Interview w/Jane and After Ellen.com

Interview w/Jane and After Ellen.com

After a busy weekend at San Diego Comic Con 2010, Meltdown Comics hosted the official launch party for  Lady Robotika, the comic book created by Jane Wiedlin (guitarist for the legendary Go-Go’s) and Bill Morrison (Eisner Award-winning creative behind The Simpsons and Futurama comics). The book’s protagonist — the lady herself — is the newest superhero of our universe, and Jane Wiedlin took some time to talk about the comic, the music it inspired and the future of the Go-Go’s.

AfterEllen.com: I just got done reading Lady Robotika it was so great amazing! I think you’ve been really into comics for a long time — why did it take you so long to make a comic book yourself?
Jane Wiedlin:
Actually, I’m fairly new to comics. I’ve been a big sci-fi nerd my whole life, but never got into comics as a kid because they were too quick. I’d read one in 10 minutes and feel cheated. It wasn’t untill I became friends with my writing partner, Bill Morrison, that I learned that the art in comics is super important — Iit’s not just the words! D’oh!

Bill also introduced me to graphic novels, which I now am obsessed with.

AE: How did you and Bill Morrison meet?
JW:
I was at a comic convention — Super-Con in San Jose — several years ago, and Bill was assigned to moderate the talk I gave there. I’d been going to conventions for a while — not as a comic book fan, but either as a celebrity to sign autographs or as a sci-fi fan. Bill and I are the same age, and have a lot in common, and we became very close very quickly. We like to say we are lovers without benefits.

AE: I love how real Lady Robotika felt. When I finished it my first thought was, “That could totally happen.” I could also really hear your voice through it. Could this be classified as autobiographical with a fantasy, sci-fi twist?
JW:
I keep telling people that it’s my autobiography. We try to infuse as much of me and my real life into the story as possible. As for the alien abduction, well, you just never know, do you?

AE: Have you ever though of writing a real autobiography? Do you feel that there are untold Jane stories or Go Go’s stories that you want to reveal? Or is Lady Robotika the closest you are getting to an autobiography?
JW:
Of course, as a writer, I am always thinking about my next project, and certainly, an autobiography isn’t out of the question. My biggest stumbling block is my incredibly deficient memory. I’ve forgotten more of my life than I remember, so that could prove difficult for recounting it.

AE: There is a page where you say that you are known for being a little kinky — is this a reference to your involvement in the fetish community?
JW:
Yes, I am a lifelong perv, who only “came out of the kink-closet” about 15 years ago. Up until then, I didn’t even realize that plenty of people are pervy, loud and proud. I was very lucky to meet a remarkable woman — a professional dominatrix — who became one of my dearest friends.

AE: I thought I read somewhere that you are bisexual but I never thought to ask you directly. Are you a proud representative of the B in the LGBT community?
JW:
I’ve never been one to label myself. I am full of dualities and like to think of myself as ultra-open when it comes to all things. Having said that, I realized many years ago that people need to hear that there are plenty of perfectly nice citizens of Planet Earth that don’t fall into the strictly-heterosexual category.

I have had sex with men and women, and although I tend to be a serial monogamist with men, I feel no shame in admitting to have had wonderful experiences with both sexes. “Bisexuality” is such a loaded term. There are a lot of people with pretty negative feelings about those of us that refuse to choose one team! My whole life is riddled with other examples of being a dual-natured person, from my being ambidextrous, to my political views (progressive but very individual), to being an agnostic, to my BDSM identity (switch). And no, I don’t feel a bit confused! I am totally OK with myself.

AE: Are all the characters in the comic real life people you know?
JW:
We based a lot of the characters on friends or famous people. E’death, the sadistic prison warden, is an homage to my dear, late friend Edith, who was a pro-domme. Emperor Yecchh is based on Kim Jong Il. Obviously, these real people were inspirations and we are not trying to copy them exactly.

AE: Who is Jasper? He looks a lot like your real boyfriend.
JW:
Jasper is indeed based on my sweetheart, Travis. I gave Travis the nickname Jasper three years ago and thought it would be funny to call him that in the comic. Like I said earlier, we are trying to put as much of my personality and my real life into the story as we can. Bill and I co-write everything, and though I don’t do the artwork — I’m hopeless at drawing — I oversee the art in addition to co-writing the story, and help guide Bill’s artist friends so that the vision is both of ours.

AE: What is your favorite comic book?
JW: Right now I am enjoying a series called
Ex Machina. It is really original and smart. It’s been going for a while now, so instead of buying individual comics, I’ve been getting the graphic novels, which combine five episodes each.

AE: Is there anything about Lady Roboitika that you can share with us as far as her powers, since we don’t see it in Issue 1?
JW:
There is a lot of story left to unfold in the first six issues of
Lady Robotika, which is how long it will take to her origins. Because she was experimented upon, and injected with alien nanite technology, she is about to discover that she is far more, and far more potentially powerful than a human. I hope people will read the comics to find out what happens next! How’s that for a cliffhanger?

AE: I went to your launch party at Meltdown Comics and you played some songs two of my favorite GoGos tunes and two original Lady Robotika songs. How do these songs fit into the comics? Why did you write them ?
JW:
I have a full album of Lady Robotika-inspired songs written. Our plan is to release the music once we get the first six episodes of
Lady Robotika out. We will bind the six issues into one fabulous graphic novel, and do an ultra-deluxe package that will include the music.

I also have a fantastic full-length musical called Lady Robotika: A Space Opera that is ready to go. I just need a theater angel to get it produced.

AE: Will you be recording songs with this Lady Robotika band?
JW:
Yes, the band that played at the launch party is going to be the Lady Robotika band, with the addition of my friend Gabby La La.

AE:What is all this about a farewell tour? Are the Go-Go’s actually “breaking up” ? Is the break up postponed since you were unable to tour?
JW:
Belinda told us she wanted to move on and not be in the band anymore. The Go-Go’s had to make a decision, and ultimately decided not to carry on without her. I love Belinda, but I adore being a Go-Go and would have preferred to continue on till they pried my cold dead fingers off my guitar.

When you are in a band, decisions are made that don’t always reflect your desires as an individual, and that is just life. I have no idea what our state is right now, because we don’t know if the farewell tour is going to be re-scheduled or not. That is something I have zero control over.

AE: I noticed on your website that you are ordained and can marry people. Then I met a great couple (Amanda Deibert and Cat Staggs) who said you will be marrying them next year. Do you think same sex marriage will be legal by then?
[Ed. note: this interview was conducted before Prop.8 was ruled unconstitutional on Aug. 4, 2010.]

JW: I became a minister after same-sex marriage became legal in California. I did it because I like public speaking and parties, and being a non-denominational minister who officiates weddings sounded like a job I would excel at.

Then, stupid Prop. H8 happened. I want to marry all my friends and fans, no matter what their orientation, but I especially want to officiate unions in the LGBT community. I definitely think same sex marriage will be legal very soon. No one with an intelligent mind can defend denying equal rights to all people; it’s just common sense.

Boomer Style

Little mention over at Living Life Boomer Style

Sex, Droids & Rock ‘N’ Roll

She’s been a famous rhythm guitarist with the Go-Go’s.  She’s been a singing telegram girl, Joan of Arc, a choir singer, a voice actor, and an alien.  She’s Bowled for Boobies to raise money for those with breast cancer and she’s helped animal charities.  Now Jane Wiedlin, aka Jumping Jane Drano, adds another identity to her CV—a comic book heroine.  Wiedlin’s alter ego is Lady Robotika, a superhero cyborg.

Super Powers

The comic series she co-created with Simpsons artist Bill Morrison relates Wiedlin’s adventures when aliens abduct her. The reptilian beings experiment on her and transform her into a cyborg.  Wiedlin eventually becomes the super-powered Lady Robotika, heroine of the cyborg slaves. Like a futuristic lady Robin Hood, she thwarts the plans of the evil alien monarchy by day and rocks the cosmos by night.

A Graphic Novel

Wiedlin says, “When we’ve released all six issues, we’re going to bind them into a hardback graphic novel. I also have an album’s worth of songs inspired by the comic, so I want a special issue of the graphic novel that comes with music. I’ve got about 12 or 13 tracks and they’re very Jane Wiedlin, and semi Go-Go’s-esque.”

According to an interview published in Billboard, Wiedlin says she may launch a Lady Robotika musical next year in San Francisco.

A Blossoming Franchise

Lady Robotika could lend itself to a blossoming franchise.  Who would not want to see Lady Robotika video games, an animated or live action series or movie, or a Lady Robotika action figure?  She is already featured on a fabulous T-shirt.

Lady Robotika has her own rock band with music specifically recorded for the story by Wiedlin, including the brilliant songs If Girls Ruled the World, Push You, Transmission Twist, Gonna Make You Fall, and Go Outside. Could a Lady Robotika CD be in our future?  In any case, this cover of a special edition Lady Robotika graphic novel would make an ideal album cover.

Attention Humans

Issues Number 3 and Number 4 are available for pre-order online at North America TFAW or UK’s Forbidden Planet. Or go to your local comic shop and put in an order.  To locate your nearest comic book shop, go to Comic Shop Locator or call 1-888-266-4226.

Chicago Pride.com

New interview with Jane and ChicagoPride.com

Jane Wiedlin first made her mark as the rhythm guitarist of the history making 80’s band the Go-Go’s. Jane wrote the Go-Go’s biggest hit “Our Lips are Sealed” from a love letter she’d received. She also co-wrote some of the GO-GO’s biggest hits including “Vacation” and “Head Over Heels”.

Jane left the Go-Go’s in October of 1984 to pursue a solo career. Her self-titled first solo album,was released in May of 1985.

In 1988, Jane released her second solo album “Fur” which spawned her top ten hit “Rush Hour” and the song “Tangled”, was on the sound track for “Pretty Woman”, one of the biggest selling soundtracks of all time.

Wiedlin has also acted in movies and provided the voice for several characters on TV and the big screen, including

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Her other roles included Joan of Arc in the comedy “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure”, a singing telegram girl in the film “Clue” and the White Fairy in Golan-Globus’s “Sleeping Beauty”.

After a series of reunions during the 1990s with the Go-Go’s, Jane put together bands such as Frosted and Jane Wiedlin and the Downtown Sensation. In April 2009, Jane connected with director Steve Balderson for Stuck! – an homage to film noir women in prison dramas. Co-starring Karen Black, Pleasant Gehman, Susan Traylor, and cult icon Mink Stole.

Jane continued to tour with the Go-Go’s throughout 2000. In 2009, the Go-Go’s announced their “Happily Ever After Farewell Tour” to be held in July, only to later cancel the tour due to ACL tears in both of Jane’s knees. She suffered in a fall while on a hike near her San Francisco home. Jane’s lastest endeavor, a comic book called “Lady Robotika” written with Bill Morrison, famous as being part of the Simpsons/Futurama team for the last 20 years, is the adventures of a woman, basically Jane herself, being abducted by aliens and turned into a superheroine off to fight the evils of the galaxy.

She is now writing issue number three and took some time out to chat with ChicagoPride.com about it!

AM: Congratulations on your Lady Robotika comic book! You are now writing issue three. Tell me a little about this project. How did it came about?

JW: I met Bill Morrison, my writing partner, at the SuperCon comic convention in San Jose 3 years ago. We became good friends almost instantly and wanted to collaborate on a project together. Bill is famous as being part of the Simpsons/Futurama team for the last 20 years so we decided to create a comic book about a superhero based on me!

AM: What do you like most about what you have accomplished so far? You’ve had great reviews about Lady Robotika. Are you happy with the way things are going so far?

JW: There have been a lot of exciting happy moments working on Lady Robotika. I was nervous at first because I’d never written a comic; In fact, I hadn’t even read very many comics, but when I dove in and started writing, I found it felt very natural. It came from the same place in my brain/soul as writing songs. In fact, now it all makes sense to me, since songs are basically 3 minute short stories, and comics are illustrated short stories.

So, I find the act of creating absolutely thrilling. Besides that, holding the first issue in my hands for the first time made me cry, I was so happy! I find it very rewarding to think of an idea, work on that idea through fruition, then hold the finished product. I’m kinda simple that way!

AM: Where do the story lines come from?

JW: We created a story arc when we started 3 years ago that would explain how Lady R came to be. It starts out firmly rooted in my real life, then veers off wildly into my fantasy world!

AM: Any undertones of what’s going on with Lady Robotika that’s going on with Jane Wiedlin?

JW: It’s more what is going on in my head. My whole life I’ve been obsessed with sci-fi, with robots, aliens, outer space, flying saucers, you name it! To be able to work in a medium where I get to write about these things is beyond fun!

AM: When you started this project, did you know all the time and energy and process that goes into making a complete comic issue?

JW: I had no idea. It is a herculean task making a comic book this beautifully done. I love the artwork so much, but of course I can take ZERO credit for that; it’s all Bill and the artists that help him like Tone Rodriguez on Issue 1 and Jeff & Phil Moy on Issues 2 and 3. There are so many people involved in the process of comic book-making. Besides the pencillers (sketches), there are the inkers (finished drawings), the colorists, the letterers (who put in the dialogue bubbles and all else to do with printed words), the cover artist, PLUS the writers of the stories (that’s me and Bill) and then the editors & publishers and all the business people after that! It is insanely expensive to make a product that retails for $3.00! Bill & I are just stubborn and in love with Lady Robotika, and hope to keep telling her story, while she basically bankrupts us!!

AM: Tell me a little bit about your writing and developing Lady Robotika with Simpsons illustrator Bill Morrison. What is the process?

JW: First we created the arc of the first storyline (how Jane W becomes Lady R). Then there is the “constructional” work, of splitting the story into 6 separate issues, then splitting each issue into 22 pages of story, then each page into multiple panels (usually 1 to 8) of art. This is just the MECHANICAL part of the story telling. Then you have to have a great story that stands alone for each issue, and be able to tell it through pictures and a limited amount of words (mostly dialogue).

AM: You go to alot of the Comic-Con Conventions. I bet you have met alot of freaks, right?

JW: Not really. Mostly people who are geeks (like me!) are kind, thoughtful and respectful. I have met lots of people I admire, and made many good friends there.

AM: I know that you are a HUGE Sci-Fi fan. You’ve written songs about it, been in Star Trek, are an avid collector and now have a comic book about it. What is it about aliens and the far away gallaxies that excite you?

JW: The idea of other worlds and other life forms completely different to our own is very appealing to me. I am an explorer at heart.

AM: Would you ever “hook up” with an alien if you met one?

JW: HELL YES! And if any came to Earth and offered to take me away with them, I would definitely go!

AM: What are some of your favorite Sci- Fi series and or movies?

JW: Star Trek: especially The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, Star Wars: especially the original trilogy, Blade Runner, Firefly, Serenity, Battlestar Galactica (remake series), Dollhouse, Buffy, Defying Gravity, Galaxy Quest, True Blood, Total Recall, Terminator movies and TV show, etc etc etc. [laughs]

AM: If you could be any character past or present OR make one up of your own, in a STAR WARS film who would you be and why?

JW: Han Solo. He is a risk-taker and an adventurer, and he has is own spaceship and is super hot!

AM: Recently you were trying to save your Light Saber as you were falling down a 20 foot cliff… you DID save it didn’t you?

JW: I DID save it! My knees, not so much!

AM: Being that Prop 8 was just overturned in California, I wanted to ask: Do you think that there are gay aliens?… and what would they think of the way that there are limits on what gay and lesbians can and can’t do?

JW: There is documentation of homosexual behavior all over the natural world, of course it only makes sense that the natural world is more than just Earth. Any extraterrestrial species that had the brains to get to a planet as far away as we are would think it was ridonkulous to deny certain people basic civil rights based on who they love, in my opinion.

AM: The Go-Go’s came from the LA punk scene in late 1978 when there were all the freaks, misfits, homos and all the other people that didnt fit in… was there a huge gay movement in Calfornia at that time?

JW: I know when I joined the punk scene of Hollywood in 1976 it was a group of ragtag misfits, including girls, homos, artists and rebels. Most of us fit in more than one category. Much like the hippy movement of the 1960’s it was all about creative expression and being yourself. We just LOOKED a lot different than hippies!!

AM: What is your outlook on the entire Proposition 8 ordeal?

JW: There are so many people in this country with the most ARCHAIC attitudes about things, and the passing of Prop H8 is just one huge example of that. And now, even though the court overturned H8, the things I’ve read online indicate that there are millions of people out there who consider it their life’s mission to make sure others don’t get the liberties they so carelessly enjoy (and ABUSE). I think we have many battles ahead, still.

AM: Why did you decide to become a legally ordained minister? Are you avalible for weddings?

JW: When marriage became legal for everyone in California, I was very happy for my many GLBT friends and wanted to be able to legally marry them. Just when I became an ordained minister, Prop H8 passed and that right was once again denied my friends. I am happy that there are other states and countries that recognize same sex marriages, and yes, I am available to all orientations for non-religious weddings! If anyone would like me to officiate their marriage ceremony, they can go to my website, janewiedlin.com and click on “weddings.” I just lowered my officiant fee to celebrate the good news about Prop H8 being overturned.

Go-Gos’ Jane Wiedlin Pays Tribute to Big Gay Ice Cream!

Little mention in the SF Weekly:

We recently told you about a Tranny Smackdown sundae that will be created for one fleeting day when locals Humphry Slocombe will be visited by Doug Quint and Bryan Petroff of New York’s Big Gay Ice Cream Truck, and that former Go-Gos guitarist and Mission resident Jane Wiedlin would be there to mark the occasion. That last detail seemed more random to us than the use of shortbread as “tranny padding” on a sundae until Quint explained to us that he and Wiedlin have been longtime friends, and that his first concert back in the day was a Go-Gos show.

So enamored is Wiedlin with Quint and Petroff’s mobile venture that she agreed to write them a theme song. “Big Gay Ice Cream” will be released to iTunes that day and essentially premiered at the party (though she technically won’t be singing it live), which also happens to be Quint’s birthday.

“This is the craziest birthday that I’ll ever have,” he said. “I decided that, after this, I think I’m just going to say that I’m 88 now. And when I turn 89 legitimately, then I’ll have another birthday party. But there’s no reason to even try and do it after this!”

Experience the Tranny Smackdown and more on Sun., Aug. 22, at 7 p.m.

Star Trek.com

Lady Robotika gets a little mention over at Star Trek.com

Jane Wiedlin is best known for her long association with the pop-rock band The Go-Go’s, but she’s done quite a bit of acting over the course of her career, too, including a quickie cameo as “Alien Communications Officer Trillya” in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. A recent injury put a temporary hold on a planned Go-Go’s farewell tour, but Wieldlin is busy with a comic book series, Lady Robotika, which she co-created with Simpson illustrator Bill Morrison. Out now, its title character is a superheroine/rocker who bears an uncanny resemblance to Wiedlin.  Read rest of the article HERE.

Jane talks Prop 8 with Spinner.ca

Go-Go’s Jane Wiedlin Hails Judge’s Proposition 8 Ruling

Last week, California’s Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage, was overturned by a federal judge. Jane Wiedlin, the Go-Go’s rhythm guitarist/singer and an ordained minister who officiates weddings as Reverend Sister Go-Go, couldn’t be happier about the news.

“I was thrilled and relieved,” she tells Spinner of her reaction. “Anyone who still feels justified denying rights to other humans, I need to say they’re on the wrong side of this argument and history will prove it. To me, it’s like someone saying that women shouldn’t be allowed to vote. The whole idea that someone should not be able to marry who they love based on their gender and their preference is ridiculous.”

In explaining his decision to overturn Proposition 8, US District Judge Vaughn R. Walker said: “Moral disapproval alone is an improper basis on which to deny rights to gay men and lesbians … Because Proposition 8 disadvantages gays without any rational justification, Proposition 8 violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.”

“It just seems like such an obvious thing,” says Wiedlin, who wrote about the Proposition 8 decision on her website. “It’s shocking to me that people would think otherwise, but of course many people do. It’s just better to promote love and fairness and equality than it is to promote something you think is based on your religious beliefs.”

As far as her being able to now officiate same-sex weddings in California, Wiedlin cautions that the battle is not over yet.

“It’s going to be a lot more fighting back and forth,” she says. “I read the review from the judge [on] what he had to say about the trial, and the evidence that was presented from both sides. When you read it, I just find it impossible to believe that someone wouldn’t just go, ‘Well, yeah.’ Why should certain law-abiding adult citizens be denied something that everyone else can do, no matter what?”

Jane fell off a cliff – Tshirts

Jane posted a funny tweet about how she thought the winning Go-Go’s contest shirt should say “Jane Wiedlin went and fell off a cliff and all I got was this lousy cancelled tour tee-shirt!

In response to Jane’s tweet, Kelly Lawrence (of Thinking Cap Design) posted a hilarious design on Jane’s Facebook page and we here at Team Wiedlin loved the design so much we decided to make T-shirts!!

Buy your shirt HERE. 100% of the profits from the shirt will be going to Rocket Dog Rescue.

Message from Jane

A message from Jane:

Dear friends,
I am absolutely overjoyed that sane minds have prevailed and Prop H8 has been overturned. Equal rights for adult humans is not something that should EVER be put to a vote!

In celebration of this historic and joyful event, we have lowered the price of my Officiant services.  No matter what your orientation, if you and your beloved are going to tie the knot, I would be honored to be part of your happy day!

Let Love Rule,
Jane (AKA Reverend Sister Go-Go!)

Click HERE to receive more information regarding Reverend Sister Go-Go’s services.

New interview w/Jane

New interview w/Jane over at Digital Spy.

Jane Wiedlin’s CV is a bit like that brilliant vintage store you discovered last time you were milling about in Soho – eclectic, unpredictable and full of fascinating nooks and crannies. Having found fame as one fifth of The Go-Go’s – the first all-female band who wrote and played their own songs to top the US albums chart – she went on to score a solo smash with the irresistible ‘Rush Hour’, pop up as Joan of Arc in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, front a pop-punk combo called froSTed, lend her vocal talents to animated sitcom Mission Hill and appear alongside Verne Troyer on US reality show The Surreal Life. Phew! Now she’s created her own comic book with Simpsons illustrator Bill Morrison – the brilliantly barmy, unmistakably Wiedlinish Lady Robotika – so when we found out she was appearing at Comic-Con to promote it, we just had to grab her for a chat. Warning: this interview contains what is known in the business as a “knockers anecdote”.

Why are you in a wheelchair today?
“I’m not normally in a wheelchair. I’ve been on crutches, and now I’m using a cane, but I couldn’t really do that with so many people about [here] so I got in the wheelchair. My knee’s healing though and it doesn’t look as bad as I expected. Some people have gnarly knee surgery scars but I’m really happy with how mine’s looking.”

Is it true you fell off a cliff?
“It’s actually a good story! I live in San Francisco and there’s a park called Corona Heights which, like the whole city, is really vertical. I had guests over from the midwest and I wanted to show them the beautiful lights of the city, and they wanted to have a lightsaber battle because we’re nerds, so off we went to the park with our lightsabers. It turns out they have the opposite effect of flashlights – you see this bright lightsaber but everything around you is completely black! I was coming down the mountain with my lightsaber and then I literally stepped off the cliff – one minute I was on the hill, the next I was falling. It was gnarly. I remember thinking, ‘Don’t lose your lightsaber!’ Then, once I hit the side of the cliff and started rolling, I remember thinking, ‘You’re going to die if you don’t stop yourself’. I fell about 20 feet and I heard my knees explode when I landed. Now I have to hobble around like an old lady, but at least it’s for a dramatic, exciting reason!”

Where did the idea for Lady Robotika come from?
“Well, three years ago I met Bill Morrison – he’s worked on The Simpsons and Futurama and he’s a great artist and writer – and we became good friends. He suggested we do a comic together because he knew I loved the same sci-fi stuff as him – robots and aliens and flying saucers! Both of us love things that are vintage-looking so we wanted it to be old-school-looking rather than computerised. As for the story, we just jammed together and it was really good fun. Most celebrities who do a comic don’t actually contribute much – they just say, ‘Use my name!’ – but this is really my baby. I co-wrote the story and I would have helped with the art if I wasn’t so hopeless!”

What’s the release plan?
“The first issue’s been out for a week and the next issue comes out in a month. There are going to be six issues telling the story of how I became Lady Robotika – I play a gig and after the gig I get abducted by aliens, they experiment on me and I end up becoming a cyborg. After that I become a superhero! When we’ve released all six issues, we’re going to bind them into a hardback graphic novel. I also have an album’s worth of songs inspired by the comic so I want a special issue of the graphic novel that comes with music. I’ve got about 12 or 13 tracks and they’re very Jane Wiedlin and semi-Go-Go’s-esque. I never want to say I’m too much like The Go-Go’s because the band is really a product of all five of us, but there’s definitely a Go-Go’s element to these tracks.”

You’ve said there are plans for a musical too…
“Yes! It came to me in a flash when I was on a plane. I realised I have a great story, a great character and all these great songs, so right then and there I plotted out a whole musical. When I got home I went through my catalog – I have hundreds of songs I’ve written – and put the whole thing together. It’s virtually ready to go and I’m just waiting for a hotshot Broadway producer to say, ‘Show me your project!’ If there are any hotshot producers reading this interview, come and see me! I have a great project.”

The Go-Go’s farewell tour was cancelled because of your injury – was that gutting?
“I was super-guilty and depressed, but there’s nothing you can do when you have an accident like that. One of the things we had to decide was whether the girls should get a replacement and go on without me, but because it was supposed to be the farewell tour we decided it should definitely be all the original members. It’s postponed but we’re hoping to reschedule.”

What’s the latest on that?
“I have no idea! We have to wait for me being able to walk again and right now I’m still hobbling. Once I get to that point, I have to find out what’s wrong with my other knee because I actually injured both. This knee’s not nearly as bad so hopefully I won’t need any more surgery, but I don’t know for certain yet. Then there’s the matter of scheduling! Belinda (Carlisle, lead singer) has got lots of stuff coming up so she can’t really commit until we find out exactly when we can do it.”

What made you decide to call it a day after the farewell tour?
“Well, Belinda wanted to move on and it was a business decision not to go forward without her.”

Could there ever be another album?
“I don’t think so and that’s funny because we’ve been a band for 32 years. I didn’t want to break up, but now I’ve had time to get used to the idea, I’m more OK with it than I was. If I was in charge, I’d keep doing The Go-Go’s forever, but it’s a band so everyone has their say. On a positive note, if I don’t have The Go-Go’s to fall back on, maybe I’ll try even harder to get other things going!”

(Your bandmate) Gina Schock’s recently co-written songs for Miley Cyrus. Is that something that would interest you?
“Yeah. I did the co-writing thing all through the ’90s and I got one hit out of it – a Keith Urban song called ‘But For The Grace Of God’ – but then I got burnt out. Gina’s really good at working at it and all the necessary networking, but that takes a lot of energy. I’d definitely like to do it though.”

Is there a Go-Go’s song that you think is particularly underrated?
“Maybe not a song, but definitely the album God Bless The Go-Go’s. It’s such a good album, full of great music, but most people never heard it and that’s a real shame.”

Is this your first Comic-Con?
“No! I’ve been coming for years and I love it! I’ve been a geek since I was a little kid so the first time I came here I found my people! This is my first time as a comic book professional though and that’s really exciting. I’ve been a few times to sign autographs as a celebrity in Autograph Alley upstairs, but it’s almost a different planet on this floor. This is the biggest event of its kind in the world as far as I know so you have to be here.”

Do people bother you much when you’re here?
“It’s been mild this year – usually they just say they love the comic or they’re happy to meet me – but in the past there have been weird people. At Super-Con a young man came up to me and said, ‘I like your knockers!’ I was like, ‘OK, I’m really glad you like them, that’s great…’ I’m not shy and I’m not a prude but it was such an off-the-wall comment that I just started laughing. I mean, what am I going to say? ‘Thank you – I like your balls’? Actually, I really wish I’d said that!”

Pre-Order time again!

Hey Gang
It’s time to pre-order Lady Robotika again! 🙂

Issue #3 and #4 are now available for pre-order!!

– PRE-ORDER ONLINE
North America – TFAW.com
UK – Forbidden Planet.com

– PRE-ORDER IN PERSON
If you don’t know where your nearest comic book shop is, you can find it using this link: comicshoplocator.com OR call this phone number: 1-888-266-4226-65

Image prints only as many copies as are ordered, so please don’t count on showing up at your local comic book emporium to find a copy! You must pre-order!!

Jane’s top 5 movies w/Rotten Tomatoes

Jane’s top 5 movies w/Rotten Tomatoes

Speaking to Jane Wiedlin on the phone, one might find it hard to believe the sweet and perky voice on the other end belongs to a sci-fi geek and punk rocker who got her start as early as 1978, when she and Belinda Carlisle first formed The Go-Go’s. One might also be surprised to discover that, after some acting and a solo singing career, Wiedlin reunited with her bandmates to tour, at age 42, once again as the Go-Go’s. This month, the band kicked off their “Happily Ever After Farewell Tour,” and Wiedlin released the first issue of Lady Robotika, a comic book starring herself as an alien-abducted rocker who is turned into a cyborg and forced to perform music. Sound intriguing? We thought so, and decided to chat with Wiedlin about her favorite movies and what it was like working on the comic. Read on for the full interview!

Blade Runner (1982, 94% Tomatometer)

Blade Runner#1 for sure is Blade Runner. I’ve been a big sci-fi geek since I was a little kid, and it was just done so well. It felt like that’s what Los Angeles was going to look like in the future, and you felt Harrison Ford’s turmoil as a blade runner. Everything about it was so real, and so cool, and everyone that was cast in it was so good in their roles, and so attractive. Even though the future looked spooky, it was also mesmerizing. Sean Young… Who knew she was so crazy? She was so great in that movie. And then when she finds out she’s a replicant, it’s so heartbreaking. I could watch that movie a hundred times and I don’t even care which version I see; I’m fine with the narration, I’m fine without the narration. It’s just a great movie. When you’ve seen it so many times, I guess it doesn’t matter. Like, it’s impossible for me to go back in time and see it for the first time without narration and see if it would have made it confusing or not, which, I guess, was the studio’s worry, that people wouldn’t be able to follow the storyline. But, you know, I’ll never know. [laughs] All I know is it’s the best science fiction movie ever made.

Showgirls (1995, 13% Tomatometer)

Showgirls#2 is Showgirls. Again, a movie I’ve seen at least a dozen times, and I know that everybody gets it now, but I was a true believer right from the beginning. It is, really, the accidentally funniest movie I’ve ever seen. It never gets any less funny. There’s just something about watching Elizabeth Berkeley in that role, when she’s like flopping in the water like a fish, or when she’s in that club, and Cristal Connors pays her $500 to give Zack a lapdance, and she’s all flapping around on his lap. It’s so cringeworthy, but it’s so funny at the same time. And I’m normally not really a fan of cringey humor — shows like Curb Your Enthusiasm — I can’t even watch those shows because I end up running behind the couch, I’m cringing so bad. The thing about Showgirls, and how earnest everybody was, and how over-the-top it was — I just love that movie. I practically have it memorized.
The Empire Strikes Back I think #3 would be The Empire Strikes Back. To me, clearly the best of the six, like way, way ahead of the field — the six Star Wars movies, not my list — and here we go, Harrison Ford again. Harrison Ford was like my generation’s greatest leading man. He’s going to be our Clark Gable or whatever. He was so good. That movie just had plenty of story and action, and my problem with a lot of sci-fi is that it’s all action and not enough story, not enough character development, and not enough relationships between the characters. It’s all shoot-em-up, which is good; I think guys like that. But I like my shoot-em-ups with relationships and character development and lots of story. And, you know, lots of snappy lines done really well by the actors. Another thing is, it’s the last Star Wars movie before the cute came in. And once they brought the cute, it was like “Ugh! It’s too cute!” They should have made six movies for adults and six movies for kids, and then everybody could have been happy. I’m going to get death threats now, for criticizing… I kid because I love! [laughs]

Star Trek IV – The Voyage Home (1986, 83% Tomatometer)

Star Trek IV - The Voyage Home The next one would be Star Trek IV, because it was the best Star Trek, and because I was in it. [laughs] Does it count as a plug if it was made a million years ago? I mean, it was the best Star Trek, so there you go. And it was about saving whales, which I would agree with, and it was the first time that they really let the characters get kind of funny and more relaxed, and I think that was a really good direction for them to go.

Galaxy Quest (1999, 89% Tomatometer)

Galaxy Quest #5, I’ll put Galaxy Quest. I know Galaxy Quest is not a great movie, but I love that movie, and I’ve seen it over and over and over, and I still love it just as much. I think Tim Allen portraying a Kirk-like character is so damn funny. I think that’s one of the best “fan” films ever made. And the fake Spock guy was great, yeah. That movie’s really funny. We saw it when it first came out — my family has a tradition of always going to a movie on Christmas afternoon, and we went and saw that one. It was such a great family moment, too. It brings back good memories.

Few more pics from today!

A few more pics from today!


Thanks to Maria Yanez and Paul Vasquez for the photos! 🙂