Rocket to Venus!!!!

Love Forbidden. Adventure Unending. Terror Eternal

Well Loyal Legionnaires..... it seems the good Captain is going to take a bit of a u-turn.  The news is out and i will be pencilling and inking the adventures of Wrong Way Carson Napier.  With the first strip appearing on the ERB inc. sites comic section starting June 1.    With me on the team is Martin Powell handling the script of Pirates of Venus and Lost on Venus, which we will rocket through this year.  I will be producing a strip a week, with Diana Leto adding the colors.  It's going to be a fun ride. 

The ERB inc. site is a pay site, but more strips are going to be added in the next few months.  I think the total will be six or seven....all for a buck 99 a month.  Not a bad deal considering all the talent lined up.  Currently they are running the Tarzan strip by Roy Thomas and Tom Grindberg.  But then June 1 Carson of Venus starts and more will follow. 

So i have been a bit busy designing logos, and all the costumes, weapons, ships and all that go with these huge planetary romance adventures.   

For the 'look' of Carson i tried to get a mix of the great serial actor Kane Richmond with a dash of Flash Gordon thrown in.  

The nose section of Carson's rocket appearing in the strip.  Sorry i can't show a lot.... you will just have to sign up and read along on a great adventure!!!  

Also at the end of the first years strips, Dark Horse will collect it all and if enough people sign up we will rocket right into the second year of Carson's adventures on Venus.  

As some of you know i am not a stranger to Venus....i worked on the Bison Books version some years back.  

Also i have talked about projects like this....i need these paying projects so i can maybe hit that early retirement, then i can work on more projects like the reason you are here.....Captain Spectre!!!!  So help spread the word about signing up and reading Carson.  And just imagine all the practice i am getting, ha.     Thanks so much for your support and understanding Loyal Legionnaires.  Every thing like this i try gets me a little closer to early retirement and working full time on the stuff i love.

....things are happening!!

Hey loyal Legionnaires, well i know i should be posting more updates with all the things that are going on it is tough for several reasons.  One reason is i have just been so busy. Another reason is, just like the sign says above, some of it is top secret!  But i will hint at a few things, just because i can't stand keeping some secrets, ha.

With my early retirement age rapidly approaching - at around a year and a half - things are really starting to happen.  One of the reasons or conditions that i might be able to do the early retirement thing is finding a bit of sideline comic book/strip work to add to my paltry sum that social security and what little retirement money i have saved will bring me.  Well again no deal is final, but that might be coming together at just about the right time.  Also one of the things i wish to do is be able to retire and then just do comics!!! My own comics i have planned and something for a little income.   So anyway i sure hope it all comes together and then the future will look so much better to me - and to all the loyal Legionnaires - because that means more time to work on Captain Spectre, and this other thing that you loyal Legionnaires will also enjoy!!!!

So everybody wish me luck and i will spill the news as i can.  And now let me find some recent things to post for your enjoyment...... thanks Legionnaires...... i do appreciate all of you!!!

Also i have started on my part of the 'Jungle Tales of Tarzan' that should be published probably late this year or first of next year.  This is a great project as it is an authorized adaption of the collection of Burroughs short stories.
I have been given the chance to illustrate the last tale in the book. Tarzan rescues the Moon, wish will be adapted by Martin Powell.  Each tale or story in the book will be illustrated by different artist..... everything from Terry Beatty (of the Phantom Sunday fame) to Pablos Marcos, to slubs like me. ha. So here are some items from the beginning of that project - coming from Dark Horse!

Also here are a few extras i did as warm ups and such.....again enjoy all, and thanks. 

until next time Legionnaires!!!! take care and enjoy life ---- and thanks for looking in!!!! 

tom

The Future is rapidly approaching...!!!!

Hello Loyal Legionnaires....again sorry for the flagrant lack of posts here, but I have been really busy lately and will give the low down on most projects in a minute.
But first the reason for this post's title.  My future is something that is rushing headlong towards me, and I will have to deal with it sooner than later.   I for one have always hated working for other people, but I was always scared to strike out on my own.....doubting my talent and everything else.  When i had a family there was almost no way to strike out on your own, too many responsibilities and all of keeping everyone feed, clothed, and all the things that go with living.
But now i am coming rapidly up on the age of 'early' retirement.  To early retire, or not to early retire, that is the question!!!  First of all i vowed to myself that i would never be one of those people i had seen in my childhood years that gave all to his company or job, and had no life outside of it.  I have seen people like that work at a job until they dropped dead, or worked until forced to retire and had nothing to do, or didn't know what to do when left alone to themselves.  Oh sure i had a strong work ethic and all that, and did my jobs, and even over and above most of the time, but i always wanted to do my own thing and just couldn't wait to get done with the day so i could at least think about what i wanted to do.
Anyway that all leads me to me being very busy lately.
I have a few projects in the works, and have actually over reached in that department.  But you can never count on all projects going forward.  But with some of these projects, it just might bring in a bit of money to help me reach that 'early' retirement status.   I hope.

So the list goes like this.....

A famous jungle project that might happen.....
A famous planetary romance that might happen....
An famous aviation strip that might happen....
A pitch to a comics company for a rocket powered person you might know.....

and.....to go along with all that......

   i am lettering the Halloween Legion graphic novel written by Martin Powell that will appear later this year, hopefully from Sequential Pulp/Dark Horse.....

   i am working on a tee shirt design for a hot musical group out of Texas.....

Also have some projects floating around the edges like:

Monster Men by Edgar Rice Burroughs adaption......

and above all CAPTAIN SPECTRE!!!!  which is the point of retiring early!!!!!! So i can work on Captain Spectre!!!!

So here are some pieces to fuel your imaginations!!!! enjoy Legionnaires!!!!

 

Trying for more updates!

Well, Loyal Legionnaires, I am trying to post more updates....well you know more often is what I mean. Not that I want to bog you down with tons of stuff.  So we have a couple of pieces. 

This first piece is kind of an experiment.  I wanted to try and use more solid blacks on a figure and a bit less feathering and shading. I think is kind of ok..... I am not to comfortable using it yet, but will try some more ways to shade.  This one is kind of from a really rough sketch I did ages ago. I always liked the Tarzan figure so thought I would give it a workover.  Kind of practice for a secret project that I will let everyone in on when I can.  ha. 

This second piece is yet another illustration for the KiGor 'War of the Beast Men' that I am working on.  There will be ten illos in all. I think this is number six or seven, I forget. Anyway it is showing Helene's fighting skills.  I always felt she was one of the toughest pulp heroines around, and I really have fun drawing her.  There should be a pulp story cross over between Helene and Nita Van Sloan from the Spider novels.....now I would read that one right off the rack! 

Well Legionnaires, I do hope you have a great new year!!!! and hope you had a great holiday!  Let's clink our glasses to a great New Year!!! and thanks for looking in. 

tom

Merry Christmas to all!!!!

Well Merry Christmas to all out there in Lighting Legion land!  Again what can I say, except sorry for the lack of updates.  I do apologize again for not updating more often, but with my very very slow production rate anymore it just seems like I never get around to the blog. Sometimes I pop things up on Facebook, which is really starting to annoy me, but it seems to spread the work and the word you have to try to take advantage of all the media stuff you can.  I will try to make this the first spot I update in this coming NEW YEAR.    

Just a simple pin up shot of 'jack' Ms. Jacqueline O'Brien for the christmas season, it does have a bow in the picture! ha. 

I am also endeavoring to finish the reformatting of the KiGor story written a couple of years ago. It seems to have been dusted off and might be published by Moonstone sometime in the future. Here are the first four of ten final pieces for the story 'War of the Beast Men' written by Martin Powell.  

Again I want to wish all my Loyal Legionnaires out there a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a very happy NEW YEAR!   I hope this year brings you better fortune and luck than the last! We could all use a good bit of that.... I know I can with my health issues and age problems.  I do promise I am working on Captain Spectre, when my health permits, and I do hope to have that first issue done sometime this coming year.....i hope.   Til next time Legionnaires!  thanks. 

tom

Iowa....here i come!

 First off some art to look at.

Page 2 inks for the 'touch and go' story

cover concept for the first Captain Spectre print comic

I know it has been a long time since the last update.  I do apologize for the time going by so fast.  Again it seems the older you get the faster time slides by.   And thank the gods that election is almost over with.  Oh sure the winners will shout it out, and the losers will gripe and yell about how evil the winner is, and all that.  Probably a good bit of voting problems too.... computers not counting right, and all that sort of hanging chad type of stuff.   Man i am just plain sick of it all.  Almost 99 percent of it all is name calling and laughing at the other side.   Again i will never talk politics on this blog, as what i believe is what i believe and it is private..... and just something i am not truly interested in talking about.  Anyway most of the posts on facebook and the like just make me sick, no matter which side people are on.  If people talked or posted like that about other races, or sexual orientation they might be arrested.  I just don't understand it all.  I will shut up about all that now.

Ok on to the comics and Captain Spectre.   I have posted some new art.  I want any feedback you Legionnaires feel like giving.....as these are your books and stories too.  I wanted that cover to reflect the 'mystery man' kind of thing......maybe that is Captain Spectre and maybe not on the cover.  Also it will make a bit more sense when you read the whole story. ha.

Also I need some advice...... i am of course trying to take this series of books back to the good old days, so in that i am bringing back the thought ballon.  I have read articles about what non comic readers don't get when they read new comics.  One of the things is the thought block, you know the yellow block with inner voices in them.  People in these articles didn't know who was talking or thinking.  So the thought ballon will clear that up.... i want these books to be as accessible to everyone as possible, long time comic readers as well as new comic readers.   People also griped about not really knowing who the characters were....they were just showing up without any explanation at all.  So of course with that this is sort of an origin story as to who Chris Manes / Captain Spectre is.

But also i have been thinking about sound effects too..... in the on line strip i haven't used sound effects that most comic readers are used too.  I was going for more of the Alex Raymond/Flash Gordon or Foster's Prince Valiant thing with the on line strips.    So what do you loyal legionnaires think????? Sound effects or not????? So sound off and let me know. ok.

Anyway i do hope you Legionnaires enjoy this little story when i finally get it done.  I am keeping it fairly short and done in one so again it is accessible to all readers.  But even though it is 'done in one' it does set up alot of ideas and more story to come.

I will also be appearing at the ICON in Des Moines Iowa this coming weekend.  So if you are in the area... pop in and chat awhile.

thanks......

the carnival is coming to town...

Well Loyal Legionnaires, once again i am late with a post. Where does the time go.

Anyway progress is being made on the first Captain Spectre print story. I know, I know you have heard all this before. But honestly the die is cast, the outline is in place, and production has started on the story. As before it is an intro story, short and sweet. Done in one, and all that other stuff.  I hope to get alot done on this story over the next few months. I hope.

Anyway without apologizing anymore for my lack of updates....here are some working pieces from this weekend.  This opening page was kind like the last one i put up, but the story location has changed and it has changed for the better.  Thanks to a Loyal Legionnaire for a brilliant idea about the carnival for the opening scene.  And she knows who she is, so i want to thank her outright for such a great idea that she is letting me steal. ha.   Also with the carnival, i needed some back story, as i really love carnivals or did when i actually went places.  So of course the fortune teller is part of the story, but then i had fun figuring out the freaks in the freak show.  Like JoJoe the monkey boy. And i also needed to know who the bosses were that ran the carnival.  So enjoy and hope you like these sketches and pencils.

thanks loyal legionnaires.....

Where does all the time go anymore!

Well Loyal Legionnaires, bet you gave up on me.  Well I almost gave up on myself.  I have been working on things, and doing my normal job too.

But since the last post I have just been exhausted.  Blame it on the heat, blame it on the total lack of rain killing crops and yards, but mostly blame it on me.  It seems to happen about this time every year, and I never knew what caused it.  Then one day a friend of mine said, 'hey isn't this the time you went into the service'?  And guess what, my enter day into the US Army was Aug 3rd.  So it seems weeks before that date and a week or so after that date are the toughest times of the year for me.  Like when some people get the holiday blues....I guess I get the 'oh god, i got drafted' blues. heh.

Also I have been trying to increase my writing ability by doing various things.  But never fear Legionnaires, I am actually working on Captain Spectre from time to time.  And you will begin to see the results pretty soon.  I hope.

So in the mean time I am continuing work on the Dark Horse project, Number 13, I have toned the Spider Christmas story that Martin Powell wrote and it appeared in color in a Christmas annual - but now is going to be reprinted in a Spider collection of stories just written by Martin Powell. That will come from Moonstone later this year and I will post more about it so you can pick it up if you like. Also working on a set of illustrations for a prose KiGor story, once again written by Martin Powell and showing up in a series of books called the Return of the Monsters from Moonstone.  And like i said i squeeze Captain Spectre in there too. whew.

So anyway I also did some sketch cards for one of my favorite comic conventions..... and some designs for a nether water creature for the KiGor story that I will let you in on.

So all for now Loyal Legionnaires, and watch the skies because Captain Spectre is coming!!!!!!!

thanks.......

just not having much luck.....

Well it seems I am just not breaking on the good side of Lady Luck lately.  Health, Mental and all other things are closing in on me.  Sorry to whine a bit but, that is about the size of it all.

At least I did finish the inks on this Conan piece. I hope thru all of this stuff it is a good piece.  My production rate is almost at a standstill because of all these things. Sorry.

Memorial Day already?

Wow, the year is racing by.  Of course various things help it along. Like old age.  I used to think older people were crazy when they said 'it goes faster the older you get'.  Well Legionnaires, believe me, it is so true!  I just can't believe how fast a month flies by, then the year follows right after that.

So everyone have a great Memorial Day weekend. And be safe out there.

Also a couple of pieces for you to hopefully enjoy.

Stay tuned Loyal Legionnaires!