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Posted on Jul 08, 2004 - 05:41 AM by Admin |
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He is one of the most talented artists in the industry, and he has been wowing Comic Fanatics for years illustrating everything from the X-Men and the Green Lantern Corps to some of the most beautiful women to ever grace a comic panel! His name is Franchesco! Recently this enthusiastic creator found the time to sit down, walk out and sit down again with The Comic Fanatic.Com to talk about Big Blue, beautiful bombshells, talking vegetables and much more! And be on the lookout for a surprise appearance by legendary creator Mike W. Barr!! Read on to find out why when it comes to art, one name says it all: Franchesco!
The Fan Man: Thanks for taking the time to talk to The Comic Fanatic.Com!
Franchesco: You’re very welcome, happy to be here…thanks for having me.
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The Fan Man: Okay. Let’s get this out of the way. The one word name “Franchesco!”…are you the comic book equivalent of Madonna, Cher, or Fabio?
Franchesco: Oh yeah, that’s original - like I’ve never heard THAT one before. heh heh
Um…yes, yes, and yes I guess.
All kidding aside…the fact I use only my first name ties into taking my identity back again. Was quietly sitting in school right after moving here from Italy, hating every minute of it. Couldn’t speak a word of English, had no friends, no familiar places or things…it was horrible. What the hell were the powers that be thinking when they put me in a classroom like that? Anyway - one day the teacher walks to where I was sitting, and grabbed a scrap piece of orange construction paper. She writes "FRANK" on it, points to me…and then points to the piece of paper, and that was that.
I went my entire life up to that point as Franchesco (or Franco for short) then someone decides to "Americanize" it…without even bothering to ask me if that was what I wanted. Was only eight at the time, so what did I know? Years later, when taking a serious look at drawing as a vocation, I declared my independence and claimed back MY identity - with the name that was given to me at birth. So in a way (now that I really think about it) t’was like being born again. Oh, crap - hope this doesn’t come across like pretentious flaky nonsense. Anyway - yeah, Ha ha, Cher…ha! Madonna, or is that "Esther" now? ha!
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The Fan Man: Franchesco is an artist a lot of people know, but don’t realize they know him. Does that make sense?
Franchesco: Long story short - Yes. Um, is this going to be one of those interviews where things make sense? That was not in my contract! (laughter)
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The Fan Man: I guess what I’m trying to say is that your work has been around the industry for a while now, in some pretty big places. You even illustrated the X-Men at one time, right?
Franchesco: Yes and no…I drew the X-Men, but not for an X-title…it was an issue of What if… that featured the X-Men, the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, and I added tons of all the characters I could possibly squeeze in there, too. I even threw in Spider-Man when I didn’t have to (he is the “Where’s Waldo” of the book)…shows up twice, and I challenge anyone to find him if they can. One Spidey-sighting is easy - the other, not so much.
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The Fan Man: How did you land that gig on What If?
Franchesco: LOL - Wish I knew, so that I could do it again and again. Guess being at the right place at the right time didn’t hurt things. Everyone should be that lucky at least once in his or her career. Not that big a deal in the grand scheme of things really, but it was one of those projects that make a person so glad to be alive. It’s the same feeling I get when working on Xstacy.
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The Fan Man: Tell us a little bit about What If…? #79.
Franchesco: The premise was “What if…Storm had the power of the Phoenix”. Can you imagine that? I got to draw the entire Phoenix Saga, one of my all-time favorite storylines. To say it was a fanboy-dream-come-true would be a total understatement.
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The Fan Man: So, what was the biggest thrill for you as an artist working on the X-Men, even if it was an alternate universe tale?
Franchesco: Creating the “Storm-Phoenix” and making her costume all white with gold metallic trim. I read in an interview years ago that John Byrne wanted to make the Phoenix costume white instead of green. The printing process wouldn’t allow it at the time, because one would see through the white areas of the paper to the other side. The technology improved enough to allow for it when I drew that issue…so I gone and done did it for John Byrne, and yeah - for me, too. Woo-Hoo! And that was just the tip of the iceberg.
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The Fan Man: Speaking of the X-Men, didn’t one of your creator owned characters almost end up on the Uncanny team, albeit in name only?
Franchesco: Not ALMOST, she DID…it was a done deal. The scripts were approved, the pages were being drawn, and it was a total “go”! I had no idea it was going on until a fan approached me about it at Wizard World Chicago. He asked me if I was going to sue Marvel for infringing on my copyright, I was like...huh? I walked over to the Marvel booth and asked Joe Quesada if they were actually introducing a new X-Man called XSTACY. It was a very short conversation that ended up with Marvel changing the name to Stacy-X lickety split, easy as pie!
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The Fan Man: Well, since we brought her up, tell us about Xstacy.
Franchesco: We? What’s this "we"??? (laughter)
Xstacy is the girl next door…if you happen to live next door to a drop-dead gorgeous teleportal in skin-tight latex and stiletto heels.
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The Fan Man: What are Xstacy’s powers, and how did she come by them?
Franchesco: She has the ability to teleport between dimensions, from one universe to another…and it would actually be telling if I revealed her origin at THIS time.
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The Fan Man: Does Xstacy have a secret identity?
Franchesco: Maybe - it wouldn’t be a secret if I told you, now would it? heh heh
***Editor's note: please send all hate mail directly to Franchesco! Thank you very much. (laugher)***
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The Fan Man: A character as cool looking as Xstacy, she must have a cool supporting cast of characters…
Franchesco: Thank you for the compliment, Heath. It’s always nice to hear that others like what they see.
Agreed…a good supporting cast is a must. There are quite a few of them in the Fresco Universe…or is that the "Fresniverse"? What adds to the fun is that she also comes into contact with other characters from other publishers. The well known and mega-cool Savage Dragon and ShadowHawk have made brief cameos in there so far, with some more of my favorites on the way.
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The Fan Man: And every cool super heroine must have a cool super villain or two…
Franchesco: …or three, or more. : ) Yes - definitely!
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The Fan Man: How did you come up with the idea for Xstacy?
Franchesco: I had been creating characters for Marvel, DC and lots of other companies…and I just wanted to do something that was all mine…where the sky was the limit, and I can let my imagination go where it wants to.
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The Fan Man: So, when can we expect to get our hands on Xstacy…er, the comic book, I mean?
Franchesco: That’s a good question, and one I don’t have the answer to. Its been a while now, but I've been adding muchly into the can, so that when I have enough to go with…I’ll be able to put it out there without any lag between issues. As much as I love working on her exploits, I find it very difficult to say no to some of the irresistible projects that come my way. I prefer to have my cake and eat it too…and I have a very demanding sweet tooth.
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The Fan Man: Before we get too far away from Marvel, weren’t you recently involved in a prank featuring everyone’s favorite disco diva, Dazzler?
Franchesco: LOL - I had absolutely NOTHING to do with that prank. Kind of got sucked into it out of left field at the very end, long after it ran its course.
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The Fan Man: Any fallout - good or bad - from this prank?
Franchesco: No fallout really. I look back and laugh about it now. People came out in support of what I was saying, and no one was more surprised than me on how it took on a life of its own. It's not like that sort of back and forth thing is anything new on message boards really. When all is said and done, the whole thing was pretty much a non-issue.
Coincidentally, I drew a commission for a buddy of mine who is a big fan of Alison Blaire...practically every other email was “draw a Dazzler, Franchesco!” He even got a lot of folks to start writing me emails, and he would forward them to me. I had the drawing lying around the studio for the longest time. When I went on a "news site" and saw a Dazzler topic, I immediately perked up - (very weird coincidence) I was even accused of swiping that PVP guy’s pretend/prank artwork…that was a pretty ridiculous accusation. I posted a little something on a message board, and the next thing I know folks are coming out of the woodwork with stuff…gotta love the internet!!! I appreciated everybody who contacted me privately, and especially those who got what I was trying to say, and said so publicly…which is very brave. Most people find it easier to lurk as opposed to publicly taking a stand. Especially when most don’t want to get caught in the cross fire of a flame war…so the few who spoke up showed some backbone. Which is always nice to see anywhere, not just online.
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The Fan Man: How many people do you think looked at your take on Dazzler and said, “Hey! That looks great! I’d buy it! Bring back Dazzler! Bring back disco, baby!” Okay, maybe not that last part…
Franchesco: That was very flattering reaction to see. The select few who could actually make that happen in comic book form did not belong to that group of folks who liked what they saw enough to go forward with that. I’m not dead yet, and I got to draw her twice for an honest to goodness Marvel book so far…and it would be lots o’ fun to draw her for real…I mean page after page after page of the Queen of the Bling-Bling!
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The Fan Man: When you weren’t getting up the hopes of disco mutant fans around the world, you were getting “outed” as the artist of a new Cloak & Dagger series, and then “fired” from the job you never actually had! What happened there?
Franchesco: LOL! You’ve done your homework, Fan Man…I’m impressed. Oh man, its like - I've never been fired from anything…much less fired from a job that never even existed. I took that little blurb VERY seriously, where most would not have given it a second thought.
One quick email to Joe Quesada, and he set that straight without skipping a beat, showing what a very classy guy he is. Geeze, his name is coming up a lot in this interview…and it's not like he and I talk every day. I got much respect for JoeQ - he’s really done right by me. Not sure how that C&D rumor even came about, and I really didn’t care. The columnist said and did everything right to set the record straight right away.
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The Fan Man: So, which is safer to say: “Franchesco’s art is attractive!” or “Franchesco’s art attracts controversy!”?
Franchesco: How about “all of the above?”…but I guess that is a question only the fans can answer. I just sit here pretty much doing my thing in relative obscurity, and then stuff…let’s just call it that - stuff happens. No one is more surprised than me every time something like that happens.
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The Fan Man: Let’s hop in the DeLorean and go back in time. When did Franchesco make his comic book debut?
Franchesco: How many frequent flyer miles can we get out of that DeLorean deal? Can’t ever have too many miles. Some days it feels like it was only yesterday when I broke into comics…and some days it feels like a hundred years ago.
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The Fan Man: Tell us a little bit about your first real comic book deal, Maze Agency.
Franchesco: Maze Agency featured two private dicks - yeah, you heard me…I said dicks. You can say private dicks on the internet, can’t you? (laughter) These two cool private detectives would go out and solve crimes…oh man, not very un-boring sounding now is it? I could say they killed and maimed people without rhyme or reason, but that's not true. They were ALL naked under their clothes, and they were closet adrenaline junkies…they loved the smell of danger, and danger was their middle name…um, Nah - no one’s going for that, are they? I don’t have a frigging clue what the book is about. That’s a lie…I do know, I just don’t know how to put it into words. Mike W. Barr would do a much better job answering this question.
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As if on cue: Mike W. Barr, ladies and gentlemen...(and the crowd goes wild!)
MIKE W. BARR: The Maze Agency was, in brief, "a love story about detectives, a detective story about love." I've always loved the world of the formal whodunit, as exemplified by modern masters such as Ellery Queen, John Dickson Carr and Rex Stout, and thought it would be cool to create my own series about such characters. And it was. Maze was some of the most fun I've ever had as a comic book writer, due in no small part to the artists I worked with such as (this is by no means an exhaustive list, and I apologize to anyone I've omitted): Alan Davis, Adam Hughes, Mary Mitchell, Gene Gonzales, a host of others...and a
newcomer named Franchesco. I knew him when, folks!
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The Fan Man: Didn’t you work with some pretty big names in the industry on that book?
Franchesco: Hell yeah - but it's not like I knew all that at the time. I was just happy to have gotten my very first color comic book gig. Mike W. Barr was the writer and creator; Adam Hughes was the original artist on the series, Alan Davis created the character designs and the ashcan (before the word ashcan was even fashionable) Brian Stelfreeze painted the cover, and Mike Avon Oeming did the inks…and then some guy no one heard of, did the pencils…me. : ) All of them (except for Brian) were under one roof at the same time at the Mid-Ohio Con last fall. Was nice to know they were all there doing their thing after all these years.
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The Fan Man: I also remember your name attached to Black Tide. Tell us about your tenure on that title.
Franchesco: I had really big things envisioned for that book…there is so much coolness about that series that I wanted to explore. Was really looking forward to bringing all the ideas I had kicking around in my head onto the page. Unfortunately even the best-laid plans sometimes go astray. It broke my heart to resign from the regular art chores on the series.
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The Fan Man: I noticed on Black Tide that you provided covers for interior artist Norm Breyfogle, one of my all time favorite Batman artists. What was it like working with Breyfogle?
Franchesco: Oh yeah, tell me about it…big fan of his Batman stuff, too. I won’t lie - It was fun to swap emails with him. I needed reference to this scene and that thing and blah blah blah. I should be bored by that kind of stuff, and I could pretend to care less; but it's cool as hell for me to see an email from Norm frickin’ Breyfogle with sketches to something he’s working on that I wanna draw into my pages...then see my stuff drawn into his pages.
The creative process on the book was a total blast; wish my stint on the title could have lasted beyond the cover work. Debbie Bishop (writer/creator) is a real sweetheart. Was a real pleasure to get to play with her characters like that. I’m a very lucky guy!
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The Fan Man: You also did some work for the other of the “Big Two.” Tell us about your work with DC’s Green Lantern Corps.
Franchesco: I got to work on one of my all time favorite characters…the Green Lanterns. When I got the word I was like - GREAT which Lantern?
***Editor's note: The Green Lanterns are a galactic police force that protect the inhabitants of their respective sectors of the universe.***
I would have been happy to draw any of them…and that’s when the skies opened up and lightning hit me right between the eyes. The editor tells me I get to make up my own Green Lantern; I just about hit the floor. The ultra talented Elliot S. Maggin provided the concept and the script, and then I created the visuals, and the players...Fun, Fun, FUN!!!
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The Fan Man: Were there ever any plans to use Adam in more Green Lantern adventures?
Franchesco: Hell yeah, dawg!!! I had MEGA plans for him, but DC wanted to get rid of the GL Corps and focus on the main Lanterns at the time. This was shortly before Hal Jordan went ballistic and took everybody’s power rings, followed by death and destruction. Fast-forward to today, he’s all better now. (laughter) They are so bringing Hal back, which goes to show that everything old is new again.
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The Fan Man: So, was Adam one of the many Green Lanterns killed by the nutso Hal Jordan?
Franchesco: Yeah, so sad…too bad.
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The Fan Man: Something that seemed to thrust Franchesco back into the minds of Comic Fanatics was a recent pinup you did for Jason Henderson’s Sword Of Dracula. Tell us about this beauty.
Franchesco: I was introduced to Jason at Wizard World Texas; there were a few folks around the table in Artist Alley at the time, and he tells Jim Valentino how cool it would be to see my version of Ronnie Van Helsing…So I’m thinking, “sure why not - Ronnie is a real hottie”…I mean c’mon, hot chicks with big guns - what’s not to like? : )
I get back to the studio and keep in touch, a series of events led to me doing some sketches sooner than I had planned. Luckily things fell into place and he didn’t need me to jump in after all. I was just going to set the sketches away, but he suggested I send them in and he would run them in the book. I slapped some ink on the paper, and the rest is history. It was very flattering to see other artists like my design enough to want to do a Ronnie the way I did the Ronnie. I loved all those pics they drew.
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The Fan Man: So, are you a big fan of Ronnie Van Helsing…and the rest of Jason’s book, of course?
Franchesco: Ah-yup! I mean…c’mon, what’s not to like? It’s a GREAT book. A fun read, with very stylish artwork…definitely worth the price of admission. Everyone should go out and pick up extra copies, and give them to some friends before the movie hits, and the comics go way up in price.
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The Fan Man: You also turned up recently on the back of Saul Colt’s Eclipse & Vega #3. Well, not you, but the much better looking Eclipse & Vega…err, no offense.
Franchesco: Oh there IS offense, Fan Man...there is BIG offense - that’s it…this interview is OVER!!!
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(Franchesco storms out of the room with his entire fictitious entourage - only to return once he realizes he has left the keys to Franchesco-mobile behind...The Fan Man, with an evil smile, twirls the keys casually with his finger and proceeds:)
The Fan Man: Um, not big fan of Eclipse & Vega?
Franchesco: Who are they? Never heard of them *cough*www.ssscomics.com*cough* - Nope, no idea…never heard of them - *cough*Saul Colt*cough* - no clue.
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The Fan Man: So, where can we expect to see Franchesco’s work next?
Franchesco: As far as comic stuff goes, I just did a pin-up for small gods over at Image. Look for it in issue #3…and yeah surprise surprise, it’s a hot babe - it features the lovely Daniela who happens to be Italian; just like me. She’s the sexy doctor from the series; not like me.
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The Fan Man: If you go back and look at the many pieces of art we have talked about, the majority of these are of beautiful women. Is this Franchesco’s forte?
Franchesco: LOL, You tell me…Seriously though, I’m way too close to it here, really not the best person to judge that. People seem to really like the way I draw women though. At conventions; out of all the requests I get, maybe one or two are of guys; the other 99% are of the beautiful females…not that there is anything wrong with that.
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The Fan Man: Who are some of your favorite female characters to illustrate?
Franchesco: The one at the very top of the list is hands down, no contest XSTACY!!! The other favorite female character to work on is the one that happens to be on my drawing table at the time. I still get VERY excited and juiced up the way it was when I first started. I still haven’t lost that loving feeling…and so very glad. Be careful what you wish for…I wanted to be a professional artist for the longest time, but I had too much time on my hands waiting for work. The one thing I miss now is having time for drawing something just for the fun of it.
What I mean by that is I love to draw the assignments I have on my to-do list (or else I wouldn’t take them on), but those are pieces done for this thing or that thing; not things I draw “just because”. The way I have my schedule staggered, it makes it impossible to do those kinds of "extra" pieces anymore. Recently I had a burning desire to do a picture just for the hell of it…I had no time to do it…but I didn’t care - I just had to. Felt like if I didn’t draw it, I would die. I learned a long time ago it’s not a good idea to deny that urge when it hits. I started pushing a pencil around a piece of paper, and what came out the other end is a piece I call the Image "ALL-STARS". The name kind of stuck, and it is the working title on the proposed book featuring all the main Image characters. Erik Larsen was nice enough to give me some great feedback on the pic, and Jim Valentino liked it too. What really matters when all is said and done is I scratched that itch, drew something just for fun, and two creators that I like approved of the results - Mission Accomplished!!! Looking forward to seeing what Erik does with that book when it comes out.
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The Fan Man: Are there any beautiful comic book women you haven’t illustrated yet that you would like to get your hands on…artistically, of course?
Franchesco: LOL - artistically, "of course"…Geeze, I don’t know, Man of Fan - that’s like asking which one is your favorite kid? I love ‘em all.
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The Fan Man: There is one bit of Franchesco work that most definitely does not fall into the “beautiful women” category. Ladies and gentlemen, Franchesco is “The Veggie Tales Guy!”
Franchesco: LOL yep - that’s me…well one of the Veggie guys. Veggie Tales is a labor of love brought to life by many talented creators, I’m just one of the lucky few who has been blessed with the opportunity to contribute artwork over the years.
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The Fan Man: So, is this Franchesco’s version of Jekyll and Hyde, going from illustrating Xstacy to Larry the Cucumber?
Franchesco: That implies one is good and one is bad - from where I’m standing (or sitting) they are BOTH very, VERY GOOD!
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The Fan Man: What does your Veggie Tales work consist of?
Franchesco: The things I’ve done for Big Idea are some of the 2-D artwork pieces they need from time to time. For those not familiar with Veggie Tales, they are amazing computer animated videos with exquisite production values, featuring lovable vegetables, and Penguins - we can’t forget the Penguins! “Saturday Morning Fun, Sunday Morning Values” Basically, it's more line-art comicbook-looking traditional artwork, as opposed to the 3-D rendered computer animation stuff seen in the videos.
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The Fan Man: I bet the kids love it! I know you made my 5 year old Masters of the Universe, Scooby-Doo, Spider-Man loving son put down his video games long enough to say, “Cool!”
Franchesco: That’s like one of the ultimate compliments for me. I’ll never get tired of hearing stuff like that. Same with my nephew…what is it with little kids (and big kids) and the Veggies? Mmm…mmm…good!
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The Fan Man: Another character that falls outside the realm of “beautiful women illustrated by Franchesco” is a new character that I have been seeing showing up in your signature lines and avatars on various message boards. Tell us about this wet and wild guy.
Franchesco: BIG BLUE is gonna be slipping and sliding on the unsuspecting populace larger than life. Designed him to be a decal 7 feet tall, and 23 feet wide, he’s my gift to the next generation…the reason why I took on the assignment, and yeah the money was a good reason too - I ain’t stupid. Homeboy gots to get paid…being a starving artist has never been a goal in life for me.
People in the “real” world will actually see my Big Blue. Wait - that didn’t come out right. People who step into a comic book store are folks who are the lifeblood of this industry. I LOVE THE FANS! None of what we creators, publishers, and retailers do would be possible without the fans. Every fan had to come across comics somehow, someway. Unfortunately, people don’t come across them on the newsstands like back in the day, when I became addicted to them. This will be my small way to help get comic art in the faces of folks, without actually preaching to the converted. I’m doing it for that kid who loves comic books...but he or she doesn’t know it yet. When they look up at it, hoping it strikes a chord as something cool and entertaining. Not only will he be seen by the general public, he will be located right where the little section designated for the daycare playpen. This one is for them most of all.
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The Fan Man: So, is Big Blue part of Xstacy’s universe?
Franchesco: Everything I do is part of her universe. Fresco Studio is where I get to do MY thing. Big Blue will definitely be making an appearance in the pages of the comic, even if he is going to make his real life debut in an unorthodox manner - which of course makes it all the more appealing to me. Rather than being in the comic book first, and then out in the "real" world; it’s the other way around for him.
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The Fan Man: When can we expect to see Big Blue wash up…in a good way, of course?
Franchesco: There you go with your “of course” again…I’m this close to fictitiously storming out of here…again. (laughter)
He will be seen by thousands of people morning, noon, and night - 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We’re shooting for middle to late July.
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The Fan Man: Let’s get to know Franchesco a little better. I take it from the name you aren’t from Arkansas…
Franchesco: What gave that away? heh heh. I was born and raised in Italy…and came to America with my immediate family when I was eight years old.
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The Fan Man: When did you first become a Comic Fanatic? Remember that first comic book?
Franchesco: First comic book? Here in the U.S. it was an issue of the X-Men drawn by John Byrne and Terry Austin…and that is where I was bit by the bug, and have been addicted ever since.
First comic book ever, was an Italian “superhero” called “Tira Molla” which translates to “Rubber Band”. His body was a coiled up metal spring - like the ones you see in a mattress. He could stretch and bounce, guessing those were some of his main super powers. I gotta get me some of those for nostalgia sake alone. He was not a superhero the way we know them…it was more like Archie's or Veggie Tales…very cartoony and lotsa fun.
The very first character I remember ever…is Lee Falk’s the Phantom.
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The Fan Man: What were some of the other comics you followed then?
Franchesco: X-Men…a lot of Marvels really, guess that made me a Marvel Zombie. I didn’t buy all that Marvel published…but all that I bought was Marvel comics. So I guess that made me a Marvel Zombie Light. Eventually gravitated to DC, because of George Perez’s Teen Titans. Thank you George!!! I was thinking "hey cool; these Titan guys are like the X-Men, guess I’ll buy it - even if it is a DC Comic." What can I tell you, I was an idiot back then…DC was doing some amazing stuff; I just didn’t have a clue at the time.
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The Fan Man: When did you first discover that you had this incredible artistic talent?
Franchesco: That hasn’t happened yet…but I’ll let you know when and if it ever does. (laughter)
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The Fan Man: What made you decide to use this talent in comic books?
Franchesco: I didn’t decide…comic books picked me; I didn’t pick comic books. I have no choice in the matter. I’ve gone on to do other stuff, but comic books are still in my blood in a big way…and they keep pulling me back.
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The Fan Man: Who are some of the artists you consider to be your influences?
Franchesco: This question in interviews is far from being a favorite of mine, because it usually becomes a boring laundry list of names - and inevitably I forget people who should be at the top of the list. There are so many artists whose works I enjoy…we could easily take up the entire space for this interview on this question alone.
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The Fan Man: Any artists out there whom you admire today?
Franchesco: None of them, I hate them all…the only one I like is that guy who does PVP - whatever the hell his name is. Again…there are so many that it's useless to try to name names…no, nope, not gonna do it, Fan Man! (laughter)
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The Fan Man: Any characters that you would like to one day illustrate? Maybe a dream project?
Franchesco: X-MEN!!! 'Nuff said.
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The Fan Man: How much time a day do you spend with your art?
Franchesco: Morning, noon, and night…you do the math. : )
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The Fan Man: Describe your work environment.
Franchesco: Fresco Studio is set up in my home, gotta love that speedy “morning commute”...especially during those bitter winters Chicago is infamous for. I either have the TV on, or pop in a CD, or scan the radio dial.
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The Fan Man: When you aren’t working on your next masterpiece, what does Franchesco do in his spare time? Any hobbies?
Franchesco: Family, friends, comics, a movie now and then…hitting the gym does a body good, too.
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The Fan Man: Pets?
Franchesco: Does a Chia-PET count? Ch-ch-ch-chia! : ) Oh wait; I don’t have one of those either.
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The Fan Man: What’s the last good comic you read?
Franchesco: You mean comics are supposed to be read? I thought you’re just supposed to look at the pretty pictures, grab a backer board and slap them in a Mylar sleeve…(blonde look)
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The Fan Man: Read any good books?
Franchesco: Who has time to read a book? And read books WITHOUT pictures in them…are you insane? I’m an artist, dammit; do you WANT me to starve? Books without pictures in ‘em suck! (laughter)
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The Fan Man: Last good movie you saw?
Franchesco: Spider-Man 2
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The Fan Man: Speaking of movies, one bit of my Franchesco collection that almost went unnoticed was something from a galaxy far, far away…
Franchesco: (looking up at the sky, with a puzzled look)
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The Fan Man: How did you land the Topps Star Wars card gig?
Franchesco: The Force - "of course" : )
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The Fan Man: When it comes to your own work, how do you best describe it?
Franchesco: Wow…that is a great question…wish I had a great answer for you, but I can’t come up with an answer that’s even kinda good.
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The Fan Man: Please, don’t take this the wrong way. You are without a doubt one of the most impressive and talented artists that I have ever seen. Why, oh why isn’t Franchesco working on an ongoing monthly series for one of the “big boys”?
Franchesco: Another good question…and another one I wish there was a good answer for. I don’t have a freaking clue really. It’s certainly not from lack of trying. I guess I don’t pursue it as much as I used to because I’ve been so busy and so lucky working outside of comics. I still love comics down deep…so if the right project came along, I would seriously consider it. Absolutely!
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The Fan Man: Is Franchesco more than just an artist? Do you enjoy writing, too?
Franchesco: I don’t think of myself as a writer, but I do enjoy writing…hoping one day to not suck so bad at it. Guessing the only way to get better is to just do it, and maybe not suck at it as much eventually. That’s the hope at least.
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The Fan Man: You are without a doubt one of the most enthusiastic, happy go lucky and approachable creators that I have ever met. First of all, how do you do it? And secondly, is this the “real” Franchesco, or one of those Jekyll and Hyde personalities?
Franchesco: Drugs is NOT the answer…don’t do drugs, boys and girls! Thanks for the compliment…the only thing that comes to mind is that I really love what I do, and have been fortunate to realize my passions in life. Didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grew up (I still don’t) but having a blast trying to see where I’ll end up on this journey we call life. Oh crap - there I go getting all loopy and boring and deep again.
Geeze hope I didn’t put everyone to sleep with this thing…okay, OKAY wake up everybody - it’s almost over. We’re in the home stretch now. (laughter)
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The Fan Man: I have this sweet little book on my desk called The Art Of Franchesco. Tell us a little bit about this book.
Franchesco: It was a labor of love that came out of the fevered illusion that it would be something fun for me to do. Once I started getting into it …quickly realized it was a total party just waiting to happen. Wish I had done it sooner. It started as a quick little compilation of sketches and various pieces I had done here and there. Lots of behind the scenes stuff…rare pieces not published anywhere else. The zaniness that Kevin Smith brought to the party made it even more of a blast to work on. He is one seriously funnie doode.
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The Fan Man: Okay, what I really wanted to know more about was the girl on the cover, Shhh Girl!
Franchesco: What do you wanna know, Fan Man?
{Insert witty repertoire here…}
Almost a year to the day after I created Shhh Girl…we decided to do something cool for her first anniversary. Rather than repeating myself, I wanted to create a new pic featuring the beautiful spokesmodel that doesn’t speak. It’s the piece that was used for the wrap around cover to “the Art of...” sketchbook. It was an amazing joint venture that also included people from across the globe in the design process. They had four layouts to choose from, and the one that came ahead with the most votes was the one that made it to the final stage. The response from the online community was amazing…had hoped for some feedback, but was not expecting all that participation. They were so very helpful in making that piece come to life during the whole process.
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The Fan Man: The Kevin Smith who interviews you in The Art Of Franchesco, is he THAT Kevin Smith? Are you friends with Smith, or do you have some incriminating photographs somewhere?
Franchesco: Well, he’s not THAT Kevin Smith. I’m a friend of Kevin Smith at nuffsaidcomics.com - I created the Shhh Girl for him to use for his online retail empire. And yeah, I do have incriminating photos …and when you weren’t looking, I was able to get lots of incriminating photos of you too, Mr. Comic Fanatic - so watch it! (laughter)
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The Fan Man: Err...the check is in the mail...not that anyone else would pay to see those...Seriously now, do you have any way of using your influence to get us the rest of Kevin Smith's Daredevil: The Target and Spider-Man/Black Cat...
Franchesco: LOL...no, Fan Man he’s not THAT Kevin Smith, I swear! Oh hell, what’s the use - sure why not. Of course I can use my mega influence to make that happen. I’ll get right on it…heh heh.
Sarcasm spoiler ahead: I am so totally connected, Kevin Smith and I are totally tight. Hanging out on the movie sets all the time can be so five minutes ago. How many times can you hang out with Ben Affleck and the rest of the Hollywood crowd, before getting utterly bored? It is so five minutes ago…peel me a grape! :Sarcasm ends.
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The Fan Man: Since you are constantly illustrating more and more, will there be an Art of Franchesco! TWO?
Franchesco: Yes there is, I’m putting it together right now. It is getting harder and harder trying to edit out all the pieces I want to include in this edition. Was tuff the first time around, still very challenging to choose what to leave in, or take out - because I’m so close to the source material. I don’t want to make it sound like it’s a tragic thing, because it is so much fun to revisit so many pieces I have not seen in a while.
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The Fan Man: Will you be out meeting with the masses at any more cons this year?
Franchesco: Wizard World Chicago is always a GREAT time. Looking forward to seeing all my homies there doing well, and having fun. If anyone is in the Chicago area, please stop by Artist Alley, and say "hello".
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The Fan Man: Any advice for the aspiring artists out there?
Franchesco: Draw as much as possible, every chance you get…I can go on and on and on, but it all boils down to just doing it. The rest is all window dressing; it won’t happen if you don’t do it…so DO IT!!! (you’ll be so glad you did) How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice! Want to draw comics? Draw, draw, and draw some more!
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The Fan Man: Where would you like to see Franchesco, in say five years?
Franchesco: Still happy, still doing what I love to do…whatever that happens to be. Not sure what the future holds, but I can’t wait to get there.
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The Fan Man: Last word’s yours. Any plugs?
Franchesco: No plugs…I decided to go bald naturally.
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The Fan Man: Okay...so what can we expect from "follicley challenged" Franchesco in the future?
Franchesco: Further hair loss…Hey! - what the hell kind of questions are these, FAN MAN?
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(Franchesco storms out AGAIN, but the fake entourage is too tired to leave and come back, so they stay in their fake chairs, yawning and twidling their thumbs...)
***Editor’s Note: If Franchesco did not pretend to storm-out…AGAIN…I would have told him: “Franchesco, it has been a great honor talking with you. You are one of the "good guys" in the industry who deserves the best of everything. I have a blast every time I talk to you, and can never get enough of your amazing artwork! Best of luck in the future, and thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk to The Comic Fanatic.Com.”
(The Fan Man leaves with Franchesco's pretend entourage who stayed behind…exits stage left.)
(Franchesco comes back in…)
Franchesco: Hello? HELLO!!! Where did everybody go?…hello? …
The Fan Man comes back in, everybody exchanges pleasantries, turn off the lights, go their separate ways…and all is good in the world...
...until Franchesco realizes he has to validate his own parking...
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Big thanks go out to Franchesco for agreeing to do this fun interview, and for patiently waiting ages for it! In all seriousness, Franchesco is one of the friendliest people in the entire industry and a more talented artist you won't find. Want proof? Check out Franchesco.Com and tell him The Fan Man sent ya!
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