July 10, 1917 – June 12, 2007

I wanted to post this because, in the same way that our comic book superheroes and the characters from mainstream media inspire us to strive toward a goal, Mr. Wizard inspired countless people with his television shows in the 50’s and the 80’s.

Below are a few snippets from the write-up at MAKE.

Donald Jeffrey Herbert “Mr. Wizard” (July 10, 1917 – June 12, 2007) brought science and fun to millions in the 50s, then again in the 80’s.

Watch Mr. Wizard (1951) had 547 live episodes. The show won a Peabody Award. Mr. Wizard’s World (1983 -1990) was the longest running show on Nickelodeon. In 1955 there were about 5,000 Mr. Wizard Science Clubs nationwide with more than 100,000 members.

You can see more at Mr. Wizards Studios and there are plenty of clips on YouTube from shows.

It’s the third and final day of Wizard World LA, and… well, not much to talk about.

• CBR has an interesting interview with comics veteran Peter David on the “3 act structure” of writing. It’s actually a really good read, even if you’re already familiar with the methods he describes.
• CBR also has a great interview with Simon Furman regarding the upcoming Spotlight: Galvatron (with Guido Guidi on art), like how Galvatron ISN’T a rebuilt Megatron, or how his nemesis is mostly Ultra-Magnus (?), and how you shouldn’t expect Unicron to show up… outside of the upcoming Beast Wars: The Ascending book.
• Diamond Select Toys has announced an upcoming Dr. Strange Minimate, from what Minimate Headquarters suspects could be a Defenders line.
• Toy News International has images of DC Direct & Art Asylum’s 6th wave of Minimates, featuring “Battle Damaged” Wonder Woman & Cheetah, Bizarro & Supergirl, S.T.R.I.P.E. & Stargirl, and Sgt. Rock & Blackhawk. Images mirrored below:
  

DC and Marvel scrimped on the news today (what, tired of talking World War Hulk, Amazons Attack, and World War III already?), but some interesting news did surface about IDW’s Scarface prequel, Gene Simmons diving into the comic scene, and some great Heroes DVD (and HD-DVD) news. Read on!
[Read the rest of this entry…]

I missed it yesterday, but Wizard World LA is featuring an exclusive two-pack of Minimates – Spider-Man and black-suited Spider-Man, as seen in a little movie called Spider-Man 3. The unique thing about this toy exclusive is that it’s also available for sale online, for the exact same price as that it’s selling for at the convention: a mere $7. You can buy them here, at the Diamond Select Toys site. Well, you can preorder them, at least. Estimated availability date is on March 26th.

Yes, I realize we JUST had two separate conventions. Clearly, this is nowhere near enough of them. Clearly.

Continue on to read about Avengers Classic, Booster Gold & Infinity, Inc., and 9 new Marvel busts from Bowen Designs. All that, and the rest of the Day 1 roundup after the jump
[Read the rest of this entry…]

The premeire film for Super Mario Bros 3 (this was before we had E3 reports and internets), The Wizard, will be coming to DVD on August 29th. And just like the Wii, it’ll be in widescreen and 480p. Pretty swell, huh?
I’m going to resist the urge to make a powerglove joke here, but its strange how much Lucas’ control over Rad Racer mirrors Nintendo’s demo of ExciteTruck just 2 weeks ago.
Suggested retail price is $14.98, but you know you’ll pay less than that and it will be worth much more.

In a slap to the face of all comic fans in the New England area, Wizard World Boston has been cancelled.

CANCELLATION NOTICE
Wizard World Boston 2006 cancelled

After speaking to our exhibitors and partners, all of whom shared our concerns about the outside costs of doing business at this time, Wizard World Boston has been cancelled. This is an industry decision, and we want to do what’s best for the industry.

We are thankful to the 8,800 fans that attended last year’s event and hope to return to Boston in the near future. We’re now focused on making sure that our other scheduled 2006 events in L.A., Philly, Chicago and Texas are the best Wizard World shows ever.

The East coast has once again received the shaft from the Comic Cons. As a resident of the area, I am ready to get all my friends and start a good old fashioned Red Sox riot.

Earlier this week we learned that the next Call of Duty will take gamers into space. Meanwhile, EA/Dice are looking towards the past to bring gamers the future of EA’s Battlefield shooter, WWI to be specific. Check out the trailer below, and a few tidbits after the jump.

[Read the rest of this entry…]