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Art And Money

By now, if you follow comics, you’ve heard that Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter donated $1 million to Donald Trump’s fundraiser last night. Under normal circumstances, a CEO making a generous donation to aid American veterans would be laudable–and probably not newsworthy in and of itself. But given the concerns raised over the questionable way in which The Donald has solicited donations, and the fact that several major veterans groups have rejected his money, a lot of people have been left wondering: was this really a donation to benefit veterans? Or was it a donation to benefit Donald Trump? And if it was the latter, what does that mean for fans of Marvel comics? Did the money come out of Perlmutter’s private fortune, or did some portion of what you spent on your Marvel pull list support a political candidate who wants to deport millions of immigrants, build a wall along the Mexican border and require religious minorities to carry ID badges? 

I have no easy answers to these questions. In an ordinary election cycle, I’d say that when the CEO of an entertainment company supports a conservative candidate while also fostering diverse creative talent within his company, it is a sign of a healthy democracy. Being a Republican is not a crime. However, this is not an ordinary election cycle, and Trump is not an ordinary Republican. The irony that Ms Marvel was launched on Perlmutter’s watch–while Donald Trump would like to prevent Muslims from even entering the United States–was not lost on the mainstream media, nor on me. 

Rather fortuitously, I’m down in California on Marvel-related business at the moment, so I had the opportunity to talk all of this over in depth with a bunch of people who have been at the company a long time, and whose opinions I value. But after we talked, I found myself with more questions than answers. Can we separate a CEO from the company he runs, or the company from the creators, or the creators from the art? Should we? 

People understand that in today’s world, we vote as much with our dollars as we do with our ballots. We don’t want the things we buy and enjoy to support bigotry and injustice. The real possibility of a Trump presidency is terrifying to those who would prefer not to live in a dystopian autocracy, and for obvious reasons, the idea that the CEO of Marvel supports Trump makes a lot of readers seriously concerned. Yet–frustratingly–boycotting books you love will not take a single dime out of Perlmutter’s pocket, much less out of Trump’s. It will, however, kill the books.

This is the great catch-22 of corporate art in any form. ( And it’s something I think about a lot.) It’s the flaw inherent in the system. There’s a lot I can’t say, so let me just say this: follow your conscience. I am going to continue to work on Ms Marvel, for the following reason: I have never, in my entire career, seen a character and a story light people up the way this has, and I need to see it through a little longer. (Unless of course I get fired for talking about this shit, in which case, it was nice meeting you all.)

In the meantime, there IS something proactive we can do in the wake of this controversy. Several wonderful veterans’ organizations will not benefit from Trump’s money because they refuse to be political footballs. One of those organizations is the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). A dear friend of mine works very closely with this group, and I have been deeply impressed by what I’ve learned from him. These are people with a perspective on the wars of the last decade that you will not hear on CNN. Let’s help them get the support they need.

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i wish there wasn’t such a stigma around being proved wrong, bc it’s a part of life, no one can be right all the time. if we didn’t feel as much shame about it i think a lot of things would change a lot faster

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Before the computing era, ILM was the master of oil matte painting, making audiences believe that some of the sets in the original Star Wars and Indiana Jones trilogy were real when they weren’t. They were the work of geniuses like Chris Evans, Michael Pangrazio, Frank Ordaz, Harrison Ellenshaw and Ralph McQuarrie ! Forever thank you, to their handmade art and the work of their colleagues, that made us dream of impossible worlds and fantastic places across Earth and the Universe.

There are more background paintings on this article, featuring comments by the masters/artists themselves ! 

Some of the following pieces were made by other artists:

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Merry Christmas! Yesterday we raised nearly $500,000 in financial assistance for the refugee families we met during the month of December. As of now, this is enough to provide each family with about $40,000. That is a large amount for anyone, but when you are starting from zero, it is all the money in the world. These families lost everything in the war. Most have multiple children and significant medical needs, so our assistance will significantly ease the stress of starting over. Thanks so much to everyone who gave yesterday. The fundraiser will run for one more day, so anyone else who would like to donate may do so here:

http://bit.ly/1TjkNc0

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The ignorance and misinformed prejudices many Americans hold against Muslim people is truly shocking. 10 actual facts about Muslims that shatter the stereotypes.

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So December 5th I was up at Phoenix Fanfest doing my genderbend cosplay of Moon Knight. I did my first professional cosplay photo shoot in this outfit and it was really important to me.

Moon Knight is my favorite superhero and part of what got me into comic books. I found him relatable because of my struggles with depression and seeing a character have his own battles with mental illness, sometimes overtaking him or hurting the people he cared about, it was more relatable to me than some of the other representations I saw.

My favorite run is the one by Warren Ellis and Declan Shalvey. Here we see Moon Knight really come into his own. He’s owned up to his past, gotten help (albeit in the form of a sketchy psychiatrist but at least he’s trying). What I like here is that Moon Knight is done letting his dark side over power him and he’s done fighting it. He has embraced it and learned to use it to his advantage.

This is incredibly important to me because it’s something I still struggle with from time to time but I’m always happiest when I’m not fighting the darkness. I know, of course, that this doesn’t work for everyone but it does work for me and that’s why Moon Knight means so much to me. Seeing his struggles remind me of my own and it makes me feel like there’s someone going through all this with me.

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These things women hear in a lifetime that men just don’t - Watch more in the full video

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What do I do when my dad is a die-hard Trump supporter and I'm a closet Bernie supporter?

You get out of the closet.

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So a friend once asked me if I had an endgame for why I revealed all these personal things about myself and my depression and my health and myself to the internet. He meant well (seriously, I know you did), but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about that comment for months. What would be my endgame to all that, if I had one? Was I just being selfish and weird for opening myself up publicly? Is it part of what’s wrong with me that I enjoy opening up to the world? I know there are people in my life who resent the way I share publicly but not personally, but it honestly is because the scattershot sharing into the wide world is easier than looking someone I love in the eyes and saying I’m not okay. The world isn’t okay, so it’s not terrible that I’m not okay.  I recently joined NAMI because I discovered that group therapy and interacting with other people with mental illness was immensely helpful to me. And it’s through group therapy that I discovered my endgame.  Here’s an excerpt from my journal when I was in the hospital:

Last night, my psychiatrist told me that I need to put my own oxygen mask on first, before I worry about other people. Then I volunteered/was voted to lead today’s group therapy session. When our therapist and the other patients praised how I led, I felt so proud and pleased. But there is the trap I find myself in, over and over. I like helping people, but the things I do are so often unconsidered. I think of how the things I do will be received or how they will impact other people, but not how the weight of those things will hurt me.

I think the public sharing is one of the easiest ways for me to tell other people with depression and chronic pain that they aren’t alone, and to remind myself that *I’m* not alone. When I was leading group therapy and able to both express myself and draw discussion out of other people, I felt good. I felt strong. I felt in control. I was helping. When I write about all this pain and bullshit publicly, it’s the same thing. 

Last night, I got a message from a total stranger telling me that my posts helped him. You know what? They help me, too. None of us are alone. We’re all suffering from something. And sometimes just that reminder is enough to see another day. I’ve got my oxygen mask on enough to write about all this publicly. I’m not doing great, but I’m doing okay. I want you to know you can be okay too. Depression is a liar and it doesn’t deserve to win.

That’s my endgame.

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The Daily Show, October 22, 2015

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Former Planned Parenthood employee tweeted the acts of terrorism she survived

After the shooting Colorado, author Bryn Greenwood tweeted a list of the regular acts of violence, intimidation, arson and vandalism she experience while working at Planned Parenthood. This most troubling part of all? Her clinic didn’t provide the one thing attackers were mad about.

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Watch: This is spot on — but polls show it will take a lot to change public opinion.

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“Don’t get afraid, get angry.”

- Hogfather, Terry Pratchett

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You know, just some practice poses for my Moon Knight cosplay next month. Last one May or may not have been inspired by Sailor Moon.

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Waaaaaggghhh!!!!!!!! 3 months later!

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Tatiana Maslany and Tony Hale’s skit with Andy Samberg at the 2015 Emmy Awards.