September 4th, 2018: This is the view from our hotel room. At the Tower Hotel. My first text. Don
Comments by friends:
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Joe Ackerman there’s also a really nice Pie & Mash shop ’round there, too
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Don McGregor I haven’t had good shepherds pie on years.. How can i find this yum. Don
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Don McGregor Is it the draft house
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Tom Field Don McGregor , I just don’t recall the name. But I know if you walk across the Tower Bridge from your hotel, it’s just on your left soon after you cross the bridge. It’s a small pub with all old, mismatched furniture. But I’ve always had great meals there. 🙂
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Don McGregor Tom Field. We had a taxi take us over there from the Thames river tour. Not one of the pubs we found had Shepard pie
We took another taxi to the bound pub mentioned.More comments from fans:
Paul Carbonaro Don, are you getting flashbacks to when you last attended a Con there?-
Don McGregor A surprise was seeing that the spirit i kid you not had a thick album of photos of me at the 1978 London comic con. Don
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Paul Carbonaro I can still play the ‘video’ in my head of the two of us interacting at that Con. You had a bemused look on your face as I said something idiotic, I am truly sorry to say. It concerned your anguish at your LUKE CAGE dialogue being rewritten by the then powers-that-be at Marvel 😮
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Don McGregor Paul Carbonaro which dumb rewriting are we talking about. I forget. Don
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Paul Carbonaro I don’t remember exact lines. You took a pen and scrawled through certain pieces of dialogue, exclaiming out loud, “I didn’t write that! And I didn’t write that!” etc. Obviously, and rightly so, you were upset.
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Don McGregor Paul Carbonaro. Sounds like me all right. Don
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Mark Rake ‘Acclaimed Writer Don McGregor’ needs to be changed to ‘Internationally Acclaimed Writer Don McGregor’
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Phil Latter I’ve been there, but standing outside, by Tower Bridge, and the Tower of London, decades ago, when I was in the Canadian Navy.
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Our dear friend, Frank Lovece, thank you so much for always having a place for Marsha and I to stay in NY!:
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Frank Lovece London Bridge is getting down!
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Frank Lovece Mait and I are so happy you two are deservedly enjoying yourselves somewhere cool and fun where you’re being treated well and, as important, are treating yourselves.NEXT: I started this Blog with the first time I ever Texted. I’ll get back to the Tower Hotelin a little bit. Before I knew how to Text, Marsha and I were in Bedford, Englandas guests of Jeff and Bub Chalal’s comic con. I’m going to try to Post these in orderas we experienced the events about England and London.Here I am with Joe Ackerman, who did one of the first comic related web pagesand printed great stuff for all fans. Here Joe and I are conferencing into thewee hours of the morning. It was a neat memory to take as the travels began.comments from fans:Joe Ackerman aw, mate! what a night! thank you, Don & Marsha. you made a grumpy old man very happy.
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Sean Pollock A meeting of great minds 😂
You’re a saint for putting up with him Don.
Hope he didn’t go too Cockney on you. 😛 -
Simon Barton The legendary Don McGregor and the Mighty Joe Ackerman! Two great guys! 😎>How kind were Bub and Seema Chalal to Marsha and I?They asked Marsha what she would like to do while I was at the Comic con.Marsha said she had always wanted to go to a proper English Tea.I didn’t even know what that was.And Seema took her, and the next day, Bub and I joined themfor the ceremony.Before I even knew a proper afternoon English tea existed, suddenly I was introduced to the refined atmosphere of cakes and cups and the friendship of Bub and Seema Chalal. Thanks for the exquisite memories and your tremendous kindness to both
Marsha and I.Joe Ackerman and I are having an animated discussion on comics in Bub Chalal’s inner sanctum at his comic book store in Bedford, England. If you’re in the area, you should take time out to visit his comic emporium, because there’s lots of neat stuff there you won’t find anywhere else for miles around.
Joe Ackerman and I stand in the midst of Bub Chalal’s comic book store
shelves, surrounded by the very books we are discussing. I think Joe and I
are in agreement that comics are a unique artform, and often a demanding
one at that.Jeff Chalal and Bub took all the comic book guests to dinner, where we shared our love
for the medium that we have devoted our lives to.Sculptures in the Bedford, England shopping area.Seema took Marsha to this impressive sightwhile I signed books at the comic con and caroused with the fans!AFTER THE BEDFORD CON,we stayed at the Tower Hotel in London. Our window was like a movie screen exactly framed to view the Tower Bridge from end to end. The room is so small it can hardly fit a bed and two suitcases. Its like a extra cubbyhole glued to the hotel wall for the view. Don.
Was it during SKYFALL that they had JAMES BONDracing boats about the Thames?
Here’s Marsha and I following in 007’s wake!
Hopefully there won’t be any dead bodies floatingin the grey/brown waters as the do in HITCHCOCK’sFRENZY.I am wearing my protective BLACK PANTHER T-SHIRT.>Standing above the Thames, with the Wonder Wheelin the background, which we will board the next day.There was a time I would have been on top of the wall,ready to leap, run or tumble.-
Dave Ryan You look like you’re gonna kick someone’s ass over there Don. Are you searching for Simon Bisley?!? lol
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Don McGregor Dave i didnt have to search for simon he was at Bub Chahal and jeff chahal s nice Bedford con. Fortinayely it was morning and he wad sober. There was no
Inner thigh groping
Phew. Don
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Todd Taylor I loved riding the London Eye. It takes a good 30 minutes.
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Tom Field When I return to London next month, my hotel will be right beside the London Eye.
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Bob Schreck It is SO COOL!!!! Enjoy Londontown! ❤️
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Boabie Menzies Get there early. Anytime I’ve been there, the queues have been long. Have fun!
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Pól MÃcheál O’Slatraigh Great experience. Enjoy 😊
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Elizabeth Kramer Gold I’m so glad you’re having fun…and writing short entries! Ha ha. Love to you both.
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Michael Anyanwu Ohmigosh! Don, you’re in my city of abode. 😁😁😁😎
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Paul Carbonaro When I was 19 and working for the civil service in the heart of London, I used to hang around the city almost every day until late, have fun, go home and get up and repeat 🙂
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Mike Mayhew You’ll love it!
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Dwayne Turner Come on Don, look like you are excited about it! LOL!
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Don McGregor This is my cool T’Challa impression. Are you not impressed? I mean that i am actually texting you. Don
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Dwayne Turner I am very impressed by your cool T’Challa impression. I understood you were in character. Denzel, Daniel Day or King Kong have nothing on you! The texting part is other world stuff. Don Mc and high tech who knew there was such a connection!
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Don McGregor Dwayne Turner. There isn’t wayne. This is like writing in an alien language. Yikes. Don
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Richard Halegua there’s a big wheel out here in Vegas, Don. I haven’t been on it, but I understand each car holds 48 people and you can have catered parties in them.
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Rick Gordon London I-Spy
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Don McGregor Paul Carbonaro. Deep cover
Laurence fishburn deep cover. Don -
Bub Chahal That’s a great movie!
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Michael Powell Welcome over here to the UK Don!
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Mike Collins Damn, you came to the UK and I was off in Belgium! Missed you mate!
Cruising up the Thames River.-
Joe Ackerman I like nipples. nipples are great.
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Don McGregor Joe Ackerman. You are a man of my own heart for sure. Don
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Norman Boyd Oh, can I join in the “bombard Facebook with the word nipples nipples nipples nipples nipples” campaign? Oh and for the record I do too
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Dale Hancock You guys are having way to much fun in our senior years. Looks like a wonderful place to be
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This statuary and fountain are outside the Tower Hotel,
with an outdoor dining area right near it.The Tower Bridge is in the background,but who’s going to see it with this in the foreground.Jim Brazell Pull your pant legs up a little Don, ha. -
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Barbara K Emanuele This should be your new go to photo!
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Simon Barton Are those Paul McCartney’s feet, Don McGregor? 😀
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Robert Campanella It’s ninety one here! I need that fountain!
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Phil Latter Don M is just missing the mask and the long black gloves! Can you say, “T’Challa”-?
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Norman Boyd Still with youthful poses. Do NOT leap anywhere Don. 😁
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Phil Latter Don, that statue behind you is just the coolest! I bet you and your lady are having a great time!
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Giovanni Rolla At first I thought the picture had been taken in Copenaghen…
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Clifford Meth Looking good Don! Hello Marsha!
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Mark Mazz Enjoy every second of this! Way past due for some fun, and adventuring!
Miss you guys!COMIC CATACLYSMIC MEETING WITHLONDON LATE NIGHT TALK SHOW CHAMPION,JONATHAN ROSSHey folks The biggest best surprise of the day was the comic host king of London invited Marsha and I to his show tonight.
We met many fabulous people there.Jon’s guests that night were Jack Black, Cate Blanchett and Joanna Pettit.
I gave Jon a Panther signed by Rich Buckler, penciled and drawn by Richbefore he died, and I personalized it to Jon, as Rich had intended, so thatfans could have autographs from both of us, though he would be gone fromus.
Jon had a big surprise for me.
All the original Billy Shawnna Graham artwork from SABRE 8!
WOWZA!In perfect condition!
Thanks to everyone there for their kindness and enthusiasm for the books and us.All of Jon’s staff were amazingly warm and embracing to both Marsha and I.
Don McGregor
Don McGregor What a great fun night. Don Can any of you believe Im texting this. Me. Texting. Seriously.-
Ed Catto Just wonderful!
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Lance Roger Axt Wossy!!!
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Jim Brazell Wow, haven’t seen originals like that in a long time
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Gary Dawn Guzzo Don, you MUST have him scan those pages, or, at the very least, take some high resolution photos. Those pages are the missing link in Dawn and I doing an Artists Edition of Sabre. These are the pages that were colored too darkly for us to pull out the …See More
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Michael Feldman Did they just show Don the pages or were they presenting the pages to him Gary?
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Gary Dawn Guzzo Michael Feldman, I don’t know… I hope they were giving them to him, but knowing these pages exist, means a Sabre collected edition will happen, and soon.Â
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Simon Barton Great photo Don McGregor! Jonathan Ross looks a very happy man 😎
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William H. Foster III Nice!
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Mark Mazz That kicks ass! Would love to see the original Billy Graham artwork.
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Jon B. Cooke Don’t bury the lead, DFM!!!!
“JONATHAN ROSS GAVE ME STUFF!!!!”
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Don McGregor Just be amazed that I texted. Don
FINALLY
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Gary Dawn Guzzo They better, because that would definitely scare me enough to need it. My daredevil days, are gone
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Paul Carbonaro This is near-perfect for recreating the famous scene featuring Orson Welles and Joseph Cotton in ‘The Third Man’… isn’t it? 🙂
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Michael Feldman Danger Man Don!
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Paul Carbonaro Danger Man’s brother: Don Drake!
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Simon Barton I love “flying” on the London Eye! Hope you and Marsha enjoyed it 😀
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William H. Foster III Enjoying yourself?
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Woodrow Olson Thinking how great a scene for a Killraven story it would be?
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Joe Ackerman hell, no!!!! 😮
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David Hathaway-Price I found the stepping over the gap getting into the pod the really scary bit…
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Charlotte Fullerton Living life! <3
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Hiram LaFon Doup “Other crazies?” Does that mean you’re one?
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Don McGregor Absolutely.>
Marsha smiling back toward me as we hover over the Thames River and the curving-
Karen Opas-lanouette My Donald Lanouette couldn’t sit there!
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