To celebrate All Hallow’s Eve this year, I’ve incorporated my Voice Acting training and done readings of gothic poems.
The first poem is Edgar Allen Poe’s “Annabel Lee”.
The second poem is H.P. Lovecraft’s “Hallowe’en in a Suburb”.
Happy Halloween!
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Is that a word?
During my recent Voice Over Workshop/Class with actor Richard Horvitz I was determined to have my own Home Studio Recording Booth. Working with other students and Mr. Horvitz, I researched a lot of potential booth concepts. From the far too expensive (and would never fit in the apartment) down to seeing if I could rearrange my closet (not possible). All the research finally lead to VocalBoothsToGo.com where they have numerous types of booths from large to small, permanent to portable, and I found what I wanted and could afford.
They have a DYI booth made of PVC pipes and sound dampening moving blankets. I chose to have them pre-cut the pipes to the size I needed and a couple of weeks later I began to assemble the booth. Have a look.
I have to really learn to to commit to writing a blog a week or more, especially when it’s the continuation go a topic from earlier posts. Sorry about that, you’ve been patiently waiting to hear what I have to say… Sure you do.
I completed the six week Voice Over Acting Class in North Hollywood. Though the final four were done on Zoom several weeks late.
Won’t go into detail, but I will say that I had a fabulous time, and the teacher really complimented me on my work and how I sounded at the mike. Took direction well. He even said I had a similar voice to another actor he’s worked with.
So I came away from that class feeling really great, and wanting to continue further into Voice Over work.
I’m awaiting to sign up for his second workshop, in the meantime I took a one day voice acting class through a studio that I have longed to visit, and taught by an actor I had listened to in my childhood. It was a great introductory experience to the work they do there, even though like all the other classes right now it was on Zoom.
Am really looking forward to taking more courses and getting a chance to audition for voices in animation and commercials.
Will see where the Lord leads me and where I will speak up next.
by Michael Housel
Cover Art by Chris Rawling
Pick up a copy on Amazon.
Here is the latest novel which I’ve been doing interior illustration for:
The Persona Green-Fleshed Fiends by Michael Housel, the second in his Persona series. Published by Airship 27 Production.
I did nine illustrations through the story. Here is a sample of one of them.
We know that in the CW’s Arrowverse of shows at some point in the future THE FLASH will go missing in the CRISIS
Next season’s crossover story will be CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTH…
I’m thinking that during that ‘missing’ period The Flash should visit EARTH PRIME and go past the DC Comics offices, to pay homage to when the Flash used to visit Julius Schwartz.
…yeah, right!
The rain was fierce today. It was so bad this morning that I chose not to drive the freeways to my part-time job.
After I took my wife to her job I headed straight home. Figured I could get some writing done.
That was not meant to be.
I lucked out and got a parking space right out front the apartment. However, my lucked failed when I discovered that someone had broken their key off in the gate’s lock.
With the rain pouring down on me I attempted to get the piece of the key out, but to no avail. So I headed back to the car where I waited in vain for someone to come out the gate but no one arrived.
After talking with my wife on the phone, and attempting to reach the apartment manager, I planned to go spend the day at a local shopping mall before someone could get the door repaired. But before doing so I wanted to check one more time to see if anyone was around that might let me. But by then the rain was coming down so hard that the street was a flood and when I opened the car door I stepped out into ankle deep cold water soaking my shoes and socks.
So for the next few hours I spent in the mall with ice cold soaking wet feet until the manager finally got back to me with the code that would let me in without a key.
So don’t anyone ever tell me it doesn’t rain in California.
At least I didn’t come down with a cold.
Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity
Today marks the publication of ALL-STAR PULP COMICS #4. This issue includes the story “The DA’s Dilemma” staring the Golden Age of comics masked vigilante THE VEILED AVENGER, a public domain heroine in a brand new 8 page story.
This marks Kevin’s first published work where he both wrote and illustrated the story. He would very much like to thank the great crew at Airship 27 and Redbud Studios Comics.
Available now at Amazon.
The Bay Phantom
Kevin did nine (9) interior illustrations for this novel. Ron Fortier and and everyone Airship 27 has been a great support as added my own work to this great book.
THE BAY PHANTOM – FEAST OF THE CANNIBAL GUILD by Chuck Miller.
Cover by Adam Shaw – (No relation.)
AIRSHIP 27 PRODUCTIONS
RETURN OF THE BAY PHANTOM
Airship 27 Productions, a leader in the New Pulp publishing community, is excited to present the second book in writer Chuck Miller’s series; “The Bay Phantom – Feast of the Cannibal Guild.”
When a shadowy group of criminals start shaking down restaurants in Mobile, Joe Perrone once again dons the cloak and goggles of the Bay Phantom. Shortly thereafter, wealthy young men begin dropping dead without warning. What do these things have in common with a mysterious psychic, a sinister funeral home, and a nationalist movement known as the Transatlantic Patriots Guild?
That is what the Bay Phantom must learn, and he must do it without his trusted aide, Mirabelle Darcy. She is away on a mission of her own; one that necessitates her breaking into the Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary. Thus left to his own devices, can the Phantom thwart the Cannibal Guild and their deadly assassin, the Mummifier? Or will he become their next victim?
“Chuck Miller is one of the most original writers in New Pulp today,” states Airship 27 Productions’ Managing Editor, Ron Fortier. “His storytelling is truly unique and he envisions the most startling characters, both good and bad, ever to grace a pulp thriller. When Miller puts a spin on a tale, you’d best hang for a truly wild ride.”
Once again Chuck Miller offers up a thrilling new adventure set in the Deep South and starring his original pulp hero; The Bay Phantom. This is pulp action with an added spicy kick. Along for the adventure are cover artist Adam Shaw and, debuting for the first time with Airship 27, interior illustrator, Kevin Paul Shaw Broden.
AIRSHIP 27 PRODUCTIONS –
PULP FICTION FOR A NEW GENERATION!
I have done some reworking on the novel, and on the cover as well.
I digitally painted it in Painter and Photoshop.
Additionally I tweeked the subtitle: A Paranormal Romance Mystery
You can buy a copy of the novel at any ebook distributor.
Here is my today’s sketch. Of Howleen Wolf and Twyla from MONSTER HIGH: THIRTEEN WISHES.
I’ve been watching all the different EVER AFTER HIGH and MONSTER HIGH movies, and I like each of them for different reasons.
MONSTER HIGH THIRTEEN WISHES is to me perhaps one of the best of them.
It does what all these movies are required to do, first off introducing the latest version of the dolls, as well as the new ones for that season, put our characters into an adventure, and stress the theme of “All are welcome at Monster High, Freaky Flaws and All.”
In my opinion Thirteen Wishes goes a few steps further than most of the others do. Because it delves far more into the characters than the other movies do.
The basic theme here is about feeling alone and ignored, and what you do to have friends, be popular, and be accepted. Which is shown through Howleen Wolf and how she is tempted by the genie magic. While her friend Twyla doesn’t mind living in the shadows.
Even the new character of Gigi is shown hurting because she’s lonely, which results in the creation of the threat endangering everyone. That of Wisp.
It is further shown in Cleo when everyone forgets who she is, but even though she tries to pull herself back up the popularity rankings by her own wrappings, what really works best for her is that Duce feels for her even though he doesn’t recognize her. Their relationship will stand no matter what, (foreshadowing Boo York Boo York).
The third part of this Lagoona Blue and Gill’s relationship. How she struggles to be accepted by his family but can’t manage it, but of some very blatant racist themes that only magic can over come. She is soon happy, but at a cost. Happy to be part of his family she begins to exhibit the same racists thoughts as Gill’s parents. There is also an allusion to drug addition when she can’t get enough of the fresh water her new life demands. She’ll even give up what she enjoys for it.
Another theme that stands out, as shown in my illustration above. Is that your best friend will stick by you even when you’ve made the dumbest of actions in order to save you. As Twyla does for her Beast Friend Forever Howleen.
As stated, all the other Monster High films are good in their own way, but this film stands out above the rest because of its character depth and themes.
Thirteen Wishes was also the first to establish a link between Monster High and Ever After High.
Late night rambling over.
Years ago, my wife and I had the opportunity to write several episodes of the Japanese animated series MIDNIGHT HORROR SCHOOL, created by Naomi Iwata
The show was a relative success in Japan and many other countries around the world, unfortunately they were able find a market to sell the show to here in the U.S.A. So we were never able see our episodes broadcast in English.
I would have really been nice to show them to people, especially to help promote our animation careers for other series.
Maybe it’s not too late.
Hikky and his school friends are objects that human students loose during the school day. Such as a pencil that falls off your desk. At night the school becomes magical and all these lost objects become alive and go to their own school. There they learn to do amazing things and to one day graduate and become one of the Wonders of The World.
It was a fun series to work on. It got me my first animation writing credit and membership into the Animation Writers Caucus of the Writers Guild of America West.
Today I was sitting in the lobby of a television studio’s office building, drinking my Starbucks iced tea, and reading about a live action movie that was being made from an animated TV series from the self-same studio.
I thought that there was a young actor from one of the other TV shows this studio has produced would have been perfect for one of the leads of this movie if he was a bit younger. (Turns out I wasn’t the only one who had this thought.)
While this was going through my head an even younger boy sat across the lobby from me, he had a couple script pages of ‘sides’ and he was practicing his lines. He was preparing to audition for something. He was putting himself completely in to the role, ignoring all the people walking around him.
It was fascinating to watch.
I don’t know if he was there to audition for the young teenage lead of the movie mentioned above, but looking at him, watching him perform, I knew he would be perfect for the role.
I love living in the Burbank area and witnessing things like this. Going to pay attention to the casting of this film.
If you know anything, “Call me, Beep me.”
What’s the sitch?
Kevin Paul Shaw Broden
Four Names of Professional Creativity
This evening my wife, author Shannon Muir, and I will be attending the 2017 Animation Writers Caucus Annual Meeting and Award Presentation at the offices of the Writers Guild of America in Los Angeles. Events like these have always been special to us because at first it was a chance to meet our creative and literary heroes we have looked up to, then becoming fellow animation writers, and in some special cases becoming close friends.
At these annual meetings we honor a writer who has truly added to the animation industry as a writer and creator. This year our presentation must also be a memorial as the award is being given posthumously to writer extraordinaire and friend Len Wein.The outside world knows him best as the creator of Wolverine and Swamp Thing, but he is so much more especially to a little boy who had to sit for hours in a hospital lobby while his grandparents were being taken care of upstairs.
The hospital chaplain took pity on the little boy who had nothing to do on those old vinyl couches than his homework and so gave me two comic books, Superman and The Flash. They were great, and that gift meant a lot to me, but it wasn’t until I wandered into the hospital gift shop that my life was changed forever.
Along side the magazines the small shop had a few very small comic books for sell. One of which, with the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA logo on the top and text at the bottom that read “33 Super-Stars in One Epic Adventure!” with dozens of those heroes jumping of the front and back cover, had my full attention. I convinced my mother to give me the 95 cents to purchase this copy of DC Special Blue Ribbon Digest #11.
Opening those four-color pages I found myself tumbling into a wonderful world of super heroes. Yes, I knew of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman from television and cartoons, but there were so many many more. Here I learned not only about the Justice League but also the Justice Society of America, and that there was an Infinite number of parallel earths where more heroes resided.
I was definitely hooked and the DC Universe was my playground from then on.
This digest turned out to be a reprint of JUSTICE LEAGE OF AMERICA #100, 101, and 102, about our heroes on a quest to find seven more heroes lost to the ages.
This great story, that put a boy on a quest to discover all the heroes of the golden age of comics, was written by the great comic book author Len Wein. I would soon be reading many more.
(An interested side note is that Len also edited the Blue Ribbon Digest that it was reprinted in.)
I was not the only one influenced by this comic; fellow comic book writer Gail Simone also marks this story as what began her path into comics.
I learned just the other day that Len himself fell in love with comics as a child while he was in the hospital as well. Though for him it was for medical treatment, but he has stated that those comics and super heroes got him through it.
Now that little boy who sat quietly in the hospital lobby wants to pay his respect to the man who sent towards a career as a comic book and animation writer. I honor you Len for all the stories you have brought to the world, and for being a friend.
Thank you.
Kevin Paul Shaw BrodenFour Names of Professional Creativity
This month of August (2017) I am doing a series of sketched based on the career of Comic Book legend Jack Kirby’s career.
I started off with the Blue Beetle because that was the first masked hero that Kirby illustrated. It appeared in a news paper comic strip.
My second illustration is of Sandman and Sandy the Golden Boy.
Ol’ Wesley Dodds tosses away his trench coat, fedora, and gas mask for the bright tights that all the latest heroes were wearing. He also picked up a young Side Kick. Sandy’s shirt changed a little from issue to issue, but here he looks striking like Captain America’s partner Bucky.
Speaking of Cap, the third sketch is of Captain America and based on the cover art of Captain America #1 in 1940.
I hope to continue drawing more Kirby characters through out the month. (I did continue to draw Kirby characters through out August 2017, see my portfolio.)
Hope you enjoy.