Comic Book Creators Whose Work I Have Enjoyed
Today I am going to go a little off the "beaten path." I am going to list the various creators I have liked and enjoyed over the years in different places. I will mention the creator and a bit of what I have read that that person had a hand in creating and why I remember liking it, in no particular order (except for last, I'm saving that for my favourite.) I know Boris is dying of anticipation:
Boris Karloff - For the picture above (OK enough jokes for now).
Jim Shooter - For almost everything he has done that I have read from the Legion of Super-Heroes, and for his editorialship at Marvel in the early 1980s. After Marvel's early 1960 early development years, despite what others may think, I find that Shooter's reign at Marvel had the books tight and cohesive with continuity. Stories were annotated with several asterisks per issue referencing previous books and/or series and he was responsible for bringing out the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, which was unique at the time and very detailed. (This series is a MUST for collectors trying to track down first appearances and character histories from before 1985)
Otto Binder - Apart from his considerable science fiction output, this man helped out on Captain Marvel and co-created the Marvel Family and Black Adam (leading to one of the biggest copyright lawsuits still decided to this day with National Comics victory over Fawcett). If that wasn't enough, he helped Quality Comic characters like Doll Man and Uncle Sam come to life. The his true comic genius came out at DC when he co created the Legion of Super-Heroes and Supergirl (and that's why I like him.)
Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster - It's for Funnyman. Seriously (not. wink) Same with Bob Kane and Bill Finger (wink in the dark)
Carl Barks - When I was a child, the first comics I received that I was able to call my own were Gold Key runs of Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge (a character I surprising never saw in a Disney cartoon to this point). I remember remarking how "awesome" the comics drawn were. As I grew older I discovered the name of the artist, and my (secondary to the Super-Family admittedly) passions for collecting turned to the Disney Ducks (and Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, of course). If it had a duck, I read it back then, and was disappointed not a little as I grew older and discovered new stories were no longer being created by Barks. Below is a picture of that first book I remember:
Paul Levitz - Working almost exclusively at DC, Levitz was (is) responsible for most of the long term love I have for the Legion of Super-Heroes. The Great Darkness Saga. ('nuff said) Also, the Justice Society run of the 1970's in All-Star Comics and Adventure Comics. (Not a fan of the independent Quebec on Earth-2, however, Paul!)
Roy Thomas - Most people who know me would think I have put him on the list for his All-Star Squadron title. And that alone, would be enough and they would be right. But I really out him here for two Marvel properties, his work on the Avengers (some of which I reviewed recently for my articles on the Wasp) and for...Conan the Barbarian! I can read and re-read Conan forever, especially from his run. I also used to be heavy into the Defenders in the early 1980s, but Thomas' time on the title was an era I tried to back issue collect for much of 1994. The fact he was an ubercomicgeek like myself makes him unparalleled on this page.
Marv Wolfman and George Perez - I enjoyed both creators individual work at Marvel, but when they were teamed-up at DC making the New Teen Titans and Crisis on Infinite Earths; DC has lost a little bit that they don't still work together. (I am STILL upset.)
Jim Aparo - I had the pleasure recently of seeing downloads of Aparo's creative period at Charlton Comics and while interesting examples of early art, seeing it on the computer screen is not the same as holding it. I have to get some. But, why I love Aparo so much: he was responsible for the art for one of my favourite two-part stories of all time: Batman and the Outsiders (v1) #1 and #2. This story made me feel like I truly was a part (Mike W. Barr had a little bit to do with it too) of the action, I was young enough to feel that. Outsiders was briefly my favourite team book. A large part of my love for Aquaman stems from the fact Aparo drew him too, as is a large part of why I liked the Spectre (from Adventure reprints). I loved his quirks too, such as gags in the panels and the constant parade of pipe smokers. I find his style so distinctive.
Neal Adams - I could go on (and on and on, having had the pleasure of meeting him at a few conventions) about him, but I plan on doing a column about his post 1990 work soon, so I'll save the background and stuff for that future column.
And finally, Curt Swan. Enough has been said about him at so many sites that it almost feels redundant to talk about him. He has worked for DC from after the Second World War until his death in 1996. He is the only comic book creator I own a biography for. Jim Shooter talked to me about him at the last Ottawa Comiccon. I will get more into his work in a future column I have planned about the Bronze Age Superman.
Ottawa News and Notes - FanExpo Toronto starts tomorrow, and Myths, Legends and Heroes is closed for the weekend while they are there. Four Colour Comics is another Ottawa based dealer I know is going. If you are going, throw some business either of their ways, as it is expensive to be there.
That's it for me today. I will be tackling a rather interesting article on Charlton Comics in the next little bit, superseded with another edition of Random Books My Son Picks. Have fun!
Boris Karloff - For the picture above (OK enough jokes for now).
Jim Shooter - For almost everything he has done that I have read from the Legion of Super-Heroes, and for his editorialship at Marvel in the early 1980s. After Marvel's early 1960 early development years, despite what others may think, I find that Shooter's reign at Marvel had the books tight and cohesive with continuity. Stories were annotated with several asterisks per issue referencing previous books and/or series and he was responsible for bringing out the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, which was unique at the time and very detailed. (This series is a MUST for collectors trying to track down first appearances and character histories from before 1985)
Otto Binder - Apart from his considerable science fiction output, this man helped out on Captain Marvel and co-created the Marvel Family and Black Adam (leading to one of the biggest copyright lawsuits still decided to this day with National Comics victory over Fawcett). If that wasn't enough, he helped Quality Comic characters like Doll Man and Uncle Sam come to life. The his true comic genius came out at DC when he co created the Legion of Super-Heroes and Supergirl (and that's why I like him.)
Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster - It's for Funnyman. Seriously (not. wink) Same with Bob Kane and Bill Finger (wink in the dark)
Carl Barks - When I was a child, the first comics I received that I was able to call my own were Gold Key runs of Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge (a character I surprising never saw in a Disney cartoon to this point). I remember remarking how "awesome" the comics drawn were. As I grew older I discovered the name of the artist, and my (secondary to the Super-Family admittedly) passions for collecting turned to the Disney Ducks (and Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, of course). If it had a duck, I read it back then, and was disappointed not a little as I grew older and discovered new stories were no longer being created by Barks. Below is a picture of that first book I remember:
Paul Levitz - Working almost exclusively at DC, Levitz was (is) responsible for most of the long term love I have for the Legion of Super-Heroes. The Great Darkness Saga. ('nuff said) Also, the Justice Society run of the 1970's in All-Star Comics and Adventure Comics. (Not a fan of the independent Quebec on Earth-2, however, Paul!)
Roy Thomas - Most people who know me would think I have put him on the list for his All-Star Squadron title. And that alone, would be enough and they would be right. But I really out him here for two Marvel properties, his work on the Avengers (some of which I reviewed recently for my articles on the Wasp) and for...Conan the Barbarian! I can read and re-read Conan forever, especially from his run. I also used to be heavy into the Defenders in the early 1980s, but Thomas' time on the title was an era I tried to back issue collect for much of 1994. The fact he was an ubercomicgeek like myself makes him unparalleled on this page.
Marv Wolfman and George Perez - I enjoyed both creators individual work at Marvel, but when they were teamed-up at DC making the New Teen Titans and Crisis on Infinite Earths; DC has lost a little bit that they don't still work together. (I am STILL upset.)
Jim Aparo - I had the pleasure recently of seeing downloads of Aparo's creative period at Charlton Comics and while interesting examples of early art, seeing it on the computer screen is not the same as holding it. I have to get some. But, why I love Aparo so much: he was responsible for the art for one of my favourite two-part stories of all time: Batman and the Outsiders (v1) #1 and #2. This story made me feel like I truly was a part (Mike W. Barr had a little bit to do with it too) of the action, I was young enough to feel that. Outsiders was briefly my favourite team book. A large part of my love for Aquaman stems from the fact Aparo drew him too, as is a large part of why I liked the Spectre (from Adventure reprints). I loved his quirks too, such as gags in the panels and the constant parade of pipe smokers. I find his style so distinctive.
Neal Adams - I could go on (and on and on, having had the pleasure of meeting him at a few conventions) about him, but I plan on doing a column about his post 1990 work soon, so I'll save the background and stuff for that future column.
And finally, Curt Swan. Enough has been said about him at so many sites that it almost feels redundant to talk about him. He has worked for DC from after the Second World War until his death in 1996. He is the only comic book creator I own a biography for. Jim Shooter talked to me about him at the last Ottawa Comiccon. I will get more into his work in a future column I have planned about the Bronze Age Superman.
Ottawa News and Notes - FanExpo Toronto starts tomorrow, and Myths, Legends and Heroes is closed for the weekend while they are there. Four Colour Comics is another Ottawa based dealer I know is going. If you are going, throw some business either of their ways, as it is expensive to be there.
That's it for me today. I will be tackling a rather interesting article on Charlton Comics in the next little bit, superseded with another edition of Random Books My Son Picks. Have fun!
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