animation Writer Exec Producer Greg Weissman looks back at Gargoyles, Young Justice, Spectacular Spider-Man, his current work with Star Wars Rebels, and the realities behind producing comic book/toy adaptaions for kids television. 

Word Balloon Podcast Kelly Sue DeConnick On Bitch Planet Pretty Deadly Marvel & More - Art & Franco's Comic Empire keeps growing

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 Kelly Sue DeConnick talks about her Image books Bitch Planet and Pretty Deadly Her Marvel work and Women In Comics . Art & Franco talk about the Itty Bitty Universe Tiny Titans DC Super Pets Franco's Dino Mike book series and more !

Word Balloon Podcast Matt Brady and The Secret History Of Newsarama - Scribd Joins The Comics Digital Marketplace

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First up, Scribd is a service like Netflix, that allows monthly subscribers to borrow unlimited e-books, audio and now comics. The company has made deals with publishers like Marvel IDW Top Shelf  BOOM! and Archie making over 10,000 graphic novel collections available to read on any phone or device. VP of Editorial and Marketing Julie Haddon joins us to explain the service.
(00:00-41:27)
Then Matt Brady the co-founder and former editor of Newsarama comes by . Matt has a new BOOM!Studios comic out in March The Big Con Job, co-written with Jimmy Palmiotti. We talk about the book (think Ocean's 11 meets Galaxy Quest) . Then we get into an indepth look at the history of the comic newsblog Newsarama from it's beginnings to the point in 2009 when Matt stepped away from comics journailism. A lot has changed with publishers and media companies involvement in the 5 plus years Matt's been away from the beat and he has thoughts and observations on DC Marvel and the ability to cover news now comapred to his 20 years doing it. (41:28- End Of Show)

Word Balloon Podcast Late Night With Brian Michael Bendis - Jeff Lemire's Descender

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Word Balloon Podcast Jeph Loeb Talks Marvel TV David Gallaher & Steve Ellis's Bottled Lightning Studio Comics

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Word Balloon Podcast Tom Brevoort On Marvel's Secret War and Tim Beyers on the superhero business

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Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort lays out the big picture on Secret War and lots more.

Tim Beyers looks at the current TV season upcoming films and what's going on omn the business side of Disney/Marvel Warners/DC and many other geek corporations. 

Word Balloon Podcast Brian Bendis & Sam Humphries Meet The Press, Paul Jenkins Takes Over Spawn & Jeremy Haun On Constantine and Kickstarter

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Word Balloon Podcast Rick Remender & Tom Brevoort On The Record -Howard Chaykin Live From The Studio

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First a Marvel Press Conference With Rick Remender & Tom Brevoort on the reboot of Uncanny Avengers coming Jan 28th.

Then Howard Chaykin joins us from his drafting table to talk about The Shadow, Satellite Sam, and lots more.