Horrorhound Recap (tons of pics)

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HEYO! I'm back from a long (and very much welcome) vacation weekend to Horrorhound Cincinnati. I'm glad to report that it was a very relaxing and fun weekend. Surely what the doctor ordered. Here is a daily recap and tons of pics! Enjoy:

Wednesday, March, 15^th, 2017 – Up at 0900 hours. I write a letter to dad and then start painting on my biker jacket. I put the first coat on and it comes out looking pretty good. I drop off D and head into work for a 3-11shift that seems to drag and drag and drag! After work, Zillins, JD and I hit the BW3 for early Vacation celebration drinks and a burger. D joins us just as we are finishing up. We drive home and pass out around 2am. 

A VERY pregnant Belle, relaxing.

A nice post-work pre-vacation drink with the boys.

Thursday, March, 16^th, 2017 – I wake up around 10am, a first for me for a while!! Actually being able to sleep in for once? Can’t put a price on that! I get up and put on a second coat of paint on the biker jacket. I finish coloring a commission for a client and send it to him. He replies with his approval. I do a bunch of last minute things around the house and start packing for the weekend. D gets up and we go to stock up on the rest of our booze, food and last minute costume stuff. We get back around 5pm and finish packing up. Then around 8pm we head to Crunchies for some eats. We get right in and out, beating the crowd. We come home and I finish up the jacket, sewing on the patches and last minute paint touch ups. It came out great! I put on all the pins as well. I attempt to fall asleep at 11pm, but it doesn’t take. So I end up showering, then watching Jackass 2.5 and I finally pass out around 2am.

Lily is worried about our alcoholism.

My hand-painted biker jacket back. Painted by me! First time I've touched paints in years!

Smiley Crunchy's Burger!

Friday, March, 17^th, 2017 – Alarm blazes at 0600 hours. We brew coffee, load up the Bat Blazer and head to Mcds for breakfast. Then we hit I-96 around 7:20. We stop off in Findley, OH to use the Wifi at a Mcds to order TOOL tickets around 10am. After several attempts to refresh and score tickets, we are finally successful! We score lawn tickets for TOOL in June. Word is they sold out immediately, so we were very lucky!

We arrive at Franklin, OH around 12:30 and stop off for gas and White Castle (necessary). Then we trek another 25 miles to our hotel in Cincinnati. We wait for Jynel and Coleen to get ahold of us and they do. We end up standing right at check-in for about an hour, due to their system being down. Meanwhile, I have to poo really bad. Wonderful start to the day! All I want to do is get into my room and unwind from the 5 hour drive! I answer some texts and emails from earlier while I’m waiting. Finally their system goes back online and we check in. Our room is #703. Funny enough, last year my room was #704! Right next door to where I was last year. Unfortunately, the rooms are prearranged this year and Joe, Jynel and Coleen are stuck in the east wing. (sigh)

We get our keys and scope out our room. I finally take a nice shit and relax a little bit in the room. We then head over to the con and find 12 Gauge’s set up. We say hi to Joe and during load in I run into Raphael. Later on I run into Ron B about 10 different times. Seems he was all over the show! D and I buy a few bootleg DVDs and magnets and call it a day. We hit the con cafeteria where I opt for the personal pizza, which sucks. D gets ribs, which are awesome! I declare I will eat them the following day. We head back  and take a nap in the room, passing out to a nice Star Trek marathon on BBC America. We’re back up around 10, and the gang all come up to our room to partake of some drinks. After loading up and doing some shots, we head downstairs. Outside I finally get the face time with Coleen about everything that has happened in the past 7 months. There were plenty of hugs and tears as we all group hugged several times. We smoked cigs and cigars and just kept chugging the beers and eating several gummi bears and worms soaked in vodka. It was a therapeutic night.

After our deep discussion, I headed to the bathroom. Which I quickly realized being on my feet now, I was severely drunk! I ran into several people and chatted with them and random others, which I am sure I made an ass of myself a few times. I run into D and announce that I have to go up to the room immediately. We do and I throw up violently into the toilet and the sink. It was extreme and scary for me! I then lay my head down and pass out instantly, with Star Trek playing in the background. I don’t remember what time that was.

Lovely White Castle!

When the party hat goes on, its time to get crazy!

My girls.

The gang!

We offer thee, vodka soaked gummies and cigars!

We're all okay!

Saturday, March, 18^th, 2017 – I wake up around 0900 hours, severe hangover and dehydration going on. I chug a water that D lovingly left by my fan for me the night before. I then wandered downstairs, hungry as fuck and ate TWO plates full of hotel breakfast. Indeed, hungry as fuck. D joins me and we eat hearty. We go back up to the room and pass out for more napping in the comfy king size bed and new pillows.

We wake up around noonish and hit the hotel pool. Its empty so we got a whole hour to ourselves just to relax and swim around. The water is nice and warm and I definitely needed that relaxing dip! We get out and dry off back in the room. We relax a bit and then head over to the show. First we stop off at the food court, which is wall to wall busy as fuck! But we get our food and find an open space of real estate to eat at against the wall. We’re all then yelled at by security to not sit in the halls. But what else is an oversold crowd supposed to do when the café chairs are all full? No matter, I scarf down my ribs and potatoes and we head to the show itself. It is annoyingly busy and crowded. I end up grabbing a couple indie horror flicks, some horror comics and then hitting the Troma booth and getting a couple movies. I get Lloyd Kaufman to sign the one he directed and then get a photo with him and Toxie. Then I’m interviewed by Troma team about why I love Troma movies. I ham up the jokes and say that Lloyd and I had an affair years ago. The camera guy seemed to like my inprov.

We head back to the hotel and order some chili fries in the café which take FOREVER to arrive. Can’t say the hotel restaurant’s service is good at all. In fact, it sucked ass. I tracked the waitress down and paid our bill, then headed back to the room. We relaxed some more, watching some Riddick movie while checking out our buys. Coleen and Joe come up for their stuff at 7ish and D takes a mini nap. Then she gets up and we get ready with our costumes. She paints on my Eddie scar and I experiment with the blood needed on it. We get all dressed up, snap some pics and then head downstairs. We watch the Pickled Circus show and a bit of Hamilton’s Chump Change Variety show. We head back and refill our drinks and meet up with the gang farther down the hall. We chat with everyone and then head back outside to smoke with Coleen. After chatting out there for thirty minutes we retire back to our room to get into our PJs and order some pizza. We stay sober and just chat into the night about music, movies and memories. Then Coleen heads to bed. I hit the pillow around 1am and pass out immediately. 

 

Lloyd Kaufman and Toxie with some bum.

Not quite EDDIE, but close enough.

Costumes complete!

The gang is all here!

Lovely peach ringz!

Sunday, March, 19^th, 2017 – My alarm goes off at 0900 hours. We hit the hotel breakfast and then come back to the room to pack. I read online that Bernie Wrightson had died. I email Walters to offer condolences on his friend. We load up the car and find a close parking spot to the show. I check us out and then we walk back over to the show for my tattoo appointment. I get there and she isn’t there. She ends up showing up 30 minutes after showtime and I walk up and introduce myself. She somehow confused our scheduled time we emailed each other about and so she cannot get to me until like 3-4pm. I say that we scheduled for early Sunday and we’re taking off after that. So we talk it out and I say its fine if we wait until next year. She feels bad but it happens, I understand. Plus now I got the peace of mind knowing that if my skin shrinks during my upcoming lifestyle change, that it will look okay. I tell her to keep my deposit and she offers to do my tat for free the following year. We shake hands and agree, no harm no foul.

Off the hook from the tattoo, we head to the 12 Gauge booth to say goodbye. Joe and Jynel aren’t there, so we just chat with Coleen and D shows off her new taxidermy Bat in a Cage. We donate some money to the cancer fund for Syd, Hamilton’s girlfriend and he graciously gives us some buttons. Perfect for my new vest! We take off shortly after that to head home. We stop off for White Castle again, our last fast food meal before the big change and then drive the rest of the way home.

We get home around 6pm and the kitties great us at the door. Belle still hasn’t given birth, so we are relieved. We unpack and D plays with the cats. I update the blog and upload photos. I watch some of my new movies (Dickshark … not good. And part of Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers… so far, good!) and then pass out around 8:30. D wakes me back up around 11:30 and we watch Hush together. Then I update the online blog and end up passing back out around 2:30am. 

--T

Upcoming: NEW COMIC pre-order! (Plus other stuff)

Hey friends!

I couldn't sleep well tonight. I woke up super early thanks to a combo of extreme dry mouth and that good old "just couldn't get comfortable" feeling. As always, I got a lot on my mind. Health stuff. Work stuff. Its all a jumble. But I felt like, lets get up and do something.

I'm in post-production of my latest comic. Its a short floppy horror anthology like the old EC horror books but its in honor of my friend Caleb who passed away last year. He was a massive horror fan and when I was in my own head about what I can do to help his family and his friend's family, this is what I came up with. It will be a 28 page book. Three stories, all ZOMBIE related. It will also have pinups, fun old fake ads like the old comics (Xray glasses, etc) and a few other surprises. Caleb himself appears in the book on a few pages intro-ing the stories as our resident horror host, cryptkeeper style! He would love this, I think. I hope. And most special of all: His daughter will see her first work ever published in the book! Its really gonna be a special occasion!

Yesterday, his pal Joe posted a pic of some of the pages from the book and people are saying some very kind words about the project. Its really got me jazzed to finish it and get the kickstarter up and running. I'm hoping to have all the art stuff done this week and finishing up final PDFs by next week. Then I will launch the Kickstarter for it. Incentives right now include digital copies, sketched copies, original art pages, commissions and other stuff. Its gonna be a basic and quick pre-order Kickstarter that I don't think will draw out too long. I'll order enough books to fill the orders and a few more for future sales at horror cons. Then the money that is left will be divided up between Caleb's family and then the Arlee Rodgers Surgery Fund for his friend Joe's daughter. I will not see a dime of profit from this project.

Right now, the title is "TALES FROM THE GORE" and its being presented by 12 Gauge Gore. I'm hoping to premiere it at Horrorhound Cincinnati in March. Here's some sneak peek pics of various things related to the project:

A look at our horror host CALEB in action!

A page I teased mid-last year finally gets a home in the new TALES FROM THE GORE! A special little tale!

Laying it all out...

A zombie story about Xmas time I drew a long time ago FINALLY gets a home in print!

And the book includes a faithful reprint of one of my favorite zombie related horror stories I have ever done.

 It has been a long time since I did just a quick 28 page comic like this. I tried to make it as painless as I could. Working on it was hard enough sometimes, but I just felt like I had to do this. I hope we sell a lot of copies with this project and the money earned can help out his family and friends as much as possible. It is also a form of therapy for me to just do something. Sometimes, you feel so helpless that just DOING SOMETHING makes one feel better.

The Kickstarter will launch before the month is over. A couple weeks. Look for an announcement very soon!

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I'm working through it folks. I'm trying my best to get back on the horse and finish this race. But I also am taking the time to slow down and just live a bit. I'm watching the movies I've always missed out on. I'm reading articles and chasing the whimsies. I'm taking the time to enjoy what I can and when I can around the craziness of my life. Some days I can literally feel my body breaking and my mind oozing out of my head. I need distractions.

Luckily, I got a great gal who listens to me, supports me and loves me. She always makes me laugh:

She's such a goof sometimes, I love it!

 I am aware fully that life is short. And I'm trying every day not to waste it. I saw this graphic the other day and it stuck in my head: 

I've worked hard at my dreams and day jobs since I was 16 years old. And there is so much more to do. New car, new home, new travels, raise my boys... so many things on the bucket list to get done. Not just artworking but life in general. But I am also noting that I deserve a break from it all too. I'm toying with getting a modern game system so that I am not out of the loop when it comes to what my kids will want someday, or to what my 16 year old is talking about. I'm tired of feeling like a man out of time, stuck in arrested development. And plus I deserve some fun too! So don't be surprised if I am posting some pics of a new PS4 sometime soon.

If my life has to drain a bit for me to stop and enjoy the smell of the flowers once in a while, so be it. Its a worthy life to live and I've earned some peace.... Don't you think?

U2 announced a JOSHUA TREE 30th Anniversary tour. I might go. Just because. Why not. Right?
Chase the whimsies! Carpe diem.

Maybe in these things, I am getting better. Healthier. I'm not beating myself up as much for not working as hard. Maybe thats a good thing. Instead of thinking where I SHOULD be, enjoy where I AM NOW... what a concept! Am I capable of relaxing? I'd love to find out.

But also this week: I got asked from three different sources for commission work. The downloads of the Idiothead Morning Show Podcast and the blog hits remain constant. People are still out there and they care! I can't begin to explain what that means to me that you've stuck with me through all this shit! And all the positive words and vibes floating around about the Caleb comic really got me jazzed up, man. Seems like every day people are asking: When is Starslam 3 going to come out? How about the new Pleasant Life?

Point is, people care and still want me doing it. That is freaking awesome! I appreciate it, so much. I know I got an ending in site for all these things and I hope to achieve that. Its a ways off and I want to enjoy it while I can. Because life is a journey. Chase the dreams and whimsies and then come back to Earth and relax a bit with those you love in a home you earned. But I promise all these things to you. We're gonna land this bird and its going to be the best time ever. Maybe my zeal for these things is returning. Maybe I'm just ready to go again. Who knows, but right now, it just feels really good.

I'm keeping it together so far in 2017. How about you?

--T

Long Lost Projects

Hey friends. Before I launch into today's blog: A reminder that I will be at SUMMIT COMICS in Downtown Lansing this Saturday for their spooky Halloween fest! There will be contests, free comics and more. I will be set up from Noon-4pm selling books and my final left over prints. All my comics will be $10 each and my 11x17 prints will be $5 each or 3/$10. Blowing them out because I want them GONE! I will also have some leftover original art pieces all 1/2 off price. Blowing it all out! Come and see us!

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Okay, I want to talk about LOST PROJECTS of mine. Stuff I've worked on or teased in the past and it just sorta disappeared. There are lots of projects on my plate right now. (Starslam 3, Pleasant Life 2, Porn Store Tell All, Short Story/Poem book, Erotica Shorts/Patreon, Horror Anthology) and I am hoping by late next year these things will all be done and out. Thats my goal. But along the way I've started projects and had them stop for whatever reason or another. I thought I'd share a bit of history with them and whats the "latest" news on them... if there is any news! Longtime fans might remember me discussing these. But for newbies, this is all new info. So you can see how busy I've been over the years with various projects. Let's run down these long lost gems and see whats up with them!

ANNA POCALYPSE 2!

History: After the tradebook for Anna Pocalypse was released in 2011, I immediately announced and started working on a sequel. It hasn't been released yet!

Current Status: On Hold. I have about 65 pages done for it. But it takes a lot out of me to do this type of book. Its so dark and full of gun play (not my strength) and I also lost confidence in my coloring skills that I just got burned out on the project. Plus at the same time, Starslam took off and became more successful, so I shelved this book and continued working on Starslam books. But I would like to finish this project someday. Maybe after the current books I have promised are done and out. I don't like unfinished business! Plus the story is too good not to be an official part of the "canon" on her story. It really is amped up to 11. Anna is a brutal killing machine. Lots of blood and gore in this book. I would like to re-work some of the pages I already have done for it and make it the best I can possibly do.

Outlook: Probable... after 2017. 

THE OUTCAST! 

History: While doing the final Pleasant Life trade, Adam was working on this story about a goth girl who can channel and control the manifestations of ghosts and make them do her bidding.

Current Status: Shelved. I was into this story big time and it was going to be my next launch title after Pleasant Life. But I let it get away from me. I have about 90 pages done on it. No shit. Another 100 or so and it would be a complete project. Unfortunately, other things have come out that share the same title or theme and it would need to be reworked to not be confused with or by the other things. It is possible and I do love the story... but it would need some work to get it back to a workable state. Also some of the pages would have to be redone and some characters changed. The story got too broad for my original tastes. I'd have to simplify it and make it easier to finish. Its doable but its not on my radar as a possibility right now. But maybe some day.

Outlook: Who knows... 2018 at the EARLIEST. 

LINGERIE PARTY MASSACRE!

History: Announced and started on after Pleasant Life ended, I got about 5 pages into this and aborted it for work on Anna Pocalypse. 

Current Status: On Hold for the moment but will come out in some form in the next couple years as part of my new horror anthology movement. I have other horror stories taking the front seat at the moment but once all that is done, I will definitely give this one some attention. The title alone makes it BEG to be finished!

Outlook: Probable... after 2017. Or part of a Horror Anthology.

WISE INTELLIGENCE!

History: Writer Ryan McLelland met Adam after reviewing Pleasant Life for Newsarama. They then collaborated on this mini series of comics about college students/frat boys growing up. Issue #1-2 came out but the rest didn't!

Current Status: Finished, but needs to be relaunched. All the art is done and it is quite possible that Adam and Ryan might put all the work together, plus a bunch of mini things from other artists (including a pinup by Stranger in Paradise's Terry Moore) and release it as one big awesome anthology. They are talking about it.

Here are some more pages:  

A recent discussion on Facebook has generated some interest in the book and getting it completed and finally released. A Kickstarter may happen and get Adam's long lost tradebook out once and for all!

Outlook: Hopeful for a late 2016/Early 2017 release!

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So there you have some updates on some long lost comics I have done in the past. Hopefully they will see the light of day someday. I do have a few others I coulda talked about but nothing to show for them yet. File under: Someday.... before I get too old... or dead.

Luvs, T