Sunday, December 7, 2008

Of Simpsons and Samurai

What makes something that is popular part of culture, and the reverse, what makes anything that is part of culture more popular to point of being commonly understood than other portions? The United States has long been said to be suffering from a lack of cultural literacy. But what is that? Definition from Wikipedia “Cultural literacy is the ability to converse fluently in the idioms, allusions and informal content which creates and constitutes a dominant culture. From being familiar with street signs to knowing historical references to understanding the most recent slang, literacy demands interaction with the culture and reflection of it. Knowledge of a canonical set of literature is not sufficient in and of itself when engaging with others in a society, as life is interwoven with art, expression, history and experience. Cultural literacy requires familiarity with a broad range of trivia and implies the use of that trivia in the creation of a communal language and collective knowledge. Cultural literacy stresses the knowledge of those pieces of information which content creators will assume the audience already possesses.” So, in order to be fully conversant you need to know the roots of a cultural idiom and the icons of culture, but also you need to understand it and be conversant with it in the modern language.

An example is The Simpsons cartoon. In an episode called “Homer Loves Flanders” Homer Simpson has driven Ned Flanders a bit mad, and in his dreams Flanders dreams of shooting people from a bell tower, only to have one of the possible victims, a postal worker return fire with his own concealed firearm. However much one laughs at the top layer of Homer going so overboard that he drives kind Ned mad, we have an example of cultural literacy. Ned’s dream reflects two moments/episodes of American cultural history that entered common thought. On August 1, 1966 Charles Whitman ascended the top floor of the UT Austin admin building, with an open observation deck, and murdered 14 people and wounded 31 others. When Ned shot at the Postal worker who returned fire it was use of a then common worry of Postal workers going mad and shooting people, or going postal. My son being 10 has no concept of either event/episode but laughed uproariously at the humor of the story. He didn’t get the whole multilayered joke because he wasn’t and rightly, couldn’t have been culturally literate enough yet to understand it all.



So we have symbols in culture, words, iconic images, that tell us clues how to feel, think or respond. I spoke to Arthurian Legend being a keystone of English culture. In Japan a very different cultural region from England/UK, the cultural touch point is more a romanticized era than a set of stories. The Japanese have made great strides, became modern despite having a medieval system as late as 1870. But they never forgot the Samurai, Emperor, Shogun, and more who peopled their stories, who lived in the era, when violence and a vital caste system allowed for a great and powerful cultural story book. The Japanese could hardly forget moments from their past because however modern they are as a people, they can still see the Emperor’s castle and residence, the castles from the Tokugawa and earlier regimes. The very aspects of the world they left by becoming modern were never lost to them, for they simply developed a culture that kept the keystones, and never ignored them.

The arts that have grown since are vibrant and varied, but also, they still cling to the aesthetic of “Chrysanthemum and Sword”, being beautiful and unique, at the same time as stark and often simple. Japan’s legends and lore are vital to their being. Much like the American image of Cowboys and the Frontier, Japan’s memories of Samurai and court intrigues make their world go round.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

SYMBOLS of popular culture

That we recognize symbols in culture is not amazing, we seem to be hard wired to recognize symbols and symbolism. Whether we understand the symbolism or not is not the point. When we look at culture it is filled with images that tell us what we are supposed to connote some message from the work. In the movie BLACK RAIN with Michael Douglas a plane leaves the United States airspace of red sun, white sky and blue ocean (The US Flag: Red White and Blue) to land in Japan, with a largely white sky and blazing Red rising sun (The Japanese flag of the Rising Sun.) It is not necessarily important but it adds to the layers of symbolic information, and the viewer may or may not understand it more than just feeling something, but, it is there.



Some symbolism retains power and value throughout human experience. The story of Saint George killing the Dragon is powerful, but a mythic story that arose from a person who did something very much the same in terms of choices made. Saint George comes from a historical figure who chose not to convert to a different religious faith in the face of a demand from an Emperor. He was executed as a result. The mythic story follows a Knight who slays a dragon, but the mythic root is that in our lives we are able to make heroic decisions, and the dragon, that beast of conformity and hate can be slain. The Christian metal band Demon Hunter has an image of a slain Demon skull as the symbol of their band. They do not linger over lyrics of killing demons, they speak about choices and morality, they slay demons with words. The symbolism here is unchanged, and there are many many other instances I could show for the same sort of usage.



Death itself is symbolized by a Skull. In the past the use of a skull in imagery meant very clearly that death was near, that a portent of danger was evident, and that one should be careful, exhibit fear, or wariness. But lately in many forms of culture, you see the skull being used not as an omen of horror, or danger, but of empowerment over such a thing. Whereas Skeletor from He-Man and Darth Vader of Star Wars were given skull like faces, you can see skate boarders wearing clothing with skulls on it to show they are brave in the face of danger. You can see it in the Christian metal band AS I LAY DYING, who uses the skull to symbolize that Death is a doorway to a different existence, and that being slave to the flesh rather than the spirit is death itself. This usage of imagery can cause confusion, as clearly when symbols change meaning people from before and after do not connate the same thing from the symbol. When I see a pirate flag and the Skull and Cross bones I do not necessarily think I am about to die, or be in danger, but I certainly don’t see Pirates of the Caribbean as being about men who are evil and wishing to plunder.



Finally some images we create might have no greater meaning (although Abbey Road does have a number of symbolic images and meanings, which I might discuss in future articles... although I am no expert regarding it) but enter into culture due to the widespread popularity, notoriety, and importance. The Beatles were very much a famous, powerful, important band, and everything they did had a place in culture, that was revered and examined. Whether they were meaning to do so was really not the point. They were considered at the edge of culture and you can see from album covers and personal statements and music lyrics from the band and members, they were a cultural movement. The album Abbey Road was very important, lovely to listen to, and musically valuable. But the impact it had can be seen in the numerous parodies of it. Many dozens of bands, individual artists and popular culture mediums utilized the familiarity and fame of the image, to portray themselves in the same important light. The image enclosed shows just the tip of the iceberg of people imitating the image.

Symbolic information exists whether we understand it or not, but is the symbol used a constant, or has the culture changed it, what band, author or game is so powerful and important to become part of the imagery of popular culture?

Sunday, September 7, 2008

A view of popular culture from the retail perspective, Comics Part II


James Robert (Bob) Smith was a comics retailer for over 20 years. He had shops in Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Today, he is completely out of the comics industry and works for the US Postal Service in Charlotte, North Carolina. He is a published author with dozens of short story sales, two novel sales, and one movie option sale. He has a website at: JamesRobertSmith.Net and a blog at Til The Last Hemlock Dies.

Russ Stewart was a comics retailer for almost 6 years. He ran a store in Duluth Minnesota. He was also a city councilman, a college professor, and my best friend. He is still a couple of those things. He is currently on sabbatical and will return in Spring to his main job, teaching ethics and logic to people at Lake Superior College.

What made you go into the comics business to begin with?

James Robert Smith: I fell into it, actually. My dad had owned several used bookshops in Georgia and Tennessee. Over the years he accumulated about a quarter of a million back issues. Prime stuff, too, since he started buying used books and old comics in 1965. So the bulk of the stuff he had was Silver Age and later Golden Age. By the time I opened my own shop I had inherited his vast stock of old comics which formed the basis of my own retail business. Then I fell into the sales of new comics when I was around in the early days of direct sales. Over time, most of my sales went to new comics and less and less of my total figures were generated by back issues.

Russell R. Stewart: I've always had a love of bookstores, comic shops, game shops, etc., you know, the fun, eclectic places that have a one of a kind feel to them. I've also worked in a couple different bookstores, so I knew something of the business. Finally, I wanted to create the kind of place that I wish I'd had when I was a kid. Growing up in a small Minnesota town left me only with the local dime store or drug store, which had little of interest to my thirsty mind. So I thought about the kind of place would have wanted to go to when I was, say, 15 years old, and that's what I tried to create.

What were some of the surprises you experienced when you got into the work of retailing comics?

JRS: Hmm... Surprises. None, really. Maybe, in the early days, the sheer sales numbers generated from direct sales comics. Even when most of my sales were in new comics, I still preferred back issues. It was back issue sales that had the most appeal for me. And when you own a retail store that buys and sells old comics, you will generally have about three or four great collections walk through the door every year. Really nice stuff that makes your heart beat faster and your blood pressure rise. The smell of pulp was addictive and the one thing that I miss about retailing are those three or four wonderful back issue discoveries that I would make each year.

RRS: The biggest and most unfortunate surprise was the discovery of a couple of major bookkeeping errors in my first year of business. This set me way back financially and left me in a scramble that I never really got out of. Other than that, I guess I was surprised by the passion that the customers have both about the products and about the store. It was tough to keep them from badmouthing the competition (another local store that we had a good relationship with) or games or comics they didn't like. The Warhammer players and the Magic players seemed like they were in an endless feud. For a place to go to have fun, a small number of people just liked to go their to demonstrate their superiority.

On the other hand, we also had a surprising number of great customers who put in a ton of volunteer hours in the game room. They went way beyond the call of duty on several occasions. One time they painted the whole game room because they knew that I didn't have the time to do it. They even bought the paint!

What are some of the sources of frustration for a person selling comics?

JRS: Well, since I'm very happily not in retail sales anymore, there are no current frustrations from that sector for me. In the last days of retailing, my greatest single frustration was the monopoly that Steve Geppi made of the business. It's very unhealthy for one distributor to control the entire direct sales business. That's too much power in the hands of a single entitiy and I'm convinced that Diamond Comic Distributors is a monopoly that should be shattered and scattered. Nothing good can come of all of that wholesale power in the hands of a single company. Well, nothing good for customers and retailers. Much good for Herr Geppi.

RRS: The biggest frustration was dealing with the monthly comics. With a small store like I had, it was almost impossible to order with any kind of consistency. One month we'd sell through a title, so the next month we'd order more only to find that we'd sell only one or two copies. Once a monthly is on the rack for 90 days, it is dead wood. And of course very little was returnable. That gets expensive and kills cash flow, which is the life blood of a retail store.

On many occasions I considered cutting out monthlies altogether, instead stocking graphic novels in greater depth. In retrospect, I wish I had done that. I think my cash flow would have been a lot better. The shelf-life of a graphic novel is much longer than a monthly. I guess I was afraid of upsetting my base of monthly subscribers. In truth, I wasn't making money on them anyway. I was always too nice to the subscribers, allowing them to build up “holds” in excess of 100 comics. Again, that's dead wood. And often they would decide (typically after 3-4 months) that they didn't really want half of them anyway.

If I had just gone graphic-novel only from the beginning, I think I'd be rolling in dough today!

What did you do to try to modify the system to your own needs?

JRS: Hmm ... Like most retail comic shops I ran an in-store subscription service. It worked well for years, until the comic book implosion of the early 90s. When sales of new comics began to slide precipitiously I had been finding my way into the sales of other collectibles, most notably collectible toys. Honestly, Star Wars toys and Mego figures kept my last store going for about five years!

RRS: I'm not really sure that “the system” can really be modified by the retailer. At least not by isolated, small retailers. A large chain might be able to command enough market share to make some substantive changes in the distribution system.

What role did Diamond play in your business success and then business failure?

JRS: Pardon my French, but Diamond sucks ass. I have nothing good to say about that monopoly, and anything else that I could add might get me into trouble with that corporate mosnter. That said, they weren't the only reason for the collapse of comic book sales. One experience I vividly recall is this:

I had an entire family who read comics and spent a LOT of money in my shop. (This was toward the end of my retailing experience, in the mid-90s.) Every week they would stop in and pick up their in-store subscriptions, routinely spending, collectively, anywhere from $50 to $100 every Thursday or Friday, sometimes waiting until Saturday to get their books. Well, one week they didn't show. Then a second week passed and they didn't show. Third week, no family. Since they got a LOT of books, their holds were piling up. Finally, one day the mother called and cancelled the subscriptions. All of them. Alas. One day, a couple of months later I happened to bump into them in a mall. They were very friendly and we sat and talked for a bit. I finally asked them why they didn't buy comics any more. The answer:

Video games. The money that they were once spending on comics they were now spending on video games.

"Why read about Spider-Man when you can actually be Spider-Man?" the mother asked me.

Why, indeed.

RRS: Diamond is a horrible company to deal with. They have a monopoly on the monthly comic market because they have exclusive distribution rights for all the major publishers, including Marvel, DC, Image, and Dark Horse. This means that if you want to sell monthlies, you have to go through Diamond.

And the system places all the risk on the retailers. Diamond solicits comics before they are printed, and they report their order numbers to the publishers. So Diamond knows they'll sell all the stock that they get from the publishers, because it's all been pre-ordered by retailers. The publishers also know that they'll sell all that they print because it's all been pre-ordered by Diamond. The only one in the chain who doesn't have guaranteed sales is the retailer. So the retailer takes all the financial risk while the publishers & distributors take none. It's definitely a flawed system.

It is possible to order graphic novels, games, and novelty products from other venders, but Diamond's discount policy makes it very costly to do so. They give a bigger discount when you order more product from them. Since a comic dealer has to order monthlies from them, it is pretty foolish not to order your other stuff from them as well in order to enhance your discount. It is a real racket.

This is another reason that I should have only sold graphic novels from the beginning. I would have had a much greater choice of vendors, and I would have had much better control over cash flow.

The reason cash flow would have been better without Diamond and without monthlies is simply this: if you sell monthlies, you get a weekly shipment from Diamond 52 weeks per year. They're all pre-ordered months in advance, and you can't stop them. Your customers expect them on Wednesday.

This is can be a real problem for cash flow, because if sales are slow you want to slow the orders, but with Diamond, you're pre-ordering so far in advance that it is virtually impossible to be responsive to fluctuations in the market. Sometimes we'd have to skip a weekly game order so that we could pay for our comic shipment, even though the games would have sold better and been more profitable.

I'm getting frustrated writing this! In retrospect, selling monthlies really looks idiotic. I'm trying to imagine what I was thinking at the time, and I'd have to say I was engaged in some serious self-deception. I kept thinking “ things will turn around.” They just never did, and I was unwilling to make the only decision that could have saved my business: stop selling monthlies.

What would you suggest could be changed to make the system work?

JRS: I think I already mentioned shattering and scattering Diamond. Plus leveling some massive fines on the major investors and owners of that corporation. Squeeze them dry. If there were a number of competitiors in the field of direct sales, it certainly couldn't hurt, and would likely lead to a diversification of the comics industry. More companies, more genres, more creators. Just my opinion, but I'm convinced I'm right.

RRS: The comic business needs to remake itself in the image of the book business. When I buy a novel, I don't buy a chapter at a time, I buy it all at once. It should be no different with comics. I think the stand-alone comic shop will largely die out in the next decade or two. The reason is that as the graphic novel industry matures and becomes more like the book industry, major book retailers will more fully stock graphic novels. This is already occurring. Big chain bookstores can sell graphic novels at their discounted prices and still make money because of their sales volume. And notice that they don't sell monthly comics!

The other reason the stand-alone comic business can't really survive is the difficulty of selling back issues. Once upon a time, if you wanted to read a story arc from a few years back you had to scour comic shops for back issues. Now you can either pick up a graphic novel or buy the whole run on eBay for a fraction of their cover prices. And of course you'll probably buy the graphic novel from a bookstore. That leaves the stand alone comic store selling back issues on eBay for pennies on the dollar. This is not a good business model.

So in the long run, as high quality graphic novels continue to be produced, more bookstores will expand into this product area. I think this will be good for the industry, and bad for the stand alone stores.

Knowing what you know now, what would you do differently?

JRS: Well, there's nothing I could do, really, to have stopped Diamond Comics Distributors from becoming a monopoly. And, yes, it's my considered belief that the Diamond monopoly was probably the single greatest cause of the comic book implosion of the 90s. Yes, you can lay some of the blame on comic speculators from the card hobby, but far worse than that was the collapse of the direct sales distribution system into the hands of a single man. I think there was a very brief moment when a handful of the most influential comics creators and publishers could have made a stand and ensured that there would still be a number of distributors. But none of those people and companies had either the courage or foresight to put a stop to that hideous occurance. Diamond absorbed everyone else, and there you have it. Probably the worst single thing that ever happened to the industry. Frankly, because of that, I'm glad to be out of comics retailing. I try not to put any money into the hands of Steve Geppi.

RRS: I think I've already spelled that out: Don't sell monthlies.

How did downloading of comics from the web affect your business?

JRS: I was gone well before that happened.

RRS: I don't think this had a noticeable affect, but I think over the next few years this will be the preferred way to get serialized stories. It is the ultimate in low production costs. The trick is to get people to pay for things like this!

Everyone knows that retail stores deal with theft, it is an unpleasantly common occurence, did your store deal a lot with that and to what extent did it affect your success or failure?

JRS: Yes, there was always theft. Some theft hurt. Store break-ins were the worst, but insurance kept that from being too hideous a problem. Petty theft bothered me, but never threatened my retail existence. In addition, I had the reputation for physically beating the shit out of folk that I caught in the act of stealing. Any adult I caught stealing got my foot up their ass. And, no, I'm not kidding. Any kid I caught stealing got carted off by the cops.

RRS: Stealing was a huge problem, both with customers and employees. I'd recommend installing a good security system right away. I never really had a good system, and yet I still caught people stealing literally hundreds of dollars worth of product. I hate to think about how much just walked out the door. This is another advantage that online retailers have. It's hard to shoplift on the internet.

The most painful thing was catching friends stealing. I hired a buddy part time. This guy was in my weekly RPG group, and I considered him to be good friend. Well, my manager told me he thought my friend was stealing. I was pretty skeptical, but when confronted with the evidence, I had to admit it was happening. I had my manager fire him because I just couldn't bring myself to do it. The guy called me up right away with a bunch of BS excuses. I basically told him how disappointed I was. We also kicked him out of my game group.

What would you like to do now in the world of comics if anything?

JRS: I still make pitches to various comics publishers from time to time (I'm a published author and I have an abiding love of comics). I have a certain amount of disposable income that I like to spend on back issues that mean a lot to me. I've almost completed a run of all of the Ditko-created issues of The Amazing Spider-Man. I buy other back issues from time to time. Purely reading copies. No investment grade stuff for me. I like to read them, and I let other people read my old comics, too.

RRS: I still love the comics medium and I'm interested in scripting a story. I've got a plot kicking around in my head. I'm studying the comic greats to learn about pacing, dialogue, layout, etc. I'm going to script out a few issues and then try to hunt up a penciler. Who knows where it will go? I'm excited to give it my best shot and see what happens.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

THE IMAGES THAT ENTER COLLECTIVE MEMORY



(Images here are not meant to challenge any ownership or copyrights and are intended solely as fair use.)

Media and culture shape perceptions. There are heroic images caught on camera, and there are tragic ones. Heroic images remind us of why we fight, or go to war, the tragic images remind us of the cost. Some people, rightly or wrongly, have argued that modern wars are now fought on the domestic front by media presentation of the war, the Government’s control of images produced by the war, and the perceptions that arise from the release of those images.

Popular culture does not create the images, but perceptions are planted and grown by seeing the images. There are moments in history that are not related to war or tragic event that are caught on film, and they are generally awe striking. But while they are rightly remembered, it is the photos that strike at the heart of our discontent and fears that change the world.

When the Abu Ghraib scandal broke, it was almost surely fueled by the photographs that captured the emotional abuse and humiliation. When photos came back from Vietnam of a monk burning in protest and the wife of the South Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem calling it a sort of human barbecue, Americans were shocked, and horrified.

Popular culture is woven from many strands, images that burn into our collective memory are one strand of that tapestry.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Timothy Truman's CONAN THE CIMMERIAN



CONAN THE CIMMERIAN

When Dark Horse Comics sent me a package of Conan and assorted books to review, I was in a place that was very difficult. Not for what they’d sent but for the fact that I was writing a long article, and wanted to review fantasy heroes and they were kind enough to send me some things to review in that vein, and then I nearly died, ... THREE TIMES. My appendix blew, I had two massive infections, and all my work began to overflow, since my schedule and life had been turned upside down. And I gave up on the very long article in the midst of one of the infections because I couldn’t think straight. 3000 words of musings about fantasy as a genre shot to hell. So when the new Conan series began I decided to buy them and review them to say thanks to Dark Horse and to catch on to what they were going to do, with a new #1.

So with the solicit information below this, I want to say that Timothy Truman is very much the writer of Conan that RE Howard would have wished to adapt his work. Conan is not a mindless barbaric warrior. He is not an ape with a sword. He does not dance about issues, he is a plain speaker and desires nothing more from others. In these issues Truman never once makes Conan say something that I couldn’t see REH writing himself. The art is quite good, but perhaps less to my taste as Truman’s writing. But that is irrelevant. Altogether the two comics (three if you include the variant cover) were well done and worthy of the new numbering. Which begs the question, why start over with a new number one? In today’s market we are flooded with comics that start but get canceled or are lost in the mists of diamond’s system. Number one issues are easy sellers, but when there is no real difference in tone or talent, why do it? Ultimately the work deserves attention, and if new numbering works, go for it. I could read Truman’s Conan in mini series, regular series, prestige series, limited prestige series, maxi series and more. Frankly he gets it. He truly gets it. And I love that.

FromDARK HORSE

Conan the Cimmerian #0
Writer: Timothy Truman
Penciler: Tomàs Giorello
Colorist José Villarrubia
Cover Artist: Tomàs Giorello

“Conan the Cimmerian #0 marks a transitional period in young Conan's life, as he spurns the magicians, turncoats, and legal trappings of the cities he's seen in order to return to the beloved northern frontiers of Cimmeria, where he was born and raised. It also marks a turning point in the artistic muscle that will fuel Conan's adventures throughout 2008 and beyond.”

Conan the Cimmerian #1
Writer: Timothy Truman
Penciler: Tomàs Giorello, Richard Corben
Inker: Richard Corben
Colorist Jose Villarrubia
Cover Artist: Frank Cho
Cover Artist: Joe Kubert

“Conan home with a crack to the head, and another begins to weave a tale about Conan's grandfather--another Cimmerian who was filled with wanderlust.”

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Professional wrestler BARON VON RASCHKE speaks!



a reprinted interview: AN INTERVIEW WITH MY FAVORITE WRESTLER

I grew up in Wisconsin and Minnesota. One of the two things you got used to were: bitching about the cold weather, and AWA wrestling. I never worried about it being “real”, as I enjoyed it as entertainment and it was that. Some people might have taken it seriously, but that was not the point, at least in my view. Whatever it was, the athletics were impressive, and the drama was fun to watch. Today wrestling is rarely about athletics, it is about steroids, vulgar displays, and loud and vulgar people. So while I was in the midst of bemoaning the loss of innocence, I decided to look up my favorite wrestler online, Baron (James) Von Raschke, “Der Klaw”. To my great pleasure he had his own website and I sent him an email. This interview is a result of that exchange. AND DAT IS ALL DA PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW!!

Alex Ness:How did you enter wrestling as a career?

Baron Von Raschke: After wrestling in high school, college, and the army, I contacted Joe Dusek, a promoter from my home town of Omaha. He, in turn, introduced me to Vern Gagne.

Alex Ness:What wrestlers were your greatest enemies?

Baron Von Raschke: Enemies? It was my work. Like a doctor or lawyer, I had a job to do and did it without worrying about making friends or enemies.

Alex Ness: Considering the changes from many regional promoters to a couple national ones, has wrestling become too interested in shock value and ratings, over the simpler, far less scripted (or overwrought) rivalries and matches of the past?

Baron Von Raschke: Yes, it has gone from family entertainment to a vulgar display that has little or nothing to do with wrestling.

Alex Ness: Could you crush my skull with your CLAW move?

Baron Von Raschke: Get real. It shuts off the blood supply. It doesn't crush anything.

Alex Ness: How did you come upon your signature move?

Baron Von Raschke: It was passed down to me (see my bio on my web site).

Alex Ness: If you crushed my skull, would it leave dents?

Baron Von Raschke: As I said before, get real.

Alex Ness: You’ve been seen on the new AWA Superstars recently as a manager. Do you enjoy managing as much as you did wrestling?

Baron Von Raschke: At my age, yes.

Alex Ness: With Wrestling now being generally acknowledged as “sports entertainment” does it help you feel less pain in areas of your body damaged doing purely athletic moves?

Baron Von Raschke: They do a lot of dangerous and reckless stunts that have nothing to do with wrestling, and I am sure they pay the price just as I did.

Alex Ness: What is the most rewarding aspect of having had a career in Wrestling?

Baron Von Raschke: I will never be a normal citizen, because people still recognize me and ask me to make appearances.

Alex Ness: Is a retired Wrestler like the Lion in Winter, still having a heart that enjoys the action, but knowing that it is over? When you retire from Sports entertainment is there anything like a retirement plan? Or do you have to make your own way?

Baron Von Raschke: A. My wife and my body said it was time to quit wrestling. I'm satisfied with what I did and with what I am doing. B There is no retirement plan. There is no health plan. There is NUTZING!

Alex Ness: How do fans contact you or meet you? Do you have a website?

Baron Von Raschke: I make appearances around the country and, yes, I do have a web site, which you went through to get these questions to me. The address is The Baron

FINAL THOUGHTS: Thank you Baron and Karl!

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

ICONIC DEAD PEOPLE



Posted here is a collage of faces that made the most money in the last few years while being dead. They are famous faces, icons of popular culture, can give us insight into what we celebrate in our culture. The names of the assembled deceased people of fame are: Martin Luther King, Jr., Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Tupac Shakur, Dr. Seuss, Charles Schulz, Albert Einstein, James Brown, James Dean, Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, ((Anna Nicole Smith)) Steve McQueen, Kurt Cobain, Andy Warhol, Che Guevara, Johnny Cash, Jim Morrison, John Lennon, JRR Tolkien.

Some conclusions:
The people with darker skin were entertainers or rebels.
The two women, both white, were on the list for their iconic beauty.
The white males did not have to be physically attractive to find themselves upon the list, although some were.
Despite Asians, both South Asians and East Asians, being a fair portion of the populace none made the list.

Earning power seems to have/have had to do with:
Charisma, Achievement, Popularity while alive, Iconic status while alive, and in many cases, famous photos that seemed to capture the essence.

Why do we savor the people who were icons in life, in death? There is a difference between say JRR Tolkien’s resurgent popularity and that of Anna Nicole Smith. Tolkien wrote something who’s legacy remains. Smith’s legacy was beauty. While beauty fades and literary excellence does not, beauty is not an eternal constant. Quality of literature is relatively secure. So while popularity in life might come from something like looks, there is little guarantee that the qualities seen will remain popular.

What else is there we can see? Achievement is not in itself the key, for many of the greatest deceased writers, scientists and scholars cannot be found upon the list Popular culture must therefore demand something beyond talent, and, beyond an iconic or recognizable image. I suggest what it demands is a moment in time. Where the talented person that existed appeared at the time to be an important actor of the time.

People who I thought would be on the list?:
Former US Presidents, Frank Sinatra, Audrey Hepburn, more women in general, and more people of ancestry outside of Africa or Northern Europe.

What am I missing here? Why else are these people upon the list? Why are some famous people who’ve died not bankable?

Saturday, August 2, 2008

The Art of Video Games

Tasked with restoring an afflicted sapling to its former beauty, you bring it to life with a swirl of your paintbrush. The sapling bursts with light, a melody of soft pink flowers blooms on its young branches, and lush green meadows breathlessly sweep away the cursed countryside, returning vitality to the diseased landscape.

The story of the video game, Okami (Wii) is told through cinematic cut-scenes and a visual presentation designed to mimic the style of traditional Japanese artistry -- specifically woodcut and watercolor paintings. This unique look is complemented by cel-shaded graphics and the result is beautiful. The word picturesque accurately describes the setting as Amaterasu (main character's) runs through the spectacular, giant-sized locales, all seemingly straight out of a painting.

Compare this:


To this:



Indeed, the first one is an in-game screenshot of Okami, and the second is concept art for the game. They are both beautiful, aren't they?

Okay, let's head on over to my favorite place: Zelda.

In-game screenshot:


Concept art:



Yeah, it isn't as close as Okami is, but it is still portrayed nicely.

A view of Popular Culture from the Retail perspective

As a reader of comics and buyer of comics (not collector however) I have seen many stores die in the cut throat world of retail. I've seen more publishers die I think, but both aspects of the comics world are difficult to make a living in. So I asked a great many retailers why. "Why do you sell comics? What about that business and arts world made you want to tough out all the difficulties of such a small market and industry?"

The two that answered said:

From
Tim Broman of Collector's Connection Duluth, Minnesota.

Why not?

I've sold real books, Jewelry, Shoes, tobacco, booze, candy, porn, magazines, yarn, goldfish, and so forth. I've worked for giants such as F.W. Woolworth, B. Dalton's Bookseller, & K-Mart. I've also worked for (Twin-ports based) little guys like Snyder Drug, Granada News, Gifts-N-Fixins (now LTD Jewelers) and the current employer, Collector's Connection.

Just for the record, I started working back in 1975, and have also worked at Kentucky Fried Chicken, a defunct Solar Hot Water sales company called Solar Resources, and the Viking Bar.

Something that I noticed was the specialty shops were always funner places to work, because the people who were there wanted to be there. I also noticed that if I personally knew (or could at least recognize) the owner of the business, these were places that were more enjoyable to work at.

Having never been a serious comic books fellow, I was initially hired at C/C based on my experience in other retail organizations. I did (in my younger years) read comics, and collect sports cards, so I had some interest in the field. That, plus I could be counted on to not blow off my schedule, or show up drunk and/or covered in blood and feathers.

I did not see Comics any differently then selling shoes, or jewelry. They were specialty businesses that drew a specific audience.

From
Charlie Harris of
Charlie's Comic Books
Tucson, Arizona.

There are only a few businesses left in America available to independent retailers; most can no longer compete against the flood of subsidized ‘big box’ stores. There are no more ‘Mom and Pop’ grocery stores, drug stores or hardware stores because they can't compete with the likes of Home Depot, Safeway, Walgreen’s, etc. Even those with years of higher education like legal and medical professionals no longer hang out a shingle expecting to support their families. There are still some hair and nail salons that haven't succumbed to the chains and, although Borders and the like have done away with independent book stores the comic business is still struggling as independent entrepreneurs try to succeed in merchandising products produced by large corporations.

For me personally the benefits of owning and operating a comic book shop are many but the biggest benefit is that almost every person who comes through my door is not only literate but chooses to spend their entertainment budget on reading material. The quality of my clientele is what leads my customers to also be my friends. I see my customers weekly or monthly and I get the opportunity to know them and their families have minimal trouble with crime and shoplifting and consequently feel like part of the community in which I live.

When I ride my bicycle to work neighborhood kids and parents greet me by name and I feel like an individual instead of a corporate cog in a large, often unseen and malfunctioning machine.

The opportunities for independent entrepreneurs has been limited to comic book stores, beauty salons, ‘head’ shops, auto repair, food service businesses (that fail ninety per cent of the time, in competition with the chain restaurants and bakeries), and the occasional music or computer related businesses that haven't quite been quashed by the new chain stores filling these niches.

With the recent success and growth in the comic industry I don't expect the book store chains to allow us to cut into their profits for much longer and Marvel Comics Group is now stocking a full line of their comics in 300 Border’s establishments to ‘test the waters’ and, of course the big box gets better discounts and returnability than Marvel would ever deign to give to independent retailers like myself; in fact Marvel, the number one comic publisher offers less of a discount than DC, Image or Dark Horse Comics who all do substantially less sales volume. Marvel is also now offering all of their comics in a digital format from their web site effectively cutting the retailers out of the loop.

For now, this is one of America’s last resorts for individual and independent businessmen. If America were concerned about their future than independent retailers would be getting the government subsidies instead of firmly established and successful corporations insuring a future that doesn't involve moving to China to find work.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Furry Introduction

In my secret identity, I am a ninja cartoonist. I live in the Enchanted Land-O-Cheese with my wife, Lute; my daughters, Gamera Rose and Rodan; and a menagerie which currently includes three ferrets, an enormous cat, a finch and several fish.

I’ve written and drawn hand-made comic books and have done comics work for INNOVATION, for Antarctic Press and for Radio Comix. I’ve drawn stories for “Adult” furry comics; I’ve also written puppet plays for Sunday Schools. I’ve been a moderator on a Harry Potter fansite and president of a local Anime club.

And I’m an avid Role-Playing Game enthusiast, having been gaming almost as long as there has been D&D. Yup. I’m an RPGeezer.

Here are some of the sites I lurk at and post on:

Pop Thought -- Where I write an RPG column titled “Live and Let Dice”

D2MF -- One of Alex’s other blogs where we write about spiritual matters.

ComicSpace -- Where I have a few galleries of my cartoons up and hope to start up an web comic soon

Steve Jackson Games Forum -- I occasionally post comments on this site under the name “quarkstomper”

Street Prophets -- An online community for progressive people of faith.

The Arcana Wiki -- More on this to come.

In short, my interests are weird and eclectic. And I hope to share some of them with you.

--Kurt (aka quark)

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

QUALITY, QUANTITY, TASTE, and NICE

I grew up in a family in the American Midwest. What that meant was that I was encouraged to get along, conform to convention, and trust in authority. That might mean the same thing elsewhere but in Minnesota there is a prevailing spirit of “nice”. No that is not meant to suggest something is wrong with being nice, nor is it meant that people are not actually nice. It is also not to suggest that I was ever told to like something I didn’t. In fact, people are encouraged to vote or act upon their conscience but, not to publicly at least rock the boat. So Minnesota Nice, as it were was the cultural language I grew up with. People said Hi How are you but really meant I acknowledge your existence and am now concluding the discussion. People weren’t mean, just ultimately spoke differently than they were communicating the meaning. For example, I’d broken my leg in an accident, it hurt, my body was unused to lugging about a giant cast, while I hopped around using crutches. A person said to me, wow that looks painful, and it was, so I said so. They looked disappointed and my parents reprimanded me later. They said, nobody really wants to know if it is painful. I was thereby causing them discomfort by being honest. I love my parents, this is not directed at them or rather not intending it to be so. But there was in there a spirit of this area that meant that the popular culture spread more via conformity to popularity than by quality. You heard something was good, so it must have been, but there was no guarantee of such a thing.

But rather than adjust my taste to this mass conformity, I simply saw it as the way they were, and not myself. People thought I was weird? Yes. But not weird in an axe wielding homicidal maniac fashion. More, someone who obviously doesn’t fit in the puzzle of mass culture. I had to get used to being an outsider. And being an outsider of popular culture was no easy thing. And some might suggest that when a person is forced to follow a different path they encounter new things that the general society does not. But more than just new or different, being constantly told what you like, whether in terms of medium, or genre, or style or format, you learn quickly what you like, and become aware of why you like it. Popularity might argue that people need never have to defend their taste, but quality might argue that regardless of what you like you experience it more deeply due to a higher level of appreciation.

But being different does not, however much you might be told it does, mean that quantity of success or popularity equals quality. Many people enjoy porn, it makes a lot of people money, a lot of money. No one I know argues that even within the genre itself that there is much difference between the best and the worst of pornography. Erotic literature and nude photography are obviously not included even though either might drift into the waters of pornea.

With all that said, I like many different things, appreciate why I like it, and am happy to discuss it. What I am not willing to do is go into detail about why I dislike various products of popular culture mediums or why I should like or not like the same. However different a person’s taste is, I suggest that we all have a right to our individual taste. Someone I know argued that ABBA was the greatest popular recording music group ever. I would not debate greatest because it is a nebulous concept. Do you refer to sales? Or musicianship? How knowledgeable do I need to be to make that assessment? I am perfectly content that people like their music. Do I? Well I find their music to be rather boring, and in the genre they play not particularly spectacular. But beyond my taste not being excited by ABBA I am wholly of the mind that there is nothing wrong with enjoying their music. But that is not enough. People WANT their taste to be THE taste. And that just isn’t so.

Am I saying everything is equal in quality? No way. I am saying that the vast majority of people enjoying something are not qualified to dissect the quality of one band to another, beyond simple questions of taste. And where taste is involved, people tend to think that their taste is best.

And so that brings me to my real point. Just because you like the taste of something does not mean it is the best there is. All it means, is that you like it. And it doesn’t matter a damn bit if others like it. All it means is that if popular enough you shouldn’t have a problem finding more. Enjoy what you enjoy, do that which pleases your taste, and leave it at that. Otherwise you will confuse mass culture for high culture.

Here is where you may find more of me:

My Poetry Blog
My Comics Blog
God Blog
PopThought.com
My Space

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

The first look

INTRODUCING POPLITIKO

There are many instances throughout human existence where someone is moved to try something new. For whatever reason they do it, a new pathway is grown, and possibilities for change are enhanced. I know someone who never wishes to try sushi. And that is fine. But for that cultural objection to another culture’s food, they miss out. Comic books used to be viewed as mind numbing children’s books, and bad ones at that. But not all of them were, and as comics matured, so have some people’s views of them. But there will always be people who view comics as a poor medium. But story telling is throughout the creative mediums of culture, whether to create, reflect, dive into, or just look at, we have a common interest in story telling. We want in this blog to chat about anything that our culture, and our culture’s mediums discuss. We hope by doing this we can engage the reader, grow our own store of knowledge, and to interact with people who might otherwise never tried the sushi, and would have loved it.

If you like sushi or not is not the point. That you might like it and never know that is the point. Poplitiko is a gathering of friends who want to know more about the world they live, share ideas, and appreciate the stories the mediums of our culture tell.