• Kevin’s been working hard these last few days on benefit shows. He did two benefit shows in Red Bank at the Count Basie theater, introducing the acts (including Springsteen) which were received incredibly well. That concert aired locally in these areas on Comcast cable. It was interesting to see the Count Basie on television, as this is the possible venue for the next Vulgarthon this winter. Certainly looks like it could hold a great deal of fans.

The short that you’re about to watch here debuted in Red Bank but was shown worldwide on VH-1 during last night’s “Concert for New York City”. This is the exact version from the air, though we might have an even better copy available for you soon, perhaps without the bleeps.

Congratulations to Kevin and the cast of the new short, and we’re sure everyone has appreciated all of Kevin’s time and effort over the past three nights for his work on the befits.

You can click the graphics above to save a local ASF copy to your hard drive, which you’ll need the latest Microsoft Windows Media Player to watch. Or, you can check out these new RealVideo versions below. Enjoy the film!

• Some potential bad news: We’re hearing that the student population have taken up ALL the tickets for Kevin’s upcoming Indiana University appearance. We have been unable to confirm, but if that changes and there’s tix available to the public, we’ll let you know.
• A brief article about the Red Bank concerts can be found online HERE, from the Chicago Sun-Times.
• This piece on turning comics into movies features some new quotes from Kevin, and was discovered at the austin360.com website:

• With three college appearances left this year, we’ve now enhanced our college appearance page with more information on all the appearances. Simply click the MORE INFO link for a popup page containing showtimes, locations, ticket information, and more. We’ll keep updating this page as we learn more about ticket availability, sold out venues, etc.

• Thanks to Marvel, you can now see the new artwork from Joe Quesada and the corresponding poem by Kevin Smith from the upcoming “Heroes” book. Click the thumbnail above for a detailed look.

• Wow! This one came in outta nowhere…As Kevin likes to sometimes do, after being silent for quite some time, he’s dropped in with a HUGE update on stuff. Not only does his new short premiere this Saturday night at the Concert for New York City (see story below), but he’s also announcing his hosting duties of another big benefit project in Red Bank, AND has the latest for you all on the “Jersey Girl” script. Great, great stuff. Here’s Kevin:

• Reports are starting to hit various web sites now revealing the list of directors that have filmed new shorts that will debut on Saturday night at the concert for New York City. Here’s the E! Online summary which lists all those involved with that portion:

The New York Daily News has revealed that “The four-minute films will celebrate the spirit of the city since Sept. 11”. All proceeds, 100 percent worth, go to families of the victims, rescue workers and others impacted by the tragedy. The event, with stars from Julia Stiles to Jim Carrey to the Backstreet Boys, will reach 80 million U.S. homes, 88 countries and feature a phone and Web number on the TV screen to aid in donations.

• A followup to the Leeds thing – Apparently the theater which showed the winning film there was HUGE, and held a ton more folks than the J&SBSB theater, which explains why the audience may not have been able to vote for the film – Not as many of them got to see it (even though its screenings sold out). Seems a bit unfair!
• Afroman’s “Because I Got High” also has soared to #1 in Australia, and is widely becoming known as the tune from Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, some very good pre-publicity for the film.
• One of 411wrestling.com’s columnists is running a parody of a famous scene in Clerks replacing Dante, Veronica and Willam with wrestlers. Check it out HERE.

• We ran a newsbite on this back on the 11th, but now we are pleased to confirm, Kevin will indeed headline MegaCon 2002 in Orlando, Florida this February 22-24! Here’s the press release with this announcement, a guest list, and more:

• FILM DIRECTOR KEVIN SMITH TO HEADLINE MEGACON 2002

  ORLANDO, Fla. – Film director, writer and actor Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back) will be the guest of honor at the eighth annual MegaCon show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando February 22-24, 2002.

  More than 15,000 fans are expected to converge on MegaCon 2002, buoyed by Smith’s first appearance at MegaCon and an expansive guest list for the show. Smith will be holding a special 2-hour panel discussion about his film, television and comic book work, as well as host a charity auction that will benefit retired comic book creators.

  In addition to Smith, who also writes the DC Comics best-selling comic book Green Arrow, MegaCon boasts a guest list that cuts across the worlds of film, television, science fiction, comic books, Japanese animation and role-playing games. Some of the guests include:

• June Lockhart, from TV classics Lost in Space and Lassie
• Bob May, the Robot from TV’s Lost in Space
• David Prowse, the man behind the mask of Darth Vader in the three original Star Wars films
• Kenny Baker, R2D2 from Star Wars, and co-star of Time Bandits
• Paul Blake, whose character Greedo was killed by Harrison Ford’s Han Solo in the original Star Wars
• Michonne Bourriague, who played the bounty hunter Aura Sing in the recent Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
• Jeanette Goldstein, who played Vasquez, the heroic marine from Ridley Scott’s motion picture Alien, starring Sigourney Weaver
• Mark Rolston, whose character Drake defended Sigorney Weaver’s character Ripley in Alien
• George Perez, artist of CrossGeneration’s quarterly CrossGen Chronicles and veteran comics creator currently working on the Marvel Comics/DC Comics team-up special JLA/Avengers
• Brian Michael Bendis, who now chronicles the new adventures of Spider-Man in Marvel Comics’ Ultimate Spider-Man comics
• Joseph Michael Linsner, creator of the comic book Dawn, and artist on Marvel Comics’ Killraven
• Greg Land, artist of CrossGeneration Comics hot new fantasy adventure comic book, Sojourn
• Sergio Aragones, classic Mad Magazine cartoonist, and creator of Groo the Wanderer
• John Romita, Sr., classic Marvel artist, best known for defining the look of Marvel’s trademark character Spider-Man.
• Bernie Wrightson, classic Batman artist and legendary horror comics illustrator

  In addition to the guests, MegaCon 2002 will feature Japanese Animation film festivals, costume contests for fans, discussion panels with popular artists and writers, more than 100,000 square feet of exhibit booths featuring publishers, art studios, comic book creators, dealers and other attractions. MegaCon is also the home of A Commitment To Our Roots (ACTOR), a charity organization founded to provide financial assistance for retired comic book creators. On Saturday February 23, 2002, Kevin Smith will be hosting the first 2002 ACTOR Art Auction, featuring rare and one-of-a-kind comic book art and memorabilia. Last year, the ACTOR Auctions raised more than $130,000.

  Also, MegaCon will be the host of a special roundtable about the Golden Age of comic books, with a guest list including industry legends such as:

• Martin Nodell, creator of DC Comics’ Green Lantern
• Harry Lampert, creator of DC Comics’ The Flash
• Dick Giordano, classic Batman artist and former executive VP of DC Comics
• Nick Cardy, veteran golden age artist, known best for his 1960s run on Teen Titans and the thousands of covers he illustrated for DC Comics
• George Tuska, artist for almost every publisher in comics from the Golden Age through the 1980s

  MegaCon (http://www.megaconvention.com) is an annual celebration of modern popular culture that attracts figures from the worlds of film, television, science fiction, fantasy, comic books, animation, role-playing games and others. The show is supported by publishers, manufacturers, dealers, distributors, creators and fans. MegaCon has become known as a great marketplace for comics, toys, anime and collectibles, as well as one of the east coast’s best-attended genre conventions. Over the past eight years, MegaCon has hosted some of the most recognizable names in the film, television, comic book, gaming and sci-fi/fantasy industries. By attending the convention, enthusiasts have encountered industry legends and discovered exciting new products. Movie producers, artists, authors and creative teams have been among the 1,000+ personalities that have attended the MegaCon event.

• Because of it’s huge success at the film festival in Rio, Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back will hit Brazil’s theaters in January 2002. Among more than 300 films screened there, J&SBSB took the #6 spot.
• DC Comics fanzine Fanzing just put out their latest issue, and the theme this month is Archers. There’s tons of articles about Green Arrow, Speedy, Arsenal and a mention or two of Kevin along with a massive reading guide covering all 137 issues of the Green Arrow series before Kevin started writing. Check it out!
• UK News: Afroman’s “Because I Got High” single is set to take over the #1 spot in the UK this week. A story titled “Thank You, Kevin Smith” that appears HERE mentions the news.
• Speaking of the UK, the Buddy Christ is apparently a taxable item when shipped overseas, due to it being listed as a “religious artifact” by the British customs service. Wow.

• Here’s a last minute BIG scoop that we wanted to get up for ya today — A new short from Kevin Smith himself will premiere at The Concert For New York City Saturday night, at Madison Square Garden. The show, which features top-notch musicians, actors, athletes, and more, will debut some new short films created for this event. Kevin’s one of those contributors! At this time, no details are available on this short, so we’re not sure what the content is, or what the title is, but we’re hopeful it will air live on VH-1 this Saturday as part of the special. Here’s the full details on the benefit concert from The Garden’s website:

We’ll have more details on this breaking story as soon as they come across the desk.