Quick Hits | Rest in peace, KC Carlson

Former Superman and Legion of Super-Heroes editor KC Carlson has passed away. His wife, Johanna Carlson-Draper, reported the news on her blog.

A longtime comics fan, Carlson came into prominence as an editor at DC in the early 1990s, working on Legion of Super-Heroes, its sister title Legionnaires, Who’s Who in the DC Universe, Zero Hour, the Superman titles and collected editions of V for Vendetta and Sandman, among other titles. In addition, he also worked in comics distribution for Capital City and for mail-order retailer Westfield Comics as a blogger.

“Sad to hear of the passing of KC Carlson, one of the gentlest effective editors DC had in my decades,” wrote former DC executive Paul Levitz. “KC had a love for comics that came out in all his work in the field, in all his writing about comics, and in the open encouragement he offered creators. He did a stint guiding the Legion after my second run, and while it wasn’t to my taste (what parent likes the approach of adoptive ones to their kids?), it’s a time many Legion fans recall fondly.”

We offer our condolences to Johanna for her loss, as well as KC’s other family, friends and fans.

Creators | Deadpool and Youngblood creator Rob Liefeld has stated (again) that he will no longer work with Marvel after “a series of perceived slights at July’s New York premiere of Deadpool & Wolverine,” according to the Hollywood Reporter (as well as Liefeld himself, via his Robservations podcast).

Those “slights” include not being invited to an after party for the movie — something he attended for the first two Deadpool films, denial of a credit at the beginning of the film and a snub by Marvel executive Kevin Feige. “Kevin Feige does not treat comic book creators well. That is my personal experience,” Liefeld said on the podcast.

Liefeld announced last year he was “retiring” from Deadpool after the completion of Deadpool Team-Up, which will see its final issue published this week. He will return to Youngblood in April to work on remastered versions of the original series, under the title Youngblood Deluxe.

Creators | Sandman writer Neil Gaiman has been accused of rape in a lawsuit by his former nanny. Gaiman and his ex-wife, Amanda Palmer, have also been accused of sexual trafficking.

Scarlett Pavlovich filed multiple lawsuits in Massachusetts, New York and Wisconsin, accusing Gaiman and Palmer of violating federal human trafficking prohibitions. She is seeking mote than $7 million in damages. Palmer has denied the allegations on social media, without offering further details.

Allegations against Gaiman surfaced last year when several women accused him of sexual misconduct over the course of many years. New York Magazine published a detailed (and graphic — trigger warning) account last month, and Gaiman himself returned to his blog for the first time since the allegations surfaced to deny them. Dark Horse has since cancelled its comic book adaptation of Gaiman’s Anansi Boys novel.

Publishers | TechCrunch reports that DSTLRY has launched a new feature called “Commissioned Digital Remarques,” which will allow fans to get sketches and other remarques on the digital comics they buy through the publisher. The publisher did something similar in San Diego last year, which allowed fans to use QR codes to get their digital books signed by creators.

They also announced that digital copies of their titles will remain available for purchase on their website for longer than the week they’ve been made available previously, although some “collectible variants” will still only be available for a single week after the book’s release.

Awards | Former Charlie Hebdo cartoonist Rénald Luzier, also known as Luz, has won the Fauve d’Or, or best graphic novel of the year, for his work Deux Filles Nues. In addition, John Romita Jr. was given an honorary award for his superhero work, and Lynda Barry’s Come Over Come Over received the Prix du Patrimoine, or Heritage Award. You can find the full list of awards on the Angouleme website.

Conventions | Although rumors suggested a possible move (as they have for years), Comic Con International and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria have confirmed the convention is staying in San Diego at least through 2027.

One issue that kept being mentioned was the price and availability of hotels, as SDCC typically negotiates block rates for rooms that they offer to attendees. Less and less hotels, however, have been making rooms available through SDCC’s registration process.

“We are excited to stay in San Diego for the next few years, which is made possible, in large part, to the many hotels who offer competitive rates and meeting space,” said Comic-Con spokesperson David Glanzer. “It is vitally important to maintain affordable hotel rates for the tens of thousands who visit San Diego for Comic-Con each summer and, while it came down to the wire, we are grateful for the additional hotels who came on board to allow for this agreement to be signed.”