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Thank you to our generous sponsors of Comic-Con 2007
And thank you to these companies
that have provided prizes for
CCI:IFF winners
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2007 Eisner Awards Shine Spotlight on Comic Industry’s Best
DC Comics was the big winner at the 19th annual Will Eisner Comic Industry
Awards, held Friday July 27 at the San Diego Convention Center. Vertigo/DC’s
Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall was a multiple recipient, for Best
Anthology and Best Short Story (by Bill Willingham and James Jean), plus shares
in the Best Cover Artist (Jean), Best Painter (Jill Thompson), and Best
Lettering (Todd Klein) categories. Darwyn Cooke chalked up three DC Eisners: one
for Batman/The Spirit #1 for Best Single Issue (with Jeph Loeb) and two
for Absolute DC: New Frontier: Best Graphic Album–Reprint and Best
Publication Design. Paul Pope brought in two Eisners for his Batman: Year
100: Best Limited Series and Best Writer/Artist. In all, DC can boast of ten
awards plus shares of three others.
Other multiple award winners on the night were Ed Brubaker (Best Writer and
Best New Series for Marvel Icon’s Criminal) and Bob Burden (Best Title
for a Younger Audience for Gumby, and Best Writer/Artist Humor for
Flaming Carrot Comics).
Besides DC, other publishers with multiple awards were Fantagraphics (Jason’s
The Left Bank Gang for Best U.S. Edition of International Material,
The Complete Peanuts for Best Archival Collection–Comic Strips, and Tony
Millionaire for Best Writer/Artist–Humor); Dark Horse (Old Boy for Best
U.S. Edition of Foreign Material–Japan and shares of the awards for Jill
Thompson, Tony Millionaire, and Best Coloring’s recipient Dave Stewart);
Desperado/Image, which published Flaming Carrot Comics and the winner for
Best Comics-Related Book, The Art of Brian Bolland; and Marvel (for
Brubaker, Criminal, and a share of Klein’s Best Lettering).
The two big graphic novel awards went to critically acclaimed books. Gene
Yuan Lang’s American Born Chinese was named Best Graphic Album–New, while
the Best Reality-Based Work went to Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home.
Sergio Aragonés once again presented the Hall of Fame awards. Dick Ayers,
known for his Silver Age western and war comics art, was present to accept. Also
inducted into the Hall of Fame were Ross Andru & Mike Esposito, Wayne
Boring, Robert Kanigher, Joe Orlando, and Ogden Whitney. Ramona Fradon, who was
a 2006 inductee but wasn’t on hand to get it, received her award a year late, to
standing ovation.
Among the other awards given out over the evening were the Comic-Con’s
Clampett and Manning awards. The Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, presented by
Bob’s daughter Ruth, went to Neil Gaiman for his years of work raising money for
the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and other causes. The Russ Manning Promising
Newcomer Award was presented to David Petersen, writer/artist of Mouse
Guard, published by Archaia Studios Press.
The third annual Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing went
to seminal DC writer Gardner Fox (accepted by Roy Thomas) and to Archie
Comics and Sabrina co-creator George Gladir, who was on hand to receive the
award. Maggie Thompson once again handled the special In Memoriam salute.
The Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailing Award was presented by Joe Ferrara
This year’s winner was Earth-2 Comics of Sherman Oaks, California.
The awards were handed out in a rollicking, fast-paced ceremony MC’d by Bongo
Comics’ Bill Morrison, aided onstage of Jane Wiedlin of Go-Gos fame. Presenters
ran the gamut from Eisner nominees such as Gaiman, Bechdel, Pope, Thompson, Eric
Powell, and Ellen Forney to TV celebs Tom Lennon and Ben Garant of Reno
911, voice actors Maurice LaMarche (Pinky and the Brain) and John
DiMaggio (Futurama), stand-up comedian Brian Posehn (The Sarah
Silverman Show) and BBC talk show legend Jonathan Ross. All the presenters
were brought on stage with specialized theme songs, a new element to the awards.
Bechdel and Forney celebrated the record number of female Eisner nominees by
re-creating the famous Madonna-Brittany Spears kiss. Eric Powell and co-
presenter Dwight Albatross delighted audiences with their suggestions for
spicing up the Eisners, including awarding wrestling-style belts to the winners.
Lennon and Garant had the audience in stitches by talking about how Hollywood
shouldn’t be co-opting the comics at Comic-Con (“It’s all about the comics!”)
and then plugging their upcoming film Balls of Fury. And Jonathan
Peterson capped the night by emulating Bechel and Forney’s smooch, planting a
big kiss on a very red Neil Gaiman.
The major sponsor for the 2007 Eisner Awards is
mycomicshop.com.
The principal sponsors are
Century Guild,
Comickaze Comics,
Diamond Comic Distributors,
Gentle Giant, and
Quebecor.
Supporting sponsors are
Alternate Reality Comics (Las Vegas),
Atlantis Fantasyworld (Santa Cruz, CA),
Comic Relief–The Comic Bookstore (Berkeley, CA),
comicsunlimited.com,
Flying Colors Comics and Other Cool Stuff (Concord, CA),
Golden Apple (Los Angeles, CA),
Isotope Comics (San Francisco), and
Strange Adventures (Halifax, Nova Scotia).
Ballots were tabulated by Mel Thompson and Associates. Jackie Estrada is the
Eisner Awards administrator.
The following is a complete list of the 2007 award winners.
2007 Eisner Awards Winners
Best Short Story
"A Frog’s Eye View," by Bill Willingham and James Jean, in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)
Batman/The Spirit #1: "Crime Convention," by Jeph Loeb and Darwyn Cooke (DC)
Best Continuing Series
All Star Superman, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (DC)
Best Limited Series
Batman: Year 100, by Paul Pope (DC)
Best New Series
Criminal, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Marvel Icon)
Best Title for a Younger Audience
Gumby, by Bob Burden and Rick Geary (Wildcard)
Best Humor Publication
Flaming Carrot Comics, by Bob Burden (Desperado/Image)
Best Anthology
Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall, by Bill Willingham and various (Vertigo/DC)
Best Digital Comic
Sam and Max, by Steve Purcell
Best Reality-Based Work
Fun Home, by Alison Bechdel (Houghton Mifflin)
Best Graphic Album - New
American Born Chinese, by Gene Luen Yang (First Second)
Best Graphic Album - Reprint
Absolute DC: The New Frontier, by Darwyn Cooke (DC)
Best Archival Collection/Project - Strips
The Complete Peanuts, 1959-1960, 1961-1962, by Charles Schulz (Fantagraphics)
Best Archival Collection/Project - Comic Books
Absolute Sandman, vol. 1, by Neil Gaiman and various (Vertigo/DC)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material
The Left Bank Gang, by Jason (Fantagraphics)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material - Japan
Old Boy, by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi (Dark Horse Manga)
Best Writer
Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Daredevil (Marvel); Criminal (Marvel Icon)
Best Writer/Artist
Paul Pope, Batman: Year 100 (DC)
Best Writer/Artist - Humor
Tony Millionaire, Billy Hazelnuts (Fantagraphics); Sock Monkey: The Inches Incident (Dark Horse)
Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team
Mark Buckingham/Steve Leialoha, Fables (Vertigo/DC)
Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)
Jill Thompson, "A Dog and His Boy" in The Dark Horse Book of Monsters; "Love Triangle" in Sexy Chix (Dark Horse); "Fair Division," in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
Best Cover Artist
James Jean, Fables, Jack of Fables, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (Vertigo/DC)
Best Coloring
Dave Stewart, BPRD, Conan, The Escapists, Hellboy (Dark Horse); Action Comics, Batman/The Spirit, Superman (DC)
Best Lettering
Todd Klein, Fables, Jack of Fables, Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall; Pride of Baghdad, Testament (Vertigo/DC); Fantastic Four: 1602, Eternals (Marvel); Lost Girls (Top Shelf)
Special Recognition
Hope Larson, Gray Horses (Oni)
Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism
Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)
Best Comics-Related Book
The Art of Brian Bolland, edited by Joe Pruett (Desperado/Image)
Best Publication Design
Absolute DC: The New Frontier, designed by Darwyn Cooke (DC)
Hall of Fame
Judges' Choices (2): Robert Kanigher and Ogden Whitney
- Ross Andru & Mike Esposito
- Dick Ayers
- Wayne Boring
- Joe Orlando
Other Awards:
Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comics Writing:
Gardner Fox, George Gladir
Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award:
David Petersen, writer/artist of Mouse Guard
Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award:
Neil Gaiman
Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailing Award:
Earth-2 Comics, Sherman Oaks, CA
Owned by Carr D’Angelo and Jud Meyers
Comic-Con International's Inkpot Award:
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