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Shelly... I wanted to be a cartoonist and I went to talk to National Peroidocial Publications. I fell very fortunate to be at the right place at the right time. This [the emerging comic book industry in late 1930's] was just another place to sell your work.
Jules...[speaking on the role of the publisher] The publisher made minor changes to keep things fresh. [On the early issues of Batman, the logo was black on a white background] I put yellow [background] around the 'bat' on Batman['s uniform]. There was a lot of talk about three men living in Wayne Manor, so I killed off Alfred, the butler and brought in Dick's Aunt Harriet. When the stories got to the public, I was asked what I was doing? There was an outcry for Alfred [because he had become a popluar character]. Of course I had to bring Alfred back.
Audience question on what the panel though of "Heroes Reborn"
George.... Heroes Reborn was [always meant to be] a set of twelve issues of these comics. And they will write a bridge called 'Heroes Return" [to get them back into the Marvel Univers proper, instead of pocket universe]. The industry is larger than just the people that cater to "Image" type comics. {Currently my agent and I are} under negotiations to work with Kurt Busiek on the Avengers [when they return].
Audience question on shape of comic book industry today.
John...They [the industry] catered to collectors. They milked the cow, and the cow is dead, and the whole industry in [limbo] {When you work in the comic book industry} leave ego at the door. Be a storyteller first and an artist second. All the years comics were done [in my career], I knew I was an artist, but I never doted on the artwork, double page spreads choked the life out of comics. Characters wrote the story while we were writing "Spider-man" and now these guys have killed it. And now we need to get it back. You put Spider-man in the Grand Canyon and you pick a villian - say the vulture, You KNOW how everyone will react. You cannot "make believe" with characters that are two-dimensional.
