Why is it that we would love to be complimented then when we are we say, “Oh, it’s really nothing.” or “Anybody can do what I do”. It’s an odd trait that we all have. That trait was never more obvious than at the Hartford ComicCon this past weekend.
It’s no secret to anyone that knows me that I have my own group of favorite artists, writers, etc. We all do. But it’s rare to find many of them in one spot on one day and you can meet them all. This is what happened to me.
With the risk of leaving anyone out my personal favorites are:
Paul Ryan: Iron Man, Squadron Supreme, Thor and the Thing to name a few
Mark McKenna: Listed on more than 500 comics and inking over 8,000 pages
Mark Texeira: Jonah Hex, Ghost Rider, the original Guardians of the Galaxy to name a few
Steve Orlando: Midnighter and Eisner Award Nominated Outlaw Territory to name a few
Kurt Busiek: Astro City, AutumnLand, Trinity and Avengers to name a few
Chad Hardin: Harley Quinn, Traveler, The Warlord to name a few
Ray Fawkes: Batman Eternal, Constantine, Gotham by Midnight to name a few
They are all incredibly talented and I got to meet all of them except Kurt Busiek and Steve Orlando.
The thing that I noticed about all of them, though, was their incredible modesty. The art that they have created is amazing and all of them were almost surprised at how much of a fan I was. None of them asked me to pay for the autograph, although two did ask for a small donation to a special cause they were supporting which I gladly donated to. On top of that several of them did something special for me as a fan.
Mark McKenna was extremely kind and more than willing to sit and talk. Although he was drawing a custom picture for someone he told me how he much preferred speaking to the fans over drawing custom pics. Since I did want a custom pic he offered to draw something special and personal if he could draw it at home and I pay a nominal fee (which is well worth it).
Paul Ryan took the time to talk about the cause to which he was taking donations. He spoke with my son and I like he knew us forever and gladly signed autographs. Not once did he ever make us feel rushed or that we were just another fan.
Mark Texeira was someone who enjoyed his work and it showed. He was even surprised at how much we loved his work. The thing about Mark was that he gave more than you asked for. He not only signed my comic but he also drew a picture on the comic. He didn’t stop there, though, he asked for the plastic that we kept our comics in and drew a picture on them! I now need a plastic sleeve for my plastic sleeves. He also asked for a modest donation to a cause and I gave him more than he asked for.
Chad Hardin was the first person I got to interact with and he was also incredibly friendly. Although I did have a Harley Quinn comic for him to sign he was also selling a special Harley Quinn comic of which there were only 1,000 made. For a nominal fee I bought the comic and he drew a picture of a zombie Joker on the front cover. For those of you who follow me you know that I asked Neal Adams, at a previous ComicCon, to draw me the world’s only zombie Joker. It was nothing short of awesome. But Chad Hardin’s zombie Joker easily matched it. The Joker he drew looks like it is actually part of the cover.
Ray Fawkes had a funny reaction to us coming to his table. I was looking all over for him and simply could not find him. It turns out I must have walked by him and his table 10 times and not seen him. The reason? Ray had no backdrop of his work, no fancy signs introducing him like the others had and was very modest. When I told him we were looking all over for him he said, “For me?” as if he has never done anything worth talking about. Ray was kind enough to take a picture with me and talk a little about his work. He told me he was working on a really cool project that was being launched soon but said he couldn’t give any details. Ray took my award for best dressed artist.
The bottom line is this; ComicCons all over the world bring together some of the top comic artists together under one roof. One would think that there would be a lot of big egos all fighting for the right to be the best, but there was no sign of that. What I found instead were a group of absolute professionals, with a modesty like I’ve never seen. All acted humble when I complimented them, most were surprised that I like them and their work (who doesn’t?), and all of them went the extra mile to make me feel like I was the only fan they had. It could not have been a better day.
A note to Steve Orlando and Kurt Busiek, I hope to meet you face to face soon.
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