Rock 'N' Roll Comics
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THE RETURN OF ROCK 'N' ROLL COMICS!
Beginning in December 2009 and thru 2010, Rock 'N' Roll Comics old and new will be published in a bimonthly series of graphic novels from Bluewater Productions, the company earning so much mainstream press for their bio comics on the Obamas, Sarah Palin, Lady Gaga, Oprah, etc.
Here's a sneak peek at the first promo art for Rock 'N' Roll Comics: Hard Rock Heroes, a 280 page graphic novel shipping from Bluewater Productions in 2010, as well as the 240 page Beatles Experience comic, the Led Zeppelin Experience, the Pink Floyd Experience, and more - (collage and RnR Comics logo by SS Crompton)SHIPPING DECEMBER 2009 from Bluewater Productions www.bluewaterproductions.com
The Beatles are bigger than ever, now available online for the first time digitally, on the Vegas stage in “Love,” and in the new Beatles: Rock Band video game. Now comes the most comprehensive and encyclopedic illustrated Beatles story ever, the Beatles Experience! Over 200 pages, dramatizing one of the most compelling tales in pop culture history, drawn from thousands of photos and interviews, meticulously researched and written by Todd Loren, with stunning art by Mike Sagara (Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics) and Stuart Immonen (Legion of Super Heroes, Ultimate X-Men)... ..
Covering the Beatles’ lives from birth and beyond their breakup, dramatized in dialogue and scene recreations more akin to a film bio than a mere documentary, the Beatles Experience also includes a Chronolog timeline going down each page, with encyclopedia background and footnotes detailing related events happening at the same time in the world, in music, and in the Beatles’ own tumultuous and extraordinary lives. Perhaps Todd Loren's best-ever work, this compiled volume stretches the traditional boundaries of the biocomic format, to present a tale that manages to be dramatic, artistic, and encyclopedic, all at once. Entertaining, informative, AND engaging --- a rare comic accomplishment, to be sure!
Hard Rock Heroes: What goes together better than comics and rock music? With almost 300 pages of Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics, Hard Rock Heroes goes WAY beyond Behind the Music, to tell the real life, behind-the-scenes stories of rock’s most heavy hitters. Creators include Stuart Immonen (Superman: End of the Century), Ken Landgraf (Wolverine), Jay Allen Sanford, Todd Loren (Beatles Experience), Scott Pentzer (Razor), Mike Sagara (Ninja High School), and many others.
Hard Rock Heroes is a book-length pictorial history, covering bands like Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen, Motley Crue, Poison, Megadeth, Pantera, Anthrax, Motorhead, Sammy Hagar, and more. The cinematic stories are realistically drawn, researched from countless photo and video archives, with an encyclopedic eye toward visual accuracy, dramatic flair, and journalistic depth.
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Also includes the never-before published “missing” Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics #8 from 1990, on Skid Row. The lack of an eighth issue has vexed collectors and catalogers for years – exactly 20 years later, the story can finally be told, and collectors can finally own ALL the Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics, including this early Todd Loren classic!
As a bonus treat, Hard Rock Heroes also features the Motley Crue comic story from their official box CD set Music To Crash Your Car To II, released in 2004 and written and drawn by original Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics creators Lyndal Ferguson and Larry Nadolsky.
"Great ideas, like the marriage of rock 'n' roll and comics, have the half-life of Uranium and will always be popular," says series co-creator Jay Allen Sanford, who has worked on over 200 reality-based comic books and thousands of similar cartoon strips for the San Diego Reader, as well as for magazines like Rip, Spin, and Oui. "The folks at Bluewater clearly have their fingers on the same pop culture pulse that enabled the original Rock 'N' Roll Comics to become one of the top-selling indie comics of the '90s. Truth is often stranger than fiction...and certainly much more interesting!" 
(colors: Christie Maconnell)
SHIPPING IN EARLY 2010:
The Pink Floyd Experience: All five issues of the Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics series The Pink Floyd Experience have been out of print and in demand for over fifteen years. As showcased in Pink Floyd’s own official box CD set Shine On, the Floyd comics chronicle rock’s most enigmatic psychedelic warriors, from their early dayz with stoner icon Syd Barrett, through their split (and later reformation). With art by Marvel and DC star Ken Landgraf (Wolverine, Hawkman, Nightwing & Flamebird, etc.), the collection also includes update material, bringing the saga up to 2010.
SHIPPING SUMMER 2010: Here's the first look at the Elvis Presley Experience cover art
SHIPPING SUMMER 2010: Rock 'N' Roll Cartoon History - The '60s
ALSO SHIPPING IN 2010:
The Led Zeppelin Experience: The Led Zeppelin saga is one of the wildest in rock history, and this graphic novel pulls no punches in dramatizing the backstage, behind-the-scenes story. From their early days as the New Yardbirds on through their rise to superstardom (and controversy), all five issues of the original Rock ‘N’ Roll Comics series are collected in one rockin’ volume.Artwork is by Scott Pentzer (Razor), Marshall Ross (Deepest Dimension Terror Anthology), David Neer (Sports Superstars), Francois Escalmel (Frank Zappa: Viva La Bizarre), and others. The collection also includes update material, bringing the saga up to 2010.
ALSO SHIPPING IN 2010 - Rock 'N' Roll Comics: Joan Jett and the Runaways, a full color comic tie-in with the Runaways feature film!
(Above collage by Bulletproof Film)
DRAWING DAVID BOWIE (time lapse)
......Music
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Comus, Pink Floyd, Roger Waters, NIN, Klaatu, Nektar, Gentle Giant, Bad Religion, Beatles, progressive rock (Marillion, King Crimson, early Genesis, etc.), Badfinger, Flo & Eddie, Frank Zappa, Larry "Wild Man" Fischer, Moody Blues, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, Peter Gabriel, Randy California & Spirit, Tim Curry, Fish, Bangor's Flying Circus, Alan Parsons Project, Pilot, Oasis, PFM, Jethro Tull, Dead Kennedys, Bowie.
..Background by ..EditingMySpace.com..
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Movies
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Anything from Tim Burton, Val Lewton or Terry Gilliam, *** vintage animated features, *** Velvet Goldmine, *** To Kill A Mockingbird, *** This Is Spinal Tap, *** Fade To Black (with Dennis Christopher), *** the Crow, *** Brazil, *** Grindhouse, *** Blade Runner, *** Targets (w/Boris Karloff), God Told Me To, *** Trilogy Of Terror (okay, a TV movie, but it counts), *** Omega Man, *** Jim Henson movies (Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, etc.), *** Wizards, *** Heavy Metal, *** Hedwig & The Angry Inch, *** Phantom Of The Paradise, *** Fantasia, *** Carnival Of Souls, *** Donnie Darko, *** Up In Smoke, *** Kentucky Fried Movie, *** Groove Tube, *** J Men Forever & Nick Danger (and anything else with Firesign Theatre), *** Planet of the Apes (the first 4 films), *** Fritz the Cat, *** Mirrormask, *** Fantasia, *** Gay Pur-ee, *** House of Dark Shadows, *** Rock & Rule.
Oh, and I'm a big drive-in theatre fan (see my feature article link on right, "Field Of Screens, " a detailed history of So-Cal drive-ins).
VISIT THE ROCK 'N' ROLL DRIVE-IN, ON SECOND LIFE - cult rock movies, shorts, cartoons, trailers, concert films, rock TV shows, and vintage intermission shorts, screening all night, every weekend!
Every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night, from 6pm to 6am! All rock and roll related films, plus rock-themed cartoons, concert movies, and always an intermission short between each feature (yes, including the backflipping hot dog and singing snacks!). From one of the knuckleheads at Rock 'N' Roll Comics, so count on lots of animated cartoon rock!Television
.. Boris Karloff's Thriller, Twilight Zone, Family Guy, the Prisoner, the original Outer Limits, Buffy/Angel, Arrested Development, Dark Shadows, South Park, American Dad, Mystery Science Theater 3000, old SNL, 24, Ren & Stimpy, Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, Playboy After Dark, Freaks and Geeks, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Rod Serling's Night Gallery, Night Flight (USA Network), the Riches, Life On Mars, Fringe, Heroes, Smallville, vintage animation.
Books
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Can Rock & Roll Save the World, Alice In Wonderland, anything by Larry Niven, ERB, Neil Gaiman, Richard Matheson, Charles Beaumont, Clive Barker, Arthur Conan Doyle, Sandman (Neil Gaiman), Watchmen, V For Vendetta, Red Rocket 7, Tales of the Starlight Drive-In, Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.Heroes
.. Todd Loren, George Clayton Johnson (Twilight Zone writer), Rod Serling, Trent Reznor, Roger Waters, Russell the Bassett Hound, Bartman, Calvin & Hobbes. 
..TR>
FREE COMIC DOWNLOADS: Click above link to read the entire Cure comic, from cover to cover -
Click below link to read the entire AC/DC comic, in FULL COLOR!!http://www.crabsodyinblue.com/acdccomic.htm
Horror anthology co-created with George Clayton Johnson (Twilight Zone), with art by Spain Rodriguez (Zap Comix), Rick Geary (Heavy Metal, National Lampoon), Daerick Gross (Vampire Lestat) and more.
You may have seen our Motley Crue comic packaged with the CD box set MUSIC TO CRASH YOUR CAR TO II!
Our Floyd comics were in the official SHINE ON box set!
Who Killed Marilyn Monroe? cover (as seen on Entertainment Tonight)
"Who Killed JFK?" comic cover
60s San Francisco comic cover! A top seller to this day -
U2 comic cover (multimedia collage):
Sammy Hagar, Tesla & Ugly Kid Joe - those are real steel bolts embedded!
Metallica comic cover, based on their "One" video - those are real wires attached to the art board!
Collage of covers by Ghost Rider artist Ken Meyer, Jr.
Unpublished cover of a Meatloaf/Lenny Kravitz ish!
BEHIND THE SCENES - Queen comic cover, along with working sketches!
Some samples of the comic strip ROCK TALES, which I created for Rip Magazine (then edited by Lonn Friend) and now runs in each issue the newsstand mag SPIN:
Poster promo for Kiss' official KISStory hardcover book, with a comic section by the Revolutionary Comics crew.
Music
Blurbs
About me:
Hi - Jay Allen Sanford here. With the late Todd Loren, I co-founded the comic book line ROCK 'N' ROLL COMICS and wrote the majority of the issues. When the parent company Revolutionary Comics closed in 1994, I became the publisher of CARNAL COMICS: True Stories Of Adult Film Stars, which began at Revolutionary. Together, the two titles were some of the top selling indie comics of the 90s. I also created the comic strip Rock Tales, which began in Rip Magazine and now runs in Spin.
So, yeah, I'm kinda into the whole rockin' comics thing that Revolutionary Publisher Todd Loren pioneered back in '89. Carnal Comics are still publishing to this day, and Rock 'N' Roll Comics has been revived by Bluewater Productions, the company behind the recent well-publicized Obama, Palin, and Oprah bio comics (see previews in left column). -- www.bluewaterproductions.com
(Collage, RnR Comics logo, and Todd Loren portrait by Carnal Comics Publisher SS Crompton - www.demicomix.com --- www.rocknrollcomics.com )
A documentary film was recently made about Rock 'N' Roll Comics and Todd Loren's still-unsolved murder. Produced by Bulletproof Film,
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Internet Movie Database review of "Unauthorized and Proud Of It": http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0469213/usercomments
Variety Magazine review of "Unauthorized & Proud Of It": http://stage.variety.com/index.asp?layout=review&reviewid=VE1117930730&categoryid=31&cs=1
Revolutionary Comics on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolutionary_Comics
Carnal Comics on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnal_comics
Rock 'N' Roll Comics official website: http://www.rocknrollcomics.com/
A new book chronicles the history of rock 'n' roll/comic book crossovers, including long and detailed chapters on Revolutionary's Rock 'N' Roll Comics. CAN ROCK & ROLL SAVE THE WORLD? by Ian Shirley has lots of rare pics and art and it can usually be found on eBay or from the publisher at link below - he interviewed tons of former Revolutionaries AND rival publishers, and the resultant book is terrific. Ian also wrote about our comics for Mojo Magazine and other major newstand publications, so he's pretty much an adopted Revolutionary now. Cover art by Mike "Madman" Allred!
"Can Rock'N'Roll Save The World?" by Ian Shirley
BUY ROCK 'N' ROLL COMICS AND CARNAL COMICS ON EBAY - Seller name jas2669. Just click this link to see what's up for auction this week: http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZjas2669
Nowadays, I write for the SAN DIEGO READER ( Blurt, Lists, cover features, etc.), the nation's third largest circulation weekly newspaper. I also write and draw two weekly comic strips for the Reader - Overheard In San Diego (since January 1996) and Famous Former Neighbors. In addition, I write and do freelance art for anybody with $. Haven't punched a timeclock in 20 years, but I'm the busiest unemployed guy I know. -- www.sandiegoreader.com/staff/jay-allen-sanford -- www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands
OVERHEARD IN SAN DIEGO: Seen weekly in the Reader since 1996, an archive of Overheard comics is NOW ONLINE!
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/photos/galleries/overheard-san-diego/
FAMOUS FORMER NEIGHBORS: Over 100 San Diego celeb comic strips in the Reader's online archive!
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/photos/galleries/famous-former-neighbors/
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Who I'd like to meet:
LINKS TO SOME OF THE FEATURE ARTICLES ON THE SAN DIEGO READER WEBSITE, ROCK AROUND THE TOWN, AND BLOGSANDIEGO:
Rock 'N' Roll Comics: The Inside Story -- "Did Andrew Cunanan Kill Todd Loren?" with rare and unpublished art, plus reviews of the film "Unauthorized & Proud Of It: Todd Loren's Rock 'N' Roll Comics."
..http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/12/rock-n-roll-comics-the-inside-story..
Carnal Comics: The Inside Story -- How and why we made a bunch of the top-selling erotic comic books of all-time, or "Why I No Longer Date Porn Stars." (mature content - duh!)
"Revolutionary Comics VS New Kids on the Block" - Todd Loren battles a lawsuit over Rock 'N' Roll Comics, filed by the New Kids, resulting in an historic court ruling asserting the First Amendment rights of comic creators - art by Stuart Immonen (Superman: End of the Century).
www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/13/new-kids-on-the-block-versus-revolutionary-comics
"Deepest Dimension Terror Anthology: The Inside Story of a Twilight Zone Spin-Off Comic" An essay on a horror comic book series I co-created with original Twilight Zone writer George Clayton Johnson, including unpublished art and more.
"Kisstory" - about working on comics with Kiss, with two narratives telling the same story from two POVs; mine as publisher and that of scripter Spike Steffenhagen (ala Rashomon).
..http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/12/komplete-kiss-komix-kronicles..
"Behind the Scenes of Star Trek: The Continuing Adventure -- Interview with co-producer/castmember Patrick McCray, of Revolutionary Comics and "Elvis Shrugged" fame. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/02/star-trek-the-continuing-mission-interview/
"Two Men And Their Comic Books" - Cover story 8-19-04: The definitive and detailed inside story of Pacific Comics, my one-time employers and the first big indie comic book company. With nearly 100 never-published graphics!
"When Your Love Is Locked Up" - Cover story 2-10-05: On CA women's prisons and the families and loved ones of prisoners. Focus is on my good friend Danielle Barcheers, the 2nd youngest female ever convicted of a capital crime in CA state history (now ten years into a 20-to-life sentence).
"Before It Was The Gaslamp: Balboa's Last Stand" - Cover story 6-21-07: In the late 70s/early 80s, I worked at downtown San Diego's grindhouse all-night movie theaters, for the owner of the Pussycat Theatre chain, Vince Miranda - this detailed feature recalls those dayz, the death of the Balboa Theatre, etc.
"Field Of Screens" - Cover story 7-6-06: Complete theater-by-theater history of San Diego drive-ins thru the years.
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"Pussycat Theaters - When 'Cathouses Ruled California" -- for the first time, the detailed inside story of the west coast Pussycat Theater chain of adult moviehouses, which peaked in the '70s but later died out. Told by those who actually ran the theaters! http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/dec/26/pussycat-theater-history-when-cathouses-ruled-ca-5/
"Battle Of The Peeps" - feature article about a weird gig I had in the mid-'80s, running a strip club called Jolar, for the nation's second biggest pornographer, Harry Mohney (Deja Vu Showgirls founder).
"Borrowed Fame" - Cover story 3-19-09: Some musicians see tribute groups as a way to get a foot in the door of the music industry. Others have been on the other side of that door, only to find more closed doors. Copping someone else’s successful act may seem the only chance at earning a bit of applause, adulation, and -- ultimately -- affirmation, however secondhand. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2009/mar/18/borrowed-music-borrowed-look-borrowed-fame/
"Best San Diego Jams" - Cover story 10-4-07: My breakdown of the all-time greatest moments in local concert history. Elvis, Hendrix, the Doors, the Dead, and Jefferson Airplane, on thru Spirit, Nirvana, U2, and many more.
..http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/dec/05/29-years-ago-today-iggy-pop-at-the-catamaran-plus-/..
"Plugged In" - Cover story 7-26-07: I spotlight a few dozen local-centric San Diego websites that reflect the city's most happening real-life scenes.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2007/jul/26/plugged/
"Confessions Of A Bootlegger" - Cover story 7-5-07: Profiles a San Diego music bootlegger who details how he put out thousands of bootlegs of local concerts, all over the world.
"The Hip List" - Cover story 9-21-06: I spotlight the year's hippest events, people, bands and websites.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2006/sep/21/hip-list/
"Cool San Diego" - Cover story 3-19-07: My rundown of this year's coolest trends and new slang, including several "cool hangout" reviews in the middle section by Rosa Jurjevics.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2007/apr/19/cool-san-diego/
"Underground With The Celebrity Dead" - Cover story 10-27-05: Gravesites of the rich and famous.
John Lennon tribute - Cover story 12-8-05: I wrote this Lennon tribute, along with soliciting and editing contributions from others like Jim Croce's wife Ingrid and from the legendary Al Kooper, who told me about recording "All Those Years Ago" with George Harrison on the day they got the news of Lennon's murder. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/dec/08/locals-pay-tribute-to-john-lennon---the-dream-is-o
"The OB Ranger Rides Again" The inside story of a '70s radio counterculture hero. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/02/the-ob-ranger-return-of-a-70s-counterculture-hero
"Do The White Thing" - A history of racist rock in southern California. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/aug/30/racist-rock-do-the-white-thing....
"The Day Nirvana Played At Off The Record - No Stagediving Off The Record Bins" - Detailed feature on the day Nirvana played tiny Off The Record in San Diego 10-24-91, just as their first album was hitting. Includes rare video of the event!
..http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/03/the-day-nirvana-played-at-off-the-record/..
"The Day Jimi Hendrix Came To Town" - from my interviews with Experience bassist Noel Redding, a detailed account of Hendrix's famed San Diego gig (5-24-69).
..http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/03/the-day-jimi-hendrix-came-to-town/..
"The Day the Monkees Turned Del Mar Into Clarksville" - The inside story of the very first time the Monkees played music together (at the Hotel Del while shooting their TV show pilot) AND their first-ever public concert performance, in Del Mar the day before their TV show debut! http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2007/sep/16/day-the-monkees-turned-del-mar-into-clarksville
Feature profile, from my interviews with DIY legend Gary Wilson, subject of the new documentary DVD "You Think You Really Know Me: The Gary Wilson Story."
"How Not To Interview A Celebrity" - my worst celeb encounters - includes Stan Lee, Rick Danko and Gene Simmons (see above photos), as well as Axl Rose, Arthur Lee, Dr. Dre, Robbie Krieger and more.
"[Paint]Brushes with Fame" - profiling three album cover and concert poster painters; Mike Clift (Psychotic Waltz, Tipper Gore's Comics & Stories), Geo (Fairfield Fats Band, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes), and Ken Meyer, Jr. (Marvel's Ghost Rider, Alternative Comics). http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jun/04/local-album-cover-artists-clift-geo-plus-rock96d0b/
"RIP Dave Stevens: Rocketeer Creator" - tribute to another fallen Great One.
"The Birth of Image Comics" told in comic form, Mad Magazine style! See Stan Lee birth an actual cow!! Behind the scenes with Todd McFarlane, Jim Lee, Rob Liefeld, and all the other usual suspects.
Yoko Ono Comics and Stories - When Johnny Met Yoko, with dialogue and captions paraphrased from published Lennon interviews.http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/dec/08/locals-pay-tribute-to-john-lennon---the-dream-is-o
"Where Have All The Deadheads Gone?" Flower children, after the head Deadhead was dead. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/mar/21/where-have-all-the-deadheads-gone/
Comics & Censorship -- "Don't Be Afraid: It's Only a Comic Book."
My Brunch With Yoko -- Plus Maharishi Comix & Stories. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/dec/08/locals-pay-tribute-to-john-lennon---the-dream-is-o
"How'd He Do That?" Cartoonist Confessions -- secrets behind Overheard in San Diego and Famous Former Neighbors. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs/bands/2008/jun/14/still-more-secrets-behind-overheard-in-san-di7e0b3/
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Many of the artists from Revolutionary Comics, Rock 'N' Roll Comics, and Carnal Comics have joined forces once again to work on a new & unusual comic and reality based project – The Obama Nation Card Game!
Obama Nation makes good-natured fun of politics, republicans and democrats, government spending and the U.S. economic meltdown. It’s a bit like playing Old Maid or Go fish, but half the fun is looking at and reading the hilarious card art – all very tongue in cheek. Though it’s called Obama Nation, the game makes fun of consumers, banks, environmentalists, the elite, congress in general and both political parties, all in a fairly good natured way. The goal of the game is to see if you can spend Billions of tax dollars faster than your opponents,
Former Rev Com artist (and Obama Game art director) Steve Crompton described how it all came together; ”It’s a bit like a cross between wacky packages, Old Maid and some of the stuff Revolutionary Comics might have done if they made card games. I thought it would be fun to get the old gang together for something like this, and I needed all the help I could get, so I contacted everyone I could find and I’m really happy with the response and great art I got from my Rev Com & Carnal pals.”
A quick look at the 54 card deck shows reveals an impressive list of RevCom & Carnal alums, including Lyndal Ferguson, Scott Jackson, Steve Crompton, Brad Foster, Gus Norman, Randy Vogel and Philo. There may even be a few others hiding in the set as a complete list of all the RevCom artists is hard to come by.
The full-color 54 card deck comes in a resealable box for a only $7.99. You can also get it at Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/shops/carnalcomics ....
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http://shop.twistedrules.com/
Details
- Status: Single
- Here for: Networking
- Zodiac Sign: Capricorn
- Occupation: Comic book