The new issue of ALTER EGO (#122, now shipping from TwoMorrows, and in stores next Wednesday), is a tribute to the late, great Comics Buyer’s Guide, offering CBG‘s founders and past contributors a chance to pay their respects to the long-running news/adzine.

When I heard CBG had been cancelled back in January, even though I hadn’t been a regular subscriber for many years, I felt a real painful twinge; not just because of its place as my main source of comics news as a kid, but because of the way it went out. Just one issue shy of #1700, Krause Publications cancelled it with no advance notice to its contributors, so they didn’t have a chance to produce a final issue.

So I got on the phone to Roy Thomas, with the idea of, “Why don’t WE do the ‘final” issue of CBG as a special Alter Ego tribute issue, and round up all the past and present contributors and columnists to give it a proper farewell?” Roy was hesitant at first, since his mag generally covers comics from the Golden Age up till about 1972, and after all, The Buyer’s Guide for Comic Fandom (or TBG as it was originally known) didn’t even start publication till 1971, and hit its heyday well after Roy’s self-imposed 1972 cutoff for AE coverage. But Alter Ego‘s so focused on paying respect to the roots of comics fandom, that it didn’t take much effort to persuade Roy that it made sense to be part of AE.

Roy rounded up almost all of the columnists I remember from my days reading TBG/CBG, including Mark Evanier, Tony Isabella, Peter David, Fred Hembeck, John Lustig, plus founder Alan Light and his second-in-command Murray Bishoff, as well as Maggie Thompson and Brent Frankenhoff, who were all delighted to have a chance to give it a proper send-off.

If you, like me, grew up ordering comics through ads in TBG, and getting your comics news in CBG, I guarantee you will love this issue. My thanks go out to everyone who was a part of it, and to all those great CBG contributors who made it such a great read for over 40 years.

To kick off the holiday season, TwoMorrows is extending its 40% OFF BOOK SALE for two extra weeks! And when you order the discounted print edition, you get the digital edition FREE where available. This includes:

• Our groundbreaking American Comic Book Chronicles history series

• The Modern Masters line of artist biographies

• Our acclaimed Companion books, on fan-favorite series and characters

• How-To books on comics creation

• LEGO titles, and more!

But these huge savings absolutely end in two weeks!

(Sale ends at midnight EST on December 15, 2013, and does not include magazines, subscriptions, digital editions, new releases, or upcoming items.)

NOTE: As expected, we are currently backlogged with sale orders placed over the Thanksgiving holiday, and are working overtime to get all the in-house orders mailed this week, before shipping any new orders that come in. If delivery before Christmas is critical to you, be sure to choose expedited shipping (Priority Mail or Priority Mail International) and place your order immediately.The longer you wait to order, the less likely you’ll receive it by December 24th—thanks for your understanding, and Happy Holidays from TwoMorrows!

Didja see the Auburn/Alabama game this weekend? Just the most amazing football game I’ve ever seen. My wife Pam and I are both Auburn graduates (Class of ’86), but even after living through the Bo Jackson and Cam Newton years, I’ve never seen anything like it.

My hat’s off to ‘Bama for another great year for their program, but after all the trash talk I’ve been hearing from friends who are Alabama fans the last few weeks, I’m SOOOO glad the Tiger pulled that one out (and in such spectacular last-second fashion). Can’t wait for the SEC Championship game, and whatever BCS bowl game Auburn’s headed for.

We just got in copies of COMIC BOOK CREATOR #3, featuring Neal Adams’ rather spirited rebuttal to the bashing his recent Batman: Odyssey series received in some circles. Whether you loved it or were left scratching your head over it, you don’t want to miss Neal’s response, wherein he explains how the new series ties back to his classic 1970s work. (Honestly, after reading the interview Jon B. Cooke conducted for this issue, I’ve got a much bettter appreciation and understanding of Batman: Odyssey myself.)

There’s other great features (and the wealth of amazing Adams artwork) in this issue too, so get it HERE!

In case you didn’t get the message from our friend here, Back Issue #69 celebrates the magazine’s 10th Anniversary by revisiting the 100th, 200th, 300th, 400th, and 500th issues of 1970s and ’80s comic book favorites.

It features articles and spotlights on Comics’ Anniversary issues including: Adventure Comics, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, Batman, Brave & Bold, Casper, Detective Comics, Flash, Green Lantern, Showcase, Superman, Thor, Wonder Woman, and others. An all-star line-up of interviews and art includes JIM APARO, MIKE W. BARR, STEVE ENGLEHART, KEITH POLLARD, MIKE SEKOWSKY, WALTER SIMONSON, JOE STATON, and MARV WOLFMAN. Plus, this issue closes out the Man of Steel’s 75th Anniversary with a guest editorial by LARRY TYE, author of the critically acclaimed book Superman: The High-Flying History of America’s Most Enduring Hero. It sports a cover by DAN JURGENS and RAY McCARTHY featuring ten Bronze Age Justice Leaguers—one for each year of Back Issue. Back Issue is edited by former DC and Dark Horse Comics editor MICHAEL EURY, who’s put up with me as his publisher for a decade now (which should earn the poor guy some kind of medal).

You can order the issue HERE.

At TwoMorrows Publishing, we’ve just reached a major milestone:

Our 40,000th customer to order directly from us!

To celebrate that achievement in this season of thanks, we’re offering a whopping 40% OFF ALL IN-STOCK BOOKS now through December 1. This includes:

• Our groundbreaking American Comic Book Chronicles series

• The Modern Masters line of artist biographies

• Our acclaimed Companion books

• How-To books on comics creation

• LEGO titles, and more!

And when you order the discounted print edition, you get the digital edition free where available. But the sale is only good for 10 days (through December 1).

(This sale does not include magazines, subscriptions, digital editions, or upcoming items.)

NOTE: We predict a huge response to this sale, and expect the TwoMorrows shipping elves will be backlogged with holiday shipments by the end of the month. So order early; the longer you wait, the more likely you’ll see a delay in having your package shipped. If delivery before Christmas is critical to you, be sure to choose expedited shipping (Priority Mail or Priority Mail International), as we can’t guarantee it otherwise.

And thanks for being a part of our 20 years of success; we couldn’t have made it 20 years without you! I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a splendid holiday season and a prosperous New Year!

Adam McGovern has been chronicling Kirby-influenced work for The Jack Kirby Collector since 1997 — and making some of his own news with neo-pop collaborator Paolo Leandri in the Ignatz-nominated Dr. Id and an Alias the Spider story for Image Comics’ Next Issue Project. The team’s newest work (with color-artist Dom Regan of Paul Pope’s One Trick Rip-Off) is NIGHTWORLD, a superhorror romantic tragedy that will please any fans of Jack Kirby’s Demon and draws on B-masterpiece monster movies and multiple geek-culture genres for a wild ride of postmodern pulp pathos, action and unexpected humor! A publisher is expected soon, but payment in these days of indie do-it-yourself is the creators’ own job so a Kickstarter campaign is running through October 7 to finish funding the project. Click the screen above or this link (http://kck.st/17e4l62) to see how you can help NIGHTWORLD see the light of day!

Wanna see my gruesome mug plastered across your computer screen, talking about TwoMorrows’ history and upcoming stuff? Check out the interview Bob Andelman just completed with me for his Mr. Media video podcast site, linked here.

We begin the year-long celebration of our 20th Anniversary next week at Comic-Con International: San Diego 2013! When I started TwoMorrows in 1994 with the release of The Jack Kirby Collector #1, I had no idea I’d ever do any other publications, let alone become the leading publisher of books and magazines for comics and LEGO® fans. And we’ve got quite a slate of stuff going on in San Diego next week…

In this year’s Comic-Con’s program book, they’ve got a special feature about our anniversary, where I reminisce about two decades of exhibiting there, with anecdotes about some of the crazy things that have taken place, and the great people we’ve met.

On Thursday at 11:00 am, I’ll be moderating a “TwoMorrows Turns Twenty” panel discussion with Jon B. Cooke (editor, Comic Book Creator), Keith Dallas (editor of TwoMorrows’ American Comic Book Chronicles series), and P.C. Hamerlinck and Bill Schelly (historians and associate editors of Roy Thomas’ Alter Ego magazine), offering a revealing look at the ins and outs of producing our publications. (Roy Thomas was originally scheduled to be on the panel too, but Comic-Con inadvertantly scheduled it for BEFORE?Roy arrives, so P.C. and Bill are filling in for him.) And everyone who attends the panel will receive a coupon with a code for a free Digital Edition or $3.95 discount at our website, and a few lucky attendees will win the publication of their choice or subscriptions to one of our mags.

We’ll be exhibiting at its usual location, Booth #1301 (up front, just inside the doors of Hall B near the Golden & Silver Age Pavilion), and will have signings by our top authors, including Comic-Con guest of honor Roy Thomas. We’ll also be offering an unprecedented 50% off most items at the booth, including a full assortment of back issues and books from throughout its 20 years of publishing.

These new titles will debut at the convention (all in limited quantities, weeks before general release):

Alter Ego #120 (secrets of the X-Men’s first decade)
Back Issue #67 (featuring time-traveling heroes)
Jack Kirby Collector #62 (spotlighting Jack Kirby as writer)
Draw! #25 (how-to draw comics magazine, featuring Lee Weeks)
Comic Book Creator #2 (a double-size Joe Kubert tribute)
American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1950s (latest volume in the ongoing history series)

TwoMorrows is up for two awards at Friday night’s annual Eisner Awards ceremony, where Roy Thomas’s Alter Ego magazine is nominated for Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism, and Dewey Cassell’s book Marie Severin: The Mirthful Mistress of Comics is nominated for Best Comic-Related Book.

Saturday at Comic-Con will be LEGO DAY at Booth #1301, with a special display of custom LEGO sculptures, LEGO-related giveaways, and signings by renowned LEGO sculptor Nathan Sawaya and BrickJournal magazine editor Joe Meno. It’s all topped off with a panel discussion about BrickJournal magazine and LEGO building at 5:00 pm that day.

Below is the full schedule of TwoMorrows-related Comic-Con events:

Thursday, July 18:
11:00-12:00 – TwoMorrows Turns Twenty panel, Room 23ABC
12:30-1:30 – Keith Dallas and Bill Schelly signing, Booth #1301
3:00-4:00 – Andy Mangels signing, with free autographed Lou Scheimer “Filmation” signature plates, Booth #1301

Friday, July 19:
12:30-1:30 – Jon B. Cooke and Keith Dallas signing, Booth #1301
1:45-2:45 – Roy Thomas and Bill Schelly signing, Booth #1301
8:00-until: Eisner Awards ceremony

Saturday, July 20—LEGO DAY at Booth 1301:
1:00-2:00 – Spotlight on Roy Thomas panel, moderated by Jon B. Cooke, Room 4
3:00-4:00 – Andy Mangels signing, with free autographed Lou Scheimer “Filmation” signature plates, Booth #1301
5:00-6:00 – BrickJournal: LEGO as an Art Form panel, Room 23ABC
6:00-7:00 – BrickJournal editor Joe Meno and LEGO sculptor Nathan Sawaya signing, Booth #1301

Sunday, July 21:
10:00-11:15 – Jack Kirby Tribute Panel, Room 5AB
3:00-4:00 –  Roy Thomas and Jon B. Cooke signing, Booth #1301

I hope to see you there!

Publishing’s hard work. Sometimes really, really hard (and someday soon I’ll tell you about what  happened last week that is making it harder than ever before…).

But when I read a blog post like this one:

http://whencomicbooksruled.blogspot.com/2013/07/twomorrows-twomorrows-i-love-ya.html

…it’s all worthwhile. Thanks to Joel Bryan for reminding me how much our publications mean to fans, and to Richard Bensam for alerting me to Joel’s blog.