tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post263299958905564678..comments2024-03-28T05:23:01.707-05:00Comments on A MOMENT OF CEREBUS: What Is Cerebus About?A Moment Of Cerebushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02718525538144698138noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-45615612164167828352016-02-04T17:19:20.308-06:002016-02-04T17:19:20.308-06:00I think Dave - to be fair to your past self - you ...I think Dave - to be fair to your past self - you couldn't have predicted what a financial impact the move to digital printing would have.<br />iestynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13451525711033030181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-8494377566434259222016-02-04T15:17:17.511-06:002016-02-04T15:17:17.511-06:00Well, thanks, everyone -- and particularly you, Da...Well, thanks, everyone -- and particularly you, Damian. No hard feelings, I hope. In retrospect, as a Baby Boomer who always saw "selling out" as SELLING OUT I think I erred a little TOO far on the side of ABSOLUTE INTEGRITY. There was a tendency to see it as, well, we have $200K in the bank, really, how much do we need? Money is for throwing at problems and $200K will solve any problem we can see down the line. We missed several points <br /><br />1) that inflation is always a problem. However much money you have, its value is eroding on a daily basis. <br /><br />2) gravy days are gravy days and you better grab the gravy while it's there. You aren't going to get MORE popular in your 50s and 60s than you are in your 30s and 40s. LONG before he died in 1994 (at age 76) Jack Kirby was pretty much unemployable. That's why we were all fighting so hard to get his artwork back to him.<br /><br />3) The $200K tended to stay at that amount which meant, after paying the bills, we were paying ourselves pretty much every penny that came in and there was going to be a sizeable hit in revenue when the book ended<br /><br />Two or three WAY overpriced portfolios a year through the 1980s and 1990s would have been a VERY good idea. <br /><br />Oh, well. We gedt too soon oldt, und too late schmardt. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06502294606395720342noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-12138169082253377962016-02-04T13:03:18.070-06:002016-02-04T13:03:18.070-06:00Just for the record - I love Frank Sinatra.Just for the record - I love Frank Sinatra.Tony againnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-47063485099155503982016-02-04T12:38:39.404-06:002016-02-04T12:38:39.404-06:00What's it about? It's about time you read ...What's it about? It's about time you read it and found out for yourself!<br /><br />http://www.sadtrombone.com/Jason Winternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-48901297388402031672016-02-04T12:24:42.157-06:002016-02-04T12:24:42.157-06:00Amen to that! It was never published as a 'Not...Amen to that! It was never published as a 'Note From The President' (I wonder why?)- thanks for sharing it here, Margaret. Dave has never 'sold out' and I expect he never will. Integrity, courage, dedication and reliability are things you can never put a price on. Lee Thackerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06674011430761589511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-19689953504342566462016-02-04T11:31:45.766-06:002016-02-04T11:31:45.766-06:00Well, somebody's got to say it..."It'...Well, somebody's got to say it..."It's about 6000 pages."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.sadtrombone.com/" rel="nofollow">groan</a>Tony Dunlopnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-22488037911072223202016-02-04T05:18:31.441-06:002016-02-04T05:18:31.441-06:00No, Travis, I think Deni always had "big plan...No, Travis, I think Deni always had "big plans", so you're probably right about her "bean-counting" being expansionism. (Although, Bill Loebs is one of the genuinely nicest persons I've ever met, and "Journey" is a good book.)<br /><br />As to Ger being a bean-counter; he was. He did *all* of the office work, except for signing the checks. But, he never had plans beyond doing his art and helping to make "Cerebus" a great comic book.<br /><br />Dave once told me that Ger has/had always "undersold" himself. Some time later, at a WizardWorld convention, I witnessed Ger being politely confronted by a convention "organizer" telling him that he should be charging more for his autograph on the WizardWorld signature comics that he was selling for them.<br /><br />And, yeah, five bucks for a reprint comic, the cover of which was drawn by Gerhard, and signed and personalized by him, might be a bit low.<br /><br />So, he raised it to ten bucks.<br /><br />That's just one reason (of many) why he's one of my very most favorite people. More so than, even, Dave.<br /><br />(Sorry, man.)Jeff Seilerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15543690118315946039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-41756367207625780752016-02-04T03:20:18.988-06:002016-02-04T03:20:18.988-06:00I agree with Damian. That's certainly one of ...I agree with Damian. That's certainly one of the things I admire most about Dave, that he did his own thing and didn't submit it through the "ordinary channels". <br /><br />Jeff, I think Damian probably meant "bean-counters" in the sense of the "hey, one book about an aardvark is making money, let's do another!" sort of pushing of product that the big 2 comic companies do. I don't think Deni expanded A-V with things like Flaming Carrot or Journey with the notion that they'd make a mint, but that they were good comics that deserved an audience. Obviously somebody needed to count the cash at some point, which was the only "bean-counting" Deni or Ger were concerned with. Not the "how do we make even more money off this property!?" style bean-counting I think Damian means.<br /><br />And as to this post itself, this is the first time I recall this sort of thesis, if you will, or these examples. Yay, an AMOC exclusive bit from Margaret!<br /><br />I do remember someone in the Aardvark Comment mentioning Pete Townsend and not selling your integrity because you can't get it back, though.Travis Pelkienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-61151333395391886052016-02-04T03:03:57.441-06:002016-02-04T03:03:57.441-06:00Amen, Damian. Although, I think Deni and, later, G...Amen, Damian. Although, I think Deni and, later, Gerhard, did a little bit of bean-counting. So, God bless them, too.Jeff Seilerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15543690118315946039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2837001751311078781.post-49236359715045354732016-02-04T00:29:12.469-06:002016-02-04T00:29:12.469-06:00This might be Dave's greatest legacy: proof th...This might be Dave's greatest legacy: proof that you don't need editors, publishers, managers, market researchers, bean-counters, or gatekeepers of any kind to create and put before an audience a work of your own singular making.<br /><br /> -- Damian<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com