The Big Question with “JSA Jim” Beard: 8-28-02
The Big Question with Jim Beard aka “JSA Jim”
Interview with: Troy Brownfield
I’m reminded of the words of Dean Martin, “How lucky can one guy be?” Jim Beard would tell you that he’s very lucky, and also very ecstatic. A long-time comics fan, this museum curator by day has developed a sterling online reputation as one of the best of all fans. He’s unfailingly nice, intelligent, and willing to discuss comics with insight and enthusiasm. Known as JSA Jim, he’s launched clubs, answered questions, and led the good fight for a Golden Age Ma Hunkel action figure from DC Direct. After Geoff Johns noticed Jim’s great attitude and propensity for good ideas, he was able to help Jim into a wonderful new situation. This week, the Hawkman Secret Files and Origins special carries profile pages co-written by Beard and Johns. And soon, the JLA/JSA: Virute and Vice SF&O will feature Beard’s first straight-forward comics story. For this fan, the dream is now real.
Everyone, let’s welcome Jim Beard!
THE BIG Q&A
Q1. You’re a long-time fan with a well-known, well-liked, message board presence. How did you come to be a comics fan in the first place?
A1. DC reprints. I’m not kidding. 100 Page Super-Spectaculars of the 1970s made me the fan I am today…that, and the BATMAN tv show. I also had a father that loved comics himself and was very very cool about buying them for me. He liked to pass on some of that wonder.
Q2. What are some of the basic elements that keep the JSA so appealing?
A2. I think that the team has so many archetypes figures greatly into their success. Also, and this is unfortunate in a way, their sporadic appearances over the years has made for a certain “mystique” and grew the legend. Still, when you come right down to it, its the characters. The ones that started it all.
Q3. I have to ask: how did you get to be such a big fan of Ma? Also, wouldn’t Kathy Bates be great in a Golden Age Red Tornado film?
A3. When I got the big Treasury Edition of ALL-STAR COMICS #3 way back when, I devoured it. In the middle of all those heroes and stories was this oddball character with a pot on his head…and the JSAers thought it was a woman? I was hooked from that moment on. Ma Hunkel represents pure, unadulterated fun in comic books, something that falls to the wayside from time to time.
Someday, I’ll be able to unveil my master plan to have Ma unleashed on an unsuspecting modern DCU ;-}
And yeah, Kathy Bates would be great as Ma. I can hear her bellowing now!
Q4. Please describe how one goes from uber-fan to writer.
A4. Vewy, vewy carefuwwy… Seriously, it was due a lot to being a vocal and visual fan and DC sort of got to know me. I wrote a lot of letters and got a lot printed in the lettercols. I was submitting pitches for a while and not really getting anywhere but with a bit of encouragement from Geoff Johns I focused my writing and put all my eggs into one basket: one short story that I really believed in. Got it under the nose of an editor and chewed my nails for a month until I got the call. Ain’t nuthin’ like a call from Ivan Cohen of DC saying they’ll buy your story!
Q5. Define your contributions to both the Hawkman and JLA/JSA SF&O projects.
A5. 9 profile pages co-writen with Geoff Johns in HAWKMAN SECRET FILES (including a Golden Age character that’s never had an official write-up before). Then, a 4 page story featuring a JSAer, a JLAer, and a YJer, in JSA/JLA SF&O, along with 5 more profiles again co-written with Geoff (people will be shocked that I wrote a profile for Power Girl!)
Q6. What other characters might you like to work with in the future?
A6. Definitely the android Red Tornado. Also Sand of the JSA, Adam Strange, Metamorpho, maybe Rag Man and a brand new version of Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys ;-}
Q7. There’s a raging debate as to who, due to various ret-cons, holds the honor of being the first official female member of the JSA. To decide, let’s say that the Golden Age Wonder and Miss America have to battle it out to see who gets the spot. As they’re grappling, do they accidentally kiss?
A7. Only after 8pm.
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ShotgunReviews.com would like to thank Jim Beard for a being a guest in the Big Question! Grab onto his work in his the Hawkman Secret Files and Origins special (out now!) and the JLA/JSA:V&V SF&O out in November. Jim regularly posts on the boards at DCComics.com as JSA Jim; give him a congratulatory shout-out, will ya’?
As always, if you have someone that you’d like to suggest for a Big Question, let Troy know at psikotyk@aol.com. For those who still don’t get it, the last question is always a joke.
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