UH?!?

Hello Pulp friends :)

here's page 6, another silent (kinda) page. I did say Black Beetle is done talkin', right? ;)

Hope you guys dig it and wait to see what happens next :D

Thanks again to all those who purchased the ashcan at Heroes and online: will be shipping the books soon, time to draw a little sketch of our hero inside for you guys :)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

BB & Heroes

Hello Pulp friends :)

Heroes was (once again) a great show for me (thanks to all who commissioned me convention sketches and bought my books and prints) and for Black Beetle too: I sold out of the 30 copies I brought with me at the show (10 de-luxe and 20 regular). Everyone was picking up the sample ashcan I had on my table and ask the same question: "When it's coming out?" :D
I think our BB has definitely made an impression on the crowd at the show :)

I had a couple of BB requests (convention sketches - above is one of them) and had collegues and friends doing some BB fanart/homage as well (our own Dave Flora actually did his way before the show :)), a couple of them with a smiling BB :).
Steve Epting, Dave Flora, Brad Millette, Manuel Aguillera, Cory Laub: thank you so much, guys, it's always cool to see the different takes on our new pulp hero :)
I gave all of them the old paper treatment and posted below for all to see :D

I will be shipping some more ashcans and prints soon to those who ordered via blog/website - thank you again for the support and for diggin Black Beetle :) Anybody else who's interested in a copy of the ashcan, please email me with your choice (regulare or deluxe) and I will take care of you (as long I still have copies available).

Stay tuned for this Sunday next BB page!

Cheers,
Francesco











All images © 2009 respective Authors.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Black Beetle: "No Way Out" Ashcan

Hello Pulp friends :)

I am so glad you all enhoyed page 5, and trust me, things are getting even hotter in the next 4-5 pages. But before we get to those (in the next weeks) I am gonna be at Heroes Conthis weekend, and, as mentioned, I will have some BB goodies.

What goodies? Well, first of all I am printing a limited (numbered and signed) 100 copies of the very first Black Beetle ashcan, "No Way Out" (that's the title of the first arc).
It contains the first 5 sequential pages (which you have seen on Pulp Sunday) and a sketchbook section with lots of concepts and illos. The ashcan is limited to 100 copies and I will only bring part of those to Heroes, so I will have a few more for Dragon Con and SDCC and some to sell online to those interested.
The book is fully colored, tip to toe, has 12 pages plus inside covers, and measures approx. 7.5x10.75" (magazine size). You can see the front cover above and the interior front cover below.
All books come with a quick Black Beetle sketch (when purchased from me - I am planning to send some to a few stores without sketch) in the inside back cover (I create a space there for this purpose).
Those who are interested please email me using the contact button via my website.

Other goodies are a large print, 13x19", archival ink on archival paper, of the cover/movie poster above (email for rates if interested), and other items like the mousepads and shirts which are also available on Zazzle and CafePress (that's where I ordered mine ;)).
Cafe Press
Zazzle

Of course, if you are going to be at Heroes, feel free to stop by even if just to say hi :)
Have a great Pulp Week everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

UPDATE! Hey all -

Just wanted to post an update on the ashcan prices. I am getting lots of email requests so thank you all so very much for your support. I am printing 100 of these in 2 versions (50 each, all graphics & content is the same):

Version 1 (#1-50/100): The deluxe model - has in-house-printed cover on bristol board (more muted colors & a bit more pulpy feel on the cover), includes quick BB bust or quick BB full figure sketch - $20 + shipping
Version 2 (#51-100/100): The regular model - has commercially printed cover, includes quick BB head sketch - $10 + shipping

Once again, the content and graphics (cover and interiors) are exactly the same so nobody is missing anything between the two versions. The difference is just in the cover paper and the sketch it comes with.

Shipping costs - $5 domestic US; $11 international - all ashcans sent U.S. priority or global mail envelope
Due the limited run on these, please limit orders to one copy each.

Prints are 30$ + shipping for 11.7x16.5" and $40 + shipping for 13x19" - archival ink on archival paper.

Just email me with what you want and I'll send you my paypal address. Those who already emailed me don't need to re-send email - I will reply to you all soon. Probably I won't be shipping anything until I get back from Heroes convention since I still have to pack and draw some more Zorro pages before I go. :)

Again, thank you so much for the support and the positive reaction to Black Beetle, I really appreciate it :)

Cheers,
Francesco



Update #2
Just got today my shipment from Zazzle, just in time for the show. I ordered a few BB items to have at the show and also to check on the quality and the quality is definitely there :D
I took a (quick) picture of what I will have at my table (and on the WEB after that).

Cheers,
Francesco



All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!

Hello Pulp friends :)

Page 5 is here - I told you things were getting HOT, didn't I? ;)

Next Sunday I will probably take a break since I will be at Heroes Con in Charlotte (if you are going make sure to stop by my table and say hi - planning to have also some Black Beetle goodies with me), so I will see you in two weeks for the new Black Beetle page (or maybe sooner...).

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Dr. Jack Griffin

What would you do if you were invisible? ;)

Claude Rains, Griffin in "The Invisible Man" (1933), is the best example of a mad scientist. When we first meet Jack Griffin, he is already the victim of his own experiments: invisible and wanting an antidote. Unlike the H.G. Wells book upon which the movie is based,his descent into megalomania is an overlooked side effect of monocaine,the drug he has used to make himself unseen.

There is a rather nice continuity error for those collectors of trivia out there. Although the Invisible Man is naked so he can be completely invisible,the footprints left by him in the snow at the end of the film show the shape of a pair of shoes.
Another trivia: Dr Griffin has no first name in the HG Wells' novel.

Extra points to who guess what that diagram in the illo is for ;)

Well, the week is over but, as mentioned, I might do another Mad Doctor week sometime soon. Hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did :)

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Dr. Moreau

Hello Pulp friends :)

Mad scientist? How about those who like to play GOD? ;)

Created by the pen of Herbert George Wells, the mad Dr Moreau tries to mix humans with animals in a lost island in the middle of the ocean. The novel has been adapted 4 times for the big screen, but the best version is still the original one, "The Island of Lost Souls", 1933, directed by Erle C. Kenton and starring Charles Laughton as the mad doctor. The movie was so filled with excesses and sadism that was censored... a lot!

Filmed in an expressionistic style by director Erle C.Kenton, with dramatic shadows running up walls as if darkness itself is evil, Island of Lost Souls is a marvel of storytelling, pulling back layer upon layer from the mystery to reveal the horrific truth of Dr.Moreau ’s experiments and providing plenty of suspense along the way.

Little trivia: Bela Lugosi was one of Dr.Moreau ’s “manimals.”

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Dr. Alex Zorka

Hello Pulp friends :)

As mentioned, there are too many mad doctors and crazy scientist to fit in one week, but I couldn't pass on the kindly requested Dr Zorka, also because I couldn't let this first Mad Doctor Week go without a Bela Lugosi tribute :)

So here he is, in all his intense and signature look, while working on his 8 foot tall robot he created to distroy the mankind. Yeah, becuase Dr Zorka is that kind of mad scientist, aiming to the world domination!

The tagline for the 12 episode serial that aired in the early '40s:
"12 SPINE-SHIVERING ACTION THUNDERBOLTS!
Sinister scientists... foreign spies...
federal agents... and a pretty girl...
crashing through amazing adventures!"
It reads like a truckload of FUN to me :D

Note: I know that he eventually shaves his beard during the serial, but I couldn't resist to draw a bearded Lugosi. ;)

See you tomorrow with another crazy Doc!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Dr. Caligari

Hello Pulp friends :)

Today we continue our "MAD DOCTORS" gallery with maybe the oldest evil, mad doctor on the big screen: Dr Caligari!

From the classic - and German expressionism masterpiece - "Das Kabinett Des Dr. Caligari", 1919, directed by Robert Wiene and starring Werner Krauss as Caligari and Conrad Veidt as the sleepwalker- some sort of zombie ante-litteram.

Plot: An Asylum director discovers an old manuscript of the '700s about a certain Caligari who, using hypnosis, pushes a medium to kill several people. Undercover, the asylum director tries to emulate the experiment and pushes a sleepwalker, who is one of his patients, to murder several people. When the experiment is discovered, the director joins his patients behind the walls of the asylum.

Ommy, there are so many "Mad Doctors" out there that I am tempted to do another full week in July (or sooner).
Meanwhile ,see you tomorrow with another Mad Doctor!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Baron Victor Frankenstein

Maybe the most famous mad scientist of all.

In the original classic trilogy with Karloff (as the creature) and Clive (as the Doctor), the focus of the stories was the monster who gets out of control and overpowers his creator. Things change in the '50s thanks to the famous Hammer Films. Movies like "The Curse of Frankenstein" (1957) and "The Revenge of Frankenstein" (1958) - both directed by Terence Fisher - swap the roles between the two main characters. Now the focus is on the mad doctor Victor Frankenstein instead of the creature. He is the real monster, the cold and evil dandy with no scruples. The Creature he created is the victim escaping the lab and the morbose screenings of the so called "science".
Peter Cushing played the mad doctor Frankenstein in these 2 movies and in 3 more movies, 2 directed again by Terence Fisher (1967 and 1969) and one by Freddie Francis (1964), so I thought it would be perfect for this gallery, even more than Colin CLive (who will appear later in another week dedicated to Mad Doctor).

I am glad you guys are enjoying this themed week so far :) It is fun, isn't it? ;)
As for the mad doctors you guys suggested, Dr House is pretty crazy but I don't think it fits the topic ;) Gene "Young Frankenstein" Wilder (huge fan of that movie as well) is on my list but not for this week since we already had a Frankenstein.
Definitely a mad doctor Lugosi is gonna show up this week, as it is another mad doctor from the Frankenstein franchise ;)

Stay tuned for more Mad Doctors!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Mad Doctors: Dr Paul Rigas

Hello Pulp friends :)

Today we start a new feature called "MAD DOCTORS"! All week long I will be portraying famous mad doctors and insane scientists, brilliant minds which have gone completely wrong in the name of Science. Of course, mine will be all tributes to fictional characters as introduced in many classic horror and sci-fi movies.

So let's get it started with Dr Paul Rigas (starred by Lionell Atwill) in "Man Made Monster" (1941) directed by George Waggner.

The Plot: A mad scientist transforms a man in some sort of robot, to use him as personal slave.
The title was translated in "The Electric Man" for the European distribution. This movie also represents the first of a long series of collaboration between Lon Chaney Jr and the Universal Pictures.

Hope you guys will enjoy the feature and feel free tod rop feedback or suggestions: I am planning to have a Mad Doctors week every now and then so anything that doesn't make it in this week will be saved for later.
See you tomorrow with another Mad Doctor!

Cheers,
Francesco

All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
Mad Doctors & Pulp Sunday created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

Enough Talkin'...

Hello Pulp friends :)

ANd here's page 4 - things are getting HOT ;)

Speaking of Black Beetle, I set up a couple of online stores where you can pick up some cool BB merchandise, if you feel inclined to, of course ;)
Cafe Press
Zazzle

Also below the poster for this week special: starting tomorrow, you will find a daily Mad Doctor visiting Pulp Sunday. Make sure to stop by and say hi to the doctors ;)

Have a great Pulp Sunday everyone :)

Cheers,
Francesco



All images © 2009 Francesco Francavilla.
BLACK BEETLE & COLT CITY created by, ™ and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla

The Californian Devil!

Hello my friends,

I wanted to share this back cover I did for Zorro #14 which, as all my back covers do, teases on the upcoming issue 15 which will see me back at doing the interior pages as well. The idea was to go with authentic old pulp magazine cover feel, and once you will have issue 15 in your hands you will see why ;)
Issue 15 is in Previews this month for pre-orders but I am planning to get back to it with the cover and some preview pages.
Until then, I hope you enjoy the "Californian Devil" (I am including also some close-up to show better the linework).

Cheers,
Francesco





Frontier Scary Tales & The Californian Devil created by and © 2009 Francesco Francavilla