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Sunday, 16 April 2017

T-Shirts, Mugs, Caps, Comics and more -Black Tower Stores





The Return Of The Gods:Twilight of the Super Heroes

TALES OF TERROR III





All Black Tower comic albums (that is A4 format) are in black & white.  Once you've had black and white you won't go back to colour, baby.

BTCG has specialised in presenting original material covering super heroes, crime, adventure, sci fi, horror as well as illustrated prose -not to mention ground breaking books on "world mysteries" and wildlife.  Oh, and even a huge book of interviews with comic creators and publishers.

All the books are, naturally, available for overseas licence -but we cannot translate work: that will be up to any licensed publisher.

What follows is a brief glimpse at some books but you can visit the online store to see more details and books at:

http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/hoopercomicsuk

You  can also find some on Amazon and other sources but they do not make me much money so, come on, buy from the online store and remember that at least these books will be collectibles! 



To contact me please check out "About" at the top of the page -thanks! 






The Hooper Interviews

The Hooper Interviews!  

 To celebrate, at the time of publication, over 25 years of interviewing comic creators -writers, artists and publishers- this 365 pages book was produced.

Interviewees included Yishan Li, Marv Wolfman, Dave Ryan, John Cooper, Mike Western, Donna Barr, Roberta Gregory, Sonia Leong, Emma Vieceli, Pekka A. Manninen, Alan Class, Karen Rubins, Kate Glasheen, Ron Fortier, Jon Haward, Franco Francavilla, Rick Geary, Tania Del Rio, The Etherington Brothers, Olivier Cadic (Cinebook the 9th Art), Holly Golightly and MANY others.

Profusely illustrated with art and photographs!

Reduced in price until October to £16.80 -an odd price but it's what the printer and lulu.com earn -I get zilch!

http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-hooper-interviews/paperback/product-22078000.html



 ****************************************************************************

Black Tower Comics began in 1984 as a Small Press publisher of A5 (US -Digest size) titles such as Adventure,Presents,Windows and Hanley's Garage.  Then came the news, reviews, previews and interviews publication backed up by the mart and mail order service -Zine Zone (later Zine Zone International).

In 2009, with the innovation in publishing of Print On Demand (POD), Black Tower jumped in head first!

One of the first titles to see print in the new comic album format (A4) was The Bat Triumphant! This saw the complete story, begun in Black Tower Adventure vol. 1.  William A. Ward's long lost 1940s character once again saw print as he fought a host of  enemies in an attempt to reclaim his homeland.


THE BAT TRIUMPHANT!

And while The Bat may have fought fist and nail to reclaim his homeland, another 1940s Ward creation, Krakos the Egyptian, seemed far from willing to claim a new Egyptian Empire as promised to him by the Gods.  Tackling a number of foes and even encountering the Many-Eyed One, Krakos turned his back on the gods and the final panel of Krakos -Sands Of Terror, delivered a true twist!

Krakos -Sands Of Terror!


Of course, the flag-ship title had to return!  And so Black Tower Adventure -eventually reaching new heights when the legendary Ben Dilworth jumped on board!  Volume 2 consisted of  ten issues. Just look at these covers....

Black Tower Adventure 1Black Tower Adventure 2BLACK TOWER ADVENTURE 3Black Tower Adventure 4Black Tower Adventure 5Black Tower Adventure 6ADVENTURE 7Black Tower Adventure 8BLACK TOWER ADVENTURE 9Black Tower Adventure 10

And, with something like 40 years worth of files and investigation reports could all that much delving into UFOs, lake and sea creatures and many other mysteries not result in a book or two...or three? Some Things Strange & Sinister, Some More Things Strange & Sinister as well as Pursuing The Strange and Weird: A Naturalist's Viewpoint set a precedence.

Whereas for decades those involved in "UFOlogy", "Cryptozoology" and "Forteana" declared many mysteries, that photographs were lost "to history" and so on, these three books swiped away the false claims.  Alleged lost photographs -found.  'Mysteries' solved by doing actual research work and reading the sources -something others had never done.
Some Things Strange & SinisterSome More Things Strange & SinisterPursuing The Strange & Weird:A Naturalists Viewpoint

And, of course, mention natural history and Black Tower Books broke new ground with that in The Red Paper: Canids.


The Red Paper: CANIDS

But not all the prose books covered mysteries and wildlife.


And if there is one thing "Herr Professor" loves it is discovering and presenting long lost UK Golden Age (1939-1951) comic strips and characters from publishers such as Gerald Swan, Foldes, Denis M. Reader, Cartoon Art Productions and others.

Scanned and restored as best as can be considering the poor print quality of the rationing years -especially red, orange, yellow, blue and purple ink printing!

Ace Hart The Atomic Man!  The Tornado!  TNT Tom!  Dene Vernon!  Acromaid!  Cat-Girl! Bring 'Em Back Hank! Robert Lovett:Back From The Dead and so many other action heroes and humour strip characters -William A. Ward, Jock McCaill and a host of known and unknown creators contribute -either in single volume " Black Tower Gold" albums or all six collected into the 400+ pager -The Ultimate British Golden Age Collection!



The Ultimate British Comics Gold CollectionBlack Tower British Gold Collection 1Black Tower British Gold Collection 2Black Tower British Gold Collection 3UK GOLD COLLECTION 4Black Tower Gold 5:Back From The Deadblack tower gold 6

Another great love is Centaur Comics from the United States.  Right at the very start of the American Golden Age of Comics Centaur had creators who were ahead of the others!  Before Plastic Man there was Plymo!  Before The Human Bomb there was TNT Todd! Before Green Arrow and waaaaaaay before Hawkeye there was the mysterious red hooded archer called The Arrow!  And, to just break your comic mind world there was even a Black Panther -decades before Kirby came up with his character of the same name.

The Eye Sees All.  The Owl. The Iron Skull.  Amazing Man. The King of Darkness.  The Invisible Terror. The Blue Lady. The Shark. Mini Midget & Kitty.  Mighty Man. Super Anne.  The company may have been short-lived but it's characters -oh boy!

The two volume Centaur Heroes Collection has been compiled into one sweet 140 page comic collection!
The Ultimate Centaur Collection 2011

Horror. Ghost stories.  The twist-in-the tale.  Did you think that a publisher who is a big horror comic/film fan would ignore these?

Nope.  Each year since 2010, BTCG has published a Tales Of Terror anthology album and 2014s included some fun and spooky lost Swan Comic strips.  I mean how can you go wrong -even Ben Dilworth is in these!

 Tower Tales Of TerrorTales Of Terror 2TALES OF TERROR IIITales Of Terror 4

The Church Of England has it's own basher of dark forces in the Reverend Merriwether -"God's Demon0-Thumper" as the press billed him.  From an ancient Egyptian demon to a village of the damned and Varney the Vampyre, werwolves and a final confrontation with Satan himself -Merriwether pulls no punches and offers no compromise.  And in those last few seconds between life and death, Merriwether's mind recalls past cases -thanks to Ben Dilworththe Tall Man of Osaka.

Merriwether: God's Demon Thumper and Merriwether: The Test Of Satan are available as individual comic albums or in one swanky book The Collected Merriwether: God's Demon Thumper.

 Merriwether:God's Demon-ThumperMerriwether:The Test Of SatanMerriwether: Gods Demon Thumper


Ben Dilworth is no slouch either!  Chung Ling Soo's police "counter-foil" isnone other than old London "Jack" (police man) Inspector Wilberforce and when Dilworth says "Here's a Wilberforce one-off: PUBLISH IT!" you do not argue!

Wilberforce



And did you know you can be a Gold Master of Japanese Haiku?  Well, neither did I -but guess what?  Ben Dilworth is such a master and his Osaka Brutal features his Haiku in English!

 Osaka Brutal

Old saleman that he is, Dilworth just keeps on going.  He produced Aesop's Fables -a darker version of the childrens tales and then went on to write two well illustrated prose albums looking at spirits and demons -Dilworth's Japanese Yokai and Dilworth'sWestern Yokai.  Osaka and the Yokai books were combined with Aesop's Fables into the one volume The Collected Ben R. Dilworth -though the single volumes are also still available.

The Collected Ben R. DilworthDilworth's Japanese YokaiDILWORTH WESTERN YOKAIDilworths Aesop's Fables


Horror comics yes but also some nice illustrated prose from Dilworth in...Dilworth's Horror & Ghost Stories but for the connoisseur those stories were collected together with the Phantom Detective comic strips into The Complete Phantom Detective!
Dilworth's Horror & Ghost StoriesTHE COMPLETE PHANTOM DETECTIVE



THE COMPLETE PHANTOM DETECTIVE
Ben R. Dilworth
black & White
A4
Paperback, 
36 Pages
Price: £6.00 (excl. VAT)
Murdering Ghouls. Satanic Masses. Demonic Possession. Werewolves. Poltergeists. Vampires. To many of the uninitiated these are just “things that go bump in the night” -TV or film fantasy. 
In the Victorian era, The Phantom Detective used his decades of occult study to help those in danger from these “things” and he paid the ultimate price…. ….
Yet he continues to help and to observe as best he can for now he is a true... 
PHANTOM DETECTIVE! 

From one of the UK's most under -rated comic creators, Ben R. Dilworth, comes new life breathed into and a new slant given to the adventures of the former mortal who has become one of the Watchers -forbidden to act even to save a life from supernatural forces.  Except "rules are there to be broken or at the very least stretched until you can see through them!"

The much anticipated collection from the co-creator of Peter Wisdom and artist of Mark Millar's The Shadowmen!

And could anyone forget the sensational Iron Warrior Versus Big Bong:When Giants Fought? But add to that the various Iron Warrior strips from Adventure and you get The Iron Warrior Collection -When Giants Fought!  In the 1940s, William A. Ward's creation was to be the most graphically violent comic strip seen until the 1970s.  That is some legacy. It continues....with a touch of fun!

The Iron Warrior Vs Big BongTHE IRON WARRIOR COLLECTION

In case you are wondering, yes, obviously there are super heroes.  Mix in ancient pantheons of gods, giant robot, alien invasion, Lovecraftian dark ones and so much more that the book runs to over 320 pages then you have part 1 of Terry Hooper-Scharf'sInvasion Earth Trilogy" or as it is titled Return Of The Gods: Twilight Of The Super Heroes!  And epic ending with the words: "Dr Morg has killed us all" -and if you have never read the mind altering counter actuality that is The Dr Morg Trilogy you may be saying "What? Who-?"

And part 2 of the trilogy The Cross Earths Caper ought to get you in the mood for 2015's big 31st Anniversary third part of the trilogy The Green Skies.


 The Return Of The Gods:Twilight of the Super HeroesTHE CROSS EARTHS CAPERJourney Of The ID:The Dr Morg Trilogy

If you pass the ESTC (Epileptic Seizure Test Cover) on Dr Morg well, you are fit and healthy enough to read it and to check out all the Black Tower Comics and Books at the online store -see why we are the UKs largest publisher of  Independent Comics!
Currently working on a few more Men t-shirts but also including designs for Women t-shirts.

Yes, now the Black Tower T-shirt online store is open!

https://shop.spreadshirt.net/Blacktower/men?noCache=true

Journey of the ID: The Dr Morg Trilogy

Another book due for deletion at the end of February is this one. Like other deleted books the files will be destroyed with only a certain number of copies in my own collection.

The only version of this book will be the newly designed layout and expansion that you will find in The Green Skies. In Europe this book was understood and got rave reviews. But that was Europe and in the UK "comic intellectualism" is defined as reading The Dandy while sat on the lavatory.

The history of this book is covered elsewhere but for now.....



A4Comic Album52 pagesBlack & WhitePrice: £8.00
Ships in 3–5 business days


 Metapsychophysics meets comics. Its the next inevitable natural evolutionary step in comic books!

For the first time all three parts of the highly acclaimed Dr. Morg Trilogy are combined into one volume:

WORDS WITHIN WORLDS

AFTER ORWELL

and the final explosive 

THE DEATH OF DR. MORG!

Is it all just hallucination -a scientific test gone wrong? What is the "Brotherhood of Sleep"? What immobilizes and creepily studies people in their sleep?  Jack Flash, Johnny Neg -and others all feel the chilling, unstoppable evil that Dr Morg's experiments seems to have awoken.

"It has our DNA!"  But WHAT has our DNA??

The spine-tingling words of Jack Flash on the final page of The Return of the Gods said it: 
                                                           "Dr Morg has killed us all!"

The Small Press zine trilogy was put into one scrumptious edition with a new cover designed by internationally renowned artist Paul Ashley Brown  to smash into your optical nerves like an Abrams Tank smashing through a brick wall with guns blazing..

In Europe this book got rave reviews and they understood it. They liked what they saw and read while, in the UK, the definition of "comic intellectualism" is reading The Beano while seated on the toilet.  

Are YOU intellectual enough for this? 

Or space out enough? 

Man this will blast your lower intestinal track like last week's curry.

The Hooper Interviews

From a huge selection of interviews covering the Small Press, Independent and mainstream Comics from the UK, Europe and US. Here are a few of the best interviews from 30 years.

 


Paperback
Perfect Bound
A4 (cms=20.98 wide x 29.69 tall)
B&W
365 pages
profusely illustrated with art and photographs.
£20.00
ISBN  9781326210113
Prints in 3-5 business days

 Someone referred to it as “Comics 101” –background info on creators, how they got started, what tools and even paper/board they use.  Damn near damaged my wrist because it is a BIG book. And Who exactly is interviewed in this book? 

Karen Rubins  -The Dark, The Witch and other books
Alan Class        -the man behind the Class Comics series
Kate Glasheen -the incredibly talented artist on Hybrid Bastards, Bandages and other works
Tom Pinchuck -writer of Hybrid Bastards
Dave Ryan       -the artist/writer behind War of The Independents
Jon Haward    -UK artist who worked of Tales of the Buddha, Dan Dare and more
Ron Fortier     -the man behind Mr Jig-Saw and Airstrip 27 books
Michael Cho  -creator of Max Finder Mysteries and some really cool art

Then there are a bunch of interviews related to The Black Coat that was published by Ape Entertainment -Francavilla may be a name familiar to DC and Marvel comic fans these days:
Jeremy Colwell
Ben Lichius
Adam Cadogan
Franco Frankavilla

The comic character Gumby also returned to comics and that created another series of interviews titled: The Gumby Interviews (Gumby, himself, was never interviewed)

Mel Smith
Paul H. Birch
Rick Geary

Joe Martino -from Ripperman to Shadow Flame
Yishan Li    -Seriously, do I have to explain who Yishan Li is? DCs Blue Beetle, the Buffy comic and much more!
Pekka Manninen -As far as I am concerned, Finland's top comic creator and I'm not saying that because I am the UKs top Kapteeni Kuolio (Captain Gangrene) fan!

Lauren Watton -Pink Apple Jam and Sweatdrop Studios
Willie Hewes      -Amaranth and Itch! publishing
Emma Vieceli     -come on. Star of stage and musicals not to mention one of the UKs top Manga artists -Manga Shakespeare, Dragon Heir and more.
Sonia Leong      -another noted UK Manga artist whose credits include Romeo and Juliet for Manga Shakespeare.
Nick Defina -the man behind Septagon Studios and Scorn
Donna Barr  -The Desert Peach and so much more that you can check up on at her Midnight Library blog.  She's a comic book Goddess.
Roberta Gregory -The other comic book Goddess and pioneering female creator.  Roberta created Bitchy Bitch and many other characters.
Jeff Brooks  -the man behind the UK editions of Classics Illustrated
Matt (D'Israeli) Brooker -from zines to "proper comics" including Deadline in the 1980s
Tania Del Rio -Sabrina the teenage Witch and more for Archie Comics
Holly Golightly -Broadsword Comics, Archie, Schoolbites and much more (below)
Vanessa Wells -superb creator of a comic I loved titled Shrouded and much more these days -http://www.vanessa.withbits.com
Marv Wolfman -Yes. The Marv Wolfman.
Morag Lewis -another UK Manga artist who worked with Sweatdrop Studios
The Etherington Brothers -if you've ever been to a good UK event you will have seen the duo behind Malcolm Magic, The 8th Moon Sketchbook,  Moon and more.
Nicole Damon -CBOs favourite fantasy art model. Nicole has worked with Ben Uriegas, Loprenzo Sperlonga, Greg Hildebrandt and others.
Olivier Cadic -the man who brought Franco-Belgian comics to the English language readers via Cinebook The 9th Art!  Everything you need to know.
Mike Western -"The Guv'nor" of British comics with strips such as The Wild Wonders, The Leopard From Lime Street and so many more to his name they would need a book to list.

John Cooper -Again, a creator who worked on many UK comic strips from Judge Dredd, One-Eyed Jack, Johnny Red and many others.

Mystery Canids, Chupacabra, Strange Sea Creatures, UFOs and much MUCH More!



The Red Paper: Foxes, Coyotes, Jackals, Arctic Foxes and Wolves in the UK

 One for those interested in Wildlife -or cryptozoology!
  
The Red Paper:CANINES vol.1
 Terry Hooper
The Red Paper: Canids
Paperback, 
A4 
(21 x 30cms)
202 Pages 
Photographs, illustrations and maps

By the 1700s the British fox was on the verge of extinction and about to follow the bear and wolf having been hunted for sport for centuries.  The answer was to import thousands of foxes per year for sport. But foxes kept dying out so jackals were tried. Some were caught, some escaped. Even wolves and coyote were released for hunting and "country folk" were very far from "happy" -some even threatening local hunts -one intending to release a wolf for a hunt- with legal and other consequences. The summation of over 40 years research by the noted naturalist and former UK police forces exotic wildlife consultant reveals the damnable lie of "pest control" hunting but also reveals the cruelty the animals were subject to and how private menageries as well as travelling shows. Private menageries, or single exotic "pets" as well as travelling shows helped provide the British and Irish countryside with some incredible events such as the 1905 "vampiric" sheep killer of Badminton, the mystery hounds of Cavan and Coyotes of Epping Forest.

The Girt Dog of Ennerdale is also dealt with in detail -was it a tiger? A Tasmania Thylacine? This book gives the exact facts and details for the first time. Up-dated 2013 edition includes a section on sarcoptic mange in foxes and treatment plus a list of wildlife sanctuaries and rescue centres in the UK.
                    *****************

Some Things Strange & Sinister (2013 -up-dated)


Some Things Strange & Sinister
A4 Format
B&W
Paperback
358 pages
Heavily illustrated
£20.00


After more than 40 years as an investigator and more than fifty as a naturalist,the author has opened some of the many files he has accumulated dealing with such things as..  

The Terrifying Events At The Lamb Inn, The Ghosts Of All Saints Church, Dead Aquatic Creatures of Canvey Island, captured bigfoot like creatures in India -all exclusively presented for the first time and with new added research previously unseen.  

PLUS a vastly expanded section on Spring-heeled Jack!  Photographs, maps, line drawings and up-dated to make 358 pages looking at Things truly Strange and Sinister.  

Cryptozoologist,Ghost Hunter,Ufologist or Fortean:this book has something for everyone -including the just plain inquisitive!   

ContentsForeword by Travis L. Whitehurst
Introduction        de occultis non judicat ecclesia                                                                            
The Bristol Rocking Horse        
The Terrifying Events At The Lamb Inn        
The Coonian Ghost        
The Ghosts Of All Saints Church        
His Luminous Chamber        
The Late Reverend Dr. Blomberg        
And More Ghost Stories        
The Thomas B. Cumpston Case        
The Chupacabra        
The Strange Case Of The Gotherington Gargoyle        
What’s Tall,Hairy And Vanishes?        
Mystery Beasts Of Ireland        
The Creature Of The Dump        
The Strange Creature Of Repton Woods        
The Bizarre Legends,Crimes And Truth About Spring Heeled Jack        
The Black Beast Of Darmstadt        
The Nameless Thing Of Berkley Square        
The Terrifying Case Of The U.S. Naval Transport        
The Case Of The Ghost Lear Jet        
Ghost Planes,Crashes And Dead Aquatic Creatures        
The Mitchison Loch Ness Monster Video        
From The Deep Below To The Air Above –USOs        
Aerial Encounters Over Austria        
A Crashed UFO In 1790?        
Angel Hair        
Quimper-Corentin:Where “Thunder Fell”        
Strange Aliens From Space        
The Llandrillo ‘Saucer’ And Other Crash Retrievals        
Transient Lunar Phenomena,Alien Structures And Moon Vegetation        
Whiddon Down-Saint-Jean-du-Guard:Impossible Correlations?        
The Venezuelan HorrorA Final Word.





Alleged piece of crashed UFO from Berwyn Mountains, Wales.
                                                               **************

 Some More Things Strange & Sinister 



Some More Things Strange & Sinister

Terry Hooper-Scharf
Paperback,
A4
327 Pages 
Heavily illustrated
£20.00
http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/some-more-things-strange-sinister/paperback/product-18763730.html

Follow-up to Some Things Strange & Sinister. For those interested in Ufology, cryptozoology, hominology, unusual natural history, ghosts and mysteries in general. The secret history of gorillas in the UK -before they were officially  'discovered'. 

The history of  the Wild men of Europe, the UK and US: something that in the 1800s become very "pop culture"  Very pop culture and totally forgotten today! Hominology. Sasquatch and Bigfoot -is there evidence for their existence?  

No sitting on the fence here -the Patterson-Gimlin film is looked at as well as other evidence.  The Author's conclusions? 

You might be surprised. Giant snakes. Amazons. The Giant serpent of Carthage. The Girt Dog of Ennerdale -another big cult 'creature' amongst paranormal and cryptozoological circles. The Beast of Gevaudan -what was it and were there really descendents of the creature in the 19th century -one of which was actually brought to London?   Believe it or not more than one incident of historical crocodiles cases in the UK.  In fact, far more than even the Author had thought . And, after more than a century of claims by 'researchers' that it no longer exists: The Silent City of Alaska and the near legendary 'lost' photograph taken of it.

 This and much more. Updated with extra pages and photographs.
                  *********************

Pursuing The Strange And Weird -A Naturalist's Viewpoint (2014 up-date)



Pursuing The Strange & Weird:A Naturalists Viewpoint


Terry Hooper-Scharf
Paperback,
A4
249 Pages
£20.00

 http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/pursuing-the-strange-weirda-naturalists-viewpoint/paperback/product-21307125.html


UP DATE -From Dead Aquatic (Humanoid) Creatures, the giant squid and yet undiscovered sea creatures; submarine and ships crews encountering true leviathans.


There is a fully expanded section which also refers to the so-called ‘Ningen’ sightings and video footage.

Extinct animals at sea that have been re-discovered. The subject of Sasquatch and other mystery Hominids around the world is dealt with including a look at the “Sasquatch-killer”, Justin Smeja.

Dr. Bryan Sykes and his DNA test results for TVs The Bigfoot Files as well as the controversial Erickson Project and Dr. Melba Ketchum’s Even more controversial Sasquatch DNA test results.

Also included are two early French UFO entity cases that still baffle. Ghosts, strange creatures and the Star-Child hoax. All dealt with by the naturalist and pursuer of the strange and weird
                *******************

  The Bizarre Legends, Crimes And Truth About Spring Heeled Jack (2014


The Truth About Spring-Heeled Jack  
Terry Hooper-Scharf
Paperback, 
53 Pages  
Dimensions (centimetres) 20.98 wide x 29.69 tall  (A4)
fully illustrated and referenced
£10.00http://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper-scharf/the-truth-about-spring-heeled-jack/paperback/product-21259526.html

The terror and mystery created by “Jack The Ripper” has been the subject of countless books, magazine articles as well as movies and TV documentaries. Ask anyone if they have ever heard of Jack The Ripper and it is doubtful anyone would respond with a “no idea.”  

By that same token, ask people who “Spring-heeled Jack” was and you would be lucky to find anyone who had ever heard of him.  

Spring-heeled Jack was the subject (loosely) of a film The Curse of the Wraydons (1946) and Dominic Keating also appeared as Spring Heeled Jack in the 2010 film Sherlock Holmes by The Asylum film company. The character has also featured in both American and British comic books and a number of books, for both children and adults.  

But the fact that the Springald held the country –not just London– in a grip of terror much longer that the Ripper did is all but forgotten except for some half-truths and fanciful theories.  

Now be prepared to read the full story of Spring Heeled Jack

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