Graham Crackers HERO Web Store

Friday, March 26, 2010

The WonderCon item you MUST get!


WonderCon takes place April 2-3-4 in the SFO, and as part of said festivities, Hero Initiative has a bountiful bevy of Ed Hannigan-centric stuff going on, including a panel at the con, the Ed Hannigan: Covered book, and a mega-star blowout party at the Cartoon Art Museum.

Add to alla that, please, one more Ed goodie: this great limited edition print of Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #64, perhaps Ed's most famous cover.

Best of all, this baby is a limited edition of only 150 pieces, EACH ONE signed by Ed! Available for only $25, first come-first served, at the Hero Initiative booth at WonderCon.

Get thee there.

Jim McLauchlin

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Where it all began: Fantastic Four #1!



Like all good things, this, too, muct come to an end.

The fifth and final week of Tom Brevoort's "Take My Trade" books are now up on eBay, all autographed by Stan Lee—and some autographed by John Romita as well. And for the grand finale, we have a coveted Fantastic Four #1 autographed by Stan the Man himself up on the block. Check ’em all out!

And while you're at it, we always encourage you to check out Tom's blog as well. It's always worth reading, chock full o' insight and crunchy goodness!

Jim McLauchlin

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Get thee to PopCons!


As the calendar turns into the Purel-fest that is "convention season," we at Hero Initiative wish to direct you to the super-cool PopCons.con. You will often see pics from our con appearances and super-cool parties here on the blog, but we're gonna archive ALL our pics on the Hero page over at PopCons.

Already for 2010, we have Seattle Emerald City pics, Orlando MegaCon pics, AND a great preview of the Ed Hannigan: Covered exhibit at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco! So get your happy ass over there, huh?

Trust us, much, much, much more to come.

Jim McLauchlin

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Hero Initiative at Emerald City Comic Con!

We had a great time in the beautiful city of Seattle, Washington and Emerald City Comic Con!


Our fab duo of volunteers Brian Randolph and Ray Feighery ran the booth with ease—Thanks guys!

Great guests such as Tim Sale, Barry Kitson, Whilce Portacio, and Phil Hester all stopped by and created some amazing sketches.



Saturday evening, at a membership party at Ruth's Chris Steak House, Tim Sale did three- minute sketches for lucky fans.



In addition, the city of Seattle recognized Tim Sale for his continued support of the Hero Initiative with a special proclamation. Congratulations, Tim! And thanks for all you do!

Karlton Hahn donated an amazing sculpt of Tim Sale's Iron Man from the Hulk: Gray series. The Hulk as drawn by Tim was etched on the piece—check it out!


Much fun had by all!! Looking forward to the three-day event next year!!!

I'm out!


Christina Zietsman

Thanks to All You Heroes at MegaCon & Beyond


Hi, everyone. I have never "blogged" before, and I guess it's about time I entered the world of the future. I really need to say "thank you" to a lot of people, and I guess this is a poor attempt at doing just that.


Thank You are two little words that do not hold nearly enough weight and perform so weakly when it comes to the gratitude and honor I hold for all the people of the Hero Initiative, both behind the scenes and those "in front of the camera".


I was a guest at Mega Con in Orlando this last week, and it was a special trip for me. Very special. I used to be a writer, and while I still write a little -- I will have a page in the new Hero Comics, drawn by the wonderful SR Bissette!, a dear, helpful friend -- but I mostly struggle along against a debilitating cancer and try to be a single Dad to a five year old boy named Leo. You see, I am around him 24/7 and honestly do not have much truck with adults outside of doctors, and I can only marvel at the kindness, the graciousness and undeniable good will of the people of the Initiative, of MegaCon and of the "business" at large.


Chris Klamer, Diana, Joe, Tabitha, the great George Perez and everyone else were so kind and wonderful to me as I sat there, pretty much out of my element, and often in a great deal of pain due to this particularly nasty cancer, feeling like a lump behind the table at Booth 525, The Hero Initiative Booth at Megacon. I have not been to a convention in a long time, and was amazed at the talent represented there. I am "not worthy" as Wayne and Garth would say.

Everyone should support The Good Work The Hero Initiative does, and I wonder if people know just how important the idea behind the Work is, especially to me. I overheard George Perez say it best when a Mega Con goer commented he had not heard about The Hero Initiative. George said, "Comic book creators do not have a safety net or healthcare or pensions and we are here to help when creators fall on hard times." The person replied, "That's a Good Cause" and donated something.

A Good Cause it is, an amazing one, especially to me.

I want everyone to know The Hero Initiative saved my very life with it's good will, generosity and kindness. They allowed me to seek some medical help and enabled me and my son to put a roof over our heads -- I was homeless with that little boy in my van last year. The Initiative gave me the breathing room to get some Medicaid and food stamps, and while we are always in danger of losing our home, electricity and belongings at any moment, I will always be grateful from the depths of my heart for the past six months of fairly solid home life I have had with my little boy.

I was treated by the Iniitiative folks with a respect and decency I am simply not used to, having to endure at the mercy of Government Officials, as I to go through the Social Security Disability application process to secure a monthly income, and live off food stamps and $200 a month State assistance. It is an amazing thing The Hero Initiative does -- and they do it with a respect and kindness that makes those two words, Thank You, so ineffective.

There was an article in the Orlando Sentinel about me, and while they got some things wrong (why they showed the cover of a Thundercats comic I did not write -- I wrote a bunch but not that one -- is one of those things) and I hope, with all my heart, that it helps bring more attention to the Initiative.

I'll be honest here, and it's not a comfortable subject; I am going to die -- we all are "going to die" but I have recently found out death is charging me like a knight with a lance, like a panzer tank, like the Thing smashing out an engine block in that old Kirby FF. There is a chance, I guess, I might make it to the next MegaCon, but it's pretty slim. I wish there is something substantial I could do for the Hero Initiative -- if anyone has any idea along those lines feel free to email me.

I would LIKE to spent the rest of my life writing as many comics as I could, but it's a tight market and "the kids" run the show -- this new generation of comics creators are amazing artists, but let's face it, no one has anything over George Perez, nor does any younger writer compare to Marv Wolfman or Chuck Dixon. Old guys. Not that I am in their league -- but I am their age.

What these fellows have over me, besides talent, is a healthful life and many more years to create wonderful stories and images. I envy that, honestly, and urge everyone to support their works. I urge everyone everywhere to DONATE to the Hero Initiative, because life can change with frightening rapidity, and like George Perez said to that MegaCon goer -- "Comic creators have no safety net."

So thank you, Hero, thank you again - you were my net and gave me a chance to spend at least another year here among all you fine, outstanding people.
Thank you ... two little words. Not enough, if you ask me.

Steve Perry

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Take My Trade Week 4 books!



They're up and running!

The fourth week of Tom Brevoort's "Take My Trade" books are now up on eBay, all autographed by Stan Lee—and some autographed by John Romita as well. Five weeks are slated, meaning we're almost at the end. The final week WILL contain a coveted Fantastic Four #1 autographed by Stan the Man himself. Check ’em out!

And while you're at it, we always encourage you to check out Tom's blog as well. It's always worth reading, chock full o' insight and crunchy goodness!

Jim McLauchlin

Friday, March 12, 2010

Ed Hannigan Tribute art auction!


Folks,
You should absotively, posilutely attend our kickin' Ed Hannigan party at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco on April 2. But just in case you can't make it to the SFO or your cable car runs late, you can bid via proxy on some GREAT art from Ed Hannigan: Covered that artists have donated!

At least five pieces will be up for auction, including the Andy Smith/Joe Rubinstein Thor #329 cover recreation above, AND…

This stellar Jim Valentino/Keith Champagne DC Sampler #1 recreation:

And this great Claude St. Aubin tribute piece:

And this Tom Lyle Avengers #223 recreation!

So how to put in your proxy bid in advance? Just contact Joe Davidson at: yensid4disney@gmail.com . All proxy bids MUST be in no later than Midnight on April 1! So act fast!

Jim McLauchlin
Link

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Hulk says think green!


In honor of the alcohol-sodden greenfest that is Saint Patrick's Day, the Incredible Hulk urges you to THINK GREEN!

Matriculate on over to Hero's merchandise page at AtomicComics.com, and you can save a whoppin' 50% of either hardcover or softcover versions of The Hulk 100 Project! And if that wasn't enough to send you into a gamma-irradiated buying frenzy, you can ALSO save 20% on most other Hero merch as well.

Like ol' Green Genes says, "Act fast." Sale lasts through March 18, just in time for hangover shopping. And prices are also good at Atomic's four Phoenix-area locations!

Jim McLauchlin

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

"Take My Trade" Week 3 Stan Lee books!



It's up. It's running.

The third week of Tom's "Take My Trade" books are now up on eBay, all autographed by Stan Lee—and some autographed by John Romita as well. Five weeks are planned, leading up to a coveted Fantastic Four #1 autographed by Stan the Man. Check ’em out!

And while you're at it, we always encourage you to check out Tom's blog as well. It's always worth reading, chock full o' insight and crunchy goodness!

Jim McLauchlin

Monday, March 8, 2010

Hero Initiative conventions, 2010!


Holy goosh. The clock on the wall sez the traveling circus is ready to start again! Just so you know where to find us, here's a list of conventions Hero will be at in 2010, with a few highlights and the standard proviso that "schedules are subject to change" and whatnot:

March 12-14: Orlando MegaCon: look for George Pérez, Joe Benitez, and an 11-man "100 Wolverines" signing!

March 13-14: Emerald City Con, Seattle. Super-cool Hero Members party!

March 26-28: Wizard World Toronto. Again, a super-cool Hero Members party!

March 27-28: Planet Comic Con, Overland Park, Kansas

April 2-4: WonderCon, San Francisco. Look for our amazing Ed Hannigan party at the Cartoon Art Museum!

April 16-18: C2E2, Chicago. Look for amazing Hero events at the con, AND at Reggie's Rock Club! More on that soonly.

May 22: Spokane Comicon, Spokane, WA

June 4-6: Heroescon, Charlotte, NC

July 23-26: San Diego. Plan is that we'll have access to a hotel suite all weekend, and will be running LOTS of great events such as last year's Jim Lee meet-and-greet!

August 19-22: Wizard World Chicago. Still in the planning stages, but in addition to con stuff, we're looking to have a gourmet meal cooked by Karl Kesel that you can attend! Would we lie?

August 28-29: Baltimore Comicon.

October 8-10: New York Comicon.

October 29-31: Long Beach Comic Con, Long Beach, CA (or as we locals like to call it "the LBC.")

November 6-7: Mid-Ohio Con, Columbus, OH

In many, many cases, you can even buy tickets and help Hero out at NO additional cost to you! So keep checking the blog, check the website, and we'll see ya on the road!

Jim McLauchlin

Friday, March 5, 2010

Tom Brevoort's "Take My Trade" auctions…now!



Recent clinical trials show that Tom Brevoort is the Best Bearded Marvel Editor With Double Vowels in Name. We wouldn't lie about such a thing. He's also a heckuva nice guy, who's "Take My Trade" program was a heckuva lotta fun for a lot of fans, and also provided some great items for Hero Initiative.

The second week of Tom's "Take My Trade" books are now up on eBay, all autographed by Stan Lee—and some autographed by John Romita as well. Five weeks are planned, leading up to a coveted Fantastic Four #1 autographed by Stan the Man. Check ’em out!

And while you're at it, check out Tom's blog as well. It's always worth reading, chock full o' insight, news-y bits, and unvarnished opinion. ’Cause, y'know, unless you're refinishing an old door, who needs varnish?

Jim McLauchlin

Monday, March 1, 2010

Get your MegaCon tickets…NOW!



Hero Initiative will be at the Orlando MegaCon Mar. 12-14, with Joe Benitez and George Pérez as the main men holdin' down our booth. If you're looking to go, best get your tickets NOW! And best to get ’em via Hero!

Just go to www.HeroInitiative.org, and check out the MegaCon logo on the right side of the page. Start your ticket purchase by clicking there, and Hero will get a cut of your ticket purchase at NO additional cost to you! Giving has never been so easy.

So why you still here? Hop to it!

Jim McLauchlin