Name: Ruby Rocket or Ruby Young
Favorite Movie: Snatch and The Princess Bride
Favorite TV Show: Arrested Development
Favorite book: Dead Until Dark, By Charlaine Harris
Favorite Author: Phillipa Gregory/Charlaine Harris
Do you read comics? Of course! Don’t make me write out the whole list, it’ll take up this whole interview!
What’s your favorite comic? Of all time – Nextwave. My favorite of those still being put out is New Avengers.
Who are your favorite writers and artists? Joseph Michael Linsner, Adam Hughes, Stuart Immonen, Frank Cho, Ed Brubaker, Warren Ellis, Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Avon Oeming
How did you get started making costumes? Well, I’ve always had a fascination with dressing up. I had a huge dress-up box when I was a kid. When SailorMoon was first being shown on US TV, I cobbled together my first costume on my own. My aunt had purchased a sewing machine for me when I was 10 because I always loved doing crafty things. In ’99 I heard of people dressing up and going to Comic Con in San Diego and I decided to head on down (well, my dad was nice enough to drive me to it). I’d been collecting comic books since I was 8, so it was a perfect fit!
Who is your favorite Superhero? Superheroine – Phoenix (Jean Grey). Superhero – Blackbolt.
What are some of your hobbies? Well, I keep busy. My hobbies aren’t so much hobbies anymore. They’re my side job. But, putting everything aside that the public already knows I do, I’m a bit dull. I really love reading, watching movies, spending time with my fiance and dog and spending time outdoors.
What was your first costume? SailorMoon. I think it was more of a rag than a costume, though.
What’s your favorite costume of all time, and why? That’s really tough. I enjoy all of my costumes for various reasons. I enjoy wearing Phoenix because she’s my favorite superheroine (plus, redheads just look good in green). I enjoy Silk Spectre because it’s very, very comfortable and I like the wig. I enjoy wearing The Pro because if I’m in a bad mood, I can put it on and just totally be in her mind frame. It sort of gives me an excuse to be grumpy.
What would your dream costume be? Again with the tough questions! Really, all the costumes that I want to make, I do. I’ve been dreaming of doing a Medusa costume for a while and I’ve finally found a design of hers that I like. I would really like to do a Big Barda costume, but it would be silly on me. I’d be Little Barda.
What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you at a convention? I tell this story every time, but it’s my absolute favorite “WTF” moment. I was working at a booth and wearing this metal corset thing.
So, a mother asks me to take a picture with her 7 year old son. I kneel down and pose with him and the mother snaps the picture. As I go to stand up, I glance down and notice the kids hand planted firmly on one of my metal cups.
I look up at the mother with a shocked expression and she just smiles at me. Needless to say, it was very, very odd.
How did you get involved in the Wonder Women of America? They approached me at Comic Con 2007 and asked me if they could take some photos for a book they were putting together. I said of course and they snapped a few pictures. We emailed back and forth a bit over the year and all of a sudden they emailed me to say I was their cover model. I was very shocked and very, very flattered. It’s a great book!
You spend a lot of time dressed as super heroes, if you were an actual hero, what would your super power be? Telekineses and Telepathy. I don’t think it’d be quite as much fun to have one without the other. I’d give up super strength, flying, all that just for some brain power!
We know you’re engaged, but you must get hit on a lot at shows. What was the most memorable pick up attempt that you’ve experienced? Well, for the most part, my fiance is usually with me. I’m also incredibly oblivious to when people are hitting on me. My friends will tell me later what was happening. I guess the best pick-up attempt (and I don’t even know if he was hitting on me or just being a nice guy) was when a guy came up to me and just handed me a piece of paper and walked away without a word. It said “In case no one has told you yet, today You Are Amazingly Beautiful. You should be told this every day. So, in case you aren’t, keep this card as a reminder that someone thinks you are.” I just thought that was incredibly sweet. Call me gullible if you want!
Have you always been into burlesque or was it an offshoot of your hero costumes? Well, I was raised around hotrods, poodle skirts and girly pin-up mags. I can’t remember when I first heard about burlesque, but it fit in so nicely with my fascination of everything vintage. Burlesque and comic books both honor the female form, so I thought they went well together. They’re two separate passions of mine that have just begun to co-mingle.
What projects do you have coming up and where can people go to see you online or at live events Oh man! There’s so much in the works right now. Some I have to keep hush on and others I can talk about. As always, I do regular burlesque shows and comic conventions all around the country. If people want to keep updated on what’s going on in my little rocket world, they can check out my myspace (www.myspace.com/niamhdoll) or my website (www.rocketsagogo.com). I try to keep them updated.
Once again, we would like to thank Ruby the interview and wish her all the best. Also, just to let readers know, if you have a favorite geek girl or know of someone that is deserving of Youbentmywookie’s Girl of the Month title, please don’t hesitate to drop us a line to let us know!
If I wasn’t a dork would I still find girls who dress like comic characters uber hot?