And a bruising time was had by all

TODAY I LEARNED of another good reason not to go riding across the continent in the dog days. Remember how the iron piggy pulled up lame in the high desert of eastern Washington, 2011? I had toasted the motor jetting across the prairie, then climbing up and over the Rockies, and when we were back on the flats and had nothing but the Cascades ahead, she gave out.

The thing that will help to spare me and the rugged old piggy a repeat of that little misadventure is the word I received today, from New York: that I’m officially back writing the syndicated daily and Sunday stories for Lee Falk’s Phantom.

For how long? Dunno. A good guess would be somewhere between a few more months and a few more decades.

What’s more important is this: if another Phantom movie is never made, it won’t be because Hollywood viewed my 17-year tenure as a gap in the chain of title to the Phantom property. That’s where we left it on May 17, when I resigned. The copyright uncertainty wasn’t in anybody’s interests, and I said as much in my resignation letter.

 

Brendan Burford, my former editor at Hearst/King Features Syndicate, now general manager for syndication, was behind the initiative that resulted in today’s news. Brendan’s not a lawyer, and hadn’t been the point person in the contract talks that led up to me resigning, but he called in late May (Correction: early June) and asked if he could meet with my lawyer in New York, an informal meet over coffee or drinks, see if there was any possible way forward. I was sure nothing would come of it for all the many reasons detailed here.

We talked some more in the weeks ahead, appeared to come to another dead end. Then my lawyer, Eric Rayman, proposed an entirely new deal, and KFS proposed one of its own, and Eric edited some of the language, and we were getting somewhere, maybe, possibly. KFS hired outside counsel, that was a new cook in the kitchen throwing out ideas, and when we saw something new in writing Eric made some changes to that and the company was good with it, and then some more back and forth and et cetera, et cetera…

 

In a nutshell, I sold the rights to the scripts I wrote between 1999 and June 30 of this year, and agreed to write new scripts on a work-for-hire basis. That part of the deal is open ended, and either side can get out of it on short notice. Not knowing what’s in store is fine by me. Since 1999 I’ve been happy to serve at the pleasure of the corner office.

Today, when I got word that all signatures had been signed and all terms met, I sent Jeff Weigel the first four weeks of a new Sunday script, which got him back to the drawing board on the Phantom’s behalf. Jeff ran out of copy about a week ago. Mike Manley, the artist on the daily side of things, Monday through Saturday, he has six weeks of copy in the bank before he’ll be looking for a new story.

After all these years of writing 12 to 18 months ahead of deadline, I’ll be writing copy as the artists need it. At least until I can scoot ahead of them again and leave them in the dust.

 

Which brings me back to that summertime motorcycling thing, the dust and the scooting parts. The need to write Phantom yarns all of a sudden is yet one more good reason to not go anywhere in the heat. It was with a heavy heart that I made that call in recent days. I had been planning to get on the road around the 27th, head west with a Chris Rea tune in my head, spend time with friends in Seattle, then south to California and Johnny Danger’s place in the high desert on the eastern Sierra. We jawed about that on the phone the other day.

Oboy, though, July on two wheels, crossing the hellish heatsink that is Kansas…

The main reason not to go: I’m having a pain-management problem that’s been more or less chronic since last winter. I’m dealing with it at PT twice a week. It’ll get fixed but not in time for summer riding. Bumps I hit on the road come right up through the rear wheel and make sparks where C1 meets the base of my skull. It’s age, arthritis, and the only thing I can fix—and have fixed—lousy ergonomics at my work station,

Might be in shape for a long-distance run in the fall, maybe, who knows?

 

So that’s the news. It’s good to be back. The irony is, the daily story running in the papers now would have been a superb sign-off to my Phantom career. It’s easily one of the top three stories I’ve written since 1990. It’s about the Ghost Who Walks coming to terms with his mortality, and the vision of Old Man Mozz, the seer, who warned the Phantom that the end of his world is nigh.

None of that was news to the Phantom. He knew it long before Mozz did; long ago enough that he arranged for his son to go away to the Himalayas for his secondary education.

As they hiked in to the remote mountain city, young Kit had an inkling of what was going on.

Only the Phantom knows where Kit is, so when the Phantom meets his fate, his friend, Guran, chief of the Bandar, won’t be able to find Kit and bring him home to swear his oath as the 22nd Phantom. Far too young, the boy, only 15. No match for The Python, certainly, nor The Nomad.

Now with Kit safely away, things are rapidly moving to a conclusion. The Phantom feels eyes on his back everywhere he goes. Doom creeping up…

This story’s driving readers bonkers. Which is half the fun. People who’ve been reading the strip for 80 years are bracing to see their hero die. Others think it’s about time we killed him off.

I’ll enjoy working with Evelyn Smith, the new editor on the strip, and will be happy to resolve the storyline about the Phantom’s daughter, Heloise Walker, rooming at a boarding school in Manhattan with the daughter of The Nomad, an enemy the Phantom needs to do something about pronto.

Heloise likes her roommate, Kadia Sahara, but senses that things are a little off. She’s confided as much to her mother, Diana Palmer Walker.

Tony DePaul, July 17, 2017, Cranston, Rhode Island, USA

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About Tony

The occasional scribblings of Tony DePaul, 68, father, grandfather, husband, freelance writer in many forms, recovering journalist, long-distance motorcycle rider, blue routes wanderer, topo map bushwhacker, blah blah...
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20 Responses to And a bruising time was had by all

  1. Hank G. says:

    I am coming to this very late, but congratulations on being able to work out a deal with King to continue writing the Phantom. I like many of the characters you have introduced, and I am glad that we will (probably) see a resolution to Heloise’s roommate situation.

    • Tony says:

      Thanks for the good word, Hank. I really do enjoy being back at work on the scripts. Wish we didn’t burn so much time ironing things out, but…

      I’m only a month or two ahead of the artists now, instead of a year or more, but if I can clear the decks on some other things I’ll eventually get back to where we were.

      Thanks for reading the Phantom!

  2. John Urban says:

    Wonderful news! Now the threads of other stories can be continued, if Tony sees fit to do so… The scariest story arc previously was Eric Sahara’s and Phantom’s daughters becoming college roommates. No need for any extraordinary events here to thrill readers. That roommate situation is inherently super-scary, full of potential.

  3. Sagnik Ghosh says:

    A good news and I think it’s high time for writing a full-fledged long story centering NOMAD, the best villain you have created – a truly master enemy of GWW! After all we are seeing him in bits and pieces for long! 🙂
    Cheers, Sagnik

  4. steve lyon says:

    Kickass! That’s great news about the gig, not so great news about C1, but hopefully PT will do the trick.

    If you do make it out to the eastern Sierra in the fall, please drop me a line – I’m in the middle of the Sierra and would love an excuse to ride over to Johnny Danger’s neighborhood to say hello.

  5. Jon Brush says:

    Phantastic news.
    😎

    • Ellen McCurdy says:

      Fantastic news Tony – so happy for you that things worked out in your favor and you’re back writing these great stories. Take care of yourself and that neck! Hope to see you and Pam soon and meet D1D1.

  6. Peter Ryberg says:

    Good news and what a relief. Hope to see more of Savarna in the future…

  7. Fradley Barrel says:

    good job, another man who never dies

  8. Robert says:

    As a long time fan, I am happy to hear the news. Kudos also to Mr. Buford. Physical therapy works for me; hope it works for you.

    I also hope you got a nice piece of change for the rights, and that you get pulled in on the film script. (Perfect storyboard artist and writer with Mike Manley and you working together!)

    Best wishes,

    Robert

  9. Linda Dunne says:

    Congrats Tony, if you decide to travel in the fall, there is always a place to stay in Prince Edward Island. We go to Florida from November to end of April. Congrats, and keep writing and riding! Ron & Linda

  10. John Leasure says:

    It’s always good to know cooler heads prevail in a situation of their own making.

  11. Anbumani says:

    Win-Win.
    Phans welcome you back.
    Best Wishes.

  12. Tarquino Félix says:

    It’s great news for us, the fans. The Phantom wouldn’t be the same without you and that sense of continuity you bring to the characters. Now let’s pray for a good Phantom film adaptation.
    Wich actor would be your choice for the Ghost who Walks?

  13. Teresa Millett says:

    Sounds like good news! Maybe we will see you soon, or will your nose be to the grindstone…er, computer keys?

  14. Kevin says:

    Great news. Glad that somebody there knew what they were losing. Piggy will be waiting when you’re healed.

  15. Jody Larimore says:

    Love that you have found a path, if you get to Washington State stop by on you way south, we would love to see you and cook a meal for you! Jody

  16. Laura DePaul says:

    Great news, Dad!

  17. brad says:

    Well, that is good news. Congratulations on corporate realizing they had a good thing going. The road will miss you for a while, but good luck whipping C1 into alignment.

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