Wearing The Black Coat: Ben Lichius (Interview One of Four)

By Terry Hooper

The career of The Black Coat is a journey for the creators. The Black Coat first appeared as a self-published mini promotional comic at ComixPress.com. As Ben Lichus tells here, it moved to Speakeasy Comics. After Speakeasy's untimely and mysterious demise, Ape Entertainment recovered some of Speakeasy's series. Along with this recovery came The Black Coat. Terry Hooper sat down with co-creator Ben Lichius to discuss the series and its voyage to a new home.

TERRY HOOPER: Okay, Ben, a really very basic question for starters:where and when were you born?

Ben Lichius: Butler, PA. Just north of Pittsburgh.


TH: You say you started reading comics from an early age. Can you remember just how old you were and what those first comics were?

BL: I started reading comics in about the 5th grade. My older brother introduced me to some of Todd McFarlane’s early work on Spider-Man. I was amazed at the art, but really it came down to the fact that my brother was collecting comics and I wanted to be like him. I went out and used my paper route money to buy my first comic. I think it was a copy of Iron Man. He was fighting the Rhino or something. I remember it being pretty cool. My brother then helped me get hooked on a new series that was coming out so I could start with a book from the beginning. So I started picking up D.P. 7, which is, oddly enough, making a little comeback here recently.

TH: Did you buy the comics or your parents? I'm interested in finding out whether comics were approved or disapproved of by your parents?

BL: The paper route paid for all of my comics. My parents didn’t mind at all. I guess in the grand scheme of things, there are a lot worse things than reading comics. They even took me to a few conventions as I started getting more into it.


TH: So, you read those first comics - what was your reaction?

BL: I remember them being pretty fun. I ended up sticking with Spider-Man since he had always been my favourite. I went and bought as many back issues as I could afford. I loved reading all of the great stories from the John Romita Jr. (first run) and Ron Frenz days. Those are still a lot of my favourites.

TH: And you started drawing comics yourself - did these feature your own creations or Marvel/DC characters?

BL: They were my own creations. I had a few comic characters here and there. I ended up developing 2 of them in particular as I was learning to draw. I would make my own comics complete with photocopied ads and fill in the pages as I made up a story. I think I got to about issue 15 with those characters. The book was called Sole Survivor.

TH: Very few artists I've spoken to have their original handmade comics or drawings from the early years - do you?

BL: I did until just a few years ago. They’ve since disappeared and no one in my family knows where they went. It’s pretty depressing.

TH: I often think it'd be cool if all those great artists had all their childhood sketches, drawings or comic strips -Byrne, Joe Kubert and what was Jack "The King" Kirby drawing as a kid!!

BL: I’ve seen threads on a few message boards like that. It’s pretty interesting to see what inspires us as young creators.


TH: Your drawing and collecting of comics continued into High School and I'm also interested in whether this created any positive or negative episodes there -or was it just all part of student life?

BL: I guess it made me kind of geeky, but not in any bad way. (At least in my mind…) It was just part of growing up for me.


TH: From High School you went on to La Roche College where you studied Graphic Design -a good experience?

BL: Very good. Graphic design gives you a whole new perspective as an artist. It makes you much more aware of your audience, what it is that you are producing, and how it will be perceived. I learned some very important things that have carried into all aspects of my life from my time at La Roche.

TH: And, of course, you met your future wife Gayle there. How long before you broke it to her that you were "into" comics - and what was her reaction?

BL: Oh she knew right off the bat. If I was geeky in high school, it just got worse in college. Maybe that was part of the appeal, I don’t know. For whatever reason, she sticks with me through all the comics and kung fu movies. She even reads a few comics every now and then.


TH: I hear Gayle is not just supportive of your work but offers criticism if asked?

BL: She’s my best critic – hands down. She’s not afraid to tell me if something stinks and more importantly, she can articulate why it stinks. If I want an honest opinion, I always go to her.


TH: Eventually you got into the magazine publishing business; how did this come about and can you tell us what the work involved?

BL: I got a job right out of school though the career centre at the college. It was boring stuff. I mean real boring. I worked on magazines called Iron and Steel Engineer and Industrial Heating. If that doesn’t tell you everything you need to know, I don’t know what will. I was doing layouts and some technical illustrations. Like I said. Boring stuff.



TH: And from magazine work you got into the video game industry? How did that move come about and what does your work involve?

BL: It came about through a contact from La Roche. A fellow alum was working at a local game shop and I got introduced to him. I showed him my portfolio and when a job came open, he offered it to me.

Since I’ve been in games, I’ve done just about everything art related you can image. I’ve done everything from 3D modelling, to animation, to FX and User Interfaces, to video editing and lots of concept work. I’m an Art Director now, so I do more project management than I do art. Most of my art is done in my ‘spare’ time.


TH: What is The Black Coat all about and how did the concept of the character come about?

BL: I was on vacation at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia and I had just seen The Mask of Zorro. It didn’t take long to dawn on me that there was no Zorro for the world of Colonial America even though it had all the right ingredients. So I started working on a character. He’s since become a lot more than just ‘colonial Zorro,’ but that’s where it started.

TH: Now you pitched the title to Canada’s Speakeasy Comics which must have been a great break initially – was that for a mini series or ongoing?

BL: I just sent them an email to see if they were interested. The email had a link to our website and some sample pages. I would love to have pitched them an ongoing series, but we have been pitching a mini from the start, not knowing if we would get the chance for anything more. I heard back from Speakeasy right away. It was great to get picked up and have someone believe in your concept – even though things didn’t work out in the long run.


TH: There was the big downer when, I believe just prior to The Black Coat #1 appearing, Speakeasy went out of business! That must have been a major blow – did it affect your faith in the project?

BL: Not at all. We had all worked too hard to give up.

TH: Any idea why Speakeasy went out of business?

BL: Nope. I mean I have some ideas, but I honestly don’t spend a lot of time thinking about it. I know the deal with Ardustry stretched them pretty thin and seemed to change the focus of the company, but what really did them in? I’m not sure.


TH: But then you got another break when Ape Entertainment accepted the series. How long was the gap between Speakeasy folding and Ape picking up the series?

BL: About a week and a half. Those Ape guys moved fast. And when we realized that we could get the book back on track with Ape picking up all of Speakeasy’s preorders, we moved even faster. It was a group effort, but Ape really made it happen.

TH: I guess Ape Entertainment must have been quite supportive – a happy home for The Black Coat?

BL: Definitely! Ape has been great to work with and are big fans of the book. They are in constant communication with us and really let us know what’s going on. It’s nice to get so much attention.


TH: So what have readers got to look forward to in the series?

BL: Wow! All kinds of stuff! It’s a real cross-genre book so I honestly think there is something for just about everyone. In “A Call to Arms” readers will get to see The Black Coat in action as a new threat from an ancient secret society falls on the colonies. Issue 1’s got lots of action, horror, and colonial style espionage. The Black Coat fights some pirates and there’s even a little murder mystery tucked inside.


TH: Having seen some of your pencilled pages I'm surprised that you are only a co-writer not penciller. Was it hard to decide to let someone else do all the art chores?

BL: Not really. Francesco’s so good, it’s like Christmas every time he finishes a page. Plus between writing, editing, doing the website, coordinating all of the promotions, working with the publisher, and working lots of hours at my regular job, I’m usually too busy to think about it.

TH: Having met and talked to writer-teams before, I'd be VERY interested in finding out how all three [?] of you work on a script/story. Are you all thinking along the same lines or does one have to persuade another to follow a certain storyline?

BL: Adam and I hash out most of the plot points. For the most part we agree on everything. We both have a lot of ideas so if we disagree, it’s usually about which good idea we like best. Adam writes a script and then we work it over a few times. Once we have something we’re both happy with, Francesco adds his thoughts to the process and we just start making the book. We use email and phone calls to keep in touch. We also have a creator-only forum that we use to toss ideas around.


TH: I've been assuming that The Black Coat is an ongoing series but it’s initially four issues I believe? Is there the opportunity to make it an ongoing series?

BL: I’d love for it to be, but it really depends on reader support. For now, we’re looking at 4 issues.

TH: Is there a specific storyline that you are waiting to see reader reaction to or are you just hoping every story will receive a big "wow!"?

BL: Well the end of issue 4 should be a pretty big doozie, but in general, I’m just anxious to hear what people think and whether or not they like the character. So far the response has been overwhelmingly positive.


TH: Anything we should keep our eyes open for in The Black Coat such as in-jokes or cameo appearances by the creators in the background??

BL: We had a contest for issue 1 where we put our winner in the book. There’s a note about it on the letters page so you can check it out. Most of the panels are so full of detail though, there’s not a lot of room for inside jokes or anything. Just lots of blood, sweat, and tears. 


TH: Fingers crossed and hoping the series DOES do well, if it takes off should we not be surprised if we hear of a video game -or other merchandise....or has the concept of a video game already been considered?

BL: Heh. I did a proposal for a BC video game a while back for fun but I don’t know if it holds up any longer. If the book takes off, I’d love to see all that stuff happen. I guess we’ll see how it goes.


TH: Okay, Ben, final question and your chance for the "big pitch"! Why should the comic fan buy The Black Coat -any words to the masses?

BL: Cause it’s cool!  Seriously though, I really do think it’s got a nice cross genre appeal. If you like superhero comics, there are things here for you. If you like swashbuckling heroes or pirates, we have that. If you like spies, monsters, mysteries, or horror, we’ve got that too. And of course, if you like a gorgeous looking book, we have that in spades. Honestly, if you give it a try, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

If you still have doubts, just swing by the website: The-Black-Coat.com and check out preview pages for the first 3 issues and lots more. It should give you a good idea of what the book has to offer.



TH: Ben, thank you very much and the best of luck with The Black Coat!

BL: Thanks!

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