Boaz Yakin
Screenwriter, Freelance
Working on: *The Punisher* film; *The Rookie* (Warner Bros.); *Afrikaaner* (Paramount)
Yakin, who wrote the screenplay for the Punisher film, discusses his frustrations with production company New World Pictures, including battles over keeping the skull on the costume and structuring the narrative. He reflects on the appeal of "lashing out" antiheroes like the Punisher, Wolverine, and Batman as expressions of 1980s social impotence, and talks about the film's uncertain distribution status following New World's corporate troubles.
Marc Silvestri
Penciller, Marvel
Working on: *Uncanny X-Men*
Silvestri recounts his path from DC anthology work and Conan to landing Uncanny X-Men through editor Ann Nocenti, and discusses working with writer Chris Claremont on the twice-monthly schedule and the Australian storyline arc. He talks about the book's wide readership demographics, his admiration for artists like Buscema and Mignola, and his interest in eventually pitching an original project with his brother.
William Stout
Artist/Production Designer, Freelance
Working on: Inking Jim Sullivan story for Titan; story for *Harvey Kurtzman's Strange Adventures*; cowboy screenplay; Japanese theme park design
In the third and final part of his serialized interview, Stout covers his work for Disney Imagineering (including Masters of the Universe, Euro Disneyland planning, and the self-published Mickey at 60 comic strip), his negotiations to retain original artwork, and his current comics projects illustrating a Harvey Kurtzman story and inking a Jim Sullivan story for Titan. He also discusses his film career setbacks after leaving Disney and his work designing Japanese theme parks.
Howard Zimmerman
Editor, Byron Preiss Visual Publications
Working on: *Bank Street Collections* educational comics anthology series (Simon & Schuster)
Zimmerman describes editing the massive Bank Street Collections series for Byron Preiss and Simon & Schuster — approximately 55 adapted science fiction, fantasy, mystery, and horror short stories totaling 650 pages, drawn from authors including Asimov, Anne McCaffrey, H.G. Wells, Leigh Brackett, and Edgar Allan Poe. He explains the logistical challenges of clearing rights for over forty stories and managing approvals across three institutional stakeholders, and expresses enthusiasm for doing a second set if the series sells.
Marv Wolfman responds to a previously published critical letter from a fan, defending himself and his New Teen Titans co-workers against accusations of ignoring old Titans characters; DAK also prints an open letter from an aspiring scripter criticizing Marvel and DC's unresponsiveness to unsolicited submissions.