Deep Discussions with Decapitated Dan: Alex Grecian

Welcome back kiddies. I have lured Alex Grecian into the depths this week to pick his brain about life and everything in between. So sit back and relax as he tells us about who he is, what he does, and what we can expect from him in the future. Trust me, you will like what you read!

Alright lets start out with a short answer section and get the usual out of the way.
Name:
Alex Grecian

Age:
Older than my son, but younger than my father.

Married/Single/Dating/Other:
Married

Pets:
A cat named Zoe and a small tank of what appear to be dead Sea Monkeys, none of which had names.

Highest Education Level:
College at the University of Kansas.

High School Mascot:
If I remember right, it was the Scotties my freshman through junior years and the Chargers my senior year (transferred high schools three-fourths of the way through).

First Job:
Age 14. A summer job at a comic book store.

Favorite Ice Cream:
Root beer float.

Best Cartoon EVER:
“Water, Water, Every Hare,” in which a pint-sized mad scientist chases Bugs Bunny around a damp castle, shouting “Come back here, you rabbit” in slow motion, while they’re both high on chemical fumes.

Staying with short answers let’s talk about what you do:

Comic(s) you created before 2004:
I drew short stories for a bunch of comics, but the one that mattered most was “Little Remains” a 24-page comic that ended up being picked for the very first 24-Hour Comics collection, edited by Scott McCloud. That book also included stories by Neil Gaiman and Steve Bissette, among other talented folk, and I was very proud to be involved in it.

January 1, 2005 - October 1, 2007:
Seven Sons was my first collaboration with Riley Rossmo. We got a ton of critical praise for that original graphic novel and it paved the way for our future work together.

October 2, 2007 - the day after, the day after tomorrow:
Proof debuted at Image in late October, 2007 and is still going strong. The series is relaunching with a new #1 later this year. Meanwhile, I have graphic novels (Squeak! and RocketBots, among others) in the hopper, miniseries for a couple of comics publishers, and I’m working on a prose crime novel, which will be out at some point after the day after tomorrow.

All right, all that stuff aside lets get to the meat of the interview:

What do you do when not making comics?
Write novels and short stories and screenplays, play with my son, read, watch movies, cook, try to avoid learning how to fix up this charming old house we bought.

All-time best comic movie you ever saw and why?
American Splendor. It was structurally sophisticated and Paul Giamatti could probably act out scenes from the phone book and still be interesting.

All-time worst comic movie you ever saw and why?
Monkeybone. My brain hurts just thinking about it.

When you were 6 and 14 what were you for Halloween?
When I was six, I think I was Batman. By fourteen, I was too old to trick-or-treat anymore.

Any TV shows grabbing your attention these days?
Fringe, Dexter, 30 Rock, I’m really looking forward to seeing Treme.

Favorite music to listen to, right now?
I’m writing a dark thriller, set in England, so I’m listening to stuff that helps put me in the right frame of mind: James Newton Howard’s score for The Village and lots of Tori Amos.

What could you do with a hockey puck, two kittens and a big box of packing peanuts?
Make two kittens very very happy.
Back to comic stuff for now:

Knowing that Iceman is the greatest hero of all time, why do you think he is so underused?
Because everyone knows that The Flash could kick Iceman’s ass almost instantly. Best to keep him safely hidden away.

Favorite comic character when you were 5, 15 and 25?
The Flash, The Flash and The Flash. (But when I was five, that was Barry Allen and when I was 25 it was Wally West.) I probably strayed away every once in a while for Sandman or Robot Man or even Wolverine when I was really young, but The Flash has always been a constant for me.

You find a genie lamp, but he only offers you 3 comic related wishes what are they?
1. All the issues of Flash that I’m missing.
2. To magically organize my comics so I can find everything.
3. Readers checking out Proof when it relaunches with a new #1.

All right, you’re making a comic about a team of bowlers who control the fate of the world by how well they bowl. What’s the name of the book and sell me on a quick pitch, Go!
Three Fingers: Monty McGillicutty (“Cutty” to his friends) discovers that his custom bowling ball is an Earth familiar and that when he rolls it, the world responds. Unfortunately, there’s another ball just like it and Cutty’s team’s arch-rivals have it. If they won the championship, their ball will knock the Earth out of orbit and we’ll all plunge into the sun. Too bad Cutty’s behind the bar in a nacho-coma.

We all know you’re a great writer but what do you really want to be when you grow up?
Nothing else I’d rather be. (And nothing else I’m very good at.)

Where is the real money at in comic creating?
Being Jim Lee.

When you’re making comics what’s going on around you? Music, what kind? Silence? TV on?
I make iTunes play lists for each of the projects I’m working on and keep specific music going for whatever mood I need to be writing. I hear the same pieces of music over and over to the point where I don’t notice them anymore, but I think they still affect my writing. Other than that, I prefer isolation and silence.

Favorite character you ever created/worked on and why?
So far, Proof. Despite his appearance, he’s an idealized version of myself.

5 years from now. Where do you see yourself?
Straddling at least two industries, writing both comics and novels. I’d like to have a hand in writing screenplays, as well, but that’s not as sure a bet yet.

All right, we can finish up with a quick word association game. I will say a word, you give me a quick one sentence response.

Negative Burn?
Gave me my break in comics… twice; first as an artist in the ‘90s and then as a writer with the creation of Proof.

Proof?
My finest comics-related work so far.

Horror Comics?
Something my collaborator Riley and I are working on right now, outside of Proof.

Poker Face?
An irritatingly catchy song that I occasionally hear at the grocery store and can’t get back out of my head for the rest of the day.

Dextrophobia- Fear of objects at the right side of the body?
A perfectly reasonable problem for half of all identical twins.

Kool-Aid?
Vastly inferior to Hawaiian Punch.

Chester Cheetah?
An annoying hipster cat who needs to quit bogarting all my Cheetos.

Decapitated Dan?
Creator of the weirdest interview I’ve done.

Alex Grecian?
Worn out.

Thanks so much Alex!

To find out more about Alex and what he is up to please go to http://www.alexandergrecian.com/