Larry Hama ...signing my Flagg!

[Air-tight]

...well, at least the rear deck!

About a month or so ago, Larry was doing a signing at Hub Comics in Somerville, MA. I'd met and spoken with Larry at Joecon 2010 in Providence and had already gotten his autograph, so I decided I'd go just to say hello and see some of my fellow local Tankers that would also be there. Then, an idea suddenly dawned on me- what better piece of GIJOE history could I have Larry sign than a piece of the greatest ship ever made... the USS Flagg (for obvious reasons, toting a 7+ foot aircraft carrier along for him to sign was out of the question, so I opted for a piece of the deck instead). I know he didn't design the toy or anything, but it was Mr. Hama who brought it to life in the comics and I figured it'd be that much more special to have his name on it.

Larry immediately recognized the deck shard of the behemoth, and told me the story of how he was first brought in by Hasbro and shown the styrene/foam core prototype model while the designers were working on it before its mass retail release in 1985, but apparently he hasn't seen much of the ship since.

While I was there, I also paid Larry to do a sketch of Airtight for me, which he promptly pulled out his vintage yearbook for reference! (See photo). He liked the figure and even used it for reference too, but he seemed thoroughly confused by the Renegades filecard info and asked what happened to his original write-up. I explained to him the odd confusion surrounding the figure and how he appeared in Renegades but was clearly an homage to the original ARAH character. Larry also told me the story of the character's file name, Kurt Schnurr- Apparently it was the pen name of his friend Paul Kirschner, who was writing/drawing for some kind of a dirty magazine at the time and didn't want to tarnish his real name! Apparently he modeled the character after him as an inside joke, as he did with so many others.

The best part of the day? Larry and I were both wearing Arashikage shirts.

Hope you enjoy.
Yo Joe!

[Omega 8]

Cool story Bro.....

















Nah, I'm fucking w/ya.... This is pretty EPIC, to get that kind of access and all that shit signed? AWESOME.

[GeneralxRon]

Now this is Front Page stuff/

[Stl_Brgd_PFC_Ramar]

Great story....nice to read at the end of the day on Friday. Glad you shared....

[Lantern_Lad]

That is freakin' sweet... he is such a cool, generous guy too.

[Air-tight]

Now this is Front Page stuff/

I only wish!!

[GeneralxRon]

I only wish!!

They front paged a "Busty" Lady Jaye drawing... sure why not this? It is Larry Hama. Not Leisure suit Larry..

[G.I.Spawn]

Awesome stuff. Thanks for sharing

[drunknmunky]

You both have the Arashikage logos? Damn Retaliation has made Air-Tight and Larry Hama both into ninjas!



Really though that's awesome. I met Mr. Hama at Joe Con last year. I was blown away by how down to Earth he is. He will literally talk to you forever about anything you ask. He told me so much about Joe that I never knew. We need more Hamas out there.

[Cobra Terrorist]

That is REALLY cool. I love all those "inside" stories.

I always thought "Kurt Shnurr" was a silly play on words for Kirschner Hot Dogs, lol!

Now I know.......

[Big IV]

That is REALLY cool. I love all those "inside" stories.

I always thought "Kurt Shnurr" was a silly play on words for Kirschner Hot Dogs, lol!

Now I know.......

Knowing is half the battle.

[Snow Wolf]

Awesome! You're a lucky guy! Meeting Larry Hama and getting a USS Flagg deck piece signed too........maybe I'll own a Flagg too.

[Starfighter]

Very cool!

[haradrel]

It seems to me that more and more fans get to meet Larry Hama, and that he always treats the fans with respect and humility.
Must be kind of funny/awkward having grown men with the light in their eyes like little kids all the time, talking about stuff you did 30 years ago. I think it's cool though, and much kudos to him for putting up with all the fandom.
I'm envious, I'll probably never get to meet him being on the other side of the globe and all.

[Python_Puckman]

If you were a real fan you would have carried in the ENTIRE Flagg


Seriously, that's very cool man

[Owner of a Lonely B.A.T.]

VERY...COOL!

Enjoy that!

[B and H Comics]

Awesome, I would love tp get a Hama sketch as well. I love his artwork, especially his layouts. His "funny" animal stuff is amazing.

[gruppenfuhrer88]

Cool, good for you man!

[ndb]

Wow. You got a one of a kind story there bro. If he ever shows up in my area, I'm grabbing a terrordrome, Flagg, and a defiant. :D

[CG23]

Very cool

[Firefly9145]

Freaking SWEEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTT bro Larry is such a cool dude in my life time i will like to meet him

[zweiman]

very nice!

[DaveViper]

This is freaking awesome! Thanks for sharing.

[Funnel Rat]

Fantastic story!
I don't think I've ever read a single unkind word about Larry Hama. Hope to get a few minutes with him myself one day!

[FlintWO2]

Cool pics and story man. I met Larry about 10 years ago at the Joe convention in Norfolk, VA. He is very personable, and very humble. Really great guy.

[Air-tight]

Thanks guys! Glad you like the story. Hopefully everybody here gets to meet the man at least once, he's certainly a cool dude for sure.

You both have the Arashikage logos? Damn Retaliation has made Air-Tight and Larry Hama both into ninjas!


LOL ^ This is great

[Shipwreck]

You both have the Arashikage logos? Damn Retaliation has made Air-Tight and Larry Hama both into ninjas!



Really though that's awesome. I met Mr. Hama at Joe Con last year. I was blown away by how down to Earth he is. He will literally talk to you forever about anything you ask. He told me so much about Joe that I never knew. We need more Hamas out there.

DM, I could not agree with this post of yours any more then I can! I too met and spoke with him last joe-con(2011) and I was also set on a course for the rest of that weekend after talking to him. I still talk to him every now and then. Air-Tight, Greatness has been bestowed upon your great icon of the Joe world. That FLAGG of yours is now priceless, belongs in a museuem, and we`re takin` donations! hehe kidding, Nice story, thank you for sharing it!

[HEAT Viper]

Awesome story and so cool that you got part of your FLAGG signed! I've been able to meet Larry twice now, both times in Richmond at the VA Comiccon. Talk about a thrill! He really is an awesome guy. The first time I met him he signed some books for me (including my I-Ching) and did a Snake Eyes sketch for me (and he was kind enough to pose for a photo with me and the sketch).

The second time I met him I asked him to do a Joe team version of Storm Shadow shooting his bow for me (archery is another hobby of mine). When I stopped by his table to pick up the sketch he explained the pose he put Storm Shadow in and then went on to basically give me a lesson in Zen archery, which he had studied when he was younger. I was speechless after that. One of the single coolest moments of my life. Ever.

Thanks again for sharing!

[Viper6]

this is the best story ever...i so wish i could kick it with him for even like 5 minutes.

[Vanguard]

I hope to meet him one day. A true idol. So awesome that I've never heard anyone say a bad thing about him.

[musashi3000gt]

Thats classic Larry Hama right there. The guy is so aproachable and humble. He has been so cool and friendly every time I've met him. Getting him to sign the Flagg was genius dude! Im smacking my head going "Why didnt I think of that!!!".

[TEMPLAR BAGGINS]

Bad ass bro! :D

[Kaboomskie]

Does Mr. Hama have a massive Joe collection as well? I'm guessing he should be entitled to get complimentary Joe toys from Hasbro since he is the creator of GIJoe.

[Cdt Weasel]

Cool story. Seems every time I've met Larry, he was having an off day for one reason or another so just got various grumblings out of him. Suppose I need to stop going to ghetto comic shows.

[Air-tight]

Glad everyone likes my story, I put off sharing it for a while and then was finally able to get off my ass and post the pics..

When I stopped by his table to pick up the sketch he explained the pose he put Storm Shadow in and then went on to basically give me a lesson in Zen archery, which he had studied when he was younger. I was speechless after that. One of the single coolest moments of my life. Ever.

Thanks again for sharing!

That's great man! Sounds just like Larry, lol

Getting him to sign the Flagg was genius dude! Im smacking my head going "Why didnt I think of that!!!". Right?? It just seemed like a no-brainer, and so far as I can tell I've never met anyone else with an authentic Hama-graphed Flagg.

Does Mr. Hama have a massive Joe collection as well? I'm guessing he should be entitled to get complimentary Joe toys from Hasbro since he is the creator of GIJoe. I read somewhere and saw a few photos of his apartment in NYC and he didn't have TONS of figures but he had a good number of carded joes on his wall, with several other loose figures around on his shelves.

[AlleyViperEXE]

Woah, this is pretty cool!

[Chief CWO]

Very cool experience and congrats!

[Air-tight]

Hope everyone in the Louisville, Kentucky area gets a chance to meet Larry on June 29th! Bring something to have signed and just talk to the guy, he's SUPER interesting.