By Bill Meneese • 3/11/09

CosmicBookNews Exclusive Interview

With

Doug Smith

  

CosmicBookNews is excited to bring readers an exclusive interview with Doug Smith, foremost Nova fan on the planet and creator of the Nova Prime Page, the comprehensive website for all things Nova.

CosmicBookNews: Hi Doug. Thanks for fielding a few questions for our readers.

Doug: My pleasure! It’s a little weird being on this side of the questions.

CosmicBookNews: Let’s start by getting to know you a little better. Tell us a little about yourself – whatever you feel comfortable sharing about your background.

Doug: I was born, raised and still live in Iowa. Attended the University of Iowa and studied Broadcasting and Film Production. That’s where I met my wife Sheila. We were both going to school and worked at Godfather’s Pizza together. She wasn’t too sure about having a boyfriend who went to the comic book store all the time. But she married me anyway. We currently live in Marion, have one son and a baby granddaughter.

CosmicBookNews: How did you become interested in comics in general and Nova in particular?  I know you’re a Superman fan. Was Supes your favorite before Nova came along?

Doug: Yep. My parents gave me my first comics in 1969 when they saw how much I liked the Batman TV show. Those first comics were of Superman so he was the character I was exposed to and got hooked on. Soon after that, I discovered the Justice League of America and that was great because I got to discover a lot of different heroes in one single comic! I was pretty much a DC kid (Superman, Action, Batman, JLA, Flash, Green Lantern, and Shazam were my buys back then) and didn’t really discover Marvel characters until around 1973. Of course, I hooked onto some of their characters right away. Iron Man, Captain America, the Avengers, and the Invaders got added to the list over the next couple of years. My newspaper route money got spent pretty quickly each week.

My exposure to Nova came at a time when I was looking for a new character to follow. One I could be with from his beginning. Almost everything that was on the shelves already had a history. It wasn’t a problem for me to pick up on an established character but there was something about a new character that appealed to me at that time. That’s when I discovered The Man Called Nova!

To be honest, I almost didn’t pick it up because, at first glance, the cover of TMCN #1 scared me to death! There was a Brian De Palma movie called Phantom of the Paradise that I saw on HBO in early 1976 and it gave me the willies (Cut me a break, will ’ya? I was 12!). The main character wore a helmet that, to me, was similar to the one I saw on Nova. But there was also something really appealing about the cover that made me look through it. Once I started reading it in the grocery store, I was an instant fan.

However, Superman still remained my favorite character for many years with Nova always a close second. Nova has knocked Superman off the top of my chart twice. The first was during the original The Man Called Nova series and the second was with the arrival of the current Nova series by DnA. And I can easily say that Nova will stay at the top of that list from now on.

CosmicBookNews: What specifically piqued your interest in Nova?   I ask because to my mind, Nova is quite a bit different stylistically than Superman.

Doug: It was a number of things. Nova’s science fiction aspect was a big factor. I’ve always been a sci-fi guy. The bigger factor was the character of Richard Rider. Rich wasn’t a loser as a lot of people think he was. He was simply a teenager who was socially challenged and lacked self-confidence. Who couldn’t relate to that especially when you’re in junior high school? And let’s be honest, that costume rocked big shoes (even with the creepy helmet )!

CosmicBookNews: What other comics are you reading regularly these days and what really interests you about these characters?

Doug: On a monthly basis, I pick up Nova, Guardians of the Galaxy, Action Comics, Superman and JSA. I also get Green Lantern and Invincible Iron Man when they come out in hardcover. And I’ll pick up a handful of mini-series along the way (War of Kings, Superman: Secret Origin and Superman: World of New Krypton). I like GotG and JSA because of the team dynamics and great stories. Green Lantern and Iron Man are just studs. Real manly men.

CosmicBookNews: The Nova Prime Page is one of my first checkpoints every day when I surf.  Tell us about the Nova Prime Page – the when and why of its creation, how to access it; and for those who have never visited, tell us what a new visitor may find there. Also, tell us about your reaction when you found that the Nova Prime Page would be written into 616 Universe continuity for Nova #23.

Doug: Ten years ago, I was looking for a website to build as a creative outlet in my spare time. I wanted to do something with a comic book character I liked and it came down to three choices. It was between Superman, the Invaders and Nova. Superman already had a number of websites including the fantastic Superman Homepage, so he was out.

I picked Nova for a few reasons. He was getting a new series at that time by Erik Larsen (one that I ended up enjoying a lot). And, at the time, there were only two Nova websites out there. One was still in a beginning stage and the other had only focused on Nova’s second series from 1994. Plus, it was easier to do a site about one character than an entire team of Invaders.

That’s why I find the CosmicBookNews site so amazing. You guys keep track of so many titles and characters! I’d be shoving a red-hot road flare in my eye if I tried to do what you have done.

I launched the site on May 28, 1999 (my birthday!) and it can be found at www.novaprimepage.com. For someone who hasn’t been to the site before, they can find news, interviews, issue summaries from all the Nova series, character databases, and Nova products among other things. And it’s great to have to expand the Products section so much lately!! The current Nova series has allowed for some great items to come to the market including some beautiful statues to be released in 2009!

My reaction to Nova #23 was what the kids would call a freak-out! I may have squealed like a little girl at a Jonas Brothers concert.

CosmicBookNews: You also created a Yahoo Group where Nova fans regularly blog about all things Nova. Again, tell us the when and why of its creation, how to access it, and what a new visitor to the site may expect.

Doug: The Yahoo Nova Prime Group was a natural extension from the Nova Prime Page. Within a few days after launching the NPP site, I received e-mails from other Nova fans (notably Don Lund and Corey Blake) and discovered how nice it was to talk Nova with other fans! Creating the group took a little longer to start because I wasn’t sure how much I wanted to be a moderator of a group due to time constraints. But I took the plunge in October 2001. I’m so glad I did because I’ve made a number of great friends through the group and I love the sharing of ideas and thoughts on Nova!

In fact, I like it so much that I also moderate the Nova Message Board and host the Nova Chat Room on the Nova Prime Page. I’m starting to think that I may have a problem. We’re running some tests.

CosmicBookNews: Are there any other Nova or other comic websites you like or regularly visit?  What do you like about these other sites?

Doug: I really enjoy visiting the CosmicBookNews site, of course! I like to stop by Michael Bond’s Nova Force Forum and Darren Blackburn’s Nova Zone. I also like to go to other character sites like the Superman Homepage and Quantum Zone. Sometimes I will randomly pick characters that I like but haven’t caught up on for a while and check out sites to learn more about them.

For news and articles, I like Comic Book Resources, Newsarama, Comics Bulletin, Comics Continuum and Comic Bloc.

CosmicBookNews: Besides in the original series when Marv Wolfman and some other Marvel staff appeared as themselves in one issue, am I right in thinking that you are the only other living person who has ever been depicted in a Nova comic? You were depicted as a deceased Centurion if I remember correctly.  What issue was that?  Tell us the story behind your appearance in the comic.

Doug: If I remember right, the creative team of Nova’s third series appeared in Nova: The Human Rocket #7.

My appearance was in #7 of the current series. Artist Brian Denham (who’s now doing the X-Files comic and worked with Nova’s creator Marv Wolfman on a couple of the issues) e-mailed me and said he enjoyed the site and wanted to put me in as one of the Centurions as a thank you for the work I’d done. So I had my son take a picture of me (I felt like a giant goob posing for it) and I sent it to Brian. He designed the uniform and drew me in! It was a great honor to be in there and I can’t thank Brian enough for his generosity.

CosmicBookNews: Nova has had now four ongoing series, a mini-series, starring roles in Annihilation and Conquest events, participation in the first two New Warriors ongoing series and one New Warriors mini, and various guest starring roles in comics and events such as Infinity Gauntlet. Which are your favorites and why?  Which do you like least and why?

Doug: Overall, my favorites would have to be the original series and the current one. I loved Annihilation and the Annihilation: Nova mini-series, too! New Warriors was hit and miss with me but the first 50 issues or so of the original NW series were outstanding even though Nova’s new attitude took some getting used to. The other two Nova series were good and I wish they had lasted longer.

CosmicBookNews: Who are your favorite Nova writers and artists?

Doug: Favorite Nova Writers – Marv Wolfman, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. Favorite Nova Artists – Sal Buscema, Mark Bagley and Andrea DiVito. And although he’s only drawn him a handful of times, there’s no one I like to see draw Nova more than George Perez. He’s my absolute favorite artist!

CosmicBookNews: I am admittedly biased of course, but I think Nova is such a great concept – blending military science-fiction with superheroic fantasy.  Why do you think Nova has been a Marvel second or third string character for such long periods of time in the past when the character has always had such potential?

Doug: I think it has to do with whoever is in charge at Marvel at the time and which creators are interested in writing his adventures and gives the right pitch. In Nova’s case, he pretty much went into limbo until a generation of fans from his original series became comic professionals and were in a position to bring him back.

For example, even though Joe Quesada has publicly said that the cosmic side of the Marvel Universe isn’t his cup of joe [Laughs], he appreciates that there is a market for the material and chose to pursue it with high quality talent. And Bill Rosemann has done a superb job of expanding the cosmic line and keeping it all at a high level of hyper-coolness.

CosmicBookNews: I heard recently that a Moon Knight TV series is being developed.  With so many Marvel characters being optioned for Motion Picture and TV treatments, it would seem to me that Nova would be snapped up quickly given its unique blend of science-fiction with superheroic fantasy – especially given the popularity of military science-fiction these days. Why do you think Nova has been overlooked by Marvel for TV or Movie treatment?

Doug: I agree 1000%! But just like on the comic side, I think it has to do with who’s in charge and whether they can understand and appreciate the overwhelming potential that Nova has. Personally, I think Nova would be a huge success as an animated movie.

CosmicBookNews: You published an online Nova fanzine posted at the Nova Prime Page for Nova’s 30th Anniversary in 2006 and it was fantastic!  I know you also contribute articles to other publications.  Are there any projects for comics in general, Nova in general, or the Nova Prime Page in particular you are working on and are at liberty to tell us about today?

Doug: Thanks! The fanzine (Rocket Boosters) was an absolute blast to do. And I will always be sincerely grateful to all the Nova fans and comic professionals who contributed to the fanzine. It’s still available as a free download on the Nova Prime Page for anyone who hasn’t read it yet.

Later this month, my first professional article will be in Back Issue #33 from TwoMorrows Publishing. The article is on the history of the original The Man Called Nova series. It was really fun and exciting to interview Marv Wolfman, Len Wein, Sal Buscema, Carmine Infantino and Jim Shooter! Thing is, my voice sounds like a muppet’s. So I’m sure Sal and Carmine had to wonder why a nervous Kermit was asking them questions about Nova. Thankfully, everyone else’s interviews were via e-mail!

Here’s a teaser: In the article, you get to learn the original inspiration for Nova’s helmet!

CosmicBookNews: Thanks Doug!  On behalf of CosmicBookNews it’s been a pleasure talking with you; and I think I speak for all Nova fans in saying how much we appreciate your work in promoting and organizing all things Nova for the fans worldwide.

Doug: Thank you! It’s really nice to know that people appreciate the site!

  

  

  

 

  

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