Greetings Loyal Airmen.  Well the 2009 version of the Windy City Pulp & Paper show has come and gone and Ye Old Air Chief is back in Hangar 27 with tons of great memories and a few photos.  We'll spread these out over a couple of weeks so as to overwhelm the Flight Log here.  Windy City is just so much fun and once again Airship 27 Productions was smack dab in the middle of it all.

          
                          Editor/Publisher/Writer Joe Gentile & his Moonstone Books & Comics

Among all the various vendors was our old pal, Joe Gentile with all his great Moonstone pulps. In the past few years, with titles like the Spider, the Avenger and just released Domino Lady, Moonstone has joined the ranks of companies publishing exciting new pulp adventures.  It was great to hook with Joe again and learn some of his plans for the future.  Some which will include Ye Old Air Chief I'm very happy to add.  Stay tuned.

             
                                 The Air Chief and Con Promoter Doug Ellis

No convention materializes out of thin air and that includes Windy City.  It has been the baby of promoter and pulp fan supreme, Doug Ellis.  Doug launched Windy City back in 2001 with Cat Jasper.  After Cat departed for other interest in 2004, he brought on John Gunnison of High Adventure magazine.  Together they've made Windy City the premier pulp show in the country today.  We tip our hats to Doug and John for putting on such a great show year after year.

            
                       Loyal Airman John Bodnar and the Air Chief

Perhaps the biggest reason for attending shows like this is to meet up with old friends, like our Airship 27 writers and artists, and meet new ones. Such was the case this past Saturday afternoon when one of our most Loyal Airmen, John Bodnar, walked up to our table to say hi.  I've exchanged many letters with John and it was a real pleasure for me to finally shake his hand and thank him for his continued support.  Of course we also loved that John was wearing his official Airship 27 baseball cap. That earned him a nice discount on the purchase he made from our offerings.  Those of you unaware of this offer, we'll gladly repeat it here.  Anyone coming to our table at any show wearing any Airship 27 gear gets 50% off any one item on the table.  How do you get this nifty swag as John did?  Simply click on to the dirigible logo to the left of this column. That will take you our on-line book store. Once there simply scroll down to the bottom of that page and you'll find an icon to the Airship 27 merchandise store.  We've got lots of cool items there, so check it out.  And so, thanks John.  You totally made our day and we hope to see you again next year.

          
                 Writer Van Allen Plexico

One of Pulp Factory gang and Airship 27 writers, Van Allen Plexico, was also on hand and for the third year in a row was our con neighbor to our left.  Van has become a really good friend and it was a joy to hang out with him again.  We are very close to releasing Van's first novel for Airship 27 Prod., which you'll see announced right here.

     
                   Writer Andrew Salmon, the Air Chief and Airship 27 Art Director Rob Davis

Before heading out last week, we posted a picture of the gorgeous Airship 27 banner Rob Davis had made up for our con appearances.  And here's a great shot of the three amigos seated before it.  Andrew Salmon is another Airship 27 writer who has done several projects for us, including his fantastic sci-fi thriller, THE LIGHT OF MEN.  Andrew was at our left sharing a table with Van Plexico.   Happily the new banner was a big hit and all during the weekend many attendees commented on how much they liked it and our dirigible logo.  Kudos to Rob for getting this made.  And that's our first Flight Log segment of the pulp con.  Next week we'll roll out a few more pictures of friends and acquaintances that made an appearance at the show.

Meanwhile we are thrilled to announce the release of our third issue of  MR.JIGSAW – Man of a Thousand Parts.  This book is the last reprint issue and contains the three stories that first appeared on the internet.  They have never been in print before.  You can snag a copy of this fun comic by going to our Air Fare page and click on the book's cover.  All stories by the Air Chief, with all art by Gary Kato and design work by Rob Davis.  Remember when comics use to be fun?  Pick up a copy of Mr.Jigsaw and recapture that very fun.

And that's it for this week, Loyal Airmen.  We've lots of great pulp books in the wing, plus other exciting news concerning our Mr.Jigsaw, so keep on coming back to Hangar 27.  Till next week, take care.
Ron – Over & Out!

Greeting Loyal Airmen.  As most of you read this, I'll be winging my way to Chicago for the annual Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention, hosted by Doug Ellis and John Gunnison.  This will be the third straight year that Rob Davis and I attend, representing Airship 27 Productions.  As you can see from the photo above taken at the recent PlanetCon in Kansas City, Rob's already publicly displayed our brand spanking new Airship 27 banner.  Doesn't it look sweet standing tall behind that table.  Will be a joy to be sitting in front of this it this weekend.   Hoping many of you Loyal Airmen will be able to come to the show and say hi.   Rob's also bringing his digital camera, so hopefully in next week's log, we'll be able to show you some very pictures taken at the show.

And that wraps up this brief Flight Log, as Ye Old Chief needs to hit the sack and get some sleep. Will be up before sunrise tomorrow morning for the ride to the airport.  Hope lots of you will be visiting your local comic shops this coming Saturday for Free Comic Book Day and have a rocking good time.  We'll see you all back here in seven.  Till then have a great weekend.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greetings, Loyal Airmen.  Well, another busy week has rolled by bringing it with all kinds of super good news. After an horrendous road trip west, the Red Sox returned to Fenway Park to themselves back to their winning ways.  Sweeping the visiting Baltimore Orioles in four and the Minnesota Twins in two, the Sox are now riding a seven game winning streak going into tonight's opening series against their number one rivals, the New York Yankees.  Both teams enjoy the same 9 – 6 record and are tied for second place in the American League East division behind the Toronto Bluejays.  So their destinies are squarely in their hands over the next three days.  Pitching will be a factor, but so will hitting and right now both those elements seem to favor the Sox.  When shortstop Jed Lowrie went on the Disabled List for a sore hand, first basemen Jeff Bailey was called up from Pawtuket to join the team.

         
                               JEFF BAILEY HAPPY TO BE BACK WITH THE SOX!!

Jeff then proceeded to show his team, and the world, that he is clearly major league caliber by hitting a three run homer his first time at bat in Wednesday night game against the Twins.  Welcome back to the majors, big guy.  Here's hoping your stay is a long one.

Well, Valerie is still out in Colorado visiting.  Ye Old Airchief has been keeping himself busy writing and editing and doing a little heavy lifting.  Note the emphasis on “little”, ha.  Our good friend, and comic retailer, Ralph DiBernardo is moving his comic shop, Jetpack Comics, in Rochester, NH, to a new and bigger location just a few blocks downtown. So he put out the word he was looking for help.  I've stopped by several times now to spend a few hours helping him and the gang load hundreds of comic boxes into his van and then unload them at the new store site.  Ye Old Airchief has never seen so many comics in all his life, and that is saying something.  Ralph hopes to have the new store open next week for the festivities of Free Comic Book Day, which, we are going to miss, as that's the same weekend we'll be in Chicago for the Windy City Pulp & Paper show.

A while back we told you that we had made a deal with a new comics publisher, Wild Wolf Entertainment allowing them to publish our graphic novel, DAUGHTER OF DRACULA.  Wild Wolf's owner, Sean Collins, promised us he would get the book out into new markets.  Well, he is certainly fulfilling that promise.  Last week the book went on sale at the popular Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble on-line.

              
                   DAUGHTER OF DRACULA
                     Cover by  Mark Maddox

Artist Rob Davis and I couldn't be happier.  In the year since we self-published this erotic horror novel, we've only been able to sell it a conventions and on-line at our sites.  We are hoping the added exposure will mean a big increase in sales.  Of course as good as these places are to show off our book, the real place we've always wanted to reach were the comic shops.  Well, good old Sean has seen to that as well as he has also made a deal for Haven to carry DAUGHTER OF DRACULA in their new catalog.  What is Haven you ask?  I'm glad you asked.  Haven is a brand new comics distributor that started up a short while ago.  For the past twenty years or so there has only been one such outfit, Diamond.  Last year Diamond took a beating in the stock market and because of this loss has had to tightened their operating procedures to include not carrying books by small, independent companies as they were unable to make a profit on them.  Thus leaving many fine comics to simply disappear as if they had never existed.  Well, Haven is going to see that doesn't happen.  As a new distributor, they are strongly going to be support the smaller comic companies by helping them reach the comic shops of  America.  One of Haven's business managers recently unveiled the cover to their new catalog, COMICS.

            
               HAVEN'S CATALOG FOR COMIC SHOPS

The magazine features a wonderful illustration by comics great, Neal Adams, and is jam packed with over a hundred pages of news, reviews and articles (several by Ye Old Airchief).  Plus, of course, the listings of hundreds of great new comic books you will certainly want to look at.  If your comic shop retailer is unaware of Haven, do them a favor and wise them up.  Tell them, as a comic book fan, you want to get this catalog and order books like DAUGHTER OF DRACULA through them.  By doing this, you'll be helping keep this industry vibrant and alive.  Without the small comic outfits and Haven to help them, your comic shops would soon only be selling you the same old DC and Marvel books.  Is that what anyone of us really want?  Or do you prefer diversity like Ye Old Airchief?  Then go out there and ask for COMICS!

Ric Croxton is a life-long pulp fan who does a weekly podcast from his site the Bookcave.  Last week he spoke with Ye Old Airchief, Airship 27 partner Rob Davis and Loyal Airman Erwin K.Roberts all about our new pulp book, JIM ANTHONY SUPER-DETECTIVE. We also talked about lots of other fun, genre topics. If you'd like to give a listen, then log on at – (http://thebookcave.libsyn.com/).  Thanks Ric, it was a blast.

Finally, the new Mr.Jigsaw series is doing great guns out there.  Thank you to the handful of comic shops who've gone the extra distance in ordering copies from us directly.  Old time Jiggy fans are coming out of the woodwork and writing to tell us how happy they are the character is back.  Believe me, so are we.  We've just seen the artwork for the all new issue # 4 and it's pure comics heaven.  But first we've got to get out # 3.  And then we're going to have another surprise announcement regarding Maine's only living superhero. So be sure to come back and stay tuned to the Flight Log.

All for now, Loyal Airmen. Have a great week, Ron, over and out!

Greetings Loyal Airmen, as you'll recall, last week we announced the release of our then newest pulp title, JAGGER -TIME SERVED by first time novelist, Jared L.Cantin.  We also ended that section of the flight log with saying there was a rather unique story behind that book and how we came to publish it.  And we promised to relate it, so here goes.  My father was one of six boys, his youngest brother was Paul.  When Paul was about 9 yrs old, World War II broke out and he saw four of his older brothers go off to fight, while the fifth, already married with a family, worked at the local Navy shipyard as a welder.  So there was Paul, for almost four years, the anchor that kept my grandparents going while the war raged.  With God's blessings, my father, and his brothers all came home.  They all married and soon started their own families.  Ye Old Chief was born in 1946, one of those post-war babies.  My Uncle Paul would have been 12 or 13 at this time.  This is a good place to tell you that Paul was a gifted artist and as a child, he spent many hours sketching away with pencil and pad.  My Grandfather Fortier was so proud of his pictures, he tacked them to the basement walls where he kept his workshop.  After I was born, my parents moved into the other half of the duplex where my grandparents, and Uncle Paul, resided.  By the time I was six, Paul was off into the navy himself.   After he was gone, I totally remember going down to my grandfather's workshop evenings after dinner to simply watch him do his wood working and that was when I discovered the beautiful pictures on his wall.  It was my first introduction to real art.  When he finished his service obligations, Paul married Madelaine, my lovely Aunt Maddy.  They had four kids, three daughters and a son.  One of those daughters, Melanie, grew up and married a Roger Cantin.  They had several children including a son, Jared.

Last Fall, Valerie and I decided to take a ride to Melanie's home, as she and Roger maintain an apple orchard and we wanted to buy some fresh apples.  Much to my delight, who do we find sitting in the open garage bay but Uncle Paul, who became all excited when he recognized me getting out of the car.  Over the years, Uncle Paul had become aware of my writing career and now wanted to show me a manuscript his grandson had just finished.  He sent my cousin, Melanie, hurrying back into the house to fetch that manuscript. By the time she had returned with it, up from the orchard came Roger and this young man, introduced to me as his son, Jared Cantin, the author of the manuscript now in my hands.  I took it home, read it and realized it was something special and decided Airship 27 Prod. would produce it for publication.  Jared couldn't have been happier.  Then as Christmas rolled along, I learned from him that Uncle Paul had been diagnosed with prostrate cancer and was having a tough go of it.  He is in treatment and it is helping him, but the process is draining and leaves him weak and tired.  Learning of his condition, I contacted everyone on the team; my partner/artist, Rob Davis, our proof reader, John Bruening, cover colorist Shane Evans and of course, our publisher, Michael Poll of Cornerstone Book Publishers.  I explained the situation and asked all of them to go the extra mile in helping get this one book done quick, so that Jared and I could have the satisfaction of presenting the first copy to his grandfather, my Uncle Paul.

    THE AIR CHIEF  – HIS UNCLE PAUL FORTIER  &  HIS GRANDSON JARED L.CANTIN

Last Saturday morning the mail delivered that first copy and I immediately called Jared.  He and his wife, and mother Melanie, joined Val and Ye Old Air Chief for a quick ride to Uncle Paul's home where we presented him with the very first copy of  JAGGER – TIME SERVED.   It was one of the happiest moment's of my life and as you can see by the photo above, Jared and his grandfather were also very, very pleased.    When I first started Airship 27 Prod., I never guessed it would one day allow me to do something nice for a man I've known and loved all my life.  I told you it was a good story.  And Ye Old Air Chief would like to now publicly thank the best book production team in the world, Rob, John, Shane and Mike.  Thank you all for making this happen.  Our family owes you guys big time.

And lest you think we at Airship 27 Prod. are about to rest on our laurels, forget it.  Hot on the heels of that last release comes our newest classic pulp anthology starring one of the greatest old time heroes, JIM ANTHONY – SUPER DETECTIVE.  As the pulpsters use to proclaim, “He's half-Irish, half-Comanche and All American!”  Originally created as a second-string Doc Savage, Jim Anthony had a short lived crime fighting career in his own magazine.  We at Airship 27 Prod. are truly excited about bringing him back in three brand new adventures for today's action hungry audience.  Writers Andrew Salmon, Erwin K.Roberts and B.C.Bell have whipped up three fast paced, thrill-a-minute tales that will have you turning pages faster than you can say…Jim Anthony!!  The book features eleven interior illustrations by Pedro Cruz and a gorgeous cover painting (see above) by the super talented Chad Hardin.  To pick up a copy of this new release, simply click on our dirigible logo to the the left of this log-entry.  Trust me, Loyal Airmen, this is one book you will love cover to cover.

And that's it for another week.  Valerie is in Colorado for the next few weeks visiting our son Alan and his family.  She and I will meet up in Chicago in two more weeks, as I'll be there to attend this year's Windy City Pulp & Paper show, and then fly home together.  On other fronts, our Red Sox got off to an horrendous start this past week on their road trip west and are now back at Fenway to start a home stand.  Here's hoping things change quickly from the lost column to the win side.

Have a great week, Ron, over and out!
 

Greetings Loyal Airmen.  This week we are really happy to announce the release of our latest Airship 27 Prod. pulp title, JAGGER – TIME SERVED by first time writer, Jared L.Cantin.  Many people believe that pulps died out long ago but nothing could be further from the truth.  Rather, they merely evolved into new print formats, ala the drugstore paperbacks.  Heroes like the Shadow and Doc Savage were replaced by the likes of Mack Bolan – The Executioner and Dirk Pitt amongst others.  There are indeed many modern pulps that continue to entertain us with tales of suspense and fast paced action to this very day.

Which is why, when the script to this modern day thriller first fell into my hands, I immediately recognized it for what it was, another modern day pulp.  And so made the decision to publish it via Airship 27 and Cornerstone Book Publishers.  It's a gritty story about a Marine veteran of the war in Iraq who comes home to start a new life only to be sent to prison for a crime he did not commit.  After seven long years in prison, he is paroled.  Shortly thereafter he receives a plea for help from a fellow veteran. A child serial killer is terrorizing a small New England town and the authorities are helpless to stop him. It requires someone with James Jagger's particular skills and training. But to answer this call, he will have to break parole and become a wanted fugitive.  JAGGER – TIME SERVED is a gripping, powerful story that kicks into high gear from the first page and never lets go until the powerful climax.  We sincerely hope all Loyal Airmen will check it out at our on-line Airship 27 store.  Simply go to the dirigible icon to the left of this log and click on to it.  And as always, thank you so much for you continued support.

Next week ye Old Air Chief will provide you with a little extra background history about this particular book and the writer.  Its a good story you won't want to miss.

Other topics of interest around Hanger 27 this week.  Our beloved Red Sox are back in action and after a marvelous opening day victory, they've had a tough go of it.  The Tampa Rays, in Boston for this three games set, handily took games two and three from the Sox, showing the world that their winning the American League Championship last year was not a fluke by any means.  This is a young, talented team and if anything, they've gotten better.  Clearly, the Sox, and other teams in this AL East division are going to have to content with the Rays.  They are winners here to stay.

LOST continues to be our favorite television show ever.  This past week's episode had us wondering just how fast any hour could fly by?  All the questions of the past four seasons are being resolved and the action is unfolding at a very fast clip.  Thumbs way up to creator J.J. Abrams and his writers.  LOST is too much fun.

Finally, we'd like to take a moment to wish all our Loyal Airmen of the Christian and Jewish faiths a truly happy and loving Easter and Passover.  This is the holiest time of the year, a celebration of life over death, through the graces and blessing of a loving God for his people.  May those blessings rain down on you, your loved ones and all the world.

Till next week, Ron – Over & Out.

Greetings Loyal Airmen.  The big news around Hanger 27 this week is the release of our second issue chronicling the adventures of Maine's only living super-hero, Mr.Jigsaw, Man of a Thousand Parts.  Continuing our reprinting of all the Jigsaw stories done in the past twenty-seven years, this issue contains 4 complete stories, each detailing young Charlie Grant's settling into his new life as Portland, Maine's new crime-fighter.  Along with the help of some new friends, he slowly make's the historical port city his home.  Artist Gary Kato and I are extremely excited about getting Mr.Jigsaw back into print and even as I write these words, he is busy drawing our all new issue # 4.  But first there will be one remaining reprint volume, which is now in production by our editor, Rob Davis.  Issue # 3 will bring together the webstrip adventures of this lovable character as they appeared on a now defunct site called Adventure Strips.  You can purchase a copy of this issue, and issue # 1, by simply going over to our Air Fare pages and clicking on the listings you'll find there. All of us here have high hopes for Mr.Jigsaw and with your support, we are going to make those dreams a reality.

The other big comic news this past week was Dynamite Comics announcing they have obtained the rights to produce a brand new Green Hornet comic book series.  This particular character was born on radio back in early 40s on radio station WXYZ out of Detroit.  From there, he was adapted into two cliff-hanger serials and then into comics, like the one pictured above.  He then resurfaced in the early 1960s as a short lived TV show starring Van Williams as the Green Hornet and the late martial artist, Bruce Lee, as his aide, Kato.  It was one of the more popular shows ever viewed.  Then in the early 1980s, ye old Air Chief helped relaunch the character with a brand new comic series at Now Comics.  We wrote the character and most of its first year was drawn by the fantastic Jeff Butler.   Few people know that the Green Hornet was the grand nephew of another famous hero invented at WXYZ Radio, the Lone Ranger.  For the past two years Dynamite has been publishing a Lone Ranger series.  With their acquistion of the Green Hornet, they become the first comics company to feature both of these characters since the old Gold Key comics of the 60s.  No announcement has been made as to when the series will debut or who the creative team on the book will be.  We wish Dynamite all the luck in the world with the Green Hornet.

On the pulp front, Moonstone Books this past week finally announced the released of their new anthology book, the Domino Lady, pulpdom's sexiest avenger.  Ye Old Air Chief was instrumental in getting this project started and has a story in it.  The book itself features two different covers, our favorite being the one shown above by that same Jeff Butler we mentioned eariler.  We think its a gorgeous work, and the design for this version was done by the super talented Anthony Schiavino.  It's been a long time in the making, but worth the effort.

Three more days to Major League Baseball's opening day.  The Red Sox will be taking on the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway on Monday afternoon, April 6th.  Sadly the weather man is predicting rain, but with fingers crossed it will come and go before game time.  Sox have a great line up this year and we're going to be rooting for them to go all the way again, to the World Series.

That about wraps it up for this week, Loyal Airmen.  We'd hoped to show off our latest Airship 27 Prod. pulp title, but it is taking just a bit longer than we had hoped.  Come back next week to check it out.  It's a really great thriller and something new for us, it's modern pulp rather than classic.  You'll see what I mean next week.
Till then, take care and start painting those Easter Eggs. The big day is coming soon!
Ron – Over & Out.

Greetings Loyal Airmen, hope all of you have been enjoying the start of Spring.  As I write these words, Colorado and points west are getting nailed by a powerful blizzard.  Seems like in certain parts of the country, old man winter does not want to relinquish his hold just yet. But he will, as even nature cannot stand against the inevitable march of time.  Speaking of such, this past Tuesday, March 24th, marked the one year anniversary of my lung surgery.  This time last year, your Air Chief was in a hospital bed recovering and wondering what the future held in store for him.  Lots of prayers came my way those days and the weeks and months after.  All of which are why my recovery was so successful and I remain in good health to this day.  I will never forget those prayers and well wishes.

So how did we spend that memorable day?  Good question.  We spent it granting our granddaughter Chelsea a very special request.  A typical teenage girl, she is a huge fan of the music trio, the Jonas Brothers.  Their latest concert was playing at the local cinema as a special one night only event and she so wanted to go.  So we picked her up at her school that afternoon and drove down to the theater to catch the 4:40 PM showing.
      
                                                        The Jonas Brothers in Concert

All of us had a blast.  Chelsea for the obvious reasons.  Valerie and me, because this was a Disney digital 3-D production and absolutely fantastic to view.  Everything was so crystal clear.  It was like having the best seats in the hall at the actual concert.  Oh, and we were the only three people in the theater.  Talk about feeling like a VIP.  Ha.  After the showing, we stopped at a fast food restaurant to grab a burger then took her home.  Chelsea had a great time and so did her grandparents.  One we'll all remember fondly for years to come.  And though Ye Old Air Chief is no expert on teen-age boy bands, let me add, the Jonas Brothers are extremely talented and put on a truly fun show.

Last week we talked a great deal about pulps.  A new series just released from the folks who brought you the Hard Case Crime paperback series is called HUNT, featuring a modern day Indiana Jones-like hero named Gabriel Hunt.  The first book pictured above comes out at the end of April.  We received an advance reading copy and reviewed it favorably at our blog site, Pulp Fiction Reviews.   See the link above to read that.  This is one series you should keep an eye out for.

               
                        Captain Hazzard by Jay Piscopo

Meanwhile Airship 27 Productions is only a few weeks away from reprinting our very first Captain Hazzard novel, Python Men of the Lost City.  Cover painter, Mark Maddox, has turned in a gorgeous painting and we hope to announce the book's availability soon.  Meanwhile, our good friend, Maine illustrator, Jay Piscopo, did up this great Captain Hazzard pin-up for us and we think its super.  Wanted to share it with all you Loyal Airmen.  Jay has signed on to do some work for Airship 27 Prod. and we couldn't be happier to have him aboard.

               
                            Cast of Mr.Jigsaw by Gary Kato

After weeks and weeks of waiting, we just learned tonight that our second issue of  MR.JIGSAW – Man of a Thousand Parts should finally be out by early next week.  We'll post the actual cover for it in next week's Flight Log along with the link to where to purchase a copy.  In the meanwhile enjoy the color-guide artist Gary Kato did up for it years ago.  We've been hard at work this week writing a new Jiggy story.  Can't wait to finish those reprint issues and get to the new stuff.

Finally, ye Old Air Chief recently did a two hour podcast with Chuck Moore of Comic Related.  Joining us in this marathon gab-fest was fellow comics fan, Bill Gladman.  The topic was the evolution of comics in America over the past thirty years, good and bad.  Chuck posted both halves of this informal conversation over at the site, on the front page (www.comicrelated.com).  Part one is listed as Podcast # 93 and part two is # 94.  We hope you'll stop by and listen in.  We had a blast doing this.

And that's a wrap for another week, Loyal Airmen.  Thanks ever for stopping by.  Take care, have a great week and we'll be back in seven days.

Ron – Over & Out!

Greeting Loyal Airmen, well this has really been a week devoted to pulps, in lots of ways.  Before anything else, the Air Chief would like to send out a big thank you to Bill Cunningham and the gracious people at Geekarati.com who produce a weekly internet radio podcast about every cool topic under the sun.  Last night, via Bill suggestions, they decided to talk about pulps, their history and resurgence in the marketplace through outfits like our own Airship 27 Productions.  Beside the Air Chief and Bill, their other guest was writer/publisher, Wayne Skiver.  All in all it was a great hour conversation about a subject we all hold near and dear.  Should any of you Loyal Airmen be at all interested in hearing it, simply Google them. The podcast is up on their boards for either playing or downloading.

For the past two years, my Airship 27 partner, Rob Davis, and I, have attended the Windy City Pulp & Paper Convention held in Chicago.  This year will mark our third trip there and we are really looking forward to see lots of our old friends and meeting many new ones.
                     
This year the show will be held between May 1st & 3rd.  John Gunnison and Doug Ellis are the promoters and every year they do a bang up job that is much fun for all the vendors, creators and fans.  We've seen a noticeable growth in attendance in the past two years and have no reason to believe it will end soon.  This is a truly wonderful weekend convention and if you are anywhere in the Chicago area on those dates, please stop on by and say hi.  You can learn more about the show itself by visiting their website on-line.

One of the longest running pulp conventions was simply called Pulp Con and it had been around for over thirty-five years, held in Dayton, Ohio.  The Air Chief attended a Pulp Con several years ago and was dismayed to see how small the attendance had fallen.  Many of the people involved with the show recognized the need for change and have branched out this year to start a brand new, more open venue, to be called Pulp Fest and it will have its home in Columbus, Ohio.  Unlike Pulp Con, which never attempted to attract the comic or gaming fans, Pulp Fest is willing to open its arms to all related genre fandom. 
                 
Pulp Fest has been organized by Mike Chomko, Barry Traylor, Jack Cullers, Ed Hulse and Chris Kalb.  You can find a link to their website on our Links page here.  We've exchanged a few e-mails with Mike and he's very, very excited about the prospects for this new show.  Although not officially committed, Rob and I are fairly sure by the time this one rolls around, July 31st, Airship 27 Prod. will most likely be there supporting the start of a brand new pulp con.  Do check them out.

One of the topics of last night's radio podcast allowed the Ye Old Air Chief to brag a bit about some of the really great pulp titles we have coming out in the next few weeks and months. One of these is our first JIM ANTHONY SUPER DETECTIVE anthology.   Jim Anthony was an original classic pulp hero described as “half Irish, half Indian..and all American!”   Here's one of the original covers.
                    
These were among some of the wildest pulp adventures ever published.  Again, our own Jim Anthony book is soon to roll off the presses and it features brand new stories by three of our most talented writers.  Last week we sent them a sneak-peek image of our stunning cover as painted by the fantastic Chad Hardin.  Robert Kennedy, one our group, was so taken by that cover, he printed it up and slapped on his cublicle wall at work, then snapped this photo for us to enjoy.
               
                       Writer Robert Kennedy and the cover to Jim Anthony Super Detective
Of course I realize this is a very small image.  Consider it a tease.   With fingers crossed, the book should be ready within a month. Then will let you see all of that cover and truly showcase how truly beautiful it is.  We pride ourselves at Airship 27 Prod. in delivering the finest pulp covers on the market today.  No one comes close to matching the quality and design of our books.  JIM ANTHONY SUPER DETECTIVE will clearly add to that claim and then some.

Finally, do visit the Links Page.  We've added a new one to another great pulp orientated internet site called The Pulp Works.  It's run by four of the finest writers we know and their work deserves yours attention and support. I've read several of their novels, reviewed a couple and was so impressed, recruited three of them to do work for Airship 27 Productions.  Derrick Ferguson, Joel Jenkins and Joshua Reynolds are the force behind Pulp Works and again, they do nothing but superior fiction.  Take a look see and tell them the Air Chief sent you.

That's it.  Spring has officially arrived.  Every day the dirty gray mounds of snow melt smaller and smaller.  Team USA has made it to the finals of the World Baseball Classic by a dramatic bottom of the ninth victory over powerhouse Puerto Rico and we were shouting and cheering all the while.  They are doing a grand job representing our country, tune in this week-end and add a few friendly screams of your own.

Ron – Over & Out!
                       

Greetings Loyal Airmen.  Another Friday the 13th has rolled around and we've an odd assortment of subjects to
share with you this morning.  So let's get to them.
       

After telling all of you how we ended up with a actual piece of the WATCHMEN movie, it was time for Valerie and me to actually go see the movie that is currently topping the box office charts.  We've posted a longer, more complete movie review at various spots on the net and won't bore you with that here.  Rather we will say we both liked it a great deal, the Air Chief more than Val.  But then again that's because we've been a fan of the comic book upon which it is based and have been waiting over twenty years to see it.  We particularly enjoyed Jackie Earle Haley's portrayal of the fedora wearing Rorschach, Patrick Wilson's Night Owl and the love Malin Ackerman's Silk Specter.   We saw an afternoon matinee filled with only adults.  We point this out because of stories that have been emerging ever since the movie made its debut about shocked parents having to leave theaters because of the adult content.  Which truly bothers us a great deal.  Not because the movie is for adults, but that those parents are so guileless as to not know what an R rating means.  That they would simply assume because it is a “superhero” story, it must be for the whole family.  Right, and every comedy out there today must be okay too?  Duh.  When the WATCHMEN series was first published, DC Comics made it quite clear it was intended strictly for mature readers.  Movie ads and trailers highlight the violent content extremely well and that R rating is there for all the world to see.  Yet, these “parents” blindly walk into theaters dragging their little ones behind them and within minutes are exposing them to rape, a pregnant woman being gunned down and two adults having kinky sex in a floating mechanical owl.  Then these same mothers and fathers are storming out of the movie hall and damning the movie.  Huh, huh. Nope. Doesn't work that way folks.  As parents these people had a responsibility and they failed it.  They shouldn't be blaming the studios for their own shortcomings.  We trust anyone who hasn't seen the movie yet, after reading these comments, is now clear on the subject?  WATCHMEN IS FOR ADULTS!!!

While on the movie kick, might as well continue with several new DVD's we picked up recently.  Of course the normal process is to go see a movie at the local cineplex, then, if you enjoyed it, months later buy it when it comes out on disc.  Sadly, these economic times make seeing all the movies we'd like to see impossible and as weeks roll along, both Val and the Air Chief find themselves missing certain flicks.  So, we save our pennies (like everyone out there today) and wait for the DVDs to come out.  In the past two weeks two weeks we bought two such titles that we had missed at the theaters.  One we felt would be a sure winner, the other we took a gamble on. That one was AUSTRALIA, the sweeping epic starring Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman, written and directed by Baz Luhrmann.  The Air Chief can't say enough good things about this movie.  If you, like me, miss all those grand old stories with vast landscapes and truly wonderful characters, do yourselves a favor and rent this movie.  And if you've got a big screen TV, then you'll soon be in seventh heaven, as the photography is just stunning throughout.  The story, the acting …everything is simply top notch and it is an old fashion, wonderful viewing experience.  Please, do not miss it.

Whereas the sure thing title was TRANSPORTER 3 starring my favorite action star, Jason Statham.  It is another rollicking chapter in the life of Frank Martin, a man who makes his living driving certain questionable packages from point A to point B.  The first two entries in this series were so much fun, we had no doubts this one would display the same over-the-top stunts and it delivers even more than we imagined.  When a car is racing across the top of a moving train, then you can believe your old Air Chief is in movie action heaven.  Statham never fails to deliver and has truly revitalized the action movie with his recent offerings such as the TRANSPORTER series, last year's CRANK and DEATH RACE. And we're told CRANK 2 is coming out soon.  A real cause for celebration.

                   
                                                      JOSH  BECKETT

What with the little snatches of warm weather March has been providing us, amidst the still infrequent snowfalls, baseball is in the air with its promise of better days.  And this year, in two very exciting venues.  The normal Red Sox Spring Training camp is in full tilt down in Ft.Myers, Florida and from what we've been able to see and read, the team is showing some very good signs.  Ace pitcher, Josh Beckett, who had a lackluster season last year, seems to have somehow shaken off his ennui and appears to be pitching to his level again.  Fingers crossed he can keep that going.  Meanwhile young John Lester, who clearly showed the world he too is an ace when it comes to hurling, is simply staying constant and his outings indicate 2009 is going to maintain his rise to prominence as one of the finest left handed pitchers in baseball.  All of this is great news.

At the same time, the international contest known as the World Baseball Classic is back and we've been really having a blast rooting for Team USA.   They won two out of their first three games and have moved on to Round Two.  Among the players are two Red Sox favorites, Kevin Youkalis and Dustin Pedroia.  Youk has already belted two home runs for Team USA.  And we have to confess, its really a lot of fun watching these play along side of Mr.Yankees himself, the terrific Derek Jeter.  We're cheering this team on to victory and hope you are too.

And there you have for this week, Loyal Airmen.  We've been out straight with our pulp projects these past few weeks and are hoping to announce not one, but several new titles in the coming weeks.  We are also planning our convention appearances for the year.  Rob Davis and ye old Air Chief will be attending the Windy City Paper and Pulp Con the first weekend in May, so we hope to see lots of you there.  It will be our third year going to this great show.  On June 14th, I'll be a guest at Larry Doherty's Comic Con in Lowell, Ma., where we will be debuting the relaunch of MR.JIGSAW, our comedy superhero.  We plan on having lots of copies of issue 1 & 2 at this show.  So if you live in the New England area, please, mark your calenders now.

That's wraps it up, Loyal Airmen.  Have a great week and see you back here next week.
Ron – Over & Out.

Greeting Loyal Airmen.  We are writing this Thursday evening, only hours away from the premier of one of the most eagerly awaited movies of the year, THE WATCHMEN.  This adult, superhero action drama is based on the bestselling graphic novel by writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons.  There will be midnight showings all over the country tonight and then regular viewings starting tomorrow.  We bring all this up because as of  yesterday, thanks to the generosity of a good friend, Ye Old Airchief now owns a piece of this amazing movie.

You see, this friend was an extra in this film and over the months of principal photography, kept us constantly informed on the movie's faithfulness to the source material. Now, months later, the sets crafted for the film up in Vancouver, Canada, have been abandoned and left to rot in the elements. But our enterprising friend had other plans and revisited the site recently and walked away with lots of souvenirs.  One of which arrived in the mail the other day.  It is a five inch long wooden dowel that came from a stair railing.

        
                              Scene From Film – Notice the broken railing.

In the story, the costumed hero, Rorschack visits a rundown hotel to find and question a suspect only to find himself trapped there by the police.  When they start up the stairs, he starts a fire and then runs to the next landing and throws himself through the window in an attempt to escape them.

       
                 Scene From Film – Policeman on fire crashing through railing.

What our good friend sent us was a piece of this very railing in these photos from the movie.  We actually now own a piece of the Watchmen movie.

        
                                   Dowel From Set of Watchmen Movie

With Valerie's help, we set up this little display on the kitchen table and snapped the above photo, along with the screen shots to show you our little chunk of movie memorabilia.  A really big heartfelt thanks to our dear and thoughtful friend for this marvelous gesture.  We fully plan on seeing this film and applauding their presence in the background faces.  Bravo and thanks a again.  Long after the movie has become a cinema classic, we'll be treasuring our small piece of it and sharing this story with our family for years to come.

Speaking of superhero movies, Warner Brothers Animation released their latest gem this past week, WONDER WOMAN.  After years of giving us fans great animated TV shows and movies starring Superman and Batman, this feature starring DC's most popular female hero was long overdue.  It is a grand retelling of her origin with terrific animation throughout and great performances by voice actors Kerri Russell as Wonder Woman and Nathan Fillion as the man she comes to love, pilot Steve Trevor. Filled with tons of action, adventure and a saucy bit of adult humor, this is one of the finest animated movies Ye Old Airchief has ever seen and enjoyed.  We cannot recommend it enough. Do yourselves a favor and go buy, or rent, this entertaining movie.

And there you have it for this week, Loyal Airmen, a sort of movie Flight Log if you will.  Have a great weekend and go see The Watchmen and save us some popcorn.
Ron – Over & Out!