Rank and File: A Comic Art Hall of Fame...

Redartz:  Greetings once again! We're back at it again with a fun poser for you to consider, regarding your favorite comic covers. But first, a quick update for you. 

Several of you have inquired about the circumstances of my power outage and consequent general absence from this space last week. Well, the circuit breaker box on the side of our house literally melted; it's truly miraculous we had no fire. Obviously the power had to be cut, and between awaiting repairs, local safety inspectors and utility officials, we were stuck in the 'dark ages' for about 8 days. Not an experience I'd recommend for anyone, but we made it through. Fortunately the temperatures were mild for the most part. No longer will I take air conditioning and lights for granted!

Anyway, on to our topic. The premise: you have been selected to choose the artwork for a big exhibition. More specifically, this show will showcase comic cover artists throughout the medium's history. And with such a wide possibility of artists to choose from, space allows only 1 cover per artist. So, your task is to pick the artists, and choose a great representative cover for each artist,one that highlights their talent and impact.  As I'm a framer by trade, I'll see that your picks are safely framed, of course! 

Our gallery has several wings, so we can have a section for Golden age, Silver age, Bronze and Modern if you so choose. And while you begin your careful consideration, I'll submit a few nominations to  get the show started. Feel free to improve upon my picks as you see fit. As the week goes on, I'll try to post some more nominees based upon your comments; the better to fill our gallery.  See you at the opening!

My preliminary nominations:

Jack Kirby

Neal Adams

Dave Cockrum

John  Byrne

John Romita, Sr

Barry Smith

Walter Simonson

George Perez

Carmine Infantino

Joe Kubert

More to Come...

A bit late, but here are some of the nominated covers, presented for the appreciation and illumination of one and all. Thanks everyone for each response! And as suggested by our friend HB, you can look forward to seeing 'Hall of Fame Cover' pop up periodically on a single artist basis. Salutations!

Dave Cockrum

Jim Aparo

Steve Ditko

Rich Buckler

Nick Cardy

Mike Ploog

Herb Trimpe

John Byrne

John Buscema

Frank Frazetta

Mike Kaluta

Alan Davis

 

Chew the Fat: " ...Like it was Yesterday..."

Redartz:  Greetings! As another occasional departure from our usual "Follow the Leader" tradition, we have a topic today prompted by some discussions I've recently read on Facebook.Also inspired by a current project at our house: going through boxes of photos and negatives, scanning and sorting all those images. Seeing some of those photos for the first time in 40+years helped trigger this flashback.    Specifically, it's one of those "a favorite book and how I got it" stories. 

The book is Amazing Spider-Man 146, and the story takes us back to April 1975. It was a school day, but it was to be a short day: we were starting Spring break at our middle school, and they were letting us out after lunch. Actually, after a lunchtime presentation in the auditorium, wherein a local magician was performing to the accompaniment of then-current pop music. Additionally, it was also the day that our local comics shop got the new books in. So it was a red-letter day all around!

Anyway, after the program ended, my comic collecting buddy and I left the school: with Earth, Wind and Fire still ringing in our ears. We were determined to walk downtown to the the comic shop and see what was in. Walk, because the school buses didn't run to that location; besides it was a fine, warm Spring day. So walk we did, about a mile and a half, past the graveyard, past the park, over the river, and downtown to our destination. 

Our rather small town was blessed with the existence of a comic book store; an uncommon thing back then. My pal and I were there each week, religiously. And this week held a bonus: my favorite title was in, Amazing Spider-Man. Grabbing a copy, I opened it up to find another surprise: this issue had inks by John Romita Sr.! I liked Ross Andru's version fine, but Romita was always my favorite. So it was great to see  him inking Andru this issue, giving the book that classic Romita polish.

Then there was the story. Continuing the Scorpion story from issue 145 , and the Gwen Stacy return; plus an appearance by the Jackal! Top all this off with  a dramatic Romita cover (what kind of creep is Scorpion anyway, threatening a helpless old lady in a hospital bed?), and you have a real winner. So waiting to read it was impossible. My buddy lived a short distance from there, so while walking to his house, I eagerly read the comic (and somehow managed to avoid walking off a curb or into a tree). 

Ah, to be 14, out of school for a week, in the sunshine, and carrying a beloved comic- doesn't get much better than that. And there you have it, many thanks to you all for patiently allowing a bit of reminisce today. Feel free to comment about this issue, or about any such special comic /day you might recall!
 

Two Questions: Secret Clubs and Creative Subs

Redartz:  Okay, folks; are you ready for a couple of questions to wrap your head around? Not to worry, nothing too weighty or challenging today. Just an exercise in imagination another in memory:

1.  Think of an artist , especially one often identified with a particular publisher. Then think of a title or character from another company that would benefit from that artist's touch (or at least make for an interesting variation).

2.  Among your youthful activities, did you ever start / join a secret club? And if so, what can you tell us about it (I know, then it's not a secret anymore)?

To start things off, here's my answers:

1.  As a Spider-man fan, I'm going with Jazzy Johnny Romita. He defined the web-slinger for me, and many others as well (certainly no disrespect to Ditko, but Romita was 'my' Spidey artist, so there it is). Romita is generally considered a 'Marvel man', understandable as he served as Marvel's Art Director for years. But to address our question, what if John Romita drew Batman? Romita could render phenomenal cityscapes for Spidey to swing around; surely he could do the same for the Darknight Detective. And he also made the villains look great; imagine what he would do with the Joker, Scarecrow or Clayface. Not to mention the famous Romita women; wouldn't you like to see his version of Catwoman, or Poison Ivy? I sure would...







2. Yes, my brother and I had clubs, and so did some of my friends. We lived next to a small woods, so we would go out and find some logs and branches with which to construct a 'clubhouse', or fort as may be. One such club included my brother, my cousin and I; we even went so far as to type up membership cards!

Another time our neighbor started a secret club, and even devised a secret code. This one didn't include my brother, much to his annoyance. He offered me a dollar for the code; I took it and spilled the beans, and promptly spent the loot on a comic and a pack of baseball cards. My friend next door wasn't amused. Obviously I was a security risk , easily bribed.




Okay, your turn. Care to share?

This & That: Our Favorite Covers, Simple as That...

Redartz:  Frequently here at BitBA, we consider comic covers. In fact, Marti has bestowed us with countless striking covers under the banner of his "Quarter Bins." And what's not to like about ogling fine comic art, displayed openly on a glossy, eye-catching sheet of cover stock? Indeed, I love looking at covers so much, I have several hundred loaded as images on my tablet: just something to browse through at lunch, if I need some visual stimulation. And it was during one such session, scanning more covers, that I figured, "okay, what would my top ten covers be?". No time frame limitations, they may be old or new; Marvel, DC, or anyone else, any genre.  Just ten covers that you could easily hang on your wall and stare at for years to come. 

So, today we present our picks: our personal top ten covers. After you check out our selections, feel free to comment; and then name your personal favorites. Doesn't matter if the interior art stunk, the story was awful, or the  book was a reprint. If you loved the cover, it's fair game. 

Redartz:  My ten covers are as follows. While making my choices, it quickly dawned upon me how daunting a task it is to select only ten, out of all the covers I've encountered. So these ten might not be my exact picks if you asked tomorrow, but they all would certainly be finalists.

Fantastic Four 45, by Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott. A beauty by the FF's prime team.

Amazing Spider-Man 135, by John Romita, Sr.  Spidey's had countless great covers, but this one is near perfect.

Avengers 20, by Jack Kirby and Wally Wood. Wood may be the finest inker I've seen over Kirby. Wish there'd been more such covers.

Sugar and Spike 21, by Sheldon Mayer. Love the b/w cartoon background, and the face-backwards foreground.

Dr. Strange 1, by Frank Brunner. A masterwork of intricacy and mysticism.

Avengers 171, by George Perez and Terry Austin . A very full composition, but incredible in it's detail.

Archie Giant Series 25, by Dan DeCarlo. DeCarlo could have been considered Archie's "Kirby"; he defined the look.

Journey 6, by William Messner Loebs. Wonderful use of the logo, the borders, and the leaves. Poetic visuals indeed.

Adventure Comics 425, by Michael Kaluta. Stunning, magnificent image; Kaluta's simple design here is breathtaking in it's beauty.

Finally, what may be my favorite cover, period: Star Spangled War Stories 138, by Joe Kubert. That cover struck me like a slap in the face the first time I saw it, and is the only comic I ever paid twenty five dollars for JUST for the cover. An absolute masterpiece of composition, color and dramatics.

 

Martinex1: Those are all beautiful examples, and like you my selections are constantly shifting.  Many of my favorites are based not only on style and art but also around a memory as to when I acquired the book and what it meant to me.  So without further ado, here are my top ten...

Avengers 164 is the first comic I purchased (not the first I owned, but the first I bought off of a rack).  It will always have a memorable place in my heart.  Thankfully it was a George Perez masterpiece with a lot of characters and a lot of action.  It also ended up being one of my favorite stories too.  This cover I will remember until I am old and gray. 

Squadron Supreme 11 may seem like an odd choice.  But in 1986 this Paul Ryan cover jumped off the stands to me.  It still strikes me as an unusual layout with interesting and not well-known characters. In my mind, this cover always makes my top ten. I know it is not iconic, but I just admire it.

This Carmine Infantino classic - Flash 174 - was my first experience seeing an artistic interplay with a logo.  I never got over it.  

 I've always been a fan of Nick Cardy and his work at DC.  Unexpected 119 is one of my favorites featuring his pencils.  The use of lights and shadows, the shocked facial expression, and the hint of a horrendous twist just drew me in.  

John Byrne had a myriad of classic covers from his work on Marvel Team-Up, Fantastic Four, many DC books, and of course the X-Men.   So many examples of excellence to choose from, and I am sure others may have picked X-Men 141 (which is indeed a classic), but I have always been enamored with X-Men 138.   Even with a recap story inside and the annoying Toys R Us banner, I still like the simplicity of this moody and moving cover.

George Perez makes my list twice with Marvel Two-In-One 54.  Deathlok and the color scheme have much to do with this choice.  It always seemed to me that a lot of effort was put into this cover and I appreciate that.

 Amazing Spider-Man could have had a top ten list all by itself.  With covers by John Romita alone I could have filled a week of blogs.  But lately this simple cover on ASM 281 by Ron Frenz just appeals to me.  Who can resist floating heads?  Plus Spidey's humorous attitude just seems to shine through.  This is a great example of a little goes a long way.

Frank Miller sure hit the ground running on Daredevil and issue 158 was a monumental kick-off that showcased his talent.  I did not own this issue for a long time, but my desire to have it was driven by the cover.

John Buscema was just fantastic.  Recently I tweeted about his cover talent and I had time selecting which comic that I thought demonstrated his work the best.  I have to go with Silver Surfer #4.  It is just a classic.

 My final choice highlights a lot of favorites.  The first Marvel Sub-Mariner series is an underrated gem if you ask me.  Perhaps Subby's perceived belligerence may keep readers away.  At the very least, the art was top notch with the likes of John Buscema, Sal Buscema, Gene Colan, and Bill Everett involved.  But this particular cover happens to be by the great Marie Severin, and when I was very young I stared at it for hours when I first saw it as a house ad in a Marvel comic.  I love the colors and the drama.  Cheers!

Redartz:  Excellent choices, Marti! Byrne, Buscema, Infantino, Severin- what a lineup of all-stars...

Well, there's our respective 'top ten' lists. You may ask, "how could I devise a list with nothing by John Byrne, Barry Windsor-Smith or Will Eisner?" Ahhh, ask again tomorrow. At any rate, I'd be thrilled to permanently paper my walls with any of these gems. What say you, are these decent choices? And what might your ten picks be (I know, I know, trying to pick only ten is excruciating)...