Creators | Tom Spurgeon has word from a former George Tuska spokesman that the longtime Iron Man artist has passed away. He was 93.
Tuska began his career in 1939 as an assistant on Scorchy Smith, and worked for the comic "packaging" studio owned by Will Eisner and Jerry Iger. He later drew for Fawcett and Quality, and then moved to Marvel in the 1960s, where he penciled such titles as Daredevil, Ghost Rider and The X-Men before beginning a decade-long run on Iron Man. Tuska left Marvel in the late 1970s for DC Comics and in 1978 helped launch a new Superman daily comic strip, on which he worked until 1993.
Tuska is survived by his wife of 61 years Dorothy, their three children and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. [The Comics Reporter, Tony Isabella]
Conventions | As Big Apple Comic Con -- "the New York area's largest pop culture festival" -- opens, Variety and the Los Angeles Times spotlight the official launch today of GeekChicDaily, the new e-newsletter founded by Wizard Entertainment CEO Gareb Shamus, movie producer Peter Guber and digital entertainment entrepreneur Peter Levin.
Meanwhile, comics and TV writer Paul Cornell explains why he won't be attending the convention: "The guy who originally invited me was made redundant the day after he did so. Which doesn't fill one with confidence. But, sure enough, his boss was kind enough to honour the commitment. And there was some communication on that score. However, by the start of this week, I'd noticed that days were ticking by without any actual arrangements being made. So I finally said that if they'd already bought the air ticket, then of course I'd come, because I didn't want them to lose out financially because of me, but if they hadn't, then not to worry about it. Which resulted in... absolute silence. So when I say I'm not going to New York... well, that's my best guess as we speak."
Heidi MacDonald reported earlier this week that "several announced guests" hadn't received their travel arrangements, "and several others who were invited pulled out when such arrangements were not forthcoming." [Big Apple Comic Con]
Conventions | Pulp Nouveau Comix in Canandaigua, New York, on Sunday is sponsoring the first Canandaigua Comic Con. Guests will include Nicholas Gurewitch and Chris Yambar. [Daily Messenger]
Events | An exhibit will debut Saturday at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art that highlights the connection between ancient Indian paintings and modern Indian comics. "Heroes and Villains: The Battle for Good in India's Comics" will run through Feb. 7. [The Wall Street Journal]
Publishing | Here's another look at 50 years of Asterix, which has sold 325 million books worldwide. [AFP]
Retailing | Amazon has introduced same-day delivery in seven U.S. cities: New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, Baltimore, Las Vegas and Seattle. Chicago, Indianapolis and Phoenix will be added soon. [Bits]
Sales charts | The New York Times Graphic Books Best Seller List is filled with debuts this week, led by the first volume of Bloom County: The Complete Library as the No. 1 hardcover, The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks at the top paperback, and the ninth volume of Rosario Vampire as the No. 2 manga. [The New York Times]
Comics | Christopher Allen, Michael Paciocco and Marc Sobel discuss Planetary. [Trouble with Comics]