Mark Wheatley, Insight Studios Group Head to Baltimore

Mark Hempel, Robert Tinnell, and Mike Gold at Baltimore Comic-Con

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - July 15, 2011 - Eisner, Inkpot, Mucker, Gem, and Speakeasy award-winner Mark Wheatley, architect of Blood of the Innocent and Mars, will be joined by a full slate of creators from Insight Studios Group for this year's Baltimore Comic-Con, August 20-21, 2011, at the Baltimore Convention Center, which is located directly across the street from Baltimore's historic Camden Yards sports complex at 1 West Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21201.



Insight Studios will represented by Sandman: The Kindly Ones artist and Tug & Buster creator Marc Hempel, EZ Street and The Wicked West writer Robert Tinnell, and former First Comics and DC Comics editor and ComicMix Founder Mike Gold.



From Vertigo's Breathtaker to IDW's Lone Justice, from Impact's The Black Hood to Moonstone's The Spider, from Comico's Jonny Quest to Malibu's Tarzan The Warrior, and from ComicMix's Hammer of the Gods to his self-published Radical Dreamer, Wheatley's achievements have been widely recognized in and out of the comics business. His work has been repeatedly included in the annual Spectrum selection of fantastic art and has appeared at The Norman Rockwell Museum, Toledo Museum of Art, Huntington Art Museum, James A. Michener Art Museum, and the Library of Congress, where several of his originals are in the permanent collection. EZ Street, Lone Justice, Mars, Frankenstein Mobster, and Hammer of the Gods are currently available from IDW Publishing.



Among Wheatley's latest projects, Skultar, has just been announced to start in Dark Horse Presents #7. Written by M.J. Butler, Skultar is a loving (but none-too-kind) send-up of barbarian stories. The Spider: Satan's Murder Machines collects Norvell Page's epic crime drama in a deluxe hardcover for the first time with a cover by Wheatley, and The Mark Wheatley Gallery collects a number of the artist's 2010 13" x 19" art prints in book form for the first time.



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Blood of the Innocent, which pits Jack the Ripper against Dracula, is presently being adapted for film through Inferno Entertainment. The script by Bill Marsilii is complete and Inferno is fielding offers from additional studios seeking to turn the already-funded film into a blockbuster.



"Everyone at Insight looks forward to the Baltimore Comic Con each year," Wheatley said. "This show strikes an amazing balance between big convention thrills and a friendly, comfortable atmosphere where you can actually spend time with your friends and meet industry stars. And the Harvey Awards is one of the most entertaining awards ceremonies I ever attend!"



Breathtaker, Mars, and Blood of the Innocent collaborator, writer-artist Marc Hempel, will also be on hand. In addition to his acclaimed work on "The Kindly Ones" story arc for DC's Sandman with Neil Gaiman, Hempel also created Tug & Buster, Gregory, and the online strip Marc Hempel's Naked Brain. His work is also appearing in MAD.



Also attending the Baltimore Comic-Con as he takes a break from a series of films in production and in development, writer-producer-director Robert Tinnell has the graphic novel Flesh & Blood on the way with artist Neil Vokes. The creator behind The Wicked West, The Black Forest, Sight Unseen, The Faceless: A Terry Sharpe Story, The Living and The Dead, Demons of Sherwood, and Feast of the Seven Fishes, he directed such features as Kids of the Round Table, Frankenstein and Me, and Believe. Tinnell also produced the cult classic Surf Nazis Must Die, and he was one of the segment directors for the just-released DVD Edgar Allen Poe's Requiem For The Damned.



Mike Gold, who will also be at the Insight Studios booth at the show, has been the Editor-in-Chief of ComicMix, director of editorial development and a group editor at DC Comics, and editor-in-chief of First Comics, which he helped start. Along the way, he's worked with such notables as Mike Grell, Howard Chaykin, John Ostrander, Del Close, Tim Truman, Joe Staton, Trevor Von Eden, Bo Hampton, Mark Wheatley, Marc Hempel, and many others on properties such as Green Arrow, The Question, Jon Sable, Freelance, American Flagg!, GrimJack, Starslayer, E-Man, and others.



"The Baltimore show is pure comics, run by people whose love for comics is obvious. It's the way great conventions used to be run, and it's one of the very few I truly enjoy and actually look forward to. And it's the only show where I care about the convention even more than I care about the local food!" Gold said.



"That's because Mike would prefer to eat barbeque rather than crabs!" Wheatley added.



Insight Studios Group, is producer of numerous award-winning comic books, graphic novels, portfolios and other publications including The Mark Wheatley Gallery, The Spider: Burning Lead for the Walking Dead!, The Elemental Art of Dale Rogers, IS Art - The Art of Insight Studios, Hammer of the Gods, Titanic Tales, Jimgrim and the Devil at Ludd, Frank Cho Illustrator, Gray Morrow Visionary, Al Williamson ADVENTURES, Frankenstein Mobster, Miles the Monster, MARS, Marc Hempel's Naked Brain, Breathtaker, and many more.





Confirmed guests for this year's Baltimore Comic-Con include: Guest of Honor, Stan "The Man" Lee; Jason Aaron (Scalped, PunisherMAX); Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead); Nick Cardy (Aquaman, Teen Titans); Greg Capullo (Spawn, Batman); Cliff Chiang (Greendale); Frank Cho (50 Girl 50, X-Men: Schism, New Ultimates); Todd Dezago (Super Hero Squad, The Perhapanauts); David Finch (Brightest Day, Batman: The Dark Knight); Ron Frenz (Spider-Girl); Jose-Luis Garcia-Lopez (Wednesday Comics, Batman Confidential); Michael Golden (creator of Bucky O'Hare); Mike Grell (Action Comics, The Pilgrim); Brad Guigar (Evil, Inc., Courting Disaster); Steve Hamaker (Bone); Cully Hamner (Red, Red: Eyes Only); Dean Haspiel (The Alcoholic, Act-i-Vate); Jamal Igle (Supergirl, Zatanna); J.G. Jones (Doc Savage, DC Universe Legacies); Barry Kitson (Secret Invasion, Amazing Spider-Man); Laura Martin (New Avengers, Thor); Mark Morales (Fear Itself cover artist); Kevin Nowlan (Wednesday Comics); David Petersen (Mouse Guard); Brandon Peterson (Ultimate Vision, Strange); Craig Rousseau (Marvel Her-Oes); Stan Sakai (Usagi Yojimbo); Walter Simonson (Thor); Jeff Smith (Bone, RASL); Nick Spencer (Morning Glories, Iron Man 2.0); Brian Stelfreeze (Wednesday Comics); Karl Story (DC Universe Legacies); Tim Truman (Conan the Cimmerian); Neil Vokes (Flesh & Blood, Eagle: The Original Adventures); and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).



Looking for a place to stay in Baltimore for the show?

The Baltimore Comic-Con has partnered with two of Baltimore's premiere hotels to secure special room rates for those attending this year's show! Interested exhibitors and attendees can book between now and July 20, 2011 at the Sheraton Inner Harbor Hotel and the Hyatt Regency Baltimore at a discounted rate. Visit the links below for more information and to make a reservation, but remember the deadline to book at these special rates is July 20, 2011.



Sheraton Inner Harbor Hotel

Hyatt Regency Baltimore

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Attending the Baltimore Comic-Con? Show your support online!

Simply change your social network (Facebook, Twitter, blog, etc.) avatar pictures to the "See You in Baltimore!" image and let the world know you're attending the show!





In coming weeks, look for more announcements from the Baltimore Comic-Con. We are looking forward to highlighting our guests, the Harvey Awards, industry exclusives, and programming. The latest developments can always be found at our website, Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace pages.



This year's Baltimore Comic-Con will be held August 20-21, 2011. Convention hours are Saturday 10 AM to 6 PM and Sunday 10 AM to 5 PM. The ceremony and banquet for the Harvey Awards will be held Saturday night, August 21st.



Contact Information

Please use the following e-mail addresses to contact the Baltimore Comic-Con:

press@baltimorecomiccon.com - for any general press inquiries or to be added to our PR distribution

promoter@baltimorecomiccon.com - for requesting exhibitor, publisher, and Artist Alley applications

registrar@baltimorecomiccon.com - for inquiries about submitted registrations

harveys@baltimorecomiccon.com - for communications regarding the Harvey Awards ceremony and banquet

general@baltimorecomiccon.com - for general Baltimore Comic-Con inquiries







About The Baltimore Comic-Con

The Baltimore Comic-Con is celebrating its 12th year of bringing the comic book industry to the Baltimore and Washington D.C. area. With a guest list unequaled in the industry, the Baltimore Comic-Con will be held August 20-21, 2011. For more information, please visit www.baltimorecomiccon.com.

About The Harvey Awards
The Harvey Awards are one of the comic book industry's oldest and most respected awards. With a history of over 20 years, the last 6 in conjunction with the Baltimore Comic-Con, the Harveys recognize outstanding achievements in over 20 categories. They are the only industry awards nominated and selected by the full body of comic book professionals. For more information, please visit www.harveyawards.org.