The Day I Almost Screwed Up the Disney Acquisition of Marvel
Plus: Getting Shot Down By Shooter
Thanks For The Memories
Today’s newsletter is inspired by two subscriber questions that reminded me of a few stories from back in the day. Thanks, you made my job easier this week.
Remember, you can speak your mind in the comments section at the end of every newsletter or on Substack’s Chat feature. More on that later because first…
I’m Heading To The Great White North, A.K.A. “The Land of Zdarsky.”
FanExpo Canada is one of my favorite shows. In fact, my appearance in 2009 was the most memorable convention of my life – though not in any way you might imagine.
I was in the middle of a signing on the Friday of the convention weekend when my phone rang. It was Marvel’s Chief Counsel, John Turitzin. Disney was about to finalize the acquisition of Marvel and, in doing their due diligence, had just discovered a clause in my contract that gave me the right to walk away if Marvel ever changed ownership. Mama Quesada didn’t raise no fool; I had seen Marvel go through some trying ownership changes over the years, and I wanted an out in case the company was ever sold to someone I felt didn’t have its best interests at heart. John, one of my favorite people at Marvel, was uncharacteristically adamant that I sign an addendum stating that I would not exercise my right to leave. If I didn’t, I could be responsible for delaying the deal. Now, for the record, I suspect that was an exaggeration, but I was caught off guard by the urgency of the request, which now had me walking off the convention floor to call my lawyer, then John again, then several Marvel execs, then back to my lawyer, rinse and repeat. It was crazy, and all of it was happening very fast.
It wasn’t until my lawyer informed me that I was in a position to renegotiate my deal that I realized why there was such a sense of urgency around the whole thing. I guess a more predatory businessman would have used the moment to their advantage, but I couldn’t imagine a more short-sighted move. Plus, I was excited at the possibilities, adventures, and opportunities ahead in becoming a part of the Disney family. So I signed the addendum, and three days later, on Monday, August 31, 2009, Disney announced its acquisition of Marvel.
The last time I was at FanExpo Canada was in 2016. It’s been too long, and I’m excited to be coming back. So, if you’re in the neighborhood, stop by my booth and say hello! You can view my signing schedule and available “Experiences” by gently tapping the button below. I’m going to have two panels, but they’re not yet scheduled as of this writing.
King Daredevil above and the sketch below were requested by fans who purchased the (not a tribute band) Ultimate Joe Quesada Experience (Rare Sketch Edition). Unfortunately, the “Rare Sketch Edition” is already sold out, but demand was so high that I’ve asked FanExpo to open up an additional slot or two.
The Price Of Doing Business
Announcing my signing schedule and “Experiences” along with the prices feels like a perfect segue to this question posted a few weeks back by Louis Rivera.
Hey Joe this is an awesome platform I look forward to your weekly’s updates. Considering your at SDCC there is something I’m curious about. What is your take on Artist and writers now charging for their autographs?
Obviously your pro as you do as well now. (Which I go on record as being totally fine with) However, I’m just curious on what your thoughts are? I remember first meeting you at a small church convention in Brooklyn back in the early 90’s (I say that like it’s ancient times, it’s just yesterday to me) anyway you have been doing this for years what changed in the industry from then to now? Is this long long overdue? Is it more about paying your dues and now having the right? And if so what is your take on new artist, just getting into the Comic industry and charging the same amount that you do? To me it’s like meeting Bret Betty and paying the same for his autograph that Mike Piazza is asking for. Something feels wrong about that.
Anyway thanks for your time. I look forward to this newsletter and I Appreciate you and all you have done! I have spent years being entertained by your art and stories and glad that I’m able to now share that with my son, like my dad did with me years ago when he took me to a little church convention in Brooklyn to meet my favorite artist Joe Quesada.
Louis, thank you for the kind note and excellent question. I believe artist charging for signatures came about due to a myriad of different circumstances, but primarily the rise of the internet and authentication facilitators. I’ll tell you how I came around to my decision, it may not be the same for everyone, but I bet it’s similar.
In 1997, I was at a convention signing and drawing head sketches for free. I remember happily drawing my creator-owned character Ash for a fan who was over the moon to add it to his “collection.” Hours later, a fellow artist directed me to this website called eBay, where that sketch was up for auction. At that moment, I stopped sketching for free because I could see what the future had wrought. I’m sure fans had been selling my sketches in the past, but now it was public and being thrown in my and every other artist’s face watching their free work sold on the open market.
I saw this trend continue with signatures. I used to have a policy that I would sign as many books as were placed in front of me. I kept to that for many years until I noticed a trend where fans were bringing me 20 copies of the same issue. And then I’d see the same fan get back on the line with another 20. What was happening was pretty obvious (because I lived through the early 90’s speculator boom), so one day, a young lady had placed a stack of duplicates in front of me, and I asked her how she liked the story. Without missing a beat, she said she had never read it. Wow, big surprise.
“So why do you want me to sign so many of them?”
“Because that guy (points to a retailer’s booth) is paying me to do it and comped my convention badge.”
He should have also paid her to lie because that was Strike Two. From that day on, I’d sign any books in front of me as long as they weren’t duplicates.
Enter the era of authentication and grading services like CGC, CBCS, PGX, EGS, and a host of other acronyms. Suddenly comics signed by creators for free were being graded and slabbed in real-time and, more often than not, sold online while the ink was still wet. Also, the demand and prices for vintage comics and original comic book art were exploding.
To be clear, I have nothing against any of this. The beauty of comics is that they're entertainment but also collectible1. It’s always been a part of our industry and one of the things that makes it so unique. But the fact that we creators were just giving it away for free started to feel more and more inequitable.
Today there’s a more symbiotic relationship between fans, authenticators, and creators, but to keep that balance, creators have to charge for their signatures and sketches and operate under the assumption that everything they add their names and talents to will show up in the aftermarket.
As for young creators who you feel haven’t paid their dues or been around long enough to charge as much as they do, I can see your point, but I honestly have no feelings about it one way or another. It’s a free market; they can charge as much as they want. If people feel that that creator’s signature is worth it, then the pricing is right. If they don’t, the creator will need to adjust.
Or perhaps they're like the person selling pencils on the street corner for a million dollars each… all you have to do is sell one.
Jim Shooter Was Wrong (Kinda)
Question two comes from Gurveen Kaur, who asked…
Hey Joe! How are you doing?
Loved the newsletter! "We're in the suit with him," and reading it in Stan Lee's voice was the icing.
I've been wondering something about different approaches to writing. I'm currently self-learning storyboarding for animation, and I also write my own stories (or at least I try to). I have some that I'm boarding out, while the others feel better suited for comics somehow. I'd like to know if, in your opinion, the approach to the two mediums is different, and if so, then how? Both in terms of writing and fleshing out a story idea + converting the same into a script
Thank you! Looking forward to more posts
Gurvneer, let me tell you a story… (Like no one saw that coming).
In 1989, I got my start as a colorist at Valiant, and at that time, Jim Shooter was Editor in Chief. Jim had previously been EIC of Marvel, so the man had a wealth of experience and knowledge. One day, we were all working late trying to hit a deadline, and during a break, Shooter gathered all of us “Knobs” around to have a Q+A session with him. It was fantastic and enlightening, especially for me because coloring was fun, but I wanted to be a penciler in the worst way.
If you’re wondering, “The Knobs” was the nickname for those of us who worked in the bullpen. I believe it was coined by Bob Layton because, like an actual knob, we could be turned and adjusted to get the desired result. I hated the name and felt it was demeaning, especially considering Marvel’s more empowering bullpen moniker, “Romita’s Raiders.”
But (as Peter David oft said) I digress.
Someone asked Jim about the current over-the-top storytelling techniques in modern comics, like the overuse of splash pages and breaking panel borders. Jim wasn’t a fan and felt it was unnecessary and not additive to any story. As an example, he used Stephen Spielberg, who delivered breathtaking, jump-out-of-your-seat action without ever breaking the frame of the movie screen. At that moment, I worked up the nerve to raise my hand.
“There isn’t a technology currently that allows a director to break the movie frame, but if it did, don’t you think Spielberg would be the first to use it?”
Shooter glared at me; it might have been the first time he knew I existed in the office. After a beat, he sighted that the most dynamic artist in the history of comics, Jack Kirby, NEVER broke a panel border. Dammit, he had me there. Kirby was everything to me, and if he didn’t need to break panel borders to create the greatest comics in history, why does anyone?
Well, maybe because none of us are Kirby – and also because it wasn’t true.
Not only did Kirby break panel borders, he did it all the time! But Shooter was half right; as far as anyone can tell, Jack only did it during his early years working with Joe Simon and never did it at Marvel or DC.
Let me add that I have mad respect for Shooter, as you’ll find out when I dig into my early days at Valiant. But much like the rules he was espousing, those I’m about to espouse to you are not absolutes, nor does one size fit all. These are just the creative rules I live by.
Whether you’re writing or drawing storyboards or comics, I feel to communicate your story clearly, you need to know and master the rules of classic stage and cinematic storytelling. Only then can you abstract and break those rules properly because you’ll have reasons for doing so. When Stanley Kubrick chose to break the 180° rule in The Shining, there was a story purpose behind it.
Storyboards, like the screen aperture they’re designed to appear on, are visually more limiting than comics but have the advantage of being translated into animation, film, or video games. Comics are all about creating the illusion of movement.
I don’t know anyone who writes for a storyboard. A storyboard is merely a tool for the writer to determine if the pacing and timing of the script work, as well as planning out camera angles, movement, and blocking. They’re also a great collaboration and presentation device and can help construct shot lists and budgets.
When you write a comic, you have to keep the visuals in mind, and that the reader controls the timing of your story by the turn of the page. That’s why the last panel of every page is so important, especially if you have a big reveal on the next or something as simple as a change of scene or location.
And while comics don’t offer the same final kinetic product as a storyboard, storyboards are more rigid because they have to adhere to the technical constraints of the production. Comics have tons of cool visual tricks, like panel breaks, typography design (see Walt Simonson), unique panel layouts (see Steranko), and even the gutters between panels (see Daredevil Vol 2 #6, pages 2-8) can be put to use. I suspect that Shooter and I would disagree on the use of some of these methods, but I have my own personal do’s and don'ts, like the use/overuse of these tricks without any reason.
Much like Kirby in his early years, I overused them, but over time I learned that less was more and picking the right moments would make them more impactful. It's akin to composing a piece of music, where the crescendos, pauses, and dynamic shifts are used judiciously to create a richer experience.
The long and short of it, Gurveen, is that storyboards are a blueprint for a final product, whereas the art in a comic IS the final product. So when you write for each, you need to keep that top of mind.
In Case You Think I’ve Forgotten…
I’m still planning on giving away a few of these super rare Captain America #750 variant cover editions signed and remarked by yours truly, but I won’t have my comp copies until October. So, between now and then, I’m looking for a fun contest idea, and I’m too lazy busy to come up with one. This means that if you suggest a great idea and I run with it, you’ll automatically win one of these signed bad boys that you can then get authenticated and sell for as much as your heart desires on eBay!2
WOW! Not only is this newsletter free, but subscribing can prove profitable!
Which brings me back to…
Let’s Talk It Out!
Substack’s Chat space is essentially a group chat or live hangout. This is the perfect place for us to shoot the s#!t, exchange ideas, and gossip. You can even admonish me for whatever creative decision I made that you felt was idiotic. I might even agree with you.
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Open the app and tap the Chat icon. It looks like two overlapping word balloons, and you’ll see a row for my chat inside.
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Thanks for reading!
You’re Amazing!
JQ
Collecting has always been a fun part of comics, but if mishandled, it can prove catastrophic. This was most evident in the early 90s when comic companies operated more like the Franklin Mint than publishers. In the mid-90s, when the speculator bubble burst, it nearly took the entire industry with it.
See what I did there!
I'll except that because at least there are some memories at Shea when the Mets didn't suck. And no, I'm not bitter...
Calgary is on my bucket list of shows and cities that I'd love to visit. I hear it's beautiful, even if it is in Canada ;^)