HALLOWEEN fun!

Fri, 10/29/2010 - 9:00am | DCE Editorial

This weekend is Halloween. The day for tricks and treats...and costumes!

So, if you find yourself dressing up as, say Gus from SWEET TOOTH, Skinner Sweet from AMERICAN VAMPIRE, John Constantine and Epiphany Greaves from HELLBLAZER, Fly Catcher from FABLES, Delirium from SANDMAN, or any of Vertigo’s many amazing characters this weekend, do send us a photo. And maybe, just maybe, we’ll post a bunch of them next week.

So get your outfits together and your camera’s ready!

Then send your photo as a 72-90 dpi jpeg to pamela.mullin@dccomics.com.
Please include: What character you are, your age and your okay to post.

We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Tags: 
american vampire, fables, halloween, hellblazer, sandman, sweet tooth, vertigo characters

"...the cure for the plague of feyness among modern vampires."

Tue, 10/26/2010 - 2:24pm | DCE Editorial

BOOKLIST gives a rave review to AMERICAN VAMPIRE Volume 1 by Scott Snyder, Stephen King and artist Rafael Albuquerque.

"It would be entirely understandable if no one wanted to read another vampire book ever again. It would be

a shame, though, to miss this one. The story centers on an Old West outlaw named Skinner Sweet, who, in

death, made the evolutionary leap to a whole new breed of bloodsucker: one who thrives in the sun, is

impervious to the traditional slaying methods, and is a definite threat to the ensconced European vamps

exploiting the American West. Writers Snyder and King (penning his first comic) swap chapters back and

forth to tell a dual narrative of antihero Skinner’s backstory and a flapper-era Hollywood gal he helps out

(and infects, naturally) decades later. Curiously, by reinventing vampires for the umpteenth time, Snyder

and King have transported them right back to the beginning, squarely in the wheelhouse of bloody, scary

horror. Albuquerque’s sinuous, raggedly shaded artwork supplies great period frills—with a distinctive

sheen for each time frame—and piercing, grisly chills. Smart, literary even, this series looks to be

the cure for the plague of feyness among modern vampires."

— Ian Chipman

AMVAMPDJ_2.indd

Tags: 
american vampire, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder, stephen king

AMERICAN VAMPIRE #7 preview

Tue, 10/05/2010 - 10:00am | DCE Editorial

It's 1935, Las Vegas. Skinner Sweet is suspect number one behind the mystery of the bloodless victims – but could he just be a blood-red herring? Meanwhile, young police Chief Cash McCogan has his hands full with two FBI agents who may not be what they seem. Don't miss part two of "Devil in the Sand," and learn the secret history of Las Vegas! Pick it up tomorrow!

[gallery link="file"]

Tags: 
american vampire, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder

What scares Stephen King?

Tue, 10/05/2010 - 9:45am | DCE Editorial

Co-author of AMERICAN VAMPIRE, Stephen King discussed vampires, sex, religion, and horror in a provocative conversation with the screenwriters of Twilight and Let Me In at the New Yorker Literary Festival this past weekend.

Now I’ve been to a lot of author events, and I must say that the Vampire Revival panel was one of the best I've seen. But you don't have to take my word for it. Watch it here.

If you’ve ever read something written by the master of horror, or watched a movie based on one of King's books, like Salem's Lot, then you’re in for a real treat. And check out that AMERICAN VAMPIRE t-shirt King wore while engaging the audience. As for what scares King? You'll have to watch the video....

photo

From Left to right: New Yorker writer Joan Acocella, Let Me In filmmaker Matt Reeves, Twilight screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg, Stephen King and philosopher Noel Carroll.

Tags: 
american vampire, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder, stephen king

If you’re in NYC this weekend

Fri, 10/01/2010 - 11:09am | DCE Editorial

On Saturday, October 2 head to:

The New Yorker Festival
The Vampire Revival panel with AMERICAN VAMPIRE co-author Stephen King
At 1:00 pm
Where: Stage 37
Ticketed

AMVAMPDJ_2.indd

Kentler International Drawing Space
CUBA: MY REVOLUTION
Art exhibit and opening reception and talk with Inverna Lockpez and Dean Haspiel, moderated by Calvin Reid
At 4:00 pm
Where:353 Van Brunt Street, (RED HOOK) Brooklyn, New York
Free

CUBA_DJ.indd

Tags: 
american vampire, cuba: my revolution, dean haspiel, inverna lockpez, stephen king

Books to look for--Summer 2011!

Wed, 09/29/2010 - 12:00pm | DCE Editorial

With Summer 2010 having just come to a close, we’re about to look into the future at Summer 2011. See the list of Vertigo highlights below, including books by such great writers as Scott Snyder, Grant Morrison, and Max Allan Collins!

AMERICAN VAMPIRE VOL. 2 HC
Writer: Scotty Snyder
Artists: Rafael Albuquerque and Mateus Santaluoco
Collects: AMERICAN VAMPIRE #6-10
$24.99 US, 160 pages
Scheduled for release in May

WE3 DELUXE EDITION HC
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Frank Quitely
Collects: WE3 #1-3 plus bonus materials
$24.99 US, 144 pages
Scheduled for release in June

99 DAYS HC
Writer: Matteo Casali
Artist: Kristian Donaldson
A Vertigo Crime original graphic novel
$19.99 US, 176 pages
Scheduled for release in June

COWBOYS HC
Writer: Gary Phillips
Artist: Brian Hurtt
A Vertigo Crime original graphic novel
$19.99 US, 192 pages
Scheduled for release in July

RETURN TO PERDITION HC
Writers: Max Allan Collins
Artist: Terry Beatty
A Vertigo Crime original graphic novel
$19.99 US, 192 pages
Scheduled for release in August

Tags: 
99 days, american vampire, brian hurtt, cowboys, frank quitely, gary phillips, grant morrison, kristian donaldson, mateus santaluoco, matteo casali, max allan collins, rafael albuquerque, return to perdition, scott snyder, terry beatty, we3

AMERICAN VAMPIRE Volume 1 Extras

Wed, 09/29/2010 - 8:00am | DCE Editorial

Why Rafael Albuquerque is Amazing
(or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Hire a Cover Artist)

We weren’t even thinking about him for the covers. We knew we wanted something that said “horror” but could also be literary and elegant too. We wanted a strong design that showcased a cool logo and the creator’s names. A daunting task. I thought about it constantly. We were throwing around a lot of names, some big names, some unknowns. But we certainly weren’t even considering Rafael Albuquerque for the covers—he was too busy kicking ass on the interiors.

Then he sent me an idea and I was blown away.

It happened like this: late Friday afternoon Rafael shot me an email, “…I don’t know what your thinking for covers, but I had an idea, something like this…” with these two sketches attached.

AMVAM_INT_177-200.indd

AMVAM_INT_177-200.indd

Pretty hot right? Bold. Iconic. It looked like a book cover. Over the weekend I talked to Scott. He loved them too. Monday I met with Karen, Will, Ken Lopez and Richard Bruning. It was the fastest meeting I’ve ever had. We loved the layout and the concept. We thought maybe, since we were telling a dual narrative we should have a scene from each story, split by that killer logo, for the first five covers. Other than that, we loved it. No notes. Like Steve says in his introduction to the hardcover, referring to Scott’s outline for Avamp, “Why f--- with genius?”

Rafael took the note about the two scenes, chose Skinner’s gang waiting for the train, re-worked the Pearl image and we had our cover.

AMVAMPDJ_2.indd

I showed it to Scott and Steve, they loved it and that was it. Cut. Print.

So we included these two sketches (along with TONS of other bonus features like early character designs, variant covers, script pages and more!) so you could get a behind-the-scenes look at the birth of “American Vampire.” Enjoy!

Tags: 
american vampire, mark doyle, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder, stephen king

GRAPHIC CONNECTION

Fri, 09/17/2010 - 4:39pm | DCE Editorial

Lot’s of great comics and lots of great press coverage this week!

Let’s kick it off with CUBA: MY REVOLUTION. Features and positive reviews ran in THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, LATINA MAGAZINE, AM NEW YORK, EL NUEVO HERALD,WIRED, CBR, IGN, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY and LARGE HEARTED BOY.

Author Inverna Lockpez and, in case you missed him earlier this week at Midtown Comics, artist Dean Haspiel will be appearing together in NYC next month (details below).

Saturday, October 2
4:00-7:00pm
at the Kentler International Drawing Space
353 Van Brunt Street, (RED HOOK) Brooklyn, New York
There will be an opening reception and talk moderated by Calvin Reid
Cuba drawings by Inverna Lockpez and drawings from the book by Dean Haspiel will be on display through December 12th.

Wednesday, October 6
7:00 pm
BookCourt 163 Court Street Brooklyn, NY
Reading with art, Q&A, and book signing

THE UNWRITTEN Volume 2 and the amazing Many Lives of Lizzie Hexam issue #17 have received fantastic reviews from AOL’s COMICS ALLIANCE, TIME OUT CHICAGO, and IGN while issue #17 is io9 and IFANBOY’s Pick of the Week!

In fact, Blair Butler raved that Volume 2 is "Brilliant. . . . All leads to a final gorgeously illustrated chapter that takes a tragic look at children's literature. . . it's a showstopper. . . . May be the smartest thing on store shelves right now," on G4 TV ATTACK OF THE SHOW's FRESH INK segment.

AIN’T IT COOL NEWS featured an interview with AMERICAN VAMPIRE series creator and writer Scott Snyder in which he discusses both his Vertigo project and his upcoming run on the DCU’s DETECTIVE COMICS.

And JOE THE BARBARIAN #7 made TIME/TECHLAND’s Pull List and io9’s Pick of the Week!

Happy reading and have a wonderful weekend!

Tags: 
american vampire, cuba: my revolution, dean haspiel, grant morrison, inverna lockpez, joe the barbarian, mike carey, peter gross, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder, sean murphy, stephen king, the unwritten

Glitz, glamour and gambling. AMERICAN VAMPIRE heads to Vegas!

Thu, 09/09/2010 - 9:30am | DCE Editorial

AMERICAN VAMPIRE issue #6 written by Scott Snyder with art by Rafael Albuquerque is on sale now!

Previews can be seen at TIME/Techland and WIRED/Underwire.

NEWSARAMA features pieces on the characters of AMERICAN VAMPIRE.
Check them out:

Skinner
Pearl
Henry Preston
Euro Vamps
Hattie Hargrove and Mr. Bunting

Additional coverage can be found at io9 and CBR.

Happy Reading!

AMVAM_Cv6_ds.indd

Tags: 
american vampire, rafael albuquerque, scott snyder

AMERICAN VAMPIRE: What next?

Thu, 09/09/2010 - 9:00am | DCE Editorial

Cycle 2 “Devil in the Sand” (issues 6-9)

In this story…

• We learn the secret history of Las Vegas, before it became the Vegas we know today (hint: vampires are involved).

• We meet the organization of vampire hunters that has been operating behind the scenes of history for centuries.

• We see how the descendents of the “House of Book” continue to seek revenge on Skinner Sweet.

• We meet a new character who carries a heavy burden and will play a major role in the future of the American Vampire universe.

• And there will be a betrayal, one that changes the relationship of Pearl, Henry and Skinner forever—and for vampires, forever is a very long time.

Enjoy!

#6 variant cover by Raphael Grámpa
av6_variantcover_final

Tags: 
american vampire, mark doyle, raphael grampa, scott snyder rafael albuquerque

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