Greetings Loyal Airmen, we've got lots of cool things to talk about this week concerning future Airship 27 titles and our trip to the Windy City Pulp & Paper Con next weekend   This will be the seventh year in a row that we attend and we certainly hope to see many of our Loyal Airmen in attendance.  In fact we've got something extra special for all of you who do, but more on that in a minute.  First up, we want to tell you about a very special fund raiser going on now by one of the greatest graphic artists of our time, Mr. Michael Kaluta.

Years ago, Michael and his writing partner, Elaine Lee, created an amazing sci-fi fantasy comic series called STARSTRUCK.  It was a huge success for them and there was even a stage adaptation at one time.  Well out of the blue Elaine has come up with a whopping new idea for a brand new Starstruck graphic novel and she approached Michael about them doing it via a program on-line called Kickstarter.  The idea is fairly simple, they announce what it is they wish to publish and how much it will cost them to do so.  If Kickstarter approves their pitch, then they are given a page and allotted a limited amount of time to solicit the funds.  If they cannot do so in the time set, then the project goes unfunded and is removed from the program. On the other hand if they do raise the funds, then they can proceed with publish their book.  Note, one of the means in which creators drum up contributions is by offering would be contributors various incentive gifts based on the amount the person is willing to contribute.  One of the incentives for this Starstruck Kickstarter is an original Michael Kaluta drawing for anyone giving $300.  Note, we did say, original drawing, not a copy or a print.  Michael will draw you a picture.  Believe me this is an amazing offer and won't last forever.  If any of you Loyal Airmen are as big a fan of this man as we are, then you need to get over to this Kickstarter page immediately and check it out.  We really hope our Loyal Airmen will help Michael and Elaine get this off the ground.
            (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/elainelee/harry-palmer-starstruck-or-old-proldiers-never-die)

                                         
                                                        THE PURPLE SCAR
The of the most unique classic pulp heroes of the golden age was the Purple Scar.  Dr. Miles Murdock was a plastic surgeon who operated a medical clinic in the slums of a major metropolitan city.  In the first story his brother, a police officer, is gunned down by hoodlums.  They then throw acid onto the face to horribly disfigure it. When Doc Murdock views his brother's remains, he vows to hunt the men who committed the heinous crime and he does so by becoming the horrific vigilante known as the Purple Scar.  You see, Murdock makes a death-mask from a mold of his dead brother's face and this is what he wears when hunting down the bad guys.
Pretty gruesome stuff indeed.  When we at Airship 27 Productions decided we were going to do an anthology featuring four new Purple Scar stories we also knew we were going to have to fine a really super talented artist who could capture both the heroism and the horror aspects of this unique character. We were lucky enough to find artist Richard Serrao who is getting very well known in the crime comics field.  He was intrigued with the character upon hearing his history and in the end signed on to do the 12 black and white interior illustrations that will appear in the finished volume.  The amazing piece above is his powerful interpretation of the Purple Scar.
Honestly, we asked for something scary and Richard delivered far beyond our expectations.  We'll keep you all informed when the book is completed and available.

And now Loyal Airmen, the REALLY BIG NEWS of the week, as declared in the poster above.  For the longest time, the Air Chief has been wanting to offer all of you a truly unique premium that wouldn't cost an arm or a leg and allow all our Loyal Airmen the chance to become a real part of the Airship 27 Crew. The answer to that need was having cloth patches made up of our familiar dirigible logo as seen on all our titles.  Art Director Rob Davis scoured the internet until he found a great on-line company that could produce high quality patches for a truly reasonable fee.  We had 100 made up and we'll be have them on our tables at Windy City next week.  As they were intended to be a “giveaway premium,” any of our customers who buy two of our titles at their regular price will get a free Airship 27 patch.  Of course we realized some folks might just want to pick up a patch and we will sell those separate for the ridiculous price of $3 each.  They are 3″high and 3.75″ wide.

Above his a much better, up close picture of a patch against the box foam background.  Rob has already had two of them sewn on to his jackets and reports they look fantastic.  We're betting all our Loyal Airmen will have to have one of these gorgeous patches.  Note, after coming home from the con, Rob will make them available via mail order for that same $3 price plus some added coins for mailing fees. We will post that information and Rob's mailing address right here when we are ready to get that going.  Until then, bear with us.

And there you have it Loyal Airmen.  One of the major events of the Windy City Pulp & Paper Con is the presentation of the annual Pulp Factory Awards for the Best Pulp Novel, Best Pulp Short Story, Best Pulp Cover and Best Interior Illustrations that were published during the previous year.  We are humbled to announced that for the second year in a row, the Air Chief is in the running for Best Pulp Short Story for our tale, “The Ghoul,” which appeared in the anthology, “Monster Aces,” from Pro Se Productions.  Wish us luck.

Till then, take care and watch those tail winds.
Ron – Over & Out!