This past weekend, myself and a few fellow ACT-I-VATErs sat down to record a discussion with The Webcomic Beacon. It was all done over Skype, so at least I assume everyone was sitting.

We each spoke about ACT-I-VATE, it's history and how it works, as well as the evolution of our individual projects and future plans. Included in the discussion were:



Troy Wilson of PANELS FOR PRIMATES, Chris Miskiewicz of EVERYWHERE, Seth Kushner of CulturePOP, Dov Torbin of THE REVOLUTION WILL BE TELEVISED, and James Smith of GANG OF FOOLS.

CulturePOP Photocomix broke the fourth wall last night with a live reading at the KGB Bar, as part of the Tom Hart's Sequential Artists Workshop's Annual Fundraiser Reading & Benefit.



Designer John D'Aponte read my profile on him, The Family 'Stache (http://activatecomix.com/104-4.comic) and Jennie Fiske (AKA-Plucky Charms) read her profile, Ukulele Dreams (http://activatecomix.com/104-10.comic).



There was a tremendous turnout for a rainy Easter Sunday, so much so both the theater and the bar had to be utilized. The night went long, and organizer Tom Hart dashed around like a mad man coordinating, but folks seemed to be in good spirits.



Lots of great cartoonists will be read their work as well, including: Dean Haspiel and Daniel J Kramer, John Kerschbaum, Lizz Hickey, Josh Bayer, Domitille Collardey, Leela Corman, Sam Henderson, Leslie Stein, Martha Keavney, Stephanie Mannheim.

CulturePOP Photocomix is on hiatus at the moment, but there will be a live reading by two CP subjects reading my profiles of them at KGB Bar this Sunday as part of the Sequential Artists Workshop's Annual Fundraiser Reading & Benefit.



Designer John D'Aponte will be reading The Family 'Stache (http://activatecomix.com/104-4.comic) and Jennie Fiske will be reading Ukulele Dreams (http://activatecomix.com/104-10.comic). The images will be projected on a screen behind the readers. Additionally, lots of great cartoonists will be reading their work, including:



Dean Haspiel and Daniel J Kramer

John Kerschbaum

Lizz Hickey

Josh Bayer

Domitille Collardey

Leela Corman

Seth Kushner and readers

Sam Henderson

Leslie Stein

Martha Keavney

Stephanie Mannheim





Easter Sunday, April 24 · 7:00pm - 9:30pm



KGB Bar Upstairs Theater

85 E. 4th Street

New York, NY



More details here - http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=144881678910836



Hope to see you!

"The Revolution Will Be Televised" is a first hand account of the recent Egyptian revolution as told by cartoonist, Dov Torbin.



It tells the story of two American travelers who, through clouds of tear gas, watch a country evolve and find themselves altered by the experience.



Launching Thursday, April 7th and updated weekly on ACT-I-VATE.

Above are the front and back covers to CulturePOP Photocomix books I've self-published. They are a limited edition of 400 36-pages, and are full-color. The dimensions are 5.5" x 8.5" horizontal format. The book collects four remastered versions of my profiles on; Sucklord, Baron Ambrosia, Lisa Natoli and Carlos 'Mare 139' Rodriguez.

I'm going to debut it at the MoCCA Arts Fest this coming weekend on April 9 & 10, at the Lexington Avenue Armory. I'll be at the ACT-I-VATE/Undie Press table I1, on the south side of the Armory (the side with EXIT).



Please stop by if you plan to be at the show.

Please make sure to pick up a copy of CYCLOPS #1, available today at your local comics shop for Jen Ferguson's Marvel Comics debut!





["Roasting Marshmallows in Hell" by Jen Ferguson: http://www.artinchaos.com/ ]



Signing today at Jim Hanley's Universe along with me, Cliff Chiang, Jamal Igle, and Dan Slott, too: http://jhuniverse.blogspot.com/2011/03/dean-haspiel-jamal-igle-and-cliff.html

I will be signing my new Marvel Comic book, CYCLOPS - an X-men First Class one-shot, at Jim Hanley's Universe on Weds., March 30th, from 6pm - 8pm, alongside cartoonists Jamal Igle and Cliff Chiang!



Also, DUMBO painter/artist, Jen Ferguson, makes her Marvel Comics debut in the same issue! Get the comic and find out what she did!



Jim Hanley’s Universe

4 West 33rd St, New York, NY



4-page CYCLOPS sneak-preview: http://www.newsarama.com/php/multimedia/album.php?aid=42334



http://www.conventionscene.com/2011/03/16/nyc-the-return-of-dino/



http://jhuniverse.blogspot.com/2011/03/dean-haspiel-jamal-igle-and-cliff.html

Dear Friends,



I've been following with heart, as I'm sure you all have, the unfolding disasters in Japan.



From March 16th thru April 15th, if you buy a copy of the graphic novel "The Lantern And The Wave" of either editions, I will donate all the author's profits to the Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders, treating Japan's survivors and devastation.



Read more about the book here



With hope and peace,



Rami



-------------------



Ignatz Award Nominee 2010. “Stunning” – The Comics Journal



“Whom will one forgive if not one’s enemies?” On Obon, The Day of the Dead, it is believed that the spirits of Japanese ancestors visit the homes of their families, and the living set paper lanterns on river waters to illuminate their path back to the netherworld. This year, in the midst of a bloody and decades long clan war, the festivities halt as the Okumura troops return from battle, carrying along with their wounded and fallen, the captive daugthers of their enemy. For samurai Oda and his two children, Ryoan and Kaimen, this homecoming begins a chain of events both intimate and violent, revealing harsh truths about themselves and their war, that will change each one of them forever.(previously serialized on Activatecomix.com and published as "Never Forget, Never Forgive")



“…Acknowledging that man-made horrors exist, and will continue to exist, but that each of us still holds the ability to choose not to let these horrors define us. Stunning and dynamic, demonstrating a keen sense of composition, cinematography and lighting… Efal takes the narrative equivalent of a deep, cleansing breath… one of the most impressive, thoughtful debut graphic novels.“ - The Comics Journal

Since the CulturePOP Photocomix scheduled to publish today is being delayed (more later) I thought I'd take this time to deliver some quick updates.



Since the CulturePOP Photocomix scheduled to publish today is being delayed (more later) I thought I'd take this time to deliver some quick updates.



I've self-pubished a limited edition of 400 CulturePOP Photocomix books It's a full-color, 36-page, 5.5" x 8.5" horizontal format and it collects four remastered versions of the profiles; Sucklord, Baron Ambrosia, Lisa Natoli and Carlos 'Mare 139' Rodriguez. I'm going to debut it at the MoCCA Arts Fest on April 9 & 10, at the ACT-I-VATE table. Please stop by if you plan to be at the show.



This is somewhat of an experiment for me as I've never self-published anything before, but I figured it was about time I produced a "product." I might do more of these in the future and/or explore the possibility of getting a "proper" book published, but not until after I get some more profiles under my belt.







I plan to release the final profile of season-2 on March 29, two weeks from today. As I said, it's been delayed. The cause of which is a mixture of my recent trip to Chicago (to cover several subjects for my upcoming book, Leaping Tall Buildings: The Origins of American Comics) and because of the ambition going into this final piece. The subject is artist Cynthia Von Buhler and we have been working together on her profile for several months now. The piece will be unique for several reasons, but primarily because it delves into Cynthia's fascinating family history. To visualize the past, Cynthia is building doll house sets and figurines for me to photograph. It's going to be amazing.



Finally, There will be another live CulturePOP reading at Tom Hart's Sequential Artists Workshop Easter Fundraiser at KGB Bar on Easter Sunday, 4/24. I'll announce the details soon.



Thanks for your continued support!

Jon Gorga at www.LongAndShortBox.com posted his 2010 in a Shortbox Best of the Year and one of my CulturePOP Photocomix profiles made the list!

I'm honored to be in such great company as "41" from "Daytripper" #4 by Moon & Ba, "Electric Ant" #1 and #3 by David Mack & Pascal Alixe, "Batman's Last Case" from "Batman" #702 by Grant Morrison & Tony Daniel, "Angel" in OVERFLOW Magazine #6 and on ACT-I-VATE.com, by Dean Haspiel and many more greats.



See the whole list here - http://www.longandshortbox.com/2011/02/2o1o-in-shortbox-best-of-year.html







BEST SHORTS (under 22 pages)



"Culture POP" #14 "The Aerialist" on ACT-I-VATE.comreportage and photography by Seth Kushner (@sethkushner)The way Kushner laid-out photographs here to bring the reader through a narrative while maintaining the beauty of the photographs themselves is nothing short of remarkable.