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76-568: CrossGen Comics, Inc., was founded in 1998, in Tampa, Florida , by entrepreneur Mark Alessi . In 1999, the company acquired the Orlando -based multi-genre fan convention MegaCon , from founder James Breitbiel. Breitbiel became CrossGen's Marketing and Distribution Director. In January 2000, CrossGen Comics, Inc. debuted with CrossGenesis , a sneak-peek at the CrossGen universe. It provided an outline of

152-501: A shared universe , informally dubbed the Sigilverse by CrossGen fans. CrossGen published the following titles in the Sigilverse. Most titles are listed in order of appearance. Mini-series and one-shots associated with an ongoing title are listed thereunder. CrossGen collected several of the above titles in trade paperback format. CrossGen published two monthly anthologies, referred to as compendia, that reprinted several titles from

228-516: A captive of the Calusa and traveled through much of peninsular Florida. He described Tanpa as an important Calusa town to the north of the Calusa domain, possibly under another chief. Archaeologist Jerald Milanich places the town of Tanpa at the mouth of Charlotte Harbor . The entrances to Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor are obscured by barrier islands , and their locations, and the names applied to them, were

304-478: A few Eastern European Jewish immigrants arrived starting in the late 1880s, opening businesses and shops that catered to cigar workers. By 1900, over 10,000 immigrants had moved to the neighborhood. Several thousand more Cuban immigrants built West Tampa , another cigar-centric suburb founded a few years later by Hugh MacFarlane. Between them, two "Latin" communities combined to exponentially expand Tampa's population, economic base, and tax revenues, as Tampa became

380-459: A few deaths, but the many more deaths were caused by infectious diseases brought from Europe, which devastated the population of Native Americans across Florida and the entire Western Hemisphere. The indigenous cultures of the Tampa Bay area collapsed by around 1600, leaving the west coast of Spanish Florida largely depopulated and ignored for more than 200 years. In the mid-18th century, events in

456-554: A new company-wide metaplot. The events of Negation War revolve around the invasion of CrossGen's Sigilverse , i.e. the mainstream universe where all the other titles take place, by the forces of an alternate universe known as the Negation . The Sigil-Bearers , the protagonists of the core titles, led by the Atlantean Danik , are brought together to serve the purpose for which the Sigil

532-543: A number of additional titles: Tampa, Florida Tampa ( US : / ˈ t æ m p ə / TAM -pə ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida . Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the county seat of Hillsborough County . With an estimated population of 403,364 in 2023, Tampa

608-526: A priority. Several residential and mixed-development high-rises have been constructed. Another of Mayor Iorio's initiatives was the Tampa Riverwalk , a mixed-use path along the Hillsborough River in downtown. Channelside was approved to undergo major renovations by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik along with Bill Gates and other investors. Several museums have opened, including new homes for

684-511: A series detailing the "untold" history of the CrossGen universe. The protagonists of the first wave of CrossGen comics were linked in commonality by the Sigil each character had received. It was a branding on their body, a marking that granted them unusual powers. The Sigil, and the story of the Sigil-Bearers, was a prominent aspect of the narrative. In November 2000, the Homeric myth The First

760-545: A source of confusion to explorers, surveyors and map-makers from the 16th century to the 18th century. Bahía Tampa and Bahía de Espíritu Santo were each used, at one time or another, for the modern Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor. Tampa Bay was labeled Bahía de Espíritu Santo (Bay of the Holy Spirit) in the earliest Spanish maps of Florida. It became known as B. Tampa ( Bahía Tampa or Tampa Bay) as early as 1576. In 1601, "B. Tampa", corresponding to Tampa Bay, appeared for

836-502: A third Crossgen title, Mystic , premiered in August 2011. Two more books, Route 666 and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang , were announced during Fan Expo Canada in late August, and were set to start in February 2012, but were never published due to low interest in the previously released series. In August 2022, Marvel Comics announced CrossGen Tales #1, a trade paperback collection that contains

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912-437: Is a comic book series published by CrossGen Comics , and serving as a culmination of the metaplots of nearly all of CrossGen's other titles. It was cancelled after only two issues, in spring 2004, before the company declared bankruptcy and ended production on all their titles. It was intended to answer many, if not all, of the questions surrounding CrossGen's metaplot, allowing the company to move on to new titles and perhaps

988-566: Is considered 'full distributed' and to solve this they are: "planning to propose to Disney that we 'catch up' by putting out omnibus collections". In 2008, Checker Books published three CrossGen titles. These were: In July 2010, Marvel Comics ' editor-in-chief Joe Quesada announced at San Diego Comic-Con that Marvel (also a Disney-owned company) would revive a number of CrossGen titles. Marvel began to publish Ruse and Sigil in March 2011 as four-issue miniseries. Both completed their run, and

1064-497: Is driven by tourism, health care, finance, insurance, technology, construction, and the maritime industry. The bay's port is the largest in the state, responsible for over $ 15 billion in economic impact. Tampa is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area , which is a four-county area composed of roughly 3.1 million residents, making it the second-largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in

1140-471: Is only 48 ft (15 m) above sea level. Tampa is bordered by two bodies of water, Old Tampa Bay and Hillsborough Bay , which flow together to form Tampa Bay , which flows into the Gulf of Mexico . The Hillsborough River flows into Hillsborough Bay, passing directly in front of Downtown Tampa and supplying Tampa's main source of fresh water. The Palm River is a smaller river, flowing from just east of

1216-520: Is the 49th-most populous city in the country and the third-most populous city in Florida after Jacksonville and Miami . Tampa was founded as a military center in the 19th century, with the establishment of Fort Brooke . The cigar industry was brought to Tampa by Vincente Martinez Ybor , after whom Ybor City is named. Tampa was reincorporated as a city in 1887 following the Civil War . Tampa's economy

1292-479: The Battle of Fort Brooke on October 16 and the Battle of Ballast Point on October 18, 1863, Union forces inflicted serious damage to Tampa's economy when, under the cover of another bombardment of the fort, troops landed and destroyed two blockade running ships that had been hidden upstream along the Hillsborough River. In May 1864, Union troops landed again and took Fort Brooke largely unopposed. They destroyed much of

1368-706: The Civil War , Florida seceded along with most of the southern states to form the Confederate States of America , and Fort Brooke was defended by Confederate troops. Martial law was declared in Tampa in January 1862, and Tampa's city government ceased to operate for the duration of the war. In 1861, the Union Navy set up a blockade around many southern ports to cut off the Confederacy. Several US Navy ships were stationed near

1444-576: The Sigilverse , such as The Red Star , Demonwars , and The Crossovers . All titles published with the Code6 logo would be owned by both the creator and CrossGen Entertainment, Inc. with the majority of ownership resting with CGE. CrossGen would pay an upfront page rate and then split all rights and revenues 75%-25%. Code6 is the Florida Police signal code for an escaped prisoner. It was used to describe

1520-754: The Tampa Bay History Center , the Glazer Children's Museum , and the Tampa Museum of Art . The breakdown of development for the rest of the plan is as follows: 39% residential units, 29% office space, 15% hotels, 8% retail, 7% other, and 2% cultural uses. Mayor Bob Buckhorn continued these developments, which are bearing fruit during the term of Mayor Jane Castor . Tampa is the site of several skyscrapers . Overall, there are 30 completed buildings that rise over 250 ft (76 m) high. Tampa also has 147 high-rises, second only to Miami in

1596-516: The Weeden Island culture developed in the area by about 2,000 years ago. Archeological evidence suggests that these residents relied on the sea for most of their resources, as a vast majority of inhabited sites have been found on or near the shoreline, with little evidence of farming. At the time of European contact in the early 16th century, several chiefdoms of the Safety Harbor culture dominated

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1672-571: The Westshore Business District . Tampa displays a wide variety of architectural designs and styles. Most of Tampa's high rises demonstrate post-modern architecture . The design for the renovated Tampa Museum of Art displays post-modern architecture, while the city hall and the Tampa Theatre belong to Art Deco architecture. The Tampa mayor Pam Iorio made the redevelopment of Tampa's downtown , especially residential development,

1748-581: The "Cigar Capital of the World". During the first few decades of the 20th century, the cigar-making industry was the backbone of Tampa's economy. The factories in Ybor City and West Tampa made an enormous number of cigars—in the peak year of 1929, over 500 million cigars were hand rolled in Tampa. In 1904, a civic association of local businessmen dubbed themselves Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla , named after local mythical pirate José Gaspar, and staged an "invasion" of

1824-400: The 1950s and 1960s, Tampa had record-setting population growth that has not been seen since. This growth spurred expansion of Tampa's highways and bridges, bringing thousands into the city and creating opportunities for Tampa business owners, who welcomed the influx of tourists and new residents. It was during this time period in Tampa's history that two of the most popular tourist attractions in

1900-522: The 1950s. After his death in 1954 from cancer, control passed to his son, Santo Trafficante Jr. , who established alliances with families in New York City and extended his power throughout Florida and into Batista -era Cuba . The era of rampant and open corruption ended in the 1950s, when Estes Kefauver 's traveling organized crime hearings came to town and were followed by the sensational misconduct trials of several local officials. Although many of

1976-572: The American colonies and the early United States drove the Seminole people into northern Florida. They did not move into central Florida until after the United States gained control of Florida in 1821. Before the American period, the Tampa Bay area had a handful of residents: Cuban and Native American fishermen who established small seasonal camps called "ranchos" on the shores of Tampa Bay. The largest

2052-556: The Northwest arm, what is now Old Tampa Bay, and the northeast arm named "Hillsborough Bay". The name may have come from the Calusa language or possibly, the Timucua language . Some scholars have compared "Tampa" to "itimpi", which means "close to" or "nearby" in the Creek language , but its meaning is not known. In 1849, when the pioneer community living near the U.S. Army outpost of Fort Brooke

2128-511: The Rat ; and the samurai drama The Path . The company enjoyed great initial success, with fifteen Harvey Award nominations in 2002. In 2003, other titles were released expanding the fictional universe: the sword and sorcery epic Brath ; Chimera , a limited series about a Sigil-bearer on the far reaches of the Universe; the pirate adventure El Cazador ; and two other titles that explain

2204-478: The Rat , Sigil , and The Path . There are no plans by Checker Books for more traveler-sized collections. Mark Thompson, the publisher of Checker Books, traveled to New York in 2007 and spoke with Disney representatives about reprinting further collections. No agreement has been made at the time, but according to Mark Thompson, he indicated that this would happen. In a quick follow-up interview he expanded on things, explaining how difficult it has been to pin down what

2280-440: The Tampa Bay area and surrounding counties. At the end of the war, MacDill remained as an active military installation, while the auxiliary fields reverted to civilian control. Two of these auxiliary fields later became the present-day Tampa International Airport and St. Petersburg–Clearwater International Airport . With the establishment of an independent U.S. Air Force in 1947, MacDill Field became MacDill Air Force Base . In

2356-582: The Tampa Bay area. Phosphate and commercial fishing exports could be sent north by rail, and many new products were brought into the Tampa market, along with the first tourists. The new railroad link enabled another important industry to come to Tampa. In 1885, the Tampa Board of Trade enticed Vicente Martinez Ybor to move his cigar manufacturing operations to Tampa from Key West . Proximity to Cuba made importation of "clear Havana tobacco" easy by sea, and Plant's railroad made shipment of finished cigars to

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2432-539: The area during the Second Seminole War from 1835 to 1842, after which the Seminoles were forced out and many settlers returned. Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845. On January 18, 1849, Tampa was officially incorporated as the "Village of Tampa." It was home to 185 civilians, or 974 total residents including military personnel, in 1850. Tampa was reincorporated as a town on December 15, 1855. During

2508-523: The area were developed – Busch Gardens and Lowry Park . Many of the well-known institutions that play an important role in the economic development of Tampa were established during this time period. The University of South Florida was established in North Tampa in 1956 and opened for students in September 1960. The school spurred the construction of several residential and commercial developments in

2584-674: The area. Early Spanish explorers interacted most extensively with the Tocobaga , whose principal town was at the northern end of Old Tampa Bay near today's Safety Harbor in Pinellas County . While there is a substantial historical record of the Tocobaga, and the Calusa , who lived to the south, there is less surviving documentation describing the Pohoy , who lived near the mouth of the Hillsborough River near today's downtown Tampa. Evidence suggests that

2660-580: The attitude of the creators working at Code6. One of Crossgen's innovations was the sale of comic subscriptions via the Internet. Subscribers could view all of Crossgen's titles through a web browser. The web comics reproduced the fine color of the original, but the lettering was sometimes not quite legible; hovering over the word or thought bubble caused it to enlarge to a readable size, a feature developed in Flash by Gabo Mendoza of Gabocorp Studios. The online library

2736-526: The characters from the Negation title travel to Han-Jin, the world depicted in Brath , Way of the Rat and The Path . Meanwhile, Samandahl Rey , hero of Sigil , is sent by Danik to gather the Sigil-Bearers. The series ends with a cliffhanger, as Evinlea leads the Negation assault on Elysia, home of The First . There, the first god to die is Raamia , Altwaal 's former consort. Information concerning what

2812-732: The city annexed a mostly rural area of 24 sq mi (62 km ) between I-275 and I-75 . East Tampa , historically a mostly black community, was the scene of several race riots during and for some time after the period of racial segregation, mainly due to problems between residents and the Tampa Police Department . According to the United States Census Bureau , Tampa has a total area of 175.3 sq mi (453.9 km ), including 113.4 sq mi (293.7 km ) of land and 61.8 sq mi (160.1 km ) (35.3%) of water. The highest point in Tampa

2888-482: The city followed by a parade. With a few exceptions, the Gasparilla Pirate Festival has been held every year since. Beginning in the late 19th century, illegal bolita lotteries were very popular among the Tampa working classes, especially in Ybor City. In the early 1920s, this small-time operation was taken over by Charlie Wall , the rebellious son of a prominent Tampa family, and went big-time. Bolita

2964-867: The city into McKay Bay , which is a smaller inlet, sited at the northeast end of Hillsborough Bay. Tampa's geography is marked by the Interbay Peninsula, which divides Hillsborough Bay in the east, from Old Tampa Bay in the west. Tampa is divided into many neighborhoods, many of which were towns and unincorporated communities annexed by the growing city. Generally, Tampa is divided into the following areas: Downtown Tampa , New Tampa , West Tampa , East Tampa , North Tampa , and South Tampa . Well-known neighborhoods include Ybor City , Forest Hills , Ballast Point , Sulphur Springs , Seminole Heights , Tampa Heights , Palma Ceia , Hyde Park , Davis Islands , Harbour Island , Tampa Palms , College Hill , Water Street , Channelside and non-residential areas of Gary and

3040-531: The city of Tampa opened the golf course to the public. The Story of Tampa , a public painting by Lynn Ash, is a 4 ft × 8 ft (1.2 m × 2.4 m) oil on masonite mural that weaves together many of the notable aspects of Tampa's unique character and identity. It was commissioned in 2003 by the city's Public Art Program and is in the lobby of the Tampa Municipal Office Building. Negation War (comics) Negation War

3116-614: The company and worked out of its headquarters in Oldsmar, Florida . Later creators such as J.M. DeMatteis worked freelance, with CrossGen publishing finished properties. The company's publications covered a variety of genres with characters inhabiting a single shared universe . The first wave of CrossGen titles included: Sigil , a military science fiction space opera ; Mystic , a magical fantasy ; Meridian , flavored by traditional folklore ; Scion , an adventure series inspired by tales of King Arthur ; and CrossGen Chronicles ,

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3192-528: The company's difficulties became apparent shortly after the Borders and Barnes & Noble bookstore chains discontinued stocking CrossGen's trade paperback collections, and returned huge numbers of unsold books for credit/refund, more than wiping out the publisher's optimistically low reserves against returns. In an interview with Marc Alessi on the Dollar Bin podcast, the root cause of CrossGen's financial collapse

3268-616: The culture, traditions and heritage of the Italian Community and to maintain the historical facility as a functioning memorial to the working class immigrants." Babe Zaharias Golf Course in the Forest Hills area of Tampa has been designated a Historical Landmark by the National Register of Historic Places. It was bought in 1949 by the famous "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias , who had a residence nearby, and closed upon her death. In 1974,

3344-403: The device to impart him with incredible god-like power, even as the rest of the human race ascended to a higher form themselves. The transition also sent the pair into another universe, which came to be known as the Negation; Charon took command of this universe, building it into a massive intergalactic empire, and imprisoning the slightly less powerful Appolyon. After meeting Appolyon, several of

3420-649: The first time on a printed map in Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas's Description del Destricto del Audiencia de la Espanola, from his book Descripcion de las Indias Ocidentales, printed in Madrid. A 1705 British map also shows B. Tampa, with "Carlos Bay" for Charlotte Harbor to the south. A 1748 British map had "B. del Spirito Santo" for Tampa Bay and "Carlos Bay" to the south. A Spanish map of 1757 renamed Tampa Bay as "San Fernando". As late as 1774, Bernard Romans called Tampa Bay "Bay of Espiritu Santo", with "Tampa Bay" restricted to

3496-449: The fort's facilities and confiscated the remaining military supplies other than the cannons, which they tossed into the Hillsborough River, then left the "desolate" town after two days. The Civil War ended in April 1865 with a Confederate defeat. In May 1865, federal troops arrived in Tampa to occupy the fort and the town as part of Reconstruction . They remained until August 1869. During

3572-433: The immediate post-war period, Tampa was a poor, isolated fishing village with about 1,000 residents and little industry. Yellow fever , borne by mosquitoes from nearby swamps, broke out several times during the 1860s and 1870s, causing more residents to leave. In 1869, residents voted to abolish the city of Tampa government. In 1870, the population of "Tampa Town" was about 800, and dropped to about 700 by 1880. Fort Brooke

3648-494: The language and culture of the Pohoy and other lesser-known groups around the bay were very similar to that of the Tocobaga. Expeditions led by Pánfilo de Narváez and Hernando de Soto landed near Tampa, but neither conquistador stayed long. There is no natural gold or silver in Florida, and the native inhabitants repulsed Spanish attempts to establish a permanent settlement or convert them to Catholicism . The fighting resulted in

3724-425: The largest cities in Florida by 1900. In late 1883, Henry B. Plant 's narrow-gauge South Florida Railroad reached Tampa and its port, connecting the small town to the nation's railroad system after years of efforts by local leaders. Previously, Tampa's overland transportation links had consisted of sandy roads stretching across the Florida countryside. Plant's railroad made it much easier to get goods in and out of

3800-435: The late 1800s to found and work in the new communities of Ybor City and West Tampa . By about 1900, these newcomers came to be known as "Tampeños", or "Tampeñas" for females, a term that is still sometimes used to refer to their descendants living in the area, and potentially, to all residents of Tampa regardless of their ethnic background. The shores of Tampa Bay have been inhabited for thousands of years. A variant of

3876-588: The main shared continuity. Each issue contained between 6 and 11 issues. After 12 issues, Edge was renamed Vector due to a trademark conflict with another company. A third compendium called Caravan was never released. Roughly halfway through the run of the compendia, their format changed from standard comic size to a half-page sized digest format , usually with a higher page count. CrossGen later used this compendium format to collect runs of single titles, such as Meridian and The Path , to reported success. In addition to its Sigilverse comics, CrossGen published

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3952-454: The mouth of Tampa Bay , but small blockade running ships were often able to slip by the blockade to deliver cattle to Spanish Cuba, earning gold for the Confederate cause. On June 30, 1862, the gunboat USS Sagamore sailed into Tampa Bay and opened fire on Fort Brooke, which returned fire. The Sagamore withdrew after a few hours, and the Battle of Tampa caused little damage. During

4028-418: The municipal government of the city of Tampa with the county government of Hillsborough County, in 1967, 1970, 1971, and 1972, all of which failed at the ballot box. The greatest loss was the most recent attempt in 1972, with the final tally being 33,160 (31%) in favor and 73,568 (69%) against the proposed charter. The biggest recent growth of Tampa was the development of New Tampa , which started in 1988 when

4104-488: The origin of the Sigil-bearers, Solus and Mark of Charon . Titles such as Negation and Crux blended genres. Although most CrossGen titles shared common elements (such as a Sigil, the presence of a Mentor and a member of the god-like First), the titles rarely crossed over with each other. The major example of crossing over was Sam of Sigil , who spent four issues in the world of Brath and part of one issue in

4180-526: The previously agriculture-dominated area around the new campus. Overall, Tampa continued to expand away from the city center during the 1960s as new hospitals, schools, churches and subdivisions all began appearing to accommodate the growth. Many business offices began moving away from the traditional downtown office building into more convenient neighborhood office plazas. In 1970, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tampa's population as being 80.0% white and 19.7% black. Four attempts have been made to consolidate

4256-479: The production of fertilizers and other products, was soon being shipped from the Port of Tampa in great volume. Tampa is still a major phosphate exporter. The discovery of phosphate, the arrival of Plant's railroad, and the founding of Ybor City and West Tampa—all in the mid-1880s—were crucial to Tampa's development. The once-struggling village of Tampa became a bustling boomtown almost overnight and had grown into one of

4332-578: The reprinted original first issues of Mystic , Sigil , Ruse , and Soujourn . This was the first time that CrossGen titles would be available in a digital format. An omnibus collection of the original Sigil series was released in 2023. In September 2024, every issue of Mystic appeared within the Marvel Unlimited app. Each issue displays the Marvel logo in the place where the CrossGen logo used to be. The majority of CrossGen's titles took place within

4408-470: The rest of the US market easy by land. Since Tampa was still a small town at the time, with a population less than 5,000, Ybor built hundreds of small houses around his factory to accommodate the immediate influx of mainly Cuban and Spanish cigar workers. Ybor City 's factories rolled their first cigars in 1886, and many different cigar manufacturers moved their operations to town in ensuing years. Many Italian and

4484-486: The state and the sixth largest in the Southeastern United States , behind Dallas-Fort Worth , Houston , Washington D.C. , Atlanta , and Miami . The Greater Tampa Bay area has over 4 million residents, and generally includes the Tampa and Sarasota metro areas. The earliest instance of the name "Tampa", in the form "Tanpa", appears in the memoirs of Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda , who spent 17 years as

4560-588: The state of Florida. The tallest building in the city is 100 North Tampa , formerly the AmSouth Building, which rises 42 floors and 579 ft (176 m) in Downtown Tampa. The structure was completed in 1992, and is the tallest building in Florida outside of Miami and Jacksonville . The Sulphur Springs Water Tower , a landmark in the Sulphur Springs section of the city, stands 214 feet tall and

4636-492: The universe, worlds, and characters of CrossGen's flagship titles that would be released six months later. Gina M. Villa, head of creative departments, and Mark Alessi wrote a history of the Sigilverse before any comics were written. The head creative team consisted of Barbara Kesel , Mark Waid and Ron Marz . Unlike other comics publishers such as DC Comics and Marvel Comics , which rely mainly on freelance writers and artists, most of CrossGen's talent were salaried employees of

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4712-794: The world of Meridan , with the latter period also being told from Sephie's perspective in issue #20 of Meridan . There was one company-crossover event, the Negation War , but was never concluded. In 2003, CrossGen Comics, Inc. changed its name to CrossGen Entertainment, Inc. (CGE), and formed eleven wholly owned subsidiary companies, which represented its broad-based entertainment products and offerings. These companies were to act independently of CGE, functioning as interior business units while all working towards CGE's overall goals. With this arrangement, all current and future projects would be managed and guided by Crossgen's founding principles. These projects consisted of: CrossGen Comics Entertainment, Inc.(CGE)

4788-556: The world. The Ybor City District is home to several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places and has been declared a National Historic Landmark . Notable structures include El Centro Español de Tampa , Centro Asturiano de Tampa and other social clubs built in the early 1900s . Including L'Unione Italiana or the Italian Club, at 1731 East 7th Avenue in Ybor City. The Italian Club mission "is to preserve and honor

4864-475: The worst offenders in government and the mob were not charged, the trials helped to end the sense of lawlessness which had prevailed in Tampa for decades. Tampa grew considerably as a result of World War II . Prior to the United States' involvement in the conflict, construction began on MacDill Field , which served as a main base for Army Air Corps and later Army Air Forces operations just before and during World War II, with multiple auxiliary airfields around

4940-463: Was able to openly thrive only because of kick-backs and bribes to key local politicians and law enforcement officials, and many were on the take. Profits from the bolita lotteries and Prohibition -era bootlegging led to the development of several organized crime factions in Tampa. Charlie Wall was the first major boss, but various power struggles culminated in consolidation of control by Sicilian mafioso Santo Trafficante Sr. and his faction in

5016-506: Was at the mouth of Spanishtown Creek in today's Hyde Park neighborhood along Bayshore Boulevard . After purchasing Florida from Spain in 1821, the United States built forts and trading posts in the new territory. Fort Brooke was established in January 1824 at the mouth of the Hillsborough River on Tampa Bay, in Downtown Tampa . Tampa was initially an isolated frontier outpost. The sparse civilian population practically abandoned

5092-453: Was built by Grover Poole in the late 1920s. This 1920s boom period for Florida also saw the construction of an ornate movie palace , the Tampa Theatre , a Mediterranean revival on Davis Islands , and Bayshore Boulevard , which borders Hillsborough Bay from downtown Tampa to areas in South Tampa. The road has a 6 mi (10 km) continuous sidewalk on the eastern end, the longest in

5168-489: Was created to attempt to track the subsequent doings of various staff associated with the company. It has since ceased operations. As of 2008, various CrossGen domain names and URLs were held by cybersquatters . In 2006, Checker Books obtained the rights to publish trade collections of various CrossGen series, starting with Sojourn . A total of nine collected editions were part of the agreement: two each for Sojourn , Negation , and Scion , and single volumes for The Way of

5244-536: Was created: to fight off the Negation, led by the god-emperor Charon and his new consort/queen Evinlea . Negation War reveals some of the key mysteries of the CrossGen metaplot, continuing from the revelations of the later issues of Negation . Charon and his opposite counterpart Appolyon , are revealed to have been the human scientists who organized the Great Transition as seen in Crux . Charon secretly engineered

5320-525: Was decommissioned in 1883, further impacting the local economy in the short run, but opening up the waterfront for development. Except for two cannons displayed on the University of Tampa campus, all traces of the fort are gone. In the mid-1880s, Tampa's fortunes took several sudden turns for the better. In 1883, phosphate was discovered in the Bone Valley region southeast of Tampa. The mineral, vital for

5396-438: Was estimated to contain 160 issues and 4,400 pages by the end of 2002. CrossGen was among the first comics companies to publish online. In 2003, CrossGen found itself in a scandal over freelancer payments, exposing systemic financial problems. As the news reached comics fans, sales were affected and creative staff, such as Gina Villa, Brandon Peterson, and Ron Marz, began to abandon the company. Some industry observers noted that

5472-531: Was incorporated, it was called "Tampa Town". In 1855, the name was shortened to simply "Tampa". People from Tampa are generally known as "Tampans", "Tampanians", or "Tampeños". In 2014, local authorities consulted by Michael Kruse of the Tampa Bay Times suggest that "Tampan" was historically more common, while "Tampanian" became popular when the former term came to be seen as a potential insult. A mix of Cuban, Italian, and Spanish immigrants began arriving in

5548-436: Was interested in licensing CrossGen content but, upon discovering the company's bankruptcy, began seeking to acquire its assets instead. Founder Alessi loaned the company $ 75,000, but was unable to prevent the company's takeover. On November 15, Disney purchased CrossGen's assets for $ 1 million with plans to publish four prose hardcover novels based on writer J.M. DeMatteis and artist Mike Ploog 's Abadazad . CGCreators.net

5624-520: Was released and, steadily over the next three years, CrossGen released many more titles. The following were released in 2001: Crux (based on the Atlantean myth); Sojourn (an epic fantasy in the style of The Lord of the Rings ); Ruse (a Victorian detective story ); and Negation . In the following year, these titles were released: the horror story Route 666 ; the wuxia comedy Way of

5700-614: Was said to be the result of a large decrease in the value of Perot Systems stock that was largely backing the company's financing. The financial plan was to lose money in the first six years before earning profits in the seventh year through movie and television deals. In late 2003 the company restructured, selling MegaCon to show organizer Elizabeth Widera. CrossGen filed for bankruptcy in June 2004 and ceased publishing, leaving titles such as Sojourn , Negation War , Brath , and many others cancelled mid-story. In July 2004, Disney Publishing

5776-402: Was set up to take over the publishing of all existing comics properties. Its logo would appear on anything that came from CrossGen. CGE acted as a publisher for affiliated companies that would retain full ownership and control of their property and would reap the benefits of joining with a larger company. Code6 was another imprint of CrossGen Entertainment created to publish titles set outside of

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