The Nice Guy - The Rant Shack

The Rant Shack

(Wherein We Rant)

Mike Says:

(02/14/07)

TTim Watts Gives Valentine's Day "The Finger"

There's a very important rule when it comes to picking a fight with a car door.

Actually, there isn't. Most people DON'T pick fights with car doors. But Tim Watts is nothing if not a pioneer!

Well, fans of Nice Guy art...you MAY have to go back and enjoy some of the old stuff for a little while, because your favorite artist has gone and done something most artists really, really dread. Okay, most of us do, actually. Just more so with artists. Nice Guy artist Tim Watts has broken his finger. His pinky finger.

Go ahead, you can say it.

OOOOOUUUUCCCHHH!!!

I'm sure that's probably what HE said, but I wasn't there to be witness. I was back inside the office we work at when Tim was outside going out to lunch with some of our co-workers. And he managed to slam his pinky finger--on his DRAWING hand--in the door of someone's car. You're probably best spared the details, but there was blood, and there was a trip to the hospital, and there were many shots (including a tetanus one), and there was...okay, I'm not even going to get INTO the fingernail part. The final result is that Tim broke his finger. And he's now in a splint. And he's got some really bitchin' painkillers. You know, I mean, so I hear...

WWhat Tim would look like right now. If he was a woman. And a redhead. And a doctor.

Not to worry, Mr. Watts is doing well, and on his way to recovery. However, this does put a bit of a crimp in his drawing. Frankly, I have no idea how he's managing to TYPE at work. So while he was almost done with the annual Valentine's Day strip (because I got him the script so late), he didn't QUITE make it before the big slam. So, you'll notice, it ain't up here. And he might not be drawing for a while. He's going to see, but he's got a few weeks of recovery ahead of him before he gets the "upper hand" again. So if you don't see any new strips for a while, at least you'll understand why. Blame it on the car door. Ironically, a guy who makes a living in auto claims got owned by car. Fitting, but sucky.

So feel free to drop him a "get well" line (at tim@theniceguycomic.com) while he's lounging around, and keep checking back. More Nice Guy strips coming at you, as soon as the mend will allow.

A-1 COMICS FIGHTS TO PAY BACK GRANDMA!

The pimpin' van makes the scene at A-1

As those of you who get the email newsletter heard last time around, we had another one of our live signings...but this one with a special purpose! Old Nice Guy pal and owner of A-1 Comics, Brian Peets, asked us to spend a few hours at the Roseville A-1 Comics store on Saturday, January 27th...to raise some money for my Grandma!

You might recall a little tale from last summer about how I was desperately trying to raise money for a new van in a very short amount of time. And it was an AMAZING story, and thanks to way too many generous folks to mention, I made it halfway to the goal. And I made it the rest of the way thanks to an amazing and timely offer from my grandmother to loan me the rest. Both of those elements came together, and in the end, I got myself a brand-new worry-free and very pimp set of wheels.

But that loan to Grandma still has to be paid back, and I definitely want to make it happen as soon as possible. This is why I've put up a new web site to supplement the world-famous "I Need a Van" page...one called PayBackGrandma.com.

And just in time for its debut, Brian decided to put together a fundraiser to help out! So he set the date, plugged it on his site, and invited Tim and I down to raise some cash. He also bought up a LOT of copies of "The Nice Guy: Pilot", and asked us to just go ahead and give them away to people in the store (ha! And they said we couldn't GIVE those things away! We showed them!). Which turned into not only a great way to make some Grandma cash (via Brian), but a great way to hook in some new Nice Guy fans as well.

Hey, I know those dudes...

We spent a few hours at our table handing out comics, meeting folks, and having a great time. But while I had the oh-so-important task of just sitting on my ass, Tim was hard at work doing sketches for folks...for $10 each...with proceeds going to Grandma! Sweet! A-1 shoppers put him to work, and he ended up cranking out quite a few (so many that he couldn't finish by the end of the day and had to take some commissions home. Don't worry, he got to them before the car door took him down...). It ended up a hugely fun day where we got to meet some wonderful and giving people, and even got to give some advice on getting into comics. Tim did some art critiques, offering some great advice and encouragement to a young artist there who we're both sure will be hitting it big one day. And we got to introduce some people to the world of the Nice Guy, including one military man who was about to ship off to Iraq and was making one last trip to the comic store with his family before deploying. Really enjoyed meeting him, and gave him our thanks for his service. We do hope that the stack of comics he'll be taking along will include some "Pilot".

Not only did we have a blast (as we always do at A-1 signings), but got to raise some cash for the Grandma fund, courtesy of our favorite real-life super-hero, Brian. Thanks again, Brian, for going all out for this and for the cause. We appreciate it--and your support of us every step of the way--more than you'll know. And thanks to the A-1 staff for once again being such awesome hosts! I bet no one brings FRANK MILLER Chinese food when he's signing autographs... Well, okay, maybe they do...

Be sure to check out all the pics of the event on the PHOTOS page!

DISTURBING INTERNET IMAGE OF THE WEEK

Okay, it's been on the net for a while. But it still makes me laugh.

SEE YOU NEXT TIME...WHENEVER THAT MAY BE...

Not sure how soon we'll be back, but hopefully sooner than later. Keep checking back, or sign up at the The Nice Club to get handy email updates. Happy Valentine's Day, all!

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