CMEE Honors Comic Book Legend Frank Miller on Saturday

Bridgehampton’s Children’s Museum of the East End (CMEE) is hosting a June Fête Fundraiser this Saturday, June 2 in honor of comic book legend Frank Miller, along with Sagaponack residents and museum supporters Barrie Glabman and Adam Schwartz.

CMEE will transform into a grown-up playground with cocktails, music and dancing, a live auction and more. Proceeds from the event will help the museum fund their launch of a unique service learning initiative where teens can help CMEE address vital needs in the community.

Among the most famous and successful of all comic book creators, Miller is a champion of the arts who is regarded as one of the most influential and awarded figures in the entertainment industry. His seminal comic books have sold millions of copies and been adapted into major Hollywood films, such as Sin City and 300.

Miller’s vast writing credits beyond his sequential narrative (much of it with his own art) for Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Gold Key and others include multiple television episodes for Netflix’s Jessica Jones and Daredevil, Fox’s Gotham and the upcoming Sin City series announced last year. He’s written screenplays for films, such as Robocop 2, Robocop 3 and The Spirit, which he also directed; and penned a host of videogames including Marvel Heroes, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Batman: Arkham Origins and Batman: The Telltale Series.

Four Classic Frank Miller Comics You Should Read:

The Dark Knight Returns, 1986
With art by Miller, who also wrote it, and Klaus Janson, this four-issue series features an older, alternate universe version of Batman. Now 55 years old, the World’s Greatest Detective leaves retirement behind to once again don the cape and cowl in order to fight oppression led by the Gotham City Police Department and the U.S. government. Joined by a new female Robin, Carrie Kelley, Batman battles his way to an epic showdown with America’s greatest champion: Superman. The story is a dystopian, Cold War-Era gem now collected in various paperback and hardcover editions. (You might also check out the 2001 sequel: The Dark Knight Strikes Again.)

Sin City, 1991
Billed as “neo-noir,” this series of stories offers gritty tales of hardcase detectives, violent criminals and sexy femme fatales. The art, also by Miller, is rife with stark black and white, heavy contrast and occasional splashes of color in multiple interweaved “yarns” (stories) with recurring characters—all in the same world of Basin City, aka Sin City. The art and masterful storytelling was eventually made into a popular 2005 film directed by Robert Rodriguez and Miller. Start by picking up The Hard Goodbye trade paperback (or get the Curator’s Collection Limited Edition) featuring the Marv, a super tough ex military man wrongly accused of murdering a prostitute and searching for her real killer.

Daredevil Born Again, 1986
Miller’s writing changed the blind hero of Hell’s Kitchen for the better and really made Daredevil into the beloved, challenging character he is today. This particular series, with art by David Mazzucchelli, marked Miller’s return to the book after some time away. The troubled superhero is pushed to the brink as his personal and professional lives crumbles around him, thanks in part to crime boss Kingpin and a trusted, but now drug addicted, friend selling his identity. Through all this, Daredevil comes out stronger and forever changed. The most recent collected paperback was published in 2010. Also pick up Daredevil by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson Vol. 2.

300, 1998
Now famous for the 2007 film adaptation, directed by Zack Snyder, this five-issue miniseries is a retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae and the events leading to it as experienced by King Leonidas of Sparta in 480 BC. With art and writing by Miller, and gorgeous painted colors by Lynn Varley, the heart-wrenching story shows the heroic demise of the 300 Spartans in their ill-fated defense of Greece against Persian “God-King” Xerxes and his much, much larger army. A beautiful oversized hardcover was first printed in 1999 and has since had multiple printings.

Honorees Barrie Glabman and Adam Schwartz have been integral supporters of CMEE over the years. As a museum trustee for over seven years and a former co-chair of the board, Glabman has led CMEE through incredible growth. She also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Ross School and has worked as an art director for Bloomingdales, Conde Nast and J. Crew as well as various lifestyle brands including Rosenthal China, Paul Stuart, and Liz Claiborne.

Her husband, Schwartz, is founder and CEO of Articulate, a global leader in online learning software. Articulate was recognized by Deloitte as one of the fastest-growing technology companies in North America. Articulate customers include 93 of the Fortune 100 and 78,000 organizations in 151 countries.

Tickets range in price from $650 for individuals to premier access packages of 10, with reserved lounge and other perks, for $25,000. Learn more and purchase tickets at cmee.org or call 631-537-8250.