Once Upon a Geek

I bought a DC Comics Snuggie?!?!  First off, it’s not really a “Snuggie”, it’s a “Comfy Throw”.  What does that mean?  That means it’s a body-length blanket with sleeves made of fleece material; similar in design to a bathrobe that is worn backwards.  Yeah, I know.  That’s the definition of a “Snuggie”.  This is DC Comics’ off-brand version of a Snuggie.

I picked it up at F.Y.E. in Tampa for $10 (originally priced at $20).  The dimensions are 48″ x 71″.  Upon seeing the box (and after finishing rolling her eyes), my wife stated that no woman would be caught dead in that thing, and the only reason a woman is wearing one on the box is because it will help sell the product to geeks.  Y’know what, I think she’s exactly correct!

When I bought it, I never really thought I’d wear it.  However, my Comicatorium (a.k.a. Shag’s Sanctum Sanctorum) is about 10 degrees colder than the rest of the house.  So on cold winter nights this thing could actually come in handy!  In fact, I’m wearing it as I type right now.  It’s currently 32 degrees outside and freakin’ cold in the Comicatorium, but I’m all mosty-toasty in my DC Comics Snuggie.

Here is a sample of the pattern featuring: Superman, Batman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, Shazam, Justice League of America, and the Super Powers logo.

Finally, proof positive that I have no sense of shame.

Welcome to ONCE UPON A GEEK’s part of the Crisis on Earth-Blog: The DC Challenge! ONCE UPON A GEEK is a blog that focuses on a variety of geeky topics, including: comic books, Doctor Who, Star Wars, role-playing, 80’s TV shows, and science fiction in general. If this is your first time here, welcome aboard! If you’re a regular, I think you’ll enjoy this crossover event.

Today and throughout the next few weeks on comic book-themed blogs across the internet, DC Comics characters are being spotlighted in a series of challenges. In my case I’ll be representing Doctor Fate, one of my all-time favorite superheroes. Your DC Challenge, if you choose to accept it, involves visiting each of these various blogs and tackling their particular challenge.

The objective of these challenges is to go from blog to blog until you reach the goal-page featuring a lush scan from an obscure George Pérez pin-up of every major character involved in this crossover event. We all hope you enjoy this online scavenger hunt, and the new comic blogs you’ll be exposed to! Many thanks go out to mastermind Frank Lee Delano (of the blogs: Idol-Head of Diabolu, Justice League Detroit, and …nurgh…) for coordinating this massive effort! Way to go, Frank!

Your ONCE UPON A GEEK challenge is the crossword puzzle below. I couldn’t embed the crossword puzzle itself, so you’ll have to click the image to be taken to the interactive puzzle.  Each question in the puzzle relates to either Doctor Fate, a character participating in this crossover, or other well-known DC characters. Just a heads-up, I removed any spaces or hyphens from the answers. For example “Captain Amazing” would simply be “CaptainAmazing”; or “Locust-Man” would simply be “LocastMan”. Once you’ve finished the challenge, follow Doctor Fate’s mission beneath the puzzle. Have fun!

Hope you enjoyed the crossword puzzle!  Now you’ll have to work your way through Doctor Fate’s mission and a few of the blogs below if you want to reach the goal-page featuring an obscure George Pérez pin-up of every major character in this crossover.  Some of these blogs are participating in the crossover today, others will be in the coming weeks.  Visit them now, visit them later, visit them often!

1986

Inza Nelson sat on an antique couch, working a personalized other-dimensional crossword puzzle, within her invisible tower home in Salem, Massachusetts. Many wives find themselves “widowed” by their husbands’ obsessions with sports, gambling or what have you.  You could say Inza was a sorcery widow, as the unnaturally youthful woman had been since meeting her husband-to-be in the 1940s. It was then that Kent Nelson began his career as the crusading mage Doctor Fate, serving the cause of Order alone, and later as a member of the Justice Society of America. In the years since, Kent has become withdrawn from humanity and increasingly isolated in his studies, leaving poor Inza to her own devices.

Or not. Dr. Fate strode into the room, his features almost entirely obscured by his mantle of power, the gleaming Helm of Nabu. “Take cover,” he demanded, “I’m expecting uninvited guests.” Just then, otherworldly luminescence filled the room, followed by the material forms of three strangers.

The first looked like a derelict, with his unshaven face and long, unkempt black hair, streaked with crimson. He scowled, “I remember you two, even if you were withered old prunes when we met.” This menacing fellow, with a red ankh tattooed over his right eye, drew a golden blade on Dr. Fate. “I took that helmet of yours, and turned it into something useful. I was supposed to be the balance between Order and Chaos, but everything turned rotten, and I’ll end up with my own blade stuck between my ribs.”

The second figure exactly like Dr. Fate, but his tone was less haughty. “We took on your duties, and it will destroy us, body and soul. They warned us. We will stop you from cursing us.”

The third figure was also strikingly similar to Kent, but less poised, and with a costume bearing an ancient Egyptian motif. “I am Hawkman’s son. Why couldn’t I just defend the skies? Why did magic rot away my life, killing me, taking my lover’s mind and my son’s soul? Why couldn’t you do your own job?”

If Dr. Fate found any of this disturbing, he showed no sign of it. “I can sense the touch of Nabu in each of you, but you are not in a time of your own, and you each forget your place. Not a single one of you will carry the weight of my responsibilities for a fraction of my length of servitude. One day, you may each claim my place as Fate, but for now, begone.” With that, Dr. Fate dismissed these future inheritors of his mantle, seemingly with all the effort of an afterthought.

Inza rushed to the being who was both her husband, and something else entirely. She wondered who these Fates were, and what their appearance meant. “They were representatives of a possible future, manipulated into adulterating our present, and they are not alone. All across the Earth, these agents of a grim tomorrow haunt other superhumans. They do not belong, and I will see to their removal.”

With that, Dr. Fate exited his tower, leaving Inza to fret and displaced super-heroes to dread his pursuit.

Follow Dr. Fate’s mission through these blogs…

• The Aquaman Shrine
• The Atom: Tiny Titan
• Hawkman/Hawkwoman at Being Carter Hall
• Metal Men at Comics Make Me Happy
• Flash at Crimson Lightning
• Green Arrow at Dispatches from the Arrow Cave
• Black Lightning and Unknown Soldier at El Jacone’s Comic Book Bunker
• Firestorm Fan
• Black Canary at Girls Gone Geek and Wonder Woman at Girls Gone Geek
• I Am The Phantom Stranger
• Martian Manhunter at The Idol-Head of Diabolu
• Elongated Man and Zatanna at Justice League Detroit
• Captain Comet at …nurgh…
• Doctor Fate at Once Upon a Geek
• He-Man and Battle Cat at Pretty, Fizzy Paradise
• Mister Miracle at random picture day
• Adam Strange at Reilly2040’s Blog
• Supergirl Comic Box Commentary
• Sgt. Rock at when is evil cool?
• Batgirl at The Anti-Didio League of America
• Plastic Man at The Continuity Blog
• General support from Toyriffic

If you enjoy blog crossovers, then you may want to check out the previous comic blog crossovers we’ve done. The first major Crisis on Earth-Blog celebrated the gorgeous George Pérez/Alex Ross painting from the Crisis on Infinite Earths 1998 hardcover. The next blog crossover was a celebration of the Super Powers Collection’s 25th Anniversary.

Just thought I would share some of the geeky Christmas ornaments that adorn our tree.

I love the Spider-Man ornament below.  It’s got great detailing and the webs in each hand are cool!

Below is a cute Santa-Spidey!

You can find a nice Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine below, complete with rolling wheels, Christmas tree on top, and Scooby in bas-relief.

Scooby-Doo the reindeer.

Scooby baking Christmas cookies in the shape of himself and Shaggy!

Below is a miniaturized replica of a Scooby-Doo metal lunchbox.  Unfortunately, my three year old daughter has pilfered the thermos that went with it.

Below is an interesting Batman and Robin pairing.  Robin is clearly the Tim Drake Robin, but Batman isn’t wearing blue trunks.  That suggests this is the Batman from shortly after the Troika storyline in 1995.  … Wow, it’s scary I know things like that.

Here is a genuine E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial ornament from 1982.  Somehow I’ve managed to hang on to it all this time.

Here is another E.T. ornament from 1982 I’ve somehow managed not to lose.  This one is handmade.  I believe my mother bought it at a craft show in 1982.

Below is another miniaturized replica metal lunchbox.  This time it’s from the Super Friends, including images of Flash, Batgirl, Green Arrow, Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Robin, Hawkman, and Green Lantern.  The thermos features Catwoman, the Joker, and the Riddler.  Oddly enough I don’t believe Batgirl or Green Arrow ever appeared on the Super Friends show, and yet they made the lunch box.  Weird.

Below the likeness of Barry Allen, The Flash, is captured between the seconds as he races to beat 20 years of continuity and come back from the dead.

Superman from the Animated Series is delivering Christmas toys in this cool ornament below.

Another miniature replica metal lunchbox below.  This time it’s a Superman lunchbox paying homage to the cover of Action Comics #1.

Below is a clever Clark Kent ornament.  Notice the detail of the coat hanger and the jacket.  Nicely done!

Finally, my favorite geek ornament… Super Santa!  Another gift from my mother from my childhood.  I like the crossover between Superman and Santa Claus.

Happy Holidays!

** SPOILERS FOR FLASH: REBIRTH #5.  Consider yourself warned. **

I’ve been ranting and raving about Barry Allen coming back as the Flash for over a year now.  That’s not why I owe them an apology.  I’m still pissed about that.

I owe Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver an apology for doubting them in regard to Wally West.  I was fairly confident that Wally was going to get shafted as a result of Barry’s return.  We knew a costume change was coming for Wally, that was frightening enough by itself.  Then there were rumors that Wally would adopt a new superhero name, like Mercury or something similar.  Given that Wally is one of my all time favorite characters, I was understandably unhappy with these possibilities.

Turns out I should have trusted Geoff and Ethan.  They did a great job with Wally.  Not only did Wally continue to keep the “Flash” name, but his redesigned costume provides him with his own distinct look and honors the costumes he’s worn previously.  Below is a shot of Barry and Wally side-by-side.

You can see the differences right away.  What you may not realize is that all of the new elements of Wally’s costume come from previous costumes he’s worn.  Below is a quick breakdown of the differences in Wally’s new costume.  I don’t claim credit for this list, it comes from the brilliant Kelson over at Speed Force.org.  Check out his site for a thorough comparison between Barry’s costume, Wally’s new costume, and all of Wally’s previous costumes.

• The darker color, white eyes, and no wings on the boots from Wally’s first costume revamp (Flash vol.2 #50)
• The straight-across mask line, partial belt, no wings on the boots, and white eyes from Walter West’s outfit.
• Simplified lightning bolt, yellow border around the circle, white eyes, and no wings on the boots from the Justice League animated series.
• 3-D gold trim, darker color, no wings on the boots, and straight-across mask line similar to the 1990s TV costume.

There is also a great line in Blackest Night #5 reinforcing Wally as his own man, and not just a shadow of Barry:

• Wally: The bad guys have changed since the days I was the Kid to your Flash. Now I’m the Nightwing to your Batman.
• Barry: You’re the Flash to my Flash, Wally.

What a great line!

Long live Wally West… The Fastest Man Alive!  If you’re a Flash fan, don’t forget to check out Speed Force.org.  … Oh yeah, sorry Geoff and Ethan for doubting you about Wally.

I’ve appeared on several podcasts in the past few months, but have been horribly negligent about giving them a shout-out here.  These were all podcasts hosted by my good buddy Michael Bailey (of Views from the Longbox and From Crisis to Crisis).  He’s been kind enough to invite me to participate a number of times, and I always enjoy bantering with him.  These were recorded some time ago, so please forgive if they are covering things from a while back.

Views from the Speed Force – Flash: Rebirth #3 – Mike and I discuss Flash: Rebirth #3 by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver.  Here we disagree about the middle part of this issue, talk more about Iris’ age and even go into how Diamond Previews can be used for good…and evil. We recorded this quite a while ago, but I’m just now getting around to telling you about it.  Also, DC isn’t in any hurry to get this series out, so why should we be any different?

Dragon*Con 2009 Review – Back in September while still at Dragon*Con, Mike and I discussed our experiences at the event up to that point.  Much fun was had and you get to hear all sorts of juicy stories about which comic pros and celebrities are nice and which ones kind of suck.  Also making appearances are our friends from THE UNIQUE GEEK, Ravenface and Race.

Mike has embarked on a fascinating 13-part journey reviewing comics from his first 13 years of collecting.  Each episode covers a single year, starting with ‘87 and working his way towards 2000.  In addition to covering the relevant comics from each year, Mike shares personal stories about his life and activities during these times. Mike was kind enough to invite me to join him covering 1992 and 1993 – two very important years for comics.

• The Year in Comics 1992 – One of the biggest years in comic book history! Not only do we discuss the creation of Image Comics but we also discuss the Batman books, a bit about Batman Returns, the 10 issue Justice Society of America title, Spider-Man’s 30th Anniversary, Marvel 2099, Eclipso: The Darkness Within, the Marvel Universe Series III card set, the Death of Superman, and more.   In between all of that we go into personal annecdotes, the art of the mixed tape, my career as a comic store manager, and more!
• The Year in Comics 1993 Part One and Part Two – The year the comics industry started to come off the rails. In this episode we cover: the end of Superman: Funeral for a Friend, how readers were reacting to the post-Death of Superman material, Destiny’s Hand from Justice League America, the Return of Barry Allen from Flash, the introduction of the Milestone Universe, Knightfall, Maximum Carnage, Reign of the Supermen, Lois and Clark TV show, and then some really personal stories. After that Mike and I get into the whys and hows the comic industry crashed in the nineties.

And still in post-production, but out soon… Views from Sector 666 Episode #3 – I join Mike and Thomas Deja (of DJ’s Comics Cavalcade and Better in the Dark) as we discuss last months crop of Blackest Night books.  Issues specifically discussed include: Blackest Night #3, Green Lantern #46, Green Lantern Corps #40, Blackest Night Superman #2, Blackest Night Batman #2, and Blackest Night Titans #2.  Watch the Views from the Longbox website for details on release.

Today we’ll be looking at the Monopoly Justice League of America Collector’s Edition from 1999.  This was a great piece produced by USAOPOLY representing the Silver Age Justice League.  The premise of the game is identical to Monopoly, the difference being simply in what things are called.  Instead of the properties being named after places in Atlantic City, they are named after Justice League member’s abilities.  For example, instead of “Boardwalk” and “Park Place”, you have “Strength of Steel” and “Heat Vision”.

Below is the box cover.

Below is a shot of the game board and the insert explaining the characters.  To see all the properties, click the image below to enlarge (big image – 1.4 MB).

Below is the bank, some of the Title Deed cards (called “Power Cards” in this edition), the “Chance” and “Community Chest” cards, a reprint of The Brave and the Bold #28 (the first appearance of the Justice League of America), and the instructions.

Below are the replacement Utilities cards.  Instead of the “Electric Company”, you have “Green Lantern’s Power Battery”.  Instead of “Water Works”, you have “Aquaman’s City of Atlantis”.

Below are the replacement Railroad cards.  In this set you’ve got: Flash’s “The Cosmic Treadmill”, Green Arrow’s “The Arrowplane”, Batman’s “The Batmobile”, and Wonder Woman’s “Invisible Jet Plane”.

Below is a shot of the player tokens and the houses/hotels.  In this edition, green houses are replaced by blue “Powers”, and red hotels are replaced by red “Super Powers”.

Here is another shot of the pewter player tokens.  They include (from L to R): Superman, Green Lantern, Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Flash, and Green Arrow.

Here is a better shot of the “Powers” and “Super Powers” pieces.  You can see the star on the blue pieces, and you can see the Justice League of America logo on the red pieces.

Here is the JLA currency for the game.  Poor Martian Manhunter, everyone else got a bill except him.  Maybe he’s on the three dollar bill.

The orange “Daily Planet” cards replace “Chance” in this edition.

Below are some of my favorite “Daily Planet” cards.  There are tons more, these are just the ones I chose to feature.

The yellow “Batcomputer” cards replace “Community Chest” in this edition.

Below are some of my favorite “Batcomputer” cards.  There are tons more, these are just the ones I chose to feature.  It’s interesting that Hawkman and the Atom managed to sneak into the game on these cards.

What a cool version of Monopoly!  It definitely puts a fun spin on the game for us comic geeks.

I thought I would provide some links to funny and interesting things I’ve come across lately.  Some of these were sent to me by friends, others found on listservs, and some I just stumbled across.  Enjoy!

• Superhero Facebook Status Updates on Comics Alliance
• Spoiler pics from new Doctor Who including Matt Smith in David Tennant’s tattered costume on io9
• NBC’s Chuck may return this fall (rather than March), perhaps as early as October on The Ausiello Files on EW.com
• Runners new mini-series starts exclusively online for free on Runners Universe
• Great Darth Vader Pumpkin on iGeektrooper
• Taunt Yourself with The Flash Game That Ain’t Happenin’ on Topless Robot
• New logo for Doctor Who next season on io9
• A Millennium Falcon full of Yodas on Geek Orthodox
• Mark Waid interviewed about Irredeemable comic spin-off, Incorruptible, on Newsarama
• Artist Chris Achilleos swiped Jack Kirby for Doctor Who book cover on Bleeding Cool
• George Pérez gives himself a tip of the hat with BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS cover on DC Universe: The Source
• The Power of the Darkside … of Disco on Uneetee
• Interview with Doom Patrol artist Matthew Clark on the Doom Patrol blog – My Greatest Adventure 80
• Trailer for new Doctor Who spin-off series K-9 is online (let the whole thing load before you try to watch it) on Park Entertainment
  

My wife and children surprised me with the single greatest Father’s Day gift any comic book geek could dream of.  My wife commissioned local artist, Billy Penn (Hot Shot & Mighty Girl, Savage Dragon), to do a comic book cover featuring me.  Behold the astonishing result…

Click the image for a larger version.  On the left is me as I currently am, on the right is me as I was 20 years ago, hence the title, “Shag of Two Eras”.  In the middle in mortal peril are my nine year old step-son and three year old daughter.

An amazing illustration!  My family presented me with an 11×17 framed print of the cover on Father’s Day morning.  I was totally stunned.  Even now, hours later, I can’t take my eyes off it.  What an incredibly thoughtful gift to give to a comic book geek like me.

In case you’re not familiar with the homage, check out the cover of Flash #123 below (September 1961).  This is one of the most important comic books in publishing history.

Just for reference, here are pictures of me nowadays and back in 1988.

I’ve known the artist, Billy Penn, for over 15 years.  He shopped at the comic book store I managed when he was in high school.  Now he’s a high school art teacher himself.  He’s incredibly skilled and has a few published works, including Platinum Studio’s Hot Shot and Mighty Girl original graphic novel, and a back-up story in Savage Dragon #130.  I’ve always been impressed with the way he draws faces.  They are so wonderfully expressive!

I’m amazed at Billy’s attention to detail in the commission he did for my wife!  He reproduced so many details from the Flash cover while making them specific to me. Some fun details that you might miss include: the shape of the comic logo, the ONCE UPON A GEEK circle in the top left, the date and the comics code authority seal, the body language of the Flashes and the two Shags, the skyline of my hometown in the background, all the goofy 80’s trappings legitimately worn by me back then, and the accuracy of my children’s eye color and clothing.

As I mentioned, I was completely surprised and stunned.  What an unbelievable gift!!!  Its comic books and my children… all rolled up into one.  My wife is an amazing woman.  This is a gift I’ll cherish forever.

There are zillions of comic book blogs out there you can spend your time reading.   The trick is, which ones are any good?  I thought I would share with you a few of my personal favorites.

I make sure to check these first two every day.  These sites are very well put together and the writers have a way of making their posts really keep your interest.  Even if you are not a fan of these particular characters, you can appreciate the enthusiasm they have for the source material and the way they share information.

• The Aquaman Shrine – A Daily Devotional to the King of the Seven Seas–Aquaman!  Y’all have heard me praise this site before.  It’s really one of the best comic book blogs on the web.
• Speed Force.org – A blog focusing on DC Comics’ The Flash. It’s a companion site to Flash: Those Who Ride the Lightning, a fan reference site for the Fastest Man Alive.  This guy does a great job covering old Flash items of interest, as well as keeping up with all the news surrounding the fastest men alive.

Here are several other excellent comic book blogs:

• Fortress of Baileytude – Michael Bailey’s comic book blog. Covers a whole range of comic book topics, but touches most often on DC comics, Superman, and comic book related media. Very in-depth, well thought-out, and well-written posts.  He also produces the excellent Views from the Longbox podcast, and I’m not just saying that because I’m his semi-regular co-host.
• Geek Orthodox – I just discovered this blog recently, but I’m having a real blast keeping up with it.  Lots of great geek stuff, comics, roleplaying, toys, and the occasional photo to keep a gentleman’s interest.  Here is their own description of the site… You rollin’ twenties on the polyhedral? You makin’ the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs? Know the difference between Mego and Remco? Then welcome to your new church.
• The IDOL-HEAD of DIABOLU – A blog for the Martian Manhunter.  I know, a blog for Martian Manhunter?  Seriously?  Even I’m not a tremendous fan of the character, and yet the blog is interesting and well done.  Definitely give it a read.
• Action Toy Review – A DC comics action figure blog that is currently focused on Mattel’s DC Universe Classics toys.  Really detailed reviews and some great photos of the figures.
• Groovy Superhero – Another blog I recently found that I’m really enjoying.  The focus of this blog is comic books, but he also touches on science fiction (Doctor Who), animation (Venture Brothers), and more.  Fun stuff!
• Old-Wizard – Not purely a comic book blog; really more of a video game blog.  However, they do comic related posts from time to time.  Also, the topics they bring up tend to be controversial, so there are always some fun arguments going on over there.
• Hardcover Lover – This is the blog of a buddy of mine.  He’s just getting started in blogging, but he’s got some interesting things to say about comic book hardcovers.  He’s a self-avowed format elitist and makes no apologies.
• Every Day is Like Wednesday – My friend Erika directed me to this blog recently.  Great posts with very thorough reviews, frank opinions, and some humor.  They tackle a wider range of comics books than most blogs.  I especially liked this post about the upcoming “Blackest Night” story line.
• Things I Wish I’d Thought of Sooner – Gerry Conway’s personal blog of grumblings and observations.  He’s written a tremendous amount of comics, many of which are my favorites!  He’s a former Spider-Man and Justice League writer, and the creator of characters such as Punisher, Firestorm, Power Girl, and Vixen.  While he doesn’t always talk about comics in his blog, it’s still interesting to read.  And c’mon, the guy created Firestorm and Power Girl!  You gotta love him!
• Michael May’s Adventureblog – The online home of Michael May. Here you’ll find updates on his writing projects, news and opinions about the books, comics, movies, and TV shows that influence them.   He recently did an entry on Aquaman and was kind enough to pimp my AQUAMAN WEEK.  Thanks!

Looking for more comic book related blogs?  Visit the Comic Blog Elite!  This is a resource for fans, creators, retailers, and publishers to identify the very best comic blogs on the net — based on actual site hits.  It currently features nearly 100 comic related blogs.  I was fortunate enough to be #1 through much of October, and #2 through much of November.  Since then several other top notch blogs have surpassed me.

Be sure to check out my blogroll as well.  There are lots of great blogs under the “Friends” section that may not be comics related, but are worth your time.

If you know of any other fantastic comic book related blogs, be sure to post them in the comments!  Thanks for reading!

SUNDAY

Sunday was a nice and easy day as compared to Saturday.  There weren’t a whole bunch of panels I was anxious to see that day, and ultimately ended up not attending any panels.  Instead I spent a whole bunch of time going through the Dealer Room’s, Exhibitor Room, the Celebrity Walk of Fame, and taking a bunch of pictures.

While in the Celebrity Walk of Fame, Serv and I took some time to stop by Michael Dorn’s table.  Michael Dorn is best known for his role as the Klingon Worf on ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ and ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’.  However, that’s not the only show he’s starred on… As we approached the table, Dorn had this disinterested look on his face as some obsessive Star Trek fan was asking him about wearing all the Klingon make-up.  Serv and I asked Dorn if he could pose for a photo with us.  Still looking somewhat bored, he politely informed us that he couldn’t as DragonCon is very strict about celebrity photos only taking place during the scheduled photo opportunities.  We were disappointed, but carried on.  We then explained to Dorn that we were hoping to get his picture because we were actually big fans of the show CHiPs.  At this point, Dorn really perked up.  Yup, believe it or not, Dorn was a regular on CHiPs (starring in 78 episodes according to Dorn).  We then spent about five minutes talking with Dorn about CHiPs.  He said he stays in touch with a couple of the guys from the show and was disappointed when they didn’t contact him to be in the revival, CHiPs 2000.  He went on to say that if they’d called him, he would have done the revival for free just to have the opportunity to hang out with those guys again. He also mentioned that Chris Pine (who is playing the young James T. Kirk in the upcoming Star Trek movie) is the son of Robert Pine (who played the Sergeant on CHiPs).  Small world.  It would have been cool to get our picture with Dorn so we could put it beside our picture from 2007 with Erik Estrada.

We also swung by Michael Rosenbaum’s table.  Rosenbaum is best known as Lex Luthor on Smallville.  While I watched the first few seasons of that show, I’m more a fan of Rosenbaum’s work on the Justice League cartoons as the voice of the Flash.    I really wanted to get my picture with him, but he mentioned that he was probably going to skip his last photo op.  So I instead settled for an autographed photo (below) and a handshake.  We’re totally BFF now; I can feel it.

I also took some time to stroll through the Art Show.  In all the years I’ve come to DragonCon, I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve never actually visited the Art Show.  So this was a nice treat.  Last year, my friend Sterling bought me a print of an Aquaman painting.  He bought it to help inspire my writing.  While I really haven’t put much time into fictional writing this past year, I do believe it’s help inspire me to write more; for example this very blog was started just six months ago.  I love the Aquaman print so much I went searching to see if the same artist was there this year.  His name is Tom Fleming and he’s done some fantastic paintings for both Marvel and DC.  Recently he’s done some of the VS. trading card game images for DC.  When I found his booth, I was in awe at his work.  I quickly found the Aquaman image hanging up on his booth… and then I was taken aback by the kick-ass Firestorm image hanging right next to Aquaman.  It’s almost like he knew I was coming.  Needless to say, there is now a framed Firestorm print by Tom Fleming hanging on my wall right next to my framed Aquaman print.

Come back tomorrow to hear the rest of Sunday.  As a sneak peek, the rest of the day included alcohol, Snake Eyes, werewolves, and the Beastie Boys.  Be afraid, be very afraid.