I worked for him and, though he was tough at times, I count my time at Wizard and my friendship with Fred afterwards as highpoints, both professionally and personally.

Gareb and Steve are very sharp and I know they did not make this decision lightly but Fred’s shoes are going to hard to fill. Given the constant state of shrinkage the industry seems to be in, they have their work cut out for them.

Good Luck!
-Ben

The COO of Wizard magazine, that horrid tabloid of the comics world, has been let off….

On one occasion, Pierce slunked around the underlings desks then suddenly and loudly declared that “Believe me, if I could get this work done for FREE I would!”

And you did, Fred.

When the Editorial staff got “in trouble” after a Con for “wining and dining” some comic celebrities on Wizard’s dime, Mr. Tyrant called an emergency meeting declaring, “These creators should be seeking us out… and if they don’t like it, we can destroy their career!”

Just a taste of the bullshit that came outta this guy… see ya buddy!

Yes, I went a bit too far, and I am sorry. Just have some history with the company myself and it was not pleasant.

I have nothing but good wishes those who have the best of intentions for all that the publication could still be. But it seems that a house cleaning has been needed there for some time. Perhaps now, those with better, brighter and positive visions for the magazine’s future can finally step up and be heard.

Please forgive my previous, short-sighted view.

there’s some intelligent input. what about the people who aren’t upper management? they should lose their jobs too?

you seem to forget these are people we are talking about. people that share housing and work second jobs just because they are so passionate about what they do.

we’ll all cheer when you lose your burger flipping job.

The mag and the website can not only co-exist, but strengthen each other’s position if done right. They need to cast an eye towards the future and the new way things are done. You can’t fight the internet. Just ask the music business how that turned out. You have to adapt or go the way of the Dodo and day glo.

Their departments need to work together instead of being pitted against each other.

That is a tone that is set from the top.

Now, in fairness, I never worked at Wizard, so I can’t say one way or another what happened within those walls. But I recognize the raw feelings and the sense of wasted opportunity behind a lot of the comments out there. I lived through the Valiant implosion and the collapse of CrossGen. I’ve worked with Jim Shooter (who was nice to me) and with people who’d cheer if Jim got hit by a bus. And I’ve harbored my own resentment towards more than one comics “tyrant” over the years. It’s a very human reaction. I hope folks get past that anger and use their experiences, good and bad, to accomplish greater things with their careers.

As for me, the next time I see Fred I’ll hug the guy and ask him about his family. And he’ll be as warm and funny to me as always. Say what you want about him (he sure won’t care), but to me he’ll always be a mensch.

I wish nothing but the worst for Wizard magazine. Its time is done.