COMPETITION!

Hey gang,

I hope you managed to head over to ordinarypeoplechangetheworld.com and made a donation or bought a tshirt. Thanks to everyone who did. It's such a great cause enabling us to symbolically thank and support all creators in one fell swoop (I have no idea what a "fell swoop" is, but I'm guessing it's big). Apparently we raised $100,000, double what we needed!

And the lovely Miriam at Grand Central Publishing has offered to sponsor a competition on my blog. Hey, I ask and then I give! That's fair. The prizes are three copies of Brad Meltzer's new book, THE BOOK OF LIES:

"In Chapter Four of the Bible, Cain kills Abel. It is the world's most famous murder. But the Bible is silent about one key detail: the weapon Cain used to kill his brother. That weapon is still lost to history. In 1932, Mitchell Siegel was killed by three gunshots to his chest. While mourning, his son dreamed of a bulletproof man and created the world's greatest hero: Superman. And like Cain's murder weapon, the gun used in this unsolved murder has never been found. Until now."
For three prizes, Miriam and I have decided on one question, with three categories of answers. The winner of each category wins a copy of THE BOOK OF LIES.

So here's the question:

WHAT SUPERPOWER WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE AND WHY?

The three categories are:

1. Best HEROES-related answer.

2. Best SUPERMAN-related answer.

3. Funniest answer.

You can enter multiple categories, but you can only win one. All decisions are final and made by me, and subject to whatever whims that might have taken my fancy on the day of judgment. I can only be bribed by the charm, wit and intelligence of your answer.

All entries must be in by next Monday the 27th of October midnight LA time. I will announce the winners and runner-ups on Tuesday the 28th of October. If winners don't contact me by the following Tuesday the 4th of November, the the runner up wins.

Below you will find three separate blog post entries with the title of each being the category. Place your entry as a reply under the respective category. Entries must be under 100 words.

Thanks again to Grand Central Publishing, Miriam and Brad Meltzer and his new novel, THE BOOK OF LIES.

COMPETITION: Best HEROES-related answer.

Please add your entry here as a COMMENT. Hero or villain? It's your choice!

COMPETITION: Best SUPERMAN-related answer.

Please add your entry here as a COMMENT. Good luck ladies and gentlemen of steel!

COMPETITION: Funniest answer.

Please add your entry for funniest answer as COMMENTS here.

Save Superman's House and get a walk-on part in HEROES!

All my friends know how much I love Superman.

Most people know I have a Superman wallet. Some people notice the Superman sticker on my monitor or know that seeing Christopher Reeves' actual costume was almost a religious moment for me. A select few know I even own a Superman costume. A rarer few have even seen it.

A while back I got an email from Gene Ha and Brad Meltzer about the Seigel & Shuster society. They informed me that the house in Cleveland where the most iconic American icon was created isn't preserved, hell, it isn't even a museum. In fact, it's in a horrible state of disrepair.

Cleveland won't help, so Brad and the Seigel and Shuster society are asking us to save Superman's house. But I think it's more about showing respect to every person who creates something to make this world a better place. I actually think it's kind of fitting that Superman has to be saved by the people. We have to exemplify the lessons this character has taught us.

It's time to save Superman.

I immediately went to the site and picked up an awesome tshirt designed by Chip Kidd. At the same time as my t-shirt arrived, I got a lovely email from Miriam Parker from Grand Central Publishing asking me if I'd help out and post the details of a competition that's really going to get your attention:

Final Chance to Save Superman's House Reveals a Part on the TV show Heroes and a Secret Superman shirt

Week four of the Siegel & Shuster Society charity auction to save the house where Superman was created runs from Sept. 23 – Sept. 30

Hollywood, Florida (PR Web) September 23, 2008 – OrdinaryPeopleChangeTheWorld.com, the brainchild of # 1 New York Times bestselling author Brad Meltzer and the Siegel & Shuster Society, have announced the final items in their auction to save the house where Superman was created. And the best easily comes last:

- A walk-on part on the TV show Heroes

- A previously secret Superman T-shirt signed by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel

Right before Jerry Siegel died, he signed a few T-shirts for his immediate family — and told his wife Joanne that if the family ever needed money, they should sell the shirts. No one knew these shirts existed. But now, Joanne Siegel has donated one of these truly priceless items to the auction to save her husband's house. Forget the MasterCard ads. This is what "priceless" means. And best part? The autograph sits directly on a bright red T-shirt for Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.

The fundraising efforts, which began only this month, have received worldwide attention and some of the most famous people in comic books, as well as celebrities and fans have come together to support this iconic cause.

"You can't discuss Superman without discussing America," Meltzer said. "And this is a real chance to save a part of American history."

Along with the extremely rare, signed t-shirt by Superman creator Jerry Siegel and walk-on part on Heroes, this week’s auction includes original paintings, comic book art and prints from renowned artists such as Jason Palmer, Renato Guedes, Michael Turner, Ivan Reis, Walt Simonson, Murphy Anderson, Adam Kubert, Chris Bachalo, Eric Wight, Mike Mignola, George Pereze, Rags Morales, Chip Sansom, Jim Bowers, Bob Greenberger, Jill Thompson and Shane Davis. All proceed go to the Siegel & Shuster Society.

Log onto http://www.ordinarypeoplechangetheworld.com/ and help with this great cause. Fans can donate money, buy a Siegel & Shuster Society t-shirt designed by legendary graphic designer Chip Kidd, or bid on original pieces of comic book art, while helping to preserve an American landmark.

To view a complete list of the auction items, go to: http://www.ordinarypeoplechangetheworld.com/page/siegel-and-shuster-society-auction.aspx

About OrdinaryPeopleChangetheWorld.com:

OrdinaryPeopleChangetheWorld.com is a new site dedicated to strengthen and inspire ordinary people to take action and help make a difference in the world. The site will feature stories of people who are making a difference, and highlight different causes that are changing the world. Visitors can watch videos, participate in community forums and share stories about what inspires them or what good deeds they are doing to change the world. All proceeds from the site will be donated to charity.

About The Siegel and Shuster Society

The Siegel & Shuster Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to commemorating and celebrating the creation of Superman in Cleveland, Ohio, by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The Society will, in a manner consistent with the rights of DC Comics, create events and activities which celebrate Cleveland as the "Birthplace of Superman" and the importance of Superman to our community today and in the future. The Society will also work with other organizations that are celebrating Superman in a manner consistent with the goals of the Society. For the purpose of this charity auction, The Siegel & Shuster Society fund is set up through the Cleveland Foundation.

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So please swing by the site. Grab a tshirt, donate some money, bid for those incredible prizes.

Save Superman.