We are proud to announce the two-time Eisner award-winning magazine,
Comic Book Artist, will now be published by Top Shelf Productions, as of
June 2003. "CBA Editor Jon B. Cooke has long been a friend of Top Shelf
and we've admired his magazine for years, so we couldn't be happier to
have CBA join us," said Chris Staros. "CBA brings an added prestige and
unabashed enthusiasm about comics which complements our entire line,"
adds Brett Warnock.

Winner of the 2000 and 2002 Will Eisner Comics Industry Award for Best
Comics-Related Periodical, Comic Book Artist has been devoted to
covering the lives and works of many an overlooked comics creator, as
well as examining hitherto unknown aspects of this wacky and wonderful
field for the past five years, fast becoming a favorite among fans and
professionals. "I've been gratified to receive encouragement and
accolades from such diverse artists as Art Spiegelman and Jim Lee,"
editor Cooke said. "Writers as different as Michael Chabon and Stan Lee
have also lent CBA their support, so needless to say it's been a long
and delightfully strange trip so far. And, I promise, it's going to get
even stranger!"

Cooke plans an entire revamp for CBA, though he assures that it will
retain its strong emphasis on retrospective material. "The original
incarnation of CBA focused primarily on the history of comics from the
'60s to the early '80s, with occasional forays into the contemporary
field. The magazine covered some pretty diverse material, from Sugar &
Spike to National Lampoon, as well as devoting issues to some of the
field's top creators, including Neal Adams and Alex Toth. We'd take a
subject -- say the comics of Atlas/Seaboard or Harvey Comics -- and
exhaustively cover every single aspect every which way but Tuesday!
While I don't intend to feature such wall-to-wall coverage in the
regular issues of CBA, I will spotlight smaller, more manageable
subjects within (we hope) every issue, and leave the 'carpet-bombing'
approach for the CBA Specials we will be releasing every so often."

"I'd like CBA to better reflect its name by looking less at companies
and more at worthy individual artists, whether they be contemporary
newcomers or traditional fan favorites." Each issue of the new Comic
Book Artist will continue to feature comprehensive interviews, as well
as headlining creators who have made a significant impact on the field.
Future subjects scheduled to be showcased include Frank Cho, Bernie
Wrightson, Colleen Doran, Alex Ross, Kyle Baker, William Stout, Michael
Allred, George Tuska, Bob Burden, Tim Bradstreet, Jim Lee, Jeff Smith,
Mark Shultz, Will Eisner, and many others. The revamped magazine will
also inaugurate news and review departments as well as the debut of a
color section.

"We will vigorously cover the field in typical CBA fashion, with
emphasis on art and quality," Cooke explained, "pointing out what's
worthy, cool, and especially fun, from a positive and productive
perspective."

Current plans are for CBA to release #1, Vol. 2 under the Top Shelf
banner in June 2003. The magazine will publish 10 times a year, retail
for $7.50, and release one to two Specials a year. Cooke said, "We will
aggressively seek advertising as well as review current material (so we
implore folks to send review copies of their stuff to CBA), and the
magazine will not only showcase timeless features but also
up-to-the-minute coverage of events and publications important to our
readers."

TwoMorrows Publishing, the former publisher of CBA, will continue to
sell back issues of CBA's first 25-issue incarnation (visit
www.twomorrows.com/comicbook artist for ordering info or write
TwoMorrows, 1812 Park Drive, Raleigh, NC 27605; phone (919) 833-8092;
e-mailtwomorrow@aol.com).

"Moving to Top Shelf is important for me professionally and personally,"
Cooke added. "Chris Staros and Brett Warnock so obviously love comics,
and I count them as good friends, so I'm naturally looking forward to
the transition with great enthusiasm. Top Shelf has published
outstanding material, both timeless and cutting-edge stuff I've been
admiring for years, and I can't adequately express how happy I am to be
joining them."

Jon B. Cooke's address and contact information remain the same:

Jon B. Cooke
Comic Book Artist
PO Box 204
West Kingston, RI 02892-0204

E-mail: JonBCooke@aol.com


Your friend thru comics,

Chris Staros
Top Shelf Productions
PO Box 1282
Marietta, GA 30061-1282
USA

staros@bellsouth.net
http://www.topshelfcomix.com

Top Shelf publications are available (or can be ordered from) wherever
graphic novels and books are sold, and are distributed to the direct
market by Diamond Comic Distributors, Last Gasp, FM International, Cold
Cut, Red Route, and Top Shelf Productions, and to the book trade by
Diamond Book Distributors.