Greetings Loyal Airmen, well we are moving closer and closer to Christmas and we hope all of you are dealing wisely with the frantic activities the holiday season entails. The Air Chief has been very, very, very busy with all manner of projects from comics to pulp to launching a brand new internet radio program.

               
For the  past year, the Air Chief has been one of three co-host on a weekly podcast based at the Comic Related website and posted there ever Friday night.  It's called ZONE 4 and my co-hosts are Brant Folwer and Gordon Dymowski, better known as the Professor.  The show continues to be a fan favorite with comic and genre fans throughout the globe and a few months ago even inspired a ZONE 4 Comic strip adventure which post every Monday on the Comic Related website, chronicling the adventures of the Zone 4 crew.  We even have a Facebook page and invite you to “Like” us there.

                       
             Gordon Dymowski – The Professor
Recently a good friend, Tommy Hancock, made it known that he would be producing a block of Pop Culture Themed shows on the TMV Cafe, an internet radio station and that he was looking for programming.  We approached Tommy about doing an  hour long version of our regular weekly podcast and thus was born TRANSMISSIONS FROM ZONE 4 (see the logo above) and this past Tuesday our very first episode aired.  Unlike the original, free wheeling ZONE 4 where the three of us, including guests, simply get together and talk comics, movies, DVDs etc.etc., this in this hour show we've broken it up into segments where each of us do our own thing.  Mine is called the Library wherein the Air Chief talks books, reviews and short bios of famous writers throughout the ages.  This is followed by Brant's comics segment and finally the Professor wraps things up with a fifteen minute look at what's new in media.  We're having a blast thus far and hope many of you Loyal Airmen will give us a listen.  Simply Google TMV Cafe and listen in on Tuesday nights at 8 PM Eastern Standard Time.

Meanwhile, back at the regular ZONE 4, we've launched as yet another fun contest all of you are welcome to enter.  Simply complete the following sentence,  “I like listening to Zone 4 because…” and send it in to me here.  Make your statement, short, long, funny, whatever and maybe we'll read your entry live on our next ZONE 4 show.  Everyone who sends us a comment will be entered into our contest and on the last weekly show in Feb, the winner's name will be drawn and this is what he or she will win; the chance to appear as a character in the next issue of MR. JIGSAW – MAN OF A THOUSAND PARTS!!

           
                You Could Be In A Comic Book
Above is the cover to the last regular issue, number nine.  The Air Chief just begun work on issue number ten.  The winner of the new ZONE 4 contest will have his or her likeness drawn by artist Gary Kato and actually appear as themselves in one of the two stories that will be featured in this new issue.  So if you are a true comic fan, here's your chance to be immortalized as a real comic character. But you can't win if you don't enter, so get hopping.

           
                  Cover to Latest Rook Title
Finally, the Air Chief is thrilled to announce his latest pulp writing project.  One of the coolest new pulp heroes created in past few years is the Rook, by Atlanta based writer Barry Reese.  Thus far Reese has produced six volumes of Rook adventures, each a collection of short stories. Now Reese has invited other writers to join in the fun a write their own stories featuring this really great pulp hero.  The Air Chief was both excited and honored to participate in this project and is now busily at work on his story which has to be completed and turned in by the first of the new year.  It's called, THE MISS BEANTOWN AFFAIR and deals with the Rook's early crime fighting days in Boston.  We're having a blast writing it and will keep you posted as to when the actual collection will be published and available for sale.  Note the previous six Rook books are available at Amazon and other major distributors and we highly recommend them all.

And there you have it for another week, Loyal Airmen.  Busy, busy, busy.  Again, be safe out there and in the hustle and bustle of chasing after that special gift for a love one, remember, the true purpose of the season is to show that person just how much they are loved.  Some times a hug and kiss are far better than anything you can buy in a store.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen, here we are rolling into December, the last month of 2011 and only four weeks away from Christmas.  Time is certainly racing by.  Today saw the release of a comic book the Air Chief his extremely proud of and we really hope you'll want to check it out. For the longest time, when attending comic convention, we are often asked by young boys and girls just how comics are put together. How do you make a comic book? And of course the Air Chief and his many colleagues do their best and try to answer that question, whereas the only books out there that deal with the subject are these heavy, thick hardback books that generally are too expensive for young kids to buy.  Thus the Air Chief always wondered, why not do a HOW TO BOOK as a comic book?  After talking it over with my Mr. Jigsaw co-creator, artist Gary Kato and our editor at Redbud Studio, Rob Davis, all of us agreed it was an idea worth pursuing.  Six months later that project has become a reality.

The first ever Mr.Jigsaw Special is a black and white 44 page comic whose main theme is to teach young writers and artists how to make a comic book.  In the book, Mr. Jigsaw travels the globe to interview the Air Chief, Gary and Rob separately and from each learns a new segment of the entire process.  Here is page one of this fun adventure.

                       
In Fort Collins, the Air Chief gives Mr. Jigsaw an actual script for a 10 pg comic story.  The script is printed in the comic.  Next Jiggy goes to Honolulu where he delivers that strip to Gary Kato, who then proceeds to show him how he breaks it down, does composition roughs etc. and from page to page the readers get to see the story come to graphic life.  Finally the Man of a Thousand Parts arrives with the completed in Hallsville, Missouri where Rob Davis and his son Ryan explain how they digitally scan the finished art and then format those pages for the printer.  From start to finish, the entire process is laid out in a fun journey.

It is our hope that this comic will become an invaluable reference for the future comic book writers and artists of tomorrow, that they will learn from it and be inspired by it to make their own dreams come true.  The book sells for $3.75 and is only available on line from (www.IndyPlanet.com) and we think makes a perfect stocking stuffer for that young comic book fanatic in your family.  We hope you'll agree.

Sticking with our comic theme this week, we thought we'd remind you of a little project we're working on with artist Brian Level.  A few weeks ago we gave you a sneak peek at Brian's rough sketch of space captain, Jain Marlee who stars in this story called THE SMUGGLER'S LAMENT.  Brian's been hard at work bring it to life and above is the first page complete except for the lettering.  To say we're thrilled and delighted would be a gross understatement.  Brian is a truly gifted artist and doing wonders with our little script.  Of course we aren't going to reveal all of it here.  Ultimately when completed, it will appear in several comic anthologies and we'll be sure to let you know at that time.  Brian is a joy to work with and the Air Chief is hoping this is the first of many of our collaborations.

And finally this week the Red Sox finally announced their new manager as veteran Bobby Valentine.  At 61, Valentine was both manager for the Texas Rangers and New York Mets and even managed a Japanese team to a championship.  He's no stranger to big market baseball as its played in Boston and we wish him all the luck in the world get the Sox back on track come 2012.

And there you have it, Loyal Airmen.  We hope you'll pick up a copy of the first ever Mr.Jigsaw Special and make some young comic fan very, very happy.  It will certainly put a smile on our face. 

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen and a joyful Thanksgiving Holiday weekend to you and your loved ones.  As the Air Chief writes this entry tonight, he is most content having enjoyed a truly sumptuous turkey dinner with all the fixing lovingly prepared by Valerie and enjoyed by our entire gathered family. This is our second Thanksgiving in Colorado and a truly wonderful one. We have so much to be grateful for like our family, our friends, our general good health and so many blessings we could never hope to count them all.  It is our sincerest wish that all of you also have these same wonderful experiences and blessings.

            
                        Cover by Mike Manley
This past week Airship 27 Productions released our tenth and final book of the year, ROBIN HOOD – ARROW OF JUSTICE written by I.A. Watson with designs and interior illustrations by our Art Director Rob Davis and cover by the amazing Mike Manley.  Note, this is the second in Ian's marvelous trilogy retelling this classic adventure for a new generation of readers.  Book one, ROBIN HOOD – KING OF SHERWOOD was a critical success and we have no doubts this second chapter will also be appreciated by fans of high adventure literature.  Also note, Mike won last year's Pulp Factory Award for Best Pulp Cover for his work on that first volume and we've a strong hunch he'll get a nomination for this one as well.  The book is now on sale at our digital hangar where you can buy and download a PDF copy for only $3.  Simply click on the dirigible logo to the left of this column to be taken to that store site.  The book should be available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other fine book distributors in only a few weeks.

ROBIN HOOD – ARROW OF JUSTICE is our 43rd title since Rob and the Air Chief launched Airship 27 Productions and we're still amazed at how much our little venture has grown in the past few years.  And we've got big plans for 2012.  Next month, on Dec. 16th, the second Sherlock Holmes movie, Game of Shadows, starring Robert Downey Jr. & Jude Law will be released around the world; the sequel to the hugely successful first movie with this pair.  It is a film the Air Chief has been greatly anticipating.

          
                     Illustration by Rob Davis
By sheer coincidence, our first scheduled pulp title for 2012 will be a brand new Sherlock Holmes novel; The Baron's Revenge by Gary Lovisi.  Its a terrific mystery thriller that is a direct sequel to an original Holmes & Watson tale first penned by their creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and you won't want to miss it.  As usually, Rob will provide the interior illustrations and we are hoping to have him and New Zealand artist Shave Evans produce the color.  Again, look for  SHERLOCK HOLMES – THE BARON'S REVENGE in Jan. 2012.

Finally, back in the 1960s, BBC in England produced a Sherlock Holmes television starring the amazing Peter Cushing in the starring role and Nigel Stock as Dr. Watson.  It was the done after Cushing had first played the Great Detective in the Hammer version The Hounds of the Baskervilles.  The show itself lasted several seasons but sadly very few tapes of those episodes survived.  A few years ago, American's own station, A & E, in cooperation with BBC, released the only five episodes remaining in a DVD package.  Last week, while out running errands, the Air Chief found that collection at a local retail store and immediately snatched it up.  Having watched the first three episodes, we can only say they are marvelous and would urge any of you Holmes, or Cushing fans, to hunt this up.  It is a truly terrific set.

And there you have it for this Thanksgiving week, Loyal Airmen.  The holiday season is officially underway.  Our Christmas decorations, to include a truly beautiful tree, have all been put up thanks to Valerie and our granddaughter Cora.  It is truly feeling festive here at Hangar 27.  Take care, get your shopping done and be safe out there.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen, Finally the very cool comics anthology we'd been telling you about for the past six months is here.  This is the first real joint venture between our pulp enterprise, Airship 27 Productions and our comic division, Redbud Studio.  Rob Davis, the Art Director for Airship 27 is also the Managing Editor of Redbud. So we thought it was high time to do a full out comic anthology starring many of the same pulp heroes we do our prose books about.  We solicited the aid of seven writers, each with a different art team and have assembled a 58 pg comic title we are all very proud of.

AIRSHIP 27 Presents ALL STAR PULP COMICS, Vol One.  It features a gorgeous cover by the amazing Jeff Butler and the following stories and art teams.
The Green Lama by Adam Garcia & Mike Fyles.
Jim Anthony Super Detective by Erwin K. Roberts & Pedro Cruz
The Black Bat by C.William Russette & Wayne Beeman
The Blue Lady by Sean Taylor & James Ritchey III
The Rook by Barry Reese & Craig Wilson
Secret Agent X by Bobby Nash and Jeremy McHugh
Domino Lady by Percival Constantine, Rock Baker & Jeff Austin

The book is $6.99 (plus shipping & handling) and can only be purchased at (www.IndyPlanet.com) – Folks who have already picked up a copy have been delighted with this graphic treasure chest of pulp goodies. We hope you'll give it a try.

                                
                                                Sketch by David Baker

And now for another sneak peek.  As most of you Loyal Airmen know, the Air Chief is always on the look out for new and talented artist to do comic projects with.  Especially since the launching of our own named title, “Ron Fortier's Tales of the Macabre.”  Recently we discovered a fellow named David Baker over at the Digital Webbing boards.

                                 
                                                            Sketch by David Baker

We contacted David and suggested doing a project together.  He was very excited and receptive and so we wrote a six page horror tales titled, “A Late Night Story,” and sent it along.  Within a day David did up the two sketches we have here; these are two of the principle characters from that script.  The Air Chief was bowled over.  We can only imagine how cool the actually pages are going to be once David gets them done.  Stay tuned, we might post a few to wet your appetites.

And that wraps up this week's Flight Log, Loyal Airmen.  Next weekend is Thanksgiving and then we'll be rolling into December with some very cool news we can't wait to share with all of you.  Until then, stay warm, pray the Red Sox hire a decent manager who can get the job done for them and we'll see you all here in seven.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airman, today, Nov. 11th is Veteran's Day, something we Fortiers have always been proud of.  Our father, George Fortier and his brothers Richard Fortier and Noel Fortier all served in World War II, while their older brother Raymond Fortier worked as a welder at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.  During the Korean conflict their younger brothers Robert and Paul Fortier both served in the Navy.  By the time the 60s rolled around, the Air Chief and three of his first cousins all served in Vietnam and our brother George Fortier Jr, served with Naval Intelligence at this same time. About ten years ago our oldest son Scott Fortier served six years in the Army Reserves and today our nephew Jason Cormier is stationed in Iraq.  As you can see our family has never shirked its duty to our great country and on this Veteran's Day the Air Chief wishes to thank ALL the brave men and women, in all the branches of services protecting our great country in all parts of the world.  We never ever take you for granted and you are always in our prayers ever single day. God bless you all, everyone and bring you home safely when your tour of duty is honorably served.  Amen.

    
Last week we posted a rough sketch of the above cover as done by the amazing Michael Wm. Kaluta.  We are thrilled to reveal the full, finished piece in all its dramatic beauty.  The book is by first time writer, Don Gates, and now on sale out our Digital Hangar (merely click on the dirigible logo to the left of this column) and also available at our Print On Demand shop at Indy Planet.  Withing a week it should be available from our publisher Cornerstone Book Publishers through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and all other major book distributors.  CHALLENGER STORM – Isle of Blood is our ninth book of the year.  We have one final release planned Dec. which will bring out catalog of Airship 27 titles to a whopping 43 books!!!  And take my word for it, if you are at all excited by this great looking book, hold on to your hats.  We got lots of great new titles ready to roll out next year.  The old Airship 27 continues to soar higher and higher.

       
                    Space Captain Jain Marlee
A few weeks ago, over on the Comic Related website, the Air Chief made friends with a super talented young artist named Brian Level.  Brian works in a tatoo parlor is married and at that time was expecting their first child.  We were so taken with Brian's drawing that we started kicking around possibly doing a small strip together, but it would have to be that…small.  Brian was worried about what kind of commitment he could give a project once the baby arrived.  Last night, the Air Chief sat down and wrote a 4 pg comic script entitled THE SMUGGLER'S LAMENT and sent it off to Brian via e-mail attachment.  Lo and behold, he replied today after telling us that his baby had indeed arrived earlier in the week and he and his wife were deliriously happy and frantic all at the same time. So much so he failed to tell me the baby's sex, name or any other pertinent details. Ha.  But along with his joyous note was this piece of art which he whipped up hastily after reading my short script, it is of the story's hero, Space Captain Jain Marlee.  Brian loved our script and has agreed, when time permits, to draw it for us. We couldn't be happier.  Once the project is done, it will be published in a future issue of “Ron Fortier's Tales of the Macabre.”  Stay tuned.  We'll keep you posted.

(Just in from Brian – Samuel Burton Level was born at home on Sunday 6th Nov 2011, at 10:39 a.m. and weighed 9 lbs and was 21″ long. He and Mom are doing super and Brian said it was all “…a beautiful experience.”)

Finally, tomorrow, Sat. Nov. 12th the Air Chief will be one of the many guest at the Cowtown Comix Fest located on the Metro State campus, Tivoli Building, Berrensen Room 320 in Denver Colorado between 2 p.m. and 9 p.m.  The show is pretty much devoted to independent artists and their comics and their are almost twenty local creators scheduled to be there. We hope to see many Loyal Airmen stop by.  In thirty five years of being part of comics, we've never done a “night” con before.  It should prove to be most interesting.

And there you have it for another week, Loyal Airmen, as ever thanks for stopping by and again, if you know a Vet, or have one in your family, give him or her a handshake, hug or salute and just say THANK YOU. It means everything!
Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen.  Welcome to a rather important Flight Log with all kinds of cool things happening for the Air Chief in all the facets of his life.  First up, on Sat. 5th of the Nov., we turn 65 years old.  Meaning we will be officially enrolled in the ranks of Americans on Medicare.  Hard to believe when we think about that simple fact. This past year living here in Colorado has been one of our happiest ever and having lost nearly thirty pounds, we feel healthier than ever. Still, 65. It does give one pause.  Five more years to 70 and then who knows. Longevity is not a family trait with my clan. Will we beat the odds?  Who can say?  The thing is for the most part its been a really amazing life thus far and we feel totally blessed. What with Valerie precious love, our five children, all amazing human beings each and every one of them, our six fantastic grand kids, the oldest of whom turns 20 next week, our mothers still very much alive and kicking and our truly wonderful friends.  See what we mean about being blessed.   And our creative productivity has been greater than ever with more new comic projects and prose assignments than we could have ever imagined a decade ago when we retired from G.E.

We do love birthdays, we love the fun, they are a celebration of life, love and gratitude. Thank you dear Lord for every single second, minute, hour and day of this continuing journey.  And thanks for joining me on it.

      
Speaking of amazing journeys, artists Gary Kato & Rob Davis, two of the Air Chief's dearest pals and collaborators have just finished putting the final touches on what is going to be the biggest single issue of MR. JIGSAW Man of a Thousand Parts we've ever published.  Called The Mr. Jigsaw Special, this 44 pg book details, in a very personal and humorous way how the three of us go about making a comic book.  In the issue Jiggy visits with the Air Chief here in Colorado and we talk about script writing.  Then he travels to Honolulu, Hawaii where artist Gary Kato explains the process by which he translates our scripts to graphic form.  And lastly Jiggy arrives in Hallsville, MO, where Rob Davis demonstrates how he scans Gary's pages into his PC and then assembles the files to be sent to our printer.  And voila, a Mr. Jigsaw comic. 

Included in this 44 page treasure chest is an actual script by the Air Chief and its realized graphic version.  Plus a few other visual treats you will not want to miss.  When ready for sale, this entire giant issue will sell for only $3.50 – so, Loyal Airmen, if you know any talented young writers and artists who dream of one day entering this fun career, you are most certainly going to want them to have a copy of this super special issue.  Stay tuned, we'll be posting the cover here when it becomes available for sale.

     
           Cover Rough by Michael Kaluta
Also this coming weekend, Airship 27 Productions hopes to officially announce the release of our ninth book of the year, a novel debuting a brand new pulp hero written by Don Gates called CHALLENGER STORM – Isle of Blood.  It's a terrific book and features the artwork of one of the most well known, respected graphic artist in the world, Mr. Michael Wm. Kaluta.   He contributed nine black and white interior illustrations and a gorgeous color cover you'll have to see to believe.  The Air Chief has posted an early rough sketch of that cover in progress.  Be sure to come back next week to see it in all its completed beauty.  You will not be disappointed.

So this is the Air Chief's big birthday weekend.  On the 12th of Nov we'll be traveling south to Denver to attend the one day Cowtown Comix Fest.  We'll post lots more information on that event in next Friday's Flight Log.
And that's a wrap.  Thanks as ever for stopping by, we'll see you back here in seven.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen, here's what most of Colorado, including Fort Collins, looked like Wednesday morning when people woke up and headed for work.  By the end of the day our town had 8 inches of wet heavy snow that brought down tree limbs all over.  Crews have been working around the clock to clean up the mess.  Yup, only days before Halloween and Winter has arrived.

        
                                      Super Artist Nick Runge and the Air Chief
As you all know, the Air Chief spent most of last Sat. afternoon at HEROES ONLY, a great comic shop in nearby Cheyenne, Wyoming, along with his good friend, the super talented artist Nick Runge.  Nick has made a name for himself in the comics industry by his truly awesome covers for IDW, to include work on ANGEL and TERMINATOR SALVATION.   Nick was also responsible for the amazing artwork that graced the cover of MR.JIGSAW Man of a Thousand Parts # 4.  We sold lots of those at the event as fans were anxious to have both of us sign their copies.

        
              P.J. Brown, Nick Runge & The Air Chief
We truly want to thank all the great regular customers at HEROES ONLY for the nice turn out and making us feel so welcome.  And of course a huge thanks goes to owner P.J. Brown who made it all possible.  At the end of the day P.J. graciously made it known that we could come back any time we had a new comic to showcase. We are certainly going to take him up on that kind offer.  And lastly, having the opportunity to catch up with Nick who we had not seen in several years, by the end of the day, Nick agreed to do a cover for an Airship 27 pulp book next year.  We aren't going to spill the beans on which title Nick wanted to tackle, but believe me Loyal Airmen, it will knock your socks off when it happens.  We are really, really excited about this.

And speaking of exciting happenings, our favorite movie of the past summer, CAPTAIN AMERICAN – The First Avenger finally arrived on DVD & Blu-Ray.  And no, the Air Chief did not go out and buy a copy on the day it was released.  You see our birthday is just around the corner, 5th Nov. and a certain lovely lady has made it known this particular Blu-ray movie would be awaiting us on that special day.  Yahooo.  If yo are one of those few Loyal Airmen who missed this at the theaters, do not wait a second longer.  Directed by Joe Johnson, the genius behind THE ROCKETEER, this movie based on the Marvel comic hero is easily one of the most enjoyable action flicks we've ever seen. It will eventually be getting lots of viewing here at Hangar 27.

        
                                  A Scene from Universal's Classic FRANKENSTEIN
So, here we are going into the Halloween weekend, with Sunday evening the scheduled Trick or Treat night. We trust all of our Loyal Airmen have stocked up on candy goods for all the mini ghouls and goblins who will be knocking on your doors.  This is one of the Air Chief's favorite holidays and he looks forward to it every year.  This year, in honor of Halloween, he and his ZONE 4 podcast co-host Brant Fowler, Gordon Dymowski and John Wilson last week recorded a very special little radio drama to kick off episode 138.  So today, Friday 28th Oct, that show will post at (www.ComicRelated.com) later in afternoon.  We urge all our Loyal Airmen to go to the site and listen in as the Air Chief and his pals had a ball creating a little audio play to kick off the show. We think you'll really enjoy it.

And there you have it, Loyal Airmen.  HAPPY HALLOWEEN fun to you and yours and come back next week when we have the pleasure of announcing the release of our 9th Airship 27 pulp title.  Written by Don Gates with art by a truly American legend, you will not want to miss this announcement.  Till then, Trick or Treat!

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen, it looks to be a very busy weekend for the Air Chief.  On Sat. we are heading up to Cheyenne, Wyoming to do a store signing at HEROES ONLY, a terrific comic & games shop owned and operated by the affable Mr. Porter J. Brown.  Check out the cool poster P.J. did up for the event.

All the information pertaining to the event is right up there on that oh-so cool poster.  Note, joining me will be Fort Collins own super graphic artist and a really great pal, Nick Runge.  The Air Chief is really hoping to see many Loyal Airmen from both Colorado and Wyoming come down and join in the fun.  And if you are curious as to what kind of goodies we'll have on hand, well check this photo out.

     
                                       The Air Chief & Two of His Latest Titles
On sale at this event will be issues of “Ron Fortier's Tales of the Macabre” # 1 and the recently released private eye comic, “Price For The Asking” #2.  We've got a good supply of each.  Note, we'll also have lots of copies of the ever popular Mr. Jigsaw Man of a Thousand Parts series. At the same time we had a poster made up of the “Tales of the Macabre” cover drawn by our pal Rob Davis.  All those who stop by for the signing and pick up a book from the Air Chief will be given a ticket.  At the end of the day one will be drawn and that poster given to the lucky winner, autographed personally to him or her.  Just our humble way of saying thanks for coming to the event and supporting us.

        
                     Airship 27 Writers Adam Lance Garcia & W.Perter Miller
Speaking of events. as many of you know, last week the big New York Comic Con was held in that wonderful city and over a hundred thousand comic fans attended.  Among them were several of our colleagues to include Airship 27 Productions writers Adam Lance Garcia and W.Peter Miller.  Adam even sat on a panel devoted to the pulps.  During the weekend Adam, who, along with Peter, has written adventures of the classic pulp hero the Green Lama, was thrilled to encounter an enthusiastic fan dressed up as his favorite pulp hero and snapped this photo.

        
                    The Green Lama at the NYCC
Check out the book the Lama is holding tightly, it's THE GREEN LAMA UNBOUND, winner of last year's Pulp Factory Award for Best Pulp Novel as written by Adam Lance Garcia.  Pictures like these clearly show why we love ingconventions, Loyal Airmen.  One never knows who you will run into.  And speaking of Airship 27 Productions, check out our three latest releases.

     
                                   The Air Chief & three new Airship 27 titles.
Thus far this year, Airship 27 Production has put out seven books.  The last three titles we released were WEIRD HORROR TALES – Light's End the novel by Michael Vance, JIM ANTHONY SUPER DETECTIVE in The Mark of Terror by Joshua Reynolds and LANCE STAR -SKY RANGER Vol III, with stories by Van Plexico, Bobby Nash, Bernadette Johnson and Sean Taylor.  As we approach the end of the year, we have three more waiting in the wings which will bring out total to ten books for 2011.  Next up is MYSTERY MEN (& Women) Vol II with stories by Adam Garcia, Derrick Ferguson, Mark Halegua, Andrew Salmon and Greg Bastianelli.  Next month will see the launching of a brand new pulp hero, CHALLENGER STORM – Isle of Blood by Don Gates with art by the legendary Michael Kaluta and we'll be ending Dec. with offering up writer Ian Watson's second ROBIN HOOD adventure, Arrow of Justice.  You will not want to miss any of these great titles. Stay tuned.

And there you have it for this Friday, Loyal Airmen.  Hope many of you baseball fans are enjoying the World Series now underway between the Cardinals and Texas Rangers.  Two games so far and they are tied one to one, both teams being very equally matched.  It looks to be an exciting contest.  And let's not forget, Halloween is just around the corner.  Oh, yeah.  Time to get your spook on!

Ron – Over & Out!

Greeting Loyal Airmen, as you are reading this Flight Log, many, many, many of our comic colleagues are now in New York City for the big four day Comic Con.  The Air Chief attended this mega party about three years ago with friends from New Hampshire and had a blast.  Hoping all our Loyal Airmen in attendance are also having a great time.

               
On the comic front we thought we'd offer you a sneak-peek at the Black Lion, a comic project we've had in the works for many, many years.  Lt. Jamal Lyon is a former Navy Seal who now travels the globe for a wealthy Japanese sponsor, helping people in danger.  We've never progressed more than that set up and writing a few scripts, alas there's no artist affixed to the project.  A week ago a young fellow named Brian Level asked to see my set-up proposal and was taken enough with it to do up the above illustration.  We were bowled over upon seeing it.  This is exactly how we picture the character in our own imagination.  Unfortunately Brian and his wife are expecting their first baby and he's caught up in so many other things, he simply could not commit to doing the project with the Air Chief so, unless a stroke of magic occurs and another great artists comes down the road soon, we will be putting The Black Lion back into the “someday” files again.  Sigh.

Whereas on the pulp side of things, this past week Airship 27 Productions launched a new project.  We will be doing a series of anthologies starring the greatest magician-escape artist of all time, Harry Houdini.  Eight of our regular pulp writers have signed on and soon will begin writing these fictional adventures of this amazing man who was easily one of the first superstars of 20th Century entertainment.  Stay tuned as we'll pass along more information as the first book starts coming together.

And finally, in just a little over a week, the Air Chief will be Cheyenne Wyoming to do a comic shop appearance.  The shop is HEROES ONLY, located at 3151 E. Nationway Suuit K5 and the telephone number there is (307) 287-0632.  This cool shop is owned and operated by P.J. Brown, one really awesome fellow and we hope to see many of our Loyal Airmen at this event.  Joining the Air Chief will be super comic book artist, Nick Runge, known for his Terminator covers for IDW.  So please, if you live in the Northern Colorado, Wyoming border area, marke your calendars for the 22nd of October.  This looks to be a really fun day for all.

And that's it for now Loyal Airmen, as ever thanks for dropping by.
Ron – Over & Out!

Greeting Loyal Airmen, we trust all of you are enjoying the Fall changing of the seasons.  Here in Fort Collins were having nice, cool nights and beautiful sunny days.  A real little slice of paradise beneath the peaks of the majestic Rocky Mountains.

Last evening we heard the sad news of the passing of Apple founder Steve Jobs, who lost his battle with cancer of the young age of 56.  Jobs' had the same pancreatic malady that took our own father over thirty years ago.

            
                                 Steve Jobs…gone at 56.
From everything we've been learning about this man, it would seem he was a true visionary.  Something our worlds has so little of these days.  Too few to lose one this young. His impact on the world will be felt for generations to come and we can only believe his example of pursuing his dreams no matter the obstacles will inspire countless of young men and women to do the same.  RIP, dreamer.

Another visionary far ahead of her time was the late actress, Lucille Ball.  At a time when only men held the power in Hollywood and on television, she was a pioneer who began her own production company and became one of the most powerful, creative forces in the entertainment world.  What the Air Chief remembers most was how our mother loved watching her classic comedy series, I LOVE LUCY.  Now Bluewater comics has published a full color comic bio of this amazing woman and it was written by my good friend, Jaymes Reed.  The book came out several weeks ago and we cannot recommend it highly enough.  If anyone in your family was a Lucy fan, you truly need to get them this comic book.  It is just brilliant.

Speaking of TV, there have been several new shows which recently debuted that the Air Chief has become a big fan of.  The one that truly impresses us the most  is PERSON OF INTEREST starring the always great Jim Caviezel as a rogue government agent recruited by a wealthy financier played by LOST alumni, Michael Emerson.  Seems this man has created a super computer that can identify people who are about to become the center of criminal activity, be they the victims or perpetrators.  From that point on it is the Agent's task to determine which and then prevent the incident from occurring.  It works so much like a classic pulp magazine of the 1930s, we have been really enjoying it and hope it finds a loyal audience.  Please, if you haven't watched it yet, do so.  You will not be disappointed, action fans.

         
                        Mongrel Henderson
Speaking of pulps, Airship 27 Productions is now in the last stages of assembling its eight title of the year,
MYSTERY MEN (& Women) Vol II.  Like the first book in this series, it debuts four brand new heroes created by the best pulp writers in the business today.  And here's a sneak peek at one of the stars of this collection, Mongrel Henderson, created by super pulp writer Derrick Ferguson and illustrated here by Rob Davis.  Look for the announcement of this book's release in another week or two.

And there you have this week's Flight Log, Loyal Airmen.  With a unifying tread of heroes, some real, others fictional.  The thing is, all of us have within ourselves the seed of heroism.  We allow it to grow and  change our lives for the better when we follow the examples of people like Steve Jobs and Lucille Ball. When we dare to dream big and never accept failure when we are rejected.  True heroism comes from picking yourself up and trying again, and again…until you succeed.  Heroes never give up.

And fittingly enough, the Air Chief is gearing up to do another comic shop signing, this one in Cheyenne, Wyoming on Sat. 22nd Oct at HEROES ONLY, owned and operator by P.J. Brown. More on that event as the date nears.  And that's all for another week.  Take care and be back here next week.

Ron – Over & Out