It’s Dave-the-Happy-Geek Week

Dear Friends,

I’ve had one of my more interesting weeks in a long time with three really fun surprises in the mail–two being Star Wars-related. The first was a wonderful hoodie from 501st member Daniel Quay, TR-8285 and fan Andrew Marzka of Happy Valley Custom T’s in Pennsylvania. (Andrew’s business phone is (814) 571-2992 if anyone wants great hoodies or t-shirts.) They are concerned I’m not staying warm enough in Chicago, and they are right about that! Here it is:

501st Hoodie from Daniel Quay and Andrew Marzka, Happy Valley Custom T's

I also received my “Save the Lars Homestead” watch in the mail this week with its pure Tunisian Tatooine sand embedded within and the beautiful engraving on the back. My fellow Star Wars junkies are stoked about the watch and the good news is, you can still order them here: http://s395343987.initial-website.com/

Save the Lars Homestead Commemorative Timepiece

Engraving on Back of the Watch

And then there was my bust from Sideshow Collectibles. I ordered this at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2011, and here we are 6 months later and I had almost forgotten about it. Almost, but not quite. What a great surprise! My wife’s friends have insisted she not display it in our foyer, so we’re still finding the right place for it.

My New Zombie Crusade Bust from Sideshow Collectibles

Even better, I just got a Tweet from @MaxToyCo friend Mark Nagata informing me that a box of toys is en route. Could this geek’s week possibly get any better?!? I hope your week is filled with geek touchstones as well.

Dave.

 

Dave Dorman Interview with Sandtroopers.com at Star Wars Fan Days

Dear Friends,

My good friend Chris Spice runs Sandtroopers.com and he was kind enough to interview me this past weekend at Star Wars Fan Days in Dallas and then go through some of my art. The only correction is he mentions my site at the end, which is actually DaveDorman.com, not RollingThunder.com. Without further adieu, here’s that interview. I hope you enjoy it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1AyVuPt2mQ

SPOILER ALERT: I’m Finalizing Details on the Dave Dorman Exclusive New Online Art School

I hope to have more news to share shortly about my new Dave Dorman Exclusive – a new Online Art School  in six week segments for a small group of serious, dedicated art pros.  I’m planning to teach artists how to improve their composition style, how to art direct, how to improve their pencil illustrations, oil and acrylic painting skills and “real world” art skills you won’t learn in a “traditional” art school, and much more. Every week, I will do a live demo and issue my students an assignment; each student will get a live critique of their assignment via LiveMeeting or Skype. There’s much, much more to the school, but these are the highlights.

If you are an ART GALLERY, ART MAGAZINE, or ART SUPPLIES RETAILER or MFR., please contact denise@writebrainmedia.com about the few sponsorship opportunities we still have open.

For those of you FRINGE fans (like me), it took me a minute to figure it out, but Broyles is still alive on the “other side” because Peter didn’t exist to be in the situation that killed Broyles. I hope that helps anyone else who was temporarily befuddled. The storyline is excellent but for one flaw – without Peter, I don’t believe his father would have been motivated to leave the insane asylum with Olivia. Peter was the big motivator. I’m interested to hear your ideas, so please feel welcome to join the discussion.

As always, I thank you for reading. I’m an “open networker” on LinkedIn – http://www.linkedin.com/in/thedavedorman and I’m on Facebook.com/davedormanartist and @DaveDorman on Twitter and #DaveDorman is my hashtag. You are very welcome to join me wherever I am.

Dave

The Art This Comic Book Artist Treasures Most

Dear Friends,

As many of you know, I have a budding artist in the house named Jack, age 6, and his greeting cards are something I look forward to every holiday. Sometimes, they’re a little unsettling, such as the Valentine’s Day card…

Our Son's Valentine 2011

that informed me that of the Top 3 things he loved, Star Wars was #1, then came his mom and me.

Star Wars is #1 in Jack's Heart of Hearts.

 

But this year’s Birthday card was exceptionally special:

Key: Be sure to add your byline, as parents are never sure who the crayon-drawn cards are from

October 1st is the “best day of his life” or as he puts it, “live.”

Jack's Best Day

And I especially loved the self-portrait of Jack and me:

Jack's self-portrait of himself with me (he fancies himself a Hawaiian shirt wearer)

But some of the Dinosaur and Star Wars art he’s been creating lately has been really fun:

Jack's Dinosaur Book Cover

And lately, he’s been transfixed by the Allosaurus:

Jack's Allosaurus

 

And here is his Darth Maul. I often wonder what his art teacher must think of his creepier images.

Jack, Age 6, Darth Maul Drawing

Thanks to all for indulging me today. If the house was burning down, after making sure my family was safe, Jack’s is the art I would grab on my way out the door.

Hope you’re having a good one. I’ll be at Star Wars Fan Days in Dallas this Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so stop by and see me if you’re there. I will have something cool to show you that I’ve been toying with (pun intended).

On Monday night, join me in Chicago — I’ll be at then “Masque of the Red Death” gala WildClaw Theatre benefit, raising money for the greatest horror theater in Chicago, and my horror artwork will be auctioned off to help the cause: http://wildclawtheatre.com/wc_html/gala_benefit_2011.html

From October 29th – December 2nd, you can see an incredible horror art collection at Maleficium: Dark Art Exhibition at a west suburban Chicago gallery, owned by my friend J. Anthony Kosar: http://bit.ly/qbnHiO

I will have 3 pieces in that show, and am joined by the likes of my friends and fellow horror artists including Jill Thompson, Tony Akins, Doug Klauba, Ben Templesmith, Bill Reinhold, Brian Busch and many more.

Also, here is all of my contact information in case you don’t have it already:

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/davedorman

Friend me on Facebook: http://fb.com/davedormanartist

Link with me on LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/thedavedorman

Listen to my free Podcast on iTunes: http://itscomicbookday.com

Media Inquiries: Please contact my publicist denise@writebrainmedia.com

Thanks,

Dave.

Here’s a Link to My Dennis Miller Interview

Dear Friends,

Thanks for all of your support & your interest. Here’s the official link to my interview with Dennis Miller yesterday.

http://www.dennismillerradio.com/pg/jsp/charts/audioMaster.jsp?dispid=318&pid=11564

Let me know what you think of it.

Thanks,

Dave.

Frank Frazetta: Thank You for Your Art.

It is with a heavy heart that I write this post. I cannot believe Frank Frazetta is gone. Of course, none of us thought he’d last a month after Ellie passed, but yet, it’s hard to let go of the single greatest influence on my art career. I will write more a little later when I’ve cleared my head, but here is a photo I’d like to share with all of you of Frank and me. I haven’t been this sad since we lost Dave Stevens, another great.

A Great Moment Captured Forever: My First Meeting with Frank Frazetta