The publisher’s October solicitations, released this week, reveal that Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam will end with Issue 21 and Batman: The Brave and the Bold with Issue 22.

BILLY BATSON AND THE MAGIC OF SHAZAM #21

Former Memphian and MSCA member Mike Norton is the current artist on Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam.

More info here.

Escape From The Asylum is an art show inspired by the Batman comics and features work by artists Jamond Bullock, John Bullock, Patrick  Tabor, Joseph Boyd, and Tony Brown.

Show runs from May 15-29, 2010 at Marshall Arts Gallery- 639 Marshall Ave. in Memphis, TN (just down the street from Sun Studios).

Show is open to the public Mon-Fri 10am-7pm, and costume attire is encouraged- so wear your super-suits. For more info click here.

See ya at the opening reception- Saturday, May 15 from 6-10pm.

Bat-Lin

‘Peanuts’ gang sold to Joe Boxer owner for $175M‏

You’ve got a new owner, Charlie Brown.

Newspaper publisher E.W. Scripps Co. is selling licensing rights for Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the rest of the “Peanuts” gang to Iconix Brand Group Inc., the licensing company that owns Joe Boxer and London Fog.

The family of the late “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz will also own part of the business too, giving it more control of and money from the comic strip’s legacy.

Heirs say the deal announced Tuesday for for the 60-year-old comic strip is what the artist would have wanted. Schulz worked for decades to win back the rights to his work, which many other artists like himself sold to appear in print.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100427/ap_en_ot/us_snoopy_sale

BILL DAY, who was laid off last year by the Commercial Appeal in Memphis, has just won a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. Read more at Comic Riffs on the Washington Post’s website.

You’ve experienced Africa in April and Memphis in May, but are you ready for the “Sivads of March”?

The Sivads of March — a public tribute to the memory of the late Watson Davis, the Malco ad executive who, as Sivad, “the Monster of Ceremonies,” was the host of the “Fantastic Features” horror movie program on WHBQ-TV Channel 13 from 1962 to 1972 — will take place at various venues March 25-28, with movies, an art show, and a rock concert featuring the Reigning Sound.

Davis co-workers and family members are expected to attend, and rare film clips and Sivad “artifacts” will be displayed.

As the comically ghoulish Sivad, Davis — who died five years ago this March 23, at the age of 92  — was simultaneously beloved and frightening, with a community-wide popularity that transcended class and race in a way that perhaps was rivaled only by wrestler Sputnik Monroe and a few other entertainers. A 1963 appearance by Sivad at the Mid-South Fairgrounds attracted 30,000 fans, according to The Commercial Appeal.

Sivads of March highlights will include:

A “monster martini” opening ceremony and reception on March 25 at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, followed by an 8 p.m. screening of the 1958 horror masterpiece, “Night of the Demon.”

Screening of other films originally introduced by Sivad — including “The Giant Claw,” “A Bucket of Blood,” “From Hell It Came” and “I Was a Teenage Werewolf” — at the Brooks, March 26-28, along with a March 28 panel discussion featuring Sivad colleagues and experts. The famous “Fantastic Features” introduction will be shown before each film.

A “Sivad Art Show” at 7 p.m. March 26 at the Adam Shaw Studio, 2547 Broad Ave., featuring Sivad-inspired work by local artists.

“Li’l Film Fest 13” at 2 p.m. March 27 at the Brooks, featuring shorts created by local filmmakers that pay homage to Sivad and the tradition of TV horror hosts and scary movies.   (Entries still are being accepted: Visit livefrommemphis.com for more information.)

A March 27 concert featuring the Reigning Sound, the acclaimed band led by former Memphian and Sivad fan Greg Cartwright, at Nocturnal,  1588 Madison. The Reigning Sound’s latest album, “Love and Curses,” is named for a Sivad catchphrase, and the CD itself is imprinted with a picture of Davis’ vampiric alter ego.

For more, visit sivadsofmarch.com.

More Sivad!