It is quite rare to hear those who regularly leave their house on a Friday night saying that they’re about to ‘get their geek on’. For this to normally apply, they’re surely heading to a geek themed party donning glasses and a collection of well organised pens in their chest pocket. Tonight makes an exception though as the man on stage, armed with a slideshow, is going to introduce a life-long affection to comic books and his 30 year career in the industry.
Tim Quinn has spent over thirty years editing, illustrating and scriptwriting a fistful of well name-dropped characters from both sides of the Atlantic. He’s worked with British schoolboy bangers-and-mash style favourites such as the Beano, Dandy and Beezer, to the epic heights of Marvel comics, New York. He has also had time for the cartoons section in the Daily Mirror, various witty parodies featuring the likes of Doctor Who and also edited a magazine featuring Barbie.
With such a well rounded resume this should be interesting.
‘ARGH! The ups and downs of Life as a comic book creator’ has been billed as comedy in the venue’s seasonal programme although the description probably provoked the audience to wonder even before choosing to purchase tickets. It’s not long until doubts are answered… when was the last time you saw a comedian welcoming the audience at the door? Perhaps this should be a literary event? Either way, no one seems affected. He’s already proven himself to be a very nice chap.
Tim is very enthusiastic about the subject, and he should be as it has enveloped his whole life. He’s like a friend who boyishly talks to a person regardless of the expression on their face.
It becomes apparent that a number of the audience are comic enthusiasts. A special mention should be given to two teenage lads sat at the front, who before seated are looking at an array of past works and signed rough drawings displayed at the side of the stage.
The talk gets underway with the story behind comic books, where it began and how it came to be, highlighting comics and characters from a bygone age – classic characters being used for the sake of propaganda and then to my amusement he shows us a world devoid of political correctness; a sexist, racist and insular post-war world.
He shows us a couple of examples which affect the crowd in a jovial manner. It’s like when a grand parent bleats a comment that should never be heard in public. “It’s alright, its only grandad”.
We then learn about Tim himself – his childhood, the nostalgic graphics that he grew up around and his uncertain road up the ranks of the trade. He shows us pictures as a young boy reading his first comic and goes on to vividly remember the company logos, corporate characters and adverts of the 50s. We go on to learn about his education before finding out how he came to be in the business.
It would seem that the show is a big hit when it comes to nostalgia and history but once he reaches the peak of his success, people’s interest begin to wane. This is by no stretch to the imagination where the story ends and one or two may have wondered when it would. A girlfriend in the fifth row seems twitchy and Tim would be forgiven in feeling rushed, but even if he’s detected attentions decreasing he still possesses the same familiar smile he began with that evening. His aura is of a man who has accomplished a lot in a field he has a great passion for. It is his excitement that appeals strongest, as is true with most shows of this variety, and you do not have to be a comic lover to appreciate this.
Whilst late night in a laboratory, Tim Quinn is reading his favourite comics, but after being exposed to deadly radiation the comic books fuse into his skin…. he becomes Super Tim, the entertainer and extraordinarily nice bloke!
Tom Putnam is a writer, comedy buff, odd-website hunter and top Tapster
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