Craig Bond

Produers at Universal at trying to entice Daniel Craig into doing three more Bond films.   Currently he's is shooting Skyfall - the next installment of the long running 007 movies - and while Cowboys & Aliens did not do so well, and everyone involved is crosses their melodramic fingers to see how Girl With the Dragon Tatoo will do, it's not stopping producers from making the offer.  No word yet on if Mr. Craig will accept, but we at the Hideout hopes he will.   We love James Bond, Sean Connery will always be the original and the one who defined the character - but Danial Craig's bat-shit crazy James Bond rates a close 2nd.   No gadgets, but lots of willingness to do what it take to get the job done without the cheesiness of prior films and the resistance to the urge to make a less then scholarly hottie fit a role no one would belive her in.   If Daniel Craig is aboard, the Hideout support the idea.

Marvelous Battle

A comic book writer and a comic company editor goes to a message board.  Oh yeah not only is this joke for real but the punchline even better.  And when they fight who wins?  Well, anyone with a sense of humor did, that's who.  It was J.Michael Straczynski creator of Babylon Five, writer of Thor, Spider-man,  a couple of issues of Superman, and current writer of nothing of particular note Vs Steve Wacker a senior editor at Marvel Comics who is, in fact, currently editing stuff on everyone's favorite hate filled message board Comic Book Resources - aka CBR.   The great back and forth started when J. Michael posted a graph showing Amazing Spider-Man sales since he left the book, and the lines on the graph dug a hole to China.  Included with the graph were the words, "I'm just saying."  This pissed off the Senior Editor who posted a reply worthy of a geek twenty-seconds after seeing Phantom Menace.  Needless to say after Wacker's spark of a post hit the gas and everything exploded.  Regular CBR posters were so shocked it actually took them 30 whole seconds to start posting replies filled with the usual brand of venom one comes to expect from the usual CBR posters.  The only surprise was Dan Slott's "give peace a chance" post and Mark Waid's imitation of a teenage female Facebook member as he posted his "oh no you didn't" response to J. Michael.  By now some or all of the incendiary posts might be pulled but there's about 200 Pop Culture news sites and blogs currently duplicating them to report the story.  Find it, read it, enjoy the insanity of so-called professional going all unprofessional and shit.

DHep 193 - Bad Kids Go to NYC Comic Con 2011

On this episode we are joined by Ian Levenstein of Comic Timing to have an intellectual discussion on New York Comic Con 2011, the show, the panels, the booth girls and more. Plus a review of Bad Kids go to Hell, the latest in Fall TV and the truth about parenting a growing geek gal. Enjoy.

Unemployed Marvels

Marvel has declined to comment on reports circulating that as many as 15 employees in editorial and production roles are being laid off. At least one editor, Alejandro Arbona, has obliquely confirmed his layoff on Twitter. The layoffs follow the departure of Chief Operating Officer Jim Sokolowski, who was laid off a couple of weeks ago in a costcutting move. The rumors coming out of Marvel at New York Comic Con were bleak, and included a reduced number of exclusive contracts for creators in the future - Andy Diggle has since revealed that he’s no longer under exclusive with Marvel - declining freelancer rates, projects that had been planned but were now being eliminated, and a general belt-tightening.
Cutting back on the poorest-selling titles is certainly one way of reducing costs and improving profitability, but as the sales charts reveal, Marvel also has a problem with its top releases, which are selling significantly below where they did a year ago. This September, for example Marvel’s best seller, Fear Itself #6, sold around 93,000 copies. A year ago, in September 2010, Marvel’s top seller, Wolverine #1, sold around 104,000, already not a stellar performance for a new #1 featuring the most popular member of the X-Men. Marvel’s been drifting for a couple of years, and it’s probably going to have to look at fundamental issues affecting creativity, as DC has, to turn things around.

Fox Gets Punished

Fox has placed a put pilot order for a series based on Marvel’s The Punisher from Disney subsidiary ABC Studios, according to Deadline. Such an order includes substantial penalties if the pilot isn’t aired. The hour-long show will be produced by Ed Bernero, the former Criminal Minds showrunner. This new take on The Punisher will be a procedural with Frank Castle as a rising star detective in the NYPD who becomes The Punisher to handle cases the system has failed.

Dhep 192 - The Road to NYCC 2011

NYCC is just a minute away and on this episode we discuss what we are looking forward to, the panels, the guests and the over all show. Also a discussion on the future of Apple and some new fall TV programing. Enjoy.

Superior Movie

Matthew Vaughn is looking at one of two Mark Millar comics for which he owns the movie rights as his next film, according to Hollywood Reporter. One is The Secret Service, a new project co-created by Vaughn, written by Millar with art by Dave Gibbons. If that’s his choice, he’ll probably write with collaborator Jane Goldman. Another is Superior, written by Millar with art by Leinil Francis Yu, which tells the story of a superhero and a boy with multiple sclerosis who has the chance, with a heavy cost, to become a superhero named Superior. If Vaughn tackles that project, he will supervise the writing, according to the report. Vaughn, who directed Millar’s Kick-Ass and the highly successful X-Men First Class, will not be the director if a sequel is made.

Singer's Battlestar

Bryan Singer’s long gestating Battlestar Galactica feature is on the move again, with writer John Orloff hired to write the screenplay. Singer was first attached to a BSG film in 2001. The new film will have no relationship to the Syfy TV series or its spinoffs.

Dhep 191 - Falling for TV

On this episode we talk about 2011 Fall TV, the ones we are looking forward to and the news one coming. Enjoy.

Movie Kombat!!!

New Line is planning a new Mortal Kombat movie, according to Deadline. The new film will be written by Oren Uziel and directed by Kevin Tancharoen, who self-produced an unauthorized Mortal Kombat short that ultimately led to this production. The short, Mortal Kombat: Rebirth, was an eight minute live action Mortal Kombat story. As a result of the short (which was leaked online), Warner Premiere commissioned a 10-episode Web series, which went up on YouTube this year. The Web series got a strong enough reaction that New Line put the movie deal together. New Line parent Warners acquired the assets of Midway Games, which owned Mortal Kombat, out of bankruptcy in 2009.

Renger's Budget

Disney is trying to revive the shuttered production of The Lone Ranger, which it shut down in August (see “Disney Torpedoes ‘The Lone Ranger’”), according to Hollywood Reporter. The production, with Johnny Depp starring, Gore Verbinski directing, and Jerry Bruckheimer producing, was shut down over budget concerns; Disney reportedly wanted to cut the budget from $250 million to $200 million but were unable to do so.
The revived production would reportedly have a $215 million budget, with the reductions coming from reduced fees for Depp, Bruckheimer, and Verbinski; the cutting of some expensive scenes; and asking vendors, including special effects houses and hotels, to cut prices to keep the production alive.

52 Top Sales

DC Comics has announced that all 52 first issues of its New 52 titles have sold out and gone back to press, an unprecedented phenomenon for a full month’s comics. Given that the final week’s books were beyond the Final Order Cut-off date when the New 52 titles kicked off - that retailers ordered substantially more on those titles, see “Inside the New 52” - sales must have continued at a higher level than expected, even after the first week’s books were in stores. The company also shared some info on quantities sold, announcing that an eleventh title, Aquaman, now had sales of over 100,000 through Diamond, joining the ten titles previously announced. This number includes non-U.S. sales, which are not included in American monthly estimates, but does not include channels other than comic stores, which have been included in previous sales announcements from DC.

You Can't Fight Some Wars

The Star Wars: The Complete Saga Blu-ray became the #1 Blu-ray title in history last week, after selling over 1 million copies worldwide in its first week, according to Variety. It generated over $84 million from worldwide sales. Around 515,000 copies were sold in North America.
Director George Lucas’ decision to make changes to the films for the Blu-ray release, and to not release the original versions, brought protests and the threat of a boycott from fans, apparently to little effect.

Dressed Cat

Set photos from the Los Angeles shoot have revealed the Catwoman costume worn by Anne Hathaway in her role in The Dark Knight Rises

DHep190 - Baltimore Invasion

The Hideout invaded Baltimore for the comicon and Baltimore survived the experience. On this show we talk about our experience at the con, the Hurricane Apocalypse, the people who shouldn't do CosPlay and the parts of Baltimore The Wire never told us about. Enjoy.

DC's Don't Ask Don't Tell

Over the weekend Teen Titan artist Brett Booth confirmed that Bunker, a new character in the relaunched Teen Titans written by Scott Lobdell (and drawn by Booth) is gay. He may not be the first gay Teen Titans character (there were rumors about Jericho), but he is certainly the most flamboyant, openly gay character in the group’s history. Bunker appears in the background on the cover to Teen Titans #1, which is due to hit retail on September 28th, and makes his full debut appearance in issue #3, which hits retail in November. On his blog, Booth reprinted Lobdell’s thumbnail bio of the character: “His real name is Miguel Jose Barragan. He was raised in a small Mexican village called El Chilar. He was very loved by his family and the village as well—and they were as accepting of his homosexuality as they were of his superpowers when they first manifested. To that end he grew up in an angst free environment. He was born out of the closet and so he has a very refreshing outlook on life.”

Dynamite Entertainment will release The Art of Howard Chaykin, a 200-page 9” x 12” hardcover, in December. The volume, written by Robert Greenberger, includes perspective from long-time friends and colleagues, and extensive selection of artwork, including many never-before-published pieces. Chaykin is widely known for American Flagg!, The Shadow, Batman, New Avengers, Dominic Fortune, Black Kiss, and more. Black Kiss is being revived by Image Comics.

Live Chopper

A live action Web series starring Tyler Mane, who played Sabretooth in The X-Men, and Andrew Bryniarski - from Texas Chainsaw Massacre & Batman Returns - will premiere October 18th to promote the launch of Chopper, a new five issue mini-series from Asylum Press. The first issue of Chopper, written by Martin Shapiro with art by Juan Ferreyra (Falling Skies, Rex Mundi), streets October 5th. The series targets “horror hounds, heavy metal fans, and motorcycle enthusiasts,” according to the publisher. The story is a re-imagining of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow, with a headless Hell’s Angel on a motorcycle who collects the souls of sinners in the afterlife.

DHep189 - That E3 Show

In the first of our catch-up shows we go back to the E-3 show we record way back in June. This plus a rant about law shows, talk about TV gone by and a new Hideout member - the sexy Alice. Hold on to your daughter because you're about to get more Hideout then you can shake a stripper at. enjoy.

King of the 3-D Jungle

Disney's retread 3-D version of The Lion King easily topped the weekend box office, earning more than the combined total of three other new widely-released films. Strong performances from some holdovers, notably Contagion, The Help, The Debt, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes kept the box office from slipping too far as the top 10 films’ total gross was just 4% below the same weekend last year when Ben Affleck's The Town debuted with $23.8 million.

Ultimate Downloads

Marvel has announced that that Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1, the issue in which Miles Morales becomes the official new Spider-Man (see “Marvel Unveils New ‘Ultimate Comics’ Spider-Man”), is the top seller to date in the Marvel iOS app. The new #1 was released digitally on the same day as the print edition.

There Can Be Only Another One

Summit Entertainment’s attempt to reboot the Highlander fantasy film franchise got its director. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, the Spanish director who helmed 28 Weeks Later and the horror/thriller Intruders starring Clive Owen that debuted at the Toronto Film Festival, will direct the remake of the 1986 cult sci-fi/fantasy film that starred Christopher Lambert and featured Sean Connery in a supporting role.

It Contagious

The "plague thriller" Contagion easily topped the 9/9/2011 weekend box office with an estimated $23.1 million, but it led the weakest session of the year by far—a weekend that included the worst performance ever by a widely released film. Even The Help, which has shown the best “legs” of the summer, was off 40%, though it did manage to earn an estimated $8.6 million in its fifth weekend at the box office and bring its total to $137 million.

52 Commercials

With DC’s “New 52” off to a quick start at retail it should also be noted that DC is continuing TV support for the project on six key cable and satellite networks. The spot is running on BBC America, the Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, IFC, SyFy, and MTV2. It is airing on Comedy Central during the following shows: The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, Tosh.O, South Park, and Futurama. On SyFy the commercial can be seen on Ghost Hunters International, Stargate, Star Trek: The Next Generation, American Ninja Warrior, and WWE Smackdown. The MTV2 venues for the spot are: Pranked, Vive La Bam, The Challenge, Rivals, and Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory. The “New 52” commercial will also air on IFC’s highly satirical The Onion News Network.

We Won't Except Change

Hardcore Star Wars fans are all over the Internet excoriating the latest round of changes that George Lucas has made to the original Star Wars Trilogy in preparation for the Star Wars Blu-ray release, which is due out on September 16th. The new Blu-ray set will not only feature a sparkling new high-def transfer of the film, but will also include over 40 hours of extras, some of which have never been released before (see “'Star Wars' BDs”).

The problem is not the extras, but the changes that Lucas has made to the original films themselves (and the fact that he is only making the altered versions available and not the “original” films). Some of the changes like the new painting hanging on the wall in Jabba the Hutt’s palace or the replacement of the Yoda puppet in The Phantom Menace with a CGI model, or new CGI Ewoks who now blink, are less controversial than others, especially the overdubbing of Darth Vader screaming “No, Noooo!” as he saves Luke from Emperor Palpatine’s Force Lightning attack in Star Wars: A New Hope rendering the scene in the opinion of the Sydney Morning Herald “into a cringe-worthy farce.”

DHep #188 - Sexy in 2011

Who's sexy in 2011, I mean after Chris Chris Hemsworth. It our yearly list of sexy and it's a good one. This plus TV, movies and the insanity you've come to expect from the Hideout. Enjoy.

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Big Crow for Jor-El

Christopher Nolan and Zack Snyder have reportedly been looking for a “marquee” actor to play Supes’ father in the Man of Steel reboot of the Superman franchise, someone with the acting chops that would parallel what Marlon Brando brought to the role in Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman film. According to Variety, the Oscar winning Australian actor Russell Crowe is about to step in Brando’s shoes and play Jor-El, the Kryptonian father of Superman (Henry Cavill) in the new Warner Bros. epic. Crowe will join a cast that includes (in addition to Cavill) Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Superman’s adoptive human parents, the Kents, and Michael Shannon, who will play the villainous General Zod.

Comic Futures

The ICv2 Comics, Media, and Digital Conference, held in conjunction with Comic-Con International in San Diego, will bring together thought leaders from the comics, media, and digital worlds to discuss how the two most powerful trends in comics are shaping the future. Speakers and panelists at the Conference will look at the state of comics now, how comics are being used in other media, how digital comics are interacting with the transmedia uses of comic properties, and a panel discussion on “Comics at Comic-Con 2013,” in which digital, retailing, distribution, and creator panelists will look ahead two years to answer key questions about the future of comics.

The First Avengers. . .Poster

Here’s the first promo poster for Marvel Studio’s The Avengers, which Joss Whedon is currently directing and which will open on May 12th. The film features an all-star cast of Marvel superheroes including Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans), The Black Widow (Scarlett Johannson), and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner).

Marvel Comics announced today at an afternoon press conference that Zeb Wells and Joe Madureira will be collaborating on a new Spider-Man comic book series, Avenging Spider-Man that will debut in November. Marvel editor Stephen Wacker noted that the impetus for the new series was a suggestion of doing another Marvel Team-Up book centering on Spidey, which he didn’t like, but he did like a subsequent pitch based on the idea of Spider-Man as a member of The Avengers, and Avenging Spider-Man was born.

Writer/director Nicolas Winding Refn just might be given the chance to realize his own plans for a Wonder Woman movie. A Wonder Woman movie script is already being developed by Warner Bros., but the studio could very well be looking to bring on a filmmaker like Refn, who’s known for handling darker and grittier fare. Plus, with his next picture, Drive, having recently received rave reviews at the Los Angeles Film Festival – and Refn already set to helm a Logan’s Run remake for Warner Bros. – he sounds all the more like a promising candidate. Refn saying quoted saying, "I have this dream concept: I want to make Wonder Woman as a feature. And I thought in order get to access to that I should probably become a bit more Hollywood-friendly." Best of all, he's already chosen his Wonder Woman: Christina Hendricks (Firefly, Mad Men), who worked with Refn in Drive.

DHep 187 - Thor vs The Season Finals

After a long hiatus, some computer problems and a few convention conflicts, the Hideout crew is back and ready to move forward with an episode where we discuss the Thor movie, a slew of cancel TV shows and the season and series endings of some of our favorites. Thanks for you patients and enjoy.

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DC's #1 - 52 Times

DC Comics has announced that it will renumber its entire comics line, beginning in late August and September, with new #1 issues. At the same time, DC will go digital day and date with its full line, offering all new titles digitally on the same day as the print copies are available. The launch of the new #1s will kick off on August 31st, when DC will release the last issue of Flashpoint, and the first issue of a new Justice League title. The new Justice League #1 will kick off a storyline by uber-creators Geoff Johns and Jim Lee, who will be working together on a comic title for the first time. The new title will be a “contemporary take on the origin” of the team. Those two titles will be the only two DC comics released on that date. Following the launch of the new program on August 31st, another 51 DC titles will be renumbered beginning with #1 issues.

Dating Hobbits

Titles and release dates for The Hobbit films were released on Monday May 30 2011, with a new cast member also added recently. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will open on December 14, 2012. The Hobbit: There and Back Again will be released December 13, 2013. The announcement from New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures, and MGM also confirmed the news last week from Peter Jackson’s Facebook page that Orlando Bloom, who was offered a reprise of his role as the elf Legolas, had accepted and would be joining the production.

Where's That Super Suit

DC Comics won a round last week in its litigation with Marc Toberoff , attorney for the Siegel and Shuster heirs in their pursuit to regain Superman rights: a magistrate ruled that documents stolen from Toberoff’s office by a former attorney could be given to DC, according to Variety. The documents were stolen, given to Warners, then returned during an investigation by the U.S. Attorneys office. Now the judge ruling in the case says that because Toberoff voluntarily gave the documents to a grand jury investigating the theft, they should be made available to DC. Toberoff argues that the feds had agreed to keep the documents confidential. A district court judge is being asked to rule on the situation before the magistrate’s ruling is put into effect. DC wants the docs to reinforce the points it’s making in its lawsuit against Toberoff. That suit is a sideshow to the main event, the litigation between DC and the Siegel and Shuster heirs over the Superman rights. As things currently stand in that litigation, rights to the early works in which Superman was introduced will revert to the Siegel and Shuster estates.

Graphic Castle

Marvel Comics and ABC Studios have announced the September 28th release of a new 112-page hardcover graphic novel based on ABC television series Castle. The cover of the graphic novel will be revealed tonight on the season finale of Castle when celebrity mystery author Richard Castle displays the first graphic novel adaptation of his work. Brian Michael Bendis and Kelly Sue DeConnick are writing the Derrick Storm saga, Castle: Richard Castle’s Deadly Storm ($19.99, rated T+), while Lan Medina will handle the interior art and Carlo Pagulayan will provide the cover.

Hideout #185 - There Be More Assholes

It's the 3rd annual asshole show, where we list the best and biggest assholes so far. Of course there a rant about Charlie Sheen - but now what you think, news, review and more insanity that you can shake an asshole at. Enjoy.

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Bad Hurley

English actress Elizabeth Hurley, who is perhaps best known for her role as Vanessa in the Austin Powers movies, will play Wonder Woman’s antagonist in the pilot for the new David E. Kelley-created Wonder Woman TV series. Hurley posted on Twitter today, “Thrilled to be doing the NBC pilot Wonder Woman. I’ll be playing the evil villain. Can’t wait.”

Whose Your Mommy

Warner Bros. has announced that the Oscar-nominated actress Diane Lane will play Martha Kent, Clark Kent's adoptive mother in the new Superman film directed by Zack Snyder. Deadline reports that Lane will star opposite Henry Cavill, the 27-year-old English actor, who will play Superman/Clark Kent.

Bored Runner 2

The Warner Bros.-based production company Alcon Entertainment is in final negotiations to acquire film, television, and ancillary rights to produce prequels and sequels to the iconic 1982 iconic science fiction thriller Blade Runner. Although it will be able to produce films based on situations introduced in the original film, Alcon will not have the right to remake Bladerunner, which was based on Phillip K. Dick’s classic novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.

FX Powers Activate

FX has placed an order for the pilot episode of the Powers series, based on the comic by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming. Charles Eglee of Walking Dead fame wrote it. Bendis said in a Tweet, “Powers pilot was just greenlit by FX! It’s official! Your window of reading Powers while it was still cool is running out.”

Hideout #184 - Dwayne McDuffie

We do this show old school, including the Media Talk section in the show as we honor an artist and genius who left us too soon, Mr. Dwayne McDuffie. At the end we play the 2007 Hideout interview from ECBACC. Enjoy.

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Directed Preacher

D.J. Caruso has been signed to direct the big-screen adaptation of Garth Ennis’ Vertigo series Preacher, according to Variety. The film had been helmerless after Sam Mendes bowed out to direct the next James Bond film.

Firefly Ressurected

Two Fox science fiction series have found homes on cable. Firefly will run on the Science Channel beginning on March 6th at 8 p.m., with the two hour pilot and first episode, according to EW. The show will continue to air on Sunday evenings, all upgraded to high definition. Each episode will be wrapped in intersitial segments featuring physicist Michio Kaku, discussing the theoretical science behind the show's concepts. The 31 episodes of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles will run on Syfy beginning on April 7th at 9 p.m., also according to EW. After the premier week, four episodes per week will air every Thursday beginning at 7 p.m.

Dwayne McDuffie Passes

The author of a popular comic and animated features, Dwayne Mcduffie has died Tuesday, February 22, 2011, at the age of 49. Dwayne Glenn McDuffie was born in Detroit on Feb. 20, 1962. Growing up, he later said, he encountered few comic-book characters who looked like him; he encountered fewer still who were simultaneously black, heroic and even remotely authentic. Mr. McDuffie, a resident of Sherman Oaks, Calif., died of complications from heart surgery. McDuffie wrote comics for the New York-based DC and Marvel. His works include runs on “Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight”, “The Fantastic Four and the Justice League of America”. The animated features credited to his talents are “All Star Superman”, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths”, and two animated TV series - - “Static Shock” and “Ben 10: Alien Force”. Mr. McDuffie was best known as a founder of Milestone Media, described by The Plain Dealer of Cleveland in 2000 as “the industry’s most successful minority-owned-and-operated comic company.”

An independent company whose work is distributed by DC Comics, Milestone produces comics with ethnically diverse casts. Among its major characters (all of whom Mr. McDuffie helped create, in collaboration with illustrators and other writers) are Static, Icon and Hardware, all of whom are African-American; Xombi, who is Asian-American; and the Blood Syndicate, a crime-fighting group of men and women that includes blacks, Asians and Latinos.

Static, perhaps the most famous, is the alter ego of a mild-mannered teenager, who uses secret electromagnetic powers to do valiant things. Mr. McDuffie named Static’s alter ego Virgil Hawkins, after the black man who waged a midcentury fight to be admitted to law school at the University of Florida, a process that eventually led to the desegregation of Florida’s public university system. That comic inspired the animated television series “Static Shock,” originally broadcast on the WB television network from 2000 to 2004, for which Mr. McDuffie was a creator, story editor and writer.

Mr. McDuffie received a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Michigan, followed by a master’s in physics there; he later studied film at New York University. After a stint as a copy editor at Investment Dealers’ Digest, he took a job as an editor with Marvel Comics in 1987.

At Marvel Mr. McDuffie helped develop the company’s first line of superhero trading cards and wrote for established series like Spider-Man and Captain Marvel. He also created Damage Control, a mini-series published at intervals from the late ’80s to the present. Mr. McDuffie devised the series to address a long-overlooked but perennially nagging question: Who cleans up the comic-book universe after the preternaturally messy battles between the forces of good and evil?

After leaving Marvel in 1990, Mr. McDuffie did freelance work for DC and other comic publishers before founding Milestone with three partners in the early ’90s. The company’s first comics appeared in 1993 and were published regularly by DC until 1997 and in reprints afterward; two new Milestone series, Xombi and Static Shock, are scheduled to be published by DC this year.

Mr. McDuffie’s honors include a Humanitas Prize in 2003 for an episode of “Static Shock” about gun violence.

Mr. McDuffie’s first marriage, to Patricia Younger, ended in divorce. He married Charlotte Fullerton, a writer of comic books and animated TV shows, in 2009. She survives him, as does his mother, Edna McDuffie Gardner.

To those who thought comic books unlikely vehicles for advancing social justice, Mr. McDuffie’s reply was simple.

“You don’t feel as real if you don’t see yourself reflected in the media,” he told The Chicago Sun-Times in 1993. “There’s something very powerful about seeing yourself represented.”

A Real Stop-Motion Boy

Guillermo del Toro is proceeding with a 3D stop-motion animated feature film based on illustrator Gris Grimly’s version of Carlo Collodi’s classic children’s tale Pinocchio. Del Toro is joining forces with the Jim Henson Company and Pathe to bring a new edgier version of Pinocchio to life. Grimly and Mark Gustafson will co-direct the film, which is based on a screenplay by Matthew Robbins written in consultation with del Toro.

Hideout #183 - Recommendations 2011

The 2011 recommendations shows where we talk about TV, Movie, Books and comics we thing you should try out. Also Wonder Woman on TV, 3D Spider-Man (hopefully without injuries) and the usual Hideout insanity. Enjoy.

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New Wonder Woman

Adrianne Palicki, who starred as Tyra Collete in Friday Night Lights, will play Diana Prince/Wonder Woman in the new NBC series being developed by David E. Kelley. Jeffrey Reiner will helm the pilot from a script by Kelley.

Turn On the Ticket Sales

After another round of scathing reviews in which critics from the New York Times and the Washington Post called it “one of the worst musicals in history,” ticket sales for the still-as-yet-unfinished Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark were up by 3%. The new musical, which is still in its tryout phase, grossed $1.33 million during the past week, making it the second-highest grossing show on Broadway, just behind Wicked.

It's Amazing

It’s official. Sony announced today that the title of Marc Webb’s Spider-Man reboot is The Amazing Spider-Man. The film, which will be shot entirely in 3-D, will debut in theaters on July 3, 2012.

Devoted to Kirby

Alex Ross and Kurt Busiek are re-teaming for Kirby Genesis, their first full collaboration since 1993’s Marvels. Busiek and Ross are planning to provide the same perspective on and treatment of Kirby creations like Captain Victory and Silver Star that they brought to the Marvel Universe in Marvels. The 32-page Kirby Genesis #1 ships in May with a special introductory cover price of just $1.

Seeing Red, Again

Nu Image has decided to go forward with production of Red Sonja. Producer Avi Lerner told Empire “We will definitely shoot Red Sonja between Conan and Conan 2.” Simon West, who directed The Mechanic, will be directing the Red Sonja. And in the front running to play the role is Drive Angry co-star Amber Heard.

Hideout #182 - Weird Science

A temporary internet loss doesn't stop this show, as we switch from an interview to a show about Weird Science on of the preeminent geek movies of the 80's the feature the delicious Kelly Lebrock. Alright you little maniac we know what you want to do next - listen to this show. Enjoy.

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Secret Spensor

As Fear Itself ravages the Marvel Universe, red hot writer Nick Spencer and fan favorite artist Scot Eaton answer the call taking Steve Rogers and the Secret Avengers into the fray beginning in Secret Avengers #13! Steve Rogers, America’s super-soldier, is well accustomed to making tough calls, but none may be tougher than the ones he’ll have to make to successfully sabotage the abominable threat of Fear Itself. As the Marvel Universe begins fall like dominoes before one of his bitterest enemies, Rogers will have to recruit a new group of heroes into the fight for freedom of mind, body and soul…and confront the ideals he upheld as the Sentinel of Liberty head-on!

Fantastic Spider-Man

Spider-Man is joining the Fantastic Four. In the wake of last month's death of the Fantastic Four mainstay, Marvel Comics is filling the void on the First Family of Comics with its most popular super hero as the publisher reboots the team next month. "Spidey has a long standing relationship with the Fantastic Four that we've seen over the years and he was Johnny Storm's closest superhero friend or bitterest superhero rival -- depending on what day of the week it happened to be," says Tom Brevoort, Marvel's senior vice president of publishing.

Final Lex

"Smallville's" favorite baddie will return for the series finale. Michael Rosenbaum, who played Clark Kent's friend-turned-enemy Lex Luthor in The CW show, is reprising his role for the last time on May 13. "I'm delighted to return for the series finale. I'm simply doing it for all the fans out there who made Smallville the great success it is. I appreciate all of their passion, their relentlessness and even their threats. Ha ha," Rosenbaum quipped. "I can't wait to hug the old crew back in Vancouver one last time and see all of my old friends once again. Oh, and for Lex to become the badass he's destined to be."

Hideout #181 - Our Kung-Fu is Better

Welcome new Hideout member, Anticritic - we recruited him from Twitter and he's ready to be part of the experience. And for his first experience we discuss kicking ass the martial arts way - Kung-fu movies, an important part of pop culture since a dude name Bruce showed us how bad-ass it could be. Enjoy.

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Assisting the Fury

The search for Lois Lane is not the only casting contest that is capturing the attention of Hollywood actresses, the prized role of Nick Fury’s assistant in the upcoming superhero ensemble film The Avengers directed by Joss Whedon is attracting some of Tinseltown’s top female talent. At stake is a deal with nine-picture option, and according to Heat Vision, the short list includes V star Morena Baccarin as well as Jessica Lucas, Cobie Smulders, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

Movie Vice

Producer Andrew Lazar (Jonah Hex, Get Smart) is joining forces with Platinum Studios (Cowboys & Aliens) and Top Cow Productions to adapt the Top Cow comic book Vice into a live-action feature film. The five-issue Vice comic book series was created by Matt Hawkins and published by Top Cow in 2005 and 2006. Vice follows the adventures of a group of teenage criminals who agree to aid the FBI in return for the cleansing of their considerable rap sheets.

Marvel's Digital Chrome

Marvel Entertainment has announced Marvel Comics on Chrome, a free app available via Google’s Chrome Web store. The app is optimized for the Google Chrome browser (which potential users must download first) and offers 1,600 comics for single issue purchase to read on a PC or Mac. Purchases made on the Marvel Comics app on iTunes will also be accessible via the Chrome store at no extra cost to users, though purchases made through the Chrome store may only be viewed through the Marvel app on Chrome.

The Perfect Lois

A number of actresses are competing for the role of the Daily Planet’s second most famous reporter in the new Superman film being directed by Zack Snyder. With a release date of December 2012, there is an urgency to the casting of the film, which will likely require lots of time-consuming post-production special effects. According to the Hollywood Insider, five actresses either read for or have been asked to read for the part including Jessica Biel (Blade Trinity), Kristen Stewart (Twilight), Malin Akerman (Watchmen), Dianna Agron (Glee), and Rachel McAdams (Sherlock Holmes).

Levitt in Talk for a Knight

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who played a key role in Christopher Nolan’s Inception, is in talks to join the cast the The Dark Knight Rises, the final film in Nolan’s Batman trilogy. Nolan is set to begin filming Dark Knight Rises in early May. According to Deadline, there is no word on what role Gordon-Levitt will play, though the smart money is on the impish actor playing "The Riddler."