Thursday, November 9, 2023
Dirk Manning at New York Comic Con 2021 (and 2022 and 2023)
Tuesday, December 6, 2022
The Johngy "OR ELSE" Podcast - Ep. 47: Dirk Manning
I first met Dirk Manning about 15 years ago in Artist Alley at Motor City Comic Con. While walking down the aisles, scanning hundreds of creator booths, Dirk's interesting banner caught my eye.
Dirk's “logo” was a man wearing a top hat and scarf, which covered the lower half of his face. It was a unique looking banner that stood out in a sea of colorful and creative booth signs.
Approaching his booth, I introduced myself and asked to learn more about this mysterious man. Thus the seeds were sown for a friendship forged at a comic con.
Dirk is a writer and creator of comic series. His works include the supernatural noir Tales of Mr. Rhee and the genre-bending horror anthology Nightmare World. Not limited to fiction, Dirk also is the author of the book series Write or Wrong: A Writer’s Guide to Creating Comics, which started as an instructional column.
Over the years, through many interviews and chats, I learned Dirk is a wrestling fan. A couple years ago Dirk took his writing talent and combined it with his love of comics and wrestling in a collaboration with wrestling announcer Tony Schiavone. The result was Butts In Seats: The Tony Schiavone Story, a graphic bio released last year.
An Amazon No. 1 best-seller, Butts In Seats was a major success. It was the first original graphic novel to be advertised on cable television, thanks to Schiavone's role on All Elite Wrestling shows.
Many wrestlers also lent their support to promote Butts In Seats. Seeing the success and popularity of Butts In Seats, AEW agent and Hall of Fame wrestler Arn Anderson looked to have a similar book. The end result is Arn Anderson: My Life As An Enforcer, a book project in production. Currently in the Kickstarter phase of development, Arn's book is scheduled for release early in 2023.
My podcast partner Tommy Else and I interviewed Dirk about all of this. That podcast is at The Johngy "OR ELSE" Podcast - Ep: 47 Dirk Manning.
Dirk started with a quick recap of his career, before discussing the origins of his work with Schiavone and Anderson. Despite his love and respect for wrestling, Dirk was not going to jump into either project just because both men are wrestling legends. Dirk wanted to be certain of the focus of each book. Of course, the integrity and sincerity of all involved ensured the books would be telling the stories of the real men behind their colorful larger-than-life images.
Started in mid-November, the Arn Anderson Kickstarter program has already passed several stretch goals. There are still 11 days left as of this writing. Dirk explained the pledge levels, including one which rewards backers with several autographed bookplates.
As I said in the interview, Dirk is the perfect person to write these wrestling bio graphic novels. His respect and knowledge of wrestling give him the perfect perspective. With his writing background, he has the ability to pull out the heart of the life stories of the wrestling personalities.
With the sales success of Butts In Seats and the Arn Anderson book Kickstarter program surpassing all goals, I would guess more wrestlers will be calling Dirk. While he is tight-lipped about future projects, Dirk's future is bright. I'm confident he isn't done with wrestling, but also not done with mysteries. There's also the potential ice cream mystery, another project that has rolled around his head and one that includes another of his loves. Dirk is a noted ice cream aficionado and has turned me onto Jeni's, his favorite ice cream place which happens to have several locations near me in Chicago.
Wrestling, horror, ice cream and more, Dirk's versatility is paying dividends and book lovers of all those genres, including me, are loving his work. I bought and love Butts In Seats and I look forward to Arn Anderson: My Life As An Enforcer.
For more info on Dirk and his projects, go to DirkManning.com and ArnComic.com. Check back here for updates, too.
Monday, June 20, 2022
Friend Encounters: Orange Cassidy and Dirk Manning
Wednesday, December 15, 2021
On the Beat With Dirk Manning at C2E2 2021
Wednesday, August 25, 2021
Looking Forward to Dirk Manning at NYCC
Dirk is the writer/creator of comic series such as Tales of Mr. Rhee and Nightmare World. I have been a big fan of Dirk's work for several years. I have interviewed him several times, including On the Beat at Wizard World.
Dirk announced via Facebook Live, he is doing a second edition of his popular Write or Wrong (A Writer's Guide to Creating Comics) book. It will be about 25-30% new content. The book release will also coincide with the publication of Write or Wrong #2. Write or Wrong is a collection of Dirk's tips and advice to aspiring young comic book writers. The news of a 2nd edition and a book #2 was greeted with thunderous applause from the hundreds of watchers.
Friday, April 9, 2021
On the Beat With Dirk Manning
Thursday, March 7, 2019
Dirk Manning at C2E2 2017
Monday, October 1, 2018
Friendly Encounters: Barry Bostwick and Dirk Manning
Monday, June 4, 2018
Friendly Encounters: AJ Styles and Dirk Manning
Monday, January 1, 2018
Friendly Encounters: Dirk Manning and K Lynn Smith
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Dirk Manning at Motor City Comic Con 2016
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
On the Beat With Dirk Manning at C2E2 2015
Monday, March 9, 2015
Friendly Encounters: Dirk Manning and CM Punk
I met author Dirk Manning at a convention years ago. I interviewed him then and have tried to interview him whenever I see him. He's an interesting guy and a talented writer.
He is also a wrestling fan, which gives us a bit more common ground. During our last interview, I asked Manning to make three predictions. So far, two of his predictions are holding up and the third will be determined soon. You can hear his predictions, along with some info on his projects at On the Beat with Dirk Manning at Wizard World 2014.
Dirk predicted CM Punk would not return to wrestling (or not for a very long time at least). While we might not see him in a ring, Dirk did see Punk at a comic con a few years ago. This is a rare photo indeed. Fans of Dirk will spot it right away. For those who aren't that familiar with Dirk, if you check out the Dirk Manning FB page and look at his profile picture, you will understand.
Manning is the mad genius behind "Tales of Mr. Rhee." You can learn all about this great project at the Tales of Mr. Rhee Kickstarter page. You can get some cool stuff with various donations, too. I encourage all to check out Manning and help the cause.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
On the Beat with Dirk Manning at the 2014 C2E2
We keep going back to Manning, because we like him and his work. If you can't make it to the various comic cons or other appearances of his, hopefully we are opening some eyes to his talent. Manning's continual consideration to talk to us and give us the latest scoop, coupled with his willingness to talk about other interests make him an interesting interview subject.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Dirk Manning, Mr. Rhee and Johngy
Saturday, September 14, 2013
On the Beat with Dirk Manning at Wizard World 2013
We talked to Manning about his most recent work. Manning was at Wizard World with Big Dog Ink to promote Critter and Legend of Oz: The Wicked West. He discusses both in the interview below.
An interesting side note is that we approached Manning for this interview and he was his usual agreeable self, but he asked us to come back, just so he could introduce Jen Broomall, who created the exclusive cover for Critter Annual. That was cool of him to share the spotlight and to give us something new.
After discussing his literary works, we got down to some serious stuff...pro wrestling. Manning gave us some insight into who he likes and who he might like to face in the ring. (I am still working on making that dream match happen). He also correctly predicted a WWE Summer Slam match outcome and the aftermath. Maybe Manning ought to look into another career as a wrestling writer.
You can learn all about him by heading over to the Dirk Manning Facebook page and by following Dirk Manning on twitter. I am thinking (and probably warning Manning) that he will be in my regular convention interview rotation going forward.