"Conan the Barbarian" No. 1, written by Roy Thomas, from Marvel Comics

Missouri-born comic book writer and editor Roy Thomas broke into comics in the mid-1960s, and went on to write some of the comic industry’s best-known characters, from the Avengers to the X-Men to Batman. But among his best-loved works are his comic-book adaptations of the Robert E. Howard pulp tales of Conan the Barbarian. The success of the Marvel Comics Conan led to the Arnold Schwarzenegger films of the 1980s, which had some involvement from Thomas.

“Conan” remains a popular property — the latest film, “Conan the Barbarian,” starring Jason Momoa, was released on DVD this week, and the Thomas-written 12-issue series “Conan: Road of Kings” is currently being released by Dark Horse Comics.

Robert E. Howard, the author and creator of “Conan,” launched the character in the 1932 issue of the pulp magazine “Weird Tales.” Howard was born in Peaster, Texas, in 1906 and lived in Texas and western Oklahoma as a youth before settling in Cross Plains, Texas, in 1919.

Marvel Comics introduced its version of Conan in 1970, written by Thomas and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith. Marvel Comics, headed up by editor Stan Lee, had plenty of success with superhero characters like Spider-Man in the late 1960s, but Thomas and others thought the company should tackle other genres as well.

“I felt we needed to branch out and do other fields, and our readers wanted us to as well, and were telling us that in

Roy Thomas. Photo credit: Alan Waite, 2007.

letters,” Thomas said in a recent telephone interview. “Stan and I decided we should go after a sword and sorcery hero of the Conan variety, and luckily we ended up with Conan, which was the best thing that could have happened either to us, to me personally, to Marvel Comics, or for that matter, given how things have gone since then, to the Robert E. Howard estate and to Conan.”

Thomas’ first artist on “Conan the Barbarian” was Windsor-Smith, but he wasn’t the first choice for the book. The London-born artist had been in the U.S. working for Marvel, but legal requirements had moved him back to the U.K. Since he was a relatively new artist, he was available more cheaply than Thomas’ first choice, artist John Buscema.

“The publisher wanted to get back the little bit of money he was paying for the rights,” Thomas said. Given the budget, Thomas “wanted somebody who I thought would really throw himself into it and have some enthusiasm for it.” He thought Windsor-Smith would have that enthusiasm.

After a few hiccups in the first issue, Thomas and Windsor-Smith became a popular team, turning out a successful run of award-winning comics. Conan’s fantasy world came to visual life via Windsor-Smith’s art, with Thomas capably adapting Howard tales and creating new adventures. In 1971, the comic book won the Academy of Comic Book Arts Awards’ Best Continuing Feature.

Two hardcover archives featuring the stories of Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith were released in 2010.

Buscema later followed Windsor-Smith for a long run on “Conan.” Thomas would go on to write more than 200 comics featuring Conan.

Twenty-one softcover volumes of the “Chronicles of Conan,” reprinting Marvel Comics “Conan” series, have been released, with a 22nd set for December release. Ten volumes of the black-and-white “Savage Sword of Conan” reprint Marvel’s black-and-white magazine series featuring the barbarian.

“The Conan the Barbarian comic book and also the Savage Sword of Conan black and white magazine that I launched were quite important to the company,” Thomas said. “They were two of the big moneymakers. I think Conan probably made as much money, in terms of just selling comic-books, as any other character for about a decade in there.”

Matt and Kyle take a look at the Kindle Fire’s options for comics; the Avengers release new posters; and Roy Thomas talks about Conan the Barbarian in this week’s comics podcast.

FIRE AWAY
The Kindle Fire offers comics via graphic novel sales on Amazon.com and the comiXology app that comes pre-installed on the tablet. The comiXology reader links to any existing comiXology account. Its reader is preferable to the Fire’s native browser for comics, which will feature several DC graphic novels.

NEW AVENGERS POSTER

A brand new banner featuring the core four members of “The Avengers” — Captain America, Bruce Banner, Iron Man and Thor, from left to right — has premiered over at Yahoo Movies.

http://movies.yahoo.com/photos/movie-stills/gallery/3403/the-avengers-stills#info

CONAN GIVEAWAY

Lionsgate Home Entertainment is  releasing  Conan the Barbarian on 3D/2D Blu-ray Combo Pack, 2D   Blu-ray Disc, and DVD this November 22nd. Starring Jason Momoa, Rachel   Nichols, Stephen Lang, Rose McGowan, and Ron Perlman, this 2011  re-make  includes audio commentaries, The Conan Legacy  featurette, a making-of  and more. Longtime “Conan” comics writer appears on the special features for the film.

We have a copy of the  Conan the Phenomenon: The Legacy  of Robert E. Howard Fantasy  Icon hardcover art history book as well as the Conan the Barbarian the Blu-ray Combo Pack to give away.  For a chance to win, answer our question of the day:  Which Conan is your favorite?  The character from the books?  Arnold from the films?  The Barry Windsor-Smith or John Buscema version from the comics?  The more recent version from the Dark Horse Comics?  Or Jason Momoa in the new film?

ROY THOMAS

Speaking of Conan, I talked to Roy Thomas, who brought Conan to Marvel Comics in the 1970s and has been writing “Road of Kings” for Dark Horse.  He talked about the early days of the Conan comic.

He said he was hoping to expand Marvel’s reach beyond superheroes into sword and sorcery, and licensing Conan was a home run. The new “Conan the Barbarian” is out on DVD and Blu-ray today. Look for more of the interview with Thomas in Friday’s Weekend Look.

WINNER WINNER ROBOT CHICKEN DINNER

We’ve chosen our winner for the Robot Chicken season 5 DVD  —  the DVD goes to MovieHunter1888.

REVIEW FILE: Justice League 3, Captain America #4, Fear Itself 7.3, Avengers #19, Batman #3
Comics read in 2011: 1,748. Still to go: 263

Roy Thomas is instrumental in the success of Conan in comic books — and by extension in movies — so it’s only appropriate that Dark Horse has turned to Thomas as the current writer of their ongoing “Conan” saga.  The arc in “Road of Kings” 1-6, available as issues now, and set for hardcover collection in January, follows Conan on his journey west along the Road of Kings.

Artist Mike Hawthorne (Fear Agent) draws the series, which begins with Conan as a pirate on the Vilayet Sea.  Over the course of the first six of a planned 12 issues, Conan attempts to deliver the princess Olivia back to her homeland, fighting intrigue and malevolence along the way.  

Hawthorne’s art may come off a little cartoony than what fans of  Cary Nord and Tomas Giorello are used to on “Conan,” but Hawthorne’s storytelling is top-notch.  The Eisner-nominated Hawthorne works well with Thomas, as the information and expressions are conveyed with aplomb.  And Thomas certainly knows this character.  The voice and tone are perfect.  Thomas may have shaded his style slightly to fit into the Busiek and Truman run — if so, he did so seamlessly.  The package is topped off by classic, “Savage Sword of Conan”-style covers by Doug Wheatley.

Overall, a very enjoyable “Conan” arc by a longtime comics master and a talented artist.

- Matt Price
Comics read in 2011: 1,269.  Still to go: 742.

On the hot plains of Texas, in the wildcatting town of Cross Plains, a barbarian was born who has now lived in our imaginations for nearly 80 years.

Robert E. Howard, the author and creator of “Conan,” launched the character in the 1932 issue of the pulp magazine “Weird Tales.” Howard was born in Peaster, Texas, in 1906 and lived in Texas and western Oklahoma as a youth before settling in Cross Plains, Texas, in 1919.

The Cimmerian barbarian is returning to movie theaters today, in the new “Conan the Barbarian” film starring Jason Momoa. Through the years, Conan has been featured in books, comics, movies and television. The 1982 “Conan the Barbarian” movie helped launch Arnold Schwarzenegger to superstardom.

Howard also created the Atlantean King Kull, Puritan adventurer Solomon Kane and the Pict warrior Bran Mak Morn. Howard is often credited with creating the “sword and sorcery,” or epic fantasy, genre.

Howard’s life, and the Conan’s path to literary immortality, are recounted in a 2007 book from Dark Horse Books, “Conan the Phenomenon,” by Paul M. Sammon.

Sammon covers the early days of the pulps, the reprints and revivals of the 1960s, the successful Marvel Comics of the 1970s, the films of the 1980s, the legal wrangling of the 1990s, and the return to publishing in the 2000s.

Dark Horse Comics, the current licensors of Conan in comic books, continue new stories of the barbarian, along with reprints of the material from the 1970s and 1980s.

Writer Kurt Busiek and artist Cary Nord were the team chosen to relaunch Conan in November of 2003, with a 25-cent issue number zero reintroducing the character to modern comic-book audiences. The 25-cent price tag was the same price as the first appearance of Conan in “Weird Tales.”

Busiek said in a news release in 2003 how excited he was to revive the character, calling “Conan” “a dream assignment.

“It’s got everything — a great lead character, exciting adventures, a vast historical sweep, a fascinating world that involves everything from war to thievery to piracy, from high seas adventure to desert banditry, from sorcery to romance to all-out action and back again.”

The zero issue, called “Conan the Legend,” won the 2004 Eisner Award for best single issue. Busiek wrote the title from 2003-2006, and his stories are collected in five volumes from Dark Horse, numbered zero through four. Tim Truman followed Busiek as writer of “Conan,” and wrote the entire second ongoing “Conan” series from Dark Horse, “Conan the Cimmerian.” Truman’s comics have been collected in six volumes from Dark Horse.

Roy Thomas, who wrote many of the Marvel Comics adaptations of “Conan,” has returned to the character for the current series, “Road of Kings.”

Dark Horse also continues its reprint line; two hardcover archives featuring the stories of Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith were released in 2010. Twenty-one softcover volumes of the “Chronicles of Conan,” reprinting Marvel Comics “Conan” series, have been released, as have nine volumes of the black-and-white “Savage Sword of Conan,” reprinting Marvel’s magazine series featuring the barbarian. A tenth volume is set for September release.

Dark Horse has adapted the new film in the trade paperback “Conan: The Mask of Acheron,” which is on sale now.

More information can be found at www.conan.com and www.darkhorse.com/Zones/Conan.

- By Matthew Price
WORD BALLOONS
From Friday’s The Oklahoman

Matt Price and Kyle Roberts discuss Wolverine 2 filming news, the release of the New 52 DC Comics relaunch trailer, and the new Conan the Barbarian film in this week’s Planet 46 Comics Podcast.

WOLVERINE HEADS TO CANADA

The Vancouver Sun reports Hugh Jackman and the cast of Wolverine 2 will be heading to Vancouver in November to film the sequel.

Filming is set to take place Nov. 11 to March 1, 2012 at Canadian Motion Picture Park in Burnaby, where scenes from Twilight, Supernatural and Fantastic Four were filmed. The director of the film — which may still be called “The Wolverine” — is James Mangold (“Walk the Line,” “Knight and Day,” “3:10 to Yuma”).

Another superhero is set to be in Vancouver shortly: The new Superman movie Man of Steel, starring Henry Cavill, will be in Vancouver from Sept. 21 to Jan. 21. Man of Steel will be directed by Zack Snyder.

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Hugh+Jackman+heads+Vancouver+film+Wolverine/5269632/story.html#ixzz1VOehNlko

NEW 52 TRAILER HITS NET
The “New 52″ initiative from DC Comics nears release. The first issue of the New 52, Justice League 1 by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee, will be released on Aug. 31. The first trailer for the relaunch of DC’s superhero properties has been released at Hero Complex.
The trailer/commercial includes art from Justice League No. 1, written by Geoff Johns and drawn by Jim Lee; Action Comics No. 1, written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Rags Morales; Batman No. 1 written by Scott Snyder and drawn by Greg Capullo; Wonder Woman No. 1 written by Brian Azzarello and drawn by Cliff Chiang; and Aquaman No. 1, written by Johns with art by Ivan Reis.

CONAN HITS THEATERS
Lionsgate, Nu Image and Paradox Entertainment are behind the latest “Conan the Barbarian” film, reviving the pulp character created by Robert E. Howard in the early 1930′s in Cross Plains, Texas. The $90-million, 3-D movie stars Jason Momoa as the title character.
Read all about Conan’s history in the pulp magazines and comics in Weekend Look and at the Nerdage blog.

REVIEW FILE: Venom 6, Batman Retroactive: The 1990s, X-Men Schism 3
Comics read in 2011: 1,195. Still to go: 816.

The Hub Television network, which airs a variety of retro animation, has added two new programs to the lineup.

“Jem and the Holograms,” which originally aired in the late 1980s, will join The Hub’s schedule weekdays beginning Tuesday, May 31, at 7 p.m. ET (with encore performances throughout each day) and on Saturdays at 10 a.m. ET.

A marathon of the first 6 episodes will air Saturday, May 28, from 2-5 p.m. ET.

Here’s how the Hub describes the Jem series:

The series “Jem and the Holograms” ran from 1985-’88 in first-run syndication and still boasts a loyal and vocal fan base. It is frequently credited with influencing fashion in the late 1980s and beyond, and launching the careers of female pop-rock stars and music groups. The series follows Jerrica Benton, whose discovery of Synergy, a powerful computer companion, allows her to transform from co-owner of Starlight Music into rock star Jem. Teaming with her sister and best friends who form The Holograms, Jem sets out to make their musical dreams come true, even as she battles against the ruthless Eric Raymond and his musical protégés, The Misfits. The series was a joint collaboration of Hasbro Inc., Marvel Productions, as well as Sunbow Productions and was acquired from the Hasbro Studios library.

The half-hour animated show “Conan the Adventurer” will air this summer.  It will air weekdays, beginning Tuesday, May 31 at 7:00 a.m. ET with encore presentations on Sundays at 6:00 a.m. ET.

Here’s the Hub’s description of that series:

The series follows the mighty warrior’s quest to undo the spell cast upon his family by driving his enemies back into another dimension, and vanquishing their leader, the cruel wizard, Wrath-Amon. The series originally ran from 1992–‘94, and was produced by Jetlag Productions as well as Sunbow Productions and was acquired from the Hasbro Studios library.

- Matt Price

Conan O’Brien became a superhero in last night’s “Conan” show on TBS.   Comics Alliance runs down what happened in the episode.

Conan runs through the DC Comics Encyclopedia, pointing out some of the more ridiculous powers, heroes and villains.

Working with Bruce Timm, the comedian created “The Flaming C,” a superhero version of Conan O’Brien.

Click past the cut for the video.

Comic Book Resources reports the death of fantasy artist Frank Frazetta, well-known for his depictions of Conan and the Death Dealer.   He also worked on well-known comics and comic strips including Lil Abner, Flash Gordon and more.

image via

- Matt Price

Later, the defense secretary attempted to find common ground with Obama by making casual references to the comic book Spawn. But the 44th president reportedly brushed him off with an abrupt laugh, saying, “no one in [his] administration likes Spawn.”

Click through to read the whole thing — the best line is the closer.

– Matt Price

According to The Hollywood Reporter, director Brett Ratner is in final negotiations to helm a “Conan” film.

“Conan” can be cool in the right hands, cheesy in others.  I don’t think I’d be the audience for a Ratner-directed “Conan.”  And I kind of question the likelihood of anybody being able to make the general populace forget Arnold Schwartzenegger enough to make the film their own.  Much remains to be seen on this one.

– Matt Price