JUST ONE PAGE FOR A GOOD CAUSE

[MattBrady]

by Chris Arrant

The medium of comics encompasses many genres and topics. The one thing that seems universal amongst all the distinct variations in comics is the depiction of heroes. From the spandex-clad "larger than life" super-heroes to the simple stories of someone "doing the right thing", comics often portray someone helping another in some way or another. But it's not often that the simple act of buying a comic itself makes the consumer themselves a hero. Now's a chance to change that, and get a great comic as well. You see, similar in showing people to be heroes, the comics industry as a whole is quick itself to be a hero by its organized charitable actions.

Case in point, Just 1 Page.

Just 1 Page 2 is comic book magazine celebrating the Best of British Comics. Edited and compiled by Adrian "Ade" Brown, the inaugural edition of Just 1 Page was originally published in 2001 and featured 40 pages of contributions by comic professionals. Described as an "open collaboration of comics artists, writers, all-rounders and fans", the concept of Just 1 Page is that every contributes "Just 1 Page" - whether it's a illustration, strip or a text piece. The two main goals of J1P are: 1) to raise money for charity, and 2) to make a convention souvenir for the UK's premier International Comics Festival in Bristol.

In the second edition of Just 1 Page, the magazine has almost doubled in size, and features contributions by such well-known professionals as Bryan Talbot, Chris Weston, Mike Carey, Steve Pugh, Jock, Cahrlie Adlard and more. This year's theme was "British Comics Characters", and each contribution features a rendetion of one of the popular characters in the British comics community. The contributions range from sublime to startling, with interpretations of popular characters from John Constantine to Modesty Blaise, from Alan Moore to Andy Capp.

Newsarama had a chance to speak with Brown to discuss just how he managed to assemble such an ensemble cast of artists and writers, and the success that the magazine has had thus far.

NEWSARAMA: Just 1 Page's theme this year is “British Characters and Strips”. Why did you choose that theme?

ADE BROWN: I wanted to highlight the fact that this is so far the only *British* festival, and there’s a whole range of comics that I guess are totally alien to US readers - and I don’t mean alien like in 2000AD.

NRAMA: Where did the idea come for Just 1 Page as a concept?

AB: I wanted something that would make it easy for people to contribute, and one page - such as a sketch, seemed most straightforward.

NRAMA: What do most of the characters displayed in Just 1 Page 2 have in common besides their country of origin?

AB: There’s a definite cheekiness. I don’t know if you’ve heard of Viz Comic, which parodies the traditional British strip with rather scatological content. The thing is, it is not so different from the likes of the Beano, Dandy and so on.

Imagine the U.S.'s Dennis the Menace being the template for all comics in the way that Superman is for superheroes. Every other comic strip was about a naughty child in some way. Each one having a gimmick. I think this spills out into the US work - from Alan Moore’s Jack B Quick to Grant Morrison’s Invisibles.

NRAMA: How did you get such a diverse group of writers and illustrators to contribute to Just 1 Page v2?

AB: I just asked! Also, I put the invitation out to several forums where people know what I did with Just 1 Page before, and gave newer artists an equal chance to get their work in there.

NRAMA: One of the most interesting pieces in the magazine is Jesse Farrell's Jack Staff statue. Can you tell us how you came in contact with Jesse, and what the feedback has been from people who've seen it?

AB:I posted the invitation to contribute on several forums that I frequent and Jesse contacted me to ask, rather cagily, if I would be interested in having a sculpture as one of the "pages". I looked at some samples of his work, and I'd have been daft not to accept it. It's a lovely sculpture and several people have been disappointed that it's a one off ! My local comic shop, Comics Showcase in Charing Cross Road, Central London, have agreed to put the statue on display in their front window, which will hopefully give more people a look at it. Paul Grist was very pleased, and I was almost reluctant to take it back off him.

NRAMA: I’ve read that you have an overflow of submissions for Just 1 Page v2. How did you decide which pieces to include in the magazine?

AB: Everything is in there, but I had to decide which pics to reduce in size. Some decisions were about context - the two Keanu / Constantine pics work well together, as do the two Tank Girls.

NRAMA: What has the response been from Trinity Hospice about the donations from the previous Just 1 Page anthology?

AB: They are very pleased. It’s an unusual sort of project for them, and after Bristol, I hope we can promote the charity aspect with some local media - it’s a London-based hospice, part of my local community.

NRAMA: Will copies of Just 1 Page 2 be available at any other conventions or shops?

AB: Harris O'Malley has offered to take some copies at his table at San Diego (cost of posting them to the US individually is very prohibitive), so check out his table for the very nice Between the Cracks and get yourself a Just 1 Page v2. If anyone else is interested in getting copies to the US, please contact me !

NRAMA: Do you have a full list of pieces that are going to be up for auction, or a link to it?

AB: Before the end of June, this webpage will have approximate launch dates for the items to be auctioned. There are a couple of extra items - can't recall if I mentioned - the Breakdowns by Jock and the script by Andy Diggle for Losers #1. That will be in the first batch along with the Jack Staff statue. The Just 1 Page website is where the list will appear as items are listed.

Not all of the art is auctionable, but I am looking into a limited edition of art cards featuring ten or so of the pin ups.

NRAMA: This second edition of Just 1 Page has grown significantly in size from the first edition in 2001. Was it easier to get contributions for the second edition from the awareness of the original?

AB: There was a sense that people knew who I was this time. Several artists who could not contribute before have done so this time.

NRAMA: Although the magazine is the main focus of this benefit, the majority of the charity money is going to come from eBay auctions of original art from the magazine. How many pieces do you plan to auction, and what are some of the stand-out pieces?

AB: All of the art that I have originals for will be auctioned via eBay. We are looking into producing a limited number of “art cards” to get some of the other art out there.
The statue of Jack Staff by Jesse Farrell is gorgeous. As is the Victorian Constantine by David Hitchcock. Sadly Daniel Lundie’s Ozzy Unbourne cartoon is electronic, because I like to think Black Sabbath fans would want that one. I hope that Keanu Reeves has a look at Jock’s portrait of him as Constantine, you never know.

NRAMA: What are your future plans for Just 1 Page?

AB: The next one is on hold for now, as I have my career to consider, but I hope to do one on POP and one on Horror, or perhaps one on the Horror of POP.

Just 1 Page 2 is a seventy-two page magazine with includes eight pages of full cover, and is available for purchase online for $10US (or £5) including postage, at the official website. For those interested in the eBay auctions, check this page at eBay.

[mike_rorschach_]

yeah! great cause and great magazine

look 4 across 4 down on the montage, thats mine
and page 31 in the mag itself for my page of Slaine
(2000ad character)

pick it up, gooo on, its for a good cause!
and for the cover image alone

[AdrianBrown]

Tis of course members.aol.com/just1page/J1P2004.htm for the official website.

Other than that thanks to Chris for taking the time.
And anyone else who buys one !

Ade

[Mister Farrell]

I love that Slaine pic, Mike! Good job!

As an American contributor and fan of this book, I have to say I feel like we yanks have missed out on all kinds of British comics. I'm embarassed to say I barely knew who Leo Baxendale was and regret that I probably won't get to see episodes of Spaced anytime soon!

[AdrianBrown]

I've just posted a bunch of nice art from the project, so I hope you don't mind me excavating this old thread.

So far, auctions have raised about £250.

Ade
http://members.ebay.co.uk/aboutme/just1page/


Captain Britain sketch by John McCrea £10.00
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20-Sep-04 19:58:17 BST
UK comic Codename Warlord sketch by Paul J Holden £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:12:15 BST
Judge Dredd meets Doctor Who ? (Tom Baker version) £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:19:30 BST
Miss Scarlet (O Men) by Dave West character art £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:27:19 BST
Slaine character art by Michael Kevan £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:33:50 BST
The Cloak, UK favourite, strip by Gary Spencer Millidge £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:44:06 BST
Trelawny of the Guards - Brit War Comic Action Hero £10.00
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20-Sep-04 20:55:41 BST
Jenny Sparks by Martin Eden (O Men) character art £10.00
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20-Sep-04 21:00:40 BST
Charity comic with sketch, Stanislas by Roger Mason £10.00
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20-Sep-04 21:19:40 BST
Wallace and Gromit by Dave (Dandy) Windett £10.00
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20-Sep-04 21:30:24 BST
Grant Morrison's Zenith exclusive £10.00
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20-Sep-04 21:44:29 BST

[Sprocket]

Geez, even Death's Head is there. I also recognize characters from the Dandy and Beano. Nicely done.

Perhpage sometime we could see something from Lew Stringer, perhaps? I always found his work to be quite humorous.

[AdrianBrown]

Sorry it took me a while to respond, but hopefully Lew will be able to take part this time, as late deadline changes stopped him last year !

I'm just updating the website and so you should be able to get more news about Just 1 Page 3 in the next four months !

Ade

[AdrianBrown]

I think it's time to revisit this thread. We raised nearly £900 for the Trinity Hospice last year.

This year's Just 1 Page featured Alan Davis's excellent race between Flash, Quicksilver and Roadrunner which is about to be ebayed, but there's five more weeks of bargain comic art to be auctioned for the UK's Childline charity.

http://members.aol.com/just1page/J1P3.htm
http://members.ebay.co.uk/aboutme/just1page/

and it will soon be time to think of next year's Just 1 Page - with a football theme (or soccer if you prefer):
ANY COMICS CHARACTER, ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.