Don Introduces Neil Gaiman at Newark’s NJPAC

In December 2023, Neil Gaiman took the stage at NJPAC in Newark, reading excerpts from his work and answering questions from a packed audience. Gaiman, a best-selling and award-winning author of numerous works that cross genre and medium, including the graphic novel turned New York Times #1 best-selling Audible Original series The Sandman, is no stranger to Newark given his long-standing relationship with and love for Audible. At the event, where he was introduced by Audible Founder and long-time friend Don Katz, he spoke about Audible’s generous support for his ideas, as seen in the video above.

Don shared in his remarks (included below) that Gaiman “had a vast, almost-cult like following years before other artists figured out new digital ways to connect with a fan base.” Those fans were out in force at Sunday’s event, including 22 Audible listeners from the tri-state area who won tickets through raffles Audible held via email, Facebook, and at local Newark comic store Fortress of Solitude. As ticket winner Charles C. Cason shared, “I’ve been an Audible member for almost 20 years now, and I didn’t think I could love the company any more, but you guys are awesome!!!” That’s the enthusiasm Gaiman inspires from all his listeners, especially when, as Don stated, Gaiman’s own voice gives us “wild glimpses into Neil’s often-scary imagination.”

Read Don’s full introductory remarks:

I am NOT Neil Gaiman. Neil will be out here very shortly on this ominous and stormy Neil Gaiman kind of night.

I am Don Katz, the founder of Audible, and it’s my pleasure to briefly introduce my great friend and bona fide international Audible super-star, the endlessly-talented Mr. Neil Gaiman. For those who don’t know about Audible, it is a big global company headquartered right here in Newark, just down the street. Audible is the audio service that provide tens of millions of people with their daily listening wants and needs in 180 countries and 47 languages around the world.

…And a whole lot of those millions of people are probably listening, right now, to my longtime friend and ally’s words.

Neil Gaiman has created 11 Audible Original best-sellers you can only get from Audible going back to 2011, including one of the longest-running #1 New York Times best-selling audio hits, the first of the three Audible Original versions of The Sandman, which debuted on Audible in 2020. Last Wednesday it has been 35 years since Sandman appeared on paper. And congrats to Neil on that! Neil’s own iconic voice drives his powerful Audible version into wild glimpses into Neil’s often-scary imagination. I recommend you all check it out. And if not Sandman, then there are 130 more Neil titles on Audible and many translations.

Neil had a vast, almost-cult like following years before other artists figured out new digital ways to connect with a fan base.

He is a polymath—someone who can understand and teach about the creative output of others across time and genres, while his own canon, including his pioneering role as comics became sophisticated graphic novels, extends to fairy tales, ghost stories, fantasies, horror stories, journalism highbrow and low, as well as poetry, lyrics, Hollywood movies, television series and radio plays.

If you know him well, you also see that Neil has an extremely deep connection to children. You can see it when he lovingly interacts with them… when you get to see this… when he’s not scaring the hell out of them with stories like 'Coraline' or 'The Graveyard Book'…

And now, take it away Mr. Neil Gaiman!