Mad Cave Studios new title “Dick Tracy #1, available April 24, 2024 is written by Alex Segura and Michael Morecci, with illustrations by Geraldo Borges:
“…in the aftermath of World War II, the country stands frozen–waiting for the next shoe to drop. In ‘The City’, a killing draws the attention of rising star detective ‘Dick Tracy’…
“…who soon discovers this is just the beginning of a complicated web that threatens to ensnare everything he cares about…”
Originally created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' appeared in five movie serials 1937 -1941, six feature films, including actor/director Warren Beatty's 1990 movie, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
Gould's "Dick Tracy" debuted October 4, 1931, reflecting the violence of gangster Al Capone's 1930's Chicago, while staying current with crime fighting techniques, forensic science and advanced gadgetry.
The "Dick Tracy" rogues gallery of villains include 'Flattop',...
“…in the aftermath of World War II, the country stands frozen–waiting for the next shoe to drop. In ‘The City’, a killing draws the attention of rising star detective ‘Dick Tracy’…
“…who soon discovers this is just the beginning of a complicated web that threatens to ensnare everything he cares about…”
Originally created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' appeared in five movie serials 1937 -1941, six feature films, including actor/director Warren Beatty's 1990 movie, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
Gould's "Dick Tracy" debuted October 4, 1931, reflecting the violence of gangster Al Capone's 1930's Chicago, while staying current with crime fighting techniques, forensic science and advanced gadgetry.
The "Dick Tracy" rogues gallery of villains include 'Flattop',...
- 2/18/2024
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
For us 90s kids, Dick Tracy was an interesting monster of a movie. It seemed to take a lot of cues from Tim Burton’s Batman, which was released the previous summer, but it definitely had a distinct voice of its own. Dick Tracy was another classic pulp adaptation of an urban enforcer that had very dynamic visuals and an over-the-top rogues gallery. It even sported a score by Danny Elfman, which would have his signature atmospheric sound. The movie would introduce a generation of young audiences to the 1930’s film noir/ detective movie genre. Additionally, the movie brought back Warren Beatty after a three-year absence when his last film, 1987’s Ishtar, was a big flop. Having a star like Beatty in a big-budget franchise like this was an enormous asset for the re-budding intellectual property. And the star power wouldn’t even stop there.
Grab your Tommy guns. It...
Grab your Tommy guns. It...
- 1/21/2024
- by EJ Tangonan
- JoBlo.com
In the post-New Hollywood era, there are movie stars and there is Warren Beatty. The sturdily built, 6'2" dreamboat could've been a fine football player, but his movie-mad sister, Shirley MacLaine, got him fired up about acting. Beatty studied under Stella Adler, and arrived fully formed as a matinee idol opposite Natalie Wood in Elia Kazan's 1961 hit, "Splendor in the Grass." Beatty took not just to the craft, but the game. He produced and starred in Arthur Penn's "Bonnie and Clyde," which, by dint of his star power, drop-kicked studios into an era of blind risk-taking.
But there was nothing blind about investing in Beatty. "Easy Rider," "Five Easy Pieces," and even "The French Connection" were long shots. Place Beatty at the top of the marquee, and you had an event. The problem for studios was that Beatty had peculiar appetites. Ideally, you'd plug him into "Love Story" or "The Way We Were.
But there was nothing blind about investing in Beatty. "Easy Rider," "Five Easy Pieces," and even "The French Connection" were long shots. Place Beatty at the top of the marquee, and you had an event. The problem for studios was that Beatty had peculiar appetites. Ideally, you'd plug him into "Love Story" or "The Way We Were.
- 2/11/2023
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
The character of Dick Tracy has been around since 1931, appearing daily in newspaper comic strips almost continuously since his debut, and achieving a level of popularity during his heyday that few other characters could aspire to. In just his first 20 years of existence, there were four Dick Tracy movie serials, four feature films, a TV series, and countless items of merchandise.
But many modern fans know the character best thanks to his portrayal by Warren Beatty in 1990’s big budget summer blockbuster movie. That film attempted to kick off a wave of Tracymania unseen since the 1940s. It never quite took hold.
Despite being one of the highest grossing movies of 1990, and garnering a slew of Oscar nominations, Dick Tracy was a victim of expectations. The film that had once been envisioned as a gritty ode to 1930s gangster movies became a giant blockbuster with a merchandising bonanza meant to...
But many modern fans know the character best thanks to his portrayal by Warren Beatty in 1990’s big budget summer blockbuster movie. That film attempted to kick off a wave of Tracymania unseen since the 1940s. It never quite took hold.
Despite being one of the highest grossing movies of 1990, and garnering a slew of Oscar nominations, Dick Tracy was a victim of expectations. The film that had once been envisioned as a gritty ode to 1930s gangster movies became a giant blockbuster with a merchandising bonanza meant to...
- 7/7/2020
- by Mike Cecchini
- Den of Geek
When Dick Tracy burst onto screens in June 1990, it was heralded as the heir to the previous summer’s comics-to-page blockbuster throne, Batman. While the Disney film boasted similar star power (Warren Beatty and Al Pacino), intricate production design that evoked both colorful Sunday comic strips and classic gangster films, and even a tie-in album by one of the biggest pop music stars of a generation (Madonna’s I’m Breathless), characters like Dick Tracy and Flattop were hardly the pop culture mainstays that Batman and the Joker were, even before that 1989 film revitalized their fortunes. Nevertheless, Dick Tracy made a box office splash (albeit not a Batman-sized one), and racked up three Oscars as well as nominations for Best Supporting Actor (for Al Pacino’s scenery-chewing turn as Big Boy Caprice), Cinematography, Costume Design, and Sound Design.
But Dick Tracy had a difficult journey. Bouncing around between studios and...
But Dick Tracy had a difficult journey. Bouncing around between studios and...
- 6/15/2020
- by Mike Cecchini
- Den of Geek
(Welcome to The Quarantine Stream, a new series where the /Film team shares what they’ve been watching while social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic.) The Movie: Dick Tracy Where You Can Stream It: HBO Now/HBO Go The Pitch: Hard-boiled detective Dick Tracy, based on the comic strip by Chester Gould, is […]
The post The Quarantine Stream: Warren Beatty’s ‘Dick Tracy’ Is One of the Greatest Comic Book Movies appeared first on /Film.
The post The Quarantine Stream: Warren Beatty’s ‘Dick Tracy’ Is One of the Greatest Comic Book Movies appeared first on /Film.
- 5/10/2020
- by Ethan Anderton
- Slash Film
Because of a "pre-existing licensing deal" with Tribune Co. "Archie" Comics had to kill their comic book reboot of plainclothes officer, private detective "Dick Tracy", with actor Warren Beatty ("McCabe & Mrs. Miller") continuing to hold onto the character's rights, despite a 'use it' or 'lose it' clause in a long-standing agreement with Tribune to produce a "Dick Tracy" movie or TV series:
The monthly comic book series was illustrated in a more realistic style, than that of "Dick Tracy" creator Chester Gould...
Created by Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' has appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941...
...six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
In a previous announcement of the new comic book series, Tribune Co. was "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise...
The monthly comic book series was illustrated in a more realistic style, than that of "Dick Tracy" creator Chester Gould...
Created by Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' has appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941...
...six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
In a previous announcement of the new comic book series, Tribune Co. was "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise...
- 11/5/2018
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
According to new reports, because of a "pre-existing licensing deal" with Tribune Co. "Archie" Comics cancelled their comic book reboot of "Dick Tracy", as actor Warren Beatty continues to hold onto the character's rights, despite a 'use it' or 'lose it' clause in a long-standing agreement with Tribune to produce a "Dick Tracy" movie or TV show:
The monthly comic book series was illustrated by Thomas Pitilli...
...with the first cover by Francesco Francavilla.
Created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' has so far appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941, six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
In a previous announcement of the new comic book series, Tribune Co. was "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise will keep 'Dick Tracy' and...
The monthly comic book series was illustrated by Thomas Pitilli...
...with the first cover by Francesco Francavilla.
Created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, 'Dick Tracy' has so far appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941, six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
In a previous announcement of the new comic book series, Tribune Co. was "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise will keep 'Dick Tracy' and...
- 1/17/2018
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Archie Comics has confirmed a comic book reboot of "Dick Tracy", available April 11, 2018, as actor Warren Beatty continues to hold onto the character's screen rights, despite a 'use it' or 'lose it' clause in a long-standing agreement with Tribune Co. to produce a "Dick Tracy" movie or TV show:
The monthly comic book series will be illustrated by Thomas Pitilli...
...with the first cover by Francesco Francavilla.
Created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, the character has so far appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941, six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
Tribune Co. is "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise will keep 'Dick Tracy' and his cast of rogue villains at the forefront of heroic characters in the battle of good and evil.
The monthly comic book series will be illustrated by Thomas Pitilli...
...with the first cover by Francesco Francavilla.
Created by Chester Gould as a newspaper comic strip, the character has so far appeared in five movie serials from 1937 through 1941, six movies, including Beatty's 1990 feature, plus three TV series including animated cartoons.
Tribune Co. is "...very excited to work with Archie Comics. 'Dick Tracy' is an iconic character, who still resonates with his fan base.
"The reboot of the franchise will keep 'Dick Tracy' and his cast of rogue villains at the forefront of heroic characters in the battle of good and evil.
- 12/13/2017
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Mike Cecchini Kirsten Howard Dec 13, 2017
A new Dick Tracy series exploring the character's early years is coming next year...
In news that is long, long overdue, Dick Tracy will finally return to the world of comics.
See related Star Citizen: latest gameplay video shows $100m space sim in action Star Citizen's cast includes Gary Oldman, Gillian Anderson
Archie Comics has acquired the rights to publish a Dick Tracy comic, the first time new adventures of comics' most famous cop have been published in comic book form since Kyle Baker and John Moore's 'True Hearts And Tommy Guns' Trilogy in 1990. The new series comes from co-writers Michael Moreci and Alex Segura, with art by Thomas Pitilli.
"The first arc of the series is going back to square one - as we explore the very early days of Dick Tracy's time in The City, soon after the second World War,...
A new Dick Tracy series exploring the character's early years is coming next year...
In news that is long, long overdue, Dick Tracy will finally return to the world of comics.
See related Star Citizen: latest gameplay video shows $100m space sim in action Star Citizen's cast includes Gary Oldman, Gillian Anderson
Archie Comics has acquired the rights to publish a Dick Tracy comic, the first time new adventures of comics' most famous cop have been published in comic book form since Kyle Baker and John Moore's 'True Hearts And Tommy Guns' Trilogy in 1990. The new series comes from co-writers Michael Moreci and Alex Segura, with art by Thomas Pitilli.
"The first arc of the series is going back to square one - as we explore the very early days of Dick Tracy's time in The City, soon after the second World War,...
- 12/12/2017
- Den of Geek
Emmy-nominated Actress Glenne Headly, who played 'Tess Trueheart', the girlfriend of Detective "Dick Tracy" (1990) has passed away during the shooting of the Hulu TV series "Future Man":
'Tess Trueheart', the love interest of 'Dick Tracy' was created by Chester Gould in 1931.
Trueheart eventually became the wife of Tracy.
She gave birth to daughter 'Bonnie Braids' and son 'Joseph Flintheart Tracy'.
Click the images to enlarge...
'Tess Trueheart', the love interest of 'Dick Tracy' was created by Chester Gould in 1931.
Trueheart eventually became the wife of Tracy.
She gave birth to daughter 'Bonnie Braids' and son 'Joseph Flintheart Tracy'.
Click the images to enlarge...
- 6/9/2017
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Drew Ford has spent the last few years of his life dedicated to bringing classic out of circulation comics and graphic novels back in print in beautiful restored editions. A fierce advocate for creators such as Sam Glanzman, Drew has brought back multiple books of his work, a graphic novel from David Michelinie, another graphic novel from ComicMix’s own Denny O’Neil, and many more. This was originally done through Dover Publications until Drew founded It’s Alive! Press, an imprint of Idw.
Drew’s latest project is bringing Family Man, by Jerome Charyn and Joe Staton, back in print through a Kickstarter campaign. You can view the campaign here.
I got the chance to interview Joe Staton this past weekend about Family Man.
Jc: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me about today about Family Man! Before we get into that, you’re...
Drew’s latest project is bringing Family Man, by Jerome Charyn and Joe Staton, back in print through a Kickstarter campaign. You can view the campaign here.
I got the chance to interview Joe Staton this past weekend about Family Man.
Jc: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me about today about Family Man! Before we get into that, you’re...
- 5/9/2017
- by Joe Corallo
- Comicmix.com
This weekend, a whole bunch of us ComicMixers will be making our annual trip to the Baltimore Comic-Con. For the record, that’s Martha Thomases, Adriane Nash, Evelyn Krite, G.D. Falksen, and myself. Glenn Hauman and Robert Greenberger will be in New York at a big ol’ Star Trek convention, Emily S. Whitten will be at Dragon Con, and John Ostrander will be at several Michigan theaters watching Suicide Squad again. Glenn, Robert and Emily also are regulars at Bcc, but this year the show shares Labor Day weekend with these other two east coast shows.
Yes, life is truly one long and never ending comic book convention. I’ve been going to the “big” ones (big as relevant to its time) since 1968. That’s 48 years, which is longer than most of today’s convention-goers have been alive. That’s about five years longer than Kiss has been together,...
Yes, life is truly one long and never ending comic book convention. I’ve been going to the “big” ones (big as relevant to its time) since 1968. That’s 48 years, which is longer than most of today’s convention-goers have been alive. That’s about five years longer than Kiss has been together,...
- 8/31/2016
- by Mike Gold
- Comicmix.com
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The Dick Tracy movie was a defining summer blockbuster, yet somehow never got a sequel. Here's why...
Make no mistake, the 1990 Dick Tracy movie was intended to be the next Batman. That's amusing when you consider how much of a debt Batman comics owed the grotesque rogues' gallery of Chester Gould's Dick Tracy comic strips. But from a box-office perspective, this is where things stood as we headed into the summer of 1990. And as surely as Batman launched a franchise that has continued (in some form or another) for 25-plus years, so too did Disney have ambitions for Dick Tracy 2.
Just as Bat-merchandise had begun to flood shelves in early spring of 1989, so did Dick Tracy trading cards, bubble gum, a remarkably ugly (but strangely appealing) line of action figures from Playmates (who ruled the world at that moment with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles license), making-of books, and (best of all) new reprints of the original daily and Sunday comic strips. That's a fairly optimistic program of licensing, and that doesn't even include the T-shirts, bath towels, and other novelties that followed.
The Batman similarities even extended to the minimalist movie posters, which featured an outline of Warren Beatty in primary-coloured profile, or speaking into a two-way wrist radio promising "I'm on my way." Disney's marketing department perhaps overestimated the recognisability and mass market appeal of the character, who hadn't been seen in live-action since the mid-50s, and who last actually made it to television in any form as part of a poorly-animated (and horrifically racist) Saturday morning cartoon in the '60s. Batman, on the other hand, was still an indelible pop culture icon, thanks in no small part to the inescapable presence of the Adam West TV series in syndication throughout the decade.
After Tim Burton's star-studded Batman dominated the summer of 1989 with a $250 million American haul (over $400 million worldwide), and since Dick Tracy had similar elements (top drawer celebrities in ridiculous makeup, remarkable set design, the biggest pop star of the era providing a soundtrack), studio expectations were probably stratospheric. Instead, Dick Tracy finished its theatrical run with a far more modest $162 million worldwide. While still a hefty profit over the film's $47 million budget, those certainly weren't Batman numbers, and brightly colored Dick Tracy merchandise stayed on shelves well past its Christmas 1990 sell by date.
Batmania, this wasn't. In the aftermath of the film's box office, Disney's Jeffrey Katzenberg would pen his infamous 1991 memo (which in turn inspired the film Jerry Maguire, many years later).
Dick Tracy did, however, manage to win three Oscars (two more than Batman), well-deserved ones for makeup and art direction, and a less surefire one for the Stephen Sondheim-penned and Madonna sung 'I Always Get My Man'. Even that is less puzzling than the Best Supporting Actor nomination for Al Pacino, whose slide into shouty, slouchy self-parody can perhaps be traced directly to his role as Alphonse 'Big Boy' Caprice in this film.
Dick Tracy received a somewhat less enthusiastic critical reception as well, and it's easy to see why. Despite Richard Sylbert's eye-popping and perfectly comic strip visuals, the film is remarkably thin on story, full of lifeless characters painted broadly even by blockbuster standards, and makes little use of the world's most enduring creations, the villains, virtually all of whom end up full of lead or otherwise dispatched by the film's end.
With all of the above in mind, it's almost no wonder that Dick Tracy 2 was an impossibility. Setting aside the fact that the novelty of seeing so many of the iconic villains on screen at once (William Forsythe's Flattop was a particularly memorable creation), trying to duplicate the almost absurd parade of talent on display under the makeup (including Dustin Hoffman as well as gangster movie luminaries James Caan and Paul Sorvino) for a sequel would have been a fool's errand.
But it's nothing so simple as story or economics that have kept Dick Tracy in the pen. After all, Hollywood has mounted franchise attempts no less Quixotic for lesser films, and it's surprising that there hasn't been any reboot traction for the property, either. That's because, as usual, you can blame lawyers.
Warren Beatty first acquired the rights to Dick Tracy from comic strip publishers Tribune Media in 1985. At some point, these rights were supposed to revert to Tribune if no new Tracy projects were forthcoming from Beatty, as long as they requested them via some legal gymnastics and a two-year notification process (that window would allow Warren Beatty enough time to make another Dick Tracy movie before handing the character over).
Tribune tried to make this happen in 2002, but for legal reasons that I'm not qualified to understand let alone write about, their claim was rejected after Beatty filed a suit indicating that the proper procedures weren't followed, the two-year window wasn't respected, and he still had plans to make a sequel. The case was resolved in his favour. Since then, Beatty has retained the rights, presumably with the same two-year window in place to allow him to make another movie should Tribune come knocking.
That three-year period, from when Tribune tried to exercise their claim on the Dick Tracy rights to when the suit was resolved, still doesn't account for the decade since then. At the time, Mr. Beatty claimed that Tribune's attempt to get the rights back made progress on his own Dick Tracy sequel "impossible." But considering that Beatty has never been known as the most prolific filmmaker or actor, moving at a deliberate pace with all of his projects, the fact that Dick Tracy 2 never materialised shouldn't surprise anyone.
But there always seem to be plans afoot for more...
Periodically, Warren Beatty makes some noises about his intention to make Dick Tracy 2, although I suspect this is posturing to allow him to hold on to the rights. I did reach out to representatives for Beatty to see if he'd be willing to offer some comment on this, but as of this writing, nobody has responded.
“I’m gonna make another one," Mr. Beatty told a crowd at the Hero Complex Festival in 2011. “I think it’s dumb talking about movies before you make them. I just don’t do it. It gives you the perfect excuse to avoid making them.” This was probably a self-directed jab at the fact that he hasn't made a movie since 2001, but as with many things related to this project, I have to wonder if occasionally expressing a public desire to make Dick Tracy 2 is all that stands between Beatty and another battle with Tribune.
In a strange maneuvre that was simply a required flexing of creative muscle to satisfy some minimum legal requirement, Beatty even donned the yellow overcoat and fedora in 2011 for the Dick Tracy Special. Beatty appears in character as Dick Tracy to give an interview with film critic Leonard Maltin, where he, as Tracy, refers to Warren Beatty...the actor who played him. "He was no Ralph Byrd or even Morgan Conway," Beatty/Tracy cracks, referencing two classic live-action Dicks from the '30s and '40s, "but I have to admit he looked remarkably like me."
No, really. See for yourself:
More recently, Beatty still made some noises about his plans to make Dick Tracy 2. This seems as unlikely now as it did five years ago.
The lawsuit that allowed Beatty to retain control of the Dick Tracy rights may have also scuttled all plans to revive the character in other media. In 2005, Transformers producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, along with Bobby Newmyer and Scott Strauss, struck a deal with Tribune to develop a live-action Dick Tracy TV series, which would have brought the famed detective into the present day. More powerful than tommy guns, a team of lawyers put a stop to that before it got off the ground.
Reportedly, these same legal issues even put the brakes on a plan by Powers creators Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming to kick off a new Dick Tracy comic book series (it's tough to imagine a more perfect creative team for that). In other words, the same thing that kept Dick Tracy 2 from happening, has also essentially retired the detective from any and all potential new adventures. So, not only will we never see a sequel to the 1990 film (which is probably for the best), but the prospects of seeing the iconic detective again in any new adventures appear increasingly dim.
However, for those devoted fans of the movie, there are other ways to immerse yourself in the film's continuity, all of which can be considered 'official' extensions of the story...
In the lead up to the film's release, three prestige format comics were released, written by John Francis Moore with wonderful art by the always brilliant Kyle Baker. The first two of these ("Big City Blues" and "Dick Tracy vs. The Underworld") are adventures that take place before the events of the movie, while the third adapts the film. You can usually find the collected edition, Dick Tracy: The Complete True Hearts and Tommy Guns on the cheap at comic conventions.
Dick Tracy: True Hearts and Tommy Guns is absolutely worth your time if you're a fan of the movie or of the character in general. Kyle Baker's art is always a treat, but he captures the larger than life flavour of the movie on these pages as well as the horrific nature of the villains in a way that the sometimes rubbery makeup of the film simply didn't. The over-the-top cartoon violence of the films is a little bloodier and more impactful here, particularly the original tales in the first two chapters. Interestingly enough, these were the first Dick Tracy comics to feature original material to arrive in thirty years, and now, twenty-five years later, they're still the only ones since 1961 (reprints of the comic strips, however, are in good health thanks to Idw Publishing, as are the comic strips themelves...published by Tribune).
For that matter, the Dick Tracy novelisation by Max Allan Collins is also well worth seeking out. Collins, an experienced crime fiction writer who also had the distinct honour of writing Dick Tracy's comic strip adventures for 15 years after creator Chester Gould retired, brought a more authentic voice to the proceedings. Without the over the top visuals of the film, the book feels decidedly more violent (particularly the opening description of the St. Valentine's Day style massacre that begins the movie), and closer to the character's crime solving roots than what got put on screen. Warren Beatty was so impressed with Collins' flourishes that some of the dialogue from the novel was later added to the finished film.Collins also wrote two novels which can be considered 'official' sequels to the films. Dick Tracy Goes to War was published in 1990, within months of the movie's release, and was followed in 1991 by Dick Tracy Meets his Match. Another prose collection, Dick Tracy: The Secret Files was released to cash in on that year's Tracymania and was edited by Collins, but doesn't share any continuity with the film. But in short, if you want some kind of official "Dick Tracy movie universe," start with True Hearts and Tommy Guns and follow straight through with the Collins novels.
It'll have to do...because Dick Tracy is most assuredly not on his way.
This article originally ran on June 15th, 2015. It has been lightly updated with some new information. Movies Feature Mike Cecchini dick tracy 15 Jun 2016 - 16:22 Dick Tracy 2 Warren Beatty...
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The Dick Tracy movie was a defining summer blockbuster, yet somehow never got a sequel. Here's why...
Make no mistake, the 1990 Dick Tracy movie was intended to be the next Batman. That's amusing when you consider how much of a debt Batman comics owed the grotesque rogues' gallery of Chester Gould's Dick Tracy comic strips. But from a box-office perspective, this is where things stood as we headed into the summer of 1990. And as surely as Batman launched a franchise that has continued (in some form or another) for 25-plus years, so too did Disney have ambitions for Dick Tracy 2.
Just as Bat-merchandise had begun to flood shelves in early spring of 1989, so did Dick Tracy trading cards, bubble gum, a remarkably ugly (but strangely appealing) line of action figures from Playmates (who ruled the world at that moment with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles license), making-of books, and (best of all) new reprints of the original daily and Sunday comic strips. That's a fairly optimistic program of licensing, and that doesn't even include the T-shirts, bath towels, and other novelties that followed.
The Batman similarities even extended to the minimalist movie posters, which featured an outline of Warren Beatty in primary-coloured profile, or speaking into a two-way wrist radio promising "I'm on my way." Disney's marketing department perhaps overestimated the recognisability and mass market appeal of the character, who hadn't been seen in live-action since the mid-50s, and who last actually made it to television in any form as part of a poorly-animated (and horrifically racist) Saturday morning cartoon in the '60s. Batman, on the other hand, was still an indelible pop culture icon, thanks in no small part to the inescapable presence of the Adam West TV series in syndication throughout the decade.
After Tim Burton's star-studded Batman dominated the summer of 1989 with a $250 million American haul (over $400 million worldwide), and since Dick Tracy had similar elements (top drawer celebrities in ridiculous makeup, remarkable set design, the biggest pop star of the era providing a soundtrack), studio expectations were probably stratospheric. Instead, Dick Tracy finished its theatrical run with a far more modest $162 million worldwide. While still a hefty profit over the film's $47 million budget, those certainly weren't Batman numbers, and brightly colored Dick Tracy merchandise stayed on shelves well past its Christmas 1990 sell by date.
Batmania, this wasn't. In the aftermath of the film's box office, Disney's Jeffrey Katzenberg would pen his infamous 1991 memo (which in turn inspired the film Jerry Maguire, many years later).
Dick Tracy did, however, manage to win three Oscars (two more than Batman), well-deserved ones for makeup and art direction, and a less surefire one for the Stephen Sondheim-penned and Madonna sung 'I Always Get My Man'. Even that is less puzzling than the Best Supporting Actor nomination for Al Pacino, whose slide into shouty, slouchy self-parody can perhaps be traced directly to his role as Alphonse 'Big Boy' Caprice in this film.
Dick Tracy received a somewhat less enthusiastic critical reception as well, and it's easy to see why. Despite Richard Sylbert's eye-popping and perfectly comic strip visuals, the film is remarkably thin on story, full of lifeless characters painted broadly even by blockbuster standards, and makes little use of the world's most enduring creations, the villains, virtually all of whom end up full of lead or otherwise dispatched by the film's end.
With all of the above in mind, it's almost no wonder that Dick Tracy 2 was an impossibility. Setting aside the fact that the novelty of seeing so many of the iconic villains on screen at once (William Forsythe's Flattop was a particularly memorable creation), trying to duplicate the almost absurd parade of talent on display under the makeup (including Dustin Hoffman as well as gangster movie luminaries James Caan and Paul Sorvino) for a sequel would have been a fool's errand.
But it's nothing so simple as story or economics that have kept Dick Tracy in the pen. After all, Hollywood has mounted franchise attempts no less Quixotic for lesser films, and it's surprising that there hasn't been any reboot traction for the property, either. That's because, as usual, you can blame lawyers.
Warren Beatty first acquired the rights to Dick Tracy from comic strip publishers Tribune Media in 1985. At some point, these rights were supposed to revert to Tribune if no new Tracy projects were forthcoming from Beatty, as long as they requested them via some legal gymnastics and a two-year notification process (that window would allow Warren Beatty enough time to make another Dick Tracy movie before handing the character over).
Tribune tried to make this happen in 2002, but for legal reasons that I'm not qualified to understand let alone write about, their claim was rejected after Beatty filed a suit indicating that the proper procedures weren't followed, the two-year window wasn't respected, and he still had plans to make a sequel. The case was resolved in his favour. Since then, Beatty has retained the rights, presumably with the same two-year window in place to allow him to make another movie should Tribune come knocking.
That three-year period, from when Tribune tried to exercise their claim on the Dick Tracy rights to when the suit was resolved, still doesn't account for the decade since then. At the time, Mr. Beatty claimed that Tribune's attempt to get the rights back made progress on his own Dick Tracy sequel "impossible." But considering that Beatty has never been known as the most prolific filmmaker or actor, moving at a deliberate pace with all of his projects, the fact that Dick Tracy 2 never materialised shouldn't surprise anyone.
But there always seem to be plans afoot for more...
Periodically, Warren Beatty makes some noises about his intention to make Dick Tracy 2, although I suspect this is posturing to allow him to hold on to the rights. I did reach out to representatives for Beatty to see if he'd be willing to offer some comment on this, but as of this writing, nobody has responded.
“I’m gonna make another one," Mr. Beatty told a crowd at the Hero Complex Festival in 2011. “I think it’s dumb talking about movies before you make them. I just don’t do it. It gives you the perfect excuse to avoid making them.” This was probably a self-directed jab at the fact that he hasn't made a movie since 2001, but as with many things related to this project, I have to wonder if occasionally expressing a public desire to make Dick Tracy 2 is all that stands between Beatty and another battle with Tribune.
In a strange maneuvre that was simply a required flexing of creative muscle to satisfy some minimum legal requirement, Beatty even donned the yellow overcoat and fedora in 2011 for the Dick Tracy Special. Beatty appears in character as Dick Tracy to give an interview with film critic Leonard Maltin, where he, as Tracy, refers to Warren Beatty...the actor who played him. "He was no Ralph Byrd or even Morgan Conway," Beatty/Tracy cracks, referencing two classic live-action Dicks from the '30s and '40s, "but I have to admit he looked remarkably like me."
No, really. See for yourself:
More recently, Beatty still made some noises about his plans to make Dick Tracy 2. This seems as unlikely now as it did five years ago.
The lawsuit that allowed Beatty to retain control of the Dick Tracy rights may have also scuttled all plans to revive the character in other media. In 2005, Transformers producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, along with Bobby Newmyer and Scott Strauss, struck a deal with Tribune to develop a live-action Dick Tracy TV series, which would have brought the famed detective into the present day. More powerful than tommy guns, a team of lawyers put a stop to that before it got off the ground.
Reportedly, these same legal issues even put the brakes on a plan by Powers creators Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming to kick off a new Dick Tracy comic book series (it's tough to imagine a more perfect creative team for that). In other words, the same thing that kept Dick Tracy 2 from happening, has also essentially retired the detective from any and all potential new adventures. So, not only will we never see a sequel to the 1990 film (which is probably for the best), but the prospects of seeing the iconic detective again in any new adventures appear increasingly dim.
However, for those devoted fans of the movie, there are other ways to immerse yourself in the film's continuity, all of which can be considered 'official' extensions of the story...
In the lead up to the film's release, three prestige format comics were released, written by John Francis Moore with wonderful art by the always brilliant Kyle Baker. The first two of these ("Big City Blues" and "Dick Tracy vs. The Underworld") are adventures that take place before the events of the movie, while the third adapts the film. You can usually find the collected edition, Dick Tracy: The Complete True Hearts and Tommy Guns on the cheap at comic conventions.
Dick Tracy: True Hearts and Tommy Guns is absolutely worth your time if you're a fan of the movie or of the character in general. Kyle Baker's art is always a treat, but he captures the larger than life flavour of the movie on these pages as well as the horrific nature of the villains in a way that the sometimes rubbery makeup of the film simply didn't. The over-the-top cartoon violence of the films is a little bloodier and more impactful here, particularly the original tales in the first two chapters. Interestingly enough, these were the first Dick Tracy comics to feature original material to arrive in thirty years, and now, twenty-five years later, they're still the only ones since 1961 (reprints of the comic strips, however, are in good health thanks to Idw Publishing, as are the comic strips themelves...published by Tribune).
For that matter, the Dick Tracy novelisation by Max Allan Collins is also well worth seeking out. Collins, an experienced crime fiction writer who also had the distinct honour of writing Dick Tracy's comic strip adventures for 15 years after creator Chester Gould retired, brought a more authentic voice to the proceedings. Without the over the top visuals of the film, the book feels decidedly more violent (particularly the opening description of the St. Valentine's Day style massacre that begins the movie), and closer to the character's crime solving roots than what got put on screen. Warren Beatty was so impressed with Collins' flourishes that some of the dialogue from the novel was later added to the finished film.Collins also wrote two novels which can be considered 'official' sequels to the films. Dick Tracy Goes to War was published in 1990, within months of the movie's release, and was followed in 1991 by Dick Tracy Meets his Match. Another prose collection, Dick Tracy: The Secret Files was released to cash in on that year's Tracymania and was edited by Collins, but doesn't share any continuity with the film. But in short, if you want some kind of official "Dick Tracy movie universe," start with True Hearts and Tommy Guns and follow straight through with the Collins novels.
It'll have to do...because Dick Tracy is most assuredly not on his way.
This article originally ran on June 15th, 2015. It has been lightly updated with some new information. Movies Feature Mike Cecchini dick tracy 15 Jun 2016 - 16:22 Dick Tracy 2 Warren Beatty...
- 6/15/2016
- Den of Geek
Chic Young. Al Capp. Jimmy Hatlo. Carl Anderson. Ernie Bushmiller. Alex Raymond. Roy Crane. Those are some names I remember, some 70 years later, with no help from Google, from the “funny side” of the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the newspaper that landed, rolled and bound with wire, on the front lawn of the four family flat where we lived until I was 10 or 11. By then I was aware that there was another newspaper, The Star-Times, the one that the O’Neils didn’t read, with its own funnyside and its own names and I may have even known some, but with the exception of Chester Gould, I seem to have forgotten these, maybe because I didn’t see them every day.
Somewhere in early grade school – ah, Sister Helen, what became of you? – I must have realized, probably gradually, that these names had something to do with the comic strips...
Somewhere in early grade school – ah, Sister Helen, what became of you? – I must have realized, probably gradually, that these names had something to do with the comic strips...
- 4/21/2016
- by Dennis O'Neil
- Comicmix.com
In the summer of 1990, Warren Beatty’s labor-of-love, Dick Tracy, became a surprise commercial hit, earned acclaim for its visuals and technical artistry, and went on to win a number of high-profile awards. Its cast was bursting with stars and beloved character actors. So why, 25 years on, does it feel so forgotten?
Certainly, director-producer-star Beatty created a visual masterpiece and proved that “style over substance” isn’t always a bad thing. The design team was limited to the seven colors available to comic strip creator Chester Gould, and the movie reproduces that vivid look as faithfully as any live-action film could. From the spectacular flight across the twilit city that appears under the opening credits, it’s clear that Dick Tracy is something different.
Moments later, Gould’s trademark Rogues’ Gallery villains make their first appearance, brought to life by the makeup of John Caglione, Jr. and Doug Drexler, who...
Certainly, director-producer-star Beatty created a visual masterpiece and proved that “style over substance” isn’t always a bad thing. The design team was limited to the seven colors available to comic strip creator Chester Gould, and the movie reproduces that vivid look as faithfully as any live-action film could. From the spectacular flight across the twilit city that appears under the opening credits, it’s clear that Dick Tracy is something different.
Moments later, Gould’s trademark Rogues’ Gallery villains make their first appearance, brought to life by the makeup of John Caglione, Jr. and Doug Drexler, who...
- 12/15/2015
- by M. Robert Grunwald
- SoundOnSight
In the summer of 1990, Warren Beatty’s labor-of-love, Dick Tracy, became a surprise commercial hit, earned acclaim for its visuals and technical artistry, and went on to win a number of high-profile awards. Its cast was bursting with stars and beloved character actors. So why, 25 years on, does it feel so forgotten?
Certainly, director-producer-star Beatty created a visual masterpiece and proved that “style over substance” isn’t always a bad thing. The design team was limited to the seven colors available to comic strip creator Chester Gould, and the movie reproduces that vivid look as faithfully as any live-action film could. From the spectacular flight across the twilit city that appears under the opening credits, it’s clear that Dick Tracy is something different.
Moments later, Gould’s trademark Rogues’ Gallery villains make their first appearance, brought to life by the makeup of John Caglione, Jr. and Doug Drexler, who...
Certainly, director-producer-star Beatty created a visual masterpiece and proved that “style over substance” isn’t always a bad thing. The design team was limited to the seven colors available to comic strip creator Chester Gould, and the movie reproduces that vivid look as faithfully as any live-action film could. From the spectacular flight across the twilit city that appears under the opening credits, it’s clear that Dick Tracy is something different.
Moments later, Gould’s trademark Rogues’ Gallery villains make their first appearance, brought to life by the makeup of John Caglione, Jr. and Doug Drexler, who...
- 12/12/2015
- by M. Robert Grunwald
- SoundOnSight
20. Story of Ricky (Lik wong) – Starring Siu-Wong Fan as the titular character, Riki Oh, based on a manga series which eventually became an anime, marks the end of an era of Japanese exploitation flicks, before the new generation of filmmakers such as Takashi Miike took over. Unlike Miike’s movies, or other recent entries such as Tokyo Gore Police, Riki Oh’s tone borders on comedy, played up by bad voice dubbing, foolish plot lines, cartoonish gore and eccentric characters (including a one-eyed assistant warden with a hook for a hand). For a prison film, the movie never seems mean-spirited, and if anything it masquerades as a bizarre superhero flick. The effects are the main draw – Riki Oh exists simply to showcase several outlandish set pieces, ramping up the level of violence, gore and action with each new scene. Made before the days of CGI, director Lam relies simply on practical effects,...
- 9/2/2015
- by Staff
- SoundOnSight
Long before the comic book boom of the 21st Century, Hollywood's handling of heroes drawn from the funny pages was a touch and go enterprise. More at home in the serials era of the 40s and 50s, that iconography leaked out onto the big screen in only drips and drabs, a "Superman" here, a "Batman" there. And indeed, a year after Tim Burton brought the latter to unique Gothic heights in 1989, Warren Beatty brought another flesh and blood crime fighter to the big screen with bold expressionistic strokes. Today, "Dick Tracy" stands out as a hand-crafted wonder. Beatty's team was jammed with talent, and it needed to be, for this was an exercise in placing the viewer in a world only slightly familiar. Its extremes — and there were many — were a direct extension of design techniques and flourishes. The film was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography,...
- 6/15/2015
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Hitfix
Mike Cecchini Jun 15, 2019
The Dick Tracy movie was a defining summer blockbuster, yet somehow never got a sequel. And it probably never will.
Make no mistake, the 1990 Dick Tracy movie was intended to be the next Batman. That's amusing when you consider how much of a debt Batman comics owed the grotesque rogues' gallery of Chester Gould's Dick Tracy comic strips. But from a box-office perspective, this is where things stood as we headed into the summer of 1990. And just as surely as Batman launched a franchise that has continued (in some form or another) for 30 years, so too did Disney have ambitions for Dick Tracy 2.
Just as Bat-merchandise had begun to flood shelves in early spring of 1989, so did Dick Tracy trading cards, bubble gum, a remarkably ugly (but strangely appealing) line of action figures from Playmates (who ruled the world at that moment with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles license), making-of books,...
The Dick Tracy movie was a defining summer blockbuster, yet somehow never got a sequel. And it probably never will.
Make no mistake, the 1990 Dick Tracy movie was intended to be the next Batman. That's amusing when you consider how much of a debt Batman comics owed the grotesque rogues' gallery of Chester Gould's Dick Tracy comic strips. But from a box-office perspective, this is where things stood as we headed into the summer of 1990. And just as surely as Batman launched a franchise that has continued (in some form or another) for 30 years, so too did Disney have ambitions for Dick Tracy 2.
Just as Bat-merchandise had begun to flood shelves in early spring of 1989, so did Dick Tracy trading cards, bubble gum, a remarkably ugly (but strangely appealing) line of action figures from Playmates (who ruled the world at that moment with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles license), making-of books,...
- 6/13/2015
- Den of Geek
Time for a bit of a comics history lesson… but first, a word from our sponsor.
Monday Apple revealed its latest toy, the Watch. Like most Apple products, it looks pretty cool but seems overpriced, and like most Apple products, once you look at what you’re getting it’s not really overpriced, just expensive. That’s true with the Watch, but I’ll admit it’s doubtful I’ll buy the first generation version.
This is because for the past many decades my watch choice decisions were limited to “Timex” and “Swatch.” So $350 – or, more likely, $700 for the version I deem best for me – is a lot of money. But there are no shortage of watches with such a price tag: Movado, Breitling, Panerai, Invicta, the $600,000 de Grisogono Meccanico dG S25D… and the most recent and the one with the best name – Shinola.
No shit folks: a Shinola...
Monday Apple revealed its latest toy, the Watch. Like most Apple products, it looks pretty cool but seems overpriced, and like most Apple products, once you look at what you’re getting it’s not really overpriced, just expensive. That’s true with the Watch, but I’ll admit it’s doubtful I’ll buy the first generation version.
This is because for the past many decades my watch choice decisions were limited to “Timex” and “Swatch.” So $350 – or, more likely, $700 for the version I deem best for me – is a lot of money. But there are no shortage of watches with such a price tag: Movado, Breitling, Panerai, Invicta, the $600,000 de Grisogono Meccanico dG S25D… and the most recent and the one with the best name – Shinola.
No shit folks: a Shinola...
- 3/11/2015
- by Mike Gold
- Comicmix.com
I’m a fossil. I know it. Proof positive: I read the daily newspaper. Not on a pad or tablet or my computer, I go out and actually buy the blamed thing. I read it during breakfast. Yes, I still get a certain percentage of my news from the computer and/or Jon Stewart and The Daily Show but I like having the physical newspaper, just as I prefer actual books to an e-reader. If I don’t get to read the paper, I get cranky. Or crankier.
I think I got that from my father, Joel W. Ostrander Sr. He was always the first up in the morning but, during my high school years, I was up second. We’d both be at breakfast and we would read the newspaper. I’d get the sections he was done with; that’s where I learned to be possessive about my newspaper.
I think I got that from my father, Joel W. Ostrander Sr. He was always the first up in the morning but, during my high school years, I was up second. We’d both be at breakfast and we would read the newspaper. I’d get the sections he was done with; that’s where I learned to be possessive about my newspaper.
- 1/4/2015
- by John Ostrander
- Comicmix.com
Becky looks back at an almost-forgotten comic book adaptation from a time before they were cool: Warren Beatty's Dick Tracy.
Feature
Chester Gould’s famous yellow-coated detective, Dick Tracy, has appeared across various mediums since his first comic strip appearance in 1931, but it wasn’t until 1990 that the character made his way into blockbuster territory. It may have been considered less than successful on release and forgotten to a certain extent since then, but there is a lot to love about Warren Beatty’s film, imbued with an infectious sense of fun and comic strip visuals that continue to impress.
Dick Tracy went through several hands before it finally landed Beatty in the director’s chair, though the actor had had a concept for it as far back as 1975. It’s a long and rocky development history that saw names such as Steven Spielberg and John Landis offered the...
Feature
Chester Gould’s famous yellow-coated detective, Dick Tracy, has appeared across various mediums since his first comic strip appearance in 1931, but it wasn’t until 1990 that the character made his way into blockbuster territory. It may have been considered less than successful on release and forgotten to a certain extent since then, but there is a lot to love about Warren Beatty’s film, imbued with an infectious sense of fun and comic strip visuals that continue to impress.
Dick Tracy went through several hands before it finally landed Beatty in the director’s chair, though the actor had had a concept for it as far back as 1975. It’s a long and rocky development history that saw names such as Steven Spielberg and John Landis offered the...
- 6/26/2014
- by sarahd
- Den of Geek
The following is a list of all comic books, graphic novels and specialty items that will be available this week and shipped to comic book stores who have placed orders for them.
Abrams
Adventure Time A Totally Math Poster Collection Sc, $19.95
Abstract Studios
Rachel Rising #24 (not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Antarctic Press
Gold Digger Gold Brick III Reminted Edition Tp (not verified by Diamond), $50.00
Ninja High School #176, $3.99
Archie Comic Publications
Best Of Archie Comics Betty And Veronica Volume 1 Tp (not verified by Diamond), $9.99
Aspen Comics
Bubblegun #5 (Of 5)(Cover A Mike Bowden), $3.99
Bubblegun #5 (Of 5)(Cover B Mirka Andolfo), $3.99
Avatar Press
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Red Crossed Incentive Cover), Ar
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Regular Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Torture Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Wraparound Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows Amazons Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows Pure Art Incentive Cover), Ar
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows True Romance Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Matt...
Abrams
Adventure Time A Totally Math Poster Collection Sc, $19.95
Abstract Studios
Rachel Rising #24 (not verified by Diamond), $3.99
Antarctic Press
Gold Digger Gold Brick III Reminted Edition Tp (not verified by Diamond), $50.00
Ninja High School #176, $3.99
Archie Comic Publications
Best Of Archie Comics Betty And Veronica Volume 1 Tp (not verified by Diamond), $9.99
Aspen Comics
Bubblegun #5 (Of 5)(Cover A Mike Bowden), $3.99
Bubblegun #5 (Of 5)(Cover B Mirka Andolfo), $3.99
Avatar Press
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Red Crossed Incentive Cover), Ar
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Regular Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Torture Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Christian Zanier Wraparound Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows Amazons Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows Pure Art Incentive Cover), Ar
Crossed Badlands #50 (Jacen Burrows True Romance Cover), $3.99
Crossed Badlands #50 (Matt...
- 3/24/2014
- by Adam B.
- GeekRest
Director Warren Beatty stars as Chester Gould's unflappable detective in a brilliantly realised gangster caper that recreates the comic-strip look like no other movie. As mob boss Big Boy Caprice, Al Pacino leads a gallery of villainous grotesques including Dustin Hoffman and Dick Van Dyke, while Madonna puts the Hanky Panky into Stephen Sondheim's jaunty numbers as his club-singing moll. With Vittorio Storaro's stunning cinematography perfectly capturing the Oscar-winning production design and make-up, it's a primary-coloured joy to behold.
- 10/14/2013
- Sky Movies
Having spent the past four days in Baltimore attending my favorite comics convention – the one that’s actually about comics – I had the opportunity to spend some serious conversation time with a lot of my friends. However, because the show is a four-hour-plus drive from La Casa Del Oro, the best conversation is with my daughter and ComicMix cohort Adriane Nash. Whereas much of her work is behind the scenes, Adriane is the one who kills here each year on April Fool’s Day and at least one of her hoaxes has graduated to the level of Urban Myth.
As her dad, this makes me very proud. But (sing along, folks), I digress.
After returning from Baltimore Monday night, while cuing TiVo for Ricky Gervais’ appearance on David Letterman, we had one of those “let’s tie-up everything we’ve been talking about” conversations. This one was about how, given time,...
As her dad, this makes me very proud. But (sing along, folks), I digress.
After returning from Baltimore Monday night, while cuing TiVo for Ricky Gervais’ appearance on David Letterman, we had one of those “let’s tie-up everything we’ve been talking about” conversations. This one was about how, given time,...
- 9/11/2013
- by Mike Gold
- Comicmix.com
The following is a list of all comic books, graphic novels and specialty items that will be available this week and shipped to comic book stores who have placed orders for them.
Alternative Comics
Alternative Comics #4, $5.99
Altus Press
Doc Savage The New Adventures Volume 5 Skull Island Sc (not verified by Diamond), $24.95
Antarctic Press
Crawling Sky #4 (Of 5), $3.99
Archaia Entertainment
Mouse Guard Legends Of The Guard Volume 2 #1, $3.50
Archie Comic Publications
Archie Comics Spectacular School Daze Tp, $5.99
Betty And Veronica Double Digest #213, $3.99
Aspen Comics
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover A Lori Hanson), $3.99
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover B Vincenzo Cucca), $3.99
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover C Pasquale Qualano), Ar
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover A Ken Marion), $3.99
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover B Talent Caldwell), $3.99
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover C Michael Turner), Ar
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Eric Basaldua Aspen Reserved Cover), $3.99
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Pasquale Qualano Direct Market Cover), $3.99
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Eric Basaldua Variant Cover), Ar
Atheneum Books
Zebrafish Spf 40 Tp,...
Alternative Comics
Alternative Comics #4, $5.99
Altus Press
Doc Savage The New Adventures Volume 5 Skull Island Sc (not verified by Diamond), $24.95
Antarctic Press
Crawling Sky #4 (Of 5), $3.99
Archaia Entertainment
Mouse Guard Legends Of The Guard Volume 2 #1, $3.50
Archie Comic Publications
Archie Comics Spectacular School Daze Tp, $5.99
Betty And Veronica Double Digest #213, $3.99
Aspen Comics
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover A Lori Hanson), $3.99
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover B Vincenzo Cucca), $3.99
Executive Assistant Assassins #12 (Cover C Pasquale Qualano), Ar
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover A Ken Marion), $3.99
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover B Talent Caldwell), $3.99
Fathom The Elite Saga #2 (Cover C Michael Turner), Ar
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Eric Basaldua Aspen Reserved Cover), $3.99
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Pasquale Qualano Direct Market Cover), $3.99
Jirni #3 (Of 5)(Eric Basaldua Variant Cover), Ar
Atheneum Books
Zebrafish Spf 40 Tp,...
- 6/24/2013
- by Adam B.
- GeekRest
Feature Simon Brew 3 May 2013 - 07:03
It's a risky business, filmmaking. Simon looks back at some bold, expensive 1990s movies where the gambles didn't quite pay off...
This summer's blockbuster season has got off to a startling start, with Iron Man 3 being widely praised for its willingness to rip up the rule book a little, as it continues the story of Tony Stark.
In fact, there's a subset of modern blockbusters - Nolan films, some X-Men features for instance - that are garnering increasing praise for taking bold choices with the material. That they're wagering a lot of movie studio money on projects and stories that once upon a time would have struggled to get through the system.
However, we'd argue that the 1990s was rich with such gambles too, it's just most of them never really made quite the levels of cash we're seeing now. So, here's a...
It's a risky business, filmmaking. Simon looks back at some bold, expensive 1990s movies where the gambles didn't quite pay off...
This summer's blockbuster season has got off to a startling start, with Iron Man 3 being widely praised for its willingness to rip up the rule book a little, as it continues the story of Tony Stark.
In fact, there's a subset of modern blockbusters - Nolan films, some X-Men features for instance - that are garnering increasing praise for taking bold choices with the material. That they're wagering a lot of movie studio money on projects and stories that once upon a time would have struggled to get through the system.
However, we'd argue that the 1990s was rich with such gambles too, it's just most of them never really made quite the levels of cash we're seeing now. So, here's a...
- 5/2/2013
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
The following is a list of all comic books, graphic novels and special items that will be available this week and shipped to comic book stores who have placed orders for them.
12-gauge Comics
Anti #3 (Of 4), $3.99
Aam Markosia
Christmas Carol Gn, $12.99
All Star U Gn, $18.99
Amaze Ink (Slave Labor Graphics)
Malleus Maleficarum A Guide To Catching Witches Gn (resolicited), $12.95
Amryl Entertainment
Cavewoman 2012 Pittsburgh Comicon Signed Sketchbook, Ar
Andrews McMeel
Calvin And Hobbes Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat Sc (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes Lazy Sunday Book Sc (New Printing), $12.99
Calvin And Hobbes Something Under The Bed Is Drooling Tp, $12.99
Calvin And Hobbes Sunday Pages 1985 -1995 Sc (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book Tp (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes The Revenge Of The Baby-Sat Tp (New Printing), $12.99
Indispensable Calvin And Hobbes Sc (New Printing), $18.99
Antarctic Press
Gearhearts Steampunk Glamor Revue #5, $3.99
Gold Digger #145, $3.99
Ape Entertainment
Donarr Unyielding Tp, $7.99
Archaia Entertainment
Conspiracy...
12-gauge Comics
Anti #3 (Of 4), $3.99
Aam Markosia
Christmas Carol Gn, $12.99
All Star U Gn, $18.99
Amaze Ink (Slave Labor Graphics)
Malleus Maleficarum A Guide To Catching Witches Gn (resolicited), $12.95
Amryl Entertainment
Cavewoman 2012 Pittsburgh Comicon Signed Sketchbook, Ar
Andrews McMeel
Calvin And Hobbes Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat Sc (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes Lazy Sunday Book Sc (New Printing), $12.99
Calvin And Hobbes Something Under The Bed Is Drooling Tp, $12.99
Calvin And Hobbes Sunday Pages 1985 -1995 Sc (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book Tp (New Printing), $16.99
Calvin And Hobbes The Revenge Of The Baby-Sat Tp (New Printing), $12.99
Indispensable Calvin And Hobbes Sc (New Printing), $18.99
Antarctic Press
Gearhearts Steampunk Glamor Revue #5, $3.99
Gold Digger #145, $3.99
Ape Entertainment
Donarr Unyielding Tp, $7.99
Archaia Entertainment
Conspiracy...
- 1/2/2013
- by Adam B.
- GeekRest
Today, comic book fans may recall Warren Beatty’s adaptation of Dick Tracy as a memorable misfire. When it was released in 1990, it was met with, at best, mixed reviews and while it performed respectably at the box office, missed Walt Disney’s estimates so the hoped for franchise was stillborn. Blame could be squarely placed at Beatty’s feet since he had a strangle hold on the film as its director, producer, and star. It got so crazy that poor Kyle Baker had to use only three approved head shots for the 64-page comics adaptation, which stretched even his considerable skills.
We have a great opportunity to reconsider this film now that Disney is releasing it tomorrow on Blu-ray. One of the things about the production is that Beatty wanted to recreate Chester Gould’s strip as faithfully as possible, which meant he limited the color palette to a mere seven colors,...
We have a great opportunity to reconsider this film now that Disney is releasing it tomorrow on Blu-ray. One of the things about the production is that Beatty wanted to recreate Chester Gould’s strip as faithfully as possible, which meant he limited the color palette to a mere seven colors,...
- 12/10/2012
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
The art of the glass shot or matte painting is one which originated very much in the early ‘teens’ of the silent era. Pioneer film maker, director, cameraman and visual effects inventor Norman Dawn is generally acknowledged as the father of the painted matte composite, with other visionary film makers such as Ferdinand Pinney Earle, Walter Hall and Walter Percy Day being heralded as making vast contributions to the trick process in the early 1920’s.
Boiled down, the matte process is one whereby a limited film set may be extended to whatever, or wherever the director’s imagination dictates with the employment of a matte artist. In it’s most pure form, the artist would set up a large plate of clear glass in front of the motion picture camera upon which he would carefully paint in new scenery an ornate period ceiling, snow capped mountains, a Gothic castle or even an alien world.
Boiled down, the matte process is one whereby a limited film set may be extended to whatever, or wherever the director’s imagination dictates with the employment of a matte artist. In it’s most pure form, the artist would set up a large plate of clear glass in front of the motion picture camera upon which he would carefully paint in new scenery an ornate period ceiling, snow capped mountains, a Gothic castle or even an alien world.
- 5/27/2012
- Shadowlocked
This week at the finest purveyors of sequential art: Hold me closer, tiny blah blah; Jingoistic pulp at its finest; Two-way wrist radio not included; Maybe I was born to die in Berlin.
Dancer #1–I still have not read anything by Nathan Edmondson, though I’ve mentioned him in this here column once, if not twice. If I remember correctly, though, I ordered this because Image had a flurry of intriguing crime titles solicited in Previews. Or maybe I didn’t order it for that self-same reason–I get so many books as it is, and I’ve consistently been three weeks behind since March or so. Anyways, this sounds like a peach: A retired assassin is in Milan with his ballerina girlfriend when (natch) his past comes back to haunt him in the form of an unknown sniper. It may have been done, but I always like the juxtaposition...
Dancer #1–I still have not read anything by Nathan Edmondson, though I’ve mentioned him in this here column once, if not twice. If I remember correctly, though, I ordered this because Image had a flurry of intriguing crime titles solicited in Previews. Or maybe I didn’t order it for that self-same reason–I get so many books as it is, and I’ve consistently been three weeks behind since March or so. Anyways, this sounds like a peach: A retired assassin is in Milan with his ballerina girlfriend when (natch) his past comes back to haunt him in the form of an unknown sniper. It may have been done, but I always like the juxtaposition...
- 5/16/2012
- by Jimmy Callaway
- Boomtron
The following is a list of all comic books, graphic novels and special items that will be available this week and shipped to comic book stores who have placed orders for them.
12-gauge Comics
Boondock Saints Volume 1 In Nomine Patris Hc (Limited Edition), $34.99
Action Lab Entertainment
Princeless Volume 1 Save Yourself Tp, $14.95
Amryl Entertainment
Cavewoman Mutation #2 (Devon Massey Special Edition), $6.85
Antarctic Press
Gold Digger #138, $3.99
Ape Entertainment
Richie Rich Digest Volume 2 Pursuit Of Pesos And Other Stories Tp, $6.99
Scouts Drafted Gn, $6.99
Archie Comics
Archie Double Digest #229, $3.99
Jughead #213, $2.99
Sonic Universe #40, $2.99
Ardden Entertainment
Flash Gordon Vengence Of Ming Gn (not verified by Diamond), $12.99
Audiogo
Doctor Who The Lost TV Episodes Collection Four 1967 Audio CD, $124.95
Torchwood Fallout An Audio-Exclusive Adventure Audio CD, $24.95
Azure Press
Ninjas Vs Zombies Bundle (contains #1-4 and signed bonus issue), $14.99
Big Dog Ink
Ursa Minor #1 (Ian Snyder Regular Cover), $3.50
Ursa Minor #1 (Natalie Sanders Variant Cover), Ar
Black Library
Void Stalker...
12-gauge Comics
Boondock Saints Volume 1 In Nomine Patris Hc (Limited Edition), $34.99
Action Lab Entertainment
Princeless Volume 1 Save Yourself Tp, $14.95
Amryl Entertainment
Cavewoman Mutation #2 (Devon Massey Special Edition), $6.85
Antarctic Press
Gold Digger #138, $3.99
Ape Entertainment
Richie Rich Digest Volume 2 Pursuit Of Pesos And Other Stories Tp, $6.99
Scouts Drafted Gn, $6.99
Archie Comics
Archie Double Digest #229, $3.99
Jughead #213, $2.99
Sonic Universe #40, $2.99
Ardden Entertainment
Flash Gordon Vengence Of Ming Gn (not verified by Diamond), $12.99
Audiogo
Doctor Who The Lost TV Episodes Collection Four 1967 Audio CD, $124.95
Torchwood Fallout An Audio-Exclusive Adventure Audio CD, $24.95
Azure Press
Ninjas Vs Zombies Bundle (contains #1-4 and signed bonus issue), $14.99
Big Dog Ink
Ursa Minor #1 (Ian Snyder Regular Cover), $3.50
Ursa Minor #1 (Natalie Sanders Variant Cover), Ar
Black Library
Void Stalker...
- 5/13/2012
- by GeekRest
- GeekRest
"It's no fun wearing my Tintin shirt now that the masses know who he is." The drawing over that caption is superfluous. Still, the cartoon in this week's New Yorker nicely sums up the shift in Tintin's status in the Us since the release of Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tintin — his face has migrated from imported T-shirts to dog food ads.
As with another 3D spectacle currently in theaters, Pina, we've already had two roundups on Spielberg's Tintin, the first in October, an entry that kicked off with initial reactions to the film's premiere and eventually segued into more considered reviews in the British and European press, and the second in November, an entry gathering takes from the Tintinologists and reviews from AFI Fest. So I'll try to keep it brief in this third go-round, focusing more on Hergé than Spielberg, beginning with Charles McGrath's introduction in the video embedded above.
As with another 3D spectacle currently in theaters, Pina, we've already had two roundups on Spielberg's Tintin, the first in October, an entry that kicked off with initial reactions to the film's premiere and eventually segued into more considered reviews in the British and European press, and the second in November, an entry gathering takes from the Tintinologists and reviews from AFI Fest. So I'll try to keep it brief in this third go-round, focusing more on Hergé than Spielberg, beginning with Charles McGrath's introduction in the video embedded above.
- 12/29/2011
- MUBI
Here’s what hits stores this week!
DC Comics
100 Bullets Volume 1 Hc, $49.99
Absolute Identity Crisis Hc, $99.99
Action Comics #1 (Rags Morales 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(per DC Comics), $3.99
All-New Batman The Brave And The Bold #12 (per DC Comics), $2.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Hawkgirl, $16.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Power Girl, $16.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Supergirl, $16.99
American Vampire Survival Of The Fittest #5 (Of 5), $2.99
Batgirl #1 (Adam Hughes 3rd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batgirl #2, $2.99
Batman And Robin #1 (Patrick Gleason & Mick Gray 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batman And Robin #2, $2.99
Batman Arkham City Hc, $22.99
Batman Life After Death Tp, $14.99
Batwoman #1 (J.H. Williams III 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batwoman #2, $2.99
Birds Of Prey Volume 2 The Death Of Oracle Hc, $24.99
DC Comics Presents Batman Blink #1, $7.99
DC Comics Presents Jla The Age Of Wonder #1, $7.99
DC Comics The Number Ones Comic Cover Portfolio Set The Full Collection (per DC Comics), $129.99
Deathstroke #1 (Simon Bisley 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Deathstroke #2, $2.99
Demon Knights #1 (Tony S.
DC Comics
100 Bullets Volume 1 Hc, $49.99
Absolute Identity Crisis Hc, $99.99
Action Comics #1 (Rags Morales 3rd Printing Variant Cover)(per DC Comics), $3.99
All-New Batman The Brave And The Bold #12 (per DC Comics), $2.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Hawkgirl, $16.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Power Girl, $16.99
Ame-Comi Heroine Mini-Figures Series 3 Supergirl, $16.99
American Vampire Survival Of The Fittest #5 (Of 5), $2.99
Batgirl #1 (Adam Hughes 3rd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batgirl #2, $2.99
Batman And Robin #1 (Patrick Gleason & Mick Gray 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batman And Robin #2, $2.99
Batman Arkham City Hc, $22.99
Batman Life After Death Tp, $14.99
Batwoman #1 (J.H. Williams III 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Batwoman #2, $2.99
Birds Of Prey Volume 2 The Death Of Oracle Hc, $24.99
DC Comics Presents Batman Blink #1, $7.99
DC Comics Presents Jla The Age Of Wonder #1, $7.99
DC Comics The Number Ones Comic Cover Portfolio Set The Full Collection (per DC Comics), $129.99
Deathstroke #1 (Simon Bisley 2nd Printing Variant Cover), $2.99
Deathstroke #2, $2.99
Demon Knights #1 (Tony S.
- 10/12/2011
- by Brandon Johnston
- ScifiMafia
A mere twenty-one years after Warren Beatty helmed the hit movie "Dick Tracy," the actor-director-producer is prepping for a sequel, but wants to make sure to "get it right."
At the Hero Complex Film Festival in Los Angeles, the star was tight-lipped on details (refusing to comment on everything from casting priorities, to visual effects, to any sort of timetable), the La Times recounts. But he did explain, "I think it's dumb to talk about movies before you make them. I just don't do it. It gives you a reason to avoid making them."
So what did he share?
He spoke for nearly two hours on the original ”Dick Tracy,” waxing poetic about his love for the story, his admiration for the actors and his mixed emotions about making movies—a process he compared to vomiting.
"I always think of making a movie like vomiting. I don’t like to vomit,...
At the Hero Complex Film Festival in Los Angeles, the star was tight-lipped on details (refusing to comment on everything from casting priorities, to visual effects, to any sort of timetable), the La Times recounts. But he did explain, "I think it's dumb to talk about movies before you make them. I just don't do it. It gives you a reason to avoid making them."
So what did he share?
He spoke for nearly two hours on the original ”Dick Tracy,” waxing poetic about his love for the story, his admiration for the actors and his mixed emotions about making movies—a process he compared to vomiting.
"I always think of making a movie like vomiting. I don’t like to vomit,...
- 6/10/2011
- by Elizabeth Durand
- NextMovie
After 21 years of inactivity, following his 1990 starring and directing turn adapting creator Chester Gould's newspaper comic strip detective character "Dick Tracy", actor/producer Warren Beatty has won his lawsuit against a unit of Tribune Co, to prevent Tribune from taking back film/TV rights to creator Chester Gould's newspaper comic strip detective character.
Budgeted at $47 million, Beatty's "Dick Tracy" earned $103,738,726 domestic and $59,000,000 foreign for a worldwide box office of $162,738,726.
According to court documents, rights to the character would have reverted back to Tribune if "a certain period of time" lapsed without Beatty having produced another "Dick Tracy" movie, TV series or TV special.
Tribune sent Beatty a letter November 17, 2006, giving him two years to begin production on new "Dick Tracy" programing.
"Tribune asserted it still wanted to terminate Beatty's 'Dick Tracy" rights and effect a reversion, and purported to do so," the lawsuit said, with Beatty seeking...
Budgeted at $47 million, Beatty's "Dick Tracy" earned $103,738,726 domestic and $59,000,000 foreign for a worldwide box office of $162,738,726.
According to court documents, rights to the character would have reverted back to Tribune if "a certain period of time" lapsed without Beatty having produced another "Dick Tracy" movie, TV series or TV special.
Tribune sent Beatty a letter November 17, 2006, giving him two years to begin production on new "Dick Tracy" programing.
"Tribune asserted it still wanted to terminate Beatty's 'Dick Tracy" rights and effect a reversion, and purported to do so," the lawsuit said, with Beatty seeking...
- 3/27/2011
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
In 1990, Warren Beatty directed/produced/starred in a film adaptation of Chester Gould’s popular comic strip character Dick Tracy. However, the film was considered a box-office disappointment, and sequel plans were halted because of that issue. Beatty was adamant about making a sequel when the rights were given to him in 2005, but a lawsuit ensued between Beatty and Tribune Media Services that prevented a film from going into development. As of Thursday, Beatty has now won that lawsuit, and could be looking to return Dick Tracy to the big screen.
The Wrap spoke to Beatty’s Lawyer Chuck Shephard, and revealed that “Warren’s goal is to do another major Dick Tracy project”. However, it’s unknown at the time if Beatty would plan another film or a TV series based upon the character. Beatty would have to make up his mind as he would once again lose the...
The Wrap spoke to Beatty’s Lawyer Chuck Shephard, and revealed that “Warren’s goal is to do another major Dick Tracy project”. However, it’s unknown at the time if Beatty would plan another film or a TV series based upon the character. Beatty would have to make up his mind as he would once again lose the...
- 3/26/2011
- by Matt Keith
- Killer Films
Sony Pictures is getting ready to release its upcoming film, The Green Hornet, starring Seth Rogen with direction by Michel Gondry, written by Rogen and Evan Goldberg. The movies will follow, Britt Reid (Seth Rogen), the son of wealthy newspaper publisher James Reid (Tom Wilkinson), is a ne’er do well playboy who inherits a media empire after his father dies. One day, he meets an employee named Kato (Jay Chou), who is more than he appears. After realizing how he and Kato are not using their abilities to the fullest, Britt decides that the two should become crimefighters, taking on the identity of the Green Hornet. With the help of his new secretary, Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz), Britt discovers that Russian criminal Benjamin Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz) controls the city’s criminal underworld. Meanwhile, Chudnofsky, paranoid that he is losing his edge as a crime boss, has united all of...
- 1/11/2011
- by Kevin Coll
- FusedFilm
Chicago – Comic books and graphic novels are certainly the closest artistic relatives to cinema, but are the mediums really meant to walk hand-in-hand? While Hollywood has certainly benefitted from the profitability of superhero franchises, securing vehicles for every caped demigod known to man, the popular taste of costumed devotees doesn’t always jive with that of the mainstream public.
Filmmakers like Zack Snyder are declared “visionaries” in some quarters simply for reproducing someone else’s vision panel-by-panel. Yet there are several motion pictures that have transcended the boundaries of their source material and found inventive ways of translating the form, content and spirit of a comic into a wholly cinematic language. So, with the industry buzzing over Edgar Wright’s visually kinetic adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series, “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World,” let’s take a look back at ten of the best comic book...
Filmmakers like Zack Snyder are declared “visionaries” in some quarters simply for reproducing someone else’s vision panel-by-panel. Yet there are several motion pictures that have transcended the boundaries of their source material and found inventive ways of translating the form, content and spirit of a comic into a wholly cinematic language. So, with the industry buzzing over Edgar Wright’s visually kinetic adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series, “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World,” let’s take a look back at ten of the best comic book...
- 8/12/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
There was some discussion recently on Dan Carlson's review of Toy Story 3 (2010) regarding the role of the critic and the personal preference baggage he or she brings to a film when reviewing it. Film reviews, by their nature as being based on informed opinion, have been and will always be subjective. This is a reflection of the text being analyzed; evaluating a film is not the same as grading a multiple choice test with concrete answers. As film critic Pauline Kael once wrote, "Criticism is an art, not a science, and a critic who follows rules will fail in one of his most important functions: perceiving what is original and important in new work and helping others to see."
Most readers of my criticism here have noted that I tend to be very self-reflexive in my writing and analysis, sometimes to the point of what could be perceived as...
Most readers of my criticism here have noted that I tend to be very self-reflexive in my writing and analysis, sometimes to the point of what could be perceived as...
- 6/22/2010
- by Drew Morton
Idw January Newsletter
Happy New Year and welcome to the Idw newsletter, offering your monthly dose of news and not-to-be-missed books!
Arriving at inboxes the beginning of each month, the Idw newsletter brings highlights of the coming month, including books to look for at your local store, plus top stories from “Ryall Time” and the Idw website. Enjoy!
Idw Digital
Idw is ringing in the New Year with awesome new digital comics on more platforms! In addition to expanded offerings for the iPhone and iPod touch, you can now enjoy Idw comics on your PSP. Take a break from gaming to read Transformers or
Wormwood on your PSP. Plus, Wormwood is the very first digital comic to offer audio commentary, meaning you can enjoy both the art and insights (plus the cool Australian accent) of Ben Templesmith!
Click here to download comics to your PSP.
For your iPhone or iPod touch,...
Happy New Year and welcome to the Idw newsletter, offering your monthly dose of news and not-to-be-missed books!
Arriving at inboxes the beginning of each month, the Idw newsletter brings highlights of the coming month, including books to look for at your local store, plus top stories from “Ryall Time” and the Idw website. Enjoy!
Idw Digital
Idw is ringing in the New Year with awesome new digital comics on more platforms! In addition to expanded offerings for the iPhone and iPod touch, you can now enjoy Idw comics on your PSP. Take a break from gaming to read Transformers or
Wormwood on your PSP. Plus, Wormwood is the very first digital comic to offer audio commentary, meaning you can enjoy both the art and insights (plus the cool Australian accent) of Ben Templesmith!
Click here to download comics to your PSP.
For your iPhone or iPod touch,...
- 1/8/2010
- by Jesse
- FamousMonsters of Filmland
2009 saw horror continue to make its presence felt in the perpetually superhero-centric medium of funny books, thanks to strong original series and how-did-we-live-without-them archival projects. Here are nine of our favorites in alphabetical order. Cat Burglar Black Richard Sala is a name that should be revered by horror fans as everywhere. Starting out as a worthy successor to Charles Addams and, at his most grotesque, Chester Gould, Sala has evolved, through books like Peculia and The Chuckling Whatsit, into today's premiere cartoonist of the macabre and strange. His latest graphic novel concerns a silver-haired orphan named K, who, after a difficult upbringing, enrolls at a women's academy and discovers her...
- 12/22/2009
- FEARnet
Vatican Hustle
Greg Houston
Nbm, December 2009, $11.95
There are stories that are inextricably mixed up with their original media, stories that would make very little sense translated into another form. Imagine a Gothic Romance novel as a puppet show, or a John Wayne Western as an opera. Until the moment I opened this book, I thought “Blaxploitation movie as a comic” was another example.
(I’m not completely sure I’ve been convinced otherwise, either.)
Vatican Hustle is a Blaxploitation movie done as a comic – when it’s not being a parody of a Blaxploitation movie, or vaguely wandering off into Chester Gould territory, or just being terrifically proud with and impressed by itself. If the art style – fairly well described by the publisher as “a hilarious mash-up of Ralph Steadman, Basil Wolverton and Chester Gould’s bad guys,” though that misses Kevin O’Neill, whom I’d list first and...
Greg Houston
Nbm, December 2009, $11.95
There are stories that are inextricably mixed up with their original media, stories that would make very little sense translated into another form. Imagine a Gothic Romance novel as a puppet show, or a John Wayne Western as an opera. Until the moment I opened this book, I thought “Blaxploitation movie as a comic” was another example.
(I’m not completely sure I’ve been convinced otherwise, either.)
Vatican Hustle is a Blaxploitation movie done as a comic – when it’s not being a parody of a Blaxploitation movie, or vaguely wandering off into Chester Gould territory, or just being terrifically proud with and impressed by itself. If the art style – fairly well described by the publisher as “a hilarious mash-up of Ralph Steadman, Basil Wolverton and Chester Gould’s bad guys,” though that misses Kevin O’Neill, whom I’d list first and...
- 12/9/2009
- by Andrew Wheeler
- Comicmix.com
After years of inactivity, following his starring/directing turn in the 1990 Disney feature "Dick Tracy", actor/producer Warren 'Clyde Barrow' Beatty recently sued a unit of Tribune Co, to prevent Tribune from taking back film/TV rights to creator Chester Gould's newspaper comic strip detective character.
Budgeted at $47 million, "Dick Tracy" earned $103,738,726 domestic and $59,000,000 foreign for a worldwide box office of $162,738,726.
According to court documents, rights would revert to Tribune if "a certain period of time" lapsed without Beatty having produced another Dick Tracy movie, TV series or TV special.
Tribune sent Beatty a letter November 17, 2006, giving him two years to begin production on new "Dick Tracy" programing.
"Tribune asserted it still wanted to terminate Beatty's 'Tracy' Rights and effect a reversion, and purported to do so," the lawsuit said, with Beatty seeking a declaration that his work on a developing Dick Tracy documentary TV special precludes Tribune from...
Budgeted at $47 million, "Dick Tracy" earned $103,738,726 domestic and $59,000,000 foreign for a worldwide box office of $162,738,726.
According to court documents, rights would revert to Tribune if "a certain period of time" lapsed without Beatty having produced another Dick Tracy movie, TV series or TV special.
Tribune sent Beatty a letter November 17, 2006, giving him two years to begin production on new "Dick Tracy" programing.
"Tribune asserted it still wanted to terminate Beatty's 'Tracy' Rights and effect a reversion, and purported to do so," the lawsuit said, with Beatty seeking a declaration that his work on a developing Dick Tracy documentary TV special precludes Tribune from...
- 12/4/2009
- by Michael Stevens
- SneakPeek
Today is the 109th anniversary of one Chester Gould the creator of Dick Tracy. Every time Dick Tracy (1990) comes up, I think "you should watch that movie again!" but I never do. I think I'm still mad that Warren Beatty kept cutting away from Madonna's "More" performance... which should've easily been one of the best movie musical numbers of the 90s (sigh). Otherwise I quite like the movie
Trivia Alert! Dick Tracy is one of Oscar's two favorite comic book movies along with The Dark Knight (2008). Their Oscar track was very similar. Dick Tracy had 7 nominations and 3 wins. The Dark Knight had 8 nominations and 2 wins and in mostly the same categories, too.
Supporting Actor (both, and the only two comic book performances ever nominated*: Al Pacino and Heath Ledger, winner)
Cinematography (both)
Art Direction (both)
Costume Design (Dick Tracy only)
Sound (both)Sound Editing (The Dark Knight only,...
Trivia Alert! Dick Tracy is one of Oscar's two favorite comic book movies along with The Dark Knight (2008). Their Oscar track was very similar. Dick Tracy had 7 nominations and 3 wins. The Dark Knight had 8 nominations and 2 wins and in mostly the same categories, too.
Supporting Actor (both, and the only two comic book performances ever nominated*: Al Pacino and Heath Ledger, winner)
Cinematography (both)
Art Direction (both)
Costume Design (Dick Tracy only)
Sound (both)Sound Editing (The Dark Knight only,...
- 11/20/2009
- by NATHANIEL R
- FilmExperience
By Wrap Staff
It will be interesting to see what shows up at the funeral.
Sheldon Dorf, a passionate collector of comic books who in 1970 founded the fanboy delight, Comic-Con, died on Nov. 3 in San Diego. He was 76. The cause was complications of diabetes, said his brother, Michael. Dorf was an avid reader of newspaper comic strips and would send fan letters to cartoonists, including Chester Gould, who created “Dick Tracy,” and Milton Caniff, who created “Ter...
It will be interesting to see what shows up at the funeral.
Sheldon Dorf, a passionate collector of comic books who in 1970 founded the fanboy delight, Comic-Con, died on Nov. 3 in San Diego. He was 76. The cause was complications of diabetes, said his brother, Michael. Dorf was an avid reader of newspaper comic strips and would send fan letters to cartoonists, including Chester Gould, who created “Dick Tracy,” and Milton Caniff, who created “Ter...
- 11/12/2009
- by Lew Harris
- The Wrap
Actor Warren Beatty is being sued by Tribune Media Services over the film and television rights to the character of Dick Tracy, Reuters is reporting. The Academy-award winning actor directed and starred in a hit 1990 movie named after and based on the comic strip character. Tracy was originally created by cartoonist Chester Gould in 1931.
According to court papers, Beatty bought the film and TV rights to the character in 1985 and he claims to retain them. However, Tribune Media Services is arguing that the rights have reverted to them because Beatty has "made no productive use" of them for over a decade.
Beatty and Tribune have been battling over Dick Tracy for several years and this is not the first suit to be filed over the film and TV rights. According to the BBC, Beatty began legal action in 2005 in which he claimed to have given the rights to Disney to produce the 1990 Dick Tracy film.
According to court papers, Beatty bought the film and TV rights to the character in 1985 and he claims to retain them. However, Tribune Media Services is arguing that the rights have reverted to them because Beatty has "made no productive use" of them for over a decade.
Beatty and Tribune have been battling over Dick Tracy for several years and this is not the first suit to be filed over the film and TV rights. According to the BBC, Beatty began legal action in 2005 in which he claimed to have given the rights to Disney to produce the 1990 Dick Tracy film.
- 3/22/2009
- CinemaSpy
When Dick Tracy writer/artist Dick Locher told Dubuque’s Telegraph Herald that he was likely to retire, rumors spread quickly that the legendary detective was likely to be retired as well.
Tribune Media Service’s Mary Elson stated “there are no plans to shutdown the comic.” She also said she knew of no formal retirement plans for Locher, who not only does the strip but produces editorial cartoons for the syndicate.
The 77 year old police strip was created by Chester Gould who handled the feature until his retirement in 1977. Max Allan Collins and Gould’s longtime assistant Rick Fletcher then produced the feature, taking the status quo back to its earliest days. Locher, who previously assisted Gould, stepped when Fletcher passed away in 1983. Mike Kilian replaced Collins as writer in 1992 until his death in 2005 when Locher took the writing reins as well.
Legal rights stemming from the 1990 Disney film...
Tribune Media Service’s Mary Elson stated “there are no plans to shutdown the comic.” She also said she knew of no formal retirement plans for Locher, who not only does the strip but produces editorial cartoons for the syndicate.
The 77 year old police strip was created by Chester Gould who handled the feature until his retirement in 1977. Max Allan Collins and Gould’s longtime assistant Rick Fletcher then produced the feature, taking the status quo back to its earliest days. Locher, who previously assisted Gould, stepped when Fletcher passed away in 1983. Mike Kilian replaced Collins as writer in 1992 until his death in 2005 when Locher took the writing reins as well.
Legal rights stemming from the 1990 Disney film...
- 11/18/2008
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
Max Allan Collins revisits the world he crafted for Road to Perdition by signing to write and direct movies based on the prose novel sequels, Road to Purgatory and Road to Paradise.
Collins will be working with Illinois-based Jbm Production Company (Leprechaun) and Emo Films (April Showers).
The prolific crime author wrote Road to Perdition as a graphic novel for DC Comics’ Paradox Press imprint and it was subsequently adapted into a big budget film starring Tom Hanks and Paul Newman. The film, directed by Sam Mendes, won the 2003 Academy Award for Best Cinematography with a nomination for Newman.
The initial story tells of Michael Sullivan, a hitman for he mob, who suddenly becomes the hunted when his son witnesses a murder committed by the son of Sullivan’s boss.
Road to Purgatory will follow the character of Michael Sullivan, Jr., the son of Tom Hanks' character in the original film,...
Collins will be working with Illinois-based Jbm Production Company (Leprechaun) and Emo Films (April Showers).
The prolific crime author wrote Road to Perdition as a graphic novel for DC Comics’ Paradox Press imprint and it was subsequently adapted into a big budget film starring Tom Hanks and Paul Newman. The film, directed by Sam Mendes, won the 2003 Academy Award for Best Cinematography with a nomination for Newman.
The initial story tells of Michael Sullivan, a hitman for he mob, who suddenly becomes the hunted when his son witnesses a murder committed by the son of Sullivan’s boss.
Road to Purgatory will follow the character of Michael Sullivan, Jr., the son of Tom Hanks' character in the original film,...
- 11/4/2008
- by Robert Greenberger
- Comicmix.com
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