As I mentioned yesterday, I’m blogging from a remote locale, and unfortunately in all the travel tumult yesterday, some posts that were “under construction” were mistakenly posted. I took them down to finish them up and they’ll go up later today. No conspiracies, no pressure groups.

Sorry for all the confusion, and I’ll try not to be such a doofus in the future, although given my track record, that is going to be difficult.

As we continuously hyped, we were on a panel at the Royal Flush Festival on Saturday about blogging, along with celebrity news blogger Michael K. and film bloggers Brandon Harris and Brandon Kim . The panel was moderated by legendary punk cartoonist John Hölmstrom, which was cool in itself. We are always happy to compare notes with other smart people in our line of work, and the novelty of being on a blogging panel that wasn’t a COMICS blogging panel was really cool. Also, despite the bitchy nature of D-Listed, Michael K. is really nice in person like most other full-time bloggers we know, works scary long hours.

Probably the most novel thing about the panel was that since it included a gay man, an Asian man and an African-American man, nobody asked us “WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE A WOMAN BLOGGER?” or anything similar.

Finally, we were checking out Holmstrom’s blog — which he HAND LETTERS (above) — and read that he got sick for TWO weeks from eating a catfish taco at San Loco, one of our regular dietary choices. So…eaters beware!

Wow, there is so much GOING ON. Our to do list, dutifully compiled by our Down Under associate, Aaron Humphrey, seems to be barely scratching the surface. There are so many conventions, signings, tours, appearances and panels going on we can’t keep track. It seems like with the summer completely engulfed by the San Diego monolith, everyone has moved everything to the fall with a resulting glut. And New York is jammed as well, with Big Apple, KingCon and a NEW indie-friendly show we’re hearing about planned for December.

Plus, so many cartoonists are criss-crossing the country on tours, it’s a wonder anyone is left home to draw. Our Facebook invites are piled up like cordwood.

HOW TO KEEP TRACK OF IT ALL? We know from our correspondence and comments that a lot of folks use our event listings. We’ve previously mentioned that we regret the NYC-centric nature of out listings and want to keep up with Toronto, Chicago, LA, Portland and all the other tooning hotbeds out there.

There’s really nothing to be done but throw more manpower at the problem. And we’re working on it. So hang in there, kids, and keep sending us invites and events.

In the meantime, ConventionScene.com has a dauntingly thorough listing that shows just how much is going on. And as always, feel free to plug YOUR own event in the comments.

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Speaking of events, we had a nice time at our MoCCA panel last night. Rather than a nitty gritty, rock ‘em sock ‘em bitch session about the state of journalism (although that was touched on) it became more of a personal exploration of why we do what we do, which was kind of cool…at least it was for the panelists, and I hope it was for the audience. Some nice comments afterwards too. Thanks for coming out, everyone. And thanks to Douglas, Evie and Aaron, and moderator Karl.

Due to circumstances beyond our control, NJ Transit and allergies, we won’t be able to do the SPX Debuts like we usually do. Deepest apologies to everyone who sent us stuff, and we’ll try to make up for it somehow.

We will, however, be at SPX this weekend, moderating the Jeffrey Brown panel at some point, and generally enjoying the camaraderie and ambiance that only Bethesda can offer. See you there!

I am never, ever taking a staycation again.

PS: Thanks to my mom, Suzanna Lasker, for the emergency graphic on Monday. When you don’t have an art department, you learn to adapt.

So what’s gonna happen today? Maybe Sony is going to buy Clutch Cargo?

My heart can’t stand any more.

Well, that was a short vacation.

In 1999, would anyone even know what the title of this blog post meant?

Like many of my fellow bloggers, The Beat finds August is a slow time when vacations are more easily managed. So frankly, for the next week, we’re doggin’ it. After Labor Day things begin to hurtle along again, with the Brooklyn Book Festival, New York Anime Fest, the British International Comics Expo, Baltimore Comic-Con, the Diamond Retailers Summit, the Long Beach Comic-Con, APEBig Apple Con, and the just announced Brooklyn KingCon. And then it’s the Holidays and…well, frankly, the next time we’re going to have any free time is August 2010.

We’re taking the next week to catch up, deal with our email crisis (no, Google, when you have over 7000 mb of storage, you DO need to delete), upgrade the sidebar, weed out our RSS feeds, organize our address book, and, if all goes as planned, work on a few stories that require a bit more time. And also, maybe, regroup a bit to face the future.

If there are any big breaking stories, they’ll be up here; so keep those emails and new tips coming. We read ‘em all and need even more of them. And if you have a vacation planned yourself…enjoy! You’ve earned it!

Normal service resumes tomorrow.

We’re going away for a little bit, but you probably won’t even notice, in all honesty. Trying to relax. Wish us luck.

UPDATED — Yow, sorry I was so oblique…just going away from the internets for a few days! Back Tuesday, FULL STRENGTH. A few things I had kicking around posted in the meantime.

In case you haven’t noticed…nothing is going on. Everyone is taking a break. In fact, we’ll be taking a break later this week. Details to come. In the meantime, we’re slowing down, breathing, and taking the time to just look around and link to a bit more art than usual. No one is in a hurry and there’s a lot to see, so enjoy.

We sometimes get cranky about our commenters here at Stately Beat Manor, but they have been aces of late. If it wasn’t the (civil and informed) musing about politics in the Jokobama thread, it’s the continued sharing and reporting in the San Diego thread. Also, a lot of touching remembrances, including from family members, in the Ellie Frazetta thread.

So please check it out, if you haven’t, contribute more, and thanks.

Even though we really wanted to finish our SD09 report yesterday — and if our communiques are to be believed, literally SEVERAL people are still waiting for it — we had some images we needed to put in to make it ever-so-special and frankly, we couldn’t lift a finger anymore. Just typing this required an IV of pure espresso. After a month solid of non stop work, it’s all we can do to crawl that last yard over the finish line. but we’ll make it somehow.

We know that was the kind of unprofessional, personal, diary-like entry that we’re not supposed to do as a would-be big-time blogger, but…fuck it.

Speaking of blogging, many more than several of you are concerned over what PW’s impending sale may mean for The Beat. In truth….for now…nothing. Just as a house gets spiffed up before prospective buyers come around, things will go on as normal until the sale is consummated. So for now, it’s business as usual.

That said, you don’t have to worry about The Beat going away, of that you can be sure.

Posted by Evie

Mile High Comics’ Chuck Rozanski appears to be the first out of the gate with the annual “where are the comics at Comic Con?” lament, and Val D’Orazio has a further discussion. My personal flash-assessment, having not been there this year but having gone in the past and following the news from the perspective of journalists, publishers and creators, is that the shape of this problem depends a lot on where your stake is. For smaller retailers who are losing money, it is perhaps epic. For others who are making the books, the convention is still very much about the comics. The idea that the TV/movie/video game/toy/big money contingent is taking over is, well, that discussion is very much in progress, as we know. One thing is for sure: Chuck Rozanski is not so fussed on Twitter.

It’s also interesting when reading a few of Wired’s Geek Dad’s “Top 10 Reasons I’m Not Sorry to be Missing Comic Con”*:

8. Why should I pay to fly across the country to see people like Bruce Campbell, Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris, and Eliza Dushku, when I can see them on TV and DVD for free?

7. I haven’t been into comic books since high school, and that’s all the convention’s really about, right? I mean, why else would they call it “Comic-Con?”

Now, I’m going to give Geek Dad Matt Blum credit for intending this subtle paradox, but let’s pretend for a second that he didn’t (and maybe he didn’t). Would it be so terrible if the two biggest reasons to go to Comic Con were that you a) loved comics AND b) wanted to get your picture taken with Nathan Fillion? The argument against the corporate media takeover of comic con always seems to imply that too many of the people who fill up the convention hall are there for the glitter and not for the paper. But almost everyone I personally know in the comics community get equally weak-kneed over both Asterios Polyp and Josh Holloway (or ok Megan Fox), and I would wager it’s these things together, rather than one or the other, that make your average attendee pony up.
*Thanks to Torsten for the link.

Been on the ground for a while, following a flight that was jammed with Comic-Con personnel…many of them unknown to me, and working for street teams and book publishers and so on. Well, even The Beat can’t keep track of 125,000 people. By pure chance, our row on the plane included the charming John Nee, so good times were had. Currently bunkered at the hotel, eating some sushi from Ralphs, so for everyone keeping score, the meal count is at 0.

Took a little wander around and things are very quiet–on the streets anyway. Plenty of sushi and pasta salad at Ralphs! It is worth noting that when we stopped for a reviving mocha blast at a coffee kiosk the young lad there asked if we were shopping or what, and when we replied we were in town for Comic-Con, he got very enthusiastic. It seemed that a friend of a friend had promised to “hook him up” with tickets, but never came through, so now he was going for just two days, but was volunteering to get the full experience. “It should be a lot of fun!” he said. So at least, in one incredibly unscientific poll, one local likes the show!

We did have a Thomas Wolfe moment that has nothing to do with comics but much to do with our own con history. We went off to Horton Plaza for a few forgotten staples, but to be honest, we forgot them just so we could go to Long’s Pharmacy. We’ve been going there as long as we’ve been going to the con, and have seen it go from an old timey pseudo Schwab’s complete with a soda fountain, to a still kinda weird drug store of the kind we call “Old Californian Lady Stores” because they have huge cosmetics sections with all kinds of strange elixirs in never heard of brands, and hair dye for the rockers and jewelry and everything else. Rexall Square across from the Beverly Center is (or was last time we checked) still this kind of drug store, but they are, on our experience, only found in Cali, and nowhere else…it’s something to do with looking good in the blazing sunlight, we guess.

Anyway, it looks like Long’s has been purchased by some other consortium or is undergoing a radical makeover…all the shelves bare or being rearranged and the make-up section is no different than what we’d find at a Duane Reade. Sniff…you can’t go home again…or go away, either, it seems.

As we finally reach San Diego Week, we’re staggering to the starting line, which isn’t great, but…well, that’s how we roll. Even as all the to do’s we’ve been hoarding for a month come due, people are throwing new stories, new news bytes and exclusives at us, last minute, proof yet again that advance planning is the only way to get through this. Next year, NO LAST MINUTE TO DO’S! Everything will be done WEEKS ahead of time so we’ll have room for everyone ELSE’s last minute to do.

One little note — people have made a fuss over Google sponsoring free Wi-Fi at San Diego, but this is the SECOND year for this. Last year, EAGLE EYE, a movie starring Shia LaBeouf, sponsored free Wi-Fi in the conference center (but not on the show floor, as this year.) As we dimly recall, we made some use of this last year. Everyone’s gonna be Twittering, anyway, so it isn’t going to matter.

We have a few more who’s where posts, but only a smattering. People are already hitting the ground. We’re leaving tomorrow AM ourselves.

Since our usual #1 Helper Monkey, Mark Coale, will ALSO be in San Diego this year, we’ve recruited two veteran blogger/journalists to help us out from home base during the show. We’re still running a few sound checks but they should be hitting the ground tomorrow.

After a brief break for a long nap, we’re continuing with our Mega SD activity roundup. We’ve gotten a few people, not really complaining, but wondering if this is all too much. Dunno…is it?

We keep getting urgent emails from publishers and cartoonists wanting us to run their schedules, so there clearly is supply. In deference to those who AREN’T interested in you-know-what, we’ll try to keep the stuff above the cut brief, and run our listings in a big clump…so please move along if you’re not interested. It’s always been our belief that people may be looking for someone or unaware of a particular person’s appearance at the show, and we may help facilitate some meetings or purchases or joyous moments. So, in that spirit, onwards….

To no one’s surprise, this blog is going to be heavy on the San Diego postings for the next few days. I’m going to sneak in some news items, but I really do want to try to get as much booth and signing information up as I can. Synsidar is helping put together some links, and we should end up with a convenient place to find lots of information, hopefully concerning who you are looking for and even more hopefully something new which catches your eye.

Please keep sending me information. A link to a blog post is easiest and sufficient. And I’m going to be streamlining listings so me and the readers don’t lose their minds.

Also, very important, Brian Heater over at The Daily Cross Hatch is running all kinds of indie comics news and regularly updating it. SO bookmark and check often.

A few people have written in to say that The Beat’s RSS feed isn’t working. It looks fine in NetNewsWire, but if you are having problems, shoot us a line with the RSS reader you’re using and any other pertinent info. We think we fixed the problem, but…you can never be so certain.

ALSO, please keeps the tips and links and other stuff coming. It is very much needed and appreciated!

Heroes con panel search has been ended. Thanks to all who responded!

A few things bubbling around the old brain for the last few days:

ADDED: 5) With the email beginning to pile up prior to SCDD, I am trying to answer everything in a timely fashion but maybe not quite as quickly as before. Also, to you people who write to me via Facebook, please be aware, I only check that a couple of times a day. Frankly, when I check my regular email five times a second, I’m not sure adding all these other modes of communication is that efficient, but, you know, Facebook is freeing Iran, so who am I to kvell?

Sorry, updates have been nonexistent of late…two shows back to back and three weeks without a day off took its toll. And then, right on schedule, the cable went out! Luckily it did not interfere with our enjoyment of TCM’s Director’s Spotlight month, including SUNSET BLVD., and yesterday’s heaping helping of Howard Hawks.

We’re in transit today, so totally normal service will resume tomorrow.

In the meantime, check out our vacation photos!

We’re taking a little R&R for the next few days, and maybe even taking a much needed internet/Twitter-cation. Check back daily for special features in the meantime!

Apropos of time off, Neil Gaiman discusses some fans’ “entitlement issues” and the working process:

Some writers need a while to charge their batteries, and then write their books very rapidly. Some writers write a page or so every day, rain or shine. Some writers run out of steam, and need to do whatever it is they happen to do until they’re ready to write again. Sometimes writers haven’t quite got the next book in a series ready in their heads, but they have something else all ready instead, so they write the thing that’s ready to go, prompting cries of outrage from people who want to know why the author could possibly write Book X while the fans were waiting for Book Y.

I remember hearing an upset comics editor telling a roomful of other editors about a comics artist who had taken a few weeks off to paint his house. The editor pointed out, repeatedly, that for the money the artist would have been paid for those weeks’ work he could easily have afforded to hire someone to paint his house, and made money too. And I thought, but did not say, “But what if he wanted to paint his house?”

In the meantime, here’s some art by Aidan ‘BRUTE! Hughes, best known for his cover art to KMFDM’s catalog.

We meant to comment on this piece by Lucas Siegel from Blog@Newsarama for days, but never got around to it; the title was “My Opinion Is Right: Comics Press is Crippled Like No Other Industry” but despite that bold statement, the offending incident came from Marvel’s very active staff Twitter community

There has been a bit of an uproar on Twitter in the last 24 hours, primarily instigated by three big names at Marvel Comics complaining about tweets, posts on the microblogging social network, being reposted on websites such as this one, CBR, and many others. The contention by Tom Brevoort, Brian Michael Bendis, and Joe Quesada is that this shouldn’t be done without permission or even payment to the person who made the original 140 character or less post.

This was really a tempest in a teapot — Joe Q, in particular complaining about people reposting his Tweets — let alone PAYING to do it — was odd, since he’s one of the most media-savvy comics personalities out there. It seems that the agita — if it wasn’t all a big put-on — on Marvel’s part was over Twitter aggregations like this gathering up CB Cebulski’s advice on how to break into comics.

Setting aside the fact that apparently Cebulski actually GAVE permission for Blog@ to collect his thoughts, the main thing it made US wonder was…why on earth would ANYONE post any information of any real value on Twitter?

As our colleague Calvin Reid observed to us the other night, Twitter is like a 24-hour rolling cocktail party. There really isn’t enough time in the day to read EVERY Twitter in your feed, and why would anyone want to? CB went to the trouble of typing out some very sound information on breaking in to comics — and then it rolled on. Back to CB’s daily culinary adventures, Wil Wheaton’s making dinner for his kids, Themediaisdying posting about some magazine closing, Wossy making a TV show, and a thousand complaints about computer problems.

Has Twitter crested yet, please God? Well, Techcrunch reports the dual assault of Ashton Kutcher and Oprah has overrun the levees:

Twitter’s march towards world domination continues apace. This morning comScore released its global numbers for March, 2009. Worldwide visitors to Twitter.com increased 95 percent in the month of March from 9.8 million to 19.1 million, according to its estimates. This compares to 9.3 million visitors in the U.S. alone.

What really amuses us is the Internet’s supposed “march of progress”. Six or seven years ago, when blogging was just getting started, we remember countless web articles on how you needed to blog to extend and market your brand. Now we are reading countless blogs about how to use Twitter to extend and market your brand. What’s next? We predict some kind of rolling symbol site — like in the Matrix — where folks just type in little pictures to say how they’re feeling — the bad news is that everyone will need a Chinese computer keyboard to participate.

And what’s a “brand” anyway? Is it the same thing as, gasp, content?

The Twitter fad is notable in that everyone PREDICTS it’s a fad and not a new means of communication, even while they’re trying to make use of this new means of communication. What really worries us is that so much on the web is far less lasting than that moldy, uninteractive print. In its own way the closing of GeoCities is a massive loss of information. If you want to see the Web as it existed ten years ago just find any webpage hosted on GeoCities. And yet, these were mostly pages written by people who were driven by passion. They were also trailblazers of web info, scanning and writing and posting information that has since been disseminated in Wikipedia and the other pro sites that come up whenever you Google anything. They were the frigging pioneers!

Yahoo is closing it GeoCities site this year.

Yahoo bought GeoCities for more than $2.9 billion in dot-com-priced stock in 1999, when GeoCities had more than 1.1 million users. However, while the idea of having a personal presence on the Internet has caught on, GeoCities turned out to be a backwater, not the mainstream.

“We will be closing GeoCities later this year,” Yahoo said in a note on the site. “We’ll provide more details about closing GeoCities and how to save your site data this summer.”

For perspective, Harry McCracken does a “Where are they now” for the top 15 websites and brands of April, 1999 and it’s not pretty.

And now, it looks like the entire publishing world might go the way of GeoCities.
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