We also sat down with Gabe El-Tayib, a renowned comic artist who shares insights into the comic industry and discusses the impact of socio-cultural changes on storytelling. Discover how traditional narratives are being reshaped, and why creators like Gabe are pushing back with fresh content that resonates with the spirit of classic tales. You’ll hear about the journey from mainstream comics to independent publishing, and the potential cultural renaissance driven by artists dedicated to truth and authentic representation.
Democrats say gerrymandering’s horrible, so of course they plan to do a lot of it to save democracy. Another government-run grocery store is a very expensive failure, big surprise. And there’s a huge divide between Republicans and Democrats over whether America is worth celebrating. And of course it’s the left that says no. I’m Greg Karumbas, inviting you to join Jim Garrity of National Review and me each weekday for the Three Martini Lunch podcast. We’ll give you the good, bad, and crazy news of the day, and hopefully a lot of laughs too. Follow the Three Martini Lunch on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
SPEAKER 04 :
Dana Lash’s Absurd Truth Podcast, sponsored by Kel-Tec.
SPEAKER 05 :
It’s his life mission to make bad decisions. It’s time for Florida Man.
SPEAKER 01 :
A weirdo Florida Man. Golly, he has some serious red hair. Sorry. Wow. Wow. Wow. There’s no way. Okay, anyway, I guess way. Central Florida man is arrested for peeping into neighbor’s homes. Of course he is. An Auburndale man was arrested and accused of peeping into the homes of two female neighbors. Residents of a mobile home park where he resided, apparently, his name’s Tyler Mountain, 28 years old. They said he was surreptitiously recording… and taking photographs of people in their homes using his cell phone. And that, I mean, they got him on voyeurism and some other stuff, but he would peep inside and then he would get, I mean, he was like on the porch or on the back porch or like right up against the window trying to get like video footage and photographs and that. He was booked in a Polk County jail, charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling, two counts, voyeurism, stalking, loitering, and prowling. And also in November of 23, he exposed himself twice. to two different women. So he’s lucky that he’s alive because I see you on my property doing that. It’s Glock o’clock. That’s not even messing, man. Giggity Glock. What’s happening? Let’s see. What is happening with this? Okay. Plato’s Closet is a resale shop. When I was younger, I thought it was the coolest place ever. Florida man uses his phone to record underage girls in fitting rooms. Again, Glock o’clock. He was arrested. Again, video voyeurism. He used a cell phone to record girls inside a Seminole County store over the Fourth of July weekend. Officers responded. Thirty nine year old Brian Bishop. They got him on camera, the security camera doing this. Like, how does someone go into a store? There’s there’s so prolific security cameras are everywhere. They’re ubiquitous. And he goes in and he’s doing this and he’s you see him bending down and like. putting the phone under the doors to record on the other side of the doors. I mean, you can see him in the video doing this. And one of the girls noticed the phone and began yelling. And that’s when he left the store. But they found him. They booked him in jail. And now he goes before a judge. He appeared before the judge yesterday. I don’t have any other updates to that, but he appeared before a judge yesterday. I mean, I’m not kidding you. The fact that these dudes like this do not get shot. Yeah. Are they like picking times or places where they think that nobody, because I absolutely will mark a dude for doing, for like preying on women like this and minors. No way, man. Let’s see this. Oh, let’s do this one. Driver shoots fireworks from his car while doing donuts in Orlando Street. I thought this was America. It doesn’t really seem that crazy, except you can’t be driving on the streets like this. You’d take an old beater car into an old cornfield and do this.
SPEAKER 05 :
We just had a story yesterday of an old man dying from fireworks, so it’s pretty serious.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, you’ve got to be careful with that stuff. So these people, they were launching them from a moving vehicle while doing donuts in a busy intersection. That’s okay. You can’t be doing that. You can’t be getting on Michael Bay in the middle of an intersection. Let’s not… They arrested Roderick Baez, 20. He had Roman candles and he was riding shotgun. This is like they were his emotional support explosives is what they said. And he was on his way to another street party. And then they got Anthony Colon, 33. Imagine your last name is Colon. C-O-L-O-N. You can’t say Colon, could you? Because there’s no other way to do that. Colon. He was selling booze to people out of his trunk, the car that was doing the donuts. And then Stoyan Volchev and Dion Custard. Your name is Dion Custard. Okay, 18 and 31 respectively. They were also doing donuts with fireworks. So it seemed like a street circus happening. Our partners that help bring you the program, Kel-Tec is a Florida-based firearms company and one of the newest companies. pistols that they have out is the PR57. It’s a rotary barrel pistol chambered in 5.7, 40% lighter than the competition, making it easier for concealed carry. And it was designed to be 40% lighter. And they accomplished this a couple of different ways. The rotary barrel, the innovative rotary barrel makes it lighter, but also the unique top loading design. So they replace the traditional magazines with stripper clips. That gives you a slimmer carry profile and a 20 plus one capacity. And the MSRP makes it affordable at only $399. Made in Florida, USA company, family owned. You can learn more about the PR57 Chambered in 5.7 at caltechweapons.com. That’s K-E-L tecweapons.com. Tell them Dana sent you.
SPEAKER 07 :
If you like true crime, you’ll love the Miracle Files podcast.
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We share real stories with the suspense of true crime, but we’ll leave you with a sense of light and hope.
SPEAKER 07 :
Like the college wrestler who fought a grizzly, the woman who was dead for nearly an hour, or the child lost in a dark mine for days. These are the kind of stories that remind us miracles are real.
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Subscribe to The Miracle Files wherever you get your podcasts and join us on this thrilling journey of faith and miracles.
SPEAKER 01 :
Okay, so Sanders, Bernie Sanders, he was on the socials, and he was talking to some reporters, giving them some quotes from some pieces and stuff. And one of the things that he said kind of hit me the… Wrong way. He said, quote, instead of forcibly removing the homeless from D.C. as Trump wants to do, we need to build millions of affordable housing units in America. Instead of giving tax breaks to Wall Street billionaires who are buying up housing and jacking up rent, we need to put a cap on rent prices. So I had asked them, I said, well, why haven’t you offered to donate one of your houses to He’s got a lot of property. A lot of property. I mean, he’s he owns three homes. He owns a house in Burlington, Vermont. Vermont’s very pretty. You know, he’s very pretty. He’s a big socialist. You know, he’s a socialist senator. Forbes did a huge study on his multimillion dollar fortune. And he’s got millions of dollars from real estate. Now, sidebar real quick. Remember, again, before this, Bernie Sanders was one of those people who never had a job. Do you remember what his one like private sector job was? He did a zine. Came last. Dude, for real. That’s what he did. And then his wife, like, bankrupted at a girls’ school. Anyway, so he’s made millions of dollars from his book. He also, he’s got a lot of books. He’s made lots of money. He’s written three books all about the same thing. Imagine. People buy that. Oh, it’s a book about the same thing again? I would love to purchase this in support of socialism with a capitalist practice. And he’s got three super nice houses. He has a waterfront home. He’s got two houses in Vermont, one in Burlington and one in North Hero, and that’s waterfront. That is swanky, Kane. I don’t have waterfront property. Kane, do you have waterfront property? I do not. Man. Well, Bernie Sanders is a socialist, so isn’t that our waterfront property? Oh. We own that house, too, apparently. I mean, unless he’s, you know, not what he says he is. He’s got a super fancy house in D.C. as well. Most of his a lot of his money is tied up. Well, not a lot, but a good chunk of his money is a four bedroom, two and a half bath colonial in Burlington. And he has a row house, which is super expensive, just a couple of blocks from the Capitol. That’s a lot of money because those houses are not cheap. Steve, you know in D.C. them row houses right there by the Capitol, them fancy ones, they’re not cheap, right?
SPEAKER 04 :
Start at a million and a half.
SPEAKER 01 :
Oh, is that all? Is that all? A million and a half. Jiminy Christmas. So he’s got… He’s got his two-story that’s in Burlington. I think that’s the one he started in. And then he’s got this beautiful waterfront home. It’s like two-thirds of it are on the water. Look at that. Juan’s going to show up. It’s gorgeous. Look at the detail on his historic row house there in D.C. I mean, that’s just swank, man. That’s just luxury.
SPEAKER 05 :
Holy cow. It’s like a corner lot surrounded by water.
SPEAKER 01 :
He paid for that in cash.
SPEAKER 05 :
What? What?
SPEAKER 01 :
You know, the socialist Bernie Sanders paid for in cash.
SPEAKER 05 :
What cash? He’s only making $174,000 a year.
SPEAKER 01 :
Juan is showing you the houses. So let me explain. So you viewers are looking at the television. On the third, on the left, that’s where it has all the trees in front of it. That’s his row house in D.C. And so that’s a couple blocks from the Capitol. Now, I think it’s even, Stevie, I think it’s probably even more than a mil and a half because, I mean, look at all the, a lot of those row houses have that green space in front. Yeah. So it looks like there actually has a little sliver of property in addition with that row house. The middle house is the one in Burlington, and I think that’s the one he started in. And then the one on the right, that is his big lakefront property in North Hero, and that’s what he paid for in cash. And that is a fort. It’s described as a tranquil four-bed, three-bath home with shorefront access on Lake Champlain. 50 minutes north of Burlington. So see, he’s a socialist. So he really needed one house and then 50 minutes away, he needed another house. I think I’m just too lazy to have that much property. Even if I were a trillionaire, I don’t like having that. much responsibility over properties you know what i mean like i don’t i don’t want to have i mean i understand that’s a smart investment but you got to take care of it and then like i just don’t want to have to have like two coffee machines you know or three coffee it’s annoying like you gotta have pans for those houses that’s what i think of i’m like golly you gotta have clorox wipes on every one of them things good night like what else you gotta have i have a bed jet You need to tell Jennifer, our salesperson, that BedJet needs to advertise in this program. You have to have three BedJets. You’re going to take your BedJet to like all three different houses? No. So he’s got a lot of money. Now, Kane, look at them houses.
SPEAKER 05 :
I see them.
SPEAKER 01 :
Why don’t you mind throwing that back up there? Because I’m just saying, if you’re homeless in D.C., Do you think would any or all three of these properties work to house the homeless in D.C.? Yeah.
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, we could do like a little round robin sort of thing where, you know, one week the homeless stays at one place. The next week they switch over to another place.
SPEAKER 01 :
Why can’t the waterfront property be like a homeless camp? I mean, they can even camp outside in the summer.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right.
SPEAKER 01 :
Right.
SPEAKER 05 :
Get a couple of pontoon boats. They can sleep out on the water.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah. So he says, just going back to his tweet. He says, well, instead of forcibly removing the homeless, you know, we need to build millions of affordable. What do you mean we need to build? I don’t need to do jack. I don’t need to do nothing. Slick. What do you mean we need to? We don’t need to do nothing. You know, he was the one who, by the way, voted to expand and make things more expensive with the Green New Deal. He voted to do all of that stuff. So and he vote. I don’t understand why he’s complaining about this, because he’s I mean, I just am shocked at the tone deafness of this. He has not offered one of his properties at all whatsoever. Not one. The one in D.C. there that’s blocks from the Capitol. My gosh. I mean, that’s the one that’s what, four bedrooms. I mean, you could bunk up, man. Like some of these dudes could bunk. Some of these homeless people could bunk up. And they could all be staying in that row house blocks from the Capitol. So they don’t even need to relocate them to Vermont. So I don’t know. I mean, it doesn’t make any sense. I’m just saying, you know, what he’s saying isn’t really jive with his belief set. And this was the guy. He wants to throw billions at housing subsidies. OK, when has this worked? When did that work? Giving billions of dollars in housing subsidies. When has that ever worked before? And then what about like zoning and things like that? That’s also a big issue. What happens when, you know, with zone, you got to deal with that. I mean, this is this is in California. They spent over 24 billion dollars in just a few years. Remember, they were supposed to address homelessness. California. That was their whole point. They were supposed to address homelessness in California. Do you think they did it? The addressing of the homelessness? I don’t think so. Because they kept spending billions and billions of dollars. And then in fact, it actually increased California’s, that’s KTLA, it actually increased California’s homeless population. This has never worked in any state or just never worked where it’s been implemented. But that’s how these people are. J.B. Pritzker, you know, he comes and talks a good game about it. J.B. Pritzker is a patrillionaire. He hasn’t offered any of his properties, especially the property in Florida. Remember when he locked down his state in Illinois and then he hightailed it to his horse ranch down in Florida? Mm-hmm. He made sure to get out of Dodge quick, didn’t he? It doesn’t make any sense. Now, in the meantime… You’ve got the guard going in, clearing everyone out. You had protesters that were pro. I don’t know why they were protesting. And the Democrats are saying, oh, well, you know, we need to push back. Yeah, that’s the problem. Residents, all these polls of residents is just destroying these narratives, these claims that they’re making about crime. Because it’s it’s it’s real, obviously. It’s just unbelievable. Did you know the whole higher thread count means better sheets thing is just a myth? Kind of like thinking that cold weather gives you a cold or that we only use 10% of our brains. The real secret to great sheets isn’t thread count, but thread quality. That’s why you’ll love Bull and Branch. They use the highest quality organic cotton threads. So their sheets are not only soft and luxurious right out of the box, but they actually get softer with each product. wash the first night you’ll try them you’re going to feel the difference it’s like climbing into a five-star hotel bed every night and your sleep will never be better i mean i’m not going back to my old sheets if you’re ready to upgrade your sleep feel the difference an extraordinary night’s sleep can make with bowl and branch get 15 off plus free shipping on your first set of sheets at bowlandbranch.com slash dana show the real secret to great sheets isn’t thread count but thread quality it’s bowlandbranch.com slash dana show for 15 off and free shipping If you’re ready to upgrade your sleep, feel the difference an extraordinary night’s sleep can make with Bull & Branch. It’s bullandbranch.com slash danashow for 15% off and free shipping. Exclusions apply.
SPEAKER 05 :
And now, all of the news you would probably miss. It’s time for Dana’s Quick 5.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, listen to this. So Bed Bath & Beyond says they are not going to open retail stores in California. Now, remember, they said that they were going to be closing a bunch of stuff, but now apparently it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. They said they’re just not going to open or operate retail stores in California with a statement that they posted to their ex-account. They said that their system in California makes it impossible for businesses to succeed. And the Marcus Limones, who is who released the statement from the company, said that they it’s our responsibility to our customers and shareholders. We’re not going to participate in a system that undermines both. We are investing in a California strategy that works. So delivering like drop shipping essentially is like what it looks like. And they said that Californians can still get it, but they’re not going to have an unsustainable model by having like a storefront in California. So they said that Californians can go to the .com. Everyone else will be able to have stores literally in every other state. And that is from the head of it, Marcus Limonis, and who’s on Fox Business and all. That’s crazy. By the way, he’s the executive chairman of Bed Bath & Beyond, and I just realized that he follows me. Really? Yeah, I was reading it. I’m like, oh, wait a minute. Wait a second. Yeah. So that’s interesting. I mean, can I just be honest? Who doesn’t love a bed bath and beyond? There’s a few places that I love more. I love going into the Sam’s Club, and then I love going into a Bed Bath & Beyond. We’ve got to talk about Kane’s glasses here coming up. Kane’s got some blue light blockers, guys. I don’t know what to make of it. He looks like Robert Evans sitting in the corner over there. I think that’s a compliment. From Paramount, Robert Evans. You look like him. Like, hey, Bubby. He’s getting ready to cut some deals back there. We really have to talk about this. Let’s… What is this? What is a wire sexual? This is a Kane headline right here. Kane Robert Evans. A new movement of women, they’re in love with AI-generated men. And they said, oh my gosh, everybody wants a flag. They’re a marginalized group that deserves their own alphabet flag. So I guess if you fall in love, can you fall in love with an AI thing? If you think that you’ve fallen in love with an AI thing, then you’re a wire sexual. Why wouldn’t it be like an internet sexual?
SPEAKER 05 :
How can we divide us up into more groups?
SPEAKER 01 :
I mean, I’m made of questions. A growing cohort of single dads by choice because bitches be crazy. So the growing cohort, apparently a lot of men, they said, this is the Atlantic, they said a lot of dudes are being single dads. I find that sad. I find that sad for the kids. I was having a conversation with someone the other day. I’m talking about how, especially during COVID and lockdown, I just was so tired of everything. All entertainment. Everything coming out of Hollywood is horrible. And I got really into anime. I think I’ve seen almost everything from Monster to Attack on Titan. Manga. Started getting into comics. And I don’t think it would have happened had it not been for COVID. And then what I realized is that there’s so many great stories to tell. And now here we are in 2025 and Hollywood, which has never been, I mean, lately it’s been so incredibly derivative and predictable. I feel like they’ve been looking for things to ruin. So they go back and they’ve been looking at like different series to ruin, different comics to ruin, different iconic characters to ruin. And I remember seeing this story, and it was a couple of years ago, and it had to do with Superman. And there was, how to put it, a storyline coming out in Superman, DC Comics, where they were talking about the Man of Steel and bisexuality and all this stuff. And I’m like, duh. How does this have to do with Superman? This what is this is true justice in the American way. Like, what does this have to do with Superman? Come on. And there was a an artist with DC Comics who is done with it. And it was very, very high profile. He was like, I’m done with it. I’m out. And he left. And he’s been doing his own thing over at Big Man Comics. Gabe El-Tayib is joining me now. He’s writer, artist, publisher of Big Man Comics. And I love his story. And I like how he just he was done dealing with it and suffering that stupidity. And he said enough’s enough. And he joins us now. Gabe, it’s so good to see you. Welcome.
SPEAKER 03 :
And finally, you were one of the first people to reach out to me almost four years ago this coming September, October. And I hadn’t done a lot of media, so I was like, I don’t know. I don’t want to go on some show. Who’s this lady or whatever? But sorry. Sorry, I’m here better late than never. How are you doing?
SPEAKER 01 :
Thank you for having me. good i’m doing good i wanted to like tell people who might not be familiar with your story and talk about what you’re doing now because i know you’re doing some stuff with dean kane and you got a lot of stuff in the works but you had your dream job like that i can’t even imagine how terrifying that you get your dream job and then you realize is it my dream job or is this the dream environment because it got real weird fast for you
SPEAKER 03 :
It did. You know, I’ve been drawing since I could remember, since I was like three years old, whatever. And I wanted to be a comic book artist. When I was 12 or 13, I decided. My favorite artist, Jim Lee, he’s still there at DC Comics. He’s a great illustrator, vice president of the company there. And he hired me in my 20s. I worked my butt off to earn that. It’s an elite job. There are less people that make a good living in comics than in the NFL or the NBA. It’s so hard to get that job. And it wasn’t woke at first. 2008, I started working for them. And as we know, during the Obama years, things started getting weirder and weirder and pronouns and all the stuff that started happening in media and comics and movies. And I just kind of kept my head down. I didn’t really tell them I was conservative, this and that. And it’s like, well, it’s not my book. It’s not my book. And then eventually it was my book. And we’re getting rid of Superman’s truth, justice, the American way slogan. That’s disrespectful. And we’re going to explore the sex life of Superman’s underage son. And I said, we’re not going to do that. You’re going to do that. I’m going to go and do my own thing. So see you guys later. Thank you. But I’m out of here. So that was four years ago, I think, this October.
SPEAKER 01 :
What was their reason for doing that? Did they think that they were going to bring in like other people who might not be into comics? And that was going to because you’re alienating your hardcore base that supported you for so long. They don’t want to read that stuff.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, that’s the cover story. Oh, we need to do the modern audience, the big audience, capture more people, more diverse, whatever. No, if you’ve ever read Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand nails these people, right? She nails the resentful leftists. And they hate truth and beauty. They’re the kind of people where they see the quarterback and the cheerleader kissing and they’re like, oh. When you see excellence, when you see success, when you see all that stuff, you should be inspired and go, oh my gosh, how did they do that? I want to do that. How do I become a radio, TV, big shot like Dana? What’s she doing? Instead of going, oh, Dana’s dad probably owns the network. So leftists, they see Batman, they see Superman, they see all this stuff that’s awesome, and they get mad. They grit their teeth and are like, let me destroy it. So the misery is a big part of it for them. They like knowing that they’re ruining something you love.
SPEAKER 01 :
Ooh, that’s good. We’re talking with Gabe Altaib, who’s with Big Man Comics. And I’m going to talk about some of the other stuff that you had. That’s a psychological deep dive. That’s like a whole other topic of discussion, like why people think that way. And like you said, they see success. They see exceptionalism, whether it’s American exceptionalism, just individualistic exceptionalism. And maybe it’s something that they don’t have within and they feel like they got to destroy it or it’s a threat to what, I mean, it is a threat to, it’s a threat to control. Exceptionalism is a threat to control.
SPEAKER 03 :
Right. Absolutely. Yeah. I feel like people either believe in God or they think they are God. And it’s like one of my favorite writers, Cormac McCarthy, there’s a villain in one of his books and he tells people that that exists without my knowledge exists without my consent. It was one of the most chilling things I ever read. And it’s like, that’s how the left is. It’s like, If something is better than me and it’s not mine, then I have to destroy it. Instead of going, oh, how did they make Batman so great? Let me make my own Batman, my own original character. But like, no, I’m going to stick my agenda on it, my politics. In recent issues of Batman, they have him fighting billionaires and sticking up for Antifa, basically. You know what I mean? It’s like they’re just injecting their politics, they’re moralizing, they’re lecturing. And all stories have a message and a moral, but what you should never do is antagonize your audience. You should never have Superman saying, hey, audience, you’re a bunch of racists and polluters and bigots, and this is why you’re terrible. Because really, that’s just the writer speaking through Superman, trying to tell you why the writer’s a better person than you, instead of… Inspiring you the way Superman always has. So, you know, art is about truth and beauty. Art is just patterns. It really is scientific patterns. So when you write woke stuff and you put agenda ahead of just the patterns of how story and character work, you can’t write good stories. And that’s why the Marvel stuff that came out at first that everybody liked up to the Avengers thing was very normal, pretty straight. And then when they went with the MCU, where it was all the girl power woke stuff. Oh, my God. You see those movies just flopping over and over. And M.C. was not mine. That belongs to my friend, Nerd Roddick. He coined that term.
SPEAKER 01 :
That is so… Yeah, I remember reading that. That is… That’s true. I like what you said, too, about when they were changing, you know, stuff like with Superman. You were saying that your grandfather was reading this interview with you. He almost died in World War II. And, I mean, because that’s… As Americans, I mean, we we have like such it’s so ingrained, like everything to get this republic to where it is right now. And everybody’s got a connection to that. And when you when they do stuff the way that they’ve been doing it, it sort of feels like they are stepping all over that. It’s like they’re disrespecting everything that so many people have given for to create for what we enjoy now.
SPEAKER 03 :
Right. Well, one of their big mantras is smash the patriarchy, right? Well, what does pater mean in Latin? It means father. These are people who are heartbroken and hate their father, and they want to destroy his world and everything he ever built. It’s why they destroy Star Wars. It’s why they destroy Superman. They hate their dad. That’s what this is. And I’m not here to say whether their dad was right or wrong, but the whole thing stems back to family and fathers. It’s your cultural patrimony is what this stuff is called, right?
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes. You are doing a project with Dean Cain, who is also signed up with ICE. Tell me about this, because you started this was announced. It’s the All-American Lawman. And I love the logo for this, by the way.
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, that’s a Glock 17, my first gun I ever had. And I know you’re a big gun rights advocate. I work for San Diego gun owners. I speak at their events. So we’re simpatico on that. But when DC Comics got rid of the slogan, Truth, Justice, American Way, that was the first thing that made me really mad. And then it was the underage, bisexual storyline. Like, no thanks. That’s not why I got into drawing comics. And… So the first book I made was Analogues for Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, and we called the book Truth, Justice, American Way. Those were the code names of the heroes. People loved it, and it was a classic throwback, and it wasn’t lecturing you if you were left-wing either. It was, oh, Democrats suck. I don’t do that either. I just entertain you, like in the 80s, the way you loved it. I make fresh stuff that feels like the old Indiana Jones, the old Star Wars, but it’s fresh because it’s a new take for me, and I’m not lecturing anyone. I’m just inspiring you, and the first thing I’m doing is just entertaining you. So we had Truth, Justice, and American Way. And then Dean Cain, he noticed me on Twitter. He saw what I was doing. I got his attention. So we became very good friends. He’s a really nice guy, by the way. We’re actually friends and not just business partners. We came up with a James Bond, Indiana Jones kind of comic called Dean Cain, All-American Lawman. And it’s just a cool man of adventure, travels the globe, beautiful women, awful bad guys. And it’s like the stuff from the 80s, like Indiana Jones from the 80s, where you could watch it as an adult and it’s for adults. But you can let a kid see it and you don’t have to worry that it’s nasty with sex scenes and gore and perversion and cussing. So it’s safe to hand to your eight-year-old nephew. But as a 40-year-old, you could read it and you’re fully engaged and you love it.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah. There’s something to that. The way that… that stories were told then where you could have multi-generations read them. You could be in the same room. You could be with your grandparents and your kids and your cousins or whatever, and everybody could watch it. No one’s cringing because it’s inappropriate. What happened to the art of storytelling where everything is so silent or everything is so hyper-sexualized that we don’t, I mean, we don’t see as much you’re doing it, but there’s so few people that are doing that type of storytelling anymore.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I think I’m a Christian. I’m never going to apologize for that. And in the Bible, that’s out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks is a verse, right? So what’s in you is going to come out of you, whether you like it or not. So when you have ugly, filthy stories, well, guess what kind of people they’re coming out of? Right? That’s what’s in their heart. It’s what they believe. All art is is one thing only. It’s self-expression. What do I think about the world? What do I think about myself and my place in it? That’s what art is. I’m saying something about life and myself and the world. So when I believe in truth and justice and heroism, being a good father. You know, the theme of the first Dean Cain book is you do the right thing no matter what, no matter how scary it is. That’s the theme of that one. The theme in Truth Justice is the same thing. In the Tyrus book that I’m doing with Fox News superstar Tyrus, it’s about being a screw-up and finally getting things right. And in Empyrean, Earth Illuminate, which I have right now, bigmancomics.com, go there and get it. It’s about, are we living the right way? Are we being fooled? Is there a better world? Is there a better path? That’s my love letter to the old Star Wars stuff that inspired me. I was born in 78, started watching Star Wars as a very little kid, and that was the first thing that just ignited my imagination. The first things I ever remember drawing were Star Wars space battles in the back of my grandparents’ Mexican restaurant. Nobody could watch me, and my brother was in kindergarten, so I’d just pull out butcher paper and just draw spaceships all day. And you will you will absolutely love this. You know, it’s a fresh take on sci fi stuff, but it goes back to, you know, I’m 47 decades of me loving adventure and sci fi and stuff like that.
SPEAKER 01 :
I love it. And so and you you live it, you love it. And it comes out that way. Just, you know, pure appreciation for that genre and great storytelling, great art as well. We’d love to have you back. Thank you. We’d love to have you back. Gabe Altaib. And make sure you go to bigmancomics.com. And he’s got all kinds of stuff up there. You’ve got merch. You’ve got your T-shirts. You’ve got your comics. You have absolutely everything up there. And you can see about Dean Cain, All-American Lawman. What did you say, Cain? The crowdfunding. Yeah, because I and I definitely believe that people need to get involved and like help bring this stuff to life because everybody complains about the stuff that comes out that’s in the theaters or on TV or Netflix or whatever. And it’s like, OK, well, then put your money where your mouth is and support this stuff. So these other people don’t come and take that influence over from you. You have a duty. It’s like a duty, like the opportunity and the freedom to be able to do that. So bigmancomics.com. Gabe, God bless you. I so appreciate what you do. Thank you for doing the real art that you’re doing because that’s going to be appreciated for years to come. It’s iconic.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s an honor to me. Can I say one last thing to you and the audience? The reason I do all this is because I felt what you felt. Audience, Dana, I felt what you felt. My culture, it’s slipping away. My dad almost died. He’s an immigrant from Libya. They killed my dad’s friends and relatives. My grandfather, that side, has been here for hundreds of years, almost died in the Pacific in World War II. This country is the greatest country in the history of the world, the greatest culture, and it was fought and died for. And we just watch it melting away, turning into perversion, perverting kids, messing everything up. And I’m like, I can’t be a part of that. I will not put my name on that as part of the people who made that mess. So I did something about it. And I gambled my career that I fought so hard to get. I said, no, I can’t do this. And the power of story, it is the most potent form of persuasion. And when I was quitting my job at D.C., I was terrified. I live in San Diego. It’s kind of expensive. And I didn’t have a job lined up.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 03 :
but here’s the power of story indiana jones from 1989 he steps into that bottomless pit where there’s the invisible bridge you remember that the one with sean connery yep but he had to take the leap of faith and i kept picturing that leap of faith when i was watching when i was thinking about quitting and resigning and i just prayed i said god don’t let me fall and i was lifted higher than ever you know what i mean i’m making art that i’m so proud of uh doing very good business and uh I would challenge all of you out there to join me. You know, make good art, stand up, tell the truth, and support people like me. Go to bigmancomics.com, get our books. They’re awesome. It’s great entertainment for you and your family. And we can save this culture. We can bring it back. People are going to have entertainment no matter what. Let’s give them something good.
SPEAKER 01 :
Amen to that. Gabe Altib, bigmancomics.com. Gabe, always a pleasure. And you can find him on X, Facebook, obviously the website as well. Do great work. It’s an honor to know you, my friend. Would love to have you back. Thank you.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thanks for tuning in to today’s edition of Dana Lash’s Absurd Truth Podcast. If you haven’t already, make sure to hit that subscribe button on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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We also sat down with Gabe El-Tayib, a renowned comic artist who shares insights into the comic industry and discusses the impact of socio-cultural changes on storytelling. Discover how traditional narratives are being reshaped, and why creators like Gabe are pushing back with fresh content that resonates with the spirit of classic tales. You’ll hear about the journey from mainstream comics to independent publishing, and the potential cultural renaissance driven by artists dedicated to truth and authentic representation.
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