I have an essay in the new anthology called HEY KIDS, COMICS!, which has just been published and is available to purchase online. The book features essays by such comic book veterans as J.M. DeMatteis, Steve Skeates, Steve Englehart, Robert Greenberger and others.
The book is compiled and edited by Rob Kelly, an illustrator and writer (winner of the Comic Book Writer of the Year award for the ACE KILROYweb comic, Philadelphia Geek Awards). Basically I wrote about my earliest experiences with comics, and how that evolved into a childhood of not only reading comics but watching superhero cartoons and tv show, as well as playing with action figures and collecting anything with superheroes on it. Eventually, all that led to my eventual career as a comic book creator (or so I like to think!).
For the latest issue of DITKOMANIA, I've contributed a full-color cover.
Published and edited by Rob Imes, the zine is a quarterly publication dedicated to the work of Steve Ditko, the legendary comic book artist who co-created SPIDER-MAN and DR. STRANGE, as well as creating THE CREEPER, HAWK & DOVER, MR.A and host of other characters. You can order copies directly from Rob. Info at the DITKO-FEVER website.
THE NEW ADVENTURES OF THE HUMAN FLY, the revival of the 1970s Canadian stuntman/superhero (who starred in his own comic book from Marvel Comics from 77-79) was published this summer.
Edited by Michael Aushenker, the book features an all-star cast of creators, including artists who worked on the original series. I contributed a pin-up, as well as having worked on the production of the book. Currently available online as well.
Published in August, my own LOS COMEX CODEX is available directly from me in my webshop. It's a 138 page collection of 5 of my out-of-print titles, including DEAD DINOSAURIO, THE COMA and WEAPON TEX-MEX Vs EL MUERTO.
And coming up on the horizon this Fall is a new book by Frederick Aldama (Arts and Humanities Distinguished Professor of English at Ohio State). The book is called LATINOS AND NARRATIVE MEDIA: PARTICIPATION AND PORTRAYAL.
I not only contributed the artwork for the cover, but I also wrote the forward. The book features essays on the topic of the media and popular culture as created and influenced by Latino authors, artists and other creative professionals.
It turns out that I'm also one of the subjects in the book as well! David William Foster wrote an essay titled "Latino Comics: Javier Hernandez's El Muerto as an Allegory of Chicano Identity". Flattered, to say the least! The book will be published by Palgrave Macmillan and is due November 7. This is the first time I've had work appearing in such a variety of publications coming out within the same year. In my 15 years of creating comics, in addition to publishing my own work, I've had pinups published in other comics, but the scope of titles I've contributed to this year is a career high for me. I'm glad to warrant the work, and really, it's doing something I love. Hope you enjoy some of these!
Readers of my blog will recall the various postsI've written previously about the Fly, the real-life, costumed Canadian stuntman who appeared in his own comic book published by Marvel Comics from 1977-1979. The entire 19 issue series was written by Bill Mantlo, one of my favorites.
Well, there's a whole new comic book featuring the return of The Human Fly....
The rights to the character are now owned by Human Fly International Inc., comprised of a filmmaking trio who are making a movie based on the true-life story behind the Human Fly! Screenwriter Tony Babinski, director Steven Goldmann and producer Alan Brewer have commissioned a new series of Human Fly comics, and the first issue is debuting this weekend at San Diego Comic Con.
Producer Alan Brewer (L) and Editor-in-Chief/cartoonist Michael Aushenker at San Deigo Comic Con.
My good friend Michael Aushenker, cartoonist extraordinaire, was contacted by Team Fly to put together the first issue of NEW ADVENTURES OF THE HUMAN FLY and he's pulled off quite a feat. Michael was able to secure new artwork from some of the artists who worked on the original book: Bob Layton, Steve Leialoha, Don Perlin and Al Milgrom, who drew the cover for the first issue of the original series:
In addition to those veteran artists, there are stories and pinups illustrated by independent cartoonists such as Rafael Navarro (who illustrated the cover), Paul Mason, John Heebink, Jim Rugg and others. Michael wrote and drew one of the stories as well. And....I was able to contribute a pin-up myself!
Originally, I was slated to illustrate one of the stories, but unfortunately, due to an extremely busy workload at the time, I had to withdraw. However, I was able to produce this image, which of course I was happy to do.
While I wasn't able to commit to the deadline for drawing a story, my schedule eventually cleared up somewhat and I was able to work on the production of the actual book. That meant getting all the pages the artists had produced and formatting it for the printer. I worked with Michael on designing the cover, as well as the overall layout of the book. The filmmakers collaborated as well, so the final book represents a team effort worthy of the Human Fly.
A fan of the Fly from the first issue back in 1977, it was pretty exciting to work on the new book, some 36 years after the fact. Opening the files as Michael forwarded them to me, seeing new Fly artwork by some classic Marvel veteran artists, was surreal. And of course seeing the new stories as they were completed was fun, too.
It's interesting when you work on a property you were such a fan of as a child...
Earlier this year, I was working on the planning of the San Gabriel Valley Comic Book Expo (which was organized by the Nuvein Foundation), and I had the idea to bring the Fly into the mix. Michael had produced two new paintings of the Human Fly, and I asked him if he'd let me use one of the paintings for the official poster for the Comic Book Expo. He was delighted, so then I secured permission from the Human Fly International group and...Ta-Dah!
Far as I know, it's the only time the Human Fly has ever been used on a comic book convention poster, so this was a cool stunt to pull off! I'll be joining the promotion of the book for an LA signing, so stay tuned to my blog for info on that. In the meantime, check out this vintage promotional video on the real-life Human Fly:
Looks like someone is making a documentary on THE HUMAN FLY!
Long-time readers of this blog know that the Human Fly is the 1970s real-life masked stuntman whose exploits were made legendary in the 19-issue Marvel Comics series. I have written about the comic book (and my passion for it) here before, which you can find at this link.
The YouTube clip above is an intro to the film, which hopefully will be completed and released. Despite all my years of being a fan of the Fly, I had never seen any video footage of him, so I was literally beaming with excitement when I finally watched the promo film. Imagine waiting some 35 years to actually watch a childhood hero of yours in action? For me, the Fly from the comic series (which was written for it's entire run by one of my favorite writers, Bill Mantlo) is the real Human Fly. He's the one whose story I followed for a year and a half as an 11 yr old, all wide-eyed and star struck. The fact that I knew the comic was based on the real-life stuntman just made him all the more awesome in my mind.
While all my friends were tripping over themselves to get to the new STAR WARS movie, I was daydreaming about the wildest superhero ever, because, hello, he was real!
My good friend Michael Aushenker (fellow cartoonist & Fly enthusiast) wrote an article a few years ago for BACK ISSUE magazine, (you can read my review of it here) providing the most comprehensive history in print I've ever read on the backstory of the Human Fly. It's worth seeking out (and not just because he actually got a quote from me for the piece!). While there are some unanswered questions and rumors regarding the Human Fly, and I imagine the documentary will address (expose?) them, I'll always have my idealized version of the Fly, as illustrated by such master cartoonists as Frank Springer, Carmine Infantino and the untouchable Mr. Frank Robbins, with captivating scripts by the great Bill Mantlo.
I'm eager to see the full story of the Human Fly, warts and all. It's about dang time, and I know there is an underground cult of Fly Fans just waiting for this flick. It won't be the super blockbuster movie that THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN or THE AVENGERS will be, but what the heck, those characters ain't real!
A color marker sketch I did just before writing this post, and after watching the video for about the 5th time since last night...
Well, the other day I was going through one of those intimidating piles of books/comics/papers/drawings I have laying about the studio space here, and lo and behold I found this missing photograph!
Yes, my friends, an actual Honest-to-Evel Knievel HUMAN FLY publicity photograph! By a billion-to-one chance, a few years ago I saw this on Ebay. I was, thankfully, the only Bidder and got it for probably less than $10-$15, if memory serves me. Outside of the 19 issue Marvel Comics run, I know of no other licensed FLY memorabilia. (Man, how I wish a secret stash of an unreleased HUMAN FLY Mego action figures would show up out of nowhere!).
The photo isn't hand-signed, but what a cool looking pic. Totally cheesy, yet badass in it's own way! Anyone knows of any other FLY stuff floating out there, lemme know!
A couple of posts back I mentioned that I had contributed some artwork to a special gallery show. Floating World Comics (Portland, OR) hosted a show with artwork featuring the 1980s Marvel Comics cult classic, ROM, SPACEKNIGHT. With over 100 artists contributing all-new images, this event marked the largest collection of Rom artwork ever!
The person for whom this show was created for is Bill Mantlo, the original writer of Rom and scores of other Marvel Comics in the 70s & 80s. Bill was the victim of a hit & run accident back in the 90s as he was rollerblading in New York. He suffered a major head trauma and has never been fully functional again. His brother Mike has been his caretaker ever since. This auction will be used to raise money to aid in Bill's care. Jason Leivian, the owner of Floating World Comics, created the idea for the gallery show out of his sheer love for the work of Bill Mantlo, particulary Rom, Spaceknight. Rom was a toy robot action figure that Bill was able to turn into a 70+ issue Marvel property!
So when I found out about this event I absolutely had to submit a piece. Now that the gallery show is over, Jason is putting all the pieces on Ebay to allow everybody to purchase the artwork. Looking at some of the pieces, I am amazed by the variety of work. Even Walt Simonson created a piece, and it's a beauty. It's getting some really good bids, too. Bill Mantlo is going to directly benefit from his creation. Not the ideal circumstances, of course, but any comfort that can be provided to the man is worth pursuing.
My first exposure to Bill's work was in 1975, with Marvel Team-Up #39. The story opened with Spider-Man talking to a young Puerto Rican kid on a rooftop. The boy was tending to his pigeons when an assassin's, meant for Spider-Man, stikes one of the birds. As a young Mexican-American kid myself, I appreciated the little bits of Spanish that Bill worked into the boy's dialogue. Bill continued for another year or so on that book but worked on numerous characters throughout his career. He created the story for The Human Fly, the real-life Canadian stuntman who approached Marvel with idea of creating a comic book series based on his exploits. Bill's idea was that the Fly was involved in a fatal car accident that killed his wife and children, leaving him a cripple. But through sheer willpower, he eventually made himself walk again. He decided to adopt the identity of the Human Fly as a means of inspiring others like himself to walk again, to live again.
Maybe we'll have a Human Fly benefit show one day.
In the meantime, please check out the Rom artwork at Floating World Comic's Ebay sellers page. My original inked drawing is up at auction, which also inlcudes an 11x17 color print. Whichever artwork you buy is fine, because you'll be getting a unique piece of Rom art and most important, Bill Mantlo will be recieving some extra help this Holiday Season.
The Human Fly gets the spotlight turned on him in the latest issue of BACK ISSUE, the magazine devoted to the great comics and creators of the 1970s and 80s. Written by the very capable Michael Aushenker, this is the first time I've seen a major article on the Human Fly. Last May, I posted my own little piece on the Human Fly here at Javzilla, but the article in BI #20 really gives us an inside view (as best is possible considering the circumstances) of the Wildest Superhero Ever. Among those interviewed are former Marvel Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter as well as inker Steve Leialoha (who a few years back bought an El Muerto t-shirt from me at APE!). Aushenker also scores an interview with rocket engineer Ky Michaelson, who designed an actual rocket bike for the Human Fly! There's a photo of the Human Fly that I've never seen before, as well as this unpublished cover artwork by Fly regular Frank Robbins.
I'm a huge Fly fan, so this long ovedue article is very much appreciated. Also, Michael is among one of my best friends for the past 10 years or so, and a fellow comic book creator. His off-the-wall EL GATO, CRIME MANGLER ranks as one of the first domestic, masked Mexican wrestler comics, written and illustrated with a gonzo flair that no one can match. Michael is a talented dynamo, with his writing appearing in journalism, children's books and comics (to name a few) and his art has been applied to comic strips and fine art paintings as well as his El Gato series. Suffice to say, Michael also interviewed me for my thoughts on the Fly, and there are some pretty good bits in there about young Javier Hernandez and his quest to find the elusive Human Fly back in the day. Mike even closes the article with a quote from me, as well as deftly plugging El Muerto, my movie and website! Seriously, it was an honor to speak of my enthusiasm for the comic book adventures of this most mysterious true-life superhero. Also interviewed in the piece are our fellow friends/cartoonists Rafael Navarro and Ted Seko. At one time, the four of us, as well as Rhode Montijo, were the creators of our own unique comic book imprint/clubhouse, Big Umbrella. But that is a post for another day!!
Back Issue is produced by TwoMorrows Publishing, the fine folks who print the best in comics coverage, inluding Alter Ego and the exceptional Jack Kirby Collector. Also included in this special Secret Identity issue are interviews/articles on some other classic characters like Moon Knight and The Question, the enigmatic vigilante created by comic icon Steve Ditko. Sure was nice to share info on the Fly in a magazine that also spotlighted the work of Ditko, Sal Buscema, Doug Moench and Don Perlin, among others. Below are some pics of Moon Knight, The Question, and Michael Aushenker's own El Gato, Crime Mangler.
And an updated thanks to Michael Aushenker for copy-editing this post. He copy-edited a post reviewing an article I wrote where I review an article he wrote where he interviewed me.... Is that nuts, or what?!!
