Rich Johnston

Last updated

Rich Johnston
Rich Johnston, 2007.jpg
Johnston at the 2007
New York Comic Con
BornRichard Johnston
United Kingdom
Area(s)Comics journalist, gossip columnist, comics writer
Notable works
Lying in the Gutters
Watchmensch
Bleeding Cool
AwardsShel Dorf Award, 2012
Children2

Richard "Rich" Johnston is a British comics creator, columnist, [1] and founder of the comics news site Bleeding Cool .

Contents

The Comics Journal described Johnston as having claimed to be "the oldest extant comics news reporter on the Internet." [2] His past columns include "All The Rage" (for Silver Bullet Comic Books), and "Lying in the Gutters" (for Comic Book Resources).

Early life

Johnston grew up in Pontefract, West Yorkshire. He subsequently moved to London. [3]

Career

Comics journalism/gossip

Rich's Revelations was originally a simple relisting of British magazine comics news. [4] Johnston began writing gossip on USENET newsgroups in 1994 as Rich's Ramblings. [5] He then took the column, around onto the burgeoning World Wide Web, with "Rich's Revelations" on the now-defunct Twist And Shout Comics website. [6] He later started the comics gossip column "All The Rage" for Silver Bullet Comic Books , later Comics Bulletin . [7]

Johnston wrote the column "Lying in the Gutters" for Comic Book Resources , [8] posting rumours and gossip, with a traffic light icon imparting advisory caution as to the possible credibility of each rumour: a red light denoting the least likelihood of accuracy, a green light for the most credible reports, and a yellow light for those that fall somewhere in between.

Johnston's writing does not often impart sources. About that, Johnston said, "I often obfuscate sources to hide their identity—even deny that a story has sources on many occasions." Johnston sees himself as part of a tradition established by the "British tabloid press, one that seeks to entertain rather than inform." [2]

Bleeding Cool

On 27 March 2009, Johnston announced his launch of the website BleedingCool.com.

Bleeding Cool was nominated for the "Favourite Comics Related Website" Eagle Award in 2010 [9] and 2011 and won in 2012. It was named as one of PC Magazine 's top blogs of 2010. [10] and Technorati gave it a perfect 1000 score for influence in the comics category. [11] Johnston was awarded the Shel Dorf Award for Best Comics Blogger for his work on Bleeding Cool in 2012. [12]

Comics creator

Johnston has written a number of comics, mainly consisting of one-shots and graphic novella. The first consists of parodies, such as Watchmensch [13] and Civil Wardrobe (alluding to Marvel's 2006 story Civil War ). [14] The second include his original work, both creator-owned and those based on licensed properties, like Doctor Who: A Room With A Deja View , [15] The Flying Friar (based on the life of Joseph of Cupertino) [16] and Chase Variant which started life at Mam Tor Publishing's Event Horizon . [17]

In 2007, he wrote the IDW trading card set George W. Bush and the Weapons of Mass Distraction. [18] [19]

He wrote and drew a number of pages for the Popbitch book and curated the Harrods Comic Timing exhibition of original comic book artwork. [20]

In 2009, he had a story scheduled for the Spearmint anthology from Image Comics with Sleaze Castle writer-artist Terry Wiley. [21] He wrote a short story, "Rustlin Up Business," for the second volume of Outlaw Territory, published in February 2011.

He has also written Kate and William: A Very Public Love Story, a comic commemorating the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, published by Markosia. [22]

In 2012, he wrote a comic serialised in Dark Horse Presents entitled The Many Murders of Miss Cranbourne, with art from Simon Rohrmüller. He also wrote a series of parody comics for Boom! Studios, taking on Marvel Studios films, with Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and The Avengers reinterpreted as "Iron Muslim", "Scienthorlogy," "Captain American Idol," and "The Avengefuls," respectively.

Johnston writes and draws weekly cartoons for the UK blogger Paul Staines, appearing each Monday and collected at RichAndMark.com. [23]

Non-comics writing

Johnston wrote briefly for newspapers like The Guardian [24] and magazines like PlayStation World . [25] The now-closed publication Punch Magazine named him Young Writer of the Year Award in 2001. [26]

His poster campaign for the Churches Advertising Network in December 2006 generated coverage, [27] including a leader in the Times Newspaper [28] and an appearance on BBC's The One Show.

He was an advertising copywriter until 2009.[ citation needed ]

Media appearances

Johnston contributed to the British Channel 4 sketch show Smack the Pony as well as for BBC Radio 4's satirical sketch show Week Ending and the stage/TV show The Sitcom Trials .

He appeared as an interviewee in After the Chalk Dust Settled, a documentary included on the DVD release of Steven Moffat's sitcom Chalk . [29]

He was a zombie extra in Shaun of the Dead and a congregation member in the movie Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy . [30]

Parodies

In 2006, he appeared as a character in the comic book CSI: Dying in the Gutters as a source of "inside joke" humour by featuring him as the victim in a murder mystery set at a comic book convention and using other notable real-world comics creators as suspects in the crime. [31] He also appeared as a character in the Jodie Picoult novel, The Tenth Circle [32] and made a more major appearance in the Leverage novel The Con Job . [33]

Personal life

Johnston has two daughters. [34] [35]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Cho</span> Korean-American comic strip and comic book creator (born 1971)

Frank Cho, born Duk Hyun Cho, is a Korean-American comic strip and comic book writer and illustrator, known for his series Liberty Meadows, as well as for books such as Shanna the She-Devil, Mighty Avengers and Hulk for Marvel Comics, and Jungle Girl for Dynamite Entertainment. Cho is noted for his figure drawing, precise lines, and depictions of curvaceous women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Jemas</span>

Bill Jemas is an American media entrepreneur, writer, and editor, known for his tenure as president of Fleer Entertainment Group during the 1990s, and for his work as vice president of Marvel Comics from 2000 to 2004. During his time at Marvel, Jemas and editor-in-chief Joe Quesada implemented Marvel's no-overship policy, newsstand compilation magazines, added the Marvel MAX line, fortified the Marvel Knights imprint, removed the Comics Code from Marvel books, increased Marvel's publication of trade paperbacks, and were credited with shepherding the company from bankruptcy to profit, earning positive reviews from within and outside of the comics industry, though Jemas also was criticized for micromanagement and provocative public statements that made him a controversial figure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Liefeld</span> American comic book creator

Robert Liefeld is an American comic book creator. A prominent writer and artist in the 1990s, he is known for co-creating the character Cable with writer Louise Simonson and the character Deadpool with writer Fabian Nicieza. In the early 1990s, Liefeld gained popularity due to his work on Marvel Comics' The New Mutants and later X-Force. In 1992, he and several other popular Marvel illustrators left the company to found Image Comics, which started a wave of comic books owned by their creators rather than by publishers. The first book published by Image Comics was Liefeld's Youngblood #1.

<i>Wizard</i> (magazine) American magazine about comic books

Wizard or Wizard: The Magazine of Comics, Entertainment and Pop Culture was a magazine about comic books, published monthly in the United States by Wizard Entertainment from July 1991 to January 2011. It included a price guide, as well as comic book, movie, anime, and collector news, interviews, and previews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whilce Portacio</span> Comic artist

William "Whilce" Portacio is a Filipino American comic book writer and artist noted for his work on such titles as The Punisher, X-Factor, Uncanny X-Men, Iron Man, Wetworks and Spawn. Portacio was also one of the seven co-founders of Image Comics, though he did not become a full-partner in the company, and is therefore not a member of its board of directors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avatar Press</span> American independent comic book publisher

Avatar Press is an independent American comic book publisher founded in 1996 by William A. Christensen, and based in Rantoul, Illinois. It was originally known for publishing bad girl comics, such as Pandora, Hellina, Lookers, The Ravening, and Brian Pulido's Lady Death. Later the company became better known for publishing particularly violent titles by popular and critically acclaimed writers such as Alan Moore, Garth Ennis, Warren Ellis, Jonathan Hickman, and Kieron Gillen.

The Bristol International Comic & Small Press Expo, commonly known as Comic Expo or BCE, was an annual comic book convention held in the United Kingdom from 2004 to 2013. The show was held once a year in Bristol in the spring. The organiser was Mike Allwood, formerly of Area 51, a comic shop based in Bristol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Netzer</span> American-Israeli artist

Michael Netzer is an American-Israeli artist best known for his comic book work for DC Comics and Marvel Comics in the 1970s, as well as for his online presence.

Lee Garbett is a British comic book artist born in the West Midlands. He has worked on British comics. As of February 2011, he is working freelance after a period of exclusivity with DC Comics.

<i>Comic Book Resources</i> Comic book website

Comic Book Resources, also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.

Patrick Lee is a Canadian comic book artist, publisher, former president, and co-founder of the now-defunct Dreamwave Productions.

Markosia is a British comic book publishing company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltimore Comic-Con</span> Comic book-oriented fan convention

The Baltimore Comic-Con is a comic book-oriented fan convention held annually in Baltimore since 2000.

Christian Beranek (born August 23, 1974) is a United States writer, actress, musician and film/TV producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C. B. Cebulski</span> American comic book writer

Chester Bror Cebulski is an American writer and editor for Marvel Comics, known for his work on titles such as Marvel Fairy Tales. As of November 2017, he holds the position of editor-in-chief.

Sophie Campbell is a comic writer and artist known for her indie comics such as Wet Moon and Shadoweyes, and for her art on the Jem and the Holograms comics, as well as IDW Publishing's ongoing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic book series. She primarily writes and draws characters who are adolescent or young adult women, including various races, body types, sexual orientations, and abilities. In 2019, she became the lead writer of IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, for which she designed the character Jennika.

<i>Watchmensch</i>

Watchmensch is a one-shot comic book by writer Rich Johnston and artist Simon Rohrmüller released by Brain Scan Studios. It parodies the Watchmen limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins, along with the comics industry, the movies they spawn and the creators that get trampled on.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bleeding Cool</span> Internet news site

Bleeding Cool is an Internet news site, focusing on comics, television, film, board games, and video games. Owned by Avatar Press, it was launched by Rich Johnston on March 27, 2009. Avatar Press also publishes an associated magazine, also called Bleeding Cool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Mask Studios</span> American comic book publisher

Black Mask Studios is a comic book and graphic novel publishing company formed by Matt Pizzolo, Steve Niles and Brett Gurewitz, designed as a new infrastructure to support comic book creators and a new pipeline for transgressive art.

<i>Gutter Magic</i>

Gutter Magic is a four part limited series of comic books written by Rich Douek and illustrated by Brett Barkley, published by IDW Publishing with the first part released in January 2016. All four parts were published in a trade paperback released on July 19, 2016.

References

  1. ↑ Singer, Matt (14 March 2006). "Pulp Friction". The Village Voice . New York City. Archived from the original on 15 March 2006. Retrieved 27 January 2008.
  2. 1 2 Dean, Michael (2005). "Online Comics Journalism: Does It Exist? Part 3: Rich Johnston's Honest Lying". The Comics Journal (266): 21–23. Archived from the original on 5 May 2006.
  3. ↑ Johnston, Rich (4 July 2013). "Adi Granov: Man Of Ilkley, Yorkshire" Archived 22 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine . Bleeding Cool.
  4. ↑ Johnston, Rich (2 December 1998). "What is Ramblings 98?". Rich's Ramblings '98. Archived from the original on 2 December 1998. Retrieved 14 May 2021. Ramblings 98 has had a number of forms. Originally a simple relisting of British magazine comics news, Rich's Revelations, it has been praised, condemned, exhalted and threatened with libel suits. This culminated in a series of targeted attacks that led to the author conducting a vote. The final tally was 104:5 in favour of the continuing of the column with an advisory label, written by Greg Morrow and a name change to Rich's Rumblings. But that was then.
  5. ↑ "Lying in the Gutters". Comic Book Resources. 1 July 2002. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011.
  6. ↑ Johnston, Rich (10 October 1999). "Rich's Ramblings 1999". Twist and Shout Comics. Archived from the original on 12 October 1999. Retrieved 14 May 2021. Archives: Feb 1998 to Sep 1999 (Rich Johnston is an advertising copywriter, co-self publisher of Twist And Shout Comics, BBC comedy writer and comics columnist. He currently lives in South London, England.)
  7. ↑ Johnston, Rich (31 July 2000). "It Lives!". All the Rage. Silver Bullet Comic Books. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  8. ↑ CBR's Lying in the Gutters Archives Archived 12 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 18 January 2008
  9. ↑ "2010 Eagle Awards nominations". The Beat. 24 May 2010. Archived from the original on 30 May 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  10. ↑ Griffith, Eric (11 November 2010). "Our Favorite Blogs: 2010". PC Magazine . Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 12 November 2010.
  11. ↑ "Bleeding cool". 21 September 2011. Archived from the original on 27 December 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  12. ↑ "Bleeding Cool Wins Shel Dorf Award For Best Comic Blogger (Other People Win Things Too) - Bleeding Cool News And Rumors". bleedingcool.com. 27 October 2012. Archived from the original on 3 February 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  13. ↑ Ekstrom, Steve (5 March 2009). "Who Skewers the Watchmen? Rich Johnston on Watchmensch". Newsarama. Archived from the original on 9 March 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  14. ↑ Singh, Arune (14 August 2006). "Rich Johnston Changes Minds In "Civil Wardrobe"". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  15. ↑ Marshall, Rick (17 April 2009). "EXCLUSIVE: 'Doctor Who: Room With A Deja View' Writer Rich Johnston Talks TARDIS And Time Lords". Splash Page. MTV. Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  16. ↑ Dowling, Tim (3 December 2007). "A saint with the powers of Superman". The Guardian . London. Archived from the original on 10 January 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  17. ↑ Wigler, Josh (10 December 2009). "Johnston Pursues His "Chase Variant"". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on 15 December 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  18. ↑ Weapons of Mass Distraction Archived 21 May 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  19. ↑ Maev Kennedy (21 June 2007). "Report on George W Bush cards". London: Guardian. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  20. ↑ Harrods Comic Timing Exhibition 2008 Archived 20 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 17 October 2008
  21. ↑ Image Comics Solicitations for January 2009 Archived 18 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 17 October 2008
  22. ↑ Good, Oliver (16 January 2011). "Wills'n'Kate: the comic book". The Guardian . London. Archived from the original on 10 January 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
  23. ↑ RichAndMark.com site Archived 8 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  24. ↑ The Guardian, Feb 28th, 2001 Archived 11 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 27 January 2008
  25. ↑ PlayStation World UK Archived 9 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  26. ↑ Sequential Tart interview, November 2002 Archived 4 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  27. ↑ Google News Cache. Accessed 27 January 2008
  28. ↑ Times newspaper, September 15th 2006. Accessed 27 January 2008
  29. ↑ After the Chalk Dust Settled, featurette on Chalk Series 1 DVD, ReplayDVD.co.uk, prod. and dir. Craig Robins
  30. ↑ Rich Johnston at IMDb. Accessed 18 January 2008
  31. ↑ IDW's Dying In the Gutters' site Archived 4 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  32. ↑ Film Ick Archived 11 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 2 April 2013.
  33. ↑ Bleeding Cool Archived 18 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 2 April 2013.
  34. ↑ Johnston, Rich (7 June 2005). "Lying In The Gutters". ComicBookResources.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
  35. ↑ Johnston, Rich (23 March 2019). "Joyce Chin Admitted to Chicago Hospital With Arthur Adams, Not at C2E2". Bleeding Cool . Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  36. ↑ Official Dirtbag site Archived 28 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  37. ↑ Official X Flies site Archived 28 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
  38. ↑ Official Holed Up site Archived 20 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  39. ↑ "Official Flying Friar site". Flyingfriarcomic.com. Archived from the original on 6 January 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  40. ↑ Civil Wardrobe download Archived 6 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine . Accessed 27 January 2008
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.