CBLDF - Press Releases

Statements on Handley Sentencing

The Anime News Network has gathered reaction statements from the comics and anime community on the sentencing of Christopher Handley. Read CBLDF Executive Director Charles Brownstein's comments after the jump, and visit ANN for commentary from Carl Horn and Jason Thompson. UPDATED -- Handley attorney Eric Chase makes a statement.

Handley Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

Christopher Handley, the collector of manga who pleaded guilty to possession of obscene visual representations of minors engaged in sexual conduct, was sentenced to six months in federal prison last week. Read on for a summary of the sentencing.

Liberty Comics #2 Previews!

This October, Image Comics publishes the second volume of the blockbuster CBLDF benefit anthology Liberty Comics! Liberty Comics #2 (AUG090303), a 48-page full color comic book for $4.99, will be in stores October, 14 2009, but you can preview it today! Read on!

Liberty Comics #2 Arrives in October!

CBLDF Defenders of Liberty Neil Gaiman & Jim Lee lead off an all-star ensemble of industry greats in an all-new second volume of Liberty Comics! All proceeds from Liberty Comics will benefit the First Amendment legal work of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. To check out the John Romita, Jr. cover and the full creative team, Click here!

Conversational Comics Concludes on August 15

Conversational Comics, the three-panel speaker series sponsored by the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, concludes at host venue Union Pool in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Saturday, August 15 at 2:00 pm. Austin English (Windy Corner, Christina and Charles), Lisa Hanawalt (Stay Away From Other People, I Want You) and Dash Shaw (Bottomless Belly Button, Bodyworld) will talk with comics critic Bill Kartalopoulos (Parsons, Print Magazine) about the relationship between image-making and drawing for comics. How do pictures work differently in comics than they do on gallery walls?

Listen to the audio of the previous installment of Conversational Comics, Telling Stories: Fiction in Comics, featuring Jessica Abel, Jason Little and Matthew Thurber:

Download the mp3 (52.7Mb)

Job Opportunities at CBLDF

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is currently seeking individuals to fill its Deputy Director and Fundraising Manager positions. Full job descriptions follow here.

CBLDF's Comic-Con Auction Preview!

The CBLDF pulls out all the stops for this year's main event live auction! Featuring original art from Harvey Kurtzman, Paul Pope, Mike Mignola, Dave Gibbons, Jim Lee, Ben Templesmith, Jeff Smith, Jaime Hernandez & many more, the Fund's Comic-Con auction gathers a plethora of outstanding comic art & collectibles under one roof to benefit the CBLDF's First Amendment legal work. The auction happens on Saturday night, July 25 at 7:15 in Room 2 of the San Diego Convention Center. Read on for the full list, selected preview images, and bidding instructions.

NEW -- UPDATED with 1/1 44" x 44" Dave McKean print; Michael Allred limited edition print set, high grade CGC Signature Comics & more!

CBLDF Heats Up Your Comic-Con Nights!

Support Free Speech At Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Events!

The CBLDF is your one-stop source for the best nightlife at Comic-Con! Whether your tastes run towards cocktails under the stars, hard edged punk cabaret, or multimedia DJs & hip-hop icons, the CBLDF has you covered with a full array of outstanding benefit events. Things kick off on Thursday with the Comic-Con Welcome Party at the Westgate Hotel. Amanda Palmer rachets up the energy with a benefit concert on Friday. And on Saturday night, Murs, Eclectic Method, Paul Pope and a host of music and live art masters blow it all out at POPCULTOUR, hosted by Josh Blaylock, Murs, & JahFurry. Read on for the full details of CBLDF's Comic-Con nightlife!

CBLDF Master Sessions at Comic-Con!

This year at Comic-Con, take a glimpse inside the creative process of comics' most talented artists at the CBLDF Master Sessions. Created in collaboration with Comic-Con International, CBLDF Master Sessions is a series of art demonstration events showing the creative process live on the big screen in a large classroom style room at the Con. Participants in this year's Master Session series include: Dave Gibbons, Mike Mignola, Jeff Smith, Jim Lee, Jill Thompson, Charles Vess, Terry Moore, Camilla D'Errico, and David Mack. All art created during the CBLDF Master Sessions will be auctioned off to benefit the Fund at our Saturday night auction!

CONVERSATIONAL COMICS CONTINUES AT UNION POOL

Conversational Comics, the three-panel speaker series sponsored by the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, continues at host venue Union Pool in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Saturday, July 11 at 2:00 pm.

Jessica Abel (Artbabe, La Perdida), Jason Little (Shutterbug Follies) and Matthew Thurber (1-800-Mice, Kramers Ergot) will talk with comics critic Bill Kartalopoulos (Parsons, Print Magazine) about the nature of narrative and fiction in comics. We'll consider forms of storytelling that comics can adapt, and others that comics can generate.

Then stick around to get a book signed, hit the taco truck, and sip a summer drink with our featured cartoonists.

All events take place at 2:00 pm in the back room at Union Pool. Union Pool is located at 484 Union Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11211, one block from the Lorimer-Metropolitan G and L stop.

Suggested donation for each event is $5. All proceeds go to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

Listen the audio of the previous installment of Conversational Comics:

Download the mp3 (52.7Mb)

CBLDF Offers Strangers in Paradise Omnibus Lettered Edition

Abstract Studio & Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab Team Up to Support CBLDF!

Abstract Studio and Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab have teamed up to create a strictly limited, lettered edition of the Strangers in Paradise Omnibus, a set that promises to be the rarest of all SiP collectibles, all to benefit the CBLDF! This item is available now, concurrent with aneBay auction to own letter A of Z with one of a kind Black Phoenix collectibles!

Limited to 26 copies, the SiP Omnibus Lettered Edition includes: One set of the strictly limited three-volume hardcover SiP Omnibus edition, an original drawing by Terry Moore, and a bottle of "Parker Lily," a fragrance based on Terry Moore's beloved epic created by Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, and strictly limited to 26 bottles. All sets can be available for pick up at Comic-Con in San Diego, or will be mailed in the first week of August. Choose the option you prefer when you add this item to your cart.

If that weren't enough, right now the Fund is offering the rarest SiP item of all on eBay -- Letter A of this limited edition set, plus a bottle each of the two prototypes of Parker Lily! These prototype fragrances are the same ones sent to Terry Moore for approval and are a one of a kind offering! Bidding on this CBLDF exclusive is now open.

CBLDF Launches "Conversational Comics," a Summer Speaker Series at Union Pool, Brooklyn!

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund proudly presents Conversational Comics: a new summer speaker series taking place on three separate Saturday afternoons at Union Pool in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

TFAW.com and The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Launch New Fundraising Promotion for SDCC 2009

Things From Another World (TFAW.com) and The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF) are inviting comic industry professionals to take part in an exciting new fundraising promotion, which will culminate at the CBLDF's auction at San Diego Comic-Con 2009 (July 23rd-26th). This event is open to individual creators and companies in the comic, toy, and comic collectibles industry and has already been generously endorsed by flagship sponsors Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Top Shelf Productions, Periscope Studio, and Top Cow Productions. Additionally we are thrilled to launch this event with the art of esteemed and award-winning artists David Hahn, Steve Lieber, Mike Mignola, and Eric Powell already committed to the auction.

CBLDF & The Beat Host Rock-n-Roll Karaoke

On Saturday, June 6th, comic book lovers and supporters of free speech gathered together for a very special night of Live Rock and Roll Karaoke to benefit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Co-Sponsored by Publisher's Weekly's The Beat, there was an incredible meeting of creators, fans, and bloggers. Attendees including Bob Schreck, Shannon Stewart, Douglas Wolk, Jimmy Aquino, Nikki Cook, Tucker Stone, Dean Haspiel, Dan Goldman, and many more gathered at M1-5, a bar in lower Manhattan, to celebrate the First Amendment, MoCCA, and rocking out.

CBLDF Disappointed By Guilty Plea in Handley Manga Case

According to a press release issued by the Department of Justice, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has learned that Christopher Handley, the Iowa manga collector, has pleaded guilty "to possessing obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children and mailing obscene material." CBLDF had served as a special consultant to Mr. Handley's defense. The government's press release states, "Handley faces a maximum of 15 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and a three-year term of supervised release." Additionally, he forfeits all property seized in his prosecution. Full Story