Iwao Takamoto (1925-2007) spent a lifetime in the animation industry and was influential in the creation of some of the most beloved characters in the medium's history, including Scooby-Doo, Atom Ant, "The Jetsons'" Astro, "The Flintstones'" Great Gazoo, and "The Wacky Races'" Penelope Pittstop and Muttley, all of whom he designed. "Iwao Takamoto: My Life with a Thousand Characters" is the story of this legendary American artist, told in his own words.

Takamoto records his experiences growing up in the heart of Los Angeles as a self-described "street kid" and his wartime ordeal of being sent to a government internment camp for Japanese Americans. He recalls stories of how he and his teenaged friends still managed to function as normal teens despite the confinement of Manzanar.

The book chronicles his career, first with the Walt Disney Studios, where he worked directly with the famous "Nine Old Men," and later for Hanna-Barbera, where he was a key artistic force. Packed with memorable stories of working in the trenches of two of Hollywood's most notable animation studios and filled with photographs and artwork, much of which has never before been published, this book is essential for any fan of animation and twentieth-century popular culture.

Explore the greatest art from five decades of Marvel's Black Widow comics with this deluxe art book. Having first appeared as an enemy of Tony Stark in the pages of Tales of Suspense #52 in 1964, Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, has gone on to become one of Marvel Comics' best-loved characters and a key member of the Avengers. Fearless, deadly, and unstoppable, Black Widow is known for her formidable espionage skills as well as her crimson hair and iconic costume. This deluxe book will explore the creation and evolution of the character through interviews with the writers and artists who brought her to life over the last fifty years, plus a jaw-dropping selection of art that showcases why she is one of the most dynamic characters in the Marvel Comics Universe.

Even by Hollywood standards, Nora Frost is the stage mother from Hell. Her futile drive to turn her talentless twin sons into child superstars has left figurative bodies strewn throughout Los Angeles. But after Nora hires hapless young private detective Dave Beauchamp to investigate a letter threatening the brothers, the body count begins to mount. It's up to Dave (a recovering lawyer and serious movie buff) to discover why people connected to Nora's crusade are turning up dead, and why someone has kidnapped the twins. The real question, though, is whether Dave is up to the job, even with the unsolicited "advice" he constantly receives from the old-time movie stars sounding off in his head KILL THE MOTHER is a laugh-out-loud mystery adventure that spotlights some of the wackier corners of Hollywood, as seen through the eyes of a new, unique P.I., whose motto is: "If you can't be insane in L.A., where can you?"

Hidden in the desolate woods on the Central California coast, lost to time and memory, is a WPA mural unlike any other created during the 1930s. This one was not simply fashioned from charcoal and paint; it was crafted out of undying evil--the evil of an ancient demonic army called Legion. When structural inspector Jack Hayden stumbles upon the mural in a ruined civic building, he tries to convince himself that it might add to the crumbling structure's value. But that note of hopefulness is quickly replaced by terror as the mural spreads its cruel, nightmarish horror over Hayden and everyone in his life. Soon he's leading his own attack force made up of those who have managed to fend off the evil of the mural in their souls, but now must do so in physical terms...or die trying. The fictional debut of a new master of horror fiction