Happy Fourth of July from the Hero Complex

 

Here's one from the vault, one of my favorite comic books as a kid. It's from 1976 (duh) and it's Jack Kirby's trippy tale of Cap jumping through time to connect with the spirit of the nation. He meets Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross (they design the American flag based on the strange visitor's garish costume), bumps into his deceased sidekick Bucky, spars with John L. Sullivan, gives a beat-down to some slavery-era bounty hunters and finds himself as an American solider in a disturbing future war on the moon.

So, you know, it's pretty much your average day for a Marvel Comics hero.

The book is sooooo over the top with its pumped-up patriotism. There's also a pinup gallery in the back with the hero in different historical garbs: "Colonial Cap," "Western Cap" and "Space-Age Cap"). Silly? Oh sure. Do I adore it? Yes and without reservation.

The star-spangled hero gives a speech at the end (did you have any doubt?) while surrounded by kids of every race, creed and color, all of them beaming like the insanely happy dolls at Disney's It's a Small World ride. Here's what he says: "That's America! A place of stubborn confidence -- where both young and old can hope and dream and wade through disappointment, despair and the crunch of events -- with the chance of making life meaningful!"

Well there you have it. Keep wading everybody. And if you're playing with fireworks today, please be careful; as I always tell my kids, you want to be Captain America on the Fourth of July, not the Human Torch . . . .

-- Geoff Boucher

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SEE IT HERE FIRST: FIVE PAGES OF "CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN" 

It's hard to keep a good man down and, well, practically impossible to keep a superhero dead.

Remember when Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, was killed in March 2007 by the shot heard 'round the world, especially if you live on the pop-culture planet inhabited by fanboys? Here's today's newsflash: He's feeling much better. 

On July 1, just in time for Independence Day, Marvel Comics will release the first of a five-issue arc called "Captain America Reborn," which will be written by Ed Brubaker (the star scribe who killed Cap off in the first place and was also behind the compelling "Criminal" series and a memorable run of "Daredevil") and drawn by Bryan Hitch (the British artist who was co-creator of "The Ultimates" and "The Authority").

The cover art, shown here on the right, is by John Cassaday, but there also a variant edition with an Alex Ross cover. (Update: And I hear now that there will also be a Joe Quesada cover, too)

As the title of "Captain America Reborn" suggests, the star-spangled warhorse who first appeared in 1941 is back in action, which is a huge relief to old-school geeks such as myself. And here at Hero Complex, I'm happy to say we've got a nifty scoop this morning: the first five pages of the first issue, which you can't find anywhere else for the next 24 hours. You'll find it below, and though this opening sequence doesn't reveal a whole lot of new story,  it nicely sets the gravity and tone of the series. And, come to think of it, what's more American than ... a preamble?

-- Geoff Boucher

 

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 was published, and throughout the year the mighty Hero Complex will be honoring that landmark moment in publishing history with special features. Today we have some amazing "house" ads from Timely Comics of the 1940s (the company that published Marvel Comics No. 1 in October of 1939 and would eventually evolve into Marvel Comics).      

The ad above appeared in "Sub-Mariner" No. 6 to promote "The Human Torch" No. 8. It's interesting how some character concepts endure through the years, even if only in name and visage. This Human Torch (created by Carl Burgos) was an android but his moniker and flaming image were so striking that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby recycled them when they created the Fantastic Four in 1961, ushering in the shining 1960s renaissance for the House of Ideas....

The ad below appeared in "Young Allies" No. 1 to promote "Captain America Comics" No. 7. Down near the bottom is a pitch for kids to join the patriotic hero's fan club: "Now you too can join Captain America's Sentinels of Liberty and thereby help Captain America and Bucky in their great war against spies in our country! Let's all get together behind Cap and be on the constant lookout for spies...." I bet a lot of kids groaned when they got to the price tag for membership. Dropping a dime in the mailbox was a major investment for youngsters in the summer of 1941....

Here's another great one below...

It's Tuesday and you're reading the latest editon of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe.

FUNNIES AND FINE ART: What a year for fanboy pursuits earning lofty artistic accolades. Heath Ledger may win an Oscar for playing the Joker and Neil Gaiman just picked up the Newbery Medal. And now the Louvre in Paris is hanging cartoons on its walls. Here's the story by Frank Browning: "The show was put together by Fabrice Douar, the director of the Louvre's publishing division, who commissioned three comic book artists to create wall-length strips set in the museum itself. Douar says he wanted to bring the museum into the 21st century and restore its role as a central part of the contemporary city — in short, to put a little bounce into the museum's sometimes intimidating marble atmosphere. Plus, Douar admits, the new exhibit fits well with his lifelong addiction to comic books, known as bandes dessinees in French. 'I've got this subversive love ... for bandes dessinees for a long time,' says Douar. 'I've got four brothers. ... All my brothers read bandes dessinees, and so I was born with bandes dessinees.' One day in 2002, Douar put his obsession together with his job as chief editor of Louvre books and — voila! — the idea for the exhibition was born. The three strips currently on display are in fact drawings from the first three comic books ever published by the Louvre. One, by artist Nicolas de Crecy, is set thousands of years in the future and features a museum guide who is a cross between a pig and a dog. De Crecy's pig-dog can speak intelligently about all of the museum's art objects — from the naked pre-Hellenic statuary to the Mona Lisa. In the strip, he's charged with leading a group of archaeologists through the museum. But the archaeologists, who believe they have discovered a lost city preserved beneath a glacier, get almost everything wrong when they look at the art." [National Public Radio]

GET YOUR SPOCK ON: Want to attend the Hollywood premiere of "Star Trek," the J.J. Abrams cinema revival of the most famous sci-fi television show ever? Well, all you have to do is make a video that displays your, um, informed passion for the Starfleet  universe. Between now and March 5, just upload a video (between 30-60 seconds long) in the Esurance Biggest Trekkie contest where you can vote on other people's entries and also compete yourself with Trek-lovers such as the frothy Nadina H. ("I think Scotty is sexy!") and the confessional Christopher S. ("I was once an overweight arrogant child...") as well as diminutive actor Michael J. Anderson, whom you may remember from "Twin Peaks," who has entered his Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock impression under a video with the delicate title of "Dwarf Trek." Set phasers on stunning! [Esurance]

CAPTAIN AMERICA, DISGRACED: It was big news last March when Ed Brubaker and Marvel Comics killed off Steve Rogers, the man who so valiantly carried the shield of Captain America beginning in the 1940s. The news that he had been assassinated on the page must have hit Cap pretty hard because a few weeks later, it turns out, the old warhorse was arrested down in Melbourne, Fla., after some alleged pervy behavior (groping women in a bar) and also for pot possession. Oh my stars, what would Bucky think? Oh, wait, it wasn't the real hero it was just a guy in a Captain America costume. Well, the jailhouse video is still oddly hysterical to watch as the suspect (a beefy 54-year-old guy named Raymond Adamcik) is marched into the station house wearing cuffs and his mask. My favorite line from the police report: "Because there were so many cartoon characters in the bar at this time, all Captain Americas were asked to go outside for a possible identification." [The Smoking Gun]

BRETT RATNER ... AGAIN: Wow, director Brett Ratner sure flirts with a lot of different projects. The "X-Men: The Last Stand" director is supposed to be making a Hugh Hefner movie, a feature on Frank Sinatra's longtime valet, a "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel and maybe-possibly a Conan movie. Now comes a story in the trades that adds another one to the list, a film adaptation of "Youngblood" for Reliance Big Entertainment: "The Indian media conglom has acquired Rob Liefeld’s iconic graphic novel “Youngblood” for Brett Ratner to direct. Reliance inked a development deal with Ratner’s shingle Rat Entertainment, as well as Julia Roberts’ Red Om Films, during the Berlin film fest. The company paid mid six figures for the rights to 'Youngblood,' about a superhero team sanctioned and overseen by the U.S. government. Project is the first to emanate from the Indian media conglom’s nine development pacts with Hollywood talent. 'Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and ‘Youngblood’ is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential,' Ratner told Daily Variety. 'It was a real personal passion project for me, and a lot of people wanted (‘Youngblood’), but the amazing thing about the guys at Reliance is the speed with which they’re able to move.' Reliance has also acquired the rights to French graphic novel 'Fly Wires' for Ratner’s shingle. Project, which will be renamed 'Infinity,' will be produced by Ratner, who has already tapped Sylvain White ('Stomp the Yard') to direct and John Collee ('Master and Commander') to pen the script." [Daily Variety] (P.S.: Am I only the only one who laughed out  loud when this Variety story referred to "Youngblood" as "iconic"?)

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE: Plenty of you know Charles Ross and his one-man shows intepreting the "Star Wars" films (he did some fun commercials for Cinemax a while back, you can watch one of them below). Kathy Ceceri wrote about Ross and his stage show recently and it sounds better than ever: "Charles Ross makes a living doing something other people do on YouTube for free: he reenacts the entire original 'Star Wars' trilogy. No props, no costumes, and the only effects are done with lighting. Ross is from Canada, and has said he got the idea playing a kind of ''Star Wars' Frisbee,' where each player had to quote a line with each catch. He's been doing One-Man Star Wars since 2002, and has performed live on stages around the world, including Star Wars Celebration III and IV. We saw him last week at Proctor's Theatre in Schenectady, N.Y., and really enjoyed it. (Adding to the party atmosphere were members of the 501st Legion Garrison, who let folks pose for pictures with Darth Vader, Princess Leia or R2-D2 to raise money for charity. ) Anyone who knows the stories by heart (and I assume that includes everyone reading this) should be able to pick up all the characters and in-jokes Ross throws out.  But he does skip some parts and rushes through others, so a non-geek might have trouble following the plots. Ross does a spot-on impressions of Obi-Wan, R2 and Chewbacca. His Luke was even whinier than in the films. He didn't really try to imitate James Earl Jones' deep baritone, but his Jabba the Hutt -- done with flapping arm motions -- was priceless. And through it all he tossed in his own fanboy observations about the series, including banter with the kids in the audience about the merits of Jar Jar Binks." [Wired]

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, so all year long we'll be celebrating that publishing landmark with special features. Today it's the second installment of "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the comics-fandom parodist, lovingly revisits classic Marvel covers...

Fred Hembeck here again! Some of you may remember me as the guy who destroyed the entire Marvel Universe but today I come to praise the House of Ideas, not to bury it!

To help the mighty Hero Complex celebrate the 70th birthday of Marvel I've been digging into my vault of Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) also happen to be available for purchase.

Last week I went back to the genesis of Marvel's patriotic icon Captain America (you can read Part 1 here) and today we Super-Soldier on with Part 2!

Hmmmm. Cap seems to have tumbled into a strange parallel dimension where everyone has squiggles on their knees...

"Captain America" #100 (April 1968)  Jack Kirby and Syd Shores, original artists

Inheriting the numbering from Tales of Suspense, his erstwhile (and now discontinued) home, Cap had himself an entire book to move around in (not to worry armor lovers -- Iron Man received the full length treatment as well). In this debut issue, we get a quick retelling of the events of The Avengers No. 4, as well as more of his then ongoing adventures alongside another Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stalwart, the Black Panther. Believe me when I tell you I was just totally thrilled that my fave good guy finally got his own ongoing book -- drawn by Kirby, happily!! 

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK: Steve Rogers is back as Captain America

SEE IT HERE FIRST: FIVE PAGES OF "CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN" 

It's hard to keep a good man down and, well, practically impossible to keep a superhero dead.

Remember when Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, was killed in March 2007 by the shot heard 'round the world, especially if you live on the pop-culture planet inhabited by fanboys? Here's today's newsflash: He's feeling much better. 

On July 1, just in time for Independence Day, Marvel Comics will release the first of a five-issue arc called "Captain America Reborn," which will be written by Ed Brubaker (the star scribe who killed Cap off in the first place and was also behind the compelling "Criminal" series and a memorable run of "Daredevil") and drawn by Bryan Hitch (the British artist who was co-creator of "The Ultimates" and "The Authority").

The cover art, shown here on the right, is by John Cassaday, but there also a variant edition with an Alex Ross cover. (Update: And I hear now that there will also be a Joe Quesada cover, too)

As the title of "Captain America Reborn" suggests, the star-spangled warhorse who first appeared in 1941 is back in action, which is a huge relief to old-school geeks such as myself. And here at Hero Complex, I'm happy to say we've got a nifty scoop this morning: the first five pages of the first issue, which you can't find anywhere else for the next 24 hours. You'll find it below, and though this opening sequence doesn't reveal a whole lot of new story,  it nicely sets the gravity and tone of the series. And, come to think of it, what's more American than ... a preamble?

-- Geoff Boucher

 

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 was published, and throughout the year the mighty Hero Complex will be honoring that landmark moment in publishing history with special features. Today we have some amazing "house" ads from Timely Comics of the 1940s (the company that published Marvel Comics No. 1 in October of 1939 and would eventually evolve into Marvel Comics).      

The ad above appeared in "Sub-Mariner" No. 6 to promote "The Human Torch" No. 8. It's interesting how some character concepts endure through the years, even if only in name and visage. This Human Torch (created by Carl Burgos) was an android but his moniker and flaming image were so striking that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby recycled them when they created the Fantastic Four in 1961, ushering in the shining 1960s renaissance for the House of Ideas....

The ad below appeared in "Young Allies" No. 1 to promote "Captain America Comics" No. 7. Down near the bottom is a pitch for kids to join the patriotic hero's fan club: "Now you too can join Captain America's Sentinels of Liberty and thereby help Captain America and Bucky in their great war against spies in our country! Let's all get together behind Cap and be on the constant lookout for spies...." I bet a lot of kids groaned when they got to the price tag for membership. Dropping a dime in the mailbox was a major investment for youngsters in the summer of 1941....

Here's another great one below...

It's Tuesday and you're reading the latest editon of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe.

FUNNIES AND FINE ART: What a year for fanboy pursuits earning lofty artistic accolades. Heath Ledger may win an Oscar for playing the Joker and Neil Gaiman just picked up the Newbery Medal. And now the Louvre in Paris is hanging cartoons on its walls. Here's the story by Frank Browning: "The show was put together by Fabrice Douar, the director of the Louvre's publishing division, who commissioned three comic book artists to create wall-length strips set in the museum itself. Douar says he wanted to bring the museum into the 21st century and restore its role as a central part of the contemporary city — in short, to put a little bounce into the museum's sometimes intimidating marble atmosphere. Plus, Douar admits, the new exhibit fits well with his lifelong addiction to comic books, known as bandes dessinees in French. 'I've got this subversive love ... for bandes dessinees for a long time,' says Douar. 'I've got four brothers. ... All my brothers read bandes dessinees, and so I was born with bandes dessinees.' One day in 2002, Douar put his obsession together with his job as chief editor of Louvre books and — voila! — the idea for the exhibition was born. The three strips currently on display are in fact drawings from the first three comic books ever published by the Louvre. One, by artist Nicolas de Crecy, is set thousands of years in the future and features a museum guide who is a cross between a pig and a dog. De Crecy's pig-dog can speak intelligently about all of the museum's art objects — from the naked pre-Hellenic statuary to the Mona Lisa. In the strip, he's charged with leading a group of archaeologists through the museum. But the archaeologists, who believe they have discovered a lost city preserved beneath a glacier, get almost everything wrong when they look at the art." [National Public Radio]

GET YOUR SPOCK ON: Want to attend the Hollywood premiere of "Star Trek," the J.J. Abrams cinema revival of the most famous sci-fi television show ever? Well, all you have to do is make a video that displays your, um, informed passion for the Starfleet  universe. Between now and March 5, just upload a video (between 30-60 seconds long) in the Esurance Biggest Trekkie contest where you can vote on other people's entries and also compete yourself with Trek-lovers such as the frothy Nadina H. ("I think Scotty is sexy!") and the confessional Christopher S. ("I was once an overweight arrogant child...") as well as diminutive actor Michael J. Anderson, whom you may remember from "Twin Peaks," who has entered his Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock impression under a video with the delicate title of "Dwarf Trek." Set phasers on stunning! [Esurance]

CAPTAIN AMERICA, DISGRACED: It was big news last March when Ed Brubaker and Marvel Comics killed off Steve Rogers, the man who so valiantly carried the shield of Captain America beginning in the 1940s. The news that he had been assassinated on the page must have hit Cap pretty hard because a few weeks later, it turns out, the old warhorse was arrested down in Melbourne, Fla., after some alleged pervy behavior (groping women in a bar) and also for pot possession. Oh my stars, what would Bucky think? Oh, wait, it wasn't the real hero it was just a guy in a Captain America costume. Well, the jailhouse video is still oddly hysterical to watch as the suspect (a beefy 54-year-old guy named Raymond Adamcik) is marched into the station house wearing cuffs and his mask. My favorite line from the police report: "Because there were so many cartoon characters in the bar at this time, all Captain Americas were asked to go outside for a possible identification." [The Smoking Gun]

BRETT RATNER ... AGAIN: Wow, director Brett Ratner sure flirts with a lot of different projects. The "X-Men: The Last Stand" director is supposed to be making a Hugh Hefner movie, a feature on Frank Sinatra's longtime valet, a "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel and maybe-possibly a Conan movie. Now comes a story in the trades that adds another one to the list, a film adaptation of "Youngblood" for Reliance Big Entertainment: "The Indian media conglom has acquired Rob Liefeld’s iconic graphic novel “Youngblood” for Brett Ratner to direct. Reliance inked a development deal with Ratner’s shingle Rat Entertainment, as well as Julia Roberts’ Red Om Films, during the Berlin film fest. The company paid mid six figures for the rights to 'Youngblood,' about a superhero team sanctioned and overseen by the U.S. government. Project is the first to emanate from the Indian media conglom’s nine development pacts with Hollywood talent. 'Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and ‘Youngblood’ is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential,' Ratner told Daily Variety. 'It was a real personal passion project for me, and a lot of people wanted (‘Youngblood’), but the amazing thing about the guys at Reliance is the speed with which they’re able to move.' Reliance has also acquired the rights to French graphic novel 'Fly Wires' for Ratner’s shingle. Project, which will be renamed 'Infinity,' will be produced by Ratner, who has already tapped Sylvain White ('Stomp the Yard') to direct and John Collee ('Master and Commander') to pen the script." [Daily Variety] (P.S.: Am I only the only one who laughed out  loud when this Variety story referred to "Youngblood" as "iconic"?)

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE: Plenty of you know Charles Ross and his one-man shows intepreting the "Star Wars" films (he did some fun commercials for Cinemax a while back, you can watch one of them below). Kathy Ceceri wrote about Ross and his stage show recently and it sounds better than ever: "Charles Ross makes a living doing something other people do on YouTube for free: he reenacts the entire original 'Star Wars' trilogy. No props, no costumes, and the only effects are done with lighting. Ross is from Canada, and has said he got the idea playing a kind of ''Star Wars' Frisbee,' where each player had to quote a line with each catch. He's been doing One-Man Star Wars since 2002, and has performed live on stages around the world, including Star Wars Celebration III and IV. We saw him last week at Proctor's Theatre in Schenectady, N.Y., and really enjoyed it. (Adding to the party atmosphere were members of the 501st Legion Garrison, who let folks pose for pictures with Darth Vader, Princess Leia or R2-D2 to raise money for charity. ) Anyone who knows the stories by heart (and I assume that includes everyone reading this) should be able to pick up all the characters and in-jokes Ross throws out.  But he does skip some parts and rushes through others, so a non-geek might have trouble following the plots. Ross does a spot-on impressions of Obi-Wan, R2 and Chewbacca. His Luke was even whinier than in the films. He didn't really try to imitate James Earl Jones' deep baritone, but his Jabba the Hutt -- done with flapping arm motions -- was priceless. And through it all he tossed in his own fanboy observations about the series, including banter with the kids in the audience about the merits of Jar Jar Binks." [Wired]

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, so all year long we'll be celebrating that publishing landmark with special features. Today it's the second installment of "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the comics-fandom parodist, lovingly revisits classic Marvel covers...

Fred Hembeck here again! Some of you may remember me as the guy who destroyed the entire Marvel Universe but today I come to praise the House of Ideas, not to bury it!

To help the mighty Hero Complex celebrate the 70th birthday of Marvel I've been digging into my vault of Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) also happen to be available for purchase.

Last week I went back to the genesis of Marvel's patriotic icon Captain America (you can read Part 1 here) and today we Super-Soldier on with Part 2!

Hmmmm. Cap seems to have tumbled into a strange parallel dimension where everyone has squiggles on their knees...

"Captain America" #100 (April 1968)  Jack Kirby and Syd Shores, original artists

Inheriting the numbering from Tales of Suspense, his erstwhile (and now discontinued) home, Cap had himself an entire book to move around in (not to worry armor lovers -- Iron Man received the full length treatment as well). In this debut issue, we get a quick retelling of the events of The Avengers No. 4, as well as more of his then ongoing adventures alongside another Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stalwart, the Black Panther. Believe me when I tell you I was just totally thrilled that my fave good guy finally got his own ongoing book -- drawn by Kirby, happily!! 

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

Marvel flashback: Classic ads from the Golden Age

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 was published, and throughout the year the mighty Hero Complex will be honoring that landmark moment in publishing history with special features. Today we have some amazing "house" ads from Timely Comics of the 1940s (the company that published Marvel Comics No. 1 in October of 1939 and would eventually evolve into Marvel Comics).      

The ad above appeared in "Sub-Mariner" No. 6 to promote "The Human Torch" No. 8. It's interesting how some character concepts endure through the years, even if only in name and visage. This Human Torch (created by Carl Burgos) was an android but his moniker and flaming image were so striking that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby recycled them when they created the Fantastic Four in 1961, ushering in the shining 1960s renaissance for the House of Ideas....

The ad below appeared in "Young Allies" No. 1 to promote "Captain America Comics" No. 7. Down near the bottom is a pitch for kids to join the patriotic hero's fan club: "Now you too can join Captain America's Sentinels of Liberty and thereby help Captain America and Bucky in their great war against spies in our country! Let's all get together behind Cap and be on the constant lookout for spies...." I bet a lot of kids groaned when they got to the price tag for membership. Dropping a dime in the mailbox was a major investment for youngsters in the summer of 1941....

Here's another great one below...

It's Tuesday and you're reading the latest editon of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe.

FUNNIES AND FINE ART: What a year for fanboy pursuits earning lofty artistic accolades. Heath Ledger may win an Oscar for playing the Joker and Neil Gaiman just picked up the Newbery Medal. And now the Louvre in Paris is hanging cartoons on its walls. Here's the story by Frank Browning: "The show was put together by Fabrice Douar, the director of the Louvre's publishing division, who commissioned three comic book artists to create wall-length strips set in the museum itself. Douar says he wanted to bring the museum into the 21st century and restore its role as a central part of the contemporary city — in short, to put a little bounce into the museum's sometimes intimidating marble atmosphere. Plus, Douar admits, the new exhibit fits well with his lifelong addiction to comic books, known as bandes dessinees in French. 'I've got this subversive love ... for bandes dessinees for a long time,' says Douar. 'I've got four brothers. ... All my brothers read bandes dessinees, and so I was born with bandes dessinees.' One day in 2002, Douar put his obsession together with his job as chief editor of Louvre books and — voila! — the idea for the exhibition was born. The three strips currently on display are in fact drawings from the first three comic books ever published by the Louvre. One, by artist Nicolas de Crecy, is set thousands of years in the future and features a museum guide who is a cross between a pig and a dog. De Crecy's pig-dog can speak intelligently about all of the museum's art objects — from the naked pre-Hellenic statuary to the Mona Lisa. In the strip, he's charged with leading a group of archaeologists through the museum. But the archaeologists, who believe they have discovered a lost city preserved beneath a glacier, get almost everything wrong when they look at the art." [National Public Radio]

GET YOUR SPOCK ON: Want to attend the Hollywood premiere of "Star Trek," the J.J. Abrams cinema revival of the most famous sci-fi television show ever? Well, all you have to do is make a video that displays your, um, informed passion for the Starfleet  universe. Between now and March 5, just upload a video (between 30-60 seconds long) in the Esurance Biggest Trekkie contest where you can vote on other people's entries and also compete yourself with Trek-lovers such as the frothy Nadina H. ("I think Scotty is sexy!") and the confessional Christopher S. ("I was once an overweight arrogant child...") as well as diminutive actor Michael J. Anderson, whom you may remember from "Twin Peaks," who has entered his Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock impression under a video with the delicate title of "Dwarf Trek." Set phasers on stunning! [Esurance]

CAPTAIN AMERICA, DISGRACED: It was big news last March when Ed Brubaker and Marvel Comics killed off Steve Rogers, the man who so valiantly carried the shield of Captain America beginning in the 1940s. The news that he had been assassinated on the page must have hit Cap pretty hard because a few weeks later, it turns out, the old warhorse was arrested down in Melbourne, Fla., after some alleged pervy behavior (groping women in a bar) and also for pot possession. Oh my stars, what would Bucky think? Oh, wait, it wasn't the real hero it was just a guy in a Captain America costume. Well, the jailhouse video is still oddly hysterical to watch as the suspect (a beefy 54-year-old guy named Raymond Adamcik) is marched into the station house wearing cuffs and his mask. My favorite line from the police report: "Because there were so many cartoon characters in the bar at this time, all Captain Americas were asked to go outside for a possible identification." [The Smoking Gun]

BRETT RATNER ... AGAIN: Wow, director Brett Ratner sure flirts with a lot of different projects. The "X-Men: The Last Stand" director is supposed to be making a Hugh Hefner movie, a feature on Frank Sinatra's longtime valet, a "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel and maybe-possibly a Conan movie. Now comes a story in the trades that adds another one to the list, a film adaptation of "Youngblood" for Reliance Big Entertainment: "The Indian media conglom has acquired Rob Liefeld’s iconic graphic novel “Youngblood” for Brett Ratner to direct. Reliance inked a development deal with Ratner’s shingle Rat Entertainment, as well as Julia Roberts’ Red Om Films, during the Berlin film fest. The company paid mid six figures for the rights to 'Youngblood,' about a superhero team sanctioned and overseen by the U.S. government. Project is the first to emanate from the Indian media conglom’s nine development pacts with Hollywood talent. 'Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and ‘Youngblood’ is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential,' Ratner told Daily Variety. 'It was a real personal passion project for me, and a lot of people wanted (‘Youngblood’), but the amazing thing about the guys at Reliance is the speed with which they’re able to move.' Reliance has also acquired the rights to French graphic novel 'Fly Wires' for Ratner’s shingle. Project, which will be renamed 'Infinity,' will be produced by Ratner, who has already tapped Sylvain White ('Stomp the Yard') to direct and John Collee ('Master and Commander') to pen the script." [Daily Variety] (P.S.: Am I only the only one who laughed out  loud when this Variety story referred to "Youngblood" as "iconic"?)

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE: Plenty of you know Charles Ross and his one-man shows intepreting the "Star Wars" films (he did some fun commercials for Cinemax a while back, you can watch one of them below). Kathy Ceceri wrote about Ross and his stage show recently and it sounds better than ever: "Charles Ross makes a living doing something other people do on YouTube for free: he reenacts the entire original 'Star Wars' trilogy. No props, no costumes, and the only effects are done with lighting. Ross is from Canada, and has said he got the idea playing a kind of ''Star Wars' Frisbee,' where each player had to quote a line with each catch. He's been doing One-Man Star Wars since 2002, and has performed live on stages around the world, including Star Wars Celebration III and IV. We saw him last week at Proctor's Theatre in Schenectady, N.Y., and really enjoyed it. (Adding to the party atmosphere were members of the 501st Legion Garrison, who let folks pose for pictures with Darth Vader, Princess Leia or R2-D2 to raise money for charity. ) Anyone who knows the stories by heart (and I assume that includes everyone reading this) should be able to pick up all the characters and in-jokes Ross throws out.  But he does skip some parts and rushes through others, so a non-geek might have trouble following the plots. Ross does a spot-on impressions of Obi-Wan, R2 and Chewbacca. His Luke was even whinier than in the films. He didn't really try to imitate James Earl Jones' deep baritone, but his Jabba the Hutt -- done with flapping arm motions -- was priceless. And through it all he tossed in his own fanboy observations about the series, including banter with the kids in the audience about the merits of Jar Jar Binks." [Wired]

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, so all year long we'll be celebrating that publishing landmark with special features. Today it's the second installment of "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the comics-fandom parodist, lovingly revisits classic Marvel covers...

Fred Hembeck here again! Some of you may remember me as the guy who destroyed the entire Marvel Universe but today I come to praise the House of Ideas, not to bury it!

To help the mighty Hero Complex celebrate the 70th birthday of Marvel I've been digging into my vault of Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) also happen to be available for purchase.

Last week I went back to the genesis of Marvel's patriotic icon Captain America (you can read Part 1 here) and today we Super-Soldier on with Part 2!

Hmmmm. Cap seems to have tumbled into a strange parallel dimension where everyone has squiggles on their knees...

"Captain America" #100 (April 1968)  Jack Kirby and Syd Shores, original artists

Inheriting the numbering from Tales of Suspense, his erstwhile (and now discontinued) home, Cap had himself an entire book to move around in (not to worry armor lovers -- Iron Man received the full length treatment as well). In this debut issue, we get a quick retelling of the events of The Avengers No. 4, as well as more of his then ongoing adventures alongside another Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stalwart, the Black Panther. Believe me when I tell you I was just totally thrilled that my fave good guy finally got his own ongoing book -- drawn by Kirby, happily!! 

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

'Star Trek,' Captain America and 'Youngblood,' all in Everyday Hero headlines

It's Tuesday and you're reading the latest editon of Everyday Hero, your roundup of handpicked headlines from across the fanboy universe.

FUNNIES AND FINE ART: What a year for fanboy pursuits earning lofty artistic accolades. Heath Ledger may win an Oscar for playing the Joker and Neil Gaiman just picked up the Newbery Medal. And now the Louvre in Paris is hanging cartoons on its walls. Here's the story by Frank Browning: "The show was put together by Fabrice Douar, the director of the Louvre's publishing division, who commissioned three comic book artists to create wall-length strips set in the museum itself. Douar says he wanted to bring the museum into the 21st century and restore its role as a central part of the contemporary city — in short, to put a little bounce into the museum's sometimes intimidating marble atmosphere. Plus, Douar admits, the new exhibit fits well with his lifelong addiction to comic books, known as bandes dessinees in French. 'I've got this subversive love ... for bandes dessinees for a long time,' says Douar. 'I've got four brothers. ... All my brothers read bandes dessinees, and so I was born with bandes dessinees.' One day in 2002, Douar put his obsession together with his job as chief editor of Louvre books and — voila! — the idea for the exhibition was born. The three strips currently on display are in fact drawings from the first three comic books ever published by the Louvre. One, by artist Nicolas de Crecy, is set thousands of years in the future and features a museum guide who is a cross between a pig and a dog. De Crecy's pig-dog can speak intelligently about all of the museum's art objects — from the naked pre-Hellenic statuary to the Mona Lisa. In the strip, he's charged with leading a group of archaeologists through the museum. But the archaeologists, who believe they have discovered a lost city preserved beneath a glacier, get almost everything wrong when they look at the art." [National Public Radio]

GET YOUR SPOCK ON: Want to attend the Hollywood premiere of "Star Trek," the J.J. Abrams cinema revival of the most famous sci-fi television show ever? Well, all you have to do is make a video that displays your, um, informed passion for the Starfleet  universe. Between now and March 5, just upload a video (between 30-60 seconds long) in the Esurance Biggest Trekkie contest where you can vote on other people's entries and also compete yourself with Trek-lovers such as the frothy Nadina H. ("I think Scotty is sexy!") and the confessional Christopher S. ("I was once an overweight arrogant child...") as well as diminutive actor Michael J. Anderson, whom you may remember from "Twin Peaks," who has entered his Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock impression under a video with the delicate title of "Dwarf Trek." Set phasers on stunning! [Esurance]

CAPTAIN AMERICA, DISGRACED: It was big news last March when Ed Brubaker and Marvel Comics killed off Steve Rogers, the man who so valiantly carried the shield of Captain America beginning in the 1940s. The news that he had been assassinated on the page must have hit Cap pretty hard because a few weeks later, it turns out, the old warhorse was arrested down in Melbourne, Fla., after some alleged pervy behavior (groping women in a bar) and also for pot possession. Oh my stars, what would Bucky think? Oh, wait, it wasn't the real hero it was just a guy in a Captain America costume. Well, the jailhouse video is still oddly hysterical to watch as the suspect (a beefy 54-year-old guy named Raymond Adamcik) is marched into the station house wearing cuffs and his mask. My favorite line from the police report: "Because there were so many cartoon characters in the bar at this time, all Captain Americas were asked to go outside for a possible identification." [The Smoking Gun]

BRETT RATNER ... AGAIN: Wow, director Brett Ratner sure flirts with a lot of different projects. The "X-Men: The Last Stand" director is supposed to be making a Hugh Hefner movie, a feature on Frank Sinatra's longtime valet, a "Beverly Hills Cop" sequel and maybe-possibly a Conan movie. Now comes a story in the trades that adds another one to the list, a film adaptation of "Youngblood" for Reliance Big Entertainment: "The Indian media conglom has acquired Rob Liefeld’s iconic graphic novel “Youngblood” for Brett Ratner to direct. Reliance inked a development deal with Ratner’s shingle Rat Entertainment, as well as Julia Roberts’ Red Om Films, during the Berlin film fest. The company paid mid six figures for the rights to 'Youngblood,' about a superhero team sanctioned and overseen by the U.S. government. Project is the first to emanate from the Indian media conglom’s nine development pacts with Hollywood talent. 'Most of the great graphic novels are gone, and ‘Youngblood’ is one of the few comic books left with tentpole potential,' Ratner told Daily Variety. 'It was a real personal passion project for me, and a lot of people wanted (‘Youngblood’), but the amazing thing about the guys at Reliance is the speed with which they’re able to move.' Reliance has also acquired the rights to French graphic novel 'Fly Wires' for Ratner’s shingle. Project, which will be renamed 'Infinity,' will be produced by Ratner, who has already tapped Sylvain White ('Stomp the Yard') to direct and John Collee ('Master and Commander') to pen the script." [Daily Variety] (P.S.: Am I only the only one who laughed out  loud when this Variety story referred to "Youngblood" as "iconic"?)

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE: Plenty of you know Charles Ross and his one-man shows intepreting the "Star Wars" films (he did some fun commercials for Cinemax a while back, you can watch one of them below). Kathy Ceceri wrote about Ross and his stage show recently and it sounds better than ever: "Charles Ross makes a living doing something other people do on YouTube for free: he reenacts the entire original 'Star Wars' trilogy. No props, no costumes, and the only effects are done with lighting. Ross is from Canada, and has said he got the idea playing a kind of ''Star Wars' Frisbee,' where each player had to quote a line with each catch. He's been doing One-Man Star Wars since 2002, and has performed live on stages around the world, including Star Wars Celebration III and IV. We saw him last week at Proctor's Theatre in Schenectady, N.Y., and really enjoyed it. (Adding to the party atmosphere were members of the 501st Legion Garrison, who let folks pose for pictures with Darth Vader, Princess Leia or R2-D2 to raise money for charity. ) Anyone who knows the stories by heart (and I assume that includes everyone reading this) should be able to pick up all the characters and in-jokes Ross throws out.  But he does skip some parts and rushes through others, so a non-geek might have trouble following the plots. Ross does a spot-on impressions of Obi-Wan, R2 and Chewbacca. His Luke was even whinier than in the films. He didn't really try to imitate James Earl Jones' deep baritone, but his Jabba the Hutt -- done with flapping arm motions -- was priceless. And through it all he tossed in his own fanboy observations about the series, including banter with the kids in the audience about the merits of Jar Jar Binks." [Wired]

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, so all year long we'll be celebrating that publishing landmark with special features. Today it's the second installment of "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the comics-fandom parodist, lovingly revisits classic Marvel covers...

Fred Hembeck here again! Some of you may remember me as the guy who destroyed the entire Marvel Universe but today I come to praise the House of Ideas, not to bury it!

To help the mighty Hero Complex celebrate the 70th birthday of Marvel I've been digging into my vault of Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) also happen to be available for purchase.

Last week I went back to the genesis of Marvel's patriotic icon Captain America (you can read Part 1 here) and today we Super-Soldier on with Part 2!

Hmmmm. Cap seems to have tumbled into a strange parallel dimension where everyone has squiggles on their knees...

"Captain America" #100 (April 1968)  Jack Kirby and Syd Shores, original artists

Inheriting the numbering from Tales of Suspense, his erstwhile (and now discontinued) home, Cap had himself an entire book to move around in (not to worry armor lovers -- Iron Man received the full length treatment as well). In this debut issue, we get a quick retelling of the events of The Avengers No. 4, as well as more of his then ongoing adventures alongside another Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stalwart, the Black Panther. Believe me when I tell you I was just totally thrilled that my fave good guy finally got his own ongoing book -- drawn by Kirby, happily!! 

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex: Captain America (Part 2)

It was 70 years ago that Marvel Comics No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, so all year long we'll be celebrating that publishing landmark with special features. Today it's the second installment of "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the comics-fandom parodist, lovingly revisits classic Marvel covers...

Fred Hembeck here again! Some of you may remember me as the guy who destroyed the entire Marvel Universe but today I come to praise the House of Ideas, not to bury it!

To help the mighty Hero Complex celebrate the 70th birthday of Marvel I've been digging into my vault of Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) also happen to be available for purchase.

Last week I went back to the genesis of Marvel's patriotic icon Captain America (you can read Part 1 here) and today we Super-Soldier on with Part 2!

Hmmmm. Cap seems to have tumbled into a strange parallel dimension where everyone has squiggles on their knees...

"Captain America" #100 (April 1968)  Jack Kirby and Syd Shores, original artists

Inheriting the numbering from Tales of Suspense, his erstwhile (and now discontinued) home, Cap had himself an entire book to move around in (not to worry armor lovers -- Iron Man received the full length treatment as well). In this debut issue, we get a quick retelling of the events of The Avengers No. 4, as well as more of his then ongoing adventures alongside another Stan Lee/Jack Kirby stalwart, the Black Panther. Believe me when I tell you I was just totally thrilled that my fave good guy finally got his own ongoing book -- drawn by Kirby, happily!! 

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex: Captain America (Part 1)

It was 70 years ago that "Marvel Comics" No. 1 hit the newsstands of America, and all year long we'll be marking that key pivot point in publishing history with special features. One of those features will be "Fred Hembeck's Hero Complex," where Fred Hembeck, the parody master of comics fandom, lovingly lampoons classic Marvel covers. Take it away, Fred...

My name is Fred Hembeck. Some of you may know me from when I destroyed the Marvel Universe a while back (turns out it didn't stick ...), others from the countless goofy little cartoons I've done over the years spoofing the entire comics medium.

The fine folks at Hero Complex -- that'd be Geoff Boucher; thanks, buddy! -- have kindly invited me to dig through my files and, every few weeks, share a selection of my Classic Cover Redos, which (ahem) happen to be available for purchase.

Since The House of Ideas is celebrating a noteworthy birthday in 2009 -- the 70th, makes them older than me even -- Geoff thought it might be nice to throw a spotlight on some of my Marvel work, and who better to start with than a two-part series chronicling the exploits of the dude who claims Betsy Ross as his all-time favorite fashion designer ... Captain America!

"Captain America" No. 1 (March 1941) Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, original artists

THIS is where it all began! Months before the U.S. entered the fray, Timely publisher Martin Goodman gave co-creators Simon and Kirby the go-ahead to have their spanking new star-spangled hero land one square on Hitler's jaw!! And I think we all know by now that he sure had it coming! Not a bad way to launch a career, not a bad way at all...

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

'Twilight' triumphs, the Jonah Hex jinx and Captain America casting in Everyday Hero headlines

"Twilight" zone: There is apparently some new movie about vampires called "Dawn" or "Twilight" or something like that. If you want to know more you can read this Los Angeles Times review by critic Kenny Turan, who says the movie actually makes him wish he could be a 13-year-old girl. Or you can check out Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood blog for an appraisal of the early box-office totals. Or investigate this CNN report about how some of the rabid fans are giving star Kristen Stewart the creeps because they are so jealous of her on-screen smooches with the hunky vampire guy. Or you can peruse this TV Guide story about said bloodsucker, Robert Pattinson, who is getting a bit creeped out himself ("You get little girls like, 'I want to have your babies!' It's like, seriously. I don't even want to have my babies."). Or you can explore this Fangoria story on director Catherine Hardwicke and the curious importance of blow dryers during the making of a film that appears to be poised for truly staggering success. Or, finally, you can read this you-are-there piece by Yvonne Villarreal of the Los Angeles Times, who braved a midnight showing of "Twilight" to mind-meld with the fans. Or you could just shrug and wait for the DVD so you don't have to put up with the squealing fans at the theaters.

"Hex," jinxed?: The "Jonah Hex" film is looking like it's all hat and no cattle. Variety reported the other day that "Crank" co-directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor had left the project and that the producers were in a scramble for a new director to keep Josh Brolin ("W," "No Country for Old Men") in the saddle for the adaptation of the story of the grim, disfigured bounty hunter from DC Comics. Brolin talked recently to MTV about the project and he sounded a bit, uh, conflicted about the role. Excerpts: "When I first read it, I thought, 'Oh my God, it's awful!' And then I had a moment a week later, and I thought, 'Why is it awful?' Maybe the thing to do is to do the most awful movie I can find.... In the last couple months, I've been going back and forth about it. I went back to my gut: 'Is it a sellout? What is it I like about this movie?' ... It's so tongue-in-cheek. It's so ridiculous. But once I started putting people in my mind and saying, 'What if I put [John] Malkovich in this role. Then what does this movie become? Now let's put this producer and director on it and think about how it plays out.' Then it becomes fun. Now I love that movie. If you have a great filmmaker come in, then suddenly, these gags and characters become interesting." Yeah, Josh, or maybe not. [MTV Movie News]

O Captain! My Captain: There are few things we fanboys love more than imaginary casting contests. Matt Brady knows that full well, so he had some fun surveying his readers about who should be carrying the red-white-and-blue shield in the Marvel Studios "First Avenger: Captain America." Votes came in for Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey, Jamie Bamber (Apollo on "Battlestar Galactica") and Howie Long, the Hall of Fame defensive lineman who mauled quarterbacks for the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. The winner? That would be Mark Valley, shown in the photo next to the star-spangled avenger. "Among readers who voted for Valley, many cited the actor's physical similarity to Steve Rogers as well as the fact that he is a veteran, having served in Operation Desert Storm. Valley currently appears as Agent John Scott in Fox's Fringe, but if Newsarama readers are any indication, his acting in Keen Eddie and Boston Legal put him on the radar of many fans as a possible Captain America." [Newsarama]

Calling Dick Tracy; come in, Tracy: Warren Beatty's "Dick Tracy" from 1990 yielded seven Oscar nominations (including a best supporting actor nomination for Al Pacino -- which makes you wonder why everyone seems to think a nomination for Heath Ledger in the same category is such a bold, new concept) and won in the makeup, set and original song categories. Beatty told me once that, in the years after the film, he came to view the movie as an articulation of his inner desire for family. It's hard to let go of family, of course, so maybe that's why Beatty has filed a federal lawsuit to keep control of the character as a Hollywood property. Harriet Ryan has the story: "The film idol bought rights to the character two decades ago from the Tribune Company in order to make his 1990 hit movie version of the square-jawed, tough-talking gumshoe. The sale allowed Tribune, the original publishers of the classic strip, to take back the rights if Beatty didn't film another project. Tribune, which owns the Los Angeles Times, recently sent Beatty a letter saying time is up and it is reasserting control of the character. But the actor claims he should retain the rights because he started filming a Dick Tracy TV special earlier this month. His attorney declined to say where or when the program will air, but insists the 71-year-old is far from done with the detective. 'Warren has always viewed Dick Tracy as a very valuable, interesting iconic character,' said attorney Charles Shephard. 'He has all sorts of creative thoughts about what he might do with this character.' " [Los Angeles Times]

-- Geoff Boucher

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

Captain America, Buck Rogers and the barbaric Brett Ratner in Everyday Hero headlines

Today's handpicked headlines from the fanboy universe...

Wrapped in the flag: The Captain America movie, which will be a World War II tale and lead up to the hero's appearance in the modern-day setting of the "The Avengers," will be directed by Joe Johnston, who has experience with the vintage-style screen adventures with "The Rocketeer." Johnston also directed "Jumanji," "Jurassic Park III" and the upcoming werewolf revival, "The Wolf Man," which stars Benicio Del Toro and Anthony Hopkins. Borys Kit interviewed Marvel Studios executive and "Cap" producer Kevin Feige for this morning's announcement story in the trades: "Johnston first met with Marvel two years ago. When the two parties clicked, general talks turned into Captain America-specific meetings, with much of the project's current direction resulting from those early conversations. 'This is a guy who designed the vehicles for 'Star Wars,' who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' Feige said. "From 'Rocketeer' to 'October Sky' to 'The Wolfman,' you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one' ... Kicking off with 'Iron Man,' Marvel Studios' slate of movies -- including 'Thor' and the 'Iron Man' sequel -- is building toward an 'Avengers' movie set for release in 2011, in which the characters from the films team for one big adventure. 'Captain America' is scheduled for release May 6, 2011." [Hollywood Reporter]

"Skim" at the top: The New York Times Book Review section on Sunday was devoted to the Children's Books Fall Special issue, which (somewhat jarringly) includes Elizabeth Spires' review of the graphic novel "Skim," which is a tale of 16-year-old girl nicknamed Skim who attends a private girls school where she is treated as an outcast. The story, written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by Jillian Tamaki, touches on sexual identity, suicide and a romantic yearning between a student and her teacher, all of which is handled with a painful honesty and nuance that impressed the editors of the special section. Spires writes: "'Skim' — a winner of a 2008 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award — is a convincing chronicle of a teenage outsider who has enough sense to want to stay outside. In the final section of the story, titled appropriately 'Goodbye (Hello),' Skim defies the shallow, popular clique and walks out of a school dance with Katie. She’s cast off her nickname and is 'Kim' now, a name more true to the person she is slowly becoming. And Katie is slowly beginning to heal, too. All in all, 'Skim' offers a startlingly clear and painful view into adolescence for those of us who possess it only as a distant memory. It’s a story that deepens with successive rereadings. But what will teenagers think? Maybe that they’ve found a bracingly honest story by a writer who seems to remember exactly what it was like to be 16 and in love for the first time." [New York Times]

Buck up, little buddy: Will we see Buck Rogers back in some new film or television revival? There was talk of Frank Miller directing a movie for a 2011 arrival at theater but that is more rumor than real at this point, according to "The Spirit" director himself. Either way,  Lewis Wallace has written a quick appraisal of the hero's history along with a 14-image photo gallery marking his 80th anniversary in pop culture: "Anthony 'Buck' Rogers first burst from writer Philip Nowlan's imagination in 1928, when the intrepid spaceman appeared in "Armageddon — 2419," a story published in Amazing Stories magazine. From his pulp roots, the character developed into an influential American hero on the airwaves and the silver screen. Subsequent space swashbucklers like Brick Bradford and Flash Gordon took a cue from Buck Rogers' sci-fi adventures. Buck took to the radio Nov. 7, 1932, with the first broadcast of 'The World in 2432'. The radio show launched Buck and his female co-pilot, Wilma Deering, into the nation's living rooms, introducing such sci-fi staples as spaceships and death rays." [Wired]

Brett Ratner? By Crom!: After the success of "300" it was really only a matter of time before a revival of Conan the Barbarian picked up serious steam. The name of Brett Ratner ("X-Men: The Last Stand") has been associated with the project quite a bit in recent months and recently Jay Fernandez and Borys Kit had this story in the trades on appraising his interest in the Cimmerian: "Ratner has been considering signing on to direct a 21st century update of 'Conan,' co-produced by Nu Image/Millennium and Lionsgate Films, even as he pushes another high-profile project -- a fourth installment of the 'Beverly Hills Cop' franchise -- toward a greenlight at Paramount, where he recently set up shop. While the 'Conan' development deal puts the brawny brigand on Ratner's docket, 'BHC IV' is still likely to go into production first. Ratner jived to the 'Conan' script by Gersh-repped Joshua Oppenheimer and Thomas Dean Donnelly, who looked to Robert E. Howard's original pulp stories of the 1930s to create their take on the character. The writers are doing a quick polish to incorporate some of Ratner's ideas, with an eye toward releasing the film in 2010. ... Millennium and Lionsgate are eyeing a potential franchise and envision a very R-rated approach in the $85 million budget range. "The story opens on the battlefield where Conan is born and tells the origin story that sets the stage for what will be the first of multiple films,' Lerner said. [Hollywood Reporter]

-- Geoff Boucher

Captain America image drawn by Steve Epting and courtesy of Marvel Comics.

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]

Everyday Hero, your fanboy news roundup

It's Tuesday here at Hero Complex and we find ourselves muttering those sublime words penned by Walt Whitman (or was it Stan Lee?): "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up — for you the flag is flung — for you the bugle trills..." We're pretty sure Whitman wasn't writing about Reb Brown (in photo, right) the former boxer and USC ballplayer who brought Captain America to life (sorta) on TV back in 1979. Who will will carry the shield next? That seems to be one everyone's mind ...

"The "First Avenger: Captain America" will be released in 2011 and based during the World War II era in which the hero was created... [Production Weekly, subscription required]

...and there's no "Captain America" director or star attached yet (or at least not publicly) but there's plenty of eager discourse on the matter both here and here... [Film School Rejects and Screen Rant]

...and there's already a terrible fake trailer for the movie [You Tube]

Marvel Studios moves into Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach with plans to make four films there (including Captain America) [Los Angeles Times]

There's talk about "Lethal Weapon 5" which reminds us that, oh, yeah, there actually was a fourth one wasn't there? [ICN Movies]