"Ninja Turtles" co-creator auctioning off art studio
How much money will be shelled out for the personal art studio belonging to "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" co-creator Kevin Eastman?
The answer will be known Wednesday night, which marks the end of the 10-day eBay auction for the studio -- drawing table, rare artwork, personal effects, toys and all.
"My wife was threatening to call that TV show 'Hoarders,' " Eastman told TheWrap about his studio, which had been situated in his Los Angeles home. "Some of the stuff I've pulled out of storage, I haven't seen in 15 years. There are old comics, doodles, scraps of paper, reference books, movies ..."
Eastman will give 20 percent of the proceeds from the auction to The Hero Initiative, a nonprofit that financially supports comic book creators in need.
As for the rest of the money, "I'll put it in the bank for my kids schools or buy some new supplies," Eastman said.
Twenty-nine bids have been received so far; the highest is $8,300.
The art studio has been on display at Los Angeles' Meltdown Comics, where Eastman has been making regular visits. The exhibition -- which includes some unpublished artwork -- is part of "35 Days of Kevin Eastman," which is celebrating the 35th anniversary of the "Heavy Metal" magazine he published.
On Wednesday night, Meltdown will celebrate the end of the auction with a party, during which live footage of the eBay auction page will be projected onto a big screen.
Regardless of the amount for which the studio sells, Eastman will certainly be surrounded by fans at the shindig -- as he has been during his visits to Meltdown.
"I was in the gallery the other day and this guy came in from Italy," Eastman said. "He grew up on the Turtles -- and his name was Raphael. He was walking down Melrose and randomly discovered the exhibit. When he left the store with a signed copy of one of the comics, he had a grin so big.