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Terry Hooper-Scharf

Friday 16 December 2016

As One Of the Guilty I Think We should Really Support Independent Publishers

This is difficult because I have no idea how blogger works.  However I think putting up a post about Terry's books would be more than appropriate.  He could have done with the support a long time ago (Im guilty too).

The Hooper Interviews



From a huge selection of interviews covering the Small Press, Independent and mainstream Comics from the UK,Europe and US. Here are a few of the best interviews from 30 years.

Paperback
Perfect Bound
A4 (cms=20.98 wide x 29.69 tall)
B&W
365 pages
profusely illustrated with art and photographs.
£20.00
ISBN  9781326210113
Prints in 3-5 business days
http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-hooper-interviews/paperback/product-22078000.html

I have read this book and can see why someone referred to it as “Comics 101” –background info on creators, how they got started, what tools and even paper/board they use.  Damn near damaged my wrist because it is a BIG book. And who exactly is interviewed in this book? 

Karen Rubins  -The Dark, The Witch and other books
Alan Class        -the man behind the Class Comics series
Kate Glasheen -the incredibly talented artist on Hybrid Bastards, Bandages and other works
Tom Pinchuck -writer of Hybrid Bastards
Dave Ryan       -the artist/writer behind War of The Independents
Jon Haward    -UK artist who worked of Tales of the Buddha, Dan Dare and more
Ron Fortier     -the man behind Mr Jig-Saw and Airstrip 27 books
Michael Cho  -creator of Max Finder Mysteries and some really cool art

Then there are a bunch of interviews related to The Black Coat that was published by Ape Entertainment -Francavilla may be a name familiar to DC and Marvel comic fans these days:
Jeremy Colwell
Ben Lichius
Adam Cadogan
Franco Frankavilla

The comic character Gumby also returned to comics and that created another series of interviews titled: The Gumby Interviews (Gumby, himself, was never interviewed)
Mel Smith
Paul H. Birch
Rick Geary
Joe Martino -from Ripperman to Shadow Flame
Yishan Li    -Seriously, do I have to explain who Yishan Li is? DCs Blue Beetle, the Buffy comic and much more!
Pekka Manninen -As far as I am concerned, Finland's top comic creator and I'm not saying that because I am the UKs top Kapteeni Kuolio (Captain Gangrene) fan!

Lauren Watton -Pink Apple Jam and Sweatdrop Studios
Willie Hewes      -Amaranth and Itch! publishing
Emma Vieceli     -come on. Star of stage and musicals not to mention one of the UKs top Manga artists -Manga Shakespeare, Dragon Heir and more.
Sonia Leong      -another noted UK Manga artist whose credits include Romeo and Juliet for Manga Shakespeare.
Nick Defina -the man behind Septagon Studios and Scorn
Donna Barr  -The Desert Peach and so much more that you can check up on at her Midnight Library blog.  She's a comic book Goddess.
Roberta Gregory -The other comic book Goddess and pioneering female creator.  Roberta created Bitchy Bitch and many other characters.
Jeff Brooks  -the man behind the UK editions of Classics Illustrated
Matt (D'Israeli) Brooker -from zines to "proper comics" including Deadline in the 1980s
Tania Del Rio -Sabrina the teenage Witch and more for Archie Comics
Holly Golightly -Broadsword Comics, Archie, Schoolbites and much more (below)
Vanessa Wells -superb creator of a comic I loved titled Shrouded and much more these days -http://www.vanessa.withbits.com
Marv Wolfman -Yes. The Marv Wolfman.
Morag Lewis -another UK Manga artist who worked with Sweatdrop Studios
The Etherington Brothers -if you've ever been to a good UK event you will have seen the duo behind Malcolm Magic, The 8th Moon Sketchbook,  Moon and more.
Nicole Damon -CBOs favourite fantasy art model. Nicole has worked with Ben Uriegas, Loprenzo Sperlonga, Greg Hildebrandt and others.
Olivier Cadic -the man who brought Franco-Belgian comics to the English language readers via Cinebook The 9th Art!  Everything you need to know.
Mike Western -"The Guv'nor" of British comics with strips such as The Wild Wonders, The Leopard From Lime Street and so many more to his name they would need a book to list.

John Cooper -Again, a creator who worked on many UK comic strips from Judge Dredd, One-Eyed Jack, Johnny Red and many others.

Highly Recommended

The Complete Phantom Detective


THE COMPLETE PHANTOM DETECTIVE
Ben R. Dilworth
black & White
A4
Paperback, 
36 Pages
Price: £6.00 (excl. VAT)
Murdering Ghouls. Satanic Masses. Demonic Possession. Werewolves. Poltergeists. Vampires. To many of the uninitiated these are just “things that go bump in the night” -TV or film fantasy. 
 
In the Victorian era, The Phantom Detective used his decades of occult study to help those in danger from these “things” and he paid the ultimate price…. ….
 
Yet he continues to help and to observe as best he can for now he is a true... 
 
PHANTOM DETECTIVE! 

From one of the UK's most under -rated comic creators, Ben R. Dilworth, comes new life breathed into and a new slant given to the adventures of the former mortal who has become one of the Watchers -forbidden to act even to save a life from supernatural forces.  Except "rules are there to be broken or at the very least stretched until you can see through them!"

The much anticipated collection from the co-creator of Peter Wisdom and artist of Mark Millar's The Shadowmen!
 

The next I could not agree more with.  I don't think we've had a book like this in UK comics before. This was title as..

"...a ten issue run and full of gems that very few comic fans know about!"

According to Steve Thomas of The Comic Project "The Black Tower Adventure series is a ten issue run and full of gems that very few comic fans know about!"

Thank You, Steve.  Oh and he is not talking about the 1980s zine version....

He's talking about these.  And he is quite right.  The book was Black Tower's flag-ship title yet it was never pushed or publicised as some other books so....why not?

All the books are A4 with a card cover so are given the European classification of Comic Albums.  All have between 50+ to 80 pages and yet, as part of Black Tower's "fair deal" for comic fans the series all have the same cover price of £7.00 -even the first issue.  Adventure was intended as a springboard for trying out different characters but to provide a good read for those into comics.

Now the details!


Black Tower Adventure No. 1
PublisherTerry Hooper-Scharf/Black Tower Books
LanguageEnglish
Pages 67
BindingSaddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.26 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 t
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


In 1984 the A5 (digest sized) Black Tower Adventure first appeared featuring some later-to-be top UK comic book and was a must-read in Small Press circles and sold so well that even the publisher does not have a full run!

The title was put on hiatus in 2007 but in 2010 was relaunched, bigger and better than ever!

This first issue of volume 2 contains: Part 1 of the mega series Return Of The Gods:Twilight Of The Super Heroeswhich comes in at 43 pages! Thaddeus Twatt In The Twatt-Verse -first part of a truly microscopic titanic tales (which makes sense if you read it!). And those Third Level sorcerers Kotar & Sabuta race to face The Deadly Dilemma Of Sigismund Benfriggisund! The cold war between China and Russia couldn’t get any hotter in the 1980s but one strip that appeared in the new talent comic Preview was The Phoenix Team and that story has been much requested over the years as the team, and the Soviet Red Star Squadron, stumble into The Evil of the Salamander and his master plan.


And more?  Well, of course there is!



Black Tower Adventure 2
Language English
Pages 69
Binding Perfect-bound
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.26 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


Things begin to pick up apace as Thaddeus Twatt and Tomas go on foot to explore The Fearful Fate Of Friggia. Both, naturally, oblivious to the mystery and action that continues in Return Of The Gods:Twilight Of The Super Heroes. In a more, uh, “fun” vein, we learn why using reptilean DNA to replace human limbs might not be a good idea in Out On A Limb!  Of course, when dealing with criminal gangs the Crimson Cowl packs a punchline.

And how could we forget Kotar & Sabuta as they confront...The Ghost! So, you may ask, if you are old enough, “Whatever happened to the 1980s craze for Yucca plants?” Well, we learn the deadly secret in The Day Of The Yucca!

There is also the obligatory “much, much more”!




Black Tower adventure 3
Language English
Pages 72
Binding Perfect-bound
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.27 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


Things get grim as heroes begin to fall and the truth is realised in Return Of The Gods:Twilight Of The Super Heroespart 3. Lady Sivana and Tarot help Kotar & Sabuta tackle a nasty lycanthrope problem. With things looking VERY grim will Thaddeus Twatt and Tomas escape The Fearful Fate Of Friggia? Ben Dilworth provides not one -not two -THREEPurple Hood strips.

Is there more? Can there possibly be more?  Don’t be silly -YES!!!!!



Black Tower Adventure 4


Language English
Pages 56
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.23 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


Krakos takes care of some burglars who have to “take the heat” in a very literal sense!  The Purple Hood deals with a suicide banker so you have to ask how that will turn out?   Kotar & Sabuta rescue a young woman in Antarctica, but what mysterious force took here there and how is it connected to Kotar? The action gathers pace in Return Of The Gods:Twilight of the Super Heroes as more mystery enfolds those taken from Earth…and those on Earth.

Thaddeus Twatt and nephew Tomas land on The Jungle Planet -and it looks as though this could be their deaths as Thaddeus realises too late what has colonised the planet!

The Thinker decides that thinking alone can get a little boring while one of China's Phoenix Team has to deal with..well, you'll see and it’s probably not what you expected!

What more could you ask for? More? You got it!



  
Black Tower Adventure 5
Language English
Pages 60
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.24 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


It's the penultimate part of RETURN OF THE GODS:TWILIGHT OF THE SUPER HEROES and on Earth and in space heroes confront the invading Boarmen! Who will pay the ultimate price for defending the planet and how many will fall on Neo Olympus?

Kotar and Sabuta try to have a quiet night in but..well...you remember they are Third Level Sorcerers with enemies, right?

Xendragon (see Tales of Terror 1)investigates The Legacy of Frankenstein which might not be as straight forward as it sounds.

Thaddeus Twatt and Tomas are held by the Crystallids and we hear of their origins and get a glimpse at how the eccentric scientist may not be all he seems.

Lord of the Flies teaches a very naughty boy a lesson. No school children were harmed in the making of this comic strip.

The Iron Warrior rushes to the rescue down the Amazon way while The Bat (but probably not the one you think) andReverend Merriwether, God's Demon Thumper put in appearances.

Its 60 pages of Black Tower Action!





Black Tower Adventure 6
Language English
Pages 81
Binding Perfect-bound
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.29 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


Yes!  It's 80 page Giant time! (Well, 81 pages)

The final chapter in Return Of The Gods:Twilight Of The Super Heroes. Everything is finally revealed as the heroes on Neo Olympus mourn their dead and learn that one of their number must also die!  Meanwhile, on Earth, things seem to be turning more favourably….we think.

Thaddeus Twatt has brace himself certain death as his past catches up with him and he faces the Ultimate Crystallid!

The Purple Hood versus The flame! And we don’t mean he has to sort out a chip-pan fire, either.

Whatever Happened To Mark Tyme? A good question because he appears to be lost in time and one German hero, Zeit Meister, survivor from a destroyed parallel Earth, is determined to find him.

Atomic Tommy has a slight alien problem to deal with and the Missing Link  is caught up in it all. 

Dr Sorrow has problems while Ben R. Dilworth takes us back to a re-telling of the origin of Runestone!

It's 80 pulse-pounding pages of graphic delineation! (plus an extra blank page because we’re keeping it real!).




Black Tower Adventure 7
Language English
Pages 60
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.24 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


The First part of a new series! How do you follow up Return Of The Gods after many heroes have died while others have gone into seclusion or retirement and yet heroes are needed? "The Cross Earths Caper" is how! And when we say “Cross Earths” we mean the multi-verse, time and space and….buy it and see!

In the final part of the Xendragon story our hero confronts the Legacy of Frankenstein and things could get from very bad to fatally bad. 

And following his confrontation with the Ultimate Crystallid there are tragic if not fatal consequences for Thaddeus Twatt in the final part of The Jungle Planet.


Silvermaigne tracks down a vampyre.  The Thinker over thinks and Dilworth’s re-telling of the origin of Runestone continues apace. Oh. And more.  Well, of course there is!




Black Tower Adventure 8
Language English
Pages 58
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.24 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £7.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


At last! After cameo appearances in Tales of Terror and one strip over the last twenty years, Herbert Kirby’s THE PHANTOM DETECTIVE returns in two tales to horrify!

Plus, The Thinker...thinks DOOM!  He over stresses at times but we see that as him just being a kind of cosmic pressure release valve (he does tend to fart).  Meanwhile, having discovered the Iron Warrior in the African jungle, three adventurers are about to get a shock that ends in a loud “Bang!”

In the UK a wizened old man offers to give a rather over inebriated Kelvin Nolan his helmet -which creates a few misunderstandings in Kelvin Nolan and His Helmet of Power!  Runestone, with the help of his science pal, George, begins to test the rune stone that has embedded itself in his hand and is in for a few surprises.

In The Cross-Earths Caper (pt.2) Bristol is, quite virtually, The Wild, Wild West Country..and Selenites threaten to destroy Earth with a huge interplanetary cannon. Why?  Well, maybe a misunderstanding but have no fear –Earth’s finest from the 1920s have been unfrozen and are ready to fight. Thought that ought to be mentioned.






Black Tower Adeventure 9
Language English
Pages 65
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Weight 0.25 kg Dimensions (centimetres)
Price: £5.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days


This is it!! 

Yes, the one that someone has been waiting for!  It may well have been you but you just never realised it.

Runestone gets to try out his new powers as he faces...The Beast of Exmoor! And believe us this ain’t no puma or leopard.  That might be weird enough but this Beast is a tool of the Celtic dark god himself!

Kelvin Jones gets to try out his shiny Helmet of Power and by this point some may ask if he’s capable of even using a TV remote control.

Our heroes are on a parallel Moon and fighting off Selenites in The Cross Earths Caper! And their new mysterious companion, “Bob” deisplays some super human abilities leading to the question: who the hell is “Bob”??

Kotar has his hands full in a solo adventure while Lady Silana faces a demon of her own. The quest for the Iron Warriorcontinues in the Amazon and this one has a few surprises for our lady adventurers.


There is a prequel to two British Golden Age comic strips in Return To Lost Man's Gulch and more...including The Thinker and The Phantom Detective -all in the UKs TOP SUPER HERO-ACTION COMIC!



Black Tower Adventure 10
Language English
Pages 54
Binding Saddle-stitch
Paperback
Interior Ink  Black & white
Weight 0.23 kg
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall
Price: £5.00 (excl. VAT)
Prints in 3-5 business days



The 10th and final issue of volume 2!

Our three lady adventurers are in the Amazon and have encountered the ape-men but are they ready for Rodney Dearth and his Iron Warrior to return?

The Cross Earths Caper concludes and for one hero it is the parting of the ways and two others face life altering situations and many months away…only to find on their Earth they were hardly gone a few seconds.  Ben Dilworth concludes the re-telling of Runestone's origin.


There are lots of other goodies and this issue guest stars a gun-toting crime-buster that Elliott Ness would love - The Clock! Sit back and read Ben Dilworth’s crime-busting tale –it’s far better for you than the internet! Its just too much fun!

More fun than Ya Ya Han.

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