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The
JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #63
SUMMER 2014
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“’80s Independents!” In-depth looks at PAUL CHADWICK’s Concrete, DAVE SIM’s Cerebus the Aardvark, and RICHARD AND WENDY PINI’s Elfquest! Plus see ‘80s independent comics go Hollywood, DAVID SCROGGY remembers Pacific Comics, TRINA ROBBINS’ California Girls, and DENIS KITCHEN’s star-studded horror/sci-fi anthology Death Rattle. Cover by PAUL CHADWICK!
“Let’s Get Small!” Marvel’s Micronauts, The Atom in the Bronze Age, JAN STRNAD and GIL KANE’s Sword of the Atom, the rocky relationship of Ant-Man the Wasp, Gold Key’s Microbots, Super Jrs., DC Digests, and Marvel Value Stamps. Featuring the work of PAT BRODERICK, JACKSON GUICE, ELLIOT S! MAGGIN, BILL MANTLO, AL MILGROM, ALEX SAVIUK, ROGER STERN, LEN WEIN, & more. Cover by PAT BRODERICK!
“When Comics Were Fun!” HEMBECK cover and gallery, Plastic Man, Blue Devil, Marvel’s Star Comics imprint, VALENTINO’s normalman, Bronze Age’s goofiest Superman stories, and the Batman/Dick Tracy team-up you didn’t see! Featuring MAX ALLAN COLLINS, PARIS CULLINS, RAMONA FRADON, ALAN KUPPERBERG, MISHKIN & COHN, STEVE SKEATES, JOE STATON, CURT SWAN, and more!
“Weird Issue!” Batman’s Weirdest TeamUps, ORLANDO’s Weird Adventure Comics, Weird War Tales, Weird Mystery Tales, DITKO’s Shade the Changing Man and Stalker, CHAYKIN’s Iron Wolf, CRUMB’s Weirdo, and STARLIN and WRIGHTSON’s The Weird! Featuring JIM APARO, LUIS DOMINGUEZ, MICHAEL FLEISHER, BOB HANEY, PAUL LEVITZ, and more. Batman and Deadman cover by ALAN CRADDOCK.
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COMIC BOOK CREATOR #6 COMIC BOOK CREATOR #7 COMIC BOOK CREATOR #8
DRAW! #29
LEGO ARCHITECTURE with JONATHAN LOPES, a microscale model of Copenhagen by ULRIK HANSEN, and a look at the LEGO MUSEUM being constructed in Denmark! Plus Minifigure Customization by JARED BURKS, step-by-step “You Can Build It” instructions by CHRISTOPHER DECK, BrickNerd DIY Fan Art by TOMMY WILLIAMSON, MINDSTORMS building with DAMIEN KEE, and more!
SWAMPMEN: MUCK-MONSTERS OF THE COMICS dredges up Swamp Thing, ManThing, Heap, and other creepy man-critters of the 1970s bayou! Features interviews with WRIGHTSON, MOORE, PLOOG, WEIN, BRUNNER, GERBER, BISSETTE, VEITCH, CONWAY, MAYERIK, ORLANDO, PASKO, MOONEY, TOTLEBEN, YEATES, BERGER, SANTOS, USLAN, KALUTA, THOMAS, and others. FRANK CHO cover!
BERNIE WRIGHTSON interview on Swamp Thing, Warren, The Studio, Frankenstein, Stephen King, and designs for movies like Heavy Metal and Ghostbusters, and a gallery of Wrightson artwork! Plus writer/editor BRUCE JONES; 20th anniversary of Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror with BILL MORRISON; and interview Wolff and Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre's BATTON LASH, and more!
MIKE ALLRED and BOB BURDEN cover and interviews, "Reid Fleming, World's Toughest Milkman" cartoonist DAVID BOSWELL interviewed, a chat with RICH BUCKLER, SR. about everything from Deathlok to a new career as surrealistic painter; Tales of the Zombie artist PABLO MARCOS speaks; Israeli cartoonist RUTU MODAN; plus an extensive essay on European Humor Comics!
DAVE DORMAN demonstrates his painting techniques for sci-fi, fantasy, and comic book cover, LeSEAN THOMAS (character designer and co-director of The Boondocks and Black Dynamite: The Animated Series) gives advice on today’s animation industry, new columnist JERRY ORDWAY shows his working process, plus more Comic Art Bootcamp by BRET BLEVINS and Draw! editor MIKE MANLEY! Mature readers only.
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ALTER EGO #126
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KIRBY COLLECTOR #64
Second big issue on 3-D COMICS OF THE 1950s! KEN QUATTRO looks at the controversy involving JOE KUBERT, NORMAN MAURER, BILL GAINES, and AL FELDSTEIN! Plus more fabulous Captain 3-D by SIMON & KIRBY and MORT MESKIN— 3-D thrills from BOB POWELL, HOWARD NOSTRAND, JAY DISBROW and others— the career of Treasure Chest artist VEE QUINTAL, FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!
1940s WILL EISNER/”BUSY” ARNOLD letters between the creator of The Spirit and his Quality Comics partner, art and artifacts by FINE, CRANDALL, CUIDERA, CARDY, KOTZKY, BLUM, NORDLING, and others! Plus Golden Age MLJ artist JOHN BULTHIUS, more of AMY KISTE NYBERG’s History of the Comics Code, FCA, Mr. Monster, BILL SCHELLY, cover by DANIEL JAMES COX and JASON PAULOS!
CAROL L. TILLEY on Dr. Fredric Wertham’s falsification of his research in the 1950s, featuring art by EVERETT, SHUSTER, PETER, BECK, COSTANZA, WEBB, FELDSTEIN, WILLIAMSON, WOOD, BIRO, and BOB KANE! Plus AMY KISTE NYBERG on the evolution of the Comics Code, FCA, Mr. Monster, BILL SCHELLEY, and a new cover by JASON PAULOS and DANIEL JAMES COX!
Edgar Rice Burroughs adventure heroes in comics! With art by FOSTER, HOGARTH, FRAZETTA, MANNING, KANE, KUBERT, MORROW, GRELL, THORNE, WEISS, ANDERSON, KALUTA, AMENDOLA, BUSCEMA, MARSH, and YEATES—with analysis by foremost ERB experts! Plus, the 1970s ERB comics company that nearly was, FCA, MR. MONSTER, BILL SCHELLY, and more! Cover by TOM GRINDBERG!
SUPER-SOLDIERS! We declassify Captain America, Fighting American, Sgt. Fury, The Losers, Pvt. Strong, Boy Commandos, and a tribute to Simon & Kirby! PLUS: a Kirby interview about Captain America, MARK EVANIER and other columnists, key 1940s’50s events in Kirby’s career, unseen pencils and unused art from OMAC, SILVER STAR, CAPTAIN AMERICA (in the 1960s AND ’70s), the LOSERS, & more! KIRBY cover!
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THE
ISSUE #63, SUMMER 2014
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Contents The Marvel Universe! OPENING SHOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 (let’s put the Stan/Jack issue to rest in #66, shall we?) A UNIVERSE A’BORNING . . . . . . . . .3 (the late Mark Alexander gives us an aerial view of Kirby’s Marvel Universe) GALLERY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 (mega Marvel Universe pencils) JACK KIRBY MUSEUM PAGE . . . .48 (visit & join www.kirbymuseum.org) JACK F.A.Q.s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 (in lieu of Mark Evanier’s regular column, here’s his 2008 Big Apple Kirby Panel, with Roy Thomas, Joe Sinnott, and Stan Goldberg) KIRBY OBSCURA . . . . . . . . . . . . .64 (the horror! the horror! of S&K) KIRBY KINETICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 (Norris Burroughs on Thing Kong) IF WHAT? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70 (Shane Foley ponders how Jack’s bad guys could’ve been badder) RETROSPECTIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74 (a look at key moments in Kirby’s later life and career) INCIDENTAL ICONOGRAPHY . . . . .82 (we go “under the sea” with Triton) CUT ’N’ PASTE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84 (the lost FF #110 collage) KIRBY AS A GENRE . . . . . . . . . . . .86 (the return of the return of Captain Victory) UNEARTHED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89 (the last survivor of Kirby’s Marvel Universe?) COLLECTOR COMMENTS . . . . . . .91 PARTING SHOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96 Cover inks: MIKE ROYER Cover color: TOM ZIUKO If you’re viewing a Digital Edition of this publication,
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Spider-Man is the one major Marvel character we don’t cover this issue, but here’s a great sketch of Spidey that Jack drew for granddaughter Tracy Kirby in 1975—one of the few good illos of the character Jack ever produced. The Jack Kirby Collector, Vol. 21, No. 63, Summer 2014. Published most quarters by and © TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. 919-4490344. John Morrow, Editor/Publisher. Single issues: $14 postpaid ($18 elsewhere). Four-issue subscriptions: $45 US, $61 Canada, $66 elsewhere. Editorial package © TwoMorrows Publishing, a division of TwoMorrows Inc. All characters are trademarks of their respective companies. All artwork is © Jack Kirby Estate unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter is © the respective authors. First printing. PRINTED IN CHINA. ISSN 1932-6912
COPYRIGHTS: Agent 13, AIM, Alicia, Angel, Ant-Man, Avengers, Baron Von Strucker, Beast, Beetle, Betty Ross, Brik, Bucky, Captain America, Crystal, Cyclops, Daredevil, Dr. Droom, Dr. Strange, Dragon Man, Drom, Dum-Dum Dugan, Early Hulk, El Toro, Enchantress, Executioner, Falcon, Fantastic Four, Fin Fang Foom, Fixer, Frightful Four, Galactus, Galp, Giant-Man, Gorgilla, Herbie, Hulk, Human Torch, Hydra, Iceman, Immortus, Infant Terrible, Invisible Girl, Iron Man, Jane Foster, Jasper Sitwell, Junior Juniper, Ka-Zar, Kang, Loki, Magneto, Marvel Girl, Medusa, Molecule Man, Mr. Fantastic, Nega-Man, Nick Fury, Odin, Plunderer, Plunderer, Princess Python, Professor X, Puppet Master, Quicksilver, Rama Tut, Red Skull, Rick Jones, Sandman, Scarlet Witch, Sentinels, Sgt. Fury, Silver Surfer, Skrulls, Space Phantom, Spider-Man, Stranger, Sub-Mariner, Tales of Asgard, Thing, Dr. Doom, Thor, Titanium Man, Trapster, Triton, Tyr, Tyrannus, Wanderer, Warlock, Warriors Three, Wasp, Watcher, Wizard, Wyatt Wingfoot, X-Men, Yellow Claw TM & © Marvel Characters, Inc. • Darkseid, Demon, Desaad, Flash, Guardian, Highfather, Kalibak, Kamandi, Lex Luthor, Lightray, New Gods, Orion, Superman, Sandman TM & © DC Comics • Mr. Machine TM Ideal Toys • Black Hole TM & © Walt Disney Productions • Captain Victory, Jacob and the Angel, Beast Rider, Captain Glory, Satan's Six TM & ©Jack Kirby Estate • Thundarr TM & © Ruby-Spears Productions • Destroyer Duck, Roxie's Raiders TM & © Steve Gerber and Jack Kirby
Opening Shot
5 Months of Hard Work
editor John Morrow
efore my late friend Mark Alexander began work on issue #58 of the Jack Kirby Collector (“Lee & Kirby: The Wonder Years”), he first spent a long time on a lengthy 2003-2004 essay entitled “A Universe A’Borning,” documenting the early years of the Marvel Universe, through Kirby’s eyes. How long did he spend? Well, the title of this editorial is taken from the letter he included when he sent me the final draft, which said, “Here you go, buddy. You hold in your hands five months of hard work. Do with it what you will.” I was suitably impressed with it (as I think you’ll be, when you read it on the following pages). But Mark wrote me within a few months, asking me to pull it from consideration, since he wanted to use it as the basis for something even bigger—“The Wonder Years,” which unfortunately only made it to publication shortly after Mark passed away in 2011. After the overwhelmingly positive response to that book, I felt it was a shame that readers never got to see what Mark would do, if he were covering the rest of the Marvel Universe’s history. And since he said I could do whatever I wanted with “A’Borning,” by gosh, no way was I going to let it languish in a file drawer. Mark had included a large stack of suggested illustrations, and I wanted to incorporate as many of them as I could. This turned it into one of the most difficult layout jobs I’ve ever tackled, trying to fit what he wanted, where he wanted it. But I’m confident the end result is exactly what he had in mind, and I wish he were here to finally see it in print, the way he’d originally intended. The only problem is, we never discussed what to use for the lead image, to start his essay off. Since he didn’t leave me any guidance, I decided to dig through my old Marvel collection and see what I could turn up. It’s amazing what you’ll find in old comic boxes, isn’t it? On the next page is a beat-up copy of a longtime favorite of mine—I think it works well, and that Mark would approve. Any similarity between it and any other comic (especially one shown above) is purely intentional. ★
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(above) Marvel Tales Annual #1 (1964) gave many readers a second chance to experience the origins of their favorite Marvel characters. I hope Mark’s essay has the same effect on TJKC’s readers. Enjoy!
(Mark’s work inspired me to tackle another “book” issue of this magazine. For TJKC #66 next summer, I’ll be producing a 160-page book, in the spirit of #50 and #58. Entitled Kirby & Lee: ’Stuff Said!, it’s centered around chronologically analyzing both men’s comments about their work (see page 92 for details). With all the research involved, and lots of summer travel ahead, our next issue (#64) won’t ship till Fall. Thanks for your patience!) 2
Mark Alexander (1955-2011)
Johnny Storm, a radically modernized version of the 1940s Human Torch, was possibly the first teenager in comics who wasn’t merely a sexually-ambivalent “kid sidekick”—whose main function was to keep the adult hero from talking to himself throughout the narrative. Johnny’s sister—Sue Storm—could dematerialize at will, and was the integrator. Her relationship to the Torch (as sibling) and to Reed (as future bride) was the unifying cord that tied the group together—and this is quite important—as a family. Aside from that, Sue was peripheral, and would pretty much stay that way. Meanwhile, The Thing was anything but peripheral. He looked like nothing on Earth: he had craggy orange flesh, and was cast as a bitter malcontent. The deep self-loathing his deformity had wrought would often turn itself outward, and seek surrogate victims like The Torch. Right from the start, Ben Grimm was the one who counted most. Quite simply, he epitomized—and catalyzed—everything that would change in comic books after him. Or more to the point, because of him. After The Thing, the idea of what constituted a comic hero would expand and complexify—not fractionally, as it had been, but radically and rapidly. The monster was also Kirby’s first metaphoric self-portrait (the cigar was a dead giveaway). Other Kirby metaphors would follow. Over time, Ben acquired a blunt sense of humor to counterbalance his angst. But it was clear his Brooklynesque wisecracks masked a deep-rooted embitterment. His anguish and pathos evoked the reader’s sympathies, and Lee understated the emotionality just enough that Ben’s poignancy never degenerated into bathos. If any one character holds the key to Marvel’s success, it’s surely The Thing (sorry Spidey-fans). Simply, he’s the seminal-figure and cornerstone of their entire universe. He’s as important as that. Ironically, despite Lee’s later boasts that he developed The Thing to be “a new breed of hero, so phantasmagoric he would re-mold the entire comics industry,” the truth—as usual—is probably more mundane. The writers (and Martin Goodman) were most likely hedging their bets on a full-fledged 1960s superhero revival, and—cautiously— wanted to keep a “monster element” in the storyline, just in case. Verdant, violent and vengeful, The Incredible Hulk was a Legends have been ferocious combustion of indefatigable energy. born from humbler stuff. He personified Jack Kirby’s rage, terror, and power.
A Behemoth Berserk
Benjamin J. Grimm, the heart and soul of Kirby’s universe, was the veritable missing link between the Atlas Monsters and the Marvel superheroes. Had the FF never materialized, The Thing might possibly have ended up as just another early ’60s monstrosity.
(THE INCREDIBLE HULK, PREMIERE DATE: MAY 1962) He was the Jack Kirby bigness personified in green. What do you do for an encore after launching The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine? Kirby’s response was a solo-star who, if anything, pushed the envelope even further than The Fantastic Four. Verdant, violent, and vital, the Hulk’s adventures had a raw intensity that had been missing from comics for years. The plots weren’t much: mostly, they were full-blown excuses for the monster to perform acts of magnificent destruction and splendid carnage. Stone walls were toppled, tanks were demolished, and entire army battalions were scattered like bowling pins. No question about it, Kirby was drawing big again. So big in fact, the crowded boroughs of New York—home of the FF— weren’t nearly spacious enough for all this grand-scale devastation. Subsequently, Kirby settled his emerald enormity in the vast painted deserts of New Mexico: and even they were barely big enough to hold him. The monster’s alter ego—Bruce Banner–-seemed haunted; and given 8
the circumstances, it suited him. A bespectacled, neurotic variation of Reed Richards, Banner came across as nervous wreckage. A nuclear physicist with a penchant for wearing purple pants, Banner seemed enigmatic and full of dark complexities. Indeed, within his frail frame two beings coexisted—intertwined but incompatible. Obviously, the writers were riffing on R.L. Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde. Banner’s love interest—Betty Ross—was totally bland, and her importance to the storyline was marginal at best. She epitomized vapid, white-bready characterization. Even her name was unoriginal, having been purloined from a 1940s Simon/Kirby character. Simply put, she didn’t count. Rick Jones definitely counted. Intriguingly mysterious from the onset, Jones would soon break the bonds of this series to play a larger, more complex role in the Marvel Galaxy— The Nexus. (More on him later.) As for the Hulk himself, to call him “a different kind of superhero”—besides sounding like a Lee cover blurb—would be a vast understatement. What kind of comics star was feared and vilified by every segment of society? What kind hated his own alter ego? Obviously with
A Universe a’Borning PiN-UP
Although Thor possessed the ability to control weather, in seven initial issues (Journey Into Mystery #83-89), Kirby didn’t do much else with this bona fide god. That quickly changed after his return to the book in #101.
The HULK
The Hulk, Kirby had gone even further down the line he’d drawn with The Thing. This time, perhaps, he’d gone too far.
Asgard Discovered (“THE MIGHTY THOR,” PREMIERE DATE: AUG. 1962) With one blow from his hammer, all the monsters in Journey Into Mystery’s first eighty-two issues were smashed to nothing. If the Hulk had been grotesque and looked on with revulsion by all society, Marvel’s next “blitz” would be a hero who was his diametrical opposite. The Hulk’s antithesis would have to be a perfect specimen of humanity—or better yet, a veritable god. Kirby’s early run on Thor (JIM #8389) never quite lived up to its real potential. As you might expect, Kirby was too pressured, too overworked to sustain the dynamics and intensity the series deserved. On the whole, the book was plagued by the same type of boring, ludicrous antagonists that proliferated in nearly all the 1962 Lee/Kirby superhero comics (FF excluded). Swimming the untested waters of a new superhero revival, Kirby displayed a cautious unwillingness to drop monster themes. For all he knew, there might be a core audience out there who still wanted beings like “the Stone-Men from Saturn” in every issue (see JIM #83). Almost as a matter of course, Lee’s contributions to the book were ceaseless variations of hackneyed hoods like “Thug Thacher,” and banal battalions of godless Commies. Mostly, they were downright dire. Readers who’d waited seven issues to see what Kirby could do with a superhero who was also a god, finally got their 9
hand to rubble seemed bigger, more god-like than ever before, his eyes set stoic in in total observance. Even Lee and Kirby showed up at the end, only to be demonic fury. bounced out by Nick Fury. If possible, All things considered, it had been quite a day. Grimm was By now it felt like time in the Marvel Universe was being even more epic marked by the FF Annuals, and FF Annual #3 seemed the perfect here than in grand finale to the first incredible phase of Marvel’s growth. It was a FF #25—his glorious, golden sunset—a magnificent final toast. pathos was At the end of everything stood The Fantastic Four. Even compared crippling. to their Marvel Universe peers, they were in an entirely different Then class. More than anyone, they rose above what comic heroes had finally, everybeen, and dictated what comic heroes would become. In this way thing came then, The Fantastic Four were the ultimate comic book legends of together at the Sixties, and their legacy was the ultimate legacy of The Silver once. Age. Above all others, they defined their times, and epitomized Since FF their era. The Cosmic Kiss: Although the pressures of saving the world #1, Kirby had Had there ever been heroes equal to these? had long been a strain on their relationship, Sue and Reed been spinning finally tied the knot in FF Annual #3 (1965). For once, Vince a vast, comColletta’s “romance comics” style of inking looks suitable for plex web of Fantastic Four. (BIGNESS FROM ABOVE) characters, That word again: Bigness. continuities, and localities. His grandiose, cosmos“What could possibly top the bombastic bigness of FF spanning “Marvel Universe” was—by 1965— Annual #3?” the True Believers wondered. What phenomenal in its sweep of vision. Only the could Kirby possibly do for an encore? loyal True Believers who followed Marvel Meanwhile, Kirby, whose production each month, understood how its schedule was months ahead of ramshackle and labyrinthine their comic consumption, elements all fit together: how this already knew. As he toiled in his convoluted mosaic of our world, “dungeon” studio, drawing the answer they otherworlds, netherworlds and transsought, a cosmological maelstrom was about temporal realms interlocked—as relato descend. It would take Kirby—and the tionships and coincidences converged medium he single-handedly pulled from and intertwined at Kirby’s will. the inferno—to a grandeur no one had Reed Richards and Sue dreamed of. It would unleash the gods Storm—from the beginning— inside him. had been the Adam and Eve Meanwhile, a silver harbinger of this universe. In the early was drawing near: and like Kirby, days, their ambivalent feelings he too was an advance scout. A silver toward each other provided the matrix for some herald and a purple apocalypse—the Final delightfully tempestuous moments. (Reed: “Everything Duo of Doomsday. And still they wondered: I do is for your own good, but you’re too scatter-brained and What could possibly top the wedding of Sue emotional to realize it!”) (Sue: “Oh, go polish a test tube!”) Now and Reed? that the couple’s long and winding relationship was speedTo quote Bob Dylan: “Two riders were ing toward matrimony, Kirby was determined to pull out all approaching—and the wind began to howl.” ★ the stops, in a coup de grace FF Annual story that would make every other comic book in history seem downright negligible. For “Bedlam At The Baxter Building,” the artist plucked from his universe as many characters as twentythree pages would allow, and set them loose in a war of unprecedented Kirbyesque grandiosity. In a universe of battle, heroes and evildoers merged into a confused, multi-colored, monolithic mass; impervious to all but combat, it seemed the final apocalypse. Kirby whipped up an endless horde of thugs, gods, acolytes, and deadly beasts (all controlled by—who else—Dr. Doom) to crash Reed’s wedding, in a cataclysmic battle that was a comic book equivalent of Ragnarok. An exercise in truly inspired excessiveness, it all seemed one step from chaos. When The Watcher finally appeared Through it all, the FF shone like sun gods. They were the center of the Marvel Universe, and everything ebbed and flowed around them. They were the ultimate comic book heroes of the Silver Age. Thanks, Jack. to give the groom the necessary weapon, he
Epilogue: A Pillager Approaching
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Gallery Commentary by Shane Foley
(right) Shown here is a rough photocopy of Jack’s pencils from Strange Tales #141. Though he was generally doing layouts on the series, for this issue, he produced much tighter pencils for inker Frank Giacoia. (page 38) A Strange Tales #146 discovery—go read it! Thanks to Pete Von Sholly for alerting us. Sean Howe, in the course of researching his recent book Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, unearthed a nice batch of Fantastic Four #61 pencil stats, so let’s dig in: (page 39) Fantastic Four #61 pencils, from page 17: Sandman, visually created by Ditko, had no real need of a visual upgrade—and indeed some readers objected to it—but it seems that during this prime period in his career, Kirby simply couldn’t help himself. (Although who knows— maybe Stan asked for the redesign?) But one of the practical reasons given for the costume was to give Sandman extra abilities, courtesy of the Wizard—and this stunningly drawn page puts that idea into action.
(page 40) Fantastic Four #61, page 10: Panel one is inspired design. Amidst the chaos, all four characters are easily identified by the reader, as his eye is directed through and around the oval-shaped action. Then, when the reader is ready to move to the next panel, Reed’s arm near Sue leads the eye directly to Sandman in the second panel. Then Sandman’s blast takes the eye directly to Sue’s head in panel three. Superbly clear storytelling. And, amazingly, Jack draws Sue with broken lines, rather than leaving that to the inker. (page 41) Fantastic Four #61, page 13: For years, Kirby enthusiasts thought that John Romita added his Peter Parker and Mary Jane heads to panel two—now we have proof! Looking at panel three, and seeing the amazing detail there, who would guess that Kirby produced at least three pages per day? No corners cut here! (pages 42-43) Fantastic Four #61, page 14, before and after inking. This page shows how closely Stan followed Jack’s border notes, often using almost the exact phrasing, while deliberately avoiding others. In panel two, ‘strange beams of unearthly spectrum’ become ‘spectrum beams’ (to me, Stan’s revision makes less sense than Jack’s original), while Jack’s ‘something is really cooking’ is much improved by Stan and kept in spirit only.
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www.kirbymuseum.org 2014 Comic Con Season has begun!
Newsletter
TJKC Edition Summer 2014 The Jack Kirby Museum and Research Center is organized exclusively for educational purposes; more specifically, to promote and encourage the study, understanding, preservation and appreciation of the work of Jack Kirby by: • illustrating the scope of Kirby’s multi-faceted career, • communicating the stories, inspirations and influences of Jack Kirby, • celebrating the life of Jack Kirby and his creations, and • building understanding of comic books and comic book creators. To this end, the Museum will sponsor and otherwise support study, teaching, conferences, discussion groups, exhibitions, displays, publications and cinematic, theatrical or multimedia productions. Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center PO Box 5236 Hoboken, NJ 07030 USA Telephone: (201) 963-4383
Board of Trustees Randolph Hoppe rhoppe@kirbymuseum.org
As of this writing, the Jack Kirby Museum has been represented at London Super Comic Con, East Bay Comic Con (in Concord, California), Comic Art Showcase (in Secaucus, NJ), New York City’s MoCCA Art Festival, and the Asbury Park Comicon. Current near-future plans include appearances at Wondercon Anaheim, Calgary Comics & Entertainment Expo, Lisa Rigoux-Hoppe at the Asbury Park Comicon New York Comic Fest, and Florida Supercon in Miami. We love talking about Jack Kirby, so we hope either we’ve made contact with you at one of these shows, or a future event— and be sure to pick up some of our cool Kirby swag, when you make a donation to the Mother Box at our booth (see below)!
Can you feel it? We’re still feeling the love from our One Week Pop-Up Jack Kirby Exhibit “Prototype: Alpha” back in November, and thanks to your support of our Brick and Mortar fund, we are in the early planning stages of doing something like this again! Stay tuned to our web site, Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr for more information as it develops.
What it’s all about... Here’s a Jack Kirby piece recently discovered while scanning items for the Museum’s digital archive. It was too big to scan, so Rand took a snapshot on his phone. It’s clearly a presentation board, likely for a proposed TV show. Thanks to your contributions, the Museum is able to continue tracking down and archiving lost treasures like “Angel Face!.”
We thank our new and returning members for their support: Alex Adorno, Alex Cox, Andrew Bonia, Andrew Kolasko, Andrew Richmond, Antonio Iriarte, Bernard Brannigan, Bill Kruse, Brittany Murphy, Dusty Miller, Christopher Boyko, Christopher Harder, Christopher Horan, Corinna DeJong, David Schwartz, Don Rhoden, Eric Klopfer, Glen Brunswick, Glenn Garry, Jim McPherson, Kevin Goring, Kris Reiss, Laura Knechtel, Melvin Shelton, Patrick Markee, Paul Gleave, Philip Botwinick, Richard Pineros, Russell Payne, Steve Coates, Tom Brevoort. For their help with our programs, thanks to Eric Ho and MiLES, Ellen Karl, Lisa Rigoux-Hoppe, Cliff Galbraith and Robert Bruce of the Asbury Park Comicon, Bechara Maalouf, Richard Howell, Steve Coates, Russell Payne, Richard Annual Memberships Bensam, Mike with one of these posters: $40* Cecchini, Brittany Murphy, Paul T. Bianca, Alex Jay, Tom Morehouse, and the Biehler and Kirsch families of East Greenbush, NY. Of course, Rand thanks fellow Trustees Tom Kraft, John Morrow, and David Schwartz, and many thanks to the Kirby Estate for their support!
Captain America—23” x 29” 1941 Captain America—14” x 23”
Strange Tales—23” x 29” Super Powers—17” x 22” color
with one of these posters: $50*
David Schwartz Tom Kraft John Morrow twomorrow@aol.com All characters TM © their respective owners.
*Please add $10 for memberships outside the US, to cover additional postage costs. Posters come “as-is” and may not be in mint condition.
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Marvel—14” x 23”
Galactic Head— 18” x 20” color
Incan Visitation—24” x 18” color 48
Mark Evanier
Jack F.A.Q.s A column of Frequently Asked Questions about Kirby
In lieu of Mark’s regular column this issue, we proudly present his 2008 Kirby Tribute Panel, featuring three key players in the early Marvel Universe: Roy Thomas, Joe Sinnott, and Stan Goldberg.
made enormous sense. To this day I am amazed how many times I’d be walking down the street and suddenly something Jack said to me in 1973 pops into my head, and I just suddenly go, “Oh, yeah, I get it now. It applies now.” Roy, come on up! You all know Roy Thomas, everybody. [audience applauds as Roy joins panel] Around 1972 or ’73 Jack said when we were at the San Diego convention, “Someday the San Diego convention, it’s going to take up the entire city of San Diego, and it’s going to be huge. And it’ll be where Hollywood comes every year to sell the movies they made last year, and to find all the movies they’ll make next year.” And that’s what’s happened.
2008 Jack Kirby Tribute Panel Held November 1, 2008 at the Big Apple Comic-Con in New York City. Moderated by Mark Evanier, and featuring Roy Thomas, Joe Sinnott and Stan Goldberg. Transcribed by Steven Tice, edited by John Morrow and copyedited Mark Evanier. The full video of this panel can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xIyH3rwdCQ&feature=related
(right) On the back of a stat of his art from Strange Tales #138 (Nov. 1965—sent to him by Marvel to help him keep up with issue-to-issue continuity), Jack scribbled these cryptic words in pencil (apparently during a bout of research). After a bit of detective work, we discovered that these are the names of four gods of Norse mythology, which Jack used in Thor Annual #2 (1966).
(below) Kirby poses poolside at the 1973 San Diego Comic-Con. Photo by Shel Dorf.
MARK EVANIER: I’m always surprised by the number of people whose lives Jack touched, including people in other lines of work. Right after he died, I got this letter from a kid, going on and on about how Jack influenced his work. The guy was a spot welder. And he actually said that Jack Kirby had encouraged him to be the best damned spot welder in the world. I think Jack would have liked that. He would have been proud, probably much more proud than if the kid had gotten into comics. As many times as I am made aware of Jack’s impact, I still continue to be surprised by who I hear from, and how many people, and how intense their feelings still are towards this man. We’re now at the point, at the stage, where Jack has now been gone for fourteen years, so there are a lot of people who are very heavy into comics who’ve never had the chance to meet Jack. How many people here met Jack? [About a tenth of the room raises its hands] There was a period of time, if you went to a San Diego convention, and cared enough to wait twenty minutes, you could meet Jack. He was the most accessible guy in the world. All these people got to meet him and shake his hand, and say how much they loved his work, and hear some completely incoherent comment from him that they would pretend was normal. [audience laughter] And then, three years later, they figure it out. “Oh, that’s what he meant.” But we’re now to the point where people are coming up to me and saying, “I never had a chance to meet Jack.” They want to shake my hand because my hand shook Jack’s. You know, I met Groucho Marx, and I felt privileged that way. I met a lot of very important people who are no longer with us, people who affected others’ lives, and it’s the same way with Jack. It’s something that we will always carry around. It doesn’t make us any better. It just makes people envious. [laughs] And they all say, “What was he like?” He was like Jack. He was this sharp little tough guy with a New York accent whose mind raced from—I tell people, most people’s brains, they start with A, they go to B, and they go to C. Jack would start with C, then he’d do A, then he’d do R, then he’d do W, then he’d be On Beyond Zebra. He would have all new letters to get to. And at some point it all
ROY THOMAS: Literally? EVANIER: He said that. Yes, he did. And you all know Joe Sinnott, ladies and gentlemen, [applause as Joe and Stan Goldberg join panel] and Mr. Stan Goldberg. [audience applauds] Can somebody stick another chair up here in case Dick Ayers shows up?
All right, good afternoon. I’m Mark Evanier. That makes this officially a Jack Kirby panel. [applause] People in the back, if you can’t hear someone, would you wave to me and tell me that you can’t hear? Otherwise, I’m going to presume you hear. I keep doing these panels at conventions about Jack because—I go to conventions and people talk to me about Jack all the time. So it’s nice to get everyone together, and all the Kirby fans in the building, because we are, after all, the classiest, smartest ones at the convention. It’s great to talk with some of the people who had the pleasure of working with Jack, contributing to his life and his career, and being a part of all that. I think you all know what all of these gentlemen have done over the years. Roy’s going to have to leave early, so I’m going to talk to 49
Isn’t it sometimes hard to believe that people can be so passionate about the same subject, yet have such diametrically opposite views on that same material? Such was obvious as I read Mark Alexander’s “Lee and Kirby: The Wonder Years” in TJKC #58. I think I disagreed with his views almost as often as I agreed with them; entertaining and perplexing at the same time. One statement of his in particular immediately got my little brain ticking over. Hence, these fannish ramblings, which I’ve entitled:
If What?
By Their Enemies Shall Ye Know Them by Shane Foley (below) It’s tough to fear a man in a skirt, but easier than a guy in a toga. Good job, Jack!
n page 44, Mark writes that “Jack and Stan’s strong suit was creating noble, dignified heroes....” How true! But then a sentence later, he writes, “Likewise, the duo’s greatest failing was their inability to concoct the antithesis of these heroes—menacing villains, evildoers and bad guys.” Failing? I couldn’t disagree more. To my mind, that line should read, “Likewise, the duo’s similar success was their ability to concoct the greatest villains and evil doers and bad guys ever assembled in one comic, anywhere.” Certainly, a huge chunk of the Kirby FF’s status in comic book history comes from that supporting cast of ‘dignified heroes’ which no other strip came close to matching. And more often than not, these, rather than true ‘baddies’, were the antagonists. And why not? Time and again, Marvel showcased conflicts that weren’t always about ‘good vs evil’, but about misunderstanding, differing perspectives and the like. That’s why the FF fought Sub-Mariner and the Thing fought the Surfer and so on. But even if we remove all these wonderful characters—SubMariner, Watcher, Inhumans, Silver Surfer, Black Panther, and perhaps the Wanderer and Him—we still see what I think is the greatest baddie line-up ever. As a young reader in the ’60s, that’s certainly how I felt. And I still do. Right from the word “go,” when I was a young reader, it seemed the whole Marvel
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Universe, except in Ditko’s books, was filled with villains with some Kirby DNA. DC couldn’t compare. I liked Batman as a hero, but, to me, his rogues gallery of riddling, giggling, party-dressed buffoons didn’t hold a candle to Kirby’s power-charged, thundering super-villains. The fact that these early Marvel villains have kept being rehashed and returned to, over and over for the last 40 years, surely means there are many others who think as highly of them as I do. (And yes, I know many think just as highly of Batman’s Rogues Gallery—but not me.) I’m not only thinking Dr. Doom or Galactus. Their place as two of the best villainous creations in comic book history is certain. It’s the rest of the FF’s baddies that concern me. Why do I love them? A couple of reasons. Many were, by today’s standards, undeveloped character-wise. Back in the ’60s, who was? But during that time, these colorful characters bounced off the page with a life that other companies’ baddies didn’t have, and made the Marvel world alive! These were comics that made no apology for being comics—yet added just enough humor and characterization to stand out from the others. And we loved it! Lee and Kirby together were dynamite. Stan Lee provided the glib and witty dialogue that stood head and shoulders above others. But more often than not, it was Kirby who did it for me! Why? His baddies looked terrific! And they came from or lived in an environment that looked terrific! It was, and still is, the unique and powerful designs that Kirby gave each of them that screams ‘potential’ to a superhero reader. Combine this with the evocative places Kirby put many of them in (and sometimes the character that arose from the interplay with the FF during their conflict) and that potential just oozed out! (A side thought for a moment about Galactus: I wonder if he would have the status he has today if he looked different. What if that wonderful page 2 shot in FF #49 had Galactus looking very similar to the Watcher—both giants in togas, as shown at left? Would he have returned as often as he has? Or would someone have tried to create a better character? After all, it’s not like the name is anything special—‘Galactus’ is as corny as ‘Dr. Doom’ or ‘Mr. Fantastic’.) Most of the best known and most used Kirby FF villains are those that were featured in his ‘cosmic’ era (from about the FF mid-40s up)—either villains that were created then, or older villains that Kirby returned and revamped. Doom is the greatest example, of course, of an older becoming ‘upgraded’. But as the ‘cosmic age’ dawned, others, like the Frightful Four, were right there too. Suddenly, after Galactus, the Surfer, the Wanderer, Klaw and the Panther had all been introduced, and when
Kirby Krackle started filling the FF Universe, there were the Sandman and the Wizard again. Jack, at least, must have liked them. I certainly did.
FF—at the Mercy of the Madness of the Wanderer!” See “The Tragedy of Avalon!” (below). (Aside: FF #54, page 18, panel 4—John hadn’t pressed the ‘safety button’? Safety button? He’d been standing there yakking—and he hadn’t pressed it yet? C’mon, Stan (or Jack)—better that ‘no novice can safely control the eye’s power’ or the like. Safety button? Sheesh?)
I always loved Kirby’s depiction of the Wizard. What a beautifully balanced ‘big-head’ design he has. He’s just a rotten guy through and through, with little character development or subtle motivation anywhere given, but the power in his appearance by Kirby transfixes me. Especially his first panel in costume in FF #36, then even more, the later appearance in FF #78! (And he was even colored almost ‘pink’! Gasp! But it worked.) I liked the way in that issue, he was beaten by the Torch, who was his first foe. Nice touch, that. I wanted to see more of this guy. I didn’t give a damn about simple-comic-book-mad-genius Lex Luthor over in Superman, but I did give a damn about simple-comic book-mad-genius Wizard in the FF. Why? Mostly, because of the way he looked. That’s Kirby’s doing!
I mentioned Blastaar! Wonderfully designed by Kirby in the ‘Ulik/Troll’ tradition. He was on a destructive, conquering spree—drawn brilliantly—but it was his observations about the differences in life in SubSpace and Earth that added a wonderful veneer of depth to his character and made him fun to read. Stan and Jack brilliantly placed him in partnership with the down-to-earth Sandman, getting great mileage out of the interplay between the two. Adding that to the banter with the FF made issue #63 a delight to read. Who knew he was another creation Kirby would never return to? The intoxicating feeling of otherworldliness so well crafted and drawn by Kirby got yet another boost in the very next issue with the advent of the Kree. What more could any FF fan want than the Sentry, then the Accuser Ronan, complete with hints of previous
(A Frightful Four Aside: Medusa had left the Frightful Four to return to the Inhumans while her teammates went to jail. We’ve no idea if Jack knew what he was doing here, but Stan, writing the script, sure didn’t. Medusa’s story, like the rest of the Inhumans’ plight, made no sense at all.) In the first Galactus issues, the FF fought the Punisher, Big G’s rottweiler bully boy. There’s no ‘characterization’ going on here of course, but what we have is the Kirby speciality of presenting ‘otherness’! Unearthly power! The threat of the silent unknown! It’s these qualities that Kirby was able to draw so evocatively that make so many of these villains great. And the FF, despite their power, seem so human and vulnerable next to them. Probably one reason so many of these characters don’t work so well in many other writers’ and artists’ hands is that sometimes the writer attempts to expose too much of the creature’s personality (trying to create character, but therefore losing its ‘otherness’) and the artist lacks the ability to create the atmosphere Kirby does. Kirby’s lack of ‘real’ anatomy works mightily in his favor for alien characters. The Punisher is totally silent. This was perfectly apt, helping to reinforce the very alien threat the FF are involved in. (Aside: More evidence that it is the design of a villain’s appearance that is the major factor in his success comes when glancing at Marvel’s time-traveling baddies. Rama Tut first turned up in the FF, was linked to Dr. Doom, then became Kang. What a comic book history Kang has had. A bit earlier, Thor ran into the Tomorrow Man. To my mind, ‘Tomorrow Man’ is a better name than ‘Kang’, yet the TMan has never been developed—while Kang has returned and had his character explored again and again. Why? Because T-Man doesn’t have the exotic appearance of Kang, surely.) The Wanderer from FF #54 is interesting, because we as readers at the time had no idea that he would never be featured by Lee and Kirby again. And we had no idea if he would return as a goody or a baddie. With his history in super-techno-Avalon and seeing its destruction, he had great potential for a terrific return. Characters like him, and Klaw, and Blastaar, simmered away in the FF’s world and filled it with possibilities. Who knew we weren’t going to get an issue that screamed on the cover: “The
Prester John was certainly deserving of a second FF outing, or even a shot in Thor.
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Retrospective
Key Late Career Moments by John Morrow, with Richard Kolkman and friends
ontinuing our look at key moments in Jack’s life and career from TJKC #59 (which covered Marvel in the 1960s) and #62 (which covered 1970-1975), we present this timeline of key moments that affected Kirby’s tenure after he left DC Comics in 1975. Of invaluable help were Richard Kolkman (who sent me an extensive list to begin work from), Eric Nolen-Weathington, Ray Wyman, Tom Kraft, Glen Gold, and Rand Hoppe, as well as Mark Evanier’s book KIRBY: King of Comics and Sean Howe’s Marvel Comics: The Untold Story. This isn’t a complete list of every important date in Kirby’s later career history, but should hit most of the main ones. Please send us additions and corrections. Next issue, I’ll work on pivotal moments in Jack’s 1940s1950s career with Joe Simon. My rule of thumb: Cover dates were generally two-three months later than the date the book appeared on the stands, and six months ahead of when Kirby was working on the stories, so I’ve assembled the timeline according to those adjusted dates— not the cover dates—to set it as close as possible to real-time.
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• Mighty Marvel Con (March 22–24). Marie Severin spots Kirby going into Stan’s office, and yells down the Marvel halls, “Kirby’s back!” • March 24: Kirby signs a three-year contract with Marvel (valid through April 30, 1978), and appears at the Mighty Marvel Con held at the Hotel Commodore in New York City. Kirby stuns MMC attendees with the announcement of his return, and in regards to what he will be doing for Marvel, Kirby says, “It’ll electrocute you in the mind!” • May: Barry Alfonso’s fanzine Mysticogryfil #2 features an interview with Kirby.
Early 1970s • May 30, 1972: Kirby signs an agreement with Marvel, effectively relinquishing any claim he might have to the copyright on Captain America. This document is used against Joe Simon’s efforts to secure the copyright on Captain America Comics #1-10. • Late 1972: Rocket’s Blast Comic Collector #94 features an erroneous newsflash titled “Kirby Leaves DC,” which speculates what might happen if Kirby returned to Marvel. The article creates quite a stir in fandom. • Summer 1974: Neal Kirby asks Roy Thomas to meet the Kirbys for coffee at the San Diego Comic-Con, to determine Marvel’s possible interest in having Jack return. Roy tells Jack he and Stan would be glad to have him back.
1975 • Early 1975: It is presumed that Kirby talks with Stan Lee regarding the possibility of Kirby returning to Marvel.
• May 25: Wings’ album Venus and Mars featuring the song “Magneto and Titanium Man,” is released (the cover of the 45 rpm single is shown above, which featured repurposed non-Kirby art from Marvel). • June 2: Menomonee Falls Gazette V4, #181 features an interview with Kirby. • July: Mediascene #15 features a preview article entitled “The King Returns.” • August (October cover date): The Marvel Comics Bullpen page announces, “The King is Back! ’Nuff said!” and lists his future projects as 2001, Captain America, and a giant Silver Surfer book. • September (November cover date): New Kirby covers hit the stands: Fantastic Four #164, Invaders #3, Iron Man #80, Ka-Zar #12, Marvel Premiere #26 (featuring Hercules), Marvel Super-Heroes #54 (featuring Hulk), Marvel Two-inOne #12 (guest-starring Iron Man), and Thor #241. • September: Captain America #192 features a next issue promo with art by Kirby and Frank Giacoia (next page, top).
• February 20: Longtime Marvel letterer Arthur “Artie” Simek dies.
• September: FOOM #11 features a preview of 2001: A Space Odyssey, cover art for Captain America #193 and #194, and “Kirby Speaks,” an interview with Kirby.
• March 18: Kirby visits the Marvel offices for the first time since his departure in 1970. The visit takes place on the Monday before the 1975
• September: Kirby ignores editorial pleas to integrate the rest of the Marvel Universe into his Captain America series.
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• November (January 1976 cover date): Captain America #193 is published, beginning the “Madbomb” storyline, which is timed to end on America’s bicentennial.
• May (July cover date): Eternals #1 published. • June (August cover date): Captain America #200 is published. • June 8: The treasurysized Captain America’s Bicentennial Battles is published. • June 22: Kirby and his family meet Paul and Linda McCartney backstage at a Wings concert at the L.A. Forum via Gary Sherman. Kirby gives McCartney a drawing of Magneto (right, referencing McCartney’s song) to commemorate the occasion.
• November 15: Jack completes the first draft of his Silver Star screenplay. • December: FOOM #12 features preview art for an “Ikaris the Eternal” series, later to be renamed The Eternals.
1976 • Kirby visits Lucca, Italy as Guest of Honor at the Lucca Comic Art Festival, his first international comics convention appearance. • January (March cover date): The Bullpen Bulletins page features the blurb, “Who Is He?” with an image of Ikaris.
• July (September cover date): Bullpen Bulletin page announces that Roy Thomas is to join “Marvel West” along with Kirby and Mike Royer.
• February (April cover date): Kamandi #40, featuring the last of Kirby’s 1970s art for DC, is published.
• July: The Marvel Treasury Special 2001: A Space Odyssey movie adaptation is released.
• February: The Comic Reader #127 announces a new Marvel series Return of the Gods (ie. The Eternals) along with Kirby’s cover art for the first issue.
• August (October cover date): Hulk Annual #5 is published. The story features a bevy of Jack’s Atlas-era monsters, such as Groot, Titan, and Goom, with a new cover by Kirby. • September (November cover date): Fantastic Four #176 is published featuring a Kirby/Joe Sinnott cover with Impossible Man. Kirby, along with the Marvel Bullpen, appears as a character in the George Pérez-drawn story inside (left). • October (December cover date): 2001: A Space Odyssey #1 (a new ongoing series) is published. • November (January 1977 cover date): Black Panther #1 is published. As with his Captain America stories, Kirby isolates the title from the rest of the Marvel Universe. • December: FOOM #16 features a preview of the Marvel 1977 Calendar, featuring artwork by Kirby.
1977 • January: “Stan’s Soapbox” announces the Silver Surfer graphic novel is to be written by Lee and drawn by Kirby. • February 1: Kirby submits his art for The Prisoner. • March (May cover date): Marvel Two-in-One #27 is released, featuring a Kirby/Sinnott cover with Deathlok. • March 14: Kirby hands in concept art and plot concept for the Silver Surfer graphic novel to “Stanley” Lee, and Lee begins scripting.
• May (July cover date): Bullpen Bulletins page announces The Prisoner. According to Mediascene (Nov.–Dec. 1977), Marvel’s Prisoner series began as a proposal by editor Marv Wolfman, followed by a Steve Englehart and Gil Kane effort which Stan Lee rejected. Lee then gave the series to Kirby to write and pencil. Kirby penciled one 17-page issue, which was partially inked by Mike Royer, before Lee cancelled the project altogether.
• May (July cover date): 2001 #8 is published, introducing Mister Machine. Ideal Toys, having rights to the name (right), convinces Marvel to rename the character, 75