Wade: My very first work in comics was as an assistant in Gaijin studio.

Derek: In the heart of Atlanta, Georgia, right?

Wade: The heart of Chamblee really but yeah Atlanta. I inked "Earth Boys" by Dave Johnson (the 2nd installment), but Karl Story got credit for it. The first job I got credit on was " Special thanks to..." in Legionnaires #2 as Karl's assistant. On Earth Boys #2, I was the sole inker. Karl inked Earth Boys #1. I did backgrounds on Legionnaires (Earth Boys was printed in Dark Horse Presents # 61.).

Derek: Has working in comics. . .and for that matter, the art industry as a whole. . .always been what you wanted to do for a career, or is it something that, in a manner of speaking, just fell out of the sky?

Wade: I've always wanted to be in comics. I was a commercial artist for a while in Atlanta but. . .hated it.

Derek: How did you get the job on STARMAN?

Wade: I had been assisting in Gaijin where Tony worked for a while. He met James at a con, and pitched his idea for Starman. Tony loved it and wanted to bring me on as inker. He had to sell Archie [Goodwin - Editor of Starman] on the idea as I had never worked on a monthly at that time.

Derek: Was that a big problem? You had done some work together earlier, correct?

Wade: I wasn't there for the discussions, but I understand that it's hard to just trust an unproven talent. When you see someone's samples (which is not what Archie saw of mine) they've usually been working on them for weeks and not under the gun. The quality often fluctuates wildly, and editors get screwed pretty regularly. Archie has never had anything negative to say to me though.

By the time I was up for Starman I had inked a few Legion issues (Legion Annual #4, Legion #s 51, 52, and a few others) and Tony on Green Lantern Corps Quarterly #7.

Derek: How much input do you have with STARMAN, since it is largely James Robinson and Tony Harris' project?

Wade: I have almost no creative imput. James has the story planned out and written as far as DC will let him. Which is about a year.

Derek: How far ahead do you and Tony work?

Wade: Tony and I aren't as far ahead as we'd like. Tony is finishing up issue 37, and I'm finishing issue 36.

Derek: How does your corner of production with a Starman issue work?

Wade: The pages are shipped to me, and I ink them with a brush mostly. It takes between 4 and 7 hours per page depending on the amount of of detail. Then I erase the stray pencils and add any special tone effects and ship it to DC.

Derek: Lemmee guess. . .you ship it AirBorne express. . .

Wade: You got it.

Derek: ::grin:: Does DC pay for things like that? Or is that the price of working out of the home?

Wade: DC takes care of it. Most companies pay for any shipping.

Derek: That's good. . .how'd you end up over in California anyway?

Wade: Well, my ex-wife was in the Air Force and we were stationed at L.A.A.F.B. (That's right girls! He's single!)

Derek: HAH!!!. . .You and Tony are quite a team. Do you plan to stick with Starman until the end of the run?

Wade: Well, yes and no. There are some projects in the works that I can't really discuss yet that would both take us away and yet keep it going in a new and exciting way.

Derek: Aside from Times Past stories. . .you'll generally be on the title until the end then?

Wade: I would like to be.

Derek: Comparing Tony Harris' earlier sketches (Starman: Sins of the Father TPB) with some of his later ones (Starman #29) it is evident that his work has changed, but how has this affected your inks over his pencils?

Wade: Well, we've both grown a great deal over the last 3 years. Our working together has helped me to get a greater control over my linework that I didn't have in the beginning.

Derek: I've noticed more crosshatching from you actually. . .am I dreaming?

Wade: It's not me, it's Tony. Tony pencils extremely tight. If anything, on rare occations, I simplify the feathering. Though not often because Tony knows what he wants, and he pencils that way. But almost as important in helping me has been working with other types of artists as well.

Derek: Speaking of inking others’s work. . .the Inferno mini-series, what can you tell us about that?

Wade: It's a blast! Inferno has do some real soul searching! And I love working with Stuart. It gives me an excuse to call Canada! Stu is one of the best guys I know. He's also the fastest worker I know! He ruins the curve for the rest of us!

Derek: Along with the Inferno mini-series with Stuart Immonen (which I have to say are some of the best inks on his work that I've seen!), what are some of your upcoming projects you will be working on?

Wade: At the moment, that's all I can think about. I'm busy with those until the end of August. Then I'm going to Vegas!

Derek: What issue are you on of Inferno?

Wade: I'm just into the second issue!

Derek: What other art mediums do you dabble in?

Wade: I penciled stories in issues #6 and #12 of Showcase '95 and issue 3 of Showcase '96.

Derek: So how do you like penciling?

Wade: I like it a lot. I still have some rough spots to work out, but I need more penciling jobs to iron out those kinks. I penciled a few pin-ups a couple of months ago (One was a Batman pin-up that Tony inked in the Batman Chronicles Gallery, and the other is a Starman pin-up I inked as well that is, as yet, not scheduled to be published.) that were better than the Showcase Stories, so I think I just need more time behind the pencil!

Derek: Are you better with super-heroes, or can you draw anything?

Wade: I would really like to get into some good Superhero stuff, and maybe branch out from there.

Derek: Who are your influences?

Wade: That could take a while. Brian Stelfreeze has had, by far, the biggest impact on my career. He taught more than I ever could've learned in Art School. Also there’s Karl Story, Adam Hughes, Neal Adams, Jim Aparo, and Tony. . .maybe a little.

Derek: What can you tell the readers about any upcoming stories in Starman?

Wade: Well, I can't be too insightfull really. We're fastly approaching a Times Past that will deal with Will Payton and set the ground work for Jack's eventual trip to find him. That will be after we learn the fate of Grundy.

Derek: For readers that have never read an issue of Starman why would you suggest they check it out?

Wade: I would say that it's a lot of fun. This is a comic that has incredibly developed charcters and great art. It's not the most action packed book on the stand, but I think more satisfying in that it's written so well. If I wasn't on the book I would buy it!

Derek: Are you a comic book reader yourself (if so what do you read?)?

Wade: I don't read as much as I used to and I tend to follow artist's mostly. I read Spawn, Kane, Nexus, The Savage Dragon, and whatever book is being drawn by Stuart Immonen, Adam Hughes, Brian Stelfreeze, Jason Pearson. . .and I will get anything by Travis Charest. His X-men/Wild C.A.T.s was incredible!

Derek: When it comes to recognition, inkers are often overlooked. Do you see the medium making it's way toward the limelight soon?

Wade: Not really. I mean more people are recognizing that we're not tracers (dispite Kevin Smith's best efforts), but the bottom line is that Pencilers sell and Inkers. . . .ink.

Derek: So do you have any pets?

Wade: I have an 11 year old cat that answers to Puss, but her name is Autumn.

Derek: What kind of cat food do you get?

Wade: Purina One.

Derek: And what kind for the cat? (heh, heh)

Wade: We share.

Derek: What is your favorite kind of fruit?

Wade: I dig grapes and melons!

Derek: Do you eat the peels?

Wade: No just the vines. Fiber. Bananas are tools of the devil. They make monkeys look cute, and anything that does that can't be good!

Derek: Y'know I've really don't eat bananas that much anymore. They're still good with cereal, but by themselves, they're so boring.

Wade: You're foolin' yourself!

Derek: Curious George m'man.

Wade: Run away from 'nanas!! And celery! And left handed people!

Derek: Well, I missed dinner Wade, it was nice chattin' I have to go warm up my steak and. . .

Wade: Do I get a steak for doing the interview?

Derek: I'll send you smoked rat, howz that?

Wade: No.

Derek: Or if I ever make it out to Torrance I'll buy you dinner.

Wade: Hey! Sounds like a plan!

NOTE: No monkeys were maimed, slaughtered, or hurt in any fashion during the production of this interview.