Due For Friday Arrival For Pastor Tony Isabella

One of the things I needed to do once I returned home from Mad Monster Party was to mail the autographed photo of Haruo Nakajma to comic book writer, creator of Black Lightning, columnist and Godzilla fan Tony Isabella.  He bills himself as pastor of The First Church of Godzilla (Reform).

I accomplished this yesterday by going to the post office and mailing it to Tony.  It was a of Nakajima taking a break while filming the Frontier Missile scenes for 1964's Mothra vs. Godzilla (released here as Godzilla vs. The Thing).  I gave Tony a choice of photos and it is the one he chose.

After Nakajima signed it, I had him pose with the photo:

According to the post office, he will be getting it Friday.

UPDATE (3/28/13):  Tony Isabella reported,  "It arrived today. I am now officially the coolest damn kid on the block!"

Black Lightning Facts: Setting The Record Straight

Writer Tony Isabella sets the record straight in presenting his side of the story of the creation of Black Lightning and what agreements between him and DC Comics were violated.  Also, Tony describes the role of artist Kevin Nowland (who drew the image at top) in the creation.

Apparently, Tony has some annoying trolls who are spreading misinformation on the subject. See his post on the matter.

To read Tony's "Black Lightning Facts," go here.

Tony Isabella, DC Comics and Black Lightning

Several days ago, I posted about my friend Tony Isabella's reaction to DC Comics' re-do of his creation Black Lightning.

Left, Tony Isabella.

Apparently, DC Comics has reneged on their agreement with him on the character again and Tony is none too happy about the situation (a lot of us can empathize with him on agreements with not-so-honorable types).   Always get any agreements/contracts in writing!   It'll save you a lot of grief (or, at least minimize it to a great extent) later on.

Well, Tony has been bombarded with emails, etc. over his comments and felt the need to expand on them today.

Some of his comments include some on former DC Comics President Paul Levitz. I met Levitz in 2001 at the Superman Week festivities in Los Angeles and I feel he is a decent man (hell, he picked up the tab for our luncheon). Surprisingly, despite Tony's problems with DC, he still considers Levitz a friend. He put it this way, "Some people you forgive, others you don’t, and, even in my own heart and head, I can’t explain why that is." Right on! Right on!

To see his comments, go here.

Tony Isabella Reacts To Black Lightning News

Black Lightning creator Tony Isabella was none too thrilled when news was announced that the character would be returning as part of DC Comic's "New 52."

Isabella posted at his blog:

Yes, I have heard the news about Black Lightning.  You don't have to e-mail me, private message me, phone me, or post links on my Facebook page.  My only public comments to date have been "Words fail me" and, to my friend Dan Mishkin, "Forget it, Dan.  It's DC Town."  

But, really, if you've ever read anything I've written about Black Lightning and DC's continued refusal to honor its agreements with me, and if you have half a brain, you already know how I feel about the news. 

I haven't decided yet if I'm going to release any further statements.  If I decide to do so, I'll most likely post them in a future bloggy thing.

 To read Tony Isabella's blog, go here.