Quote from user: rodneyWell, the financial troubles of the museum are well documented, even without an "official" statement from Diamond. All you have to do is search "geppi entertainment museum debt" in Google, and you'll find numerous news stories (many from reputable Maryland newspapers) documenting the massive debts to the city and state.
And it has been well documented, too, that Geppi's collossal printing debt (that led to his printers refusing to print anything more for him (including his Disney Comics) was mainly owed for non-Disney Comics jobs.
So, the Museum debts and the printing problems, ALONE, could have led to Geppi's decison to give up The Disney Comics' franchise (if it had a lower priority to him than others of his operations). So, it could be possible that Gemstone Disney Comics was operating at a slight (but workable) profit level, and was stopped due solely to problems elsewhere in Geppi's empire.
Author
Topic: Boom Solicitations - August 2009
(37 messages)
Robb_K
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 31 -
2009-07-28 at 12:53:53
Kneon
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 32 -
2009-07-28 at 14:29:26
If anyone wants to see Gemstone's actual numbers, you can do a little research here...
http://www.comicbookpage.com/SalesEstimates/CBGTitles.php?Publisher=Gemstone
... and here...
http://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales.html
Seems like Uncle Scrooge had been hovering around 4,200-4,500 copies for the past few years, with WDC&S hovering between 3,500-4,000. Now, given that those are prestige titles with a high price tag AND that the American comic book market is in the gutter AND that Disney comics haven't been that popular over here for many years... those numbers aren't COMPLETELY terrible. (trying to be positive.) Also keep in mind that those numbers account only for direct market sales (to comic speciality shops) and not for sales through places like Amazon.
I think the Disney books were pretty much self-sustaining, even though they catered to a relatively small audience. I think the real culprit was Geppi's other (and apparently more important) ventures eating into whatever pittance of a budget those guys were given. I think publishing Disney books was more of a hobby for Geppi than anything, and when it became time to buckle down the Ducks were the first to go.
Again, that's based on my own snooping and piecing together the rumors... for whatever that's worth. ;)
http://www.comicbookpage.com/SalesEstimates/CBGTitles.php?Publisher=Gemstone
... and here...
http://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales.html
Seems like Uncle Scrooge had been hovering around 4,200-4,500 copies for the past few years, with WDC&S hovering between 3,500-4,000. Now, given that those are prestige titles with a high price tag AND that the American comic book market is in the gutter AND that Disney comics haven't been that popular over here for many years... those numbers aren't COMPLETELY terrible. (trying to be positive.) Also keep in mind that those numbers account only for direct market sales (to comic speciality shops) and not for sales through places like Amazon.
I think the Disney books were pretty much self-sustaining, even though they catered to a relatively small audience. I think the real culprit was Geppi's other (and apparently more important) ventures eating into whatever pittance of a budget those guys were given. I think publishing Disney books was more of a hobby for Geppi than anything, and when it became time to buckle down the Ducks were the first to go.
Again, that's based on my own snooping and piecing together the rumors... for whatever that's worth. ;)
Kneon
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 33 -
2009-07-28 at 14:37:43
Quote from user: rodneyWell, the financial troubles of the museum are well documented, even without an "official" statement from Diamond. All you have to do is search "geppi entertainment museum debt" in Google, and you'll find numerous news stories (many from reputable Maryland newspapers) documenting the massive debts to the city and state.
And you'll probably never get an official statement from Diamond about the severity of company's financial woes. They'll be playing their violins on the deck of the Titanic right up until the very end...
And you'll probably never get an official statement from Diamond about the severity of company's financial woes. They'll be playing their violins on the deck of the Titanic right up until the very end...
Morequack
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 34 -
2009-07-28 at 14:43:46
Quote from user: KneonAnd you'll probably never get an official statement from Diamond about the severity of company's financial woes. They'll be playing their violins on the deck of the Titanic right up until the very end...
True. :D
True. :D
WB
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 35 -
2009-07-28 at 14:49:18
That makes the most sense when you put two and two together. Shame, really. :(
Again though - it would be nice to see a different approach taken to try and regain the casual readers and most importantly, the children that were flat out lost when the books went prestige and alienated its readership and their pocketbooks. Disney Comics don't HAVE to cater to a small audience. They only did so for years because that's the way they set up their business model and when it fell out of thier control (Geppi's idiotic nostalgia goggles museum being the primary catalyst) they had no way of fixing or even attempting to fix the quagmire they'd eventually set themselves up for. It's amazing it lasted as long as it did. It was self sustaining - that is no lie, because the proof is right there - but that, in no way, equals best. Eventually, Old Yeller was going to have to be taken out back to be shot. :(
The fact that they have lasted for so long despite the culmination of years of bad circumstances (the Disney takeover), bad decisions (this Barks story hasn't been reprinted within the past few days, let's use that!), bad mishandlings (the entirety of the prestige format debacle), and bad luck (the museum) does not outweigh or mar the good that they did. If it were not for them keeping the license alive or daring to bring it back in the first place to PROVE that it would succeed and that people did care, we wouldn't have half of the achievements we do today. There was once a time when Donald and Mickey outsold the numbers on Superman and Batman today twofold. While that age may not be able to happen again I am quite positive Disney Comics can do ten times better than it has done from the Disney era on up if the right care and effort in management/business decisions are put into the right places. Boom simply cannot afford to make the same mistakes that Disney and Gemstone/Gladstone II (in their stubbornness, naivete, and/or otherwise) did on an oft repeated basis.
Here's hoping.
Again though - it would be nice to see a different approach taken to try and regain the casual readers and most importantly, the children that were flat out lost when the books went prestige and alienated its readership and their pocketbooks. Disney Comics don't HAVE to cater to a small audience. They only did so for years because that's the way they set up their business model and when it fell out of thier control (Geppi's idiotic nostalgia goggles museum being the primary catalyst) they had no way of fixing or even attempting to fix the quagmire they'd eventually set themselves up for. It's amazing it lasted as long as it did. It was self sustaining - that is no lie, because the proof is right there - but that, in no way, equals best. Eventually, Old Yeller was going to have to be taken out back to be shot. :(
The fact that they have lasted for so long despite the culmination of years of bad circumstances (the Disney takeover), bad decisions (this Barks story hasn't been reprinted within the past few days, let's use that!), bad mishandlings (the entirety of the prestige format debacle), and bad luck (the museum) does not outweigh or mar the good that they did. If it were not for them keeping the license alive or daring to bring it back in the first place to PROVE that it would succeed and that people did care, we wouldn't have half of the achievements we do today. There was once a time when Donald and Mickey outsold the numbers on Superman and Batman today twofold. While that age may not be able to happen again I am quite positive Disney Comics can do ten times better than it has done from the Disney era on up if the right care and effort in management/business decisions are put into the right places. Boom simply cannot afford to make the same mistakes that Disney and Gemstone/Gladstone II (in their stubbornness, naivete, and/or otherwise) did on an oft repeated basis.
Here's hoping.
Kneon
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 36 -
2009-07-28 at 14:56:33
I have to agree with that, WB. Boom is going to face a few obstacles with retailers. The biggest I can think of is the stigma that Disney comics are for collectors only and are well-documented "failures." It was all over the place when Gemstone pulled the plug on the pocket books and floppies, and Gemstone's messy demise made the rumor mill as well.
I know that the two comics shops in my hometown stopped ordering Gemstone's books years ago, and if I wanted them I had to go to Amazon. I think they would've sold if they had actually put them on the shelf, but the books had a reputation for being stuffy, expensive failures.
I'm hoping if nothing else, Boom will win back some retailers and give Disney books another shot. The rep they've built up with the Pixar and Muppet books ought to give them enough "street cred" to warrant their Mickey and Donald books getting another look.
I hope. :-/
I know that the two comics shops in my hometown stopped ordering Gemstone's books years ago, and if I wanted them I had to go to Amazon. I think they would've sold if they had actually put them on the shelf, but the books had a reputation for being stuffy, expensive failures.
I'm hoping if nothing else, Boom will win back some retailers and give Disney books another shot. The rep they've built up with the Pixar and Muppet books ought to give them enough "street cred" to warrant their Mickey and Donald books getting another look.
I hope. :-/
Kneon
Boom Solicitations - August 2009
Message 37 -
2009-07-28 at 15:04:30
Quote from user: WBAgain though - it would be nice to see a different approach taken to try and regain the casual readers and most importantly, the children that were flat out lost when the books went prestige and alienated its readership and their pocketbooks. Disney Comics don't HAVE to cater to a small audience. They only did so for years because that's the way they set up their business model and when it fell out of thier control (Geppi's idiotic nostalgia goggles museum being the primary catalyst) they had no way of fixing or even attempting to fix the quagmire they'd eventually set themselves up for. It's amazing it lasted as long as it did. It was self sustaining - that is no lie, because the proof is right there - but that, in no way, equals best. Eventually, Old Yeller was going to have to be taken out back to be shot. :(
Not sure if anyone else here remembers this or not, but at one point, the 32 page books were being sold at CVS drug stores, etc. in their own attention-getting display. It was awesome! They went all out at the beginning, but eventually settled into the mindset of "for the collector by the collector." The kid-friendly pocket books were sacrificed to save the collector-friendly prestige books, despite the pocket books actually outselling WDC&S (so I've heard.)
I kind of wonder if they gave up on their attempts to get the books into the mainstream because the cook has to be seen eating his own cooking. How could Geppi champion the direct market (which he pretty much owns) when he was trying to push his own books outside the direct market? It would've been good for Gemstone, but fodder for pundits who were already pronouncing the direct market as being on life support...
Not sure if anyone else here remembers this or not, but at one point, the 32 page books were being sold at CVS drug stores, etc. in their own attention-getting display. It was awesome! They went all out at the beginning, but eventually settled into the mindset of "for the collector by the collector." The kid-friendly pocket books were sacrificed to save the collector-friendly prestige books, despite the pocket books actually outselling WDC&S (so I've heard.)
I kind of wonder if they gave up on their attempts to get the books into the mainstream because the cook has to be seen eating his own cooking. How could Geppi champion the direct market (which he pretty much owns) when he was trying to push his own books outside the direct market? It would've been good for Gemstone, but fodder for pundits who were already pronouncing the direct market as being on life support...