Date: 12 Oct 93 15:19:50 EDT
From: "Paul J. Grant [Zeus]" <[74706 2317] at [CompuServe.COM]>
Subject: Re: Volume 3 Issue 40 Part 13

ZEUS ON THE LOOSE: DATELINE PHILADELPHIA

     Actually, on the whole, I'd rather be in Philadelphia.
     Yes, it's good to be home, but I was having so much fun, I hated
to leave.  My back was acting up a bit, and the food lines were like
the Bataan Death March.  However, I was among friends, and that was
all I really needed.
     I had not originally intended to attend Comicfest.  This year, I
had two Motor City cons (one just last week, as a matter of fact), plus
Chicago and San Diego, and that's quite a few for a guy who doesn't
really work in the industry.  But when I heard that my "spiritual guru"
Peter David was going to debate Todd McFarlane, and when I learned that
there was going to be a fairly massive Compuserve dinner on Friday
night, well I just put my ingenuity to work and managed to find a
legitimate business reason to travel to Philadelphia for a meeting that
morning.  After all, I knew Peter would need the moral support and the
dinner would lapse into a deadly silence without my sparkling conver-
sation. Besides, it beat staying at home dateless on both Friday and
Saturday nights.
     I literally could not move twenty feet without running into
someone I knew at the convention, and it seemed like most of them were
Forum members to boot.  The first two people I saw were Elka Freeman
and Glenn Five, working as guest badge hander-outers.  And when I
descended to the convention floor, there was my old friend Mike
Goldman.  Over two days, besides the folks who came to the Friday
dinner and the Saturday night party, I saw Vinnie Bartilucci, Peter
David, Bob Ingersoll, Mark Chiarello, Dave Olbrich, Jim Hudnall, Len
Strazewski, Steve Gerber, Bob Greenberger, Chris Crosby, Walt Simonson,
Hearn Cho, Joe Pruett, Scott McCloud, Richard Pini, Peter Laird, Jon
Bogdanove, Dwayne McDuffie and probably some others whose names momentarily
escape me.  If I left you out, please forgive me.
     Now, on to the news and gossip.
     One major topic of controversy throughout the ComicFest was the
ranking of pros in terms of popularity in the COMICFEST '93 Souvenir
Program Guide put out under the auspices of WIZARD.  For reasons that
have never adequately been explained to me, the Guide ranked professional
guests (in a list full of some amazing and amusing typos) as "Popularity
Level" A, B, C or D.  The amount of ill will this engendered is easy to
imagine, but soon people were treating their status as a badge of
pride, affixing little circles with letters on them (including "E") to
their nametags.
     My first major stop, naturally, was the David/McFarlane debate.  The
putative topic was "Has Todd McFarlane/Image Received Fair Treatment From
the Media?"  but the real topic was "Has Peter David Given Todd and the
Rest of the Image Crowd an Unfairly Rough Time?"  The format, agreed
upon beforehand by the parties, was that after opening statements each
would pose three questions to the other, with time for rebuttal and
reply afterwards, and then closing statements.  The panel was moderated
by George Perez (see?  yet another forum member!), and judged by Maggie
Thompson of CBG, John Danovich from HERO, and William Chistensen
representing WIZARD.
     Todd had obviously planned on a free-for-all, and had two boxes of
Debate Programs brought in.  However, they were never passed out.  Todd
did strip down to his boxer shorts and wore a fighter's robe until the
debate began.  Peter dressed somewhat more formally.
     Peter's opening statement began by pointing out that Image has not
received fair treatment; indeed, it's gotten much more attention,
mostly favorable, from the media, while his few columns on Image in But
I Digress added up to no more than "a single dot in the vast Seurat
painting" of media coverage.  He also pointed out that he criticizes
Marvel and DC (his employers) just as, if not more, frequently as
Image, and that he has commented exclusively on the Image creator's own
public statements.
     Todd started by predicting that Peter was going to win the war of
words.  He pointed out that Todd the Writer, Todd the Artist and Todd
the Image Founder were different people or at least different roles.
He said that some of the interviews he gave out were actually a "ghost
persona" speaking, trying to have fun and stir up controversy.  People
don't laugh at themselves in the comics business anymore, he complained.
Moreover, Peter as a journalist was remiss because he never called the
Image creators before publishing the stories in BID.
     Todd's first question to Peter was "How do you get your information
and do you contact the people you write about?"  Peter answered that
BID is an opinion column, and he responds to other people's opinions.
He is not a news writer, and thus has no obligation to contact anyone
to get their side of the story.  Todd replied that he felt that some of
Peter's opinions were lies, and that Peter had accused Todd of lying to
other people.  He offered to give $5000 to the Comic Book Legal Defense
Fund if Peter could produce anyone (besides Larry Stroman) who Todd had
lied to.
     Peter's first question to Todd was "What is your definition of a
lie as opposed to an opinion you don't agree with?" and asked for an
example of each from BID.  Todd's definition was deliberately telling
something that is not the truth.  He then said that Peter had said that
Image was founded and the outside creators were let go as a matter of
money.  He denied that money was the primary issue, and called that a
lie.  Peter replied that Todd's answer made no sense, and that Peter
never cared, and never stated, that Todd and the other Image founders
left Marvel over financial.  Todd, on other hand, had lied when he
called Peter (and John Byrne) psychotic.  He then described a mental
condition known as paralogia: "false, illogical thinking, found
particularly in schizophrenic reactions.  Paralogical thinking may take
many forms.  The patient who is preoccupied with his own subjective
thoughts and fantasies may give answers to questions that are either
wrong or beside the point."  Peter then described a case study of a
patient who was convinced that he was Switzerland based on the following
syllogism: "Switzerland loves freedom.  I love freedom.  I am Switzer-
land."  Indicating Todd, he then said, "Ladies and gentlemen --
SWITZERLAND!"  Riotous laughter and applause followed.
     Todd's second question to Peter was "What changes could Image and
Todd McFarlane make that would satisfy you?"  The short answer was
"Make sense."  He then explained that as a columnist, it's not his job
to tell Todd and others what to do; it's his job to react to and
comment on what they do.  He did suggest that they should think before
they talk, and figure out beforehand how their thoughts will look on
paper.  He also pointed out that he criticized Todd, Rob Liefeld and
Erik Larsen for making dumb statements, but never went after Jim Lee
because Jim never said anything dumb.  Todd replied that all the other
Imageers regularly ride Jim for being so nice and being liked by
everyone, and that no one was going to break down the system by being
liked.  "Only at Image," Peter commented, "could being liked be
considered a downer."
     Peter's second question to Todd was "Explain what you expected
from the non-founders' titles (i.e., SHAMAN'S TEARS, TRIBE, WILDSTAR,
etc.) in terms of quality and sales."  Todd said they expected those
creators' books to serve as an anchor, and wanted monthly publications.
Image turns out enough good looking late books on their own, he said.
He also said that some of the people involved had bad attitudes, and
had failed to perform as promised.  Peter said that Image had sent out
the message that it would take the time to get the books right, and
that other creators had every reason to expect that standard would
apply to them as well.  "You didn't just fire them, Todd, you betrayed
them."  Todd answered that Peter wasn't there and didn't know the full
story.
     Todd's last question to Peter was "What do you consider good
writing, and what fault do you find with Todd McFarlane's writing?"
Peter said he doesn't generally read SPAWN, and never criticized the
book in BID.  He said he'd look for story structure and characters that
ring true.  He cited Scott McCloud's DESTROY!!, which was one long
fight scene, as something that was once funny but is now typical.  He
emphasized that Image's books were not the only offenders in that
regard.  He also suggested that those who wish to write should spend
more time reading, and reading more than just comics.  Todd promised to
make efforts to improve.
     Peter's last question to Todd "Having claimed the moral high
ground in your landmark column about Respect, please explain how the
treatment of freelancers at Image is ethically superior to that of
Marvel."  Todd reiterated that he didn't quit Marvel because of money.
He said that Marvel didn't care about controlling his work until he
became successful, and he never told any of the outside creators how to
do their books.
     Peter's closing remarks included the fact that Marvel wasn't
giving him a hard time about SACHS & VIOLENS 2 being late, and was
showing him and George Perez the respect that Image wasn't showing to
non-founders, emphasized that Todd had accused him of lying but had not
given one example of a lie, thereby making the whole debate rather
pointless, and finished with a long baseball analogy that pointed up
the difference between good intentions and actual accomplishment.
     Todd's parting shots carried on with the baseball analogy and said
at least Image was in the playoffs.  When he, Rob and Erik quit Marvel,
he reported, Terry Stewart told them "This is how it's always been:  we
exploit you, and will always exploit you."  He then compared Image to
the civil rights movement, and pointed out that the respect that other
companies are now showing to creators is due in large part to the
success of Image as a concept and a company.
     It was clear that, in terms of "points scored" Peter clearly
overmatched Todd, and was a much more skilled debater.  Todd had
problems sticking to the topics, but his closing remarks about Image
having an overall effect on freelancers' conditions in the industry as
a whole was his strongest point.
     After the debate, Peter had a bonus for his fans -- a videotape of
TRANCERS IV, starring Tim Thomerson, for which Peter wrote the
screenplay.  Those not lucky enough to be there will have to wait until
January I believe, when it reaches your local video store.
     I spent some time talking to Matt Howarth, whose book SAVAGE HENRY
and POST BROTHERS have been personal favorites for several years. (By
the way, sales on both titles have fallen, and he could use some
support from readers.  You won't be sorry.)  Since he doesn't fly, it
was the first chance I had to meet him and he showed me some of his as
yet unpublished work including a GREEN LANTERN QUARTERLY story.
     By then, I had enough for the day and went back to check into my
hotel room and then John Sardegna and I shared a cab to the Golden Pond
for dinner.  We eventually packed the banquet room.  Attendees included
dinner organizer Allan Lappin and his son Jake, Jeff Lang and Katie
Fritz, Pat O'Neill, Sadie McFarlane and her kids, the Jack Curtins, the
Tim Fitzpatrick family, Sandy McMurray, Elayne and Steve Chaput, Glenn
Five, Elka Freeman, John Sardegna, Nat Gertler, Joy Dubinsky, Allan
Greenberg, the John Gillespies, John and Mary McCool, Carl Pietrantonio,
Rob Davis, Lee Tennant, and myself.  (If I left anyone out, again,
please excuse me.  Some folks who had said they'd be there were no-
shows, but Lee Tennant brought some more including John Romita, Jr.,
and Ken and Beth Mitchroney.  The food was very good, and more than
plentiful, and the company without equal.
     By the end of dinner I was exhausted, having been up since 5:00 am,
and I went back to my room, read half a comic book and fell asleep.
     Saturday morning, refreshed but in some back pain (which largely
dissipated by 11:00 am, thanks to Advil, exercise and a positive mental
attitude), I started making the rounds in earnest.  I visited almost
every publisher's booth.  It was fortunate I stopped by to say hi to
the folks at Malibu early on Friday before the convention began,
because the line never let up once the doors were opened.  Marvel was
swamped, too, and the crowds at Image and DC were also very respectable.
(By the way, Valiant and Hero did not have booths at this convention.)
I spent some time with Colleen Doran, who's picking up the pace on A
DISTANT SOIL, and promises to continue.  I visited with Ron Fortier at
Alpha Productions, who told me that Sybil Danning is currently working
with the State Department helping American business me with contacts in
the former Communist bloc countries in Eastern Europe, and that the
MAZE AGENCY might make a return.  A couple of people at DC, Bob
Greenberger and Patty Jeres, were very flattering in their praise of
the article I wrote for HERO on ZERO HOUR.  (Out later this month,
folks, so buy it!)  I also learned that the reason four of the L.A.
Rams cheerleaders were at the show was that Rob Liefeld was underwriting
their expenses for this season, and that Todd McFarlane was the proud
owner of a three times normal size white concert grand piano, custom-
built by Baldwin for him, and that no one in his family plays the piano.
     Dean Mullaney was occasionally at the Eclipse booth.  Cat Yronwode
was, as far as I could tell, not in attendance.
     At 2:00 pm I attended the Harlan Ellison show, and it was worth
every penny of the $6.00 admission (all of which went to the Comic Book
Legal Defense Fund).  Harlan is pushing 60 and has had some health
problems in recent years, but you couldn't tell that by his performance,
which was energetic, hilarious and amazingly frank.  I can't possibly
recount all the stories he told, but they included how he was fired by
Disney after only four hours, how he met his wife Susan in Glasgow and
seduced her with corned beef sandwiches, his relations with Gene
Roddenberry and William Shatner (which were not the best), how he ended
up as a co-defendant with Gary Groth in a lawsuit filed by Michael
Fleisher, how he first met Isaac Asimov, why he punched Charles Platt
in the nose after the Nebula Awards one year, and his experience as
Bachelor #3 on The Dating Game (which was never aired).
     The last question he answered was about his pseudonymous appearance
in CONCRETE.  The question was posed by a heavy-set lawyer with a beard
sitting in the second row.  He pointed at me, with my upraised hand,
and then exclaimed "You're Paul Grant!"  Now you must understand that
Harlan and I have talked on approximately a half-dozen occasions over
the last 20 years, but his memory must be truly extraordinary.  He then
commented that I looked like  I could be Bob Ingersoll's brother.  Bob,
sitting across the aisle, told Harlan that I am also a lawyer.  "What
kind of law do you practice?" Harlan asked me.  "Product liability defense
work," I replied.
     "So," he continued, "when the Dalkon Shield causes women to get
sick, you're the guy who tells them it's their own fault."
     "In essence, yes," I admitted.  "But I don't work for that company."
     "Who do you work for?" he asked.
     "Ford."
     "Oh, the exploding Pinto.  You know, I used to have a Pinto."
     "Did it explode?"  I queried.
     "No, it didn't," he answered.
     "There, you see?!" I countered triumphantly.
     I then asked my question and he told how Paul Chadwick had visited
him and how everything that appeared in the story about his house was
true.  He then went to sign some more books, at $1.00 an autograph
(also for the CBLDF).  Harlan is one of a kind, and one of my all-time
favorite authors.  This is a story I will probably repeat ad nauseum
for the rest of my life, so please feel free to stop me if I start to
blather on about it five years down the line.
     Next stop was the long line waiting to get into DC's Return of
Superman panel (they were giving out copies of the Platinum edition of
AOS 500), with Mike Carlin, Jon Bogdanove, Jerry Ordway and Brett
Breeding.  Points of interest regarding future storylines were the
upcoming BIZARRO WORLD and DOOMSDAY mini-series, and the fact that
Superman will learn that Lex Luthor II is really Lex Luthor I.
     Back on the main floor I ran into Flint Henry, former artist on
GRIMJACK and currently doing LAW DOG (which will go on hiatus after
issue 10).  Flint is a great character, and we talked for a while about
inkers and living in Pennsylvania and whether or not he owed me money
and if I'd loan him $600 so he could buy an Arthur Adams GODZILLA
drawing.  I politely declined.
     My last stop as the con was emptying out was the Milestone booth,
where I talked with Dwayne McDuffie and watched him do portfolio
reviews.  He was on a high because the Milestone panel had been packed,
and audience interest had been keen.  Unfortunately, the security
guards kicked all but the dealers and sponsors out at that point, and I
headed for the street in the company of Mike Carlin and Jon Bogdanove.
When we got outside, we ran into Susan and Harlan Ellison and Ron
Goulart.  Harlan button-holed me and said "Hey, I've got this bidet
that shoots acid instead of water.  Do you think I've got a case?"  In
the course of the conversation I reminded him of the first time we
talked, in 1972, when I was an aspiring writer in college who submitted
a story for The Last Dangerous Visions.
     "Oh yeah," he recalled.  "And I was nice to you, right?"
     I agreed that he had been extremely nice.
     "There, you see?!" he countered triumphantly.
     I took the bus back to the hotel, and after perusing the room
service menu decided to head out to the Sam Adams Brew Pub a few blocks
away.  In the Holiday Inn lobby I ran into Sandy McMurray, and with a
minimum of arm twisting I convinced him to join me.  We had some
wonderful beer, tasty pub-type food and some good conversation about
comics, sports, beer and things Canadian.  We then went back to hotel
to get ready for the Glenn and Elka party.  As I was disrobing
preparatory to taking a shower, there was a knock on the door.  It
seems that I had forgotten that I had agreed to host the party in my
room, after Elka had mentioned that theirs was too small.  I said "Just
a minute," threw the dirty clothes and stuff into an empty drawer, put
on my Zeus t-shirt and pants, and let people in.  Experience has made
me, if not a snappy dresser, at least a fast one.
     Attendees at the party included Allan and Jake Lappin, Jeff Lang
and Katie Fritz, Pat O'Neill (who reported on the WIZARD fan awards),
Jack Curtins, Sandy McMurray, John Sardegna, Nat Gertler, Joy Dubinsky,
Rob Davis, Lee Tennant, Mic McConnell and his friend, Jack C. Harris,
Ted Slampyak, Charles Moore and Steve Lieber.  There was beer and chips
and pop and coffee and the baseball game with the sound off, and
nothing was destroyed and we didn't get kicked out.  Not much of a
party, I guess. <g>  The spit-take contest never took place, and I
vetoed the suggestion that we try to activate the room sprinkler.  About
12:30 pm I kicked the stragglers out.  Glenn asked if he could have my
sport coat.  (By the way, I noted that Glenn *does* cast a reflection
in a mirror.)  Thanks to Glenn and Elka for providing the eats and
organizing the whole thing.
     Now it's Sunday night, and Philly seems like a dream to me now,
but I want to thank Peter David for inspiring me to get off my ass and
arrange to attend, Vinnie Bartilucci for getting me a guest pass and
being Show Manager, Allan Lappin and Glenn and Elka for getting us all
together, and everyone for the companionship and conviviality.  Next
time, no one will have to twist my arm.
     This will be the last ZEUS ON THE LOOSE for '93, and it's been a
big year for me in terms of conventions.  I have renewed respect for
the people who HAVE to do this on a regular basis.  As far as I'm
concerned, they're ALL on the A List.