Episode 98: Jeff Haas
André takes you "inside baseball" and pulls back the curtain behind interview shows to chat with a man who also hosts a program with a similar format.
Jeff Haas is a public relations manager and the host of Traversing the Stars an entertainment-based podcast that interviews the biggest stars in film, television, comics, literature, and music! Many of his past guests are legends in their respective industries and Jeff gives them an amazing platform to share their stories.
Jeff and André discuss the pitfalls or organizing guests, Jeff's former career working with primates and what it's like when a talk doesn't really "gel" like you had hoped.
Episode 97: Paul Levitz
André chats with an absolute legend in comics!
Paul Levitz is an American comic book writer, editor and executive. The president of DC Comics from 2002–2009, he has worked for the company for over 35 years in a wide variety of roles. Along with publisher Jenette Kahn and managing editor Dick Giordano, Levitz was responsible for hiring many of the writers and artists, who contributed to the 1980s revitalization of the company's line of comic book heroes!
Paul discusses his time in the comic industry, his appreciation for the classic characters and his work with the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.
Episode 96: Justin Coke
Sometimes our guest chats with a creative type who is so passionate it almost supercharges those listening to get out there and get creative!
Justin Coke is the writer of several independent novels and now has a new book available for crowdfunding. SWAT features a squad of broken-down outcasts, weirdos, and wizards battle to enforce the Grand Bargain— the agreement in which the Monsters of the world have agreed to hunting quotas in exchange for safety from wizards like Larry Slaughter, who are always ready to hand out the punishment for breaking the Grand Bargain— summary execution.
Justin talks his faith in his new work, the differences between the independent book and comic markets as well as the horrors lurking under the sea!
Episode 95: Darryl Wall
André's fascination with comic store owners continues when he catches up with the owner of yet another one...Giant Robot Comics in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia!
Owner Darryl Wall has worked in comic stores before and decided Dartmouth needed a new one going through the task of creating it from the ground up! A haven for toy, comic and board game collectibles it continues to be an institution in it's community!
Darryl talks about finding nerdom through Toys, Saturday morning cartoons and the shifting trends in comic sales as he's seen them first hand for over a decade!
Episode 94: F(r)iction #21 Creators
In this episode André speaks with not one...not two...but three guests at once! A first for this program but a fun chat none the less.
Karla Nappi, Juaquin Mobley and Helen Maimaris all pop in to discuss their involvement with the "Unseen" issue of F(r)iction #21! This issue of F(r)iction explores the stories that are hiding (or have been hidden) in the shadows. These pages burst with genre-soaked tales of ghosts, real-life imaginary friends, and old-fashioned invisibility guns. But you haven’t seen the half of it! Unseen also investigates what it’s like to live on (or be forced onto) the margins of society, to be someone who the culture might rather ignore.
Each guest brings a unique perspective of their lives, experiences and what they brought to the table to this unique collection!
Episode 93: Shawn Daley
André chats with another of the mega talented Toronto pool of artists and has a fantastic time doing so.
Shawn Daley is a Ringo Award-nominated cartoonist and chiptunist from Toronto. Studying audio production and working a number of years in the recording industry, he began to focus on telling stories through comics in 2015 with his debut, TerraQuill Collected. His other published works include Samurai Grandpa and The Bridgebuilder’s Creed.
Shawn talks about finding comics on the unlikeliest of book shelves, nostalgia series reboots with the importance of their more serious approach and how he found a way to navigate life through the underground punk scene.
Episode 92: Anthony Fowler Jr.
The underappreciated art of Inking takes the format in our newest episode with a fantastic example of it's art form!
Anthony Fowler Jr. is a professional comic book inker and illustrator currently working for DC Comics. Most recently, he was an inker on DC Power 2024 #1 and Dawn of DC: Cyborg #4 for DC Comics. Previous clients also include BOOM! Studios, Dynamite Entertainment, T-Pub Comics, Marvel Entertainment, Universal Studios, and Gazillion Entertainment. Anthony is a passionate advocate for inking as a unique and important discipline in comic book art. In 2020, he was nominated for an Inkwell Award for his work on Firefly for BOOM! Studios.
Anthony and André discuss the dark nature of Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, discovering an art community at a local drink and comic event and how intuition is a huge part of the inking game!
Episode 91: James Aquilone
Horror is on the agenda for our newest episode with a writer and editor keeping it weird in the best way possible.
James Aquilone is an editor, author, and publisher, nominated for both the Bram Stoker and Rondo Hatton awards. He's known for his anthologies like Classic Monsters Unleashed, Shakespeare Unleashed, and the Kolchak: The Night Stalker – 50th Anniversary graphic novel. He also writes the Dead Jack, Zombie Detective series. His short stories have been featured in Weird Tales magazine, Nature: Futures, and The Best of Galaxy’s Edge.
James talks about getting inspiration to be a writer from Sylvester Stallone, why more people should know about H.H. Holmes when it comes to serial killers and the legacy of Kolchak the Night Stalker!
Episode 90: Keith Grachow
André speaks with a man who got to live his passion a little later in his career and jumped in head first creating some truly unique projects!
Keith Grachow is a professional illustrator who has created comics, graphic novels, and chapter books for kids. With 25 years of experience as a graphic artist, he's worked in the toy industry as an in-house designer for popular toy lines like Bruce Lee's Enter The Dragon and Sabrina the Teenage Witch!
Keith chats about working in the toy industry, the cool factor of The Gollum as a classic monster and having a collector's mentality!
Episode 89: Ernie Altbacker
This weeks guest is a man responsible for some of the absolute best comic to film adaptions around!
Ernie Altbacker, is a screenwriter with credits on TV shows like Static Shock, Ben 10, Spider-Man, Jay Jay the Jet Plane, Mucha Lucha, and Green Lantern: The Animated Series. He earned an MFA in screenwriting from the American Film Institute and holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame. Additionally, he's the author of a six-book children's series called Shark Wars, published by Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin and currently writes many of the DC animated films bringing some of the most faithful versions of those stories to screen!
Ernie discusses trying to avoid a future in a machine shop, working on Spider-Man TAS and ruining people's childhoods with alterations on film adaptions!