arts & entertainment

Motor City Comic Con presents comic-book and pop-culture
celebrities and activities this weekend in Novi.

I

Suzanne Chessler

Contributing Writer

S

tan Lee, iconic comic book devel-
oper especially known for co-
creating comic-book characters
including Spider-Man, the Hulk, Iron Man
and the X-Men, headlines this year's Motor
City Comic Con, running May 17-19 at
the Suburban Collection
je o rlIM Showplace in Novi.
Lee, born Stanley
Martin Lieber and
J,
appearing on Saturday
only, will be among
many comic-book and
pop-culture celebrities
%., 14, signing autographs and
Stan Lee
answering questions
during the annual event,
which also will feature trading opportuni-
ties, costume contests, films and activities
specifically for youngsters.
All I tried to do in my stories was show
that there's some innate goodness in the
human condition:' Lee, 91, told the maga-
zine Reform Judaism. "And there's always
going to be evil; we should always be fight-
ing evil:'
Michael Goldman, 41, who also buys
and sells collectible comic books through
his business Motor City Comics in
Farmington Hills, has been at the Motor
City Comic Con helm since 1990. He has

On The Bill

M

ark Rothman, best known
for developing the sitcom
Laverne and Shirley, and Leo
Leibelman, recognized for painted covers
and interior artwork seen in comic-book
series Savage Sword of Conan and Turok
Dinosaur Hunter, are among the Jewish
participants at Motor City Comic Con.
"At my table, I'll
have books I've writ-
ten recently" says
Rothman, 65, now liv-
ing in Farmington Hills,
.....-
"Two are [collections
of] essays, Show Runner
and Show Runner Two,
Mark Rothman and one's a novel, I'm

seen interest for the activities open to a
larger public.
"My late father, Arthur, was responsible
for getting me interested in comic books:'
Goldman says. "He was a collector of coins
and stamps and thought comic books
would be good collectibles and a good way
for me to keep reading.
"When I started this business, my father
still had a hardware store but was ready to
help me with whatever I needed. He trav-
eled to conventions, was my liaison with
local comic-book shops and would distrib-
ute promotional material for me.
"If it weren't for my father, there
wouldn't be any Motor City Comic Con"
Goldman answered questions for the
Jewish News about this year's event:

JN: What makes Stan Lee such a spe-
cial participant?
MG: This will be the first time he's ever
been with us, and he was responsible for
the creation of so many iconic characters.
He made comic books more appealing to
the general public, especially young peo-
ple. He was sort of a genre changer.

JN: How do you decide on the people
to invite?
MG: It takes a lot of networking. We
attend other conventions and meet comic-
book artists. As far as the actors go, it's
really a matter of trying to create a broad

guest list that really appeals to almost
everyone. We're having Micky Dolenz,
who goes back to 1960s television with
The Monkees, and we're having Eddie
McClintock, who has the role of Secret
Service agent Pete Lattimer on the Syfy
series Warehouse 13. (Celebrity appearanc-
es include Lou Ferrigno, Margot Kidder,
Edward James Olmos, Carey Elwes, Alex
Winter, Norman Reedus, Dina Meyer,
Colin Baker, and Curtis Armstrong and
Robert Carradine of Revenge of the Nerds.)

IN: What will the celebrities do?

MG: Mostly, they're autographing and
taking photos with the fans. Some also will
be in our Speakers' Room event, talking
about their careers. They're not perform-
ing; they're getting up to speak.

IN: Will you be featuring anything

that's a little different from what you
have most years?
MG: We have an art exhibit called "Dan's
Dream," which shows a fantastic collection
of artwork donated to Lansing-based col-
lector Dan Frazier. The art, mostly large
illustrations, has been done by comic-book
artists.

IN: What's for kids?

MG: We have activities planned by the
Robot Garage so that young people can
participate in hands-on LEGO building

on a very large scale or experience sumo
wrestling robots.

IN: Which pop culture trends will be
seen?
MG: We're having five wrestling events
because that seems to be more enter-
tainment than sports. Vampires have
become very popular on TV and in films
so we have several actors from those
kinds of television shows. There also will
be gaming events, such as Magic: the
Gathering.

❑

Motor City Comic Con runs May
17-19 at the Suburban Collection
Showplace, 46100 Grand River, in
Novi. Hours are 12:30-7 p.m. Friday,
10:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and
10:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. $60 adult
three-day pass; $25 adult per day;
$10 ages 6-12 Friday and Saturday
(5 and under free) with no charge
for those 12 and younger on Sunday.
For tickets or more info, including
a complete listing of activities, call
(248) 426-8059, or go to www.
motorcitycomiccon.com .

Guests with Jewish ties return to Motor City Comic Con.

Not Garbo, a fable about Hollywood in the
1930s.
Rothman's Hollywood essays are from
his blog, markrothmansblog.blogspot.
com, and they're removed once he
includes them in a book. He also does
"Report Card" movie reviews, grading
each film.
"I use Jewish expressions in my writ-
ing" says Rothman, currently developing
a two-person romantic comedy for the
stage. "I don't think people stray that far
from their roots:'
Rothman, who will be at Comic Con
all three days, also was head writer and
show runner for other popular TV series,
including Happy Days and The Odd

Couple. In his second year at this annual
event, he has appeared at a collectors
show in Chicago.
Leibelman, in his fifth year at Motor
City Comic Con, annually participates in
about a dozen of these events around the
country. He does sketches, sells prints and
shows original artwork.
"I was a comic-book
fan and loved the art-
work," says Leibelman,
41, who studied at the
Ontario College of Art
and Design. "I've been
lucky enough to get jobs
in the industry"
Leo Leibelman
Leibelman, who

grew up in Brooklyn and now lives in
Toronto, extended his field by working as
a concept artist for films and TV series. In
recent years, he made his way back into
comic books with illustrations for Heavy
Metal magazine.
"About 12 years ago, I worked on a chil-
dren's book based on the Old Testament,"
recalls Leibelman, 41, who lists among
his credits a recent film, The Mortal
Instruments, and notes his assignment on
an official Indiana Jones poster.
Leibelman notices the crowds as he
moves from one event to another.
"I'm always surprised at the attendance,"
he says. "It keeps going up and up"

❑

- Suzanne Chessler

May 16 • 2013

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