Joe Pruett is the
writer and co-creator of the upcoming Caliber Comics monthly series, Untouchables,
loosely based on the Eliot Ness group of government agents that rose to national
prominence in the 1930’s, mainly for their role in helping to send Al Capone to
prison. He is also the Eisner Award nominated editor of the long-running anthology, Negative
Burn, as well as editing notable titles as Moebius Comics, Cavewoman,
and Kingdom of the Wicked.
The interviewer, Phil Hester, is also a
well-known and respected comics creator. His previously mentioned series, The Wretch,
was recently nominated in the category "Best New Series" in the prestigious
Eisner Awards. Phil enjoyed a long-run on Vertigo’s Swamp Thing series and has
been published by most every major publisher in the industry today.
CBG: What does Caliber’s new Untouchables series have to do with the
Untouchables concept we’re familiar with?
Pruett: A lot, but not much. Okay, I’ve got you confused now, right?
Here’s what I mean then. Most everyone is familiar with Eliot Ness and his band of
Untouchables, be it from the movies, the TV shows, books, or whatever. Yeah, so maybe
everything in the Hollywood version of Ness isn’t true (like the fact that the movie
portrayed him as married and with kids—which he wasn’t at the time and only had
one child later in life that he adopted—and with an aging Sean Connery as his elder
mentor, when in fact there were nine members of the Untouchables and not one was married
or over thirty), the man’s pretty much become a legend. The fact is that the
Untouchables were created to help enforce the 18th Amendment (Prohibition).
After prohibition ended, Ness moved on to Cleveland where he eventually lost a bid for
Mayor and faded away from the public consciousness. Now we state the question: "What
if Prohibition never ended?" History would be changed, wouldn’t it? Ness’
life would have changed, right? Our story picks up about twenty years after Ness helped
put Capone away. Ness himself, a national hero and public icon, disappeared years ago. Was
it murder or did he just decide it was time to fade from the public eye, you know, like
Elvis? (laughter) Anyway, no ones knows for sure. What we have now is a new squad of
Untouchables, a new leader and a new enemy. Oh, and prohibition, which in this time frame
has proven to be very successful, has been broadened to include tobacco products,
firearms, and other vices. And just to make things interesting, gambling has been made
legal in the city of Chicago to help off-set the lost tax revenues from the now illegal
products. We’ll have a Chicago that may rival Las Vegas with its neon lights and
casinos. So you see, we’re taking the familiar aspects of the Untouchables, but
adding a twist to it, an "Elseworlds" kind of take on it. Actually, I guess the
closest comparison to it would be Guy Davis’ cult classic series, Baker Street,
where the Victorian age never ended.
CBG: Not a bad series to be compared to. I
really loved what Gary (Reed) and Guy (Davis) did with that series and can’t
wait until they find the time to bring it back. Any chance of that?
Pruett: You’ll have to ask them about that. I think they may be too busy.
Nothing in this industry ever seems to stay dead forever. But I agree with you, Baker
Street is one of my all-time favorites. But it wasn’t a conscious attempt on our
parts to mimic Baker Street in any regard, even though Gary Reed was co-creator to
develop both series. I think both series stand on their own in their originality
and quality.
CBG: You have many fans from your
writing on Kilroy Is Here, X-Men, Dusty Star, etc. What can we look for in Untouchables
that your fans will enjoy? What makes this a Joe Pruett book?
Pruett: I’d like to think that anyone who reads any of my titles will notice
that a lot of my stories tend to be "people" stories. What I mean by that, is
that the focal point of most of my tales are the "real" people in the stories,
not the supernatural elements, not the larger-than-life characters, but the
real-honest-to-gosh people that you would find living next door to you or in the aisles of
the local grocery store. My stories are usually about normal people and the events that
take place around them; be it in Kilroy Is Here where I focused on real-life
horrors that happen in the world, from Bosnia to Cambodia, to The Nameless where I
look at the horrific situations with the street children of Latin America. In Untouchables
you’ll see much the same interaction between the characters. You’ll see their
pain, their hardships, but you’ll also see the noble image of your average person
rising from beneath a mound of rumble, just when you think you have him or her down, and
taking command of their lives, their situations. Untouchables will be about people
and how they react to the unique and sometimes compromising positions they find themselves
in.
CBG: Conversely, what sets this apart from
your past work?
Pruett: Although I’ll be dealing with some true-to-life issues, Untouchables,
for the most part, will be true fantasy. I won’t have to read through mounds of
research material to make sure I get facts right or details straight. This time I’ll
be able to just make it up as I go along and feel comfortable doing it. When you write
about history it’s important to know your history. Although I’ll still have to
do some research into the characters such as Ness and the beginnings of the Untouchables,
I pretty much get to just go wild. Or as the guy who gave me my first break in comics, Bob
Burden of Flaming Carrot fame, would always tell me, "Boy, you gotta find a
project, just fly by the seat of your pants, let nature take its course, and have fun
doing it!" That’s the feeling I get from working on this series.
CBG: Can you detail how you worked
with Gary Reed to develop the series?
Pruett: Actually, it was my brother Jim’s idea to do a series based on the
Untouchables. At one of our editorial meetings, Jim just threw out the idea of doing the
Untouchables. Upon hearing it, I screamed out "I’ll do it!" From there we
just had to decide what direction we would take with it. Would it be based on the real
life Untouchables or would be a whole new group set in the modern time era? Gary and I
both wrote up notes about where we thought the series could or should go and after looking
over our notes decided what to do. To be honest, I can’t remember what part of the
concept I came up with and what part Gary did. They just kind of meshed together very
easily and a concept and a series was born.
CBG: What kind of look will the book
have?
Pruett: Well, when you’ve got Michael Wm. Kaluta doing the cover illustrations
you’ve automatically got a well-recognizable, unique style of art for the series.
Which is one of the things I searched for while looking for an interior artiSaint After
considering a few different potential pencillers, we settled on a relative newcomer to the
industry, John Kissee. One thing I think John brings to Untouchables is a unique, personal
style that truly captures the atmosphere and the mood of the series and the time era. I
didn’t want a flavor of the month type artist and I think after seeing John’s
pencils you’ll agree I didn’t go that way! (laughter) He’s at the opposite
end of the spectrum as far as that’s concerned. I mean that in a very positive way.
John’s a wonderful artist who I think is going to catch quite a few people off guard
with his talent, and win over countless fans along the way. You’ll be hearing a lot
about this artist through the years and you can quote me on that.
CBG: I just did.
Pruett: (laughter) I guess you did at that.
CBG: What are your hopes for this book?
What kind of reader do you want to reach?
Pruett: I hope it rockets to the top of the sales chart and stays there for eight
years, allowing me to retire and live off royalties for the rest of my life. Nah,
seriously, I hope that it finds a receptive audience and a core following that would allow
it to be published for as long as John and myself—and of course Caliber—want to
keep doing it, which I think could be for quite a while. It’s a fun project, I work
with some great guys ,and I love the concept, so what else could I want?
As far as readers go, I just want to reach a reader
who enjoys a well-done comic. I’m not aiming at any one age group, as I think that
this series will appeal to readers of all ages. There isn’t any unnecessary violence,
harsh language, or anything else that might put a parent off or get a store owner in
trouble for selling an issue to a minor. It won’t insult the intelligence of an adult
or talk down to a twelve year old. It’s a universally fun read for all.
