From: [100424 1015] at [compuserve.com] (LAWRENCE Everard) Subject: Rich's Revelations October Date: Tue, 10 Oct 95 16:06:04 GMT Rich's Revelations: Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics A monthly column looking at the current state of comics. Lies (News taken from news reports, creator interviews and primary sources. Any errors are theirs) Sales on Exit from Caliber have been very good indeed. The word has got round the retailers, and sales have well exceeded the original self published issues. Trade paperbacks of the first 8 issues may soon be released. On that note, Strangehaven from Abiogenesis has also reached new self-publishing sales heights. The author, Gary Spencer Millidge is interested in any Americans who would be able to offer a "garage service", similar to one of Mike Meyer's roles for Twist and Shout Comics, storing comics in the USA to fill any USA orders, so that Gary doesn't have to the ship them back and forth across the Atlantic. He recently filled Cold Cut with 50 copies, that wiped off any profit he could make on the issues. And yes, for one month, Twist and Shout Comics become Britain's biggest self publisher. We didn't mean to, honest guv! Alan Moore will be recording "The Birth Caul: A Shamanism Of Childhood" in Newcastle in November. This new limited CD will be recorded at the Old County Court Building, Westgate Rd, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, not far from Forbidden Planet, 59 Grainger Street, Newcastle, who will be selling tickets. He will be playing with ex-Bauhaus bass guitarist David J and the classical musician Tim Perkins. Copies of the CD will be released by Charrm Records on December the 4th and can be obtained from Charrm Records, 15 Devonshire Place, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne NE2 2NB Dez Skinn (Comics International, Warrior) and Paul Hudson (Comics Showcase) are parachute jumping to raise money for Knockabout's legal expenses. After shipments of Crumb's My Troubles With Women, a book that has passed through customs many times, was seized, Knockabout are up against HM Customs. And someones got to foot the legal bill. Make cheques in sterling payable to Nash and Dowell, Knockabout's solicitors and send to: Knockabout Comics, 10 Acklam Road, London, W10 5QZ, ENGLAND Phone 0 (1144) 181 969 2945, fax 0 (1144) 181 968 7614 (USA/Canada add) Bob Wayne had an interesting idea to raise more money from Dez Skinn's parachute jump, but you'll have to ask him yourself ([d--b--w] at [aol.com]) or perhaps he'll post it here himself. I've got a job to keep 8-) (see sig.) And... with the abscence of Warren Ellis from Doctor Strange, can the art team be far behind? Chris Bachalo and Mark Buckingham dissed their work on Ghost Rider and Ghost Rider 2099 on stage at the UKCAC, due to... err... writing deficiencies, and Mark and Kev were heard to mention similar misgivings about their current Marvel project. However, DeMatteis is starting to please them more. Damn Lies (News taken from rumour columns, friends of friends and dealers with stories, hot comics etc. Take with as much a pinch of salt as you like.) Hot comics! Hot comics! Preacher is selling for over 7 quid (er... over ten dollars is that?), Egypt has also hit heights, the new Ellis and Deodato Thor has sold out everywhere, along with Waid's Cap America. Angela, selected Comics' Greatest World are up there too, thanks to movie interest. Just how hot can the Green Lantern/Silver Surfer crossover get? As a prequel to the big crossover next year, dealers have realised their underorders and some are taking orders for the title at many times cover price without any copies in their hands yet. My favourite scene from the UKCAC was when all the long time X-Men fans who had stopped buying the title found out about the latest Excalibur. Fans and creators alike swooped onto any of the "new comics" table is desperation as Kitty Pryde reached that... big moment. Dealers are trying to place reorders on the next issue. Keown leaves Image... but why? Reports are that there were general disagreements with Image which exacerbated when Keown found out that his work was being reprinted in Europe without his permission or contract. Statistics Capital City Figures 1 Uncanny X-Men 326 2 X-Men 46 3 Spawn 36 4 Wolverine 95 5 Generation X 9 6 Gen-13 5 7 Uncanny X-Men '95 8 Wolverine/Gambit 3 9 Spawn: Blood Feud 4 10 X-Man 9 11 X-Force 48 12 X-Factor 116 13 Cable 25 14 Professor Xavier and the X-Men 1 15 Generation X '95 16 Excalibur 91 17 Spider-man/Batman 18 Wizard 48 19 X-Files 8 20 Amazing Scarlet Spider 1 405 21 Dawn 2 22 Spec Scarlet Spider 1 23 Scarlet Spider 1 24 Wetworks 11 25 Web Scarlet Spider 1 26 Avengelyne/Glory 27 Glory/Avengelyne 28 Hulk 435 29 Spider-man: The Parker Years 1 30 Untold Tales of Spider-man 20 31 Green Goblin 2 32 Cyberforce 16 33 Starjammers 2 34 X-Men 2099 26 35 Zealot 2 36 Star Wars: Sith War 2 37 X-Files Comics Digest 1 38 Youngblood 1 39 Sandman 72 40 Star Wars: X-Wing 3 41 FF 405 42 Scarlet Spider Unlimited 1 43 Venom 3 44 Superman: Man of Steel 50 45 Spider-man Lost Years 2 46 Grifter 5 47 Ballistic 3 48 Chaos Quarterly 49 Velocity 1 50 What If 79 51 Superman 106 52 Riptide 1 53 Adventures of Superman 529 54 Avengers 392 55 Maxx 19 56 Action Comics 715 57 Batman 524 58 Glory and Friends Bikini Fest 59 Vengeance of Vampirella 18 60 Glory 6 61 Backlash 12 62 Detective Comics 691 63 Captain America 445 64 Stormwatch 28 65 Legends of the Dark Knight 77 66 Savage Dragon 23 67 Deathblow 20 68 Silver Surfer 110 69 Star Wars: River of Chaos 4 70 Captain Britain 1 (now cancelled) 71 Kurt Busiek's Astro City 2 72 Sovereign Seven 5 73 Azrael 10 74 Fantastic Four Unplugged 3 75 Ghost 3 76 Punisher 1 77 Wonder Woman 103 78 Batman: Shadow of the Bat 44 79 New Warriors 65 80 Cyberforce Origins: Impact 3 81 Thor 492 82 Batman: Man Bat 2 83 Shotgun Mary 1 84 Wildstorm 2 85 Spartan: Warrior Spirit 3 86 Robin 22 87 Green Lantern 68 89 Nightwing 3 90 Wildstar 1 91 Spider-man 2099 Special 92 Chapel 2 93 Underworld Unleashed 1 94 Iron Man 321 95 Ghost Rider 67 96 Bloodpool 2 97 Cyberforce Universe Sourcebook 98 Catwoman 26 99 Simpsons Comics 17 100 Beavis and Butthead 21 This is the news. Happy now? Rich Johnston Columnist and Reviewer for Comics International. Reviewer for Indy Advertising Copywriter for Buckfield Lord and Co. Creator and co-publisher of Dirtbag and X-Flies, from Twist and Shout Comics