Iron "Fanboy" Chuck

On the heels of an "interesting" attempt at a scifi conversation last Thursday night with some younger fans comes twenty six random facts about IronChuck's fandom:

1. Batman was my gateway drug into the wonderful world of comics. So much so that I sought out the very first real Batman comic I ever read; Detective Comics #395, "The Waiting Grave" which I discovered in a pile of comics in a mountain time share on a family sky trip when I was eight. Some day I will own that issue, and proudly display it at Grand Central.

2. I really, really, really gave the new Battlestar Galactica a chance. Really, I did. But it's old school for me; the new stuff just doesn't do anything for me.

3. It took me three seasons to start not liking Star Trek: The Next Generation. So much so that I stopped drinking my favorite tea - Earl Grey - because of all the obsessive nerd crap at cons with guys drinking it. (Yes, I once heard someone order it at Wondercon at the coffee place. Yes, he actually said; "Tea: Earl Grey. Hot".)

4. Looking back, Daredevil is actually a good comic book movie.

5. I started watching Doctor Who in 1981, when I discovered it during a PBS pledge break late one Saturday night. And I stayed an avid fan up until - but not including - Tennant's last year. My favorite Doctors are Peter Davidson and Christopher Eggleston.

6. I worked at a comic shop in high school.

7. I saw all three Star Wars films first in the theatre. (Star Wars I saw as a second run in 1978, but Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi I saw first run.) At one point not only could I recite the scrolling intros, but, if played the scores, I could tell you what was happening at that exact moment on screen. I still own my original copy of George Lucas' paperback.

8. When I was a kid, I was a DC kid; never had much taste for Marvel. Today I couldn't care less for DC, but the Marvel movie 'verse is pretty compelling.

9. I was near ground zero for the Japanese invasion of comics and cartoons. Back then, if you were lucky, you could find a sub-titled tape; otherwise you had to read a plot synopsis in a fanzine. When the first wave of translations hit by Studio Proteus you could say I was a very happy geek, indeed.

10. I have an autographed copy of Stardust. Just Neil Gaiman, though; really want Charles Vess', too.

11. It's taken my thirty years to really appreciate Stan Lee.

12. There was once a time when you could throw an overnight bag in the car, take the drive to San Diego, walk up to the door of the convention hall, and get a day pass to Comic Con for that day. Of course, there was also a time when Comic Con was about comics...

13. I have beaten Mertroid in one sitting without using the infamous "Justin Bailey" code. (And those of you who read Galactic Gun may have just made a connection.)

14. I have, on many more than one occasion, participated in an all night RPG session. My experience includes, D&D, Champions, Star Wars, and the Palladium system (Under more than one title.) I have played a ranger, a star hopper, a vigilante super hero, a private detective, a cyborg, and even once as myself.

16. I have attended every Wondercon from the third one until Comic Con stole it from us. Bastards.

17. I had a table at A.P.E.

18. I was once recognized at a Renn Faire as the creator of Galactic Gun. (Yeah, sure, the guy thought the art sucked, but loved the writing.) No, my feet did not touch ground the rest of the day.

19. Speaking of which; I have performed at Renn Faires for six years in a comedy stunt troop. Yes, that included actually swinging a sword in a choreographed routine.

20. The original Star Trek is still the best Star Trek.

21. I used to customize my G.I. Joe figures. This would include stripping and repainting, as well as scratch modifications that would utilized parts from models and the old parts box in our family garage. In a freak accident I once drove a screwdriver through my hand trying to undo a rusted back screw on a figure. Panicked that my dad would take the screwdriver away, I wrapped my hand in a towel and went to bed early. To this day he does not know that.

22. My first subscription was to Heavy Metal magazine. I kept them hidden in my closet because I was worried my mom would find them and think they were porn.

23. Yes, I did have a Slave Leia fantasy. Guess it makes sense what with Han Solo being my favorite character; besides the droids, that is.

24. My video game prowess came at the height of the golden age of video games; the era of the arcade. There isn't a single console in the world that you kids have today that will ever begin to come close to that experience. Sorry.

25. I have never been able to reconcile why Automan's car did 90 degree turns, but not his motorcycle.

26. The first season of Buck Rogers is really good. Not so much the second, though.

Living in the Land of Plenty; California and the American Indian

While the myth of the “California Dream” has been as persistent as it has been persuasive to the modern dreams of America, it's certainly not the first or only time that the region has been thought of as a paradise, or land of plenty. In fact, as argued in California: An Interpretive History, its most original immigrants, the Indians, saw it as much more. And, in fact, the idealness of the land, later to be known as “the sunshine state” was, at its heart, the true ideal of paradise.

It's hypothesized that the first immigrants to the area arrived nearly some 15,000 years ago; the ancestors of who we have come to know as Californian Indians. Over the course of that time, the various peoples that had come to inhabit the land, spread out into nearly all its vast, and different regions. In turn, each of these peoples developed off shoots of language and custom that would grow into unique aspects of that particular sub-culture. And as they grew into these surroundings, and into their specific cultural division, they learned to cultivate the natural resources of that area.

This wasn't, at first, well understood. early anthropologists categorized Indian populations into either

hunter-gathers or agriculturists; either they followed the seasonal migrations and harvested what simply bloomed, or they planted haphazardly, often into mud deposits that were created by seasonal rains. However, according to the reading, modern study has revealed that Indians promoted bio-diversity through crop rotation, weeding and pruning of fields and stock crops, and even some level of animal and insect husbandry. Geographer William Preston even noted that California was “one of the most altered pre-colonial landscapes in the Americas.”

From the numerous of well-manicured plots of tobacco, elderberry shrubs, and other various trees near villages, it's easy to see that the Indians of California had come to manage the abundant natural resources of the land. Acorn, probably one of the most abundant food sources in the area; which could be made into bread, or a form of porridge. Where not as available, as in desert regions, mesquite pods often took their place. Fish and game were reliable and plentiful throughout a good portion of the year, and meats could be smoked, or dried, to last through the winter season. At the coasts, shellfish would become the mainstay of an Indian's diet.

Location, of course, was everything. What was available in a particular area, and how the people learned to depend on what was there, tended to determine where a people settled, and about how large a settlement would be. For the most part, these settlements would range from as few as one hundred in a reasonably decent area, to as many as five hundred in areas where plants, animals, and other raw resources, like wood, were more plentiful. Usually consisting of allied families, these numbers were maintained to keep in balance with existing resources.

Managing of these resources came from as much an understanding of the land, as it did from a reverence for the land. Historian Edward Castillo notes that “the religious beliefs and traditions of the Indians of California teach that the blessing of the rich land and mild climate are gifts from the creator.” He goes on to point out that this reverence is expressed “by carefully managing the land for future generations and by living in harmony with the natural environment.”

Often, as it is in the case of Neolithic peoples in a tradition of oral history and storytelling, tales would be passed down, through the generations, warning of the dangers of excess; greed and waste could lead to disaster and ruin of the very world. In trying to keep to this sense of balance, Indians would work to attune themselves to the land. They could track game from the mere sound of herds and single animals, and were very familiar with the telltale signs of the coming of the seasons. In their traditions they even believed they could communicate and influence their environment through speech and dreams. In this they worked to make themselves one with the land.

It's a fairly easy conclusion to draw from the success of this methodology; this philosophy, just from looking at the sheer numbers of Indians believed to be living in the regions of California. While numbers bounce around, generously, it's reasonably believed that between 300,00 and 3250,000 Indians lived within the boundaries of modern day California in 1769, when the first of the Spanish settlements began to be founded. In fact it is estimated that California supported a much more vast Indian population than any other are of the Americas North of present day Mexico. And all this accomplished without the use of metallurgy; as the Californian Indian was one of the last hold outs of the Stone Age – where use of stone tools and weapons still were the prevailing technology. The continued use of which was due as much to the region's isolation as it was that they had achieved such balance with their surroundings that development in that direction was nearly nonexistent.

With great reverence for the land, and its resources, the Indians of California thrived by careful utilization of the available resources particular to a region they were settled into. Geographically speaking, this came down to six major areas; Southern, Central, Northwestern, Northeastern, Great

Basin, and the Colorado River. Here, in these regions, they made the best use of what they had on hand, from acorn, to fruit trees and shrubs, and, of course, wild game. By attuning themselves to the various signs of nature, they were able to read, and plan for, coming seasons and manage their resources. One of the ways they did this was by carefully limiting the population of their village settlements; usually made up of kindred families. By living within this harmonious balance with the land, they came to view it as a gift from the creator; deserving of its respect and acre for future generations.

This, then, could be seen as their “California Dream”; to live prosperously in the plentiful and lush Californian climate, where they could live, thrive, and work to continue their balanced way of life for the countless generations to come. And, while the modern notion of the “get rich quick” myth of the state still survives – mostly in great deal to the perpetuated media imagine, it could be as much said that this is also at the heart of the modern Californian; to find reward for honest work, to live in balance with his community, and to provide for his family, and their family to come.

The Glasgow Institute and "The Four"

Leave it to Scotland to pipe in their say in the field of Graphic Design...

Okay, so not what I meant.

Anyway, during the 1890's there was a gathering in Scotland...

No, a gathering, not a...

Seriously? Can we do this, or not?

Like I said, in the 1890's, on the heals of the American Architect Frank Loyd Wright, there was a move away from the heavy influence of curvilinear lines into something more rectilinear, in the Art Nouveau movement.
 

Wright had always thought that an organic design would be “something in which the part is to the whole as the whole is to the part, and which is all devoted to a purpose.” Basically, Wright saw the design as rooted in the spaces where people actually lived and worked, not just the facades out front. Some could argue that his use of space was honed by his time running a printing press as a young man.

Wright's use of line was noted by a group of young design students at the Glasgow School of Art.


Margaret MacDonald was a diverse artists, having her hands in embroidery, metal work, and textiles. She partnered with her husband, architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh, on collaborations he would credit her with for providing much of the inspiration; saying “Margaret has genius, I only have talent.” 

She also collaborated with her sister Frances on projects. Frances met and soon married designer and teacher Herbet MacNair; they all attending night classes at the Glasgow Art Institute. With Margaret in prominence, they formed a collective often referred to in, in the art and design world, as “The Four”; helping develop what would come to known as “The Glasgow Style” in the late 1890's and early twentieth century

The May Queen by Margaret and Frances MacDonalnd

Well, it wasn't too well received, at first, that's for sure. In fact, The Four were often referred to as The Spook School for the ghostly ghoulish images they showed portraying hobgoblins by misty moonlight; at least as the critics saw it rom their works displayed at the 1896 Arts and Crafts Exhibition in London.

Inspired heavily on ancient mysticism, folklore, and Celtic symbology, The Glasgow Style did, eventually prove influential, however. It spawned a host of artists that worked in the new way, and made its mark on designers, and their designs.

Personally, I love Art Nouveau. But I also hold a special place in my heart for the "Glasgow Style". Perhaps it's the affinity for the bold lines and symbolic styling that I can relate to, in comics. The use of negative spaces, and the binding of the more rectangular lay out does smack of panels, for sure.

There's, also, a peculiar way that the sweeping lines play well against these edged boxes that compliments each other, very well.  And, as I've said, before, this influence made its way down through all sort of design applications; still being felt, today.



Pictured above; works from a recent Glasgow Style show.

Again, I love this particular style. Not only are the design elements esthetically pleasing, but they also have the kind of storytelling character that the MacDonald sisters first drew from, back in the late 1890's. Married with Wright's sensibilities for negative space, and playing the line versus curve effectively, The Glasgow Style has a unique look that stands out well in the history of art and design.

Of course, I have to admit, as bearing some small piece of Scottish decent, that, besides its essential design and influence through out the world of graphic design and art, there may be another reason I'm so particular to this style for the Art Nouveau movement...

 And who's going to argue with him?



Soviet blocks...

Unclear about the history of Russia's workers revolt, and the rise - and fall - of Communism? Let Tetris teach you, comrade...

Johannes Gutenberg - The Father of Modern Typography

Scratch board portrait by
Michael Halbert

Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg– simply known as Johannes Gutenberg – was born cira 1400 to Freile Gensfleisch and his wife Else Wyrich in Mainz, Germany; being one of the patrician families of the town. The last name of Gutenberg is taken from the patriarchal family estates.

Little to nothing is known of Johannes' early life, except that he migrated to Strasburg in March of 1434; supposedly for political reasons- an uprising against the patricians had taken hold in 1411. There he would join the higher ranks of the patricians, as well as become a gold smith; also teaching gem polishing, production of looking glass, and, eventually, printing.

Legend has it that the idea of the press and movable type came to Johannes “like a beam of light”. Others have speculated that he had gleamed the entire process from knowledge of other techniques already in use. Whatever the case may be, his combination of pressing techniques, unveiled in 1440, led to the European inception of the printing press, and, most notably, modern typography. It was his use of lead based alloys to create cheap, easy to manufacture letter punches that could be made quickly, affordably, and with relative uniformity – much more durable then wooden block letters – that lead to the rise of modern typography and the printing revolution.

Page of Gutenberg's 42 line Bible
with illumination. Such decoration depended
on how much the buyer spent.

Though his first projects were Latin and German readers of the time, he's best known for the undertaking of, what would later come to be known as, The Gutenberg Bible; partially funded by Johann Fust and his son in law Peter Schoffer.

Many trials and adjustments would come to pass in the creation of his Bible. Most notable were his abandoned first attempts at multicolored two pass printing - later replaced with single pass and hand illumination, and the ability to increase print lines from an initial 36 lines to, eventually, 42 per page. (In some cases, Gutenberg's Bible is referred to as the “42 line Bible”.) His Bible was completed in 1452.

Johannes created a font type later to be known as Textualis (Textura), or also Schawbacher; characterized by straight, vertical strokes, horizontal lines, and varied line weights, to create a woven like structure throughout the text. To make the justification of the type stronger to the eye, he would vary font sizes, line spacing, and utilized “hanging punctuation”; allowing punctuation to pass beyond the justification lines of the paragraph borders.

Study of Textualis; spaces would be left for
hand illumination of lettering during the
printing process.

Though a skilled craftsman, Johannes was a poor business man. In 1456 legal issues and money disputes between Johannes, Fust, and Schoffer would see Johannes bankrupt, losing his Bible making business; though, later, he would, again, set up another print press, and continue his work. In 1459 a Bible was printed in the city of Bamburg with Johannes supplying the type; though no official credit is given to him.

In 1465, after sacking Johannes' home town of Mainz, archbishop Adolf von Nassau, in recognition of Johannes' work, bestowed on him the title of “Hofmann”; gentleman of the court. He is believed to have lived there, under the stipend of his title, until his death in 1468; his accomplishments relatively unknown to the general public. His grave, in the Franciscan church of Mainz, was lost when the church and cemetery were destroyed in 1742.

Portrait of Johannes Gutenberg;
believed a reconstruction as no
known portrait exists in antiquity.

It wasn't until 1504 that Johannes is publicly recognized as the inventor of typography in a publication by chancellor Ivo Wittig of the University of Mainz, declaring; “who, first of all, invented printing letters... by which art he has deserved honor by the whole world.” In 1567 Johannes' portrait was added to Heinrich Pantaleon's biography of famous Germans.

Sexual suffrage...

Today is International Women's Day...

Like so many tongue in cheek kind of guys, I was quick, in my mind, anyway, to attempt a snarky come back about suffering with women, or cross continental penis afternoon, or something.

But I won't. Why? Well, for one thing, women have only had the right to vote, in America, for LESS THAN 100 YEARS, to start with.

Other unfortunate truths? Women still earn less doing the same job a man does in some fields. Media still glorifies the attention whore starlet over ideas of strong, intelligent, and capable women. Women still get taken advantage of at places like auto mechanics, and with some service contractors.

It's uncomfortable to think about, being a member of the great tripod oppressors, but the rights of women aren't really that old, here in the United States. (Less so for minorities - another subject all together.) And, in other countries, just mentioning women's rights can get you jailed... or worse.

And I really find that odd; seeing as how most of corporate administration is run by women. It's, usually, the woman that runs the household. And women make up the majority of teachers in our public school systems. Women can also govern quite well, we're seeing; filling roles in health, domestic and world affairs, serving in law enforcement, and civil services. And, in other countries, have even been head of state.

Some of the most talented, intelligent, and most persevering friends I have are women. My best friend is a woman; health administrator for one of the country's largest universities, and a near literary expert. (She also commands one of the largest personal storehouses of useless trivia, ever.)

The point is, that even though we feel so accomplished in our little world, the fact is we still have a long, long way to go in regards to establishing, and protecting, the rights of citizens, and our fellow human beings.

The mysteries of womanhood may be lost to me, but the need to defend... no, fight for the rights of my fellow citizen aren't. Tonight I raise my cup to the women in my life, and in my world; because, guys, let's face it, we wouldn't be here without any of them.

GET OFF MY LAWN!

It's official... I'm old...

Mark the days...

Holy heck... I just wanted a 2012 calendar with some trains on it...

Holy Historical Double Takes, Batman!



Because who wants a "Papa Spank", anyway?

 What the Hell?!

Yes, dear readers, this is Gotham's beloved millionaire play boy by day, frightener costumed vigilante by night Batman caught in, what we might consider, a very un-Batman like situation. So, what's going on?

In a story from the many tales in Batman #1, our future Dark Knight confronts, for the first time, the crook soon to be known as "The Catwoman". Cornered by the Dynamic Duo on a cruise ship after stealing a valuable necklace, Batman robs her of her disguise. And, during that, this bit of dialog happens.

But, even more to the point, this is 1940 in action. In all of its chauvinistic and off colored glorious self.

It would be another forty plus years - the mid eighties - before the likes of O'Neil, Miller, and others would twist up and really forge the brooding near anti hero we've come to know as The Batman, today.

So, why dig up this little tidbit of one-off Batman history? Well, mostly for the laugh. But, it's also to illustrate a point about how our view of today can remold our understanding of the past. After all, the ending of this story also has "The Cat", as she was known in this, her first story, getting away with, perhaps, Batman's help.

Now that's very un-Batman like, right?

Fly Me to the Moon...

In contemplation of the moon landing, on this date in 1969...

The leap from a pair of haphazard brothers in a field to the moon was as if nothing, when standing next to the span of man's dawn until his first strides into the 20th century. And yet, in that one small step for man, more was covered in the age of his knowing than all of his days before. And before him the horizon of his potential; a future that, at once, would be so beautiful, and yet so terrifying.

To those who came before, and those still to follow; "thank you"!

Fifty years, and counting!

April 12th, 2011 marks the 50th anniversary of

the first man ,Yuri Gagarin, to orbit the Earth;
officially launching both the space race, and the Space Age.



One small step for a man...

So, with not much fanfare, today marks the fortieth anniversary of, arguably, the greatest moment in human history.

On this day in 1969 Armstrong and Aldrin where the first men on the moon.

If you're familiar with the history of the original space race, then you know what it took to get there in just eight short years. If you're not, I suggest you read up on it. It is an epic tale.

There's so much that can be said about this historic moment; human triumph, tragedy, and the awe inspiring tale of human ingenuity, and all that. And, yes, I could lament the sad condition of today's space age... or lack there of.

But today I think I will put aside all my trivial problems and concerns for a few minutes and really reflect on the significance of that moment. How, only a few decades after figuring out how to glide on air, we punched through our atmosphere and stepped foot on another terrain.

Today I salute the men and women who took us there, and opened the door to a whole new, and very large, world. We may not have chosen to walk through it, but thanks for showing us the door!

Getting motivated with Samuel Clemens...

The wit and wisdom of one of America's truly greatest authors.

90 years ago, today...

Happy Prohibition Day!