by Alex Dueben

Christopher Moore is one of America’s funniest novelists and his new book, Sacré Bleu, a novel subtitled “A Comedy d’Art,” makes the case for him also being one of the smartest and most inventive. Arguably his best work, the book is set in the Belle Epoque era and involves the impressionist and post-impressionist painters who lived primarily in the Montmartre district of Paris. Starring Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, who is so colorful and entertaining a character that it’s hard to believe that Moore didn’t create him, it’s a strange and fascinating novel that is about, among other things, the color blue.

Moore is fascinated by what made the impressionists so radical that they created unconventional work and lived in unconventional ways. If this novel is less laugh out loud than some of his previous books, it’s because Moore is trying for a different tone. While there are plenty of hilarious moments – try looking at a Renoir after reading this without cracking a smile – the book details the murder of Vincent Van Gogh and how his friends try to discover what really happened. Along the way you’ll learn the best way to test a baguette, how color is made, and learn a lot about art (although admittedly, some of what we learn is fictional). Moore is currently on book tour and we spoke to him about his just-released novel.


Read our exclusive interview with Christopher Moore on SuicideGirls.com.

by A.J. Focht

A month out from release and AMC has already sold out advanced tickets for The Ultimate Marvel Marathon which promises to show all of the movies leading up to The Avengers before the midnight release. But if you didn’t get your tickets to the nine hour movie marathon there is no need to worry as AMC will be adding more locations. Cinemark theatres have also joined the party hosting the marathons at half the price. While AMC is charging $40 a seat for the marathon, Cinemark is charging $20. Although, it is unclear if the midnight showing of The Avengers is part of the Cinemark package.

The Iron Man 3 release date is scheduled for May 3, 2013, just a year after The Avengers. Now it looks like Ben Kingsley is in talks to play the villain for the third movie. Insiders at Marvel have debunked the rumor that he will play Mandarin, without giving any hints as to what his role might be.

DC Comics is launching a new round of comic titles this July. The titles in the mix so far are National Comics and Masters of the Universe. National Comics will feature obscure and offbeat heroes, starting with Jeff Lemire’s Kid Eternity. Masters of the Universe will follow the adventures of He-Man against the evil Skeletor. Don’t be expecting the classic He-Man story as it looks like his origins have changed, and as the series starts, Skeletor has already won.

Do you want to bring a little piece of The Hunger Games home with you? Well now you can since Katniss Everdeen has been transformed into a Barbie. I don’t know when Barbie started idolizing child warfare, but this Katniss Everdeen doll is equipped with a bow and arrows nonetheless. If that isn’t good enough for you, you could always buy District 12. Henry River Mill Village, the location for District 12 in the film, is now on sale and can be yours for only $1.4 million.

The Hugo Awards, one of the most prestigious awards in science-fiction, has listed this year’s nominees. Among the top contenders are all the big players: Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Captain America, and…Community? That’s right. In what can only be described as the best nomination ever, the Community episode ‘Remedial Chaos Theory’ has been nominated for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. While it is up against some excellent Doctor Who episodes, this episode stands a good chance of winning thanks to its excellent use of alternate and parallel universes.

The Doctor is getting wrapped up in some legal issues of his own. David Tennant starred in a new Virgin Media commercial that has upset the BBC. The commercial played off time travel, and for BBC anything time travel with David Tennant is their jurisdiction. They sent a takedown request to Virgin Media saying they do not want to be perceived as endorsing any organization.

Facebook has paid $1 billion for the purchase of Instagram. While the purchase has had many Instagram fans nervous, Mark Zuckerberg announced they plan to let Instagram grow free from the Facebook brand. Is that enough though for Instagram fans or do you still worry that Facebook ownership will taint it?

by Damon Martin

“Now I can say yes, T-Dog is back!”
– Irone Singleton

Surviving two seasons on AMC’s The Walking Dead is no easy task. But for veteran actor Irone Singleton, it’s a pleasure picking up a script each week, although he admits it’s better once he finds out that his character T-Dog survives.

Singleton has been a part of both seasons of the record breaking cable series, and he recently sat down and talked about the Season 2 finale, what’s coming up for T-Dog in Season 3, and answers the most important question ever about The Walking Dead.

Damon Martin: Let’s start with the very morbid nature of the show in the sense that anybody can go at any time. As an actor, when you get your script every week, are you reading through to check you’re still there? Cause this is a show where there are no guarantees

Irone Singleton: I know right? Kind of like The Sopranos, and somebody else mentioned 24, although I never really watched 24 – I heard it’s a phenomenal show. But we’re always looking over our back like ‘am I the one that’s going to get it today?’ It’s like that. Especially early on it was like that. When I received the script and I read through the part where T-Dog slices his arm, I’m like, ‘how big is this slice?’ He’s bleeding profusely, so I was like, ‘let me jump to the back of the script.’ So I jumped to the back of the script cause I wanted to see if T-Dog was still alive at the end. He was still alive, so I wiped the sweat bubbles from my forehead, and then I jumped back to the beginning so I could read for sheer entertainment value as opposed to reading for my life.

DM: When you work on a show you become close with the people you’re cast with; how tough was it when you read that script or you got that call sheet and found out Jon Bernthal (Shane) was leaving. How tough is that as an actor to see?

IS: I considered them my extended family, my second family away from home and we did get very close. I have special relationships with all of them and it was in it’s own unique way. To see them go, there were very wet eyes. Tearful moments. We had those moments with Jon Bernthal and I, and Jeffrey DeMunn (Dale), and we’d look at each other and be like ‘wow, this is the end of the road for us on this journey right here.’ It was a nice moment, but sad to see them go.

DM: Now you’ve survived through Season 2 and we’re on our way to Season 3 so everybody wants to know are we going to see more of T-Dog?

IS: I’m hoping so. I’m glad that T-Dog survived. Doing interviews before the season finale, I had to keep people wondering whether or not he survived, so now I can say, ‘yes, T-Dog is back!’

DM: So we know that Michael Rooker will be back as Merle Dixon for Season 3. The character interaction you guys had during the first season really kicked things off for this show, so I have to imagine things are going to get interesting when you cross paths again.

IS: It is going to be interesting. Actually T-Dog and Merle did meet up 2 weeks ago in Cherry Hills, New Jersey and there was a bit of a stand off, and Merle got a bit of his edge. We were there with the zombie survival crew at Monster Mania, and he served T-Dog octopus sashimi, and that is something that T-Dog does not like at all, but he forced it to him with chopsticks. You’ll probably stumble across that picture on Twitter or Facebook or something like that, so I think that’s a pre-cursor to what Merle has coming. It may not be good

DM: When you become a part of a series like The Walking Dead, you really become synonymous with that series and with comic book, science fiction and horror fans. If you walked into San Diego Comic Con you’d get mobbed by 50,000 fans. How much has your life changed since doing The Walking Dead? I mean 50 years from now people are still going to remember your performance from this show.

IS: That’s a big statement and it feels good. My life has gone from one extreme to the other. A line I use in my one-man show, I say, ‘I feel my life is going from the abyss to the utopia of the spiritual spectrum.’ I’ve come from an environment where I was spiritually dead, my conscience was for the most part dormant, so I am now at a point in my life where I have acknowledged a responsibility to be a role model. That’s where I am now. God has put me in a position where I have a platform to where many people hear me, and respect my message when I speak it, so that is exactly where I am, from one extreme to the other. It’s such a great feeling to be a part of such a distinguished group.

DM: There’s so much to talk about the Season 2 finale, but I’m a huge fan of The Walking Dead comic book, so I want to talk to you about the dark hooded swordsman that saved Andrea’s life at the end of the episode. For comic book fans, and as Robert Kirkman announced after the show, that is the famous character Michonne, who has now been cast with actress Danai Gurira. What did you think of that appearance; Were you a fan of the comics? Did you see that coming?

IS: I read the comics and I dipped around and read the part with Michonne, but I haven’t gotten through it. I think she may prove to be an excellent choice. (Danai Gurira) is beautiful, and I think this could work out here. I’m looking forward to that experience. I had no idea she was even in the running. They were talking about somebody from True Blood, and a couple of other names came up, but they announced her and I started to do a bit of research, and I was like, ‘wow okay, this might work out!’ I’m happy.

DM: One of the best parts of The Walking Dead is the fact that there are comics out there, and some of the iconic things that happened in the Season 2 finale are already building for Season 3. Michonne showing up, we saw the last shot of the prison to close the episode, we know they cast The Governor already, who is a major character in the comics. Is it cool that they set things up so well to get fans already excited about what’s coming next, and the show doesn’t start again for several months?

IS: I know, I’m excited too. I feel the same way. I think those shots are so epic. My wife and I were trying to figure out which shot was most epic. Was it the one with Michonne at the end with that cloak over her head? Or was it the prison shot, the overhead shot? Was it the barn burning at the end? So many epic shots and all of them kind of just have me waiting on next season. We should just petition for a year round Walking Dead show.

DM: The great thing about The Walking Dead is that while obviously they are living in a zombie apocalypse, the story really revolves around these characters and building their stories. It seems the way the storytelling is done on this show, both in the dramatic dialogue scenes and in the action scenes, it’s just really excellent.

IS: You’re getting me excited, stop it. This thing is so brilliant, it’s brilliantly written and mapped out. The folks at AMC that have to do all of this, they have to walk that tight rope. I mean you have to satisfy at least two demographics; You have to satisfy the one that want the guts and the gore, and then you have the other side, they love the story and the drama. Then you have the group like me, I’m right in the middle. I love them both. I thought it was brilliant, where you’re on the farm, but then you have zombies through there. You want it to count when you have zombies, you don’t want to have zombies on every episode. It gets old. So it’s brilliant.

DM: This is my last question before I let you go. Because you are a big part of The Walking Dead, you’re part of the family there, and I know you know all the inside information. Can you tell me, does Carl ever stay in the house?

IS: [Laughing] Great question. Carl does not, but Chandler does. Chandler Riggs stays in the house. Carl doesn’t. I don’t know what’s going on with Carl.

Related Posts:
Interview with The Walking Dead’s Michael Rooker – Merle Is Back
The Walking Dead Season 2 Finale Recap: And Hell Followed Them

by Alex Dueben

Karen Abbott’s first book was Sin in the Second City: Madams, Ministers, Playboys and the Battle for America’s Soul, which needles to say, was not the kind of history book you read in school. Centered around the Everleigh Sisters who ran a prominent Chicago brothel for more than a decade, Abbott explored not just the sisters and their many famous clients, but the religious and political figures who collaborated with, fought against, and made their names, locally and nationally, around this issue. Abbott’s most recent book which has just been released in paperback is American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare: The Life and Times of Gypsy Rose Lee.

You know Gypsy Rose Lee. The legendary striptease artist and burlesque performer, author of the novel The G-String Murders, which was turned into the Barbara Stanwyck film Lady of Burlesque, who authored a largely fictional memoir (before writing such a tome became popular) that was turned into one of the great musicals. What’s clear from reading her book, is how much we don’t know about Gypsy Rose Lee.

American Rose isn’t a biography, but uses Lee and her career as a way to look at the thirties when vaudeville died and burlesque took over, and when culture as a whole was in a state of flux. It’s fascinating portrait of the theater-owning Minsky Brothers, moralist New York City mayor Fiorella La Guardia, author Carson McCullers, and America in the midst of an economic Depression but a cultural revolution.

Read our exclusive interview with Karen Abbott on SuicideGirls.com.

by A.J. Focht

A new Avengers trailer promoting the IMAX 3D showings is out. A batch of behind-the-scenes photos have been released as well. The Avengers is only about a month out, but we’ve got some reassurance the group’s adventures won’t end then. Black Widow has been confirmed for Iron Man 3, so we know there will still be cross overs amongst The Avengers team.

Despite the poor performance of The Green Lantern, Warner Bros. hasn’t given up on making a movie for The Flash. The company is finalizing their marketing strategy for the DC heroes, but Flash is apparently high on the list. There will likely be more information about upcoming DC hero films after the release of The Dark Knight Rises.

During the Empire Awards, Michael Fassbender (Magneto) and James McAvoy (Xavier) took a moment to discuss the upcoming sequel to X-Men: First Class. While McAvoy seems to be out of the loop, Fassbender expects the film to start shooting soon.

The superhero movies this summer will have their work cut out to compete in a market where The Hunger Games made box-office history with the third largest opening weekend, taking the spot from Spider-Man 3 and falling just short of The Dark Knight. Hunger Games opened at $155 million in the Spring season and is the first movie in a trilogy. Most movies that make that kind of money are usually sequels released during the summer, so it has set the bar extremely high for movies like The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, and Amazing Spider-Man.

The upcoming RoboCop remake will be less robot and more cop, well more human at least. Joel Kinnaman, who has been chosen to play RoboCop, suggests the costume will be little more than an exaggerated sci-fi cop costume. This goes along with some of the new ideas that director Jose Padhila has suggested that concern new breakthroughs in neuroscience.

While some try respect the history of the works they are remaking, others seem to go out of their way to upset the apple cart. After fan outrage at Michael Bay’s announcement that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would now be aliens, the director did some damage control suggesting that could mean as little as “the ooze was from space.” Now there is a fear that they won’t be teenager as the movie’s name has been changed to Ninja Turtles. This doesn’t mean they won’t be teenagers, but it has caused some concern.

Terra Nova’s last hope, Netflix, won’t be saving them after all. Talks concerning Netflix’s attempt to pick up the show for a second season have fallen through. Netflix is however still considering picking up The River for a second season. In future, you can expect to see online networks like Hulu and Netflix pick up an increasing number of popular cancelled shows as they work on building up their own programming schedule.

You can now follow along with the activities on the set of Ender’s Game at the project’s production blog. Only two entries have been posted so far, but one is of a utility deck panel from the ship set.

The first trailer for the new Doctor Who series was leaked after a convention in Wales. The pirated trailer hasn’t been taken down yet so watch it while you can. In related news, the Time Lord’s new assistant has also been unveiled. Former UK soap actress Jenna-Louise Coleman will play Matt Smith’s companion, though little else is known about her role.

As for another Doctor Who spinoff, Steven Moffat isn’t against it, but he doesn’t have the time to be the one making it. Moffat might not be opposed to a Doctor Who spinoff, but he has voiced his issues with the American version of the BBC’s Sherlock. He is upset that CBS is moving forward with Elementary even though they were denied rights by the BBC. Ultimately, he worries the CBS version will be bad and discredit the source show.

by Alex Dueben

Brian Wood’s first comic was Channel Zero, the story of a female freedom fighter in a repressive future America. Initially it didn’t make much of an impact, but it’s become a cult hit, and will be rereleased in a new edition along with its sequel this spring.

Wood has written a number of comics including Local, Demo, DV8, and the young adult comics The New York Four and The New York Five. His most significant work and arguably his best work has been the two series he wrote at Vertigo.

DMZ is one of the great political tales of the past decade and a great story of New York, which recently concluded after a long run. Northlanders, a series of unrelated stories about vikings that are based on historical fact and take place over centuries, is one of the most innovative and interesting comics of the decade.

His two major projects right now are at Dark Horse. With his longtime collaborator Becky Cloonan, Wood is taking over Conan the Barbarian for a 25 issue run. His other major project right now – and for years to come – is The Massive. The series just debuted in the anthology Dark Horse Presents illustrated by Kristian Donaldson and will launched as an ongoing series in June. It explores a group of environmentalists coming to terms with what to do after the world has come to an end.

Read our exclusive interview with Brian Wood on SuicideGirls.com.

by Alex Dueben

Brian K. Vaughan his made his name as one of the best comics writers of the twenty-first century. He created two long running series, the science fiction fable Y–The Last Man and the political superhero tale Ex Machina. Vaughan also created the series Runaways for Marvel and wrote the series’ best issues, wrote the graphic novel Pride of Baghdad based on the true story of lions who escaped from the Baghdad zoo. and wrote a story arc for the Season 9 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for Dark Horse Comics and Joss Whedon that featured Faith.

Outside of comics, he’s been known for joining the writing staff of Lost during the third season. He worked on the show through the fifth season and is currently adapting Stephen King’s novel Under the Dome for Showtime.

His new project is Saga, an ongoing series coming out from Image Comics. Illustrated by Fiona Staples, the book is about a Romeo and Juliet-esque couple from opposite sides of an interstellar war. A blend of fantasy and science fiction elements, there are creatures with wings, horned aliens, ray guns and swords, spaceships and childbirth, bounty hunters, rocketship forests, cats that can tell if you’re lying, and a healthy dose of sex and violence. We reached Vaughan by e-mail.

Read our exclusive interview with Brian K. Vaughan on SuicideGirls.com.