Simmons Comics Group
From Comicscontinuum.com
"IDW Publishing on Tuesday announced it has partnered with Gene Simmons of KISS to create the Simmons Comics Group, an imprint within IDW's stable of comics.
Simmons himself will be writing some of the comics, and has fully created and fleshed out a number of new titles that will be appearing in 2007.
New Simmons Comics Group titles are:
* Gene Simmons House of Horrors: A quarterly horror anthology debuting in July with a cover by Todd McFarlance. The comic will also feature intros and outros written by the book's host, Gene Simmons. Issue #1 will feature stories written by Chris Ryall, Tom Waltz, Dwight MacPherson, Sean Taylor, and two talented progeny, Alan Moore's daughter Leah Moore (with John Reppion), and Gene Simmons' 17-year-old son Nick Simmons.
* Zipper: A stranger in a strange land tale like no other, created by Simmons and scripted by Tom Waltz.
* Dominatrix:T & A meets CIA in a conspiracy and cleavage-laden series created by Simmons written by Sean Taylor.
* Indy -- Race of the Galazies: A contest of racing champions that takes place in deep space, on alien worlds, and features a cast of millions in a tale that appeals to young and old alike. Created by Simmons and written by Tom Waltz.
In addition to writing and drawing a title of his own under the IDW banner, Nick Simmons' Skullduggery, Nick Simmons will debut his short prose story, "The Child," in the back of IDW's comic books, and other stories of his will also be featured in the House of Horrors anthology.
Gene Simmons will also contribute an editorial page, "Speaking in Tongues," in all issues of the imprint.
"I am a child of comic books. My entire life has been shaped and influenced by the panel graphic artform -- and an art form, it is," Gene Simmons said. "I lived, breathed and dreamed comics. Our Marvel KISS Comics in the '70s were the biggest sellers of the day. I was proud to actually be a superhero in those books. I'm proud to say our Simmons Comics Group is the realization of a dream: And, to partner with IDW, a publishing entity that produces quality comic books and graphic novels of the highest order, is a privilege. We intend on producing grade A material by the best writers and artists. And, we will keep the door open for new talent."
"There's an easy tendency to compare this venture to Gene's past and present KISS Comics ventures, but this is a completely different beast," said IDW's publisher/editor-in-chief Chris Ryall. "Both imprints spring from Gene's fertile, always-spinning mind, but to be in business with Gene in the creation of some all-new comics properties is a the part of this that really excites me. Gene's made no secret of his decades-long love of comics, and he's tapped into that love to create some really solid properties here. He came to us with fully fleshed-out worlds, and we're going to take what he's done and work together to produce some damned good comics that should outlive either one of us.""
