This Venom book can't catch a break, can it? First, the editor gives away the big secret last week, and last night, artist Tony Moore tweeted this:
At that point artists all over the internet started sympathizing hard. He later said that he had hi-res scans, so it wasn't a total loss. If this was the old days, it would have been a complete loss, and artists don't get paid if there's no work. I immediately wondered what sort of insurance FedEx would pay out on something like a month's worth of work, not to mention the resale value of the original pages.
Artists get paid a page rate for the pencils they do, but there's usually a split with the inkers and pencillers, each of whom get some of the original pages, which can be sold to supplement the income. For some artists, that can be a whole lot of money, especially if you're the co-creator of a white hot property like The Walking Dead.
So while there are scans, it's a significant loss if the pages are gone for good. Further, for many artists, those pages represent something tangible, and a hell of a lot of work, and from the outpouring of support from fellow artists, you could tell they felt his pain.
I'm sure there's not much fans can do, but if you see someone selling any of those original Venom pages anywhere, let us or Tony Moore know, and do not support them.
For more with Tony Moore, you can listen to this conversation we had just before the Venom announcement.
UPDATE:
Tony posted some more details on Twitter.
5 of my Venom #1 pages have been stolen. Art dealers and collectors please keep an eye out as I would like to have them back. Please repost
Keep your eyes open, iFanbase.
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That sucks!
dispicable!
whew! my first thought was “didn’t he SCAN them before he sent them???” Thank goodness he did!
can’t wait to read about this new Venom though, I’m holding off on spoilers until it comes out!
@ComicBookGuy37 Totally
Very awful and just a dick move.
is it tampered as in theft or tampered as in Fex Ex damages everything they touch? Either way it totally sux.
its crazy that artists still work this way. I thought it was all done with high res scans.
There truly are some arseholes in the world, aren’t there?
I think I’ll actually pick up this book – not just to support Moore (I understand that doesn’t really help much), but also because I’m pretty sure the last ASM issue I read was the one where we found out Flash had lost his legs.
It’d be good if Tony posted which pages were missing. That way if the originals turn up, everyone will know what happened.
;_; that is very sad to hear. I hope if some were stolen and end up on Ebay, that they catch the dude who did it. If it was negligence, well unfortunately that employee will probably only get a slap on the wrist.
WTF! Really? Frigging assholes!
That’s horrible.
That really sucks! I live in KY, so I’ll keep my eye out for people selling his art around the Lexington, Louisville, Cincinnati tristate area. I wouldn’t doubt if the pages ended up on eBay or a LCS around here.
I will avenge your damaged art Tony Moore!
@Doddsickle i’m really enjoying the big time stuff. i recommend it.
Does anybody know how pages are normally shipped? I’ve always thought the idea of sending pages via courier fraught with danger. And to think what probably happened before today’s scanners and digital transmission…
I agree with @NaveenM. Especially being sent to the pages to be inked and colored. I had thought they made the digital leap
@ato220 @NaveenM Not every artist likes/wants to/feels to need to/or doesn’t think certain projects need to be done digitally. I talked to Freedie Williams at NYCC and he said he usually scans his handrawn stuff for the inker and drops it in a DC FTP the night it’s due. He mentioned that sometimes he hand draws things and sends them out to be hand inked. So I think it tends to be preference vs. time thing. I recall someone’s original pages disappearing a few years back and there being swift justice.
@NaveenM FedEx has been the standard for years.
@NaveenM —FedeX is really the best way. People use it everyday to ship things far more valuable than unfinished comic art. Stuff happens…thats why they have insurance. And back in the day how do you think photojournalists got their assignments back to the editor? There are some famous stories about negatives being lost that way.
Fed Ex has a great clause in their “terms and conditions” which states that they are not liable for reimbursment of “unique or one of a kind items” for more than $500…even if you purchase insurance for more. Fed Ex will in essence take your money to cover $2,000 insurance knowing that they only are liable to pay out $500 on artworks, antiques and collectibles. Claims are a case by case basis and I’ve seen it go either way. But once you click to agree to the terms you agree to that.
I didn’t follow the links, is it confirmed that it was transported by Fed Ex?
Also may have been mentioned in the posts but it may be negligence and not theft. If the box arrived damaged, there may be a possibility that the box was damaged in transit leaving it open and pages flew off during loading and unloading…and the pages were sadly lost to workers not caring rather than to worker’s greed… if all the venom splash pages were missing then of course ignore my attempts to think better of my fellow humans.
sad times either way.
Bad luck or was it really……
SABOTAGE!? (dramatic music plays)
What’s that? Pages were actually stolen?……Well then I guess I was sorta right.
I use Fedex routinely for work. And they have lost things far less valuable than original artwork by Tony Moore. But it was always just lost or delayed — never opened or tampered with.
Someone seems to have had prior knowledge as to the contents of the box.
A while ago we used to hear about FedEx boxes full of comic book art opened and the art ending up for sale online every now and then. This is the first new case I’ve heard of this in years.
What a load of CRAP! Whoever did this is the lowest for of scum walking the earth.
Fine, I’ll put my support behind this book for the first issue. When it’s released I’ll buy a copy of it. I won’t make any promises after that because, to me, the premise sounds very boring. (Hoping to be surprised though!)
Moore’s brilliant pencils are the only reason this book caught my attention at all. Was going to buy it anyway for the art, now definitely going to buy it out of support.
excuse me, can i point out this is unfortunately not the worst thing that has happened in history–as some people seem to be insinuating.
@Asteraceae In terms of comic book history though, it’s pretty bad for recent times. Moore’s pages are probably worth minimum of 3K maybe 5 grand +
So quite a big deal!
@origamikid he must be hot stuff, certis it’s a rotten thing to happen and i wouldn’t wish it on anyone but even this shall pass away.
@Asteraceae – I think there is a fair bit of hyperbole when people talk about how “tragic” this is. I don’t think anyone is holding this up and comparing it to actual tragedies.
@Asteraceae This is a comic book website and it’s comic book news.
@conor how does that relate to what i said?
@Asteraceae No ne is claiming that this is the “worst thing in history”. It’s bad news within the sphere of the comic book world.
@conor do you think whoever is responsible is “the scum of the earth” etc. then? many people commenting here seem to have said that
@Asteraceae They clearly have a dim view of art thieves (if this was indeed theft). I would call an art thief “scum”, yes.
@Asteraceae Lay off the morning coffee, dude. Just let it go.
if anyone thinks this is non-news or a first world problem, sure, it’s a minor annoyance when compared to global tragedies. But this is a newsworthy crisis in the industry we cover here on the site. And it’s more than worth it to cover the story if it brings attention to the fact that there are potentially stolen pieces of art out there that may end up on sale. I like to think that there are fans out there who’d want to know about this so that if they ever come across it, they can report it. We do have some very good, very honest people in this fan community, and, if possible, we want to see this wrong righted.
@NaveenM @conor ok fine, i’ll go and sit in the corner then. sorry sirs
Art is sacred, comic or otherwise. Its loss deprives humanity.
@djd that is sheer sophistry but in fact i said the opposite of what you seem to be attributing to me. i won’t be replying again so just forget i said anything
Here’s my theory; Asteraceae, on the FedEx loading dock, with the boxcutter.
@Asteraceae Wait..I thought I was the only one who called them Scum of the earth…who else has?
Maybe I should be clear on my remarks: If someone stole the work of Tony Moore, for ANY reason, then they are Scum of the Earth. I’ll stand by that. Anyone who steals the product of someone else hard work like this is true scum. Even more so if they try to sell the pages off.
That makes them lower than scum.
This is just within the sphere of the industry in which this website is based, an industry we are all fans and supporters of. It’s like someone coming into your house and crapping on your couch.
@Zarathos81 how about if they did it to feed their starving children? is that the same as crapping on your couch, are they THE scum of THE earth?? if they are, tell me for example how you would describe a child-abuser or a wife-beater or someone who tortures cats?
I’d call someone who tortures cats a hero.
Red Arrow tortures cats. And he’s a hero.
@Asteraceae: Dude, give it up. You’re defending an art thief on a website dedicated to this particular art. We all know there are worse things a person could do. You’re not putting anything in perspective for any of us. Starving children? Really? All you’re really accomplishing is making us wonder if you’re the guy that took the pages.
Wow. Bummer. But from my understanding, an inker nowadays, mostly works from a high quality print out (most cases blue lines) so that they can both have original work.
If the artist is the same guy, he may ink over his own pencils.
Either way this is terrible news.
@Asteraceae I won’t get into a silly debate on semantics with you. Stealing is a crime. Tony Moore gets paid for his work. No work, no money. Are you saying it’s alright for him and his to go without because some lazy scum bag ‘needed’ the money for their kids they should never have had because they acan’t afford them?
If this was in fact a theft there is no, I repeat NO excuse and NO way to say ‘well, in that case it’s alright’ You crap on my couch I don’t give a rats tail end what your excuses are.
I torture my cat everyday. But here’s the thing…he gets easily annoyed, so it’s possible to torture him by petting him, picking him up, or in some cases, looking at him for a prolonged period of time. I’m a hero.
@Zarathos81 @WheelHands you have very subtle minds, congratulations