On the Beat With John Crowther

I have wanted to interview author John Crowther for a while. Now was the perfect time with his recent release of The Bushwhackers: Blood, Sweat & Cheers and his announcement of his next project with Ray “Glacier” Lloyd. That interview is at On the Beat With John Crowther.

Crowther starts our interview with a brief bit on his background, how a lawyer added “author” to his resume. It's an interesting and creative tale involving conventions.

Growing up in the Florida area, Crowther was a fan of (the now defunct) Florida Championship Wrestling. He talked a bit about FCW and the wrestlers, including a story involving Kevin Sullivan, one of my all-time favorites. In Chicago, I never got to see FCW, following it from afar through wrestling magazines. 

His interest in wrestling wasn't limited to FCW though. Crowther watched it all. Little did he know at the time, he would eventually be writing about those larger-than-life characters he saw on television. His first foray was in comic book form, but he has added autobiographies to his repertoire.

From there, we segued into discussing his recently released bio of the Bushwhackers. To young fans, this team was a fun duo from the WWF of the 1980s. Older fans know them better as the New Zealand Kiwis or the Sheepherders, a successful, longtime team. The pair's talent went well beyond their comedy stint in the WWF, although, it brought them fame and lengthened their careers. Crowther speaks a bit on this, but covers it all in the book.

Earlier this week, Crowther announced his next book project will be with WCW's Glacier. Like the Bushwhackers, Glacier's talent and career goes well beyond his stint in the WCW. He hasn't started on the book yet, but Crowther will speak and possibly meet with Lloyd many times to get this book done.

Crowther talked about his writing procedure. He opts for actual conversations and meetings to get the feel, nuances and actual vernacular of the wrestlers. It's probably a bit more effort, but the results are a book with the real feel of the wrestlers.

Lastly, he gave a mini-scoop about another future project. He will do a cookbook featuring many wrestlers. There's no set start or finish date, but it will be worked into his schedule in the near future.

Some of Crowther's comics are still available through him via his social media platforms. You can also check Amazon for his books. Check back here and TheEveryDayFan.com for more from Crowther and other wrestling coverage.

Breaking News: Bobby Fulton and the Fantastics on Kickstarter

Breaking News is a new series, which will run as needed. The concept is all in the name itself.

John Crowther has informed me that a Kickstarter campaign for Bobby Fulton and the Fantastics is starting today. This is the first in a three comic series. A wrestling historian and writer, John has previously published comic biographies of Lanny Poffo, the Killer Bees, Nikolai Volkoff and Hacksaw Jim Duggan. The story of The Fantastics is scripted by John with art by Javier Lugo and colors by Blake Wilkie.

Fulton started wrestling in the late 1970's, training and working in several territories. In the early 1980's, he was joined by Tommy Rogers in Mid-South Wrestling. It was there that their famous feud with the Midnight Express started. That feud would continue in WCCW, NWA and elsewhere.

Fulton won several titles as a singles wrestler during his career, but he is more famous for his many tag team title runs, most notably with Rogers at The Fantastic. He is currently one half of the Heroes and Legends tag team champions (along with Tracy Smothers).

Of course, this comic series will tell much more of the story than I just did. John is very thorough, conducting in-person interviews with his subjects to produce an in-depth look at their life stories. Brilliant art work accompanies the text to produce a fascinating comic or in this case, a "fantastic" comic (you knew I'd have to work in that pun).

Seriously, I expect great things from this upcoming series. The earlier comics have been well-received by all. As I have previously written, the crew seems to have avoided the usual beginner mistakes. These comics are high quality, entertaining and informative.

I am especially excited about Fulton's comic. While he has been an accomplished wrestler for over 40 years, I do not know as much about him as I did with the other wrestlers listed above. I look forward to this three comic series giving me the real highlights of Fulton and the Fantastics.

Check out the Kickstarter page for Bobby Fulton and the Fantastics - 80's Wrestling Royalty!  There are various incentives for pledge levels. You can get exclusive covers, sketch cards,autographs and more. Most importantly, you'd be helping fund this project. The Kickstarted program runs for 22 days and it has already hit about 20% of the goal in just a few hours. This one is going to be hot. Jump on the campaign now. Be a part of the project!

You can get more info on the wrestler comics series at Squared Circle Comics and the Squared Circle Comics Facebook page. More wrestling biography comics are coming and you'll want to get the news as it develops.

John Crowther and Bobby Fulton in New Orleans, LA-April 2018.

The Genius Lanny Poffo: The Smartest Man in Comics!

Lanny Poffo was a favorite of mine from my early years following wrestling.  Many years later, as an adult, I had the honor of interviewing Lanny for a story in Lerner Newspapers.  Lanny could not have been nicer and I am proud to say we became friends.

Lanny enjoyed success as fan favorite "Leaping" Lanny, the Poet Laureate of the WWF and later as "The Genius," a heel character.  The WWF never revealed Lanny as Randy Savage's brother, although occasionally the announcers hinted at it.

Lanny's match with Hulk Hogan is always remembered fondly by all, because it was a fantastic match which really showcased Lanny's in-ring ability.  On the other hand, The Genius really allowed Lanny to shine outside of the ring.

Despite all of the wrestling books out there, Lanny's story has never been fully told until now.  The Genius Lanny Poffo - Wrestling's Smartest Man! is the comic biography of Lanny written by my friend John Crowther.  Through in-depth interviews and conversations, John brings Lanny's story to life.

A wrestling historian and writer, John has previously published comic biographies of The Killer Bees, Nikolai Volkoff and Hacksaw Jim Duggan, with more definitely in the works.  The series is illustrated by Randolph Dixon and Alan McMillian, with colors by Andrew Pate.

Fans can also get involved through a Kickstarter campaign to support the effort.  As always, any donation is appreciated and there are rewards that go with different levels of donations, one of which is a personal poem written by Lanny.  How cool is that?

I am so excited about the Lanny Poffo comic biography and the whole series, too.  This is such a unique concept.  Wrestling easily lends itself to comics and nothing like this has ever been done in this complete style.  I also have to add that John and his crew have skipped the usual beginner mistakes.  The comics produced so far have exceeded expectations on every level.

I hope to meet John someday soon (perhaps at a comic con?).  Oddly, I have met the all of wrestlers he has in his series, but I have not met him.  We need to change that.

You can find more info and (hopefully) make a pledge at The Genius Lanny Poffo - Wrestling's Smartest Man! on Kickstarter.  You can also get news and updates on the Squared Circle Comics Facebook page.  Remember though, the only way to guarantee you will get a copy is to pre-order from Kickstarter.

Lanny Poffo and me in Kokomo, IN-October 2007.

Friendly Encounters: Hacksaw Jim Duggan and Kevin LaPorte

This is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

The folks at Wrestling Comics are at it again.  This time, they have chronicled the life of Hacksaw Jim Duggan in comic form.  Duggan has led quite a life and Wrestling Comics has captured it all.
Squared Circle Comics, a division of Inverse Press, prepares ongoing authorized biographical comic book series for professional wrestling legends.  Earlier Wrestling Comics have featured Nikolai Volkoff and The Killer Bees.  These issues have been met with great success and praise from the wrestling community and the gans.  More Wrestling Comics are planned for the future, with series currently in pre-production for Bobby Fulton, Lanny Poffo,and Jack Swagger.  All series are written from personal interviews with the wrestlers by wrestling historian John Crowther, and are expertly illustrated by such artists as DC and Marvel mainstays, Dell Barras and Rich Perotta.
John keeps me updated on the latest news.  He messaged me last week about the new comic featuring Hacksaw Jim Duggan.  After a few days, I realized that I already had a connection with Kevin, having met and interviewed him years ago at Wizard World.  You can find that interview at On the Beat With Kevin LaPorte and Amanda Rachels.  It's cool how it all ties together.
There is a Kickstarter page for the Hacksaw Duggan comic.  They have a bunch of different levels of donations, each with cool incentives.  Even a small (but appreciated) donation of $2 gets you a digital (PDF) copy of Hacksaw Jim Duggan Wrestling.  The incentives keep increasing with bigger (but still reasonable) donations.  There are about two more weeks in the campaign.  To learn more about the Jim Duggan wrestling comic (and hopefully contribute to the cause), go to Hacksaw Jim Duggan Comes to Wrestling Comics!  Hooooo!  

I think these wrestling comics are awesome.  It seems like such a natural fit for the larger-than-life, colorful characters of the ring.  These comics do it perfectly, too.  They take the subject matter seriously, conducting interviews with the wrestlers to get the personal (and accurate) stories.

Jim Duggan and Kevin LaPorte in Hattiesburg, MS-October 2017.

Friendly Encounters: The Killer Bees and John Crowther

Friendly Encounters is a weekly series featuring my friends who have met celebrities.

When we last featured John Crowther, he was with with Nicolai Volkoff.  John was promoting Nicolai Volkoff: The Comic Series.  John was kind enough to give us a little scoop on his next project, too.  That project would feature the Killer Bees (Jumpin' Jim Brunzell and B Brian Blair).  The Killer Bees project is now officially on Kickstarter at Killer Bees: Issue 1.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 is the biography of The Killer Bees in comic book form, based on interviews with Blair and Brunzell.  Highly successful and extremely popular, The Killer Bees were among the top tag teams from the mid-1980's through the mid-1990's.  They remain popular to this day.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 promises the same kind of in-depth and behind-the-scenes stories that were featured in the Nicolai Volkoff comic.  There will be stories about the AWA, WWF, UWF and more.  All of this will be accompanied by awesome artistry.
The Killer Bees: Issue 1 is your chance to relive some of the greatest moments in wrestling or to learn more about those times.  It is a championship combination of wrestling history in comic book form.  I love the concept and I look forward to more from John.
Once again, on the Kickstarter page for The Killer Bees, there are several levels of pledges, each coming with a set of rewards.  This is a chance to get a cool comic and to get some other fun stuff, like Killer Bees decals, autographs, trading cards, other similar comic releases and more.  The Kickstarter campaign ends on July 11.
I appreciate John sharing his comics and campaigns here.  They are great quality and I am sure wrestling fans or even plain comic fans will love these comics.

Brian Blair, John Crowther and Jim Brunzell in Orlando, FL-April 2017.

Friendly Encounters: Nicolai Volkoff and John Crowther

This is a weekly series featuring friends who have met celebrities.

One of the great parts of doing Johngy's Beat is the friends who I make from it.  Last week, I featured Jason Strecker here.  This week, I continue the story with John Crowther, whom I met through Jason.
According to his bio, John is "a small town southern lawyer by day and storyteller by night."  He turned professional storyteller in 2014, when he entered the world of comics.
After the success of the Rochelle: The Teen Cockroach series, he tackled the world of professional wrestling.  He is the writer and co- creator of the Nikolai Volkoff series.
A pro wrestling veteran of 50 years, Volkoff (Josip Peruzovic) is best known for his years in the WWE (then WWWF/WWF), including a tag team championship (with The Iron Sheik) and a Hall of Fame induction in 2005.  The series is based upon true stories as related by Volkoff.
The Nikolai Volkoff Kickstarter campaign officially ends tomorrow.  While they have already reached their goal, donations are still welcomed and there is even an incentive system for various levels of donations.
I asked John about the future of the Nikolai series and other wrestling comics.  He responded with:

"I am also working on projects for The Killer Bees (Brian Blair and Jim Brunzell). Issue #1 of that series launches on Kickstarter on June 18. Also in the works are a one-shot for Lanny Poffo and a miniseries for Bobby Fulton on him and The Fantastics.  I am not planning another NIkolai in the near future, although he will be appearing at Mississippi Comic Con on the weekend of June 24."

That's all great news.  Wrestler biographies in comic book form sounds like a winner to me.  I'm especially happy with his subjects so far.  Volkoff, Poffo, the Bees and the Fantastics all had great careers, but very little has been done on them.  I look forward to those projects as well as other stuff from John in the future.
Someday, I hope to meet John at one of his appearances.  Chicago is a hotbed for wrestling and comics, too.  I think a Chicago convention appearance by John and one of his wrestler subjects would be awesome.
You can get more info, including all of the updates, at the Nikolai Volkoff: The Comic Series page on Facebook.  You can also check out all of John's work at RochelleTheTeenCockroach.com.

John Crowther and Nikolai Volkoff in Daytona Beach, FL-April 2017.