QuoteA: Real American Hero LARRY HAMA (1/3) plus All The News on COBRA-Con 2010

    Photo by Seth Kushner, 2010 [via]

Larry Hama turns 61 in June, and it's a birthday we're sure he'll long associate with the next chapter of his storied career. A writer, artist, actor, editor, musician and veteran, Hama simply considers himself a 'drawer' -- to him, even the writing that's occupied so much of his time for the last thirty years is simply 'drawing with words.' [source]
 
The words Hama's drawn  have literally shaped an enormous part of the pop cultural landscape, not to mention the imaginations of countless boys who grew up reading or playing with GI JOE: A Real American Hero.  Hasbro relaunched their GI JOE toys with A Real American Hero in 1982 as well as a comic book of the same name published by Marvel Comics to support the new line.  Needing work at the time, Hama agreed to write the toy-inspired series, accepting a job other writers had turned down, considering GI JOE  to be a 'dead-end'. 

But Hama treated the series and its characters with respect,  and the result is now comics history: Marvel's GI JOE: A Real American Hero continued for fourteen consecutive years, with 155 issues of the core title published between 1982 and 1994. During his long run, Hama became GI JOE's virtual commander-in-chief; aside from his comics duties, Hama is responsible for writing the dossiers Hasbro included with every one of their 3 3/4" action figures.

GI JOE's been in the hands of four different publishers since its Marvel days, and, to one degree or another, Hama's been on-scene for each one; the producers of 2009's GI JOE: The Rise of COBRA even brought him aboard as a consultant.  This year, after nearly three decades of forging the fate of GI JOE and their serpentine COBRA foes, Hama's coming back to the JOES in a big way -- and we'll show you just HOW big in next week's Larry Hama, Part II! 

While he's been quoted on GI JOE numerous times, we especially enjoyed the personal anecdotes Larry Hama shared with Christopher Irving, when he interviewed Hama back in January. You'll find Irving's incredible hour with Larry Hama [here]; while quotA has our favorite insight from the comics writer below...

[Source]

GI JOE fandom is a phenomenon that spreads across three generations and encompasses over forty years. But GI JOE's truly phenomenal trait is its appeal to comic book collectors, toy collectors, military enthusiasts, animation fans, and movie fans alike. While some pull double-duty as enthusiasts of all things GI JOE, many do not; but once a year, those separate units converge as one army to attend Hasbro's G.I. JOE Collectors’ Convention.

Known as GI JOE Con, the annual event draws thousands of fans and collectors of all ages, while inspiring other smaller, regional conventions across the country and even a Canadian counterpart. This year's JOE Con is just days away --the rallying cry "Yo, JOE!" will be heard throughout the city of Providence, Rhode Island  from 29 April - 02 May.  Wanna Go? Check out the official GI JOE Con website [here] and download a Registration Form [here].

Official announcements of Convention guests - including comics scribe Larry Hama - and of  several awesome and exclusive GI JOE toys and comics available only on-site have been pumping up JOE fandom for months. Even COBRA, the world terrorist organization bent on global domination, jumped in to the fray in February, releasing both a promotional video and a public statement to encourage fans to attend their own convention, COBRA-Con, to be held concurrently with GI JOE Con! Outrageous! Plus, we hear that Cobra Commander himself  has promised an even better time than the competition. 

Dabblers, what to do?  Our end-of-the-month plans have become quite a toss-up now. Do you have the same problem? To help us all decide, we've got everything COBRA has to say below. Hope it helps!

Cobra announces CobraCon 2010 in Providence, Rhode Island

Cobra Island – February 26, 2010 – Today, Cobra Commander has announced that Cobracon 2010 will be held at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, Rhode Island from April 29th to May 2nd. Cobra wants to make sure that the fans of Cobra do not confuse this show with GIJoecon 2010, also being held in Providence, Rhode Island from April 29th to May 2nd. No, CobraCon will be FAR more exciting!!!

Unlike last year's convention (apologies again for the unexpected exposure of mind control gas at the Saturday Night Dinner event), this year's CobraCon promises a smooth and relatively danger-free show, complete with a special appearance by Black Major and his trusty comrades, the Red Shadows. Along with special guests, art contests, an invasion of Hasbro's headquarters, panels and seminars featuring Hasbro and other Cobra loyalists and supporters, this year's convention is THE show to attend!

So what are you waiting for! Just head on over to our convention site now - www.CobraCon.com - and sign up for the Cobra event of a lifetime. NOW! Cobraaaaaaaaaaa!

 

About COBRA

For over 25 years, Cobra has been the leading international criminal organization, offering the whole of humanity the finest in criminal espionage, homicidal clones, doomsday scenarios and an alternative to the decadent and foolish governance of so-called 'democracy.' Located on Cobra Island and any number of small towns near you, Cobra reaches more people than any rival organization; with attacks on G.I. Joe and the many countries they help defend such as Japan, United States, Great Britain, Brazil, Australia and Canada. For more information visit our convention site. To view our competitors site (which we recently "acquired") visit www.gijoeclub.com. Comments? Please direct email to Tomax.

 

Springfield: My Nice Little Town

I'm taking a bit of a detour from comics tonight to touch on something a little closer to home. And to do just that, I needed to find the answer to a bit of trivia. So I asked around. Raley didn't have a clue. My cousin didn't, either. Tell me, do you know how many towns or cities in the United States are named Springfield?

If Rand McNally is to be believed, the answer's thirty-four. [One source I found quibbled there's actually thirty-five Springfield's in the country, the plus-one belonging to a ghost town somewhere in North Dakota.]

I'm blogging to you live from Springfield #25 in Oregon. #25 lies just across the Willamette River from Eugene, the state's third-largest city. [Eugene's also the place my fascination with comics began, way back before I even entered first grade. Mom used to buy me the big Treasury Editions that Marvel and DC Comics published in the mid-1970's. But lest I digress, that story will keep for another blog.] If you're really curious about the lay of the land, I've got a map you'll love here.

Portland's the regional Metropolis, less than a hundred miles away on Interstate 5. Whenever I get one of my cravings to immerse myself in civilization, up the road I go, pedal to the metal. It's very safe to say the highlights of my stay here in Oregon have been those trips to Portland. The city's cool and green, rivers and bridges all about, and it's a comic town. Dark Horse Comics and Bluewater Productions call Portland home. So does Brian Michael Bendis and Rick Remender.

To its credit, Eugene does have two comic books shops. Springfield, unfortunately, doesn't have any. But the little town I call #25 does have: 73,465 neighborly folks, a really big Wal-Mart that's always open, and as of this weekend, a Fall rainy season making an early comeback.

Although I'd never been to #25, the town seemed strangely familiar to me from the moment I stepped off the train from San Francisco. I was experiencing firsthand the immense power of popular culture. From my subsequent adventures on the internet Googling Springfield, I got at least a snapshot of how that power's reach.

Popular Culture has a very long arm, of course, and I can't say I was shocked in the least by what I found. Dismayed, yes, but not shocked. I learned that if Americans are able to tell you anything about Springfield (and most can), it's that a family with the last name Simpson live there. Although things varied a little between the forums I Googled, the majority of the twenty-something posters really believed that the Simpson's town of Springfield, which was either founded in 1987 when the characters first appeared on the Tracy Ullman Show or in 1989 when The Simpsons debuted, literally exists.

The discussions weren't debating Springfield's existence; rather, the forum members I found were thoughtfully presenting their own rationales as to which of the real world Springfield's was also the place where Bart went skateboarding and Lisa went to school. The top two contenders seemed to be the Springfield's of Massachusetts and Illinois, with Illinois the most popular choice. That kind of made me shudder. If it weren't for my list with thirty-four names on it, I probably would've picked Illinois, too. For a rounded education on Homer's hometown geography, go here.

Okay, I'm kidding. I was a college freshman when The Simpsons became a staple of my Sunday nights, old enough to understand the subtle differences between animation and reality. It certainly seems like those lines have been blurred in the last twenty years, though.

I'm a lucky guy. While most of Generation Y only thinks 'Simpsons' when they hear Springfield, I'm happy to say that I do not. That word only makes one thing pop into my head: GI JOE.

Several publishers have made the rounds publishing GI JOE comic books, but none of them have come close to Marvel Comics' GI JOE: A Real American Hero by Larry Hama and Mike Vosburg. Marvel launched the series to correspond with the 1982 debut of Hasbro's toy line, and I was instantly sold on both.

GI JOE was hands-down my favorite and I read each issue ten times if I read them once, and Issue #10 (1983) probably got read twelve at least. The story, "A Nice Little Town Like Ours," introduced COBRA's most sinister base to JOE fans everywhere -- a Stepford suburbia of a town with a very dark secret, and its name was Springfield.

Hama also hinted that the Springfield of Issue #10's storyline may not be the only one in the country prone to a nasty snake infestation. Even after all this time, I still think that idea is more than awesome.

I haven't gone out looking for any COBRA agents since I made my temporary home #25, though I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to search before I get back to the Bay. I did manage to pull some photos out from the old album, however. If you'd like to drop by for a visit, I'm sure I can find a day or two to show you the sights.

Your Graphic Imagination: Joe Cool

I'm still hoping to get my review of August's live-action GI JOE movie --- yes, the one starring Channing Tatum -- into shape and ready for action (and your consideration) before the sequel gets leaked to RapidShare. I have high hopes.

But, I digress.

Tonight's YGI is about David Perillo.

David is a Philadelphia-based freelance illustrator who's just about my age. I've never met him, but from his work as well as the fact he'll be attending the Pittsburgh ComicCon this weekend at the Monroeville Convention Center, I can tell we've got a lot in common.

I don't know if I'll ever have the pleasure to meet David, but I can tell you one thing that I'm certain of. If our paths had crossed 25 years ago, it' would've been Joes vs Cobras all day long, baby. Joes and Cobras in the backyard. For hours.

As they say, knowing is half the battle.

Feed your graphic imagination with GI Joe and Cobra. Then debrief yourself with David's complete dossier - found on his blog, here.