{"id":3657,"date":"2017-03-26T23:53:15","date_gmt":"2017-03-27T03:53:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/?p=3657"},"modified":"2021-11-09T11:24:52","modified_gmt":"2021-11-09T16:24:52","slug":"todd-mcfarlane-is-a-nice-guy-autograph-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/todd-mcfarlane-is-a-nice-guy-autograph-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Todd McFarlane Is a Nice Guy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Todd McFarlane drew the first comic book I ever bought, “Amazing Spider-Man” #318.  I’ve been a fan of his artwork ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, I know it’s not perfect in many ways, but whose art is<\/em> perfect? I like his stuff.  It’s cool. That’s enough for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once Upon a Time, I Wrote a Letter to Todd McFarlane<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I don’t have a specific date for this story.  It was pre-Image days.  It was probably around McSpidey #1 or that era.  Maybe earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was relatively new comic reader and a die-hard McFarlane fan, buying everything of his that I could get my hands on.  Besides the Spider-Man comics, there was an almost prolific series of magazine interviews, including The Comics Journal, Comics Interview, Wizard Magazine<\/em> #1, and a couple of others I’ve likely forgotten.  I even bought a pin set and a poster book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wrote Todd McFarlane a fan letter, probably through the comic shop he partly owned in Puyallup, Washingon<\/a>, at the time.  I must have been about 15 at the time.  It was just a gushing thing telling him how much I loved his art.  I don’t have a copy of that letter anymore, nor do I remember anything more specific I said than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was a nobody.  Just a fan.  Not even a letterhack yet.  There was no social media, and no reason for him to know who I was from a hole in the wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

He Responded<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the mail one day came an envelope addressed to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Folded twice to fit inside was this 8 1\/2 x 11 inch piece of paper:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Todd<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It’s a simple thing: a photocopy of a Spider-Man image he drew for some cover or another, with a hand-signed thanks and autograph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Made my friggin’ year.  And looking at it now, more than 25 years later, it still brings a smile to my face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s been sitting in a folder in hiding for way too long. I’m going to frame this and hang it on the wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lesson Learned<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It’s a good reminder for creators that a random act of kindness can make a fan’s day, and might be a memory that lasts a lifetime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks, Todd!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Post Script<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The image on that paper was also used for the cover of “Comics Interview” #81, which I’ve quoted from elsewhere on this site. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Comics<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

“The Art of Todd McFarlane” reprints the image and captions it as “promotional art” with “notable uses” being the above cover and “store appearance signature sheets.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That brings up the question, “Does any artist bring signature sheets with them to store appearances anymore?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Once upon a time, I wrote a fan letter to Todd McFarlane. This is the story of what happened next…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27900,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"above","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/11\/mcspidey_autograph_header.jpg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27109,"url":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/welcome-to-the-mcspidey-chronicles\/","url_meta":{"origin":3657,"position":0},"title":"Welcome to The McSpidey Chronicles: FAQ and Resources","author":"Augie De Blieck Jr.","date":"November 5, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Welcome to the beginning of The McSpidey Chronicles, a collection of reviews for every Todd McFarlane-drawn issue of \"The Amazing Spider-Man.\"","rel":"","context":"In "FAQ"","block_context":{"text":"FAQ","link":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/category\/faq\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"McFarlane Spider-Man closeup","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/06\/mcspidey_faq_header.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/06\/mcspidey_faq_header.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/06\/mcspidey_faq_header.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/06\/mcspidey_faq_header.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27188,"url":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/the-amazing-spider-man-300-venom\/","url_meta":{"origin":3657,"position":1},"title":"The Amazing Spider-Man #300: “Venom”","author":"Augie De Blieck Jr.","date":"November 7, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"McFarlane inks himself. Venom has his fourth first appearance. And just who did create Venom, anyway? 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Yes, it's complicated enough to need a guide.","rel":"","context":"In "Resources"","block_context":{"text":"Resources","link":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/category\/resources\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A small sample of Amazing Spider-Man issues on sale at Comixology.com","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/comixology_mcSpidey_singe_issues_HEADER.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/comixology_mcSpidey_singe_issues_HEADER.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/comixology_mcSpidey_singe_issues_HEADER.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/10\/comixology_mcSpidey_singe_issues_HEADER.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27203,"url":"https:\/\/www.pipelinecomics.com\/mcspidey\/amazing-spider-man-306-humbugged\/","url_meta":{"origin":3657,"position":3},"title":"The Amazing Spider-Man #306: “Humbugged!”","author":"Augie De Blieck Jr.","date":"December 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Humbug returns to Empire State University to exact revenge with his bug-based powers. Only Spider-Man can stop him! Or any other superhero, really. 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