Daniel makes stuff, and, in his spare time, writes about things like movies, kid culture, and geek stuff.
The Fantastic Truth of Calvin and Hobbes

Nevin Martell (author of the recent book, “Looking for Calvin and Hobbes”):

We still love Calvin and Hobbes because it manages to make imagination real – and that is a rare thing indeed.

Feb 17, 2010 :: Tagged under: , , , :: #

The First Interview with Bill Watterson in Twenty Years

An unexpected, magical treat – Bill Watterson gives what’s believed to be the first public interview with the reclusive creator of “Calvin and Hobbes” in over 20 years. It’s well worth a read. Here’s the final parting exchange from the interview:

How do you want people to remember that 6-year-old and his tiger?

I vote for “Calvin and Hobbes, Eighth Wonder of the World.”

I vote for that, too.

Feb 01, 2010 :: Tagged under: , , :: #

Looking for Calvin and Hobbes

I’ve been meaning to write about this for a long time, but it finally took this to do the trick: Tim O’Shea, at Robot 6, interviews author Nevin Martell about his new book, “Looking for Calvin and Hobbes: The Unconventional Story of Bill Watterson and His Revolutionary Comic Strip”.

It looks like a great read, and anybody who’s a Calvin and Hobbes fan will undoubtedly appreciate it. In the book, Martell recounts his journey to discover just what happened to cartoonist Bill Watterson – who disappeared from the public eye almost immediately after his beloved comic strip ended its ten year run in 1995. The book is also filled with interviews with popular cartoonists, sharing about Watterson’s impact and influence. In the end, Martell never managed to interview Watterson himself, but as he says, maybe that’s for the better.

Martell: “If I had spoken to Watterson or been able to use his work, it would have been a very different book. It would have been a more straightforward biography, which is what I set out to write. In the end, this book turned out to be a much stranger trip than I originally thought it would be, but that’s the wonderful thing about life – you just don’t know what’s going to happen next or how anything is going to turn out. It’s a curious beast, but, hopefully, a lovable one. Anyone who is a fan of the strip should enjoy what became a very personal and in-depth exploration of one of the great pop artists of the 20th century.”

Oct 12, 2009 :: Tagged under: , :: #

Tintin is ready for Hollywood

The Los Angeles Times:

He turns 80 this year but still looks 18, with the same fair-haired quiff. Like Madonna and Sting, two other famous blonds, he goes by one name. Mention him and a European is likely to cheer, while an American is more apt to go, “Huh?” But that’s destined to change now that Steven Spielberg is making a movie based on his life.

He is Tintin, intrepid cub reporter and nemesis of evildoers, whose long career in numerous cartoon strips and comic books, with faithful dog Snowy at his side, has made him one of Belgium’s most celebrated exports (up there with chocolate and waffles).

… Just in case you hadn’t yet heard about the $130 million dollar project, which just wrapped.

Spielberg’s had the long-running Tintin comic series optioned and under development for decades, and it was announced in 2007 that he would partner with Peter Jackson to produce a trilogy of films featuring the young reporter – with the two trading off as directors, Steven directing the first, Peter the second, and then them co-directing the third. They’re using an innovative motion-capture method – similar to what was used to create Gollum in “Lord of the Rings,” as well as to make Robert Zemeckis’ “The Polar Express” and “Monster House,” and even to age Brad Pitt in David Fincher’s “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” – which will allow them to hopefully replicate the original style of Georges ‘Hergé’ Remi’s comic books.

From the sounds of it, though, Tintin will mark a fairly revolutionary advance in this kind of movie-making. I’m picturing something of a stylized, film noir-like mix between the 2004 “Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow” and maybe a more two-dimensional and alive-looking (i.e. sans creepy, glass-eyed Santa Claus) “The Polar Express”, though I could be completely off. Here’s what Jackson said to Variety about the film’s look in 2007:

Jackson said WETA will stay true to Remi’s original designs in bringing the cast of Tintin to life, but that the characters won’t look cartoonish. “Instead,” Jackson said, “we’re making them look photorealistic; the fibers of their clothing, the pores of their skin and each individual hair. They look exactly like real people — but real Herge people!”

Daniel Craig, Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost are among the cast, and Jamie Bell stars in the title role. (Though I much preferred the first casting choice: Thomas Sangster. That kid has just got it.)

“The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn” is set to release in 2011.

May 25, 2009 :: Tagged under: , , , , , , , , , :: #