Tag Archives: gary reed

Caliber Comics on the passing of founder and CEO Gary Reed

This morning it was announced that Caliber Comics founder and CEO Gary Reed has passed away unexpectedly. The news shook many and resulted in an outpouring of thoughts and memories of those who knew him.

Caliber Comics has now released a statement as well:

It is with deep sadness that Caliber Comics announces the passing of its Founder and CEO Gary Reed. Gary had been a publishing and guiding presence in the comic industry for over 25 years. Having owned a series of comic shops, starting up one of the first major comic-cons, King Con, in the Detroit area, establishing his own publishing company, Caliber Comics in late 80s, Gary also wrote numerous critically acclaimed comic and short stories. Just some of the names that had their early starts at Caliber included Brian Bendis, Guy Davis, David Mack, Vince Locke, James O’Barr, Patrick Zircher, Jim Calafiore, Ed Brubaker, Mike Carey, and Michael Gaydos.

“When Gary and I decided to re-establish Caliber Comics two years we had a long term plan to make the company once again a beacon for independent creator owned titles and help launch the careers of up and coming writers and artists where we could.  And Caliber Comics will continue to move forward with its publishing and multi-media endeavors as we execute this vision.  My deepest thoughts and prayers go out to Jennifer and their three daughters at this time.” Comment Eric Reichert, Vice President.

Our thoughts are with the friends and family of Gary Reed.

Caliber Offers Two Original Graphic Novels in November

Caliber Comics will be releasing two original mystery graphic novels in November as Strange Detective Mysteries and Storyville: The Prostitute Murders capture the mystery element in two different approaches. The creator owned tales are both self-contained stories yet each can continue with future stories.

In Strange Detective Mysteries, the premise begins with “Who Killed Edgar Allen Poe?” as a mysterious individual brings together a diverse group of men in 1902 New York City to solve the murder of the great horror novelist and poet. The group consists of some of the greatest minds of the new century: Nikola Tesla, Arthur Conan Doyle, Harry Houdini, Bat Masterson and H.G. Wells. Before they realize it, they discover a hideous plot that includes major governmental figures, Jack the Ripper, ancient rituals and possibly even time travel!

Strange Detective Mysteries was co-created by Terry Pavlet and Sam Gafford, both of whom have had long careers in the comic industry and illustrated by Rosaria Battiloro.

Storyville: The Prostitute Murders has a more realistic and historical approach as writer Gary Reed, known for his historical and literary work, firmly drops readers into a very realistic period piece of 1910 New Orleans. Within the infamous legal red light district of New Orleans known as Storyville, just about everything was permitted, prostitutes and their clients are being murdered…some would say butchered. As the police try desperately to deal with what may be a new type of killer…a ‘serial killer’ that threatens to tear New Orleans apart, Dr. Eric Trevor, a psychiatrist, is brought in from Saint James Infirmary.

A crime story is at times a police procedural and other times, an excursion into the new field of psychotherapy.  The backdrop of the brothels amid the diverse streets of New Orleans is one of the settings but so is Saint James Infirmary where Dr. Trevor attempts to strike a balance between the criminal and the insane.

The artist is Wayne Reid, who teamed up with Reed on A Murder of Scarecrows and IDW’s Sherlock Holmes as well as Zulunation.

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Caliber Comics Announces Their Summer Releases

Caliber Comics, one of the leading independent comic companies of the 90’s, announced its return to publishing in February of this year. Now they are announcing their schedule for the summer of 2014.

Caliber will be releasing only graphic novels initially with no timetable on releasing monthly periodicals. Here’s their announced schedule for the summer:

July

Talismen is a full color young adult graphic novel about a modern day soldier finding himself waking up in a fantasy land and tabbed as a returning hero.  From creators Steve Jones and Barb Jacobs.

Wayne Vansant, the noted historical artist for books such as The Civil War series from Heritage and Days of Darkness, tells the tales of the Waffen SS in Knights of the Skull which will be released in black and white.

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August

Hitting shelves will be a new printing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show comic collection. Adapted by Kevin Vanhook, Kevin has also gone through the pages and made some adjustments, primarily in the coloring of the pages. In addition to a new cover and some guest pinup pages, the section on the audience participation guide will be replaced with a look at Rocky Horror and what went into the comic production.

From writer Danny Boyd and artist Edi GuedesCarbon is an ecological adventure tale based on the turmoil of coal extraction in West Virginia.  Film director John Sayles provides the introduction.

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September

Storyville: The Prostitute Murders is an original mystery in graphic novel format. Set in early 1900 New Orleans, Storyville was the legalized red light district. In this tale, written by Gary Reed and illustrated by Wayne Reid, someone is killing the prostitutes and their clients and the lead detective is forced to work with a doctor specialized in psychotherapy in an attempt to figure out the motive for the murders.

Also by Reed is Subversives: Tales of Rebels, Spies, Schemers and Other Acts of Misdeeds.  Reed explores brief glimpses into the lives of the famous and infamous in this survey of traitors and subversives throughout history.   Some exploits are well known, or believed to be and of course, there are always a number of surprises.

Also in September is Disciples: The New Magic, a full color graphic novel collecting the Image series featuring art from Laurence Campbell, artist on Mike Mignola’s B.R.P.D. and Deadpool, Punisher, and Wolverine for Marvel.  Written by Chris Dows and Colin ClaytonDisciples are a misfit group of seers, magicians, and wielders of the Black Arts whose own internal politics pose as great a threat to their survival as any outside influence.

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With all of the books in the final stages of production and all but one have the complete art finished, Caliber publisher Gary Reed has said “These books will ship on time.”  He added that there will be other books printed but most of them are collections of previously published material which will probably not be carried by Diamond Distributors.

Reed said that since Caliber first announced its return, most of the effort has been to bring the Caliber library into digital format for all the various formats.  “From Transfuzion (Reed’s former publishing company that rolled into Caliber), we had some 45 graphic novels which not only have to be converted to Caliber titles but also digitized for the formats.  Plus, we’ve picked up a number of other titles, both previously published and new material.”  Reed also said that the digital formatting was nearly complete.  As for new titles, Reed said that there will be likely a short delay releasing to digital after the print version, especially for any titles that go through Diamond Comics,  but no specific time frame has been set as of yet.

A New Tale From a Zombie Classic Deadworld: Restoration

IDW Publishing has announced Deadworld the renowned zombie classic will come back to life this December.  Gary Reed and Sami Makkonen, the same creative team that brought us Deadworld: War of the Dead, continue where they last left off and push the story into even darker territory with Deadworld: Restoration.

The lepers have been slaughtered, the people who escaped the breeder pits head for the safety of New Washington, and now the zombies are under the control of Donna, the half-human/half-zombie hybrid.  With King Zombie dead, Donna is the leader of the zombies…or is she?

Deadworld: War of the Dead was the first Deadworld to be presented in color and won the Ghastly Award as Best Mini-Series of 2012 as well as received the same nominations from the Shel Dorf Awards and the Comic Monsters Awards.  Check out the next chapter to the series described by Talking Comics as “frightening, haunting, gloomy, grave and delectably, mystifying.”

Gary Reed is the one of the original writers of the Deadworld series and long time contributor as well as the co-created and writer of the Harvey Award nominee for Best New Series, Baker Street.

Sami Makkonen of Eisner Award nominated series Hatter M fame has won the prestigious Sarjis Award in Finland for Best Illustrator and is the artist for IDW’s recently released Ryse: Son of Damocles digital interactive graphic novel.

Celebrate Deadweek This August!

CELEBRATE DEADWEEK THIS AUGUST!

Gary Reed’s DEADWORLD returns in a weekly miniseries!

[Deadworld Cover Image]San Diego, CA (May 16, 2012) – This August, IDW Publishing is proud to announce the return of original co-creator Gary Reed’s classic zombie series Deadworld! When vicious masses of undead monsters have taken over the planet, desperate humans cling to hope while warring factions of uniquely sinister zombies conspire against each other. Deadworld is a zombie tale unlike any other and a horrific and thrilling world that is decades in the making and unique unto itself.

“It seems like everything with Deadworld over the years is culminating towards this storyline, yet at the same time, it is an opportunity to introduce new readers to the Deadworld saga. That’s why I’m so excited about this series, as it accomplishes both” said co-creator Reed.

Deadworld has seen a number of different formats and volumes over the years, but Reed’s collaboration with artist Sami Makkonen, Deadworld: War of the Dead will be hitting comic shop shelves in a particularly thrilling fashion this August. War of the Dead will be released weekly in every one of August’s five weeks!

Five issues of grim and terrifying zombie action in one month? What could be better?

Oh, that’s right, five issues of Deadworld in horrifying, skull-crushing full-color! For the first time!

As a bonus salvo in IDW’s August Deadworld onslaught, Deadworld Classic Volume 1 and Volume 2 will be offered again; as well as the hit Deadworld: Last Siesta TPB!

About IDW Publishing

IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS and G.I. JOE, Paramount’s Star Trek; HBO’s True Blood; the BBC’s DOCTOR WHO; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Toho’s Godzilla; Wizards of the Coasts Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons; and the Eisner-Award winning Locke & Key series, created by best-selling author Joe Hill and artist Gabriel Rodriguez. IDW is also home to the Library of American Comics imprint, which publishes classic comic reprints, and Yoe! Books, a partnership with Yoe! Studio.

IDW’s critically- and fan-acclaimed series are continually moving into new mediums. Currently, Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Disney are creating a feature film based on World War Robot, while Michael Bay‘s Platinum Dunes and Sony are bringing Zombies vs. Robots to film.