This Is Pretty Much Only Cool To Me...

Unless you play WoW that is. I got my albino drake mount tonight. You get it by obtaining 50 mounts (which is no easy task). Been working on this for months. Yay!

Collaborative Blog Project

I am now recruiting for a yet-to-be-named collaborative blog project. Like the Turtle Van, it is a niche blog that caters specifically to the tmnt fandom. The difference is that this new project will involve a number of contributors. Fans, industry professionals, people involved in the creative processes of the tmnt, etc. The vision here is to create a SINGLE place where a tmnt fan can go to keep current on the universe, find great deals on toys, or whatever else is interesting in the TMNT world. I am looking for Passionate, Enthusiastic, Well written folk who would like to apply to be part of our initial writing staff.

Here's a Quick FAQ!

Does this cost me anything/Do I get paid?

Nope and Nope! I'm footing the bill for everything we need to get the site going. From then on it will all be donations or...me.

As far as getting paid...like...ever...don't count on it. The people I want on staff are going to want to do this because they believe in the vision and are passionate about the brand.

How many writers are you looking for?
I have no idea yet. Too many cooks in the kitchen isn't good. And we don't want to be so big that we step on each others toes with posts, etc. I don't have a solid number in my head at this time though.

If I am not chosen, can I still contribute?
Of course you can! There will be contacts on the site to be able to submit news, stories, whatever! It just means that you won't be blogging first hand. And there will be no guarantee that your content will be used. Of course we will credit the sources whenever requested

If chosen, can I contribute anonymously?
Sure! This allows people involved in the creative aspect of the brand to be able to contribute more freely! When choosing screen names, it will be up to you what it is, and who you tell.

I'm sold! How do I apply?
Send a breif turtles related writing sample to me at ittstephan@hotmail.com. Other than being turtles related, it can be about whatever the hell you want. Please don't go over a page in length. Your blog posts will probably never be over a page, no reason your writing sample should be.

The people who I have already contacted either verbally or via email need not apply. Just accept or decline the invitation. Being involved in the TMNT creative process also gives you an automatic approval for either guest blogging or a staff position.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask at the above address or in this thread.

And Now For Something Completely Different...ME!

My wonderful sister April posted this picture of me and my kids on her facebook. I thought it was cute. Not quite Christmas Card cute...but cute none-the-less. Those are my gym clothes, not my underwarez :-P

A Creative Force's Take on the Barnes and Noble Thing

So, I was speaking to one of the people who are somehow involved in the Turtles Creative Universe...Yes...It is vague...Deal.

Anyway, the important part isn't who they are as much as what they said. I thought this was very insightful input on the subject:


Hi
Just saw your post online about the B&N.com selling tales.
It's only online. NOT in stores.
I think TMNT's biggest problem is that it's too diverse a property.
So, what a step in the right direction for one part isn't going to save the franchise as a whole.
There's not a lot of crossover from one part to the other--meaning those who read the comics don't necessarily watch the cartoon
Those who collect the toys don't care about the comics, etc.
And it doesn't help that every part skews to a different age group and audience.
Sooooo…
Step in a right direction? Kinda. I guess. But I'm not really optimistic. They've been on Amazon forever, but no one buys them there.

Agree or disagree, it is interesting input.

P.S. The Picture is just something I stole from google image search. If it is yours, let me know so I can credit you.

Barnes & Noble Sells Tales of the TMNT?

Yes, this is a few days old. I hate you too ._.

Super Slueth and all around good guy dromer Cipher dug up this interesting factoid:

Barnes & Noble Sell Tales of the TMNT?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Or at least, they seem to have started to carry them online with issue 55: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/boo...WRD=TMNT&SAT=1

Most definately a good move and a step in the right direction! Good find Cipher.

TMNT III, The Manhattan Project for NES: Soundtrack S-T-E-R-E-O Edition

New kid on the block, GodzFire remixed the soundtrack to the Turtles III NES game as his contribution to the 25th anniversary. Download links can be found on his technodrome post here.

Pretty Insightful For Someone That Rides A Moose.

My favorite Canadian - Isaac - Whom you may or may not know is spearheading the turtledoc project, had a pretty insightful post over on the technodrome. Thought I would share it.

So as many of you know I am currently deep in production on the TMNT documentary project, I can say we are achieving much more than I thought we would be able to! The official TMNT community has been a major help so far! I can't thank them enough!

I have seen a lot of threads on here about the "doom and gloom" of the franchise, talking about the ending of TMNT, if and when we get a movie, and so on.

Well, as you can imaging I spoke about such things with many of the people I was privileged enough to get to know.

I can't say everything but I will say a few things.

First off these people all deserve a lot more credit than we give them, they are too often cut down on here with no reason. They are working very hard to continue to bring you a quality product that we all love and enjoy.

The Current Show: I know that Peter is very proud of what they have accomplished on the new show! As I believe many of us would agree. When the new show comes to an end we shouldn't freak out, we can't expect it to last forever. It is no secret that there is a "feature" project with the new cartoon being premiered at Sandi Con by 4kids. This was discussed at their panel which I am sure you can find on the net.

The New Movie: This I can't say to much about other than they are talking about it, it would likely be a "hybrid" style shoot, and people are confident it may happen some day soon. In the world of movie making deals rest on dollars and contracts, as much as the Mirage crew wants to make something it can be put on hold by the powers that be. Though Peter seemed optamistic about it!

TMNT Longevity: Personally I think it is silly that people are worried about TMNT "going away" How can it go away any more than super man or batman can go away? Even if it sleeps for a while it will never disappear forever. From the perspective of some at Mirage taking a break can be a huge help to get those creative juices flowing again. When being so close to one specific property some times you need a little time to step back and take a breather, but in that case they will be back.

Lets cut them some slack, I think we are pretty lucky and have a vibrant and very alive franchise compared to pretty much all others of the same generation.

Thanks! Check for more updates on the doc at: www.turtledoc.com

I completely agree. As much as I bitch about certain aspects of the brand on occasion, I am sick to death of all the negativity. It is funny, because a number of you have told me that I've "gone soft" or that I've "changed". The truth is kids...I am just too tired to be bitter anymore. I will not allow myself to be consumed by it anymore. You shouldn't either.

FragDolls NYCC09 Montage

My adorable friends, the FragDolls, put me in their video montage for NYCC09. Check it out! Thanks to Rhoulette for the heads up!

http://www.fragdolls.com/index.php/video/ny_comic_con_montage/

TMNT25 NYCC 09 Photos

The folks at Peppercom share photos back and fourth with me pretty regularly. I was sifting through their photostream for NYCC and I pulled out a few that I thought were neat :-)

My New Favorite Picture

Not the most fantastic picture of me...but then...that really isn't the point :-P
Myself, Isaac, and Kevin - Out in New York City

Signed "Robot Smash" Poster

This is something I did for NYCC 09 that I am particularly proud of. Every year I try to bring something that all of the TMNT gang can sign. This year it was a robot smash poster (now on my wall at work :-))

Turtle Tattoo

You know, I didn't catch this guys name, but we met at con, and I always love collecting pics of other peoples TMNT tats...since there are so few of us.

Edit: HAHA! You can read his name off his badge in the picture. His name is Chris Wilcock :-)

Terribly Late Post About the Nuart Showing

A couple weekends ago, the Nuart Theater in Los Angeles showed the first turtles movie at midnight. I was there, and I thought I would share a couple pictures. Everyone there was really really enthusiastic, some of the people there were even wearing home made costumes and makeup. There were about 200 people according to the ticket count.

TurtleDoc

Do you know about the the TurtleDoc project? It is a totally fan driven documentary headed up by my good friend and fellow Turtle fanatic, Isaac Fisher (sp?). For more information, please visit Isaac's site http://www.turtledoc.com

NYCC 2009 - Trip Summary

Day 1

I actually woke up really late day one. Got to the con, went straight to the Heavy Metal booth and talked to kevin for awhile. Went to the Mirage table in artist alley and got my Volume 1 #4 misprint signed by all the guys. Met up with Issac (Canadian_Turtle) and his cousin Rob. Spent most of the day running around the con with them. Attended the Panel (I'm the charming gentleman with the handy cam in the front, right in front of Eric Talbot). After the con, Issac Rob and I went and explored NYC. Went to dinner at the Hard Rock, desert at Sardi's.

Day 2

Bought a Poop-ton more turtles art, and ordered a water color painting from Eric Talbot. Saw Avenue Q (it's an adult level humor, puppet musical. It's fantastic) on Broadway. Met Vaughn! Met with the Brand manager of the TMNT for Playmates, and had a good long talk that was actually constructive. Luke is a great guy. After the con closed, Isaac, Rob, and I had drinks with Kevin Eastman at the bar in his hotel, the 4 of us ended up spending a good 3 or 4 hours talking about a multitude of things. Which...was surreal for me. Afterwards I went and started packing since I had to move my crap out of my hotel on day 3.

Day 3

Sunday was pretty awesome for me. First off, I actually convinced Peter to do a Wolverine turtle to go with my wolverine turtle custom. The Painting Eric did for me turned out FANTASTIC. When I went by the Heavy Metal booth to say hi to Kevin, I had a realization that, despite the countless things he has signed for me... he had never actually done a sketch for me...so he did. Then at noon, Murph and I went to lunch. Shortly thereafter I was back on a plane headed for Los Angeles. All in all a fantastic weekend. I'd like to especially thank Isaac, Rob, Kevin, Murph, Eric, and Luke, for all the contributions each of them made toward making my weekend awesome.

NYCC 2009 Photos - Day 3 (I didn't really take photos on day two)

Photobucket Album

NYCC 2009 Photos - Day 1

Photobucket Album

Hello From NYC!

I got into the city at around 6pm local time. I'm going to try to cover as much as I can at the con over the weekend. Stay Tuned!

Worried About the New Lead In Toys Law?

It's cool homie:
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/pending/cpsia.asp

So Cute It Could Destroy You

Remember last Halloween when my Co-Worker Keith brought his little girl into the office dressed as a ninja turtle? He just dropped this picture off at my desk... Be warned...you might die from the cuteness:

LAAAAAAAME!

So I was in my local Toys-R-Us the other day...
Check out these end caps:

The Actual TMNT End Cap is loaded up with Wrestling Figures


While The TMNT product seems to have been packed in with the Wall-E stuff

Nice to see that TRU has so much respect for our favorite brand.

Dan Berger Responds to The Diamond News

I asked Dan Berger @ Mirage Publishing to comment on the Diamond price hike. Simply put, he said:

Howdy Stephan,

At the moment Mirage's comics are not in danger of being dropped, but
this is certainly alarming for the future of B&W comics as a whole.

Thanks for writing!

Cheers!
Dan Berger
Mirage Studios' Official Web Dude
http://www.ninjaturtles.com

Take that with as much or as little salt as you see fit.

The End of "Tales of the TMNT"?

Reblogged From My dear Friend Roseangelo @ http://ninja-pizza.blogspot.com/:

The End of "Tales of the TMNT"?
It has been made widely known that the Tales of the TMNT comic book title exists on the whim of Peter Laird, who has continued to publish the book, for the most part out of his own pocket, even though it doesn't sell enough copies to support itself. As such, TMNT fans head toward each new year wondering if Tales will still be around. As of right now, there is no confirmation for Tales' existence--or non-existence--in 2010; however, it seems that Diamond Comic Distributors may have made that decision for Mirage already.Newsarama is reporting today that Diamond has raised its purchase order minimum from $1,500 to $2,500. This means that in order for Diamond to list and distribute a title, it would need to generate $2,500 of revenue for Diamond (not total). The break down of this is basically that "a typical $3.00 comic would have to sell over 2,100 copies to meet the benchmark." Tales currently sells for $3.25/book.The most recent sales data available, for November 2008, lists estimated sales of 2,381 for Tales. In comparison, the January 2008 estimated sales were 2,684. In the months in between, at least the ones where Tales was ranked in the top 300, a steady decline in sales can be seen. Thus, it can be concluded that Tales hangs dangerously close to being below Diamond's newly required threshold.There are about three possibilities for titles that do not currently meet the new threshold:

Raise the cover price.
Find different means of distribution.
Cancel the title

Some titles are likely to move to Web-only, but as we've seen with TMNT Vol. 4, TMNT fans want their Turtles on paper, making that an unlikely option for Mirage. It appears that this new change is immediate, although a grace period to allow publishers to achieve the newly required numbers is likely. This will make it extremely difficult for Tales to even get to the end of 2009, and, given Mirage's publishing history, makes cancelation come 2010 nearly certain.That said, nothing is set in stone. And if you don't pick it up already, now is the time to go to your comic book shop and let them know that you want Tales of the TMNT!

"Shreddeeeeeeeeeeeer?!?!?!?!"

The Original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Playing at the Nuart Theatre!

For all you Los Angeles kids!

The Nuart Theatre will be showing the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie at midnight on friday, January 23rd. I am going, you should go too. For more information, visit http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Market/LosAngeles/LosAngeles_Frameset.htm

The end of the line...

So this is it kids:

1989

Gags, Jokes & Weapons #1
Gags, Jokes & Weapons #2
Turtle Battle Fun Assorment Leo
Turtle Battle Fun Assorment Don
Turtle Battle Fun Assorment Mike
Turtle Battle Fun Assorment Raph

1990

Michaelangelo's Exploration Belt
Leonardo's Sewer Force Sword

1991

Tokka Battle Fun Set
Michaelangelo's Bugchuku Set

1992

Raphael, Your Ninja Practice Pal
Turtle Communicator
Turtle Bubble Sword
Retromutagen Rifle
Sewer Squirter
Mutant Maker
Sewer Sports Balls
Sewer Sports Soccer Ball
Sewer Sports Football

1993

Giant Mutations Leo
Ninja Practice Pals
Movie III Mike Samurai Fun Set
Movie III Raph Samurai Fun Set
Movie III Samurai Sword
Talkin' Turtle Communicator

1997

Leo's Katana

MINI-MUTANTS AND MINI-PLAYSETS

Firefightin' Frenzy Combo
Metallized Motorin' Combo
Mighty Muscle Combo
Pizza Police Combo
The Mutant Combat Combo
Metallized Turtle Travelin' Combo
Cyber-Rover Playset
Party Wagon Playset

This is all I have left to complete the entire 88-98 Playmates TMNT run...so close...yet...so far away. Some of these items get...pricey. HOWEVER! I am still planning on seeing my new years resolution come to pass! I will complete this dumb collection by 2010! If you have any of the items on this list, please do not hesitate to let me know. Thanks!

I'm Back!

Hey gang! Sorry I've been so lazy with the blog...holiday season and all... But I'm back to posting on a regular basis now! ANYWAY... Here is some good news (in my opinion).

So I went to target tonight looking for the anniversary turtles, and they were sold out. I asked a target employee about them and he checked his cool little Target palm pilot thing (that is connected to target's network) and we saw that every single target in the Los Angeles area is currently reporting being sold out of the figures. As much as it sucks that I couldn't pick some up for myself...I'm ****ing thrilled that they appear to be selling that well!