WHEN IT HAPPENS IN COMICS...

....IT HAPPENS IN FLYING COLORS!

Just a slogan, right? No way!

Case in point: Next week (Wed Sept 27) the first Image Comics issue of TRUE STORY SWEAR TO GOD will be released to retailers on the east coast. West coast comic book retailers (including Flying Colors, natch!) will have it on sale Wednesday Oct 4. The photo here shows Tom Beland giving Jenny an advance copy of the comic book.

Those of you who follow this delightful, heart-felt and funny series know it's really the TRUE STORY of Tom Beland and his love Lily Garcia. They met at a bus-stop in Disneyworld--- Tom was working for a newspaper in Vallejo CA while Lily has a blossoming media career in Puerto Rico.

TRUE STORY is the ongoing story of their love together---except that Tom left the island nation of Puerto Rico months ago, separating from Lily, but still longing to be with her.


So what does this have to do with FLYING COLORS? Earlier today, Tom & Lily visited and wanted to share some good news. Not wanting to keeep it to myself, I recorded it for everyone to share and enjoy.

I posted the video on YouTube.com and you can see it by clicking on the arrow in the screen shown here.

So now you know, When It Happens in Comics, It Really Does Happen in Flying Colors!



Peace!

FlyCoJoe

YouTube?

No one responded to my plea for help with how to post a video on this blog, so after some searching, I figured the best way to show you some videos here is to post direct links to YouTube.com .

Careful, though, because YouTube.com is a *very* addictive site. You can find lots of rare bits of video from your favorite musicians and groups, old commericals and public service announcements including WILLIE MAYS' famous '60s spot telling kids to stay away from blasting caps! There's a lot of good old sports footage, news clips and other random oddities.

Add to that are the two videos I recently added:

Video #1 is the very short piece from Brian and Jen's wedding reception. See it HERE!

Video #2 is a PAN & SCAN of FLYING COLORS, taken with the video feature on my cheapo little digital camera. Really, the store looks a lot better in person. That's an invitation for you to come by soon to see for yourself! See the video HERE!

Peace y'all!

FlyCoJoe

Comics In The Classroom!

One of the wonderful things happening with comics lately is the use of comics and graphic novels in educational environments. Teachers, library staff and tutors everywhere are realizing how powerful the comics' medium is in getting new readers of literally ALL ages excited about reading.


We live in a visually drenched culture, so it only makes sense to teach using visuals. Comics are very powerful for exercising the interpretive and cognitive skills of readers. It's with that introduction I'd like to direct your web-browser to a site called Comics In The Classroom.
Parents, teachers, library staff will all be able to find good information and some solid recommendations at the Comics In The Classroom site.
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And now, the FLYING COLORS Retailing Brigade checks in with our Picks of the Week!

Joe: CAPTAIN AMERICA #21
Mike: JONAH HEX TP Volume One
Brian: PRIDE OF BAGHDAD graphic novel
Jenny: KLEZMER: Tales of the Wild East graphic novel
Ed: DMZ #11
Chris: LOVE & ROCKETS #17

And for those of you hanging on CIVIL WAR, this week there are several CW tie-ins, including CIVIL WAR FILES, MS MARVEL, CIVIL WAR #2 McNiven Sketch Variant and CIVIL WAR #1 Captain America Unleashed cover!

So what's your favorite comic this week?

Peace!

FlyCoJoe

BRIAN TIES A HAPPY KNOT!

If things seem just a little bit quieter around Flying Colors for the next couple of weeks, there's a happy reason for it. Brian will be taking a couple of weeks off to spend time with his bride! Saturday September 9, Flying Colors' own Brian tied the knot with his One True Love, the ever-cute and always-stylish Jen (who many of you will recognize from her helping us out each year on Free Comic Book Day).

I'm posting a couple of pix here from the festivities--- at left is a photo of Brian & Jen making their official entrance after the wedding ceremony. What a great party it was, too! There were probably 150 or so in attendance---and all had a wonderful time with lots, I mean LOTS, of laughing, dancing, and a little bubbly, too.



The whole event really hit me in profound ways. Not only do I care a great deal about Brian and Jen and want great things for their new life together, but the wedding hit me as another example of how FLYING COLORS is maybe just a bit more than just a place where people buy "comics & other cool stuff".

At the wedding and reception, in addition to all of Brian' family and all of Jen's family (and a really nice group they all are!), there were two full tables of Brian & Jen's FLYING COLORS' Family---including most of my family, our current store staff and a number of Flying Colors' Faithful. It made me realize and appreciate that we're not only a business, but we're also a community of our own.

This photo of the Flying Colors' portion of the reception is not a great quality shot--- I must have the world's worst digital camera--- but it does capture all of us together, late in the reception party and all having a great time (come to think of it, maybe that's why most of my photos were somehwat blurry...).

Thanks to Brian's family, the Hodgkinsons---and thanks to Jen's family, the Zaros, for allowing my family and the Flying Colors' family to be a part of this celebration.

Peace, all!

FlyCoJoe

PS: Last thing: I have a short and great piece of video from the wedding reception currently on my computer desktop, but I honestly have no clue how to post it here. Hopefully, I'll find out in the next day or so. If not, I may just post it to YouTube.com (an incredibly addictive web-site).

New Releases' Day is THURSDAY Sept 7

Hope you all had a good long holiday weekend! Due to the Monday Labor Day holiday, our New Releases' Day this week will be Thursday September 7.

Hours for this week are:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday: 11AM-7PM
Thursday: 11AM-8PM
Sunday: 12 Noon-7PM

The photo to the right features Jenny with Jonathan, long-time Flying Colors Faithful. Jonathan is now a producction assistant for IMAGE COMICS in Berkeley, as well as an MBA student, excellent cartoonist, pretty darn good tennis player and all-around good guy.

Jonathan (along with artist Terry Moore) surprised Jenny for her birthday a few months ago with an original page of art from Jen's favorite series: Moore's STRANGERS IN PARADISE. We've had the piece on display in the store, but it was time for Jenny display it in her digs, so I took this shot to show off the page, let you see a small corner of our store---

---And remind you that STRANGERS IN PARADISE is one really great and gripping read. We have all the trade paperbacks and pocket editions in stock right now, so next time you're in the shop, ask Jenny to give her recommendation for this series. SIP is a "Guaranteed Read"!

The 9 11 REPORT GRAPHIC ADAPTATION has been getting a lot of buzz lately. If you'd like to preview the book, SLATE.com has pages posted HERE!

And remember, the reason some people get so goofy about comics is to keep from going crazy about things in general!

Peace!

FlyCoJoe

Comics-Related Movies Opening This Week!

One of Hollywood's great mysteries gets the big screen treatment this week with the release of HOLLYWOODLAND. It's the story of the death of TV's original Superman, George Reeves. The cast of the movie features Ben Affleck as George Reeves not yet sure about how that'll work out), along with Adrien Brody, Diane Lane and Bob Hoskins.

I have to admit that SUPERMAN RETURNS wasn't as good as I had been hoping--- when the best action in a super-hero movie occurs in the first 30 minutes of a two and half hour feature, that's probably a movie that didn't quite live up to expectations. Be that as it may, I'm hoping HOLLYWOODLAND fares a lot better.

Yes, it's a different kind of movie---but it does deal with the super-hero genre in that George Reeves as Superman in the 1950s was as close to a real hero as many kids had. His death, officially ruled a suicide, but never conclusively, left millions of kids sad, if not totally disillusioned and confused.

Maybe this movie will answer some questions and then ask others. I'm looking forward to it.
HOLLYWOODLAND opens September 8.

Yet another graphic novel makes its way to the big screen, when COVENANT, originally from IMAGE's TOP COW Studio, opens later this week. I don't remember much about the comic, but we'll have it in stock for those who want to check the source material against the movie version.

Labor Day pushes New Releases this week to Thursday, so we'll see you soon!

Peace!

FlyCoJoe