So I received an email this morning from the Pittsburgh Comicon Community that the Rob Granito story continues to get better. The website Comics Cube posted an article this morning about how they received a letter from an “Alison” stating that she was Rob Granito’s wife. The gist of the letter states that Rob is now offering interviews for cash.
Here is what transpired:
Dear Comics News, Blogs, and Journalists:
March 2011 was a month that the comics industry, and comics fandom, was not expecting! A month where suddenly comics websites became ‘TMZ-like’, and scandal and tabloid excitement erupted. This was due to the controversial Rob Granito.
We ask you to consider looking past personal feelings and judgement to consider the following:
-A Facebook Group about Robert Granito had over 3,000 members in less than a week
-Websites such as comicsalliance, Wired, and many others made Rob Granito a major headline
-An entire convention panel is due to Rob Granito, called ‘How Should An Artist React To Being Granito’d’?
So, regardless of personal judgement you must admit that Rob Granito creates controversy- and controversy attracts attention. Rob Granito gets attention. Rob Granito gets people talking.
The Blog owner at All Things Geeky even explained how he had thousands of visitors to his site when he had never experienced that before. Rob Granito has gotten more attention and caused more talking amongst his detractors and his fans than any other comics professional!
Now is YOUR chance to take advantage of this red-hot story. As Charlie Sheen has proven in the mainstream media, controversy sells. It has been proven, and suggested by the convention fans blog that Rob Granito is the Charlie Sheen of Comics. And just like Charlie Sheen caused MAJOR headlines with his controversial 20/20 interview, now YOU can get Rob Granito to sit for an interview for your site or blog!
Rob Granito will live up to his image as the bad boy of comics, who admits he has made some mistakes (but who hasn’t?) but also points out that comics fandom at large does not know the WHOLE story. Find out how Rob Granito began as an artist. Discover what his experience was with the legendary Dave Stevens. Find out what REALLY went down with Mark Waid. Learn how Rob feels about the comics professionals who have derided his name in the past few weeks like Ty Templeton Jamar Igle, Al Rio, and more!
We assure you Rob Granito will live up to his interview commitments. We guarantee candid, explanatory revelations. Rob Granito proved he shook up the world in March 2011! Now watch him light up the Spring comics schedule. “I will keep going to conventions”, he says. Also, why did BleedingCool decide to break the Rob Granito story out of nowhere? Why was it pursued with such a fever? “There is more there that you dont know about”, says Rob.
ALL WEBSITES: the following is a list of Rob’ interview fees
-e-mail interview (20 questions ONLY) $150.00 PayPal
-30 minute phone interview $200.00 PayPal
-1 Hour Phone or Skype interview $250.00 PayPal
Thank you for your time. We look forward to working with you.
Alison c/o
Robert Granito Art Services
This seems to me to be direct attempt at Charlie Sheen-ing bad publicity into dollars. However, Rob, I hate to say it, but you’re not Charlie Sheen. You don’t have a syndicated television hit show. Sorry.
I say go for it!
It’s all for entertainment anyways so why not have some fun with it. $150 is not much if it also helps sell CBD… Think about how much advertising costs. I’ll pitch in with 4 questions of my own:
1. Rob, obviously you can draw well enough to at least mimic other artists… But what was the impetus or the motivation for having to lie about it instead of just letting your abilities speak for itself?
2. What is your take on all these people who are willing to knock you down and ruin your life without the slightest hesitation, understanding or insight about who you are as a human being? And in turn, are you encouraging the sensationalistic mob mentality that has become prevalent our society by embracing the role of being the “bad boy” of comics?
3. Everyone is encouraged to follow their dreams. We all have hopes and we all like to think that we are special. Rob, at point in your life did you realize that you weren’t special?
4. We know that there are many others similar to yourself doing the convention circuit. Do you see them as being frauds? How are they different from you and what is your message to them?
^_^
Rob, you ass-hat, get real. Everyone here knows that’s you posing as “Charlie.” For crying out loud, dude. Have some self-respect. No one online has any interest in hearing what you have to say, you lying, thieving, untalented, fraudulent hack. Obvious Granito is obvious. And NO ONE is going to pay you for an interview. You’re irrelevant.
Charlie = Rob. I’ll answer the four question he has posed for himself:
“1. Rob, obviously you can draw well enough to at least mimic other artists… ”
ANSWER: No, that’s not obvious at all. He’s a talentless hack.
“But what was the impetus or the motivation for having to lie about it instead of just letting your abilities speak for itself?”
ANSWER: Rob has NO art talent whatsoever. Anyone who has seen those Marvel cards knows that. That’s why he traces everything and lies about it. The real question, though, isn’t why he stole other people’s work–it’s why he also faked credentials and pretended he’s worked in the comics field, which he hasn’t. The truth is that Rob is a petty conman, a fake, a fraud, a liar and a thief, nothing more. He’s not a comics professional, he’s not an artist and he’s neither relevant nor important. Furthermore, he has no fanbase whatsoever, which is why he has to create all aliases on every blog discussing him in order to make it look like he actually has people supporting him, which he doesn’t.
“2. What is your take on all these people who are willing to knock you down and ruin your life without the slightest hesitation, understanding or insight about who you are as a human being?”
ANSWER: Rob ceased being a human being the day he decided to lie about working for DC, Marvel, Warner Bros. and all the other companies he lied about working for. He ceased being a human being the day he claimed to have worked with Dwayne McDuffie and Dave Stevens, knowing they were dead and couldn’t refute the lie. He ceased being a human being when, after he was called out on it, he decided to keep lying and creating aliases to support himself instead of coming clean and apologizing. And he definitely ceased being a human being the day he laughably decided the world should pay him for interviews to explain away his lies with more lies. Give me a break.
“And in turn, are you encouraging the sensationalistic mob mentality that has become prevalent our society by embracing the role of being the “bad boy” of comics?”
ANSWER: No one is calling Rob the bad boy of comics except for Rob himself, and now his wife, who is pretending not to be his wife, proving she’s just as big a liar as he is. Everyone else is laughing at him for using that nickname, because they know the truth–in order for someone to be the bad boy of comics, he’d first have to work in comics. Rob has not done so. Ever.
“3. Everyone is encouraged to follow their dreams. We all have hopes and we all like to think that we are special. Rob, at point in your life did you realize that you weren’t special? ”
ANSWER: The day he first tried to draw, write or in any way show creativity and intelligence. And also on the day he married Alison.
“4. We know that there are many others similar to yourself doing the convention circuit.”
ANSWER: No, Rob is pretty much the only one completely lying about working in the comics and animation field, when he really isn’t, in order to get convention booths.
“Do you see them as being frauds?”
ANSWER: Irrelevant, since there are no “them.” Rob’s crime isn’t swiping–it’s fake credentials. And in that regard, he’s alone. He has no peers. He’s the bottom-level slime, all on his own.
“How are they different from you and what is your message to them?”
ANSWER: There is no “they” to be different. And if there were, Rob’s message would be unintelligible since he’s repeatedly proven himself, through all of his alias comments on various boards, to be completely illiterate.
Damn!! You’re right. What was I thinking trying to contextualize an obvious crime against humanity. And here I was worried about a nuclear melt down in Japan! Guys, I think I know where he lives… meet me at the Silver Snail tomorrow and let’s go hunt him down! While were at it, lets trash the Snail to get warmed up. We must protect our values… it’s says so in X-Men #129 and Spider-Man #41. The rage is on and I’m ready to pummel him with the fury of a thousand fans spurned, then hurl him across the city until he is as pure and honorable as we are. I can’t believe that the US government is on the verge of shutting down when we clearly have a heinous infiltration problem at the cons. But can we meet after lunch… my fury is more ferocious on a full stomach…
You weren’t trying to “contextualize” anything, Charlie, er I mean, Alison. You’re as obvious as your husband when it comes to fake IDs. You guys are pathetic, lying, thieving scumbags, devoid of any morals, integrity, talent or intelligence whatsoever. I hope your husband enjoys his next career–just try to remind him not to steal the gas caps from the cars while working the pump.
Why get an email interview? He’d just cut-and-paste someone else’s past interview.
Rob: “What I was trying to do on ‘Dark Knight Returns’ was…..”
I say go for it. Why not, the exposure will be great for the interviewer and your site. Only downfall is giving this hack more money. Any way we can just cut and paste his answers to another site that actually was dumb enough to give this guy cash. Or maybe trace dollar bills and send those.
There’s no reason for anyone to actually pay this moron for an interview. What good could POSSIBLY come out of it? He’d just lie some more. There’d be no point to it. And no one pays for interviews with people like him anyway.
It makes sense for Granito to try to sell his story. We’re in a TMZ world and gossip sells. He’s got to make a living somehow, it won’t be from selling artwork anymore. But what will he actually say? I don’t think anybody would believe him anyway. It would be funny if his lies became more fantastic and unbelievable, like Stan Lee is his God-Father or something crazy like that.
CBD will not pay for interviews.
I have no interest in giving this man anymore attention then he’s already had.
Go Pete! Fight the power!
I respect your position but a timely interview that’s intelligent and thought provoking is not selling out. There is a win/win aspect to this proposal and as long as it’s not just about Granito… It can be an opportunity to take your audience on a tour of a mind that doesn’t appear operate in a way that is considered “normal”. Dig deep and make it resonate… then it becomes a character study.
As comic fans, why would we pass up this opportunity to examine a real life villain?
Charlie: please feel free to interview Granito. We’ll happily publish it here at CBD.
With all due respect, he’s not a villain, he’s a fraud.
I just don’t think it’s worth spending time focusing on him, or giving him a platform so he can try to ‘reason’ away what he did. As far as I’m concerned this story is over. He’s done. I no longer care.
Charlie is Alison Granito. That was extremely clear from “his” first post. This is yet another failed attempt on the Granitos’ part to get even one person to pay for an interview, and yet another example of Alison creating fake IDs. She’s doing it here because many other blogs have blocked her IP address after warning her to stop doing that. Obvious Granito is obvious.
Well said. Granito is yesterday’s footnote, nothing more. He and his wife Alison are just embarrassing themselves at this point, coming up with idiotic labels like “the bad boy of comics.” He’s a common criminal and a fraud, and the ONLY reason anyone is still talking about him is because they want to make sure he doesn’t get work. He’s done.