Alter Ego #50

Roy Thomas’ Merry Marvel Comics Fanzine

No.50 July 2005

$

5.95

In the USA

Sub-Mariner, Thing, Thor, & Vision TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; Conan TM & ©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.; Red Sonja TM & ©2005 Red Sonja Properties, Inc.; Caricature ©2005 Estate of Alfredo Alcala

Vol. 3, No. 50 / July 2005 Editor

™

Roy Thomas Shamelessly Celebrates 50 Issues of A/E, Vol. 3— & 40 Years Since Modeling With Millie #44!

Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor P.C. Hamerlinck

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editors Emeritus Jerry Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White, Mike Friedrich

Production Assistant Eric Nolen-Weathington

Cover Artists Alfredo Alcala, John Buscema, & Jack Kirby Jerry Ordway

Cover Colorist Alfredo Alcala (portrait), Tom Ziuko

And Special Thanks to: Alfredo Alcala, Jr. Christian Voltan Alcala Estelita Alcala Heidi Amash Heather Antonelli Bob Bailey Jeff Bailey Mark Beazley John Benson Dominic Bongo Bob Brodsky Rich Buckler Mike Burkey William Cain R. Dewey Cassell Ernie Chan Lynda Fox Cohen Teresa R. Davidson Michael Dewally Shel Dorf Michael Dunne Jennie-Lynn Falk Shane Foley Jeff Fox Carl Gafford Janet Gilbert Dick Giordano Glen David Gold Stan Goldberg Bob Greenberger Curt Griff Ian Hamerlinck Jennifer Hamerlinck David G. Hamilton Daniel Herman Richard Howell Karen Hughes Stan Lee Larry Lieber Alan Light

Allen Logan Linda Long Don Mangus Sam Maronie Mike Mikulovsky Al Milgrom Fred Mommsen Brian K. Morris Frank Motler Owen O’Leary Denny O’Neil Dave Newton Jerry Ordway Tom Palmer George Pérez Don Perlin Mike Phoenix John G. Pierce Nick Pope Greg Preston Richard Pryor Ethan Roberts Peter Sanderson Eric Schumacher Carole Seuling Gwen Seuling Marie Severin Rick Shurgin David Siegel Keif Simon Joe & Betty Sinnott Paul Smith Zack Smith Britt Stanton Flo Steinberg Marc Swayze Dann Thomas Maggie Thompson Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Tom Wimbish Michele Wolfman

This issue is dedicated by Roy to his mother–––MRS. LEONA THOMAS

Contents Writer/Editorial: Make Mine Marvel!. . . . . . . . . . . 2 “Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics . . . . 4 Jim Amash interviews Roy Thomas about being Stan Lee’s “left-hand man” in the 1960s & early ’70s.

DC Comics 1965––And The Rest Of Roy’s Color-Splashed Career . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Flip Us! About Our Cover: A kaleidoscopically collaborative combination of three great comic artists Roy worked with and admired in the 1960s and ’70s: Alfredo Alcala, John Buscema, and Jack Kirby. The painted caricature by Alfredo was given to him as a birthday gift in 1981 and showed Rascally Roy as Conan, the Marvel-licensed hero on which the two had labored together until 1980, when R.T. ankled Marvel for DC for what turned out to be a six-year semi-exclusive stay. The three Marvel super-heroes drawn by Big John are from 1990s re-creations of his 1960s art—while the Conan/Red Sonja illo was a commission drawing. Jack penciled the Thing figure, complete with A/E-boosting sign, back in 1962, especially for A/E—and it was inked for V1#4 by A/E’s founding editor/publisher Jerry G. Bails. Thanks to Alfredo’s widow Mrs. Estelita Alcala and to his sons Christian Voltan Alcala and Alfredo Alcala, Jr., for permission to use the caricature—to Owen O’Leary for copies of John’s re-creations (sent at the time of our tribute to John in A/E #15-16)—and to the Jack Kirby Estate (and JGB) for their blessings re bashful Ben Grimm. [Art ©2005 Estates of Alfredo Alcala, John Buscema, & Jack Kirby, respectively; Sub-Mariner, Thor, Vision, & Thing TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; Conan TM & ©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.; Red Sonja TM & ©2005 Red Sonja Properties, Inc.] Above: The indefatigable and talented Shane Foley decided—“on a whim,” he says—to draw, “maybe for a border or something,” these horizontal and vertical groupings of a few of the many heroes Roy has handled over the past four decades… and Ye Ed liked the concept so much that it became our contents page art. Most of these guys Roy merely scripted a fair number of stories about—others he co-created, whether for Marvel, DC, or (in one case) Dennis Mallonee’s Heroic Publishing. Shane even worked in Superman fighting H.G. Wells’ Martians, as delineated on p. 19 on our flip side. Thanks, mate! You did yourself proud yet again! [Art ©2005 Shane Foley; characters TM & ©2005 their respective trademark & copyright holders.]

Alter EgoTM is published monthly by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344.

Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Single issues: $8 ($10 Canada, $11.00 elsewhere). Twelve-issue subscriptions: $60 US, $120 Canada, $132 elsewhere. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in Canada.

FIRST PRINTING.

#

51 LEW SAYER SCHWARTZ & THE MARK OF (BOB) KANE

COMING IN AUGUST

Plus: THE GOLDEN & SILVER AGES OF AUSTRALIA! • Full-color Batman vintage-1950s cover by LEW SAYRE SCHWARTZ! • LEW SAYRE SCHWARTZ—BOB KANE’s “ghost” from 1946-1953—interviewed by JON B. COOKE about his life and work! Plus Batman art by JERRY ROBINSON, DICK SPRANG, SHELDON MOLDOFF, WIN MORTIMER, JIM MOONEY, & others!

• “The Life and Death of the Australian Comics Industry – 1940-1962!” Dr. Mensana —Captain Atom (no lie!)—Molo the Mighty—Sir Falcon—The Panther—The Shadow (no, not that one—or that one, either!)—Air Hawk—plus the astonishing “Down Under” career of The Phantom—examined by MICHAEL BAULDERSTONE! With a giant kangaroo’s pouch full of super-hero art rarely seen in the Northern Hemisphere!

• DAVE BERG talks to JIM AMASH about Timely/Marvel, Fawcett, & Quality— with art from Uncle Sam, Combat Kelly, etc.—ALEX TOTH on comic art— MICHAEL T. GILBERT on the legacy of WILL EISNER—BILL SCHELLY interviews 1960s fan GLEN JOHNSON—FCA with MARC SWAYZE, OTTO BINDER, & C.C. BECK—& MORE!!

Edited by ROY THOMAS

[Art ©2005 DC Comics]

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Submit Something To Alter Ego! Alter Ego is on the lookout for items that can be utilized in upcoming issues: • Convention Sketches and Program Books • Unpublished Artwork • Original Scripts (the older the better!)

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Article Title Topline writer/editorial

3

Make Mine Marvel!

Roy Celebrates 40 Years Since Modeling With Mille # 44–––And 50 Issues of A/E, Vol. 3!

L

ike I was saying in my editorial on the flip side—you may find it a wee bit tricky to decide which side of this issue you read first!

That’s partly because my first staff job in New York in late June of 1965, almost exactly forty years ago, was for “Superman” line editor Mort Weisinger at National/DC, which might seem to make that point (plus my two Charlton stories written that spring) the logical place to start. But the Weisinger stint lasted only two truncated weeks—one, if you’re the type of person who counts something as a job only if you actually get paid for it—and by Friday afternoon of Week Two, I was on staff at Marvel Comics, working for Stan Lee, as detailed on the flip side.

That gig lasted just over fifteen years before I returned to DC—maybe just to prove I’m not in the habit of changing jobs every fortnight.

As per usual, I had far more ambitious aims for this 50th issue than I was fated to realize. You can blame Jim Amash for that (I certainly do): even though we’d decided he’d interview me only about my late-1960s work at Marvel, Jim had so many good questions about that period (admittedly spilling over into the early ’70s now and then) that our talk takes up this entire half of the mag, and even squeezed nearly all our ads onto the other side. Well, since this celebration of my 40th year as a comics writer is a “1965-2005” kind of thing, it seems fitting that, if

something had to get short shrift this ish, it would be the middle and later years—and even they are covered, at least in passing, in the Checklist on the other side.

Even though, in the 11th hour, publisher John Morrow and I agreed to bite the bullet and add eight more pages this month (bringing the count to 108 for this doubly special issue), several things had to be jettisoned: the “re:” section (sigh)—my long-delayed final article on All-Star Squadron #1 (as a lead-in to the upcoming All-Star Companion, Vol. 2)—a piece written with Jean-Marc Lofficier on our work together in the late 1980s on several issues of The Young All-Stars—as well as coverage of my 1972-74 stint as Marvel’s editor-in-chief, and my work with Conan and other heroes created by pulp fictioneer Robert E. Howard, with which I’ve become not unhappily identified.

Oh, well—gives us something to shoot for in future issues—including A/E #100, right?

And now, with no further ado—except for the art and caption below—we’ll let Jim Amash march us through the merry mine-fields of Marvel….

ALTER EGO

CELEBRATES

50

FABULOUS ISSUES!

Since A/E has two pairs of “maskots,” who generally appear in alternate issues, our agile Australian artistic adaptoid Shane Foley volunteered to assemble this striking collage of all four guys for #50’s “re:” section—but since there isn’t one this month, we’ve printed it here! As Shane informs us, Alter & Captain Ego (at left) were derived from figures of Rick Jones and Adam Warlock drawn by Gil Kane in Captain Marvel #21 (Aug. 1970) and Marvel Premiere #2 (May ’72), respectively—while Alter Ego and Rob Lindsay come from John Buscema-penciled figures for Sub-Mariner #1 (the 1968 one!) and Avengers #97 (March ’72)—with multi-hero sidekick Rick Jones doing double duty as both teenagers. Nice work, Shane! Roy loved seeing what these creations might’ve looked like if drawn by two of his favorite artistic collaborators! [Art ©2005 Shane Foley; Alter & Capt. Ego TM & ©2005 Roy Thomas & Bill Schelly (created by Biljo White); Alter Ego & Rob Lindsay TM & ©2005 Roy & Dann Thomas.]

Bestest,

4

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About Being Stan Lee’s “Left-Hand Man” In The 1960s & Early ’70s Interview Conducted by Jim Amash

I

Transcribed by Tom Wimbish

NTERVIEWER’S INTRO: Roy WHO?? —Jim.

“My First Official Job Title At Marvel Was ‘Staff Writer’” JIM AMASH: You worked at DC for a week or so before you went to Marvel. Did DC hire you as an assistant editor?

ROY THOMAS: I don’t know if that term was ever used, but that’s what it amounted to. I was the assistant to Mort Weisinger, who was the editor of the “Superman” line of comics.

JA: Was there an expectation—from you or them—that you would write as well as edit?

THOMAS: Well, I’d already written a “Jimmy Olsen” script a few months before, while still living and teaching in the St. Louis area. Mort

“They Call ’Em ‘Associate Editors’ Because They’re The Only Ones Who’ll Associate With The Editor!”

Roy Thomas (left) and A/E associate editor/ace interviewer Jim Amash, conspiring about the mag at the 2004 Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC. Seen in front of Jim is a Spider-Man Sunday newspaper strip on which he was then assisting regular inker Joe Sinnott. [Photo ©2005 Sam Maronie.]

had me advanced fifty bucks when I sent it in—which helped with my one-way plane fare to New York—and I was to rewrite the story later. I worked at DC for eight days in late June and very early July of 1965.

During that time, Mort mentioned that [DC Flash-JLA editor] Julie Schwartz had expressed an interest in me doing some writing for him.

He didn’t say if I’d be writing more “Superman,” but I was never told there was a policy against it. [NOTE: See “Two Weeks with Mort Weisinger” on our flip side.]

JA: Then you were hired by Marvel. Were you hired as editorial staff, or was there a discussion about writing?

THOMAS: I was hired after taking Stan’s “writer’s test,” and my first official job title at Marvel was “staff writer.” I wasn’t hired as an editor or assistant editor. I was supposed to come in 40 hours a week and write scripts on staff. Not exactly the easiest thing in the world. I sat at this corrugated metal desk with a typewriter in a small office with production manager Sol Brodsky and corresponding secretary Flo

The Page That Launched A Thousand Scripts The one page Roy still has of the “writer’s test” Stan gave out to would-be scripters in the mid-’60s. The test consisted of story pages 19-22 of Kirby/Stone art from Fantastic Four Annual #2, with all balloons and captions removed, which the testee was to dialogue “Marvel style.” In July 1965, Roy apparently passed the test and got the job. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

“Millie” titles could be done freelance, but other writing was to be counted as staff. I said I couldn’t write in the office during the day. I’ve never been great at shutting out noise—and besides, they kept asking me to do this or that, or questions like in which issue something happened, or Stan would come in to check something, because I knew a lot about Marvel continuity up to that time. (Of course, there wasn’t nearly as much of it then as there is now, so it wasn’t that hard.)

Steinberg. Everybody who came up to Marvel wound up there, and the phone was constantly ringing, with conversations going on all around me. Stan was in and out, too.

Almost at once, even though Stan proofed all the finished stories, he and Sol started having me check the corrections before they went out, and that would break up my concentration still further.

I loved the job in general, but I couldn’t get much writing done from 9 to 5, so I started staying late.

I sometimes worked alone in the office in the darkened building until 8 or 9, as well as at Dave Kaler’s Lower East Side apartment where I lived for several months. I’d put transparent tracing paper over the original artwork, lay out the balloons, then rough in the dialogue in longhand, all capital letters.

Gene Colan’s first “Iron Man” story, in Tales of Suspense #73, was my first stab at writing a Marvel super-hero, after doing one or two “Millies.” When I turned in the “Iron Man,” I was told I wouldn’t get paid extra for writing it, even though I’d done it outside office hours. It was explained that the two

5

Giving Credits Where Credits Are Due Roy Thomas (left) and Gene Colan (right), as seen in a photographic “rogues’ gallery” in the 1969 Fantastic Four Annual—plus R.T.’s first-ever Marvel super-hero splash, from Tales of Suspense #73 (Jan. 1966), with pencils by Gene (as “Adam Austin”) and inks by Jack Abel (as “Gary Michaels”). Stan Lee, who’d plotted the tale with Gene, rewrote so much of Roy’s script on this, Gene’s first “Iron Man” story—roughly 50%, by Roy’s estimates—that he made it one of the very rare Marvel stories with no itemized credits. FYI: Sol Brodsky was production manager, Flo Steinberg corresponding secretary, and Marie Severin colored the story. To quote Stan: “Whew!” [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Three Offices, Five Characters – July 1965 (Left to right:) Stan Lee (the beard is post-’65)—Sol Brodsky—Marie Severin—Roy Thomas & Flo Steinberg at Flo’s desk circa ’65-’66. The photos of Stan, Sol, and Marie are from the 1969 F.F. Annual, while Flo’s personal photo of her and Roy is reproduced from Les Daniels’ 1991 book Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World’s Greatest Comics. [Photos ©2005 the respective copyright holders.]

It quickly became apparent to them, too, that the staff writer thing wasn’t working, and Stan segued me over to being being an editorial assistant, which immediately worked out better for all concerned. I don’t know if I was ever given that official title; they just stopped thinking of me as a staff writer. I don’t recall if I got paid extra for the next super-hero scripting I did—two Ditko “Dr. Strange” stories I dialogued [in Strange Tales #143-144]—but I got paid as freelance for everything I wrote after that. And I never did any of it in the office, not even on my lunch hour.

6

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

“Ditko And [Stan Lee] Were Not On The Same Wavelength” JA: When you did those “Dr. Strange” stories, were you aware Ditko was about to quit?

THOMAS: No. I’d met him, and one of the first things I learned at Marvel was that Stan and Steve weren’t speaking to each other. Steve just came in and dropped his stuff off with Sol, and then Stan dialogued it. By then, Steve was plotting both “Dr. Strange” and SpiderMan and getting credit for it. Outside the field, I doubt anybody knew there was friction between them, because neither he nor Stan would’ve leaked that to the fan press—and who else would’ve been interested? Somehow, by some sort of Daredevil radar sense, Stan never walked into Sol’s office while Ditko was there.

You’d think it might’ve happened just once by accident, but it never did

Strange But True…

Steve Ditko—and the splashes of the two Ditko-drawn “Dr. Strange” stories dialogued by Roy for Strange Tales #143-144 (April-May 1966). That “written and rewritten” credit on #143, added

by Stan, is mind-numbingly accurate: The Boy had to do a lot of rewriting before The Man put his imprimature on the story—but he learned a lot in the process! Photo of Ditko courtesy of Britt Stanton. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Legends At Loggerheads!

(Above:) Steve Ditko’s layouts for p. 7, panel 5, of “Just a Guy Named Joe!” in Amazing Spider-Man #38 (July 1966)—his final issue—as scripted and lettered before it was sent back to the artist for inking. A few lines have dropped out on our photocopy (supplied

by David G. Hamilton), but this gives you a pretty fair idea of the art Stan dialogued from when Spidey battled a super-villain in a nearly skin-tight costume. And thereby hangs a tale of two issues earlier….

(Right:) In “When Falls the Meteor!” in ASM #36 (May ’66), the silhouette (in layouts) of the villainous Looter looked virtually identical to Spidey’s, since both wore form-fitting costumes. Accordingly, when Stan scripted the final panel on p. 13, he had to decide: did Steve mean that to be Spidey on that ledge, hunting for the fled Looter—or was it The Looter himself, hiding thereon? With no clarifying note from Steve, Stan wrote the figure as Spider-Man, and Artie Simek lettered it. When the story came back, however, Steve had inked the figure as The Looter—apparently the character he’d intended it to be.

At this point, of course, either the balloons or the figure had to be totally changed. Thus, Roy recalls lingering at the Marvel offices well after 5:00 p.m. one nigh-Christmas day in 1965 and chatting about Charlie Biro with veteran artist Carl Hubbell (then inking Rawhide Kid) while the latter painstakingly transformed Looter into Wall-Crawler in that panel. It wasn’t a case of Stan being right and Steve wrong, or vice versa—but if there’s a better illustration of the fact that Stan Lee and Steve Ditko weren’t playing in the same ballpark by the mid-1960s, Roy hopes someone will point it out to him. But it was a great team while it lasted! [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

7

during those several months I was around.

In November or December, Ditko brought in pencils for one of his two series, and told Sol that he’d finish the episode of each hero that he was working on, and that would be it. Sol naturally went in and told Stan first, before he told me. I was sitting nearby, but hadn’t eavesdropped on Steve’s conversation with Sol. JA: Did Stan have you and Denny O’Neil writing dialogue for “Dr. Strange” because he was trying to scale back, or because of the friction with Ditko?

THOMAS: Mostly because he wanted to scale back, because Stan never stopped loving Ditko’s work. He just had to give something up, and Strange Tales was the book that sold the least well of any of the monthlies, no matter who drew “S.H.I.E.L.D.”—Kirby or Steranko or whoever—and no matter who did “Dr. Strange.” “Dr. Strange,” beautiful as it was, was a less important feature than “Human Torch” or even “S.H.I.E.L.D.” It was the only Marvel costumed-hero strip I hadn’t always read as a fan. I’d always liked Ditko’s artwork, starting with “Captain Atom” at Charlton, but I just wasn’t into magicians. Now, of course, I realize I was nuts to read “Human Torch” and “Giant-Man,” and not “Dr. Strange.” But that’s the way I was at the time, and I don’t think I was alone in doing that.

JA: What was your understanding of the problem between Ditko and Stan?

THOMAS: Sol told me they’d argue about plotlines. I heard from either Sol or Stan, for instance, that Steve had wanted a major character to be crossing the street and get killed by a car. Stan nixed that idea because it didn’t seem like drama to him, even though it was realistic. Steve might not remember that incident, or he might remember it differently. I’ve never talked to him about it.

I know Stan felt The Green Goblin should turn out to be somebody important to Spider-Man. He didn’t want to repeat that bit with the man in the Crime Master’s mask [Amazing Spider-Man #27], who turned out to be some nobody. I don’t know if that had been Stan’s idea or Steve’s, but I know that as a reader I’d found it dramatically unfulfilling.

Still, I appreciated the realism: just because you take off a guy’s mask doesn’t mean you’re going to recognize him. This shows that Stan and Steve were thinking increasingly differently. Stan was doing quite well editing and writing a whole line of comics, and Ditko was feeling his oats, too, because he knew he was doing good work, and people were responding to it. Certainly Stan liked it; everybody liked it. Yet, Ditko felt he and Stan weren’t on the same wavelength. He was probably right.

I saw Steve only a few weeks after he quit, at a party at Dave Kaler’s new place on the Upper West Side. I said to him, “I’m not spying for Stan, and I won’t tell him what you say, but why did you quit?” All I remember from Steve’s vague response is a sentence fragment: “Well, you know, when a guy’s working against you...” I doubt if he meant Stan was consciously working against him, just that he felt Stan should leave things to him since he was plotting the book. At least that’s how I interpreted it. Steve may not remember ever saying that, but I’ll swear to my dying day that he did—those exact words. There wasn’t anything I could say, so I didn’t pursue the matter further. I had too much respect for Steve to press him.

At that stage, Stan felt he knew what was selling the Marvel comics, and I think he was right. He was willing to go along with a lot of what Steve wanted to do; otherwise, he wouldn’t have let him plot the stories.

He probably went along with a few things that were against his own instincts. But in other areas, he felt he had to dig in his heels and say no, because he was the editor. And “with great power, there must also come great responsibility.” If Martin Goodman had suddenly noticed a title wasn’t selling and asked Stan why he had done this or that, Stan couldn’t reply that it was because the artist wanted to do it that way. Let me tell

Green Grows The Goblin “Stan felt The Green Goblin should turn out to be somebody important to Spider-Man.” And, of course, he did—Norman Osborne, to be precise—but by then, Sturdy Steve Ditko had walked and Jazzy Johnny Romita was drawing The Amazing Spider-Man. This sketch of the Goblin by J.R. is courtesy of the #1 Romita collector in the universe, Mike Burkey; see his buying-and-selling ads elsewhere in this very issue. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

you, that would not have been sufficient excuse for Martin Goodman! It was just a case where two people couldn’t compromise, and of course Stan had the authority. He used it with a light rein, but when he felt he had to use it, he did, just as anybody would. If you don’t, why be an editor at all? “With great responsibility, there should also come great power.” I made that up.

JA: In articles he wrote recently for Robin Snyder’s newsletter The Comics!, Ditko says Stan is the one who stopped speaking to him, not the reverse.

THOMAS: It probably was Stan, because Ditko didn’t have the authority to do that: he was an artist bringing work in to an editor who’s his superior in the company. If it was Stan’s decision, he probably felt that was the only way the two of them could go on working together.

Maybe it would’ve worked better if Stan had gone on trying to talk to Steve, but it’s hard to say in retrospect, because nothing had ever existed quite like the working relationships between Stan and Steve and Jack. It was a somewhat different arrangement than comics was used to. I won’t say it had never existed before, but it was relatively rare.

JA: When you dialogued those “Dr. Strange” episodes, did Ditko provide any marginal notes or writing of any kind?

THOMAS: I’m sure he did, but I believe they were sketchy. His pencils were very loose, too—not much more than stick figures—because he

8

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics The Man Without Peer

was going to finish them in the inking. I’m sure there were notes, not just the art, because Stan wanted the artists to tell what was going on, to avoid misinterpretation. Jack, of course, got in the habit of writing more and more in the margins. Stan would take what he wanted from that, and felt no obligation to take any more. I think the same was true with Steve.

When Wally Wood (left) became the artist on Daredevil with #5 (Dec. 1964), a thrilled Stan trumpeted his arrival on the splash with unabashed pride. Their short-lived collaboration produced seven issues of as breathtakingly beautiful comic art as ever blessed the Man without Fear— and, considering other early DD artists included Bill Everett, Joe Orlando, John Romita, Jack Kirby, and Gene Colan, that’s saying something!

Photo courtesy of Richard Pryor. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters.]

JA: I had wondered about that, because I don’t recall ever seeing Ditko’s notes on the originals. I think that Ditko has at some point said that he wrote his notes on separate pieces of paper.

THOMAS: I don’t recall getting separate pieces of paper, but I only worked with him twice at that stage, so I don’t recall.

“Just Show Me The First And Last Page Of Any Story You Write” JA: What were your early impressions of Stan? How much of the personality that he put into the comics did you see when you started working for him?

THOMAS: Well, in private he didn’t talk like a “Bullpen Bulletin.” He was very aware of having a public persona, the same way a performer would. You wouldn’t expect a comedian to be cracking jokes every second in private conversation. Whatever sort of public face he put on things—about this being fun, or that being great—he also had to be taken seriously as an editor, and you can’t joke your way through that.

JA: We’ve heard stories about Stan sitting in his office in the ’40s and playing some kind of flute while he was editing the line. I’ve gotten the impression that, by the ’60s, he was more serious in the office.

THOMAS: I never saw him play any musical instrument, not even a kazoo. [Jim laughs] Right after I started working for him, I was walking around

Millie And Me (Above & left:) Stan Goldberg, a.k.a.

“Stan G.,” from that oh-so-handy 1969 F.F. Annual—and his splash for Modeling with Millie #44 (Dec. 1965), the first issue scripted

by Roy T. Unfortunately, neophyte Roy failed to indicate credits on the story—and Stan forgot to add any, as well, while rewriting Roy’s dialogue. They forgot the logo, too!

But hey—at least R.T. corrected the grammar of the Anthony Newley song “Who Can I Turn to?” from which he took the title! Inker uncertain. Photo courtesy of Stan G. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Manhattan one night with my new friend Len Brown, who worked for Topps Bubble Gum. He and Wally Wood had worked together on the famous Mars Attacks! card series, and Len had just written the first couple of “Dynamo” stories for Wally at Tower. Wally had quit drawing Daredevil a few weeks before, and Len told me how horrible Wally claimed Stan was… including that old story about him standing on top of a file cabinet years ago and throwing all the staffers’ checks up in the air so they’d have to scramble for them. I said, “Y’know, I haven’t seen any of that. Maybe he and Wally just didn’t get along.”

Naturally, it’s too bad that Stan and some of the best artists in the business—Wood, Kirby, Ditko—came to eventual partings of the ways, but that doesn’t pin down whose “fault” it is. They also produced a lot of good work together before parting. Partnership is a hard thing, as I always say.

JA: Yeah, and when your partner is also your boss, I guess that can cause friction.

THOMAS: Yeah, that was part of the problem between Barry Smith and me later. I thought of us as friends, and I’d gone out of my way to get Barry work. Later on, from

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s things he wrote and said, it appears to me that, in spite of our hanging around together, including for a week in London in 1970, he seems to have compartmentalized things so that I was just his boss. I’ve always been sad about that, because I didn’t feel that way. But it’s true that, at that time, if Barry—or some other artist—and I had a disagreement over a story, I was probably going to win it. I’ll admit I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way, and they’d have done the same thing in my situation.

JA: Did Stan give you many suggestions or ideas? Did he tell you to think or write in particular ways?

THOMAS: He was very much a teacher, at least in the early days. Later on, he’d talk to me when something I’d written came in for proofreading all lettered and inked, which was usually the first time he’d see it. On that first “Iron Man” story and those two “Dr. Stranges,” and at least one or two “Millies,” he did go over my handwritten overlays before I typed up the scripts. He’d say what amounted to: “Don’t think like this,” or, “Think about what this guy would be thinking now.” That “Iron Man” story wound up about 50-50 between his dialogue and mine. He had liked my writing enough to hire me, and he wanted to see what I would do with a real story. Then he edited the heck out of me, which was only to be expected, I guess.

This became a problem over the next few months—also with Denny O’Neil, Steve Skeates, maybe one or two other new writers—because waiting till a story was lettered and inked before changing maybe a hundred words or more drove production manager Sol Brodsky absolutely bonkers. Suddenly, even though a book needed to go out to the printers, he had to do all these corrections on pages already lettered in ink. But that’s the way Stan felt he had to work at that time, because he was so busy.

except his brother Larry Lieber, but by the time I came along, Larry was mainly doing Rawhide Kid. He didn’t really want to do super-heroes, even though he had written the early “Thors” and “Iron Mans”—apparently in full script. Larry says he never dialogued what came to be called “Marvel style”—i.e., after the art was done—on any super-hero work.

Stan would give him the general storyline, and he’d write a full script.

JA: It seems to me that you were the first guy after Larry that Stan had confidence in. Why do you think that was?

THOMAS: He was probably just getting tired. [laughter] You have to remember that all these other people, except maybe Larry, were experienced comic book artists and/or writers who’d been writing comics long before Stan started developing a relatively new approach to super-hero writing in the early 1960s. They were naturally still writing the way they’d written previously, just trying to make a few adjustments.

For my part, I was of course influenced by the comics of the ’40s and ’50s, and by the 1960s DC comics written by Gardner Fox and John Broome, and I admired Arnold Drake’s Doom Patrol, but I was more open to being powerfully influenced by Stan than older writers. Besides knowing that I was supposed to write like him, I also felt that the Marvel books should be written like that. That was what was working for Stan, and even before I came to Marvel I felt he was writing the best comics on the stands.

I saw myself as a continuer, somebody who should just keep the books going with the same feel. Since I was a relatively blank slate, I was able to do it. When Stan saw the couple of Charlton stories I’d written earlier in more of a Gardner Fox style, he wasn’t too impressed. It’s probably a good thing I already had my job at Marvel at that point! I

Sometime around the turn of 1966, when I’d been there for several months, Stan told me he’d decided that he’d been changing some dialogue because it needed changing, but he went on, “Sometimes, I think I’ve just been trying to make it read like I wrote it instead of you, which doesn’t make any sense, because I’m not writing it.” I know Sol had been pleading with him to ease up on the corrections. Stan said, “From now on, just show me the first and last page of any story you write, and if they’re okay, I’ll assume that the rest is okay, too.” [mutual laughter] After that, things went pretty smoothly. He rewrote a bit more later on my first X-Men and maybe even Avengers, both of which were also handwritten first on overlays, but he Larry Lieber & Friend stopped changing as much dialogue around the start Larry Lieber, from the 1969 of 1966.

JA: Before you came to Marvel, Stan tried out Ernie Hart, Don Rico, Jerry Siegel, Leon Lazarus, and Robert Bernstein as writers. A lot of experienced people were taking the writing test...

THOMAS: Not to mention the hundred or so who’d answered an ad for writers in The New York Times and taken the writing test before me. Steve Skeates was there a few weeks before I was, but he came to Stan’s attention through an article he wrote while in college, and I have no idea if he took the test or not.

F.F. Annual—and a page he penciled for The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #5 (1968), inked by Mike Esposito—repro’d from a photocopy sent by Glen David Gold. For the past couple of decades, Larry has penciled the daily Spider-Man newspaper strip written by brother Stan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: Speaking as a fan, I’d have to say that those other guys didn’t really work out.

THOMAS: Well, Stan didn’t think they did, and that was what counted.

Nobody you mentioned wrote more than a handful of stories; I guess Bernstein wrote the most. Nobody had worked out to his satisfaction

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics Goodman felt covers needed to be.

Goodman liked covers by certain people and disliked covers by others, and that’s why Kirby and certain other guys ended up doing a lot of covers. I used the same system later with John Romita, Gil Kane, and people like that.

think I was the right person in the right place at the right time, but there are other people who, had they been there, might have been just as right.

Steve Skeates was hired a couple of weeks before me, and I helped bring Denny O’Neil to Marvel only 3-4 months later, but somehow neither of them worked out as well from Stan’s point of view. They ended up with their own destinies and their own styles, and did very well eventually at DC. Somehow, I fit more naturally into what Stan felt he needed. I’m glad I did.

JA: God knows what would have happened to you career-wise if that hadn’t worked out.

THOMAS: I’d still be working for Mort Weisinger. He’d have stuck around just to torture me! [Jim laughs]

“I Can’t Tell What The Hell’s Going On Here!”

JA: How much involvement did Martin Goodman have in the Marvel books?

Before & After Two other Marvel writers who were piped aboard in 1965—a few weeks before and 3 to 4 months after Roy, respectively: Steve Skeates (left) and Dennis O’Neil. Steve’s coming to Marvel is related in the interview.

In early ’65, Denny, a St. Louis U. graduate, was a reporter for The Southeast Missourian, the daily newspaper of Cape Girardeau County, where Roy had been raised. Denny wrote a pair of articles for it about comics—Roy’s mother mailed copies to him in the St. Louis area, where he was teaching— the two 20-somethings got together—and Denny wrote a third comics article for the paper, about Roy and comics fandom.

Come fall, Roy sent Denny the same writer’s test he’d taken to get his job at Marvel—and the rest is history of a sort.

Thanks to Bob Brodsky and Steve for the Skeates photo, and to the Denster himself for his own. Bob is editor/publisher of The O’Neil Observer, a fanzine dedicated to Denny’s work and related matters (esp. re comic book writing). This summer, Bob’s Childhood Summer Publications is also launching The Yancy Street Gazette, dedicated to the Marvel Age of Comics, 1961-1975, whose first issue will feature material on Gerry Conway, Steve Gerber, Roy Thomas, and much more.

To learn more about both publications, e-mail brodskybob@comcast.net.

THOMAS: Mostly the covers, at that stage. In 1961, of course, he’d told Stan to start a super-hero group book, but once things got moving, I think he left most of it to Stan. He’d just say yes or no when Stan had a new idea. He wouldn’t have said, “Do a spider man,” because Stan says he hated the idea of a character named “Spider-Man” and thought it wouldn’t sell.

And, however Sgt. Fury evolved—whether Kirby had developed the concept earlier or whatever—Stan probably remembers correctly when he says he wanted to do a war book, just to prove he could sell one.

Maybe the precise team was already on Jack’s shelf, since John Severin has said Jack showed it to him earlier, but I doubt if Jack influenced Stan to do a war comic.

Publish Or Perish!

This is one of several caricatures of Timely/Marvel publisher Martin Goodman that appeared in Krazy Komics #12 (Nov. 1943). Art by Ed Winarski? Thanks to Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: When Kirby was doing covers, did he and Stan talk about them before he drew them?

THOMAS: Probably, mostly over the phone. Still, maybe Stan would sometimes just say, “Do up a cover.” I wasn’t involved in that process, so I don’t really know. Marvel’s covers weren’t subtle, and weren’t intended to be cute and ironic like a lot of covers nowadays. The cover was usually pretty close to a scene from the book, or something that symbolized the story.

“The People In The Other Departments Looked Down On The Comics” JA: Who else was working there when you started?

THOMAS: Not many people. Stan had a nice big office in the corner, which was bigger than the other two offices put together. Next to him was a little office with room for 3-4 people, if you had a shoehorn. Sol and Flo had their own desks in there, and when I came I sat at this corrugated desk that was already there. Soon after, they brought in Morrie Kuramoto as a staff letterer, and I think he worked in there for a while, but it was crowded.

There was another, smaller office across the hall from ours—Denny

JA: Maybe Stan mentioned the possibility of a war book to Kirby, and Kirby—who already had Sgt. Fury at home—said, “Hey, I’ve got this idea!” Who knows how much of what Kirby originally had might have been tinkered with?

THOMAS: Nobody really knows. I wasn’t there when it was started. To answer your original question, Goodman had little to do with the interiors, but Stans always says Goodman had a good eye for covers, for what might or might not sell.

Once around 1968-69 a Gene Colan Dr. Strange cover drawing was submitted to Goodman, and he fired it back with a note saying, “I can’t tell what the hell’s going on here!” Beautiful as they were in their way, Gene’s covers weren’t always as clear as

“I’d Like To Propose A Roast!”

Though Rascally Roy worked with/for Smilin’ Stan from 1965-80 and since then on TV cartoons and other projects, this photo—taken at the Stan Lee Roast at the 1995 Chicago Comic-Con—is one of the relatively few showing them together, in this case with the other roasters. (Left to right:) Peter David, Chris Claremont, Jim Shooter, Roy, Stan, Sal Buscema, John Romita, Julie Schwartz. A transcription of the Roast appeared in A/E V3#1, which is currently out of print; but one of these days…! Thanks to William Cain for the photo— and Godspeed home from the Middle East, Bill!

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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O’Neil worked in there when he started in the fall—but when I arrived in mid-1965, it contained just Marie Severin, doing production—and Steve Skeates, I guess—and another woman, who was packaging commercial comics, an area Marvel was trying to get into. I remember writing a Ho-Jo Cola comic during that first month or so, but she was gone before long.

There was also another office where freelance artists could draw; I don’t recall if it was empty when I came to work there, though. It was next to the one Flo, Sol, and I shared. Once, not long after Ditko quit, I walked in there and found Larry Lieber drawing a Spider-Man Annual, John Romita drawing an issue of Spider-Man, and either Bill Everett or Marie drawing “Dr. Strange.” I joked, “This is the Steve Ditko Room! It takes three of you guys to do what Steve used to do every month!” [laughter] I’m lucky they didn’t string me up!

Our offices flanked the reception area. Anybody going to the men’smagazines area of Magazine Management [the official name of Goodman’s entire company, including Marvel Comics] entered through there, and walked down the hall about 50 feet. Goodman’s office was opposite the men’s magazines. Then the hall made an L-turn and went past the crossword magazines and all that junk.

JA: Was Al Sulman working in the men’s magazine department at that time?

THOMAS: I don’t know. I met him a few years later, when I started playing cards with people from the office. I know David George and Bruce Jay Friedman [author of Steambath, Stern, A Mother’s Kisses, et al.] were editing for the men’s magazines, and Mario Puzo [soon to become world-famous as the author of The Godfather] was writing for them. I met only one or two of them at that time, like Puzo when he came up to see Stan about writing for Marvel. I think I met Friedman in passing; he was already known as a “black humorist”—in the sense of Joseph Heller, not Flip Wilson. He gave me his invitation to a party he couldn’t attend. Coincidentally, it was held in the very building on E. 86th Street that I moved into three years later. Allen Ginsberg was at that party, and I learned later that Dr. Joyce Brothers and [the late TV/radio announcer] Jackson Beck lived in that same building. So did singer B.J. Thomas, in the early ’70s. I accidentally got one of his contracts once in the mail and had to schlep it down to him.

I didn’t meet many people from Magazine Management. A couple of editors asked us to pose free for the magazines, and they’d use our photos for arch-criminals, abortionists, or some such. We always had the feeling the people in the other departments looked down on the comics, because they were putting out “real magazines” with Nazis and seminaked women on the covers. Obviously, theirs was superior stuff. Why have a utility belt when you can have a garter belt? [mutual laughter] JA: The bullpen remained relatively small until they expanded the number of books being produced, right?

THOMAS: Yeah, it just gradually grew. We moved offices two or three times in those first few years, and each time we probably added another room or two. By the turn of 1970, we had two or three times the space we’d originally had. Herb Trimpe was on staff, Romita’d been on staff since a couple of weeks after I came there, Marie and Morrie Kuramoto were still there, and there was a spare desk or two. Soon after I came, Stan hired another assistant or two: first Denny, then Gary Friedrich, Jerry Siegel, and one or two others in between.

Kirby Kapers (Top left:) Jack Kirby at the 1974 San Diego Comic-Don, held at the funky El Cortez Hotel—seated next to con staffer Barry Alfonso, whom Jack used as the model for Witch Boy in The Demon. In the Kirby-penciled page above from What If #11 (Oct. 1978), Jack, Stan, Flo Steinberg, and Sol Brodsky become the Fantastic Four—while Stan and Jack are still civilians in panels 5-7’s flashback.

Roy conceived the notion of the Marvel Bullpen becoming the F.F., but let Jack write as well as pencil it—only Jack turned Sol, instead of Roy, into The Human Torch. Oh, well, Sol deserved his featured role … and at least Ye Editor will always have “Houseroy” to remember Jack by, right? Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Mike Burkey. Inks by Mike Royer & Bill Wray. Photo courtesy of Shel Dorf. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

“Jack [Kirby] Probably Looked On Me As… ‘Houseroy’” JA: Since you grew up reading his stuff, what was it like to deal with Jack Kirby?

THOMAS: I don’t remember much in the way of conversations with him. Jack probably just looked on me as what became the basis for “Houseroy”: Stan’s flunky. Remember, before I was Houseroy in Jack’s DC comics, he caricatured me as “Rascally Roy Thomas, Muscle of the Midwest” in a parody-bullpen story he wrote and drew for a Marvel annual. But he was always friendly to me, and I told him how much I’d enjoyed his work over the years. At that time I hadn’t seen a lot of his early Captain America work, but I’d read Fighting American, Stuntman, Bullseye, and all that. Simon & Kirby as a team had been my second-favorite artist after Joe Kubert, so I was really in awe of Kirby.

I never in my life had a lunch with him where it was just the two of

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics interview, and Stan was very animated, walking around, while Jack just sat there and made an occasional comment. But that’s the way Jack was: he didn’t stride around thinking about stories, he sat at a board and drew them. All the movement was inside his head. The reporter was not too perceptive about that.

JA: Was the change in the relationship between Stan and Jack very obvious to you?

THOMAS: Not really. I was told Jack objected to the article, but he and Stan continued to have a seemingly good relationship. I can understand why Stan didn’t see it as changed: he probably thought things had been smoothed over, and that Jack realized Stan hadn’t been responsible for the article.

Of course, Jack was also resentful about not getting credit for cowriting the stories. Stan agreed to let the credits say “A Stan Lee - Jack Kirby Co-Production,” and that seemed to mollify Jack. He probably wasn’t paid any more, but I doubt if he asked to be. It’s misleading to go only by statements Jack made later, because I think that, without consciously trying to, he sometimes tended to rewrite history. His memory was as unreliable as Stan’s. Maybe it could be argued that Stan should’ve been more aware of the problem, but on the other hand, I don’t think Jack made him very aware of it. When Stan did something that upset Jack—like rewriting characters’ motivations—I suspect Jack didn’t object, or at most mentioned it in a very diffident way.

The First Hundred Issues Are The Hardest In his last year or two on Fantastic Four, Jack Kirby, whenever possible, recycled old heroes and foes—as in the landmark #100 (July 1970), which, as per Stan Lee’s cover copy, featured “Villains! Villains! Villains!” But hey, it was a major anniversary issue—and who would deny the power of Jack’s art on this page spotlighting The Sub-Mariner, especially as inked by Joltin’ Joe Sinnott? Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, with thanks to Glen David Gold. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

us. Even when I was editor-in-chief and he was feeling me out about coming back to Marvel, his wife and son came to our meeting in San Diego in 1974. When he’d come into the office in the late ’60s, he’d usually go out with Romita, Sol, maybe Stan Goldberg, and a couple of other people; sometimes with Stan Lee, sometimes not. I was in some of those groups… usually at least 3-4 people.

I guess Kirby’s relationship with Marvel was already in a state of flux, but the New York Herald Tribune article of January 9, 1966, was a turning point. Jack seemed to hold Stan responsible for the unflattering way he was portrayed in it. I know Stan was horrified by what the reporter wrote. [NOTE: See The Collected Jack Kirby Collector, Vol. 4.]

JA: If Stan had had any input at all, he wouldn’t have allowed them to say that about Jack.

THOMAS: No. Maybe he thought Jack took it too seriously, but he was really appalled by what was written. I seem to recall he chewed the reporter out about it. It didn’t do Stan any good for the article to make Jack Kirby look like a clown. I’m not mentioned in it by name—only that Stan didn’t feel his “assistants” were ready for anything more than Millie the Model and Westerns, even though by then I was actually already writing Sgt. Fury—but I was in Stan’s office for part of that

As Gil Kane—who knew Kirby much better than I did—and I used to discuss, Jack would internalize all this stuff. It would come out as an explosion later on, but at the time I can understand why Stan didn’t realize Jack’s resentments were building. At least with Ditko, he knew they didn’t get along on a professional basis. But Stan and Jack always got along on the surface, right up to the end. After Jack moved out to California, though, that just hastened things, because then he and Stan couldn’t talk things over face to face. Jack would probably sit around and brood, and Stan talked to Jack less, which led to Jack being a bit more out of the picture, except on the particular books he was drawing.

Jack made himself less important to Marvel’s day-to-day operations by moving to California.

JA: Afterwards, Jack stopped introducing new characters in Fantastic Four and Thor. We’ve both read in The Jack Kirby Collector and elsewhere that Jack was holding back on new creations.

THOMAS: I don’t know to what extent Stan was aware of that. We had so many characters already. Actually, Jack did continue to create new characters, but he just didn’t go that extra mile and create great characters after The Silver Surfer or Black Panther.

JA: Had you noticed that Kirby wasn’t creating significant characters any more? I mean, Tomazuma isn’t exactly Galactus.…

THOMAS: No, but I never heard Stan express the feeling that Jack was slacking off. After all, they were still coming up with characters together, and the only one I ever heard them talk trash about was one they had come up with in a car earlier: Diablo, whom they both thought was awful. The company was getting bigger, adding books, so Jack couldn’t draw as large a percentage of them. He was also putting more into his pages—because he was being paid more for them—so he was slowing down to a mere 2 or 3 pages a day.

“Everybody Was Really Stunned When Jack Quit” JA: Also, by the late ’60s, John Buscema really starts to become a force at Marvel. I wonder if that was because his style was more naturalistic than Jack’s. I also wonder why Stan didn’t ask Kirby to do the Silver Surfer comic book.

THOMAS: I haven’t the foggiest notion. It’s the kind of thing that in

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s retrospect looks like a mistake, since Jack clearly resented it. Kirby’d done the Silver Surfer/Quasimodo story [in F.F. Annual #5], and that worked out well. Jack was doing F.F., Thor, and “Captain America” in Suspense, and Stan may not have wanted to push Jack to turn out still more pages a month. Then again, he may also have wanted to avoid what’d happened when Jack penciled the first few pages of the first “Spider-Man” story. Sol Brodsky told me he saw the pages Jack did, and he remembered Stan saying they just weren’t the approach he wanted.

Instead, Stan went to Ditko, despite what he may or may not have had on hand from Jack or Joe Simon or C.C. Beck at the time.

Of course, in the case of The Silver Surfer, if he wanted a different approach, Stan already knew what Jack could do, so he may have chosen Buscema because John was more likely to do what Stan told him, while Jack might go off in his own direction. Stan probably didn’t think Jack would care, which in retrospect turned out to be an error. People often make certain decisions because they’re expedient, with no malice at all, but the other person feels slighted. Kirby evidently wanted to be asked to do the Surfer book. From his point of view, why shouldn’t he have done it?

Stan has never denied that The Silver Surfer—except for the word “Silver” in the name—was Jack’s concept. Jack just called him “The Surfer”; I saw the margin notes on the art when it came into the office.

Of course, from the beginning, Stan may have modified his emotions and motivations to some extent, so it was a co-creation from the start, since Jack didn’t write the dialogue. Since Stan got so attached to the character, he may have forgotten that Jack might be, too. If he had it to do over again, I’m sure he’d have Jack do The Silver Surfer, because he wouldn’t have wanted to risk angering him over that.

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never got a rate cut, and I have trouble believing anybody did. There might’ve been some technical thing that made Jack feel like he’d gotten a rate cut, but I can’t imagine what it might have been.

In ’68 or early ’69, Martin Goodman was talking about cutting expenses. Stan had been through that before; Goodman’s idea of cutting expenses was to go to Florida and have Stan fire everybody. At the time, I recall Stan toying with the idea of asking some of Marvel’s best artists to find other work—people like John Severin and John Buscema, who Stan figured would have less trouble finding other companies to work for—in order to spare the artists who couldn’t switch over quite as easily. In the long run, though, you have to keep your most important people. Luckily, as it turned out, Stan didn’t have to do anything too drastic.

JA: Why did Stan let Jack write “The Inhumans” in Amazing Adventures?

THOMAS: It was probably just that Jack wanted to write “The Inhumans,” and Stan felt, why not? Stan didn’t need the work, and Jack didn’t want to work with anybody else. The only recent times he’d worked with somebody else was when Stan went off to Florida for a few days, and I wound up dialoguing a Sub-Mariner/Iron Man fight [in Tales to Astonish #82]. But Jack was just doing a fill-in on that story, so he had no proprietary feelings about it. Later, I also dialogued Jack’s last “Ka-Zar” story in Astonishing Tales, right after he quit.

I know Jack also wanted to write that one “S.H.I.E.L.D.” story he did [in Strange Tales #148] while Stan was away. Stan let him write it, but when he got back he changed a lot of the dialogue. Jack probably

Jack was always proud of saying that he was a professional, that he would take assignments to put food on his family’s plates.

I’ve seen it in interview after interview. When you project that kind of feeling, you’re inviting your superiors to think it doesn’t make any difference to you what you do as long as you’re paid.

Of course, very few people—whether it be Jack Kirby, John Buscema, or whoever—are really as indifferent to these things as they may claim they are.

JA: John Buscema said he heard that, toward the end of Kirby’s Silver Age tenure at Marvel, they cut Jack’s page rate. Did you ever hear that story?

THOMAS: No. That’s hard for me to believe, because while there was a slight down-turn in ’68— when every series got its own book, the line expanded a little too fast, and sales dipped briefly—I

What Goes Around…Surfs Around!

(Left:) Although Jack Kirby had conceived and designed the Surfer (with precisely that name), Stan tapped Big John Buscema to pencil the hero’s solo series. Buscema reenacted his exile to our planet in The Silver Surfer #1 (Aug. 1968). Script by Stan Lee; inks

by Joe Sinnott.

(Right:) By the time of #18 (Sept. 1970), the title was dying, and Kirby was brought back to help launch a new “Savagely Sensational Silver Surfer,” but the mag was killed after that single issue. Script by Stan Lee; inks by Herb Trimpe. Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold. [Both pages ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

wasn’t happy about that, but Stan didn’t think the readers would like Jack’s dialogue. Maybe he was right.

JA: Well, it would have been very jarring, because those two wrote nothing like each other.

THOMAS: I don’t recall what Jack wrote, because a lot of it got changed. Stan didn’t do that when Jack wrote “The Inhumans.” At that stage, I think Stan just wanted to keep Jack happy. I think Jack’s enthusiasm was gone by that point, though.

His scripts didn’t have the verve he’d shortly be showing on New Gods.

Once More Into The Breach, Dear Friends…

A very reluctant John Romita (seen in photo from 1969 F.F. Annual) became the penciler of “The World’s Greatest Comic Magazine” with Fantastic Four #103 (Oct. 1970), after drawing the cover of #102. The halfpage above from #103, repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, was autographed in 1988 for collector Jeff Bailey by both John and scripter Stan. Inks by John Verpoorten. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: I doubt if Stan would have let him dialogue Thor or Fantastic Four, for instance.

THOMAS: I never heard whether Jack asked, but I can’t imagine that Stan would have let him.

to DC, what was the reaction in the offices?

THOMAS: Well, you’ve probably read this a million times, but everybody was really stunned when Jack quit, and nobody more so than Stan, because he really hadn’t seen it coming. Jack hadn’t made it clear that he was thinking about leaving, or was unhappy. Maybe he told some people, but not Stan.

JA: When Jack quit to go over

Farewell To The King Two of Jack Kirby’s final assignments before ankling Marvel for DC and “The Fourth World.”

(Left:) He both penciled and wrote the “Inhumans” series in Amazing Adventures #1-4; this splash from #4 (Jan. 1971) is repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold.

(Right:) The second and final time Roy scripted a story penciled by Jack was the “Ka-Zar” outing in Astonishing Tales #2 (Oct. 1970); thanks to Bob Bailey for the scan. In retrospect, Roy wishes he’d suggested to Stan that Jack have a plotting credit. Inks by Sam Grainger. Incidentally, Jack was succeeded on “The Inhumans” by Neal Adams, and on “Ka-Zar” by Barry Smith, with Roy briefly scripting both series. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Fortunately, most of us thought, “Well, maybe some sales will drop, but we’ll survive.” There were maybe two people—besides maybe Jack—who seem to have thought Fantastic Four might be terminally hurt: John Romita, who had to draw it briefly (and the sales actually went up for those few issues), and Carmine Infantino, who I was told said to someone that Marvel might as well discontinue F.F. and Thor. Of course, I don’t know if Carmine really ever said that or not—only that we heard he had. Carmine realized he had a top creator who’d quit Marvel, and that was going to help DC and would probably hurt Marvel. It did, in a certain way, but it was hardly a fatal blow.

JA: Well, by that time, John Buscema and John Romita had started to become Marvel’s house look as much as Kirby had been.

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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THOMAS: Yeah. They’d incorporated a lot of Kirby into their own drawing; Romita started much earlier, back in the ’50s. They had a lot of other influences—Hal Foster and other illustrators for Buscema, and Milt Caniff especially for Romita—but they’d been studying Kirby. Stan had pushed that, and they were Kirby fans anyway. People began to see a somewhat different approach that had a lot of the virtues of Jack’s drawing, but a prettier look. Same as Romita’s Spider-Man was prettier than Ditko’s; it’s hard to imagine Mary Jane looking as gorgeous drawn by Ditko, whose greatest strengths lay in other directions. MJ would have still been said to be a stunner, but she wouldn’t have looked as drop-dead gorgeous as she did under Romita.

JA: Getting back to Ditko for a minute, it’s unusual that they were ageing Peter Parker at almost a normal rate until Romita took over.

THOMAS: I suspect Steve wanted to do that, and I think Stan liked it, too, for a while. At some stage, though, he began to think, “Someday, we’re gonna have a 30-year-old hero!” He didn’t want that; this wasn’t Gasoline Alley.

After Peter graduated from high school, I think Stan decided to call a halt to it.

There was a time around ’68 or so when Stan told me and Gary Friedrich— who was working there by then—that he didn’t want things to change in the books from that point on. We were to give “the illusion of change,” but then bring them back to the status quo ante. We weren’t wild about that, but it was Stan’s decision. When you get something going just right, you can become reluctant to meddle with it.

Do you keep on evolving and hope your readers will follow you, or do you figure at some point you’ve pretty much got the thing right? If you keep changing it, you may end up undoing what you did right in the first place. It’s hard to know.

“At That Stage… [John Buscema] Was Still Drawing Like Himself” JA: John Buscema had worked for Stan in the ’40s and ’50s; then he came back in the ’60s and really started to take off. What was John like to work with in those days?

THOMAS: I didn’t start working with him right away; there were several stories he did with Stan that Stan wasn’t totally wild about. He was still trying to get John away from some of the quieter illustration feel he’d been using in his advertising work, and to get him to look at Kirby for the storytelling, action, and drama. John was a fast study, and he quickly approximated a lot of that. Then one day Stan dumped him on me for a few fill-in issues of The Avengers, and I hung onto him as long as I could! At that stage, John had gotten a lot of the Kirby feel, but he was still drawing like himself, too, and that was good.

JA: When you worked with Buscema on Avengers, how much plotting input did he have?

THOMAS: Like other artists, he’d add details and incidents, and choreograph the fight sequences. I’d give him a general idea of the fight, and maybe the setting, but I didn’t tell him much about the pacing. As far as motivations, etc., those were mostly in my plots. I didn’t generally do what Stan did with Jack by then: tell him the villain and maybe another sentence or three, then let him go off and draw it. That worked well for Stan and Jack, but the closest John and I ever came to that was probably

Man-Ape Depressive John Buscema—and a pair of pulsating panels from The Avengers #62 (March 1969), the “Man-Ape” story Roy and Big John Buscema co-plotted over the phone in a few minutes. Inks by George Klein. John autographed R. Dewey Cassell’s copy of the photo from a group of snapshots Marvel commissioned and sold circa 1970. [©2005 Marvel Characters,Inc.]

the first Man-Ape story, in Avengers #62. That was maybe a ten-minute conversation over the phone. I was prepared to discuss it further, but John said, “Nah, I’ve got enough.” And he did. It was kind-of a thin story, but that was okay once in a while.

JA: In your early collaborations with him, were the plots verbal, or in written form?

THOMAS: I can’t say a few weren’t done over the phone, but I wrote most of them out, as I did for Werner Roth on X-Men, among others.

When Neal Adams came in, he didn’t want written plots. And, if an artist wanted to work a certain way, I was usually amenable. There were enough problems at times in other areas, so why quarrel over things that we didn’t have to?

“I Tried To Accommodate Artists Where I Could” JA: I once had a conversation with Gil Kane in which your name came up, and Gil said that you were the perfect collaborator. He called you an “accommodator.” [mutual laughter] He meant that in a good way.

THOMAS: Well, that’s what I tried to be, I hope in a good way. I wasn’t always that, but with Gil I was. He had a lot of ideas, and he was something of a writer himself. Later on, I invited him to write more for Marvel, but he couldn’t make as much money writing, so he preferred not to.

But yeah, I tried to accommodate artists where I could. That’s why I was different with Barry Smith, Neal Adams, or John Buscema. Herb Trimpe and I almost never had anything written down when we did The Incredible Hulk together, because he worked in the office, where we could talk. I probably did the same thing with Marie Severin on SubMariner, though I believe with her sometimes I wrote out a plot. If an artist wasn’t a staffer, it made more sense to write a plot. I wrote 2- to 4page plots, and never broke it down like, say: “Pages 1-5, do this.” I just gave them the plots and figured they knew how to break it down and pace it. And they did.

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics Kane Is Able Gil Kane, around the time he penciled five fabulous issues of Captain Marvel with scripter Roy as their first of numerous collaborations. He’s flanked here by two pieces of art from #19 (Dec. 1969), both inked by Dan Adkins. The cover symbolically depicts the issue’s plot—men trapped like rats in a maze—though its real theme was the Jewish Holocaust of World War II. At right is a photocopy of what remains of the original art for #19’s splash, the rest having been somehow destroyed before present owner Richard Howell purchased it. Thanks to R. Dewey Cassell for a copy of the Kane photo from the Marvel set—and to Daniel Herman for a photocopy of the original art to the cover of CM #19. Daniel’s Hermes Press has published two trade paperbacks on Gil Kane’s life and art, and recently released a new book, Silver Age: The Second Generation of Comic Book Artists. See ad on our flip side. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Twelve’s A Crowd The two pages at left from Tales of Suspense #86 (Feb. 1967) illustrate how pacing problems could be handled in stories done by the so-called “Marvel Method.” Perhaps because Gene Colan drew a full-page panel of Iron Man on p. 7 of the 12-pager, the final page had to cover Shellhead agonizing over a deadly missile and altering its course, The Mandarin reviving and attacking him, our hero pretending to flee as Mandy “toys” with him, 30-word balloons from the villain in the same panel in which he’s allegedly blown up by the boomeranging missile, and then Shellhead flying off in triumph.

Naturally, the action on p. 12 should’ve run 2-3 pages. Just as naturally, Stan Lee—as big a Colan fan as ever there was— wasn’t about to sacrifice that beautiful p. 7 just to expand the final sequence! And Roy doesn’t recall a single reader complaining. Inks by Frank Giacoia. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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I doubt if I ever turned down someone who asked for a written plot. Now, if anyone had asked me for a full script, there they’d have run into a brick wall. [laughter] Other than that, I tried to accommodate as much as possible.

On the first Captain Marvel story he drew [#17], Gil worked from a several-page plot I’d already sent to Don Heck. By the time we did the one with the guy who’d been a prisoner in a concentration camp [#19], that was basically Gil’s concept, and we hashed it out together. Most of our stories together after Captain Marvel #17 were 50/50 mixtures.

JA: Were there any instances where you’d get back a story and the plot went off in a direction that you were unhappy with?

Escape Claws

THOMAS: I’m sure there were. Stan always said you could Page 11 of the “Sub-Mariner” story in Tales to Astonish #78 (April 1966) spotlights the huge talons write 20 pages of disconnected pictures if you had to. Obviously, of The Behemoth. But, since he and Gene then both you don’t want to do that, but I could usually make it work. forgot to show the creature in #79, Stan could only Once in a while, I had something changed, but probably less work a passing last-minute mention of him into that than Stan felt he had to change Jack’s Fantastic Four or Thor issue’s “Next ish” caption—and indeed, ’twas the weird place because he’d run near the end. Of course, that’s not to fault Stan’s methods, final panel of #80 before Namor and The Behemoth out of room, or suddenly because the high sales of F.F. and Thor speak for themselves. It came face to face, and #81 before they fought! Inks he’d draw lots of panels on was just my way of doing things, partly because I was more

by Vince Colletta. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] the last page to get to the “accommodating,” partly because I gave the artists more plot in right spot. Sometimes Stan the first place. Besides, most of them were already acclimated from could work with it, but sometimes he’d have it redrawn. That was just working with Stan.

Gene’s way of working, and Stan could usually accommodate it, since he liked Gene’s work so much. We all did.

The only time I had problems was when an artist ran out of room near the end, as when Gil did the origin of Ka-Zar in 1972 [Astonishing Sometimes, both of them forgot things. Once they had this gigantic Tales #11]. He did a wonderful job on it, but then suddenly, on the last monster—The Behemoth—trying to claw his way up from the ocean couple of pages, Ka-Zar started just throwing punches à la Captain floor at the end of a chapter of “Sub-Mariner” [in Tales to Astonish America at Maa-Gor the Man-Ape, which didn’t seem right somehow. I #78]. When I saw the following month’s story after it had been scripted could almost see Gil’s thought processes as he got rushed. and inked, I asked Stan, “What happened to The Behemoth?” Stan slapped his forehead. He and Gene had both forgotten all about him! So Gene Colan often ran out of room, because even if Stan gave him a Stan hurriedly added a caption saying The Behemoth would be on hand written plot, Gene tended not to read the whole thing before he started next issue. [mutual laughter] It was a crazy time, but there was so much drawing. I remember Stan asking him once how he was going to handle more good than bad. And Gene was one of the best of the best in that something later in the story, and Gene answering, “I haven’t gotten to period—and what’s really weird is, if anything, he’s even better today that page yet.” Starting to draw without reading the whole plot seems to than he was then, because most of his work nowadays is reproduced me like a prescription for disaster. I remember that once or twice on from his pencils! Stan would probably have tried that years ago, if the those 12-page “Iron Man” stories, Gene’s last page would either end in a

Visions Of Sugar Plums (Left:) The Kirby-drawn splash of the “Vision” story from Marvel Mystery Comics #25 (Nov. 1941), with art restored by Eric Schumacher. Roy had first seen this story, more crudely restored from an old comic, when he’d overseen Marvel’s reprinting of it in Marvel SuperHeroes #13 (March 1968).

(Right:) In The Avengers #57 (Oct. 1968), Roy made that otherdimensional Vision the basis of the android hero Stan wanted him to add to the group. With pencils by John Buscema and inking by George Klein, how could it have wound up anything short of sensational? All but the final seven issues of Roy’s 70-issue Avengers run are available in the black-&-white Essential Avengers, Vol. 2-4, with color versions of his earliest Avengers tales starting to appear in Marvel Masterworks editions—now that Marvel’s running out of Stan Lee stories to reprint! [Both pages ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

Secrets Behind The Comics (1968 Edition) (Above:) The Vision figure in the second-from-last panel on p. 3 of Avengers #57 was re-penciled by Marie Severin, at Stan’s behest. Ye Editor’s not sure if the hand in panel 2 is by her or by John Buscema.

(Right:) One of the most-often-reproduced pages Roy ever scripted appeared in that issue, when he asked Big John to draw a multi-panel final page in which the apparently lifeless head of the robot Ultron-5 is found in a desolate part of the Bronx by a kid who briefly plays “Kick-the-Can” with it, then tosses it aside in boredom. When the exquisite pencils came in, it abruptly occurred to Roy that Percy Shelley’s “Ozymandias” would fit ideally as narration (since John’s pictures told the story so perfectly), so he handlettered the lines of the 19th-century poem in upper-and-lower-case above the panels, leveling their top borders to achieve an aesthetic effect. Sam Rosen did the final lettering, and George Klein the inking. [Both pages ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

repro process at that time had been up to the task.

JA: There are two Avengers stories I want to ask you about: the introduction of The Vision [Avengers #57], and the marriage of Hank and Jan [Avengers #60]. Did you have to go to Stan for approval for such important events in the series?

THOMAS: I’m sure I wouldn’t have married them off without checking with Stan. He’d had Sue and Reed get married, so I didn’t think he’d mind. I doubt if he knew much about Yellowjacket, but that was a temporary persona for Hank Pym, anyway.

In the case of The Vision, I’d always wanted to bring Thor, Captain

Jerry Angel Jerry & Joanne Siegel and daughter Laura, at the 1975 San Diego Comic-Con—paired with the first splash of Jerry’s three-chapter “Angel” story. It appeared in Ka-Zar #2 (Dec. 1970), some time after Superman’s co-creator had moved to California. Embarrassingly, his last name got misspelled in that issue’s credits.

All three segments are reprinted in Marvel Masterworks: The X-Men, Vol. 5, on sale any day now. Photo courtesy of Alan Light.

[Angel page ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

America, and Iron Man back into The Avengers, but Stan wouldn’t let me. Finally he decided he wanted a new Avenger, and for reasons that to this day I do not know, he decreed it must be an android. I wanted to bring in the original 1940s Vision, whom I’d seen in a couple of stories, light green skin and all. He was from another dimension, so I was going to have him come into our dimension and be stuck here. But Stan said, “No, I want an android. I don’t care how you handle it, but make it an android.” So I made the new Avenger an android and called him The Vision, and everybody was happy.

I took the old Kirby costume and drew a diamond on it, which I swiped from the Fawcett hero Spy Smasher. The Vision was hard as diamond, so it made sense. I had his face colored red because we already had a green Hulk and blueskinned Atlanteans. Stan didn’t like the red face, but it worked for the readers.

John Buscema may have added the jewel on his head. And he drew this beautiful story. There’s one panel, where The Vision passes through a wall for the first time, where Stan had that figure redrawn by Marie. I don’t recall what it looked like originally, but I guess Stan didn’t think it quite caught the feeling of passing through a wall.

JA: It sounds like Stan was still deeply editorially involved in the books you were writing.

THOMAS: He wanted to see all the art when it came in. He didn’t want to see my writing until it was already lettered, and usually didn’t read the whole story at that

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

19 whatever space was there. The artist became a de facto co-writer at Marvel, I suppose, since he was doing the pacing. And naturally there were some artists who wanted to take over more of the plotting, and then later got upset because they weren’t credited for that. Writers at that stage served as sort-of unpaid line editors of the books they wrote; they got a lot of freedom out of that, but there were responsibilities that went with it.

It wasn’t so much that I wanted to be an editor, but I wanted to tell my own stories, or the stories the artists and I agreed on. After all, I was still following Stan’s dictates and his style, combined with certain elements I brought from elsewhere, so I felt I didn’t need micro-management, and Stan didn’t want to give it. And I was the same way with the younger writers. Stan’s feeling was like mine: if you’ve got to rewrite somebody heavily every month, then you’re working with the wrong writer. Get somebody else.

Red Wolf Before Morning—Marvel Take Warning!

(Above:) Roy Thomas described Red Wolf’s garb and the plot to John Buscema for Avengers #80 (Sept. 1970)—but ’twas only a happy accident that Big John broke the lead-in sequence into precisely these four panels across the top of the splash page, inspiring Roy to turn rhymes from an old verse into the captions of panels 2 & 4. It was “Ozymandias” all over again!

(Right:) Gardner Fox wrote all but two of the nine issues of Red Wolf, plus his first solo appearance in Marvel Spotlight #1 (Nov. 1971); we printed that splash in A/E #11. At right we see the Syd Shores-penciled splashes of issues #2 (July 1972) and #7 (May 1973). In the latter, the mag abruptly switched to starring the 20th-century versions of Red Wolf and his faithful lupine companion Lobo. For a photo of Golden/Silver Age great Gardner, see our flip side. [Both pages ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

point. But, if there were problems with the art, he wanted to deal with them as early as possible.

“Increasingly… I Was Overseeing The New Writers Who Came In” JA: It sounds like you didn’t customarily go to Stan and tell him what stories you were going to do that month in the books he was editing.

THOMAS: I’d tell him about important events—“This month, we’re bringing in The Man-Ape”—but after that, it was left up to me. Stan next saw it when the art came in. Increasingly by the very late ’60s and early ’70s, I was overseeing the new writers who came in—Gary Friedrich, Gerry Conway, etc.

JA: In some ways, you were more than just the writer; you were doing editorial work.

THOMAS: Well, Neal Adams and others always say that they were more than just the artists, and that’s true. But if I was a little less than the full writer, I was also something more, because I was also partly the editor. We didn’t worry about it; we all expanded like balloons to fill

JA: Is that what happened to you when you briefly had Gardner Fox writing “Dr. Strange” in Marvel Premiere a little later?

THOMAS: In a way, except that I would never have fired Gardner. I’m sure he left because he sensed it wasn’t working out and because he wasn’t very enthusiastic about the Marvel way of working, anyway. He was in semi-retirement by the early ’70s, but I’d wanted to try to bring him into Marvel. It didn’t totally work out, but I wish it had. I don’t know how much I rewrote him on “Dr. Strange”; I rewrote a lot of his “Red Wolf” and a couple of other stories. Gardner came from a different tradition than what Stan wanted—or even what I wanted—at the time. On “Dr. Strange,” he could do the Robert E. Howard/Lovecraftian thing pretty well, but it wasn’t really like a Marvel super-hero.

JA: That reminds me: you introduced Red Wolf in modern times in The Avengers, but when he was given his own book, the series was set in the past. Why was that?

THOMAS: Stan wanted it set in the past. He felt it was a more commercial approach. Of course, when the Old West setting didn’t work out, we brought him back to the present. That didn’t especially work, either. I had no problem with either approach. To me, Red Wolf was like The Phantom: an identity that has existed for generations. I’d thought it might be easier for Gardner to get into writing a Western—he’d written a lot of them—than a Marvel super-hero. I still ended up doing a lot of rewriting, but there was a lot of good stuff in there, too, from Gardner and Syd Shores.

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

The Outcasts of Poker Flat(bush) Sol Brodksy, John Romita, and Stan Goldberg you saw a few pages back—and we couldn’t locate a photo of their friend Carl Wershba, alas—but here are a few more of the guys with whom Roy played poker during the latter 1960s through the mid-1970s, often in Brooklyn and later at his own Manhattan digs. (Clockwise, from top center:) Mike Esposito, as per the 1975 Mighty Marvel Comic Convention program book (he’ll be interviewed in A/E #53-54)— Al Sulman—no photo, but here’s that oft-reprinted illo by Dave Berg from Stan Lee’s 1947 book Secrets behind the Comics— Phil Seuling, seen here auctioning off a figurine at his 1969 New York comic-con (photo taken by John Benson; first printed in Alter Ego V1#10)— Chester Grabowski (in checkered shirt), as drawn by Gray Morrow in the “Man-Thing” origin in Savage Tales #1 (1971), recently reprinted in the trade paperback Man-Thing: Whatever Knows Fear…. Plot by Roy Thomas (from a concept by Stan Lee); script by Gerry Conway.

[Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] Al Milgrom, who in the mid-’70s became the new “baby” of the group; photo courtesy of Al hisself. The lady is his future wife Judy.

JA: In late 1968 or maybe ’69, Jerry Siegel got a job at Marvel. That must have felt strange to you.

THOMAS: He was hired as an assistant editor—basically a proofreader, because he had no real editorial input during his few months there. It did feel strange. Stan called me in and told me Jerry Siegel had asked him for a job, and, to his credit, Stan said, “I can’t imagine turning down Jerry Siegel; he deserves a job in this industry.” I didn’t know at that time that one reason he needed a job was because he’d burned his bridges at DC again by renewing his lawsuit over the ownership of Superman. He had become persona non grata at DC, where he had been writing fairly successfully again for a few years.

JA: Archie Comics quit doing super-heroes, so he lost that writing job, too.

THOMAS: He needed something, and Stan felt the field owed him something. He was very explicit about that. It was very strange working in the same offices with Jerry, though. I knew he was sensitive about the subject of Superman, so I didn’t say too much to him about that.

Personally, we got along just fine. We were so busy that we didn’t have time to talk about the old days, anyway. I never really got a chance to talk with him except on one subway ride out to his house a day or two before he left for California. [NOTE: See Alter Ego #37 for more details on this.]

The only time Stan was ever unhappy with him was when Jerry wrote a three-part “Angel” story. Jerry wanted his credit to read “Jerry S.” Stan figured he’d given Jerry a job, and he at least wanted to be able to have Jerry Siegel’s name on those stories. So they were published under his own name. I don’t know if he wanted to use a pseudonym because he just wanted to keep a low profile, or if he’d been writing under pseudonyms for so long, he’d just gotten used to it. Mort’s books didn’t generally have credits at that time, so you never knew if an individual “Superman” story was written by Jerry, Otto Binder, or somebody else.

I think Stan would’ve loved to bring Jerry back into the spotlight, if it had worked out—you know, the creator of “Superman” writing for Marvel. Maybe it would’ve worked out, but he wasn’t there long enough to see. I suspect Marvel wasn’t a great fit for Jerry, but we liked and respected him.

“The Poker Group Had Been Together For Years” JA: Stan Goldberg was the first artist you worked with at Marvel, right?

THOMAS: Yes. After Mort Weisinger threw me out of DC—three seconds after I gave him indefinite notice that Friday afternoon that I’d accepted a job offer from Stan [see flip side]—I walked back over to

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

21 me how to color. She and the readers were probably spared a lot of grief.

JA: How did you get into the poker games with Stan Goldberg and others?

Playing Musical Shares On November 10, 1965, the morning after a big New York City power blackout, Stan put Roy on Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos (starting with #29, April 1966, drawn by Dick Ayers and John Tartaglione, and plotted by Stan and Dick)—and new recruit Denny O’Neil (as “Denny-O”) inherited both “Millie the Model” mags—including The Gears, the Beatles clones created by Roy and Stan G. This splash from Modeling with Millie #50 (Oct. 1966) is repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Stan Goldberg; inker uncredited & uncertain. Thanks to Bob Bailey for the Sgt. Fury #29 art scan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Marvel. I don’t recall what I did for the rest of the afternoon, but I think Stan probably gave me a crash course on writing Marvel Comics, including balloon placement, which I took to like a house on fire. At day’s end, he handed me the pencils to a “Millie the Model” story [Modeling with Millie #44—see p. 8] that otherwise he’d had have to dialogue. I scripted it over the weekend. It was not a conspicuous success, but I did it. [mutual chuckling] I met Stan Goldberg (or “Stan G.,” as he was called in the credits) either that day or very soon after. He and I would talk over story ideas, as I briefly became the writer of both Millie the Model and Modeling with Millie. Sometimes I’d have an idea, but he was used to doing most of the plotting, so we just naturally fell into a groove where he’d tell me what he felt like drawing. What did I care, as long as it was okay with Stan [Lee]? We invented this group called The Gears that was a Beatles take-off. That was fun, because I got to make up lyrics for rock songs. I remember that, after my second or third Millie issue came out, Flo Steinberg showed me a letter that had come in from a little girl. It said: “I really enjoyed the new Millie the Model. I got it a week ago, and I’m halfway done reading it!” [mutual laughter] JA: You soon left the “Millie” books, but Stan Goldberg still did some coloring for you after that, right?

THOMAS: The coloring was handed out by Sol Brodsky, and I didn’t have much input into it. I was actually supposed to be a colorist—for one day. Sometime during my first month or so at Marvel, Marie Severin decided she’d teach me how to color. I thought that was great. But when Stan [Lee] found out, he said, “I didn’t hire you to become a colorist.”

He didn’t want me spending time on that instead of doing editorial things. I could see his viewpoint, but I’d really wanted to learn it, because I like to learn anything. So, anyway, Marie was told to not teach

THOMAS: Probably Sol Brodsky suggested it. Sol and I went to lunch together most days for several years, sometimes with others, but often just the two of us.

We stood in bank lines together when his wife would tell him to find out why their balance was 83¢ short that month. [laughs] Maybe somebody had dropped out of their long-standing monthly poker game, and Sol invited me, knowing that chess and poker are the two games I love, besides baseball. The group was Sol—Al Sulman (whom I hardly knew, and I didn’t realize he’d even written a story in AllStar Comics #1)—Romita—Stan Goldberg—Mike Esposito—and another friend of Sol’s named Carl Wershba, who was in the advertising field and put together ads for Sam Goody’s record stores for the big New York papers.

Later on, at least by the early ’70s, they started having the game at my place, because I was the only one with an apartment in the city.

They all lived out in Brooklyn or Queens. Sometime after Jeanie and I got married in 1968 and moved into Manhattan, we made our place available, and I carried it on after she and I split up—both times. Al Milgrom started playing with us, the last year or two.

Mike Esposito and I also played in a weekly game at the Coney Island apartment of Phil and Carole Seuling. Phil was a high school teacher before he started throwing comics conventions in the late ’60s.

Every Friday night for several years, I’d take the subway to the end of the line at Coney Island, buy a hot dog and a lobster roll at Nathan’s, grab a chocolate malted at Carvel’s, then head up to the Seulings’ and play poker till 2:00 a.m. or later. Another player was Chester Grabowski, a Brooklyn pal of Phil’s whom Gray Morrow drew as one of the hoodlums in the first “Man-Thing” story [in Savage Tales #1].

Mike and I also played in an occasional “teachers’ game” at Phil’s, mostly composed of Phil’s fellow teachers; but the stakes in that game were so low that Mike and I’d get bored and make side bets with each other, which annoyed the other players. Morrie Kuramoto played poker, too, but I don’t think he was ever in any of those groups.

JA: Tell me a little about Morrie.

THOMAS: I was just thinking about him the other day, because the Internet Timely/Atlas mailing list was talking about a letterer named “Sherigail,” and I’m fairly certain that was Morrie. He had a daughter he missed because he and her mother had split up. I remember how he beamed with pride when he brought her up to the office once. I think her name was “Sherigail,” whether as one word or two.

Hard for me to say what Morrie was like, because he had a personality I always felt was a front to keep you at a distance… but he was friendly in a sardonic way. He took me under his wing in the early days,

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

took me to Chinese and Japanese restaurants so I’d get to know that kind of food. He used to sit around, crack jokes, and be sarcastic. We were very different in ages and backgrounds, but I enjoyed his company. He gave me the idea of doing a “Nisei Squadron” story in Sgt. Fury, and gave me info about the Japanese-Americans who’d fought in Italy in World War II… even the name “Morita.” Stan thought that name sounded too Italian. Well, it was “Romita” spelled sideways. This was long before Pat Morita became wellknown, of course.

Morrie would drive us crazy, because he could be a bit sloppy as a production guy sometimes. He wouldn’t try to make his lettering corrections match Sam Rosen’s or Artie Simek’s. We didn’t want people to notice lettering corrections, and Morrie never wanted to do much more than was minimally necessary. He seemed to spend a lot of his time just rearranging files and logos, or he’d take his newspaper, head off to the bathroom, and say, “I’m going to the library.” [mutual laughter] JA: Speaking of letterers, what do you remember about Sam Rosen and Artie Simek?

THOMAS: Sam lived out in Brooklyn with Joe and, I think, another brother. Joe, of course, also lettered for Marvel later; I think he was lettering for Archie then. I dropped things off at their house occasionally during the year I lived in Brooklyn [1967-68]. Sam was a quiet guy who

Full Of Sound And Fury Marvel’s two fabled Silver Age letterers—Artie Simek (left) and Sam Rosen—flank the cover of Arlington House’s 1970 hardcover All in Color for a Dime, one of the very first (if selective) histories of comic books. The “KRASKK!” “SHOOOSH!” “SKRRAKK!” and (maybe) “BTAM!” are Artie’s, lifted from Marvel mags—but he and Sam closely followed versions Stan Lee had penciled on the original art. Stan knew just how he wanted sound effects to look. The photos of Artie and Sam are from the 1969—oh, you guessed that already, huh? [©2005 the respective copyright holders.]

didn’t come into the office much. I just thought of him as somebody who could letter nice and small, and very accurately. Even more than Artie, who was pretty good himself.

Artie came in more, and loved to talk. I remember Stan being upset once when Artie popped up on a TV talk show—The Joe Pine Show or a similar one—playing the harmonica and spoons, and Stan understandably wasn’t wild about the idea of Artie representing Marvel Comics playing the harmonica and spoons. Artie knew I played poker, so one time he said to me, very confidentially: “I’ve got some advice for you.” I said, “What?” And he said, “Never draw to an inside straight.”

Very helpful, Artie.

Artie got upset if I or another writer wrote too much copy on a page, by his lights. Occasionally he’d call up and complain to Sol, or later John Verpoorten, or directly to me. I’d say, “If Stan thinks it’s too much, he’ll tell me, and I’ll stop.” He was probably right sometimes, but his job was just to letter it. Later, when Sam Rosen had a nervous breakdown, Artie claimed I drove him to it with all the copy I wrote. [mutual laughter] Once in a while, Artie and I would get into it, but he was a good letterer, and a heckuva character. I got a kick out of him. He’d been a sports cartoonist earlier. I remember, when he died, going to his wake with John Verpoorten and Stan in Stan’s car.

Later on, especially in the ’80s, Artie’s daughter Jean developed into a really good letterer. When she was Jean Izzo earlier, her married name, she was just okay. But later on, when she was working with me at DC, as Jean Simek, she had developed a really nice style.

Morrie of Marvel Production man Morrie Kuramoto (who lettered as “Sherigail”) wasn’t part of either of the two aforementioned poker groups, but did play in some noontime games with Roy and others when Ye Editor was Ye Editor-in-Chief of Marvel from 1972-74. In Sgt. Fury #38 (Jan. 1967), “Morrie (SuperSamurai) Kuramoto” received credit as “technical advisor”; he’d filled in scripter Roy about the Japanese-American troops in the Italian campaign during World War II. In this sequence, new recruit Jim Morita encounters racism—but hardly needs Nick Fury’s help to handle it. Art by Dick Ayers & John Tartaglione. Photo from the 1969 F.F. Annual, where else? Thanks to Bob Bailey for the art scan. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Increasingly, I’d try to get Sam to letter my stuff at Marvel—and later his brother Joe—because of the small size. I always used to say that I could never read a story lettered

by Sam Rosen without liking it at least a little bit. Sam wasn’t that great with sound effects, though; his tended to be quiet, compared to Artie’s. Actually, on the stories he wrote, Stan lettered sound effects in pencil right on the pages, and very much in the style he wanted. What some think of as Artie Simek sound effects are really Artie Simek versions of Stan Lee sound effects. Stan had a certain shape and impact he wanted, and Artie took it from there and did it better than Sam. The rest of us lettered in our sound effects, too, but Stan did it better than any of us.

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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JA: I always thought sound effects were a big part of “the Marvel look.”

THOMAS: Yeah. That’s why Stan was surprised in the early 1970s when he wanted to add one in Kull the Conqueror #1—a big “Klang!” when two swords clash—and I told him I didn’t use non-verbal sound effects in the sword-and-sorcery mags like Conan and Kull. He was horrified, because that made it different from all of the other Marvel books. And, of course, that was exactly why I did it. But he indulged me, probably shaking his head.

“[Steranko] Had An Influence On Stan” JA: What do you remember about Jim Steranko when he first came to Marvel?

THOMAS: I met Jim at the ’65 Dave Kaler con; he brought his work up to Marvel then, I think, but it wasn’t considered quite pro quality yet. The next year, while in town for Dave’s second con, he came up to the office again—I presume he had an appointment— and I was sent out by Sol to look at his work and basically brush him off. Stan was busy and didn’t want to be bothered that day. But when I saw Jim’s work, which was even better than what I’d seen the previous year, on an impulse I took it in to Sol and said, “I think Stan should see this.” Sol agreed, and took it in to Stan. Stan brought Steranko into his office, and Jim left with the “S.H.I.E.L.D.” assignment.

For a couple of years, Steranko told people I got him his job at Marvel; then, for another few years, he told people Sol got him his job, but of course we were both just go-betweens. You could see he’d taken a lot of Kirby to heart, with touches of Wood, Eisner, and other artists. It had a dramatic look, and it was inevitable that he was going to make it.

I wrote a couple of stories with him [in Strange Tales #153-154], but they were really his stories, which I just dialogued. So when he told Stan he wanted to write the feature, that was great by me. I hadn’t wanted to write “S.H.I.E.L.D.” in the first place.

I remember proofing the “Hell Hound” issue [Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #3], which was a bit of a rush job at the end. Jim was no slower than some others, but that book often ran late because he put so much into his stories, which backed everything up. He came in while I was proofing the finished work, and I said, “Jim, this is great art!” He said, “Never mind that—what about the writing?” And I said, “Oh, I’m not reading it.” I was joking, but I knew that would get a rise out of him. He was horrified. And, in fact, I wasn’t reading the story carefully; I was just looking for typos. After all, if I’d suggested any changes in wording, he’d probably have hit the ceiling—so why waste the effort?

S.H.I.E.L.D. was his book by that point, make or break.

JA: Steranko almost immediately started doing psychedelic and posterish stuff in the “S.H.I.E.L.D.” series. How was that received by Stan and everybody else in the office?

THOMAS: I think most everybody thought it was great. Without negating what Jack and others had done, Jim was adding his own modern spin. He had an influence on Stan, who started telling other artists they should experiment a little. Sales of Strange Tales and then S.H.I.E.L.D. were never spectacular, but it’s nice to have a couple of books that attract attention simply because they’re different. Suddenly, Stan started wanting more psychedelic effects, as long as they didn’t get in the way of the storytelling, which Jim would never allow them to do

Hell Hound Hath No Fury…

Jim Steranko from the 1969 F.F. Annual, and his two-page splash from the instant classic Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #3 (Aug. 1968). Inks by Dan Adkins. Thanks to Bob Bailey for the art scan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

anyway. I think Jim’s major legacy to Marvel was demonstrating that there were ways in which the Kirby style could be mutated, and many artists went off increasingly in their own directions after that.

“[Stan] Felt A Loyalty To Guys Like Shores And Everett” JA: Even though Alter Ego recently did a Bill Everett feature [issue #46], it would be a crime to omit him from this interview. Although he had created Sub-Mariner and other characters and had been a top dog at the company in the 1940s and ’50s, by the time you came to Marvel, he really wasn’t. Do you think that affected him?

THOMAS: I don’t think he cared much about making a big name for himself again. I think, at that stage, it was just a job to him. It’s true Bill didn’t become a really major artist at Marvel this time around. Stan had hoped he would, but his penciling had gotten a bit stiff and looked oldfashioned compared to some other guys’. He’d done Daredevil #1, but that had been a horror for both him and Marvel. He came back to Marvel again a few months after I started there, and since he needed a place to crash during the week, he stayed at the Greenwich Village apartment I shared with Gary Friedrich. [NOTE: For more details, see A/E V3#3—or the Travel Channel TV special Marvel Super Heroes’ Guide to New York City. —Roy.] Bill wound up being important in other ways this time around. He became a good colorist, as per Silver Surfer #1. He could be very effective as an inker, and some people—Gil Kane among them—thought he was Kirby’s best inker ever on Thor. Bill was usually on staff, so he also did corrections. That was another good thing about Stan: if a longtime pro couldn’t do one thing he used to do, he’d try to find something else he could do. He felt a loyalty to guys like Shores and Everett; and though he couldn’t make room on the Ark for everybody, he felt they deserved a chance. Stan didn’t think artists should be tossed on the scrap heap simply because they might not be at the top of their form any more.

JA: Stan doesn’t get a lot of credit for that in print, I think.

THOMAS: Probably not, but he did it, just the same.

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

Mount Everett Bill Everett was on hand, too, to get his picture taken for that 1969 F.F. Annual—and to draw these two fine specimens of 1970s comic art.

We apologize for misplacing the name of the generous soul who sent us photocopies of the original art for these and numerous other Everett pages. Let us know who you are, okay? Anyway, onward—and both these pages are, of course, ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.: Wild Bill really threw himself into this gorgeouslydetailed splash page for a “mystery” story in Fear #9 (Aug. 1972).

In Sub-Mariner #58, Bill penciled and inked over layouts by oldtime Bullpenner Sam Kweskin, as well as writing the story. Ironically, Bill passed away in February 1973, which was the cover date of this issue prepared some months earlier.

Shining Shores For some reason, every photo we run across of Golden/Silver Age artist Syd Shores seems to be a bit dark—like this one from Alan Hewetson’s 1970s publication The Comic Satirist #1. Happily, we did better with this moody Colanpenciled page he inked for Daredevil #58 (Nov. 1969). In the latter, scripted by Roy T., Karen Page collapses after DD asks her to unmask him; repro’d here from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold.

[Photo ©2005 the respective copyright holders; DD page ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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JA: Since you mentioned him, what do you remember about Syd Shores from those days?

THOMAS: I heard more about him than I saw. Gil Kane would describe him back in the ’40s, when Syd was penciling Captain America, acting like he was the savior of the company. Gil said Syd would hold out his hands dramatically and say, “With these hands, I’m holding this company together!”

[Jim laughs] I don’t know if that’s entirely accurate, but that’s how Gil described it.

To me, Syd was just a very nice, quiet, talented guy.

Maybe all that fire had gone out of him because of the way things had gone in his life. He didn’t become a valuable penciler this time around, though he did some decent penciling on mystery stories—but he became a good inker for Colan’s Daredevil and the like, because he could draw. Guys like Everett, Shores, Giacoia, Sinnott, Ayers, and Palmer were valuable inkers because they understood what was needed on the penciling better than an inker who doesn’t really draw.

Syd may have become “just” a utility inker, but he managed to do that pretty much up till the time he died. Stan made it possible for guys like him and Bill to go on working, and nobody was looking to get rid of them. In fact, Stan would get angry if any artist to whom he had made even an informal commitment on Marvel’s part suddenly had time on his hands when they wanted to be working.

That was one of the practices of Stan’s that I took to quite naturally: if you told an artist you were going to “keep him busy,” then you damn well better find a way to do it. It was the writer’s, editor’s, and production manager’s responsibility to see to it that regular artists always had work at hand, and didn’t have much down time where they weren’t making money, just because a writer couldn’t be bothered to come up with a plot when he was supposed to. There’s not much thought about that in the field any more. Keeping the very top people busy doesn’t count—that’s just editors fawning over super-stars. At that time, we felt a responsibility toward people who were non-stars; we couldn’t do it for everybody, but we did what we could.

JA: Herb Trimpe, Syd Shores, and even Steranko initially took on inking assignments, then later switched to penciling.

THOMAS: Steranko was really penciling over Kirby breakdowns from the beginning; he wasn’t just inking. But starting out as an inker was a good way to ease an artist in, to see how he works out.

Some people started right off penciling, like Barry Smith. His work in the late 1960s was mostly Kirby with a touch of Steranko, and he drew the thinnest ankles in the world. His characters’ ankles were so spindly, you couldn’t have stood up on them. I remember when he brought in

Alias Smith & Thomas Artist Barry Smith (now Windsor-Smith) and Roy, at the 1973 Academy of Comic Book Arts awards banquet (the awards were called the Shazams, and Conan the Barbarian had just won for Best Continuing Feature, 1972), from The ACBA Newsletter, Vol. 1, #21 (June 1973). The photo is flanked by art from earlier comics on which the pair worked together, which demonstrate why Stan and Roy both knew Barry would make it as a pro. At left, Barry’s dramatic figure pencils for the cover of Daredevil #52 (May 1969—background was added for the inked cover)—repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, thanks to David G. Hamilton. At right, a page from “The Sword and the Sorcerer” featuring Conan prototype Starr the Slayer, first published in Chamber of Darkness #4 (April 1970)—and one of several reasons Barry soon wound up as the first artist of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian; repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Mike Burkey. Photo by Michele Wolfman; sent by Flo Steinberg. For more on ACBA, see p. 38. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

the pencils for that one X-Men story he did [for #53], I had to tell him, “We’re gonna use it, but there are things wrong with it.” He looked at me with these arched eyebrows and said, “You’re kidding!”—as if there couldn’t be anything wrong with his work. Today, I’m sure he would disown that art entirely. Stan felt from the start, though, that Barry had what it took, and so did I. Within his first few issues of Conan the Barbarian, he was turning out amazing stuff that has never been surpassed in its way.

“Barry… Gene… Don… and Dick” JA: I was going to try to keep this interview in the ’60s, but I want to jump to Conan for a minute. Your first choice for the book was John Buscema, but he was too expensive...

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

THOMAS: He was all set to do it, but then Martin Goodman decided he was too expensive. Gil—whom I would probably have suggested second—was ruled out because he also had a high rate. Barry, though, was a virtual beginner with a low rate and had returned to England at that time, so I was able to steer the work to him rather than to a couple of other veteran artists who were suggested to me, because I didn’t feel they’d bring what I wanted to Conan.

JA: Did you have a gut feeling about what Barry Smith would become?

THOMAS: Well, we’d already done that “Starr the Slayer” story [in Chamber of Darkness #4] together, which was almost a “Conan” story, though with a modern twist ending. And I own a preConan page by Barry that has Conanlike art, and it’s better than anything in the first issue of Conan the Barbarian. In fact, we printed it later as a Conan drawing. I think Barry kind-of froze up when he got the actual assignment. One panel in Conan #1 would be good, and the next panel wouldn’t be so good. It took me a while to find the right writing niche, too.

Barry developed very quickly, but who knew he was going to develop this art nouveau style? I never predicted the way Barry developed, either in terms of art or personality. [laughter] He was just a guy we knew had a lot of talent. He turned out to have even more talent—and in a different way—than we thought. Stan hired Barry because he fit into the Kirby mold. Then, like Steranko, he developed in his

A Heck Of An Artist Don Heck, from that selfsame 1969 F.F. Annual. Because his classic “Iron Man” and Avengers art is currently on view in both Essentials and Marvel Masterworks volumes, here are two examples of his later art—a fan sketch of The Vision, and a page from Daredevil #105 (Nov. 1973). The latter is repro’d from a photocopy of the original art supplied by inker Don Perlin; we blush to admit we’re not sure who sent us the sketch. [DD page ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; Vision TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; sketch ©2005 Estate of Don Heck.]

Strange But True (Part II) It doesn’t get any better than this! A Gene Colan/Tom Palmer page from Dr. Strange #176 (Jan. 1969). Note Tom’s use of zip-atones in all four panels, a rarity at Marvel in those days. Story by Roy Thomas. Repro’d from photocopies of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

own direction, and that was great. There was no attempt to keep Barry imitating Kirby, but he had that going for him at first. Kirby was like the basic grammar, and then he could build out from that.

JA: Let’s talk about Gene Colan. What was it like to work with him, and what would he add to the stories?

THOMAS: The first thing I did with him, except for that one “Iron Man” story, was Dr. Strange.

Gene was the artist who really turned that series on its head from what it had been before. Everett, Marie, Adkins, and Sam Kweskin had all been doing their own riff on Ditko, which was probably what Stan wanted at the time. After all, Ditko’d had a unique way of doing worlds and dimensions. When Gene came in [with Dr. Strange #172], he had no feel for that approach. I doubt he ever considered drawing stairways to nowhere, and other things Ditko had done. Gene’s idea of another dimension was mostly a lot of smoke and mirrors with a whole different look… but it was great in its own, different way.

As writer, I had to adjust, because now there were things you couldn’t do in Dr. Strange that you could’ve done with a Ditko-influenced artist. At the same time, Gene’s work opened up possibilities for the characters to become more human, because he made everybody— Doc, Clea, Wong, even the mansion—look so real. As an “accommodating” writer, I started plotting the stories differently, finding ways to

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s bring in more human elements. I think that’s why those issues are remembered fondly today: Gene and I established a little different grammar for Dr. Strange than before. Others have built on that since, but we started it, and it was mainly because Gene wasn’t capable of or interested in thinking the way Ditko did. That isn’t a criticism of Gene.

If you’re going to have Gene Colan draw something, don’t ask him to imitate anybody else. So we didn’t. [laughs] It turned out to be beautiful. Dr. Strange was never a big seller; maybe we should’ve asked Gene not to get so wild with panel layouts, because I think some of the younger readers were turned off by that. I tried to place my word balloons to lead the reader’s eye from panel to panel, since I knew they’d have trouble finding their way through it otherwise. I think it worked, but a lot of young readers probably couldn’t get into that character. But then, “Dr. Strange” had never been a big seller, not even under Stan and Ditko. As a result, about a year after Gene and I started on the book, it quietly died at a time when it was selling only about 42% of a 400,000 print run. Nowadays, of course, with the changed economics, they’d send up rockets to sell more than 150,000 copies of a comic.

JA: Giving him a mask [Dr. Strange #177] was an attempt to make him more super-heroic, right?

THOMAS: Yeah. We wouldn’t have done it otherwise. I wanted to give him a secret identity, but I didn’t want to change him too much. I seem to recall a better sales figure or two coming in after that, but I don’t think it was anything permanent. Then Goodman pulled the plug just as we were starting a storyline, and I had to finish it in Sub-Mariner and Hulk. After that, Don Heck and I did a back-up story in Marvel Feature #1—the issue that introduced The Defenders—in which we got rid of the mask and secret identity.

Then I split, and afterward I put Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner on it. Theirs was the only version of Dr. Strange up through the mid-’70s that ever sold particularly well in percentage terms—though I liked some work later by Marshall Rogers and others. Well, Jackson Guice and I sold the book well later, too, as I recall.

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him, but once I saw John Buscema’s Avengers, it was hard for me to relinquish John. We found other things for Don, but I think he lost his footing, in a way. He could do a decent Kirby impression, but Jack’s figures had weight and mass, and Don’s often looked as if they were filled with helium and just floating. He was as good an artist as most in the field; but he wasn’t a natural super-hero artist, and somehow, when the competition got a little stiffer—Romita, Buscema, and the like—Don began to look like a fifth wheel. We kept trying him on different series, but nothing quite worked out. We’d try him on inking; Stan had him finishing up Spider-Man. He was another guy Stan felt an obligation to, and Don was kept working as much as we could, but it got harder and harder. He just never seemed to adjust; after he lost his footing, he never seemed to regain it. He was like somebody lurching around in the outfield because he’s always played second base.

I didn’t know Don well, but we had a good relationship. I liked him.

I don’t know what he thought of me or the stories. Mostly, he was just a professional who would get an assignment and do the best he could on it. I think Stan may have tried to light a fire under Don Heck from time to time. It didn’t quite work, though, because Don never regained the position he’d had when Marvel was only a several-artist company. He ended up being cast from hither to yon at DC, Marvel, and elsewhere, increasingly unable to make a living in the field. It wasn’t for lack of talent; sometimes you can have talent, but it isn’t the right talent for the times.

JA: Okay... Dick Ayers. I always thought Dick had a pretty good story sense.

THOMAS: Yeah, he did. He was the first artist I worked with on an adventure series for any length of time, when in November of ’65 I

JA: Let’s move on to Don Heck. He had some problems fitting in at times, because his style wasn’t like Kirby’s, and when he tried to draw like Kirby, it sometimes didn’t work as well. I was always a big fan of his.

THOMAS: I liked his work, too, and in the early years he had the reputation with readers of drawing the prettiest women in Marvel comics. Of course, he was competing with Ditko and Kirby, who were not specialists in that area.

JA: Was he a strong plotter?

THOMAS: Reasonably so.

He didn’t add a lot of great imaginative elements, but if I gave him the bare bones of a story, he’d fill in the details nicely. I liked working with

Putting On Ayers Dick Ayers with mid-1960s collaborator Roy Thomas, in a photo taken by Keif Simon at the Big Apple Comic-Con in Manhattan, April 2005—beneath a Silver Age “Human Torch” splash from Strange Tales #115 (Dec. 1963) and an Ayers page inked by Frank Giaocia for Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #23 (Oct. 1965). Both were scripted by Stan Lee, and both are repro’d from photocopies of the original art. A page of the Thomas/Ayers Sgt. Fury appears on p. 21. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics It wasn’t a case of credit or money. If an artist had said, “I’ll flesh out the story, but I want a half or a third of the script money,” I’d have said, “Goodbye. I’ll mail you a plot tomorrow.” I wasn’t going to share the writing money, but neither did I ask an artist to do more work than they’d have been doing if they worked with Stan. Nobody ever asked for a different split of the pay, so it was never a problem. It’s only later that some guys—and I don’t mean Dick—started complaining they felt cheated. At the time, many of them liked doing it, because it gave them a chance to control what they drew, and I let them, because it just meant less work for me at a time when I was very busy. It’s only later on that somebody starts thinking, “I should’ve gotten some scripting money.”

Well, I should have gotten more money for doing some of the editing, and Stan probably should’ve gotten more money for making some quasi-publishing decisions before he became the publisher. I plotted the first issue of Tomb of Dracula from a sentence or two by Stan, and I didn’t write a credit in for myself when I gave it to Gerry Conway to script. I doubt I even got paid for it. I know I never get any reprint money when it’s reprinted, but that’s okay. I did it to myself.

By the same lights, Gerry and Len Wein ghosted a plot or two for me here and there. Y’know that “Moby Dick in space” story [Incredible Hulk #136-137]? Gerry did that plot. I paid him $25, I think it was, for a plot, again with no credit. We all did things like that. When Stan came back to do Spider-Man after my four issues, I co-plotted with Gil Kane—from a sentence or so from Stan—the next issue [#105], but I didn’t even think about asking for credit. We were all just pitching in, and we all did well out of it. It was a team effort in those days.

“Stan and I Really Didn’t Have Many Conflicts” JA: Once Marvel was free of the restriction on the number of titles they could publish...

“I’ll Take My Marvels And Go Home!” “[Martin] Goodman insisted on a hero named Captain Marvel”—so Stan Lee created the Kree officer called Mar-Vell with Gene Colan, wrote that first 16-page story, then turned the series over to Roy Thomas. Seen here is one of Gene’s penciled pages from that second “Captain Marvel” story, in Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (March 1968), repro’d from a photocopy sent by— Sheesh! Ye Editor forgot to write the donor’s name on the page, so we owe somebody a free copy of this issue of A/E! [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

became the second writer of Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos.

He was a good storyteller. But Stan and I and other writers used to write a fair amount of copy, and since Dick wanted to make sure our word balloons didn’t cover up his art, he started moving his characters farther down in the panels. [mutual laughter] We kept saying, “Just put the characters in the middle of the panels, and we’ll spot the balloons around them.” Dick was very good, of course, and Stan loved his work. I’ve been a fan of his ever since the 1950s, when he did Ghost Rider and The Avenger for Magazine Enterprises and Human Torch for Atlas. I bought ’em all!

I liked working with him. He’d draw seven guys in a panel, and they all looked like they were talking, so I tended to have them all talking.

Werner Roth did the same thing in X-Men. Dick contributed the main concept to some of our stories. When he wanted to do a story about early German jets, because he’d been reading about them, I said okay, we’d talk it over for a few minutes, then he’d go draw. On a lot of those Sgt. Fury stories, Dick contributed more to the plot than Don Heck or Werner Roth contributed to Avengers or X-Men when I was doing them.

THOMAS: ...Which I never even knew about back then. Nobody ever mentioned to me that Marvel was limited as to the number of comics per month it could publish by its deal with Independent News, which was owned by DC, and that one title had to be canceled before Marvel could add a new one. Of course, things changed when the company was bought by Perfect Film [later Cadence] and distributed by Curtis in the late ’60s.

JA: When the line started expanding, some choices were natural: you broke up Tales of Suspense and Tales to Astonish and gave each character his own book. But how many of the new series, like Not Brand Echh and The Silver Surfer, were Stan’s ideas?

THOMAS: Most of them were. For example, I doubt if Martin Goodman asked for a Silver Surfer title, though my memory could be faulty on that. One exception was when Goodman insisted on a hero named Captain Marvel, so no other publisher could have a book with that name after the Myron Fass and Carl Burgos one, so Stan had to make up a character to go with the name. After one issue, he turned it over to me, since he’d never wanted to create a Captain Marvel.

Goodman certainly didn’t ask for Conan in 1970; that was Stan and me, acting on requests from our readers, though I did have to write a threepage memo to Goodman to convince him Marvel should license a sword-and-sorcery hero. I also believe it was Stan rather than Goodman who wanted to do the mystery books later on—you know, Tower of Shadows and Chamber of Darkness.

In the case of Not Brand Echh, I seem to recall that Gary Friedrich, who was on staff at the time, first mentioned the idea of doing a parody comic. I have this vague memory of Gary, Stan, and me being at lunch and getting onto the subject. Stan had done Crazy, Wild, and Riot in the 1950s, and Gary liked Mad. I had bought the Atlas parody comics and many others circa 1954, and I owned a complete run of the Kurtzman Mads, both the comics and the first few issues of the magazine. I think

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s Not Brand Echh came out of that lunch, but it was Stan who came up with the title—from the “Brand Echh” phrase he was already using in the mags—and the idea to actually do it. For other books, you’d have to ask about one in particular, and if I knew, I’d tell you.

The idea of getting into black-&-white comics in the early 1970s was all Stan’s. I don’t think Martin Goodman liked going in that direction.

He never wanted to do Savage Tales, which was the first of them. He didn’t want to get into that market; he didn’t want the Comics Code getting upset that he was trying to outflank them, because that could cause him problems and he couldn’t see the percentage in it. There’d been all that trouble back in the ’50s, and I don’t think Goodman wanted to take a chance doing more adult comics. He knew Archie, Harvey, and DC weren’t going to like it, because they weren’t doing it.

JA: When Stan didn’t like the direction you were taking something, how did he deal with you?

THOMAS: It didn’t come up that often. When there were X-Men problems after I left and Gary and Arnold Drake were writing it—the sales hadn’t been too strong anyway, and they continued to slip—I was brought in to save it, even though I may have been part of the problem earlier—who knows?

Things would go up and down. Avengers hadn’t been selling quite as well under me as it had under Stan, but then Stan had not only made me leave Thor and Iron Man out, but eventually take Captain America out, too. I complained, “You always had at least Captain America if not Thor and Iron Man in the book, and now I’ve got Goliath, Hawkeye, and Hercules—nothing but B-team material.” I lost that battle several times, but after a couple of years I slipped Thor, Cap, and Iron Man back in and Stan didn’t bother to tell me to take them out, and that was that.

But Stan and I really didn’t have many conflicts, and they were generally minor. I remember, in the early ’70s, he decided to change the name of Kull the Conqueror to Kull the Destroyer. I said I didn’t think it would make any difference, but he changed it anyway. [laughter] That was his prerogative. I didn’t think the change would hurt; I just didn’t think it would help much, and it didn’t. “Destroyer” was probably a

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better name than “Conqueror” for the market, but that wasn’t the real problem with the book. If Stan hadn’t liked something I was doing, I’d have tried to adjust, because he was the one who had set the Marvel style, and it’s hard to argue with someone who’s had that much success at it.

“My Master Is In Trouble!”

JA: Marie Severin was in production when you arrived. It was only a couple of years before she started drawing stories, right?

THOMAS: Yeah. She was there when I came in ’65, but I don’t think she’d been on staff long, maybe a few months. Even Sol hadn’t been on staff more than a few months; before that, he’d done it all freelance.

Before that, only Flo was in there every day. Stan was home writing a day or two a week.

Marie was doing production, and then she started designing ads and things when Marvel got into merchandising. I always remember one ad she wrote and drew, with Dr. Doom and the Hulk advertising t-shirts.

Stan had the Hulk replaced, using pasted-up drawings by Kirby and Esposito, but he left in Marie’s Doc Doom, and he left in her copy. The story is—and I don’t know if it’s true or not—that Goodman saw the ad and told Stan she should be doing a comic, so Stan had her take over “Dr. Strange” in Strange Tales. Her version was better than Bill Everett’s. She had her own quirky style that came out of a combination of humor, Kirby, EC, and the advertising art she’d been doing. She pulled it all together into a style that worked well for Marvel.

I don’t think she had a great interest in being a book artist as such, but that’s what was called for, and she did a good job. She drew The Hulk for a while. Much as I loved doing Sub-Mariner with her, my favorite stuff by her was the humor she did for Not Brand Echh.

Marie was very good at plotting. Often we just talked over stories, as I did later with Herb Trimpe on The Hulk, and then she’d go draw it.

She’d put in all these incidents, and add things. Of course, she was just nails on the humor stuff; it was really wonderful. But even in the other books, she was a joy to work with.

(Open) Secrets Behind The Comics In this interview, Roy reveals a bit of ghostplotting that went on at early-’70s Marvel. The splash of Tomb of Dracula #1 (April 1972) failed to note that he had plotted this story, taking his cue from an idea of Stan’s, and merely gave it to Gerry Conway to dialogue—but then, neither had the credits in The Incredible Hulk #136137 (Feb.-March 1971), with the splash of the latter pictured here, informed readers that both those issues had been plotted for Roy by Gerry! Like they say, a fair exchange involves no robbery…. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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Echh Marks The Spot!

A trio of sequences from Brand Echh #2 (Sept. 1967), which officially became Not Brand Echh only with #5. [Left to right:] Stan Lee, Marie Severin, & Frank Giacoia lampoon Spider-Man and Batman—Gary Friedrich & Marie Severin spoof S.H.I.E.L.D. and T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents—and Roy Thomas, Don Heck, & Dan Adkins mock Iron Man and Magnus, Robot Fighter. All those black dots and scrawled notes flanking the “Agent of S.H.E.E.S.H.” page represent Stan’s editing/rewriting. Thanks to Mike Burkey for the photocopies of original art. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

“Marie The She” Marie Severin was a triple-threat: she could draw, she could color—and she could co-plot with the best of ’em.

(Left:) Marie’s powerful splash for Sub-Mariner #13 (May 1969) was inked by none other than Joe Sinnott. She and Roy left the “Sub-Mariner” logo off it, to enhance its impact. Thanks to Shane Foley for finding this image in a black-&-white Australian reprint.

(Right:) We dunno for whom Marie drew this 2001 sketch, sent to us by Glen David Gold—but it underscores why Roy feels that, from first to last, “Mirthful Marie” was Not Brand Echh’s secret weapon! [Sub-Mariner page ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; humor art ©2005 Marie Severin; heroes TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc..]

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JA: She is known for having a wicked sense of humor at times.

THOMAS: Yes, her office cartoons. She didn’t draw a lot of cartoons of me—not that I saw, anyway. She claims I wasn’t easy to caricature, but there may have been others floating around that I didn’t see. That was how she got things out of her system. When she’d get mad at somebody, or just get frustrated in general, just like the rest of us, she had this outlet. She and Flo Steinberg got along very well, but she did a lot of cartoons about Flo, mostly about her being overworked. I never saw many cartoons by her showing Stan. Her cartoons would really get to the essence of the situation. They were like editorial cartoons.

I always remember the great caricature she did of Gil Kane in 1969, for the cover of Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #10. When I showed it to Gil, he said, [doleful voice] “She leaves me no illusions.” [more laughter] Gil recognized right away that she had caught the essence of him. It was a great caricature. [NOTE: It was reprinted in A/E V3 #3.]

JA: Let’s move on to Herb Trimpe. He started in the production department, too, right?

Making A Name For Himself In late 1965 Roy and Gary Friedrich moved to Bleecker Street in New York’s Greenwich Village, across the street from the studio of a well-known sculptor, Anthony Cipriano. Roy took one Saturday morning class with him, trying to make a hunk of clay look like the Rubenesque nude model—but quickly decided he had neither the time nor inclination to continue. When he related events to Marie, she drew a quick cartoon she titled “Roy’s First Day at Sculpting Class”—which he saved for years before it sadly went lost.

Recently, by sketching out from memory his own crude version of what the original had looked like, he prevailed upon her to draw it again—only, this time, while the layout is basically identical to the ’60s version, she elected to go into more detail. Either way, Ye Editor felt exquisitely skewered by Sister Severin’s biting wit. Thanks a second time, Marie—but exactly what is it you were trying to say? [©2005 Marie Severin.]

THOMAS: Yeah, at the photostat machine, though he’d previously worked with Tom Gill [on art for Western Publishing]. I don’t remember too much about Herb’s arrival, but first he was doing production work, then he started inking, and then he became the penciler of The Incredible Hulk. He also did the one “Phantom Eagle” story in Marvel Super-Heroes #16 with Gary Friedrich. Herb loves airplanes, and owned one for quite a few years.

JA: “The Phantom Eagle” was sort-of an unusual story for Marvel at the time.

A Knight To Remember In Marvel Super-Heroes #17 (Nov. 1968), Roy scripted and Howard Purcell penciled a tale of the modern-day Black Knight whom the Rascally One had developed for The Avengers, combining elements of two previous Stan Lee cocreations. Inks by Dan Adkins. Seen here, complete with light-hearted production credits probably written by Roy, is the inside front cover of that over-size issue, which also reprinted mid-1950s “Human Torch” and “SubMariner” stories by Ayers and Everett, respectively, and half of the “All Winners Squad” tale from 1947’s All Winners Comics #19. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

THOMAS: Marvel Super-Heroes was our Showcase-type book then, where we could try out different concepts. I think DC’s Enemy Ace was already out by that time. I suspect Gary saw that and thought, “Let’s try the Marvel approach to World War I.” Gary’s father was a World War II vet, and Gary’d heard a lot of war stories; I think that’s why he enjoyed working on Sgt. Fury even more than I did. He and Herb came up with “The Phantom Eagle”—I suspect I named it, after the old Fawcett hero, but maybe they came up with that name by sheer coincidence. That issue didn’t sell especially well, but nothing much did in that book, other than that throw-away “Spider-Man” story penciled

by Ross Andru and written by Stan. We tried things out in there,

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“I Egged Gary [Friedrich] Into Moving To New York” JA: He’s been in and out of the stories you’ve told so far, so tell me a little more about Gary Friedrich.

THOMAS: When he was in junior high in the late ’50s, Gary started working at the Palace Theatre in Jackson, Missouri, where I was already an usher, popcorn-boy, and soda jerk. Though I was three years older, we became good friends; we had a lot of interests in common, especially Elvis Presley and rock’n’roll. One night I came back from a break at a nearby drugstore with the first Showcase “Green Lantern.” Gary was never as much of a comics fan as I was, but he got kind-of interested in them after that. For 2-3 years in the early ’60s, we were in a rock band he started. He played the drums, and I was the singer, since I didn’t play an instrument. It was maybe the one thing in my life I ever enjoyed as much as or more than being in comics.

A Rare Herb Herb Trimpe, from the 1969 F.F. Annual—and two powerful World War I images from The Incredible Hulk #135 (Jan. 1971): Ol’ Greenskin arriving in No Man’s Land—and The Phantom Eagle, the aviator-hero Herb had co-created with Gary Friedrich for Marvel Super-Heroes #16 (Sept. 1968). Script by Roy T. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

though, and I think they were worth doing.

I did two “Black Knight” stories for that book with Howard Purcell.

One story was published [in Marvel Super-Heroes #17], and I plotted and Howard penciled a second one, which sat on the shelf for months.

Somehow, because I did it under a quota system, I got paid for dialoguing the second story. One day maybe a year later, the story was still sitting on my shelf when John Verpoorten, who was then production manager, phoned me on like a Friday and said, “They’re going over all the records, so on Monday they need to see a script for that ‘Black Knight’ story.” I said, “It’ll be there.”

So naturally, I procrastinated till Sunday, and then I sat down, and, in an hour or two, I deliberately wrote the worst script that I could! I remember one panel with just a drawing of the head of The Black Knight’s winged horse, and I wrote a thought balloon that said, “My master is in trouble!” I called the villain “The Netsman,” and I had him end every sentence melodramatically with his own name. Except for the splash page, it was deliberately the worst dialogue ever done for Marvel.

When I handed it in to John, I told him, “If you’re ever going to actually print this story, let me know, and I’ll write a new script.” Then they canceled Marvel Super-Heroes and wrote it off. I wish I still had that script or some of the artwork… and that I’d gotten a chance to write a better script and see it published. I was a fan of a pair of Green Lantern issues Purcell did in the ’40s, and feel like an idiot for never talking with him much about his work on that and “Johnny Peril.”

Later, when I got to Marvel, I egged Gary into moving to New York.

Since we didn’t have an opening at Marvel, I sent him to Dick Giordano, who was editor at Charlton and to whom I’d sent Denny O’Neil and one or two others earlier. Gary did a lot of work there. They only paid $4 a page, as I recalled from my two stories for them, but he could really churn it out. Later, when he came to Marvel, his Sgt. Fury stuff got particular notice, because he did interesting stories with pacifists and deserters and war-lovers. John Severin didn’t always like those stories, but I think Gary had a nice feel for that kind of thing. He conceived the motorcycle-riding Ghost Rider later, of course, after he’d written the Western hero for a while. That was a great idea.

JA: Of all the people who were writing during that time period, you were the one who really broke out...

THOMAS: Well, to the extent that that may be true, it’s only noticeable in retrospect. At the time, I just thought of myself as having all this competition from people I mostly liked. In fact, I got a few of them— like Denny, Gary, and later Steve Gerber—into the field. Most of these “competitors” were people I knew, or had met at conventions. Some of them worked for DC first, like Marv Wolfman, Len Wein, and Gerry Conway. Only Steve Skeates was at Marvel when I arrived, but somehow his stint didn’t quite jell, and he was let go a few weeks after I arrived. But it wasn’t a case of my replacing him; his replacement was Denny O’Neil. Luckily, Steve landed on his feet at Tower and elsewhere.

I don’t have any feeling that any of us were trying to undercut each other; we were relatively free of politics at Marvel for a few years there, which is a rare thing.

I remember that once—and I was a bit upset about this at the time— Denny scripted a “S.H.I.E.L.D.” story, and Stan had me rewrite some balloons because he didn’t like them. Apparently Denny got the wrong end of the stick on what had happened, and later I heard that he felt I had rewritten these stories to make myself look good to Stan. He didn’t know Stan had ordered me to rewrite them. Since Denny himself never told me how he felt, I didn’t feel I should bring it up to him, and anyway it was a relatively minor misunderstanding. Soon after that, Stan decided Denny wasn’t right for the staff job, though he retained some

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & freelance assignments. Unfortunately, this happened in the middle of a New York newspaper strike, which was Denny’s other chosen profession. I sent him up to Charlton, Dick Giordano put him to work, and it went very well for both of them.

Back then, Charlton was our Statue of Liberty: “Send us your tired, your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore….” [mutual laughter] That had been the first place I sold work to, also. Denny and Gary and Steve Skeates did good work for Charlton. Later Denny and Steve moved over to DC with Dick and did quite well, and I got Gary a job at Marvel. Charlton was a nice way-station, because Dick was the kind of editor who would find the right people, then say, “Just go do your thing.”

“John [Romita] Had Never Thought About Writing Before, And Now He Was Writing” JA: We haven’t talked much about John Romita yet. When he started there, he had to get acclimated to the style, too, which he seemed to do pretty quickly.

THOMAS: Well, he’d already done superheroes back in 1953-54 when he was drawing “Captain America.” But he’d gotten away from that for a decade while drawing romance comics at DC. He’d done some nice, dramatic work in that 1950s “Captain America.” I don’t care what he says about it; it was good stuff!

JA: The difference is that he was working from full scripts back then, but at Marvel, he had to do some plotting, too.

THOMAS: Right, and I think that scared him, as it did many artists. John had never thought about writing before, and now he was writing, in a sense.

When you’re making up elements of the story, you’re writing, whether we thought about it at the time or not. John adjusted to it wonderfully, but when he originally came back to Marvel he just wanted to ink; he didn’t want to have to think about drawing, let alone about story. Stan sneaked him into it. I think Stan figured, “Well, we’ll tell him he’ll just be inking.” That was the camel’s nose under the tent. Then Stan said, “Pencil this, pencil that,” and pretty soon, John was a full-time penciler.

JA: I wonder if Spider-Man— and I’m a big Ditko fan— THOMAS: I know what you’re gonna say: if Ditko hadn’t left, would it have become Marvel’s #1 book that it quickly did under Romita? I’m not sure, though it might have. For several years, it was a good, solid, second-place book, but within six months of John taking over, it shot to #1. I think it was gaining on Fantastic Four under Steve, but Romita was the final piece to fall into place. Maybe on Earth-22 somewhere, there’s another Marvel where Ditko never left, and I’d like to know how

From Ghost Rider To…Ghost Rider!

Besides Sgt. Fury, Daredevil, and Incredible Hulk, Gary Friedrich (seen here from the 1969 F.F. Annual) scripted the entire 7-issue run of Ghost Rider when Marvel picked up the old Magazine Enterprises Western hero as a “lapsed trademark”—working with 1950s GR artist/ co-creator Dick Ayers and inker Vince Colletta. Seen above is a page from Ghost Rider #4 (Aug. ’67). Repro’d from original art, courtesy of Ethan Roberts.

A few years later, Gary came up with the concept of the supernatural, motorcycle-riding Ghost Rider for Marvel Spotlight #5 (Aug. 1972), whose costume was co-designed

by Gary, artist Mike Ploog, and associate editor Roy. Hope Gary and Mike get well-earned creator credit on the movie version! Thanks to Bob Bailey for the art scan at left. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Spider-Man did there. Would it have passed Fantastic Four, or at least come closer? We just don’t know.

Ditko was very good, of course, and by 1965 SpiderMan was already Marvel’s most popular single character.

Romita came back to Marvel about two weeks after I got there— coming over from DC after talking to Stan—and he told me later that when he walked in he figured I must’ve been there for a long time.

When I was introduced to him, I said, “Oh yeah! You drew those great ‘Captain America’ stories in the ’50s!” He just about fell over. The idea of somebody remembering something he’d drawn more than a decade

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before was totally outside his comprehension. I was a fan of John’s—Bill Everett came back a few weeks later—and Dick Ayers and Jack Kirby of Simon & Kirby were already there! Some of my favorite artists from the ’40s and ’50s! I’d been a fan of Ditko’s “Captain Atom,” too. All these guys were coming back, but of course at that time the 1940s and ’50s weren’t the dim, distant past. John and I got along really well.

JA: I think of Romita as an artist much as I think of you as a writer: you guys were the most successful at giving Stan what he really wanted.

THOMAS: In the case of Romita, definitely. After Kirby, John was the most successful seller of books; more so even than Buscema. John had a radar sense for what Stan wanted. Of course, Stan kept drilling it into him, but John took it to heart. Stan was the boss, and John’s aim was was to give him what he wanted. I think a lot of John’s own instincts lay in that direction anyway. He’d been drawing romance comics at DC, so it was easy to put more personality and soap opera into Spider-Man. He’d also already done super-heroes à la Kirby, and he had a heavy Milt Caniff influence that had showed in the 1950s especially—so he had all the elements in place, and no ego that might have created conflict with Stan. John just wanted a good, steady job. He’d seen enough tough times in the field—as had Jack and all the oldtimers—that he just wanted to accommodate what Stan wanted. And he was very good at it.

good at corrections. On the other hand, Romita would try to figure out what Stan really wanted.

JA: Jack always said about penciling, “Go with your first instinct, because that’s usually your best bet.” But John Romita said his own first instinct wasn’t always what worked.

THOMAS: It’s like Harlan Ellison saying he never rewrites anything.

For some people, that may be the best approach, but for other people— for most, I suspect—it isn’t. Maybe for Jack it was. But if you’re not the natural steamroller artist Jack Kirby was, you have to try something different. You end up second-guessing yourself, and you may secondguess yourself into complete paralysis. That’s what John would do sometimes. It would happen to me, too: if I thought too hard about the writing, I would end up with writer’s block. It’s best not to think about it too much; just plow into it.

JA: Except that John says he was a slow penciler...

THOMAS: Well, he kept slowing down because he was so conscientious. As I said at the Stan Lee Roast in Chicago in 1995, John started out penciling and inking a whole book a month, and worked his way down to barely managing to do layouts for one comic a month. He suffered over everything, trying to do it right, and Stan or the production manager would give him a million things to do in between: “Oh, while you’re plotting Spider-Man, how about doing this cover or making these corrections?” If John had just been doing SpiderMan, he’d have been faster, but it’s hard to stay in the mood when you’re doing five or ten other things a day, as well.

He was so good, and so invaluable, that Stan used him the same way he’d have used Jack, if Jack had been in the office. But John was much more flexible than Jack. When Stan asked Jack to redo a drawing, he was often unhappy with the way Jack redrew it, because Jack had already done it the way he’d envisioned it, and wasn’t that

…Does Whatever A Spider Can… John Romita in the 1970s, and some of his Spider-Man pencils: display art of Peter/Spidey, his friends, and his foes—and three (autographed) panels featuring Peter and Gwen Stacy. This partpage is marked as being intended for Amazing Spider-Man #76 (Sept. 1969), but since there’s no related scene therein, the whole idea of this sequence must’ve been scrapped. Thanks to Mike Burkey for the art, and to R. Dewey Cassell for the copy of the photo from the Marvel set. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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things. For the most part, they were just interested in getting the job done, just as I was, and I had a slightly different modus vivendi with each artist I worked with, usually without thinking about it too much.

JA: Was there anybody in particular who wanted to be a little more dominating than the others?

Splitting Adams Yep, artist Neal Adams came along just in time to be in that selfsame 1969 F.F. Annual. At left is an Adams-penciled page from The Avengers #96 (Feb. 1972)—at right, his less-often-reprinted first “Inhumans” splash from Amazing Adventures #5 (March 1971).

Both were inked by Tom Palmer and scripted by Roy Thomas. Thanks to Tom for the photocopy of the Avengers original art, and to Bob Bailey for the “Inhumans” scan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

“[Neal Adams’] Way Probably Worked Just As Well As Mine Would Have” JA: Of the artists you worked with, who was the most militant about plotting his own way rather than your way? I know Neal Adams wanted a lot of involvement in the plotting….

THOMAS: He did, but it wasn’t “his way” as opposed to “my way,” because we never really disagreed about story. I tended to go along with what he wanted to do, because it usually sounded good to me—though I did a bit of subtle guiding over our lunches, since I knew the Marvel characters better than he did. Neal and I never had confrontations in which I said, “Let’s do it this way,” and he said he wanted to do it that way. If he had, I might have given in, or I might not have. Often I suspect it wouldn’t have been worth an argument, and his way probably worked just as well as mine would have. Not necessarily better…but just as well.

Consider this: what if, when Neal was the artist on X-Men or Avengers, I had written out detailed plots of my own for him, and he’d drawn them, sticking close to what I asked for, and of course drawing it beautifully as he always did. When anyone read that issue, would they know if it was better or worse than what Neal would draw when he was effectively co-plotting a book? It would just have been a bunch of different pictures—and people would still have loved them. They wouldn’t know or care whose idea it was. I’m not saying Neal didn’t contribute a lot, because he did—but did that necessarily make the stories better than they’d have been if I’d done a full plot? There’s no way anyone can ever know for sure.

I really didn’t have a lot of confrontations with artists over such

THOMAS: No, not really. I didn’t really have problems with artists wanting to do things differently than I thought they should. That’s happened in later years, as artists began to feel they were the only stars; but in the ’60s and early

’70s, that sort of thing didn’t happen.

JA: Don Mangus said the Peter Parker/Gwen Stacy/Mary Jane Watson triangle was like Archie, Betty, and Veronica. Did you ever make that connection?

THOMAS: Only to the extent that sometimes Gwen and Mary Jane looked a lot alike except for the hair color. I know John Romita’s said that he felt sometimes Stan would try to turn Gwen into Mary Jane a little too much.

Back to your original question: I think it’s just a natural progression to have a guy and a couple of different girls in a story, and they have to have different personalities. Elvis had three girls in every movie he made: usually two serious contenders, and one who was just a buddy. You come up with a formula and do riffs on it, and Stan and the guys were pretty good at doing those riffs.

“[Sol Brodsky and I] Had A Good, Friendly Relationship” JA: Sol Brodsky started working on staff after you started, right?

THOMAS: No, he was already on staff as production manager when I came in. Sol was the first male I ever met up at Marvel, while I was still working for Mort Weisinger. Flo Steinberg had come out into the waiting room the first day to give me the writing test that Stan had told me over the phone he wanted me to take. When I brought it back written the next day during another stolen lunch hour, Sol came out and I handed it to him. He asked how I thought it had gone, and I said, “Well, I don’t know. Okay, I guess.” He was very friendly, but he’d been down that road before with a lot of people bringing back tests, or sending them in. The next day, Stan had Flo phone me at DC. I got the

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics not getting work done on time. Frank Giacoia was another bane of his.

Even Vinnie Colletta—who was usually very dependable—must’ve once angered Sol about something, because I remember he stuck Vinnie’s check back in his desk for an extra week before giving it to him—which was maybe pushing a little bit, because Vinnie had Stan’s ear.

Sol seemed like basically a fair guy. Some people liked him, as I did.

Some people like Gil Kane and others—who would run afoul of a deadline or try to get an early check—weren’t as wild about him. Both sides of Sol’s personality were there to see. I was never under the illusion that I was going to learn anything from him that he didn’t think Stan wanted me to know, because that’s how he saw his job. Within those limits, we got along well, and I look back on him as one of the people I was fondest of at Marvel. He got me into the poker game, which was a lot of fun. We spent a lot of hours together.

JA: More than once, Sol tried to start up his own companies...

THOMAS: He didn’t think of himself primarily as an artist. He was a reasonably good inker and a reasonably decent penciler, but he wanted to find a better way to make a buck.

JA: Earlier, he had a good job at Marvel, but then he left to start Skywald with Israel Waldman.…

You’ll Believe A Production Manager Can Fly—For A Little While You saw a photo of “Jolly Solly Brodsky” on p. 5—now behold Marvel’s 1960s production guru burst into flame as he becomes The Human Torch in the wackiest issue ever of What If—#11 (Oct. 1978). Jack Kirby wrote and penciled; Mike Royer & Bill Wray inked. Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

call while I was proofing a Jim Mooney “Supergirl” story. I told Jim I consider him my good luck charm because of that.

Sol and I never became personal chums exactly, but we had a good, friendly relationship. He and his wife Selma invited me out to their place in Brooklyn once in the early days, and were very nice to me. I probably met his kids Gary and Janice at the time. Sol was very, very helpful to me. He taught me to tie a necktie, for one thing. Gary Brodsky says Sol told him how I bought a pair of alligator shoes before pimps were noted for wearing them, at a time when most of us weren’t too ecologically conscious. One day Sol and I went out on our lunch hour and we both bought Russian hats, which were a fad in the middle to late ‘60s.

THOMAS: Yeah. I think he felt like, what was the future in being Stan’s production manager? Except for raises, it was a dead end. So he took a chance with a company he could own a part of. He left on very good terms with Stan, despite the problem Martin Goodman had later with [Sol’s partner, Israel] Waldman— who printed some Marvel art he thought he had the rights to, but didn’t.

Sol may have already left Skywald by the time that came up. I think he came back after six months or a year, because things weren’t working out.

He didn’t get his production job back—John Verpoorten had that—but he ended up with another department that eventually became very important, doing English reprints and

As much as possible, Sol would use kid gloves with freelancers, but you could sense the iron hand inside that glove, because he was the guy with the deadlines looming over his shoulder. Once in a while, somebody’d drive him a little crazy, like Bill Everett with his excuses for

O Captain! My Captain!

Did Martin Goodman promise Joe Simon & Jack Kirby part-ownership of Captain America in 1941, as has been averred? Be that as it may, 2H decades later, Kirby penciled and Frank Giacoia inked this Cap figure for the cover of Fantasy Masterpieces #5 (Oct. 1966). Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

37 22, and I was never wild about working for a big corporation.

That’s been kind-of a consistent pattern through my life.

Corporations demand loyalty from you, but they don’t feel any loyalty to you. Even Martin Goodman was occasionally capable of seeing loyalty as a two-way street. Corporations don’t do that. I’m a firm believer in capitalism, but that doesn’t mean I have to love and respect all capitalists.

JA: Did many people like Martin Goodman?

THOMAS: We always called him “Mr. Goodman.” Somebody once wrote, “I think his wife calls him Mr. Goodman.” Some people liked him because what little contact they had with him was friendly. I always saw him as cold, distant, and absolutely apathetic to anything creative or human, unless it struck his fancy.

He could have a weakness for a particular person. John Over the July 4th weekend in 1968, Roy attended the first Gateway Con in St. Louis, his old Verpoorten and I passed stomping-grounds—and wound up eloping with his long-distance ladyfriend Jean Maxey Goodman in the hall one day, (who agreed to marry him only if he’d shave his goatee—which should have been considered and he asked how Bill Everett a public service). The last tale Roy scripted as a single man the first time around, before was doing. John said, “He’s leaving for Missouri, had been the John Buscema-penciled Sub-Mariner #8 (Dec. 1968), to be making a comeback.” Goodman inked by Dan Adkins. These two pages—a wonderfully innovative Namor/Thing fight scene laughed, “Yeah, Bill’s always and the “Peter Pan” finale featuring Namor’s old flame—are Roy’s favorites from that landmark issue. The photo at right from that 1968 con appeared in the May 2003 issue of making a comeback,” and Saga, the official newsletter of the Silver and Golden Age Collectors Group of St. Louis; strolled on. But he said it with a thanks to Mike Phoenix, Allen Logan, et al. [Sub-Mariner art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] kind of bemused affection. Most people there really didn’t have commercial work… probably a better job than John’s. He eventually much contact with Goodman. My became a vice president, I think. Stan knew he could depend on Sol. own were reasonably pleasant, During the early days, he used to say Sol was his right-hand man and I but by the time I had any kind of authority, he was gone. was his left-hand man—because those were the sides of Stan on which

Meet Me In St. Louis

we each stood while he went over scripts or artwork with us. Once, when Stan and I disagreed about something, he said he wished I could be more like Sol. But I maintained, “Sol and I are totally different. Sol isn’t interested in story content or things like that, just in getting the books out. I’ve got to be responsible for the quality.” Sol was valued for his loyalty and dependability, and he was quite competent at whatever mattered to him.

“Corporations Demand Loyalty From You, But They Don’t Feel Any Loyalty To You” JA: How did you find out that Martin Goodman was selling the company, and when you found out, how did that make you feel?

THOMAS: I don’t remember exactly. I guess Sol was still there, and maybe I found out from him—but more likely it was from Stan.

Sometimes it’s difficult to remember which of the two of them told me something. I didn’t like the idea of being part of a conglomerate.

Goodman might have been a despot, but at least he was an occasionally benevolent despot, and he could do whatever struck his fancy. I grew up seeing movies like The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit and The Man in the White Suit, and in the early 1960s I’d read Joseph Heller’s Catch-

JA: There’s a rumor that one of the reasons Ditko quit was that Martin Goodman and/or Stan had made promises to Ditko and Kirby about sharing revenue in some way because of the characters they’d created.

THOMAS: It’s hard for me to imagine Goodman doing that. It’s easier to believe he may have done it in 1941 with Simon & Kirby on Captain America, when the field was new. But by the early ’60s, I can’t see him doing that. Still, he could’ve made a concrete statement—I’m not saying he didn’t—or he may have made a vaguer one that Ditko and Kirby interpreted that way, and he may even have intended that they interpret it that way. I don’t know. I’m sure I never heard anything about that while I was there.

“When [Stan] Was Serious, He Was Serious!”

JA: Was Stan easily approachable when you had a personal problem?

THOMAS: After a while, I felt that I could. When Jeanie and I were separated for the first time in late ’72 and early ’73, staff people complained to him I was causing problems by being out too much, either taking off to see my lawyer, or whatever. Stan called me in and talked to me like a Dutch uncle, but in a very friendly way. He helped

38

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics tried hard after that never to make a lighthearted comment in the middle of a serious discussion, because to Stan that meant you weren’t taking the problem seriously.

I was, but I can see where it hadn’t seemed that way to him.

Does The Name “Roussos” Ring A “Bell”?

me shape up and get through a very difficult period, and I appreciated that.

George Roussos and friends at Joe Sinnott’s “retirement” party on Oct. 16, 1991—when Joltin’ Joe stopped doing comic books regularly, though he still inks the Spider-Man Sunday newspaper strip. (L. to r.:) George, John Romita, Joe, Jack Abel, & Betty Sinnott; photo courtesy of the Sinnotts. At left are some Kirbypenciled, Roussos-inked panels (done as “George Bell”) from Fantastic Four #24 (March 1964), repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Glen David Gold. Note Jack’s use in panels 1-2 of the Martian invaders’ ships from George Pal’s 1953 War of the Worlds movie. [F.F. page ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

I think that, having been an editor since he was in his teens, he felt a need to guard himself from too many people coming in and laying their troubles on him. I suspect he worried about being a soft touch. Somehow, though, Gary Friedrich always had his number. In 1968 or ’69, Gary skipped out on his staff job for a week or so and got married out in Reno to a nice Brooklyn Jewish girl. In fact, he got married for the third time, to a second nice Brooklyn Jewish girl, though he was only in his 20s. I thought, “My God, Gary’s gonna get canned for this!” When he came back, Stan called him in, and I figured, “Well, that’s that.” But instead, Stan told him this great story—how, when his future wife Joan was in Reno divorcing her first husband, years earlier, Stan had wanted to go out and see her, so he’d hopped the first plane he could grab. But he didn’t pay attention to what plane it was, and it turned out to be a milk run that made about 20 stops on the way west, so it took him two or three days to get to Reno. So Gary had accidentally pushed Stan’s buttons, because his running off to Reno to get married had reminded Stan of his own younger days. Gary came out of it smelling like a rose. Stan could forgive an occasional foible as long as it didn’t happen too often.

I remember, when I had to miss a Monday after impulsively eloping over a weekend in Missouri in ’68, there’d been some minor crisis while I was gone.

When Stan and Sol and I were discussing it on the day I got back, I made an offhand remark like, “Well, I don’t take an extra day off to get married every day,” and Stan shot back, “Yeah, and don’t think that wasn’t noticed!” And he wasn’t kidding. He was a great boss, but when he was serious, he was serious! I

The Way We Were Roy and first wife Jean at a cocktail party preceding the 1973 ACBA Arts awards banquet mentioned on p. 25. From 1970-1975, many comics professionals belonged to the Academy of Comic Book Arts (and boy, do we wish somebody had enough material and knowledge to scribe a good history of ACBA for A/E!). Roy & Jeanie co-plotted the origin story of the “Werewolf by Night” series for Marvel Spotlight #2 (Feb. 1972) one bright Sunday afternoon sitting out in the open near New York’s Colisseum after attending a boring automobile show, fleshing out Roy’s idea for a first-person series called “I, Werewolf.” Later, Mike Ploog drew and Gerry Conway dialogued. Photo taken by Michele Wolfman, repro’d from The ACBA Newsletter, Vol. 1, #21 (June 1973), courtesy of Fabulous Flo Steinberg. Thanks to Bob Bailey for the MS #2 scan. [©2005 the respective copyright holders.]

JA: When he was the editor of all the books, Stan was just working in the office three days a week, right?

THOMAS: Yeah, sometimes just two. Things ran smoothly on the days he wasn’t there because Sol was really good at his job. He arranged it so Stan could take care of everything on his in-days, and on the others he’d phone him if he needed something approved.

I don’t think anything important went out without Stan seeing it. After Sol left, John Verpoorten followed that tradition as best he could. Somehow, we managed to get by with an editor who was only there 2-3 days a week, because when Stan was in there, he was really in there. He worked at it, and he came in with his work done. Sol was the guy who told Stan what he had to write and in what order, and Stan never let Sol down.

Later, I never had to do what a lot of editors do—keeping straight who’s doing what story, and in what order—and neither did Stan. That was the production manager’s job. They’d just say—first to Stan and later to me—”Here’s a decision that needs to be made,” and I’d make one. Sometimes it’s really important that a decision you make be exactly the right decision. But, a lot of the time, it isn’t important what the precise decision is; it’s just important that you make one, and I could do that. Some other Marvel editors couldn’t, at various times, and it drove the production managers crazy. I drove them crazy, too—just in different ways.

JA: When did you start editing? 1968?

THOMAS: Depends on what you count as “editing.”

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39

Some things I was already doing in 1965.

But one day in ’67 or ’68, after Gary got there, Stan decided we needed titles to keep things straight, so he said, “Roy, from now on you’re the associate editor, and Gary is the assistant editor.” Before that, I guess I was the assistant editor, but I Will The Real Bob Kane Please Stand Up? never called myself that (L. to r.:) Golden/Silver Age artists Jim Mooney, Joe Giella, at that stage. Stan was and Shelly Moldoff at the 1996 San Diego Comic-Con. All the one who talked to did “Batman” art at one time or another, with the name the artists and things like “Bob Kane” plastered on the splash. For a year or so in that, except sometimes the late 1960s/early ’70s, Jim did the finished penciling on books I was writing. and inking on Amazing Spider-Man over John Buscema’s I took a little of that layouts, as per this splash from #80 (Jan. 1970). burden off of him, but [Photo ©2005 Charlie Roberts.] only as much as he wanted me to. I wasn’t trying to do any more editing than I needed to. I was busy enough without going around looking for more authority.

JA: When you became an editor, how much involvement did Stan have in the books you were editing?

THOMAS: Not that much. He still approved the covers, and if there was something he wanted to discuss, he’d call me in and we’d talk it over. Of course, after 1972, he decided what books were put out, just as Martin Goodman had before. Then, if he decided he wanted several black-&-white books, it was my job to do it, just as it had been his for Goodman before. But Stan was more likely than Goodman to have a title or a specific concept in mind.

The editor-in-chief job gradually changed after I stepped down in 1974. Jim Shooter managed to change it into a more powerful position, which made sense because Stan was in the process of moving to L.A. by then, and had to let go anyway.

“A Couple More ’60s People” JA: Let’s talk about a couple more ’60s people. George Roussos went from inking to coloring. Was this another example of Stan trying to find something for somebody to do?

THOMAS: Maybe. George wasn’t even doing inking by the time I got there. I don’t think he really cared that much.

JA: I know he inked the first couple of “Deadman” stories [Strange Adventures #205-206] before Adams took over in ’67. After that, he seemed to stay at Marvel.

THOMAS: I don’t remember him drawing at Marvel after I got there.

Too bad, really. In terms of his personality, George always seemed to be sitting back and quietly judging you, but he and I always got along.

He’d practically barricade himself behind filing cabinets to keep people out. When we had a bomb scare circa 1973 and everybody else left the building, nobody knew George hadn’t come out, because they couldn’t see him behind those cabinets. He’d figured, “Hey, it’s just a bomb scare; I ain’t going anywhere.” Someone had to go up and get him. That he secluded himself so much is probably emblematic of his personality.

The only problem he and I ever had was that sometimes when he colored a story, Spider-Man would leap from a yellow wall toward a gray wall—but when he’d reach that wall, it had suddenly changed to yellow, so that Spidey’s red-and-blue costume would stand out better.

That was bad continuity, and he didn’t seem to see that. Other than that blind spot, he was a great colorist and a great guy.

JA: I also haven’t asked you about Jim Mooney.

THOMAS: Jim was a nice guy, but I never saw much of him. He was a good artist; I don’t think he was the kind of dramatic penciler Stan was looking for in the 1960s, but he was very good at inking or finishing.

JA: Since you bring it up, let me ask you about a few inkers. Vinnie Colletta didn’t seem to do well inking Jack Kirby on Fantastic Four, but he seemed much more at home on Thor. How conscious were Stan and you about making those kinds of assignments?

THOMAS: Stan had just put Joe Sinnott on Fantastic Four around the time I came there, so I never heard him say much about Vinnie on FF. I know he liked Vinnie on Thor. It may have cost Jack in some ways, in terms of details, but it did give the work an illustrative quality. Fantastic Four didn’t need that, but after Stan saw how it worked on “Tales of Asgard” [beginning in Journey into Mystery #106], I guess he decided to go with Vinnie on Thor.

Vinnie was the guy you went to in a deadline crisis, and he played on that. You make yourself good on deadlines, and editors will come to you.

You also know you can get away with murder, because they need you for the deadline. Based on surveys and mail, Vinnie was also one of Marvel’s most popular inkers, at least through the early ’70s, right up there behind Sinnott. Vinnie was popular because he stayed on Thor a long time, because he was inking Jack Kirby, and because he made things look kindof pretty. Sometimes I went to him specifically, as in the mid-’70s on The Invaders, to make Frank Robbins’ art look more like a Marvel comic, and it worked—even though it wasn’t good Frank Robbins.

While Chic Stone was a nice person and a good artist, I never really liked his heavy-handed, thick-line inking style on Marvel books. It looked too much like coloring books to me. I guess that’s what Chic thought Stan wanted, and maybe he did, but I think he could have inked it better if he had wanted to.

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

JA: What about Mike Esposito?

THOMAS: Later, I got involved with Mike and Ross Andru in a couple of comic strip projects, but before that, I knew Mike mostly from the poker games. He was a fun guy to be around, and a good inker. He wasn’t the kind of guy to add a lot of noodling like Vinnie, but if we were looking for a good, solid inker, that was Mike. He’s a very intelligent guy, and very dependable. [A two-part Mike Esposito interview will appear in the Oct. and Nov. issues of Alter Ego, and you’ll see why Roy and I think Mike is one of the greatest anecdote-tellers in the business. —Jim.] JA: Joe Sinnott hardly came around the office at all, did he?

THOMAS: No, he didn’t come in for years. We were all in awe of his work; he was obviously one of the best inkers Kirby had ever had, and perfect for Fantastic Four. I can understand why John Buscema didn’t feel Joe was right for him, but most of the rest of us liked Sinnott on Buscema better than John did. Buscema had a great respect for Sinnott; he just felt he wanted something a little different on his work. He liked

Just One Of Those Things You saw a photo of Joe Sinnott a couple of pages back. Here’s a drawing of the ever-lovin’, blue-eyed Thing that he drew for Jim Amash a few years ago.

[Art ©2005 Joe Sinnott; The Thing TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

his own inks, or Sal’s. I’m not sure I totally agree: I liked what Sal and John did inking John, but not always more than what Joe did. Joe’s a very good inker, and as dependable as the day is long.

JA: Sal Buscema.

THOMAS: Sal came around after his brother John gave him pointers, but John let Sal make it on his own. I suspect John was a little hard on him about making sure he had the right samples before he brought them in. But as soon as he saw those samples, Stan gave him a job. I remember one of the first things he did—a sequence I made up with no story yet to go with it—had Captain America landing on a rooftop, then being attacked by The Man-Ape. We used that for Sal’s third or fourth Avengers story later. I was knocked out by that introductory sequence, because Sal had captured a lot of John’s style.

Stone(d) Again Roy may not have been crazy about the super-thick-line inking done by Chic Stone (seen here as per the 1975 Mighty Marvel Comic Convention program book) for mid-1960s, but that doesn’t mean he disparages Chic’s talent—and Chic was a great guy, besides! Bob Bailey tells us that this 1996 drawing by Stone was “probably his first Jack Kirby re-creation.” Chic didn’t care much for it, but Bob bought it anyway! And the lines aren’t too thick! [Art ©2005 Estate of Chic Stone; Captain America & Bucky TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

You see, Stan kept “stealing” John from me on The Avengers. I’d get him back for a while, then Stan would come up with a new project and yank him off again. Not that John especially liked doing The Avengers, because of all the characters, but he’d always say to me, “Hey, Stan says I have to get off the book,” and what was I going to do, argue with Stan? I was glad when Sal—with whom Stan didn’t have the same sort of relationship—came along, because, at least superficially, his work looked a lot like John’s. As time went on, I realized Sal had his own virtues.

And from a commercial standpoint, Sal worked out about as well as John on Avengers and Sub-Mariner. He told a story well, he added to the plot, and he was great to work with. I guess Sal’s always lived in John’s shadow—aware that he was doing some books because John couldn’t—but hell, I was making a living because Stan couldn’t write everything, so how could I begrudge Sal?

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

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Larry Lieber Unleashed You saw Larry Lieber on p. 9—now here’s his Spider-Man daily for May 11, 1990. (Inks by John Tartaglione?) Art repro’d from photocopies of the original art, courtesy of Larry. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Fans often pick out a few favorites and get down on other people, deciding that everybody they don’t like is a total hack, like that travesty with Don Heck. It’s ridiculous, really. Sal was great on Avengers. His issues sold basically as well as John’s or Neal’s. I never had the feeling I wanted to get rid of Sal and get John back. I think Sal and I made a good team. If you squinted hard, you might think it was Stan and John! [mutual laughter]

Had Larry elected to continue doing super-heroes, I think he’d have been a good writer of a book or so a month, though he could never have taken much of the burden off Stan. He felt he was better off writing and drawing Rawhide Kid. Rawhide Kid was a good book, and lasted the longest of any of the Marvel Westerns.

“Stan Obviously Had Faith In Larry [Lieber]” JA: Let me ask you about Larry Lieber, because...

THOMAS: He’s Stan’s brother, you know. [Jim laughs] JA: Larry seems to be the opposite of Stan in personality: much quieter. He said in one of his interviews that doing artwork was a struggle for him. Did you notice that?

THOMAS: Oh, yeah. He was the slowest artist you’d ever want to see.

He did so much looking at Kirby’s work while he was doing Rawhide Kid, to get that flavor in. Same thing when he was doing the little bit of super-hero drawing he did, like a Spider-Man Annual. My guess is that he was insecure about his artwork, so he was always looking for a Kirby drawing or some related drawing to inspire him. His art improved a lot as time went on, as his later work on the Spider-Man newspaper strip shows.

But he was always very slow and meticulous. If Rawhide Kid was changed from monthly to bi-monthly, he’d just take twice as long to draw it! He’d laugh about it; he knew that about himself. The one time I saw him get upset was sometime in the late ’60s: he was still finishing up one issue of Rawhide Kid when the printed insides—the “makereadies,” we called them—for the issue before that one came into the office, meaning it would be on sale in a couple of weeks. He suddenly realized the deadlines were catching up with him!

JA: I’m under the impression that his relationship with Stan was always good, but they weren’t really close, were they?

THOMAS: They’ve always said that, probably because of the 12-year difference in their ages, they really didn’t know each other that well while they were growing up.

Stan obviously had faith in Larry, because he’d worked hard to train him as a writer, and he knew Larry was trying to give him what he wanted.

In those days, I think it worked pretty well. But since Larry didn’t really want to write super-heroes, it was one of those things that got phased out.

Up On The Roof Sal Buscema (from that 1969 F.F. Annual) and the splash page of The Avengers #78 (July 1970), which John’s baby brother both penciled and inked. He’d actually penciled the first three pages of this story a year earlier, as a prospective fill-in story based on notes by Roy, before he did his first Avengers, issue #68. It just took Roy a while to get around to making up a story to go with pp. 1-3—but it wound up being the debut of The Lethal Legion. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

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“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics Topline

JA: Here’s a guy we almost never hear about: Jack Keller. Did you know him?

THOMAS: I don’t know if I ever met him. I enjoyed his work in the same way I enjoyed the work of Jesse Marsh, who drew Tarzan. It was a stiff, blocky type of drawing, but it told the story well. They discontinued Kid Colt within a year or so of my getting there, so I really didn’t have any contact with him.

“Frank Giacoia Stories” JA: Frank Giacoia.

THOMAS: [chuckles] For a person I didn’t know very well, I have more Frank Giacoia stories! I met Frank during the first couple of weeks I was there, when Sol called him in to ink a Millie the Model—maybe the one I’d written. He made Stan Goldberg’s work look beautiful. It had already looked good, but Frank made it look beautiful.

Frank-ly Furry “Fearless Frank Giaocia” from the 1975 Mighty Marvel Comic Convention program book—and a nicely-composed page from Avengers #73 (Feb. 1970). By pure coincidence, both Avengers issues Frank penciled featured The Black Panther. Inks by Sam Grainger; script by Roy Thomas. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

But he was so slow—or at least he tended not to get jobs done on time—that at that point Sol wouldn’t give him inking jobs unless he came into the office to work. But, once there, Frank would lure me, as the new kid on the block, into conversations by asking, “Did you ever see Gunga Din?” At that time I’d seen it at most once, so he’d tell me, in great detail, how he’d seen it 50 times. Of course, most of those were while he was watching TV while inking, which meant he didn’t get much done. Sol took me aside and said, “Try to stay out of conversations with Frank, because he wants to do anything except work.” That was in Frank’s best interest, because he was only getting paid by the page.

He just had a lot of blockage, perhaps because he’d never learned to pencil as well as he should have. Gil Kane used to say that, when he and Frank and Carmine Infantino started off as pencilers together, going to see Shelly Mayer in the early ’40s, Gil felt Frank was the best penciler of the three of them. But he fell behind in that area, and though he could put together swipes, it would take him forever, so financially he was better off inking.

A Kid Named Keller Sadly, we couldn’t turn up a photo of the late Jack Keller, whose career was examined by Dr. Michael J. Vassallo in A/E #23—but here, repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Don Mangus, is a splash page (autographed at bottom) from Kid Colt Outlaw #80, circa 1960. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Even as an inker, he’d get an assignment from Marvel, then run over and get one from DC, or vice versa, so he could get an advance on another story. He’d end up making everybody mad at him. He was one of the very best inkers Marvel had, one of the best for Kirby, too, as

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

43

witness those beautiful “Captain America” stories. But he never got much of a reputation with Marvel readers, because he never stayed on a strip long enough to be identified with anything.

In my early, skinnier days in the ’60s and early ’70s, when I weighed 120-130 pounds, he’d always try to sit next to me in restaurants— especially Italian ones—so he could finish off the food I didn’t eat: “You gonna eat that?”

He didn’t really like me much. Mostly it came, I think, from when he was made assistant art director in 1972 and I became editor-in-chief, when Stan became publisher and president. Frank held it against me and, I suspect, Romita—who succeeded him and got the title of art director—that he was eventually relieved of that job by Stan. But that happened because Frank had so much trouble turning out cover layouts and other things the job called for.

After he was taken off that job but given a promise of all the freelance work he could handle, he moaned to me about how he had busted his hump—his phrase, and by his standards, I guess he had—on the assistant art director job. But it hadn’t seemed like that to anybody else. He never produced that much.

Sometime a year or so later, I remember telling Gil Kane, “Even though he’s friendly and he eats part of my food, I don’t really think Frank likes me very much.” And Gil looked down at me and said, “My boy, I’ve never heard him say anything about you that was that equivocal.” [mutual laughter] Still, I liked Frank to the end. We’d give him any kind of work he could do. Sometimes he’d hack it out and his inline would get a bit flat, but at his best, he was great.

JA: He penciled an issue of The Avengers at one time [#87], and it turned out to be a disaster, right? I think he had to call on help, and wasn’t it late?

THOMAS: Well, he did a whole issue. [NOTE: Actually, Giacoia did two, including #73. —Jim.] After the first few pages, he seemed to run out of steam. Everybody kept trying to find ways to use him—for a while, he was supposed to ink most of Marvel’s covers—but it just never worked out. If making money was his aim, he was his own worst enemy.

He was a nice guy, though. If people had disliked him, or had thought he was untalented, he’d never have been able to stay employed in the field.

“John [Verpoorten] Was Too Much Of A Soft Touch” JA: Okay, what about John Verpoorten?

THOMAS: He and I were about the same age, and we got to be good friends after he started at Marvel. I remember looking up—and up, and up—from where I was sitting the first time he walked into the office. We always kidded John about his designing the “Owl-Plane” for the Owl comic he’d worked on with Tom Gill.

He and I had a lot of the same interests; he even gave me a copy of one issue of All-Star Comics, and he gave me a Charles Schulz Peanuts original, one he said he’d gotten when he was young by writing letters to cartoonists claiming he was dying and that his one dream before he died was to have an original strip of theirs. [laughter] He felt guilty about it later; maybe that’s the reason he gave some of that art away.

We had some problems between us in the early ’70s, because I think he sided with this little group that persuaded Stan to withdraw his earlier

It’s Forbush, Man! John Verpoorten from the 1969 F.F. Annual, and a Forbush-Man drawing he did for a next-issue ad in Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #10. The art for F-Man’s more-or-less opposite number at the time, Jonny DC, was picked up from a mag published by the Distinguished Competition.

[Art at left ©2005 Estate of John Verpoorten; Forbush-Man TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters;, Inc.; Jonny DC TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

offer to give my first wife Jeanie a secretarial job in the office when she got out of college. When the time came, this group apparently complained to Stan that would give me a “spy” in the office on days I wasn’t there, as if somehow there was something wrong with my knowing what was going on. John and I were a bit estranged after that, but we basically got along okay. After I moved out to Los Angeles, I stayed at his place once when I came back to New York, and we never mentioned that problem. He was a pretty good inker, and did some fairly nice humor work in Not Brand Echh.

JA: He took over when Sol Brodsky left, right?

THOMAS: Right. Unfortunately, John was too much of a soft touch. I won’t mention any names, but there were a few guys who really got into the company for money by vouchering ahead in those days—not like I was with that one “Black Knight” story which I’d at least plotted, but guys who were paid ahead for a lot of work they never did. John would fall for their sob story, then have to chase after them to get the work they’d been paid for. When he passed away in late 1977, Marvel was caught short of thousands of dollars it probably never got back. John never meant to let anybody cheat Marvel; he was just too soft-hearted for his own—or Marvel’s—good.

I was probably the last person in comics to speak to him alive, in December 1977. I phoned him from L.A. on a Friday evening to quit the Tarzan book, in my utter disgust after a phone call from Marion Burroughs [of ERB, Inc.] that I’ve talked about elsewhere. The following Monday morning, I got a call from [editor-in-chief] Archie Goodwin saying John had been found dead, and I had to quit Tarzan all over again. His death was a real blow.

John had mentioned on the phone that he wasn’t feeling too well. He was 6’7” or something like that, and weighed over 300 pounds. “Big Bad John,” they called him. He’d lose a hundred pounds or so when he was involved in some romance, then he’d get disappointed in the romance and gain it back. Going up and down that way is a sure way to put a strain on your heart, so it’s not too surprising he didn’t live longer. I still miss him; he was a great guy, a funny guy, and a big collector of old 16millimeter movies. When I had to adapt The Wizard of Oz in the mid’70s, I went down to his apartment in the East 20s, and he just pulled it off a shelf, in those days before videotape. He was good friends with Len Brown, Gary Friedrich, Mike Esposito, and I think Vinnie, too.

Vinnie would send a few ladies over to grease the skids for getting inking work. If Vinnie had relied on his talent, he could’ve gotten plenty of inking work on his own merits, but I guess he figured, why take the chance? [mutual laughter]

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“Vinnie [Colletta] Threatened To Throw Me Out A Window” JA: Did you believe the stories about Vinnie being connected to the Mafia?

THOMAS: I have no firm information on that, or in what connection. It might’ve been a distant relative or something. But we always suspected it. Who else ever offered me a Cuban cigar?

He had them stacked in a corner of his photographic studio. And he was always trying to get me into a compromising situation. Like one day I showed up there, and he was photographing a porn movie actress of the time named Darby Lloyd Raines. She’d starred in an X-rated version of the book Naked Came the Stranger—which, by the way, I never saw; I just remember the name. Vinnie asked me to hold the light meter and pose with this busty nude actress for a “light test.” I did, but I wasn’t about to let him have any hold over me, so as soon as I got home, I told Jeanie, “Oh, by the way, Vinnie took some photos of me with a naked porn star today.” I enjoyed Vinnie’s company, but I never allowed him to have anything to hold over me.

We got along well after, some time earlier, Vinnie threatened to throw me out a window. That was soon after I became editor-in-chief. Gerry Conway informed me he wouldn’t write Thor any more unless Vinnie were taken off it, because he didn’t like his inking of John Buscema. I needed Gerry on Thor, so while I was momentarily miffed at him for putting me in that position, I told Verpoorten that I was going to take Vinnie off Thor. Of course, I intended to give him something else to replace it, but John didn’t bother to tell Vinnie that—only that he was off Thor. So one afternoon when Stan wasn’t in, I look up from my desk and there’s an angry Vinnie, and he growls, “I feel like you got your hand in my pocket, and I’m thinkin’ about throwin’ you out the window.” I said, “Vinnie, we should talk.” We went into Stan’s vacant office and I explained the situation to him—that I needed Gerry on Thor, while Vinnie could ink anything, and I’d always intended that he’d get another book to replace it and not lose a penny. He accepted that, and after that we always had an excellent relationship.

Vinnie had a good relationship with Stan. Well, why not? Vinnie was amiable, dependable, and he had an ink style Stan liked on romance books and later on Thor. I suspect Vinnie worked hard to maintain that relationship, as he later did ones with Verpoorten, myself, and others.

Hey, They Can’t All Be Home Runs!

A bareback Vince Colletta and a slightly slimmer Roy T. both swing for the fences in 1974, the first year of the Friday afternoon Marvel softball games, as per a photo spread in FOOM Magazine #7 (Fall ’74), with balloons added by “Smiling Stan Lee himself,” as the credits put it. Vinny inked only a few fill-in issues of the Kirby-penciled Fantastic Four—but his tenure on Thor lasted, like, forever—and, despite the little misunderstanding mentioned in this interview, Roy tapped Vinnie in the mid-1970s to ink Frank Robbins’ pencils for his new Invaders title. Photocopies of original art supplied by Glen David Gold and Rick Shurgin, respectively, from F.F. #40 (July 1965) and Invaders #6 (May 1976)—though the heroes seen on the Robbins page are actually Bucky and the newly-formed Liberty Legion. F.F. script by Stan Lee; Invaders script

by Roy T. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

But it wouldn’t have worked if we hadn’t all thought he was also a good and dependable inker.

“We Haven’t Talked About…”

JA: We haven’t talked about Werner Roth.

THOMAS: I didn’t know Werner well. He was just a nice, older guy who came into the office. He gave it his all, but he was just too quiet an artist for Stan’s taste once he wasn’t working over Kirby’s breakdowns. I don’t think he really wanted to draw super-heroes. Later, we tried to find him things to do, but nothing seemed to take. Stan had worked with him for one issue on X-Men, but couldn’t turn him into the sort of dynamic artist he needed, though Werner was certainly a good artist.

JA: We’ve talked about Marie Severin, but we haven’t talked about her brother John.

THOMAS: Whether or not John already lived in Colorado by then, he didn’t come into the office much. He was busy drawing for Cracked magazine, and we could never get him back doing comics much. He did enjoy doing war comics. His full artwork on an issue or two of Sgt. Fury was a bit quiet by Marvel standards, but the combination of him and Dick Ayers was fantastic. John is one of the great comic artists of all time. When he inked an issue of Sub-Mariner over Ross Andru [#37], Bill Everett didn’t think he was the right choice, but I loved it. He made it look so real, and I was sorry he could only do that one issue. He could’ve penciled for Marvel, had he really wanted to, but I don’t think he cared to do that kind of penciling.

JA: He and Kurt Schaffenburger were the most consistent artists.…

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

THOMAS: Yeah, you can recognize Severin’s work for decades on end without having to follow him and see the stuff in between. If you look at early Kubert and at later Kubert, you might have to look at the work in between, see the progression, or you might not recognize him as the same artist. With John Severin, the work looks virtually the same over a 40- or 50-year period. And it’s always good.

JA: I know Ogden Whitney did a little work there...

THOMAS: He did a Western or two for Marvel. I don’t have any memory of him except telling him I’d enjoyed his “Skyman.” I forget if I did a Two-Gun Kid story with him, or just proofed one Denny did with him. I’d have to look it up in my bound volumes.

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Severin’s Pay John Severin (caricatured at top left by his little sister Marie) can do full-art chores with the best of them, as per his 2003 King Kull cover for John Benson’s Squa Tront #11, available from Fantagraphics—but he was also invaluable to Marvel as an inker, as per the above Trimpe/Severin splash for Incredible Hulk #133 (Nov. 1970). Trouble is, John was making too much dough drawing for Cracked magazine to linger for long in the comic book vineyards. [Caricature ©2005 Marie Severin; Squa Tront cover art ©2005 John Severin; Kull TM & ©2005 Kull Properties, Inc.; Hulk cover ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: What about George Klein?

THOMAS: I didn’t know him well, either. It’s hard even to picture him in my mind, except by looking at the caricatures in old Timely mags, since I don’t believe I’ve ever even seen a photo of him. He came to Marvel after inking “Superman” and so forth at DC, and became this fine Sinnott-style inker. That’s the way we thought of him. He had a line very much like Joe’s. He really did a great job over John Buscema on The Avengers.

About a year later, he became my neighbor. He married a woman he’d been engaged to for 15 or 18 years, moved into an apartment down E. 86th Street from Jeanie and me—I remember we visited them once— and then a few months later, he suddenly passed away at a relatively young age.

JA: John Tartaglione.

The Grapes Of Roth Still no photo of Werner Roth, whose career was covered to some extent in A/E #42—but here are two panels he penciled for X-Men #23 (Aug. 1966). Inks

by Ayers; script by Thomas. Note Werner’s surviving border note centered below the art, and Stan’s editing correction at lower right. Repro’d from photocopies of the original art, courtesy of Mike Burkey. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

THOMAS: He inked a lot of X-Men and Sgt. Fury I wrote, but I don’t remember much about him. I was always so busy when I was in there, especially after I got to work at home a couple of days a week, that I didn’t socialize too much with many older artists, much as I now wish I had.

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John Tartaglione, from the 1969 F.F. Annual. He inked the Ayers Sgt. Fury art on p. 21. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Even An Inker Can Cry A caricature of George Klein (top center) from Krazy Komics #12, 1943 (art probably by Ed Winiarski), and his inking of the final John Buscema-penciled panel/page from Avengers #58 (Nov. 1968)—with thanks for the former to Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Script

by Roy T. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

But In Alabama, The Tuska Loosa…

(Above:) George Tuska and Marie Severin at the San Diego Comic-Con in 1997—with thanks to an unknown shutterbug—plus a sketch George did for a Heroes Con (Charlotte, NC) program book featuring Iron Man, whom he penciled for years, and the modern-day Black Knight, whose debut he drew in Avengers #48. Check out the TwoMorrows ad bloc in this issue to see how you can get a copy of Dewey Cassell’s great new book on Tuska! [Photo ©2005 the respective copyright holders; art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Johnny Get Your Brush Johnny Craig, in a photo taken from a certain Annual that you and I know—and the splash page of his debut as Iron Man penciler, in issue #2 (June 1968). Mr. C. had previously inked Colan’s Iron Man #1, and would, a year so later, switch to inking Tuska’s version. He was most noted for his horror writing and art for EC Comics during the early 1950s. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

47 probably had dinner together then, but I don’t recall any specifics.

We were always looking for people who could ink like Sinnott. Sam wasn’t as good at it as George Klein, but he was close enough. He was talented, likable, and dependable. Julie Schwartz used to say there were three things you needed to be to work in comics: be very good, be very likable, and be very reliable. If you can do two out of three, he’d say, you’ll have a job for many years. Sam was certainly very likable and very reliable, and if he wasn’t super-good by Marvel’s standards at the time, he was at least good, so he had at least 2H on Julie’s scale.

Grainger In Paradise A seated Sam Grainger talks with younger artist Tim Truman (since noted for his work on Hawkworld and other comics) at the AcmeCon in Greensboro, NC, in 1989. Photo by Teresa R. Davidson; courtesy of Jim Amash, who considered Sam a friend and mentor. In the 1960s and later, Sam inked numerous Avengers, including this John Buscema-penciled cover for #66 (July 1969) while working in the Bullpen for a week or so.

Thanks to Bob Bailey for the art scan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: What do you remember about George Tuska?

THOMAS: He was and is a very nice guy. I remember Stan’s enthusiasm when he announced that George was coming to work for Marvel, because Stan was such a fan of his. I knew him from his work on Biro’s crime comics. It’s funny: George never had a bravura style, but—as I wrote in the book about him that came out from TwoMorrows—for a while in the late ’60s and early ’70s, he became, along with Romita, one of the two most dependable artists for selling books that Marvel had.

Everything he did would sell. He drew two issues of Sub-Mariner in between other artists, and they sold better than what came before or after. His Iron Man sold better than Johnny Craig’s. Tuska never attracted a lot of attention, reader mail, or things like that, but he sold comic books.

JA: Was Johnny Craig taken off Iron Man because he was too slow?

THOMAS: I don’t recall. I don’t think he had a lot of enthusiasm for that work. He’d never been a super-hero artist. But he was doing a good enough job, so I suspect it was more likely a case of him eventually finding he wasn’t making enough money for the time he put into it. He could ink faster, so he switched to inking Tuska on Iron Man. Certain guys like Johnny and Al Williamson are wonderful artists, but they sometimes find out they can make more money inking than they can penciling, which is a shame.

JA: I also have to ask about my dear friend, Sam Grainger.

THOMAS: Sam was the only pro artist I knew—at least through the mail—before I got into the field. We’d planned to do an “Alter and Captain Ego” story together, and he even drew a cover for what would’ve been Alter Ego #10, if I hadn’t turned pro. Again, his work had that kind of Sinnott-y quality. When Gary started working at Charlton, I mentioned Grainger to him, and Sam ended up doing the “Sentinels” series Gary wrote. He never developed his penciling enough to make it at Marvel, but he had a fair career there as an inker. I remember that he spent one week working at the Marvel offices in New York around 1969. I think he wanted to get the feel of things. We

“Ross [Andru] Apparently Never Enjoyed Drawing Comics” JA: Tell me about Ross Andru.

THOMAS: I got to know Ross better through Mike Esposito, because the three of us worked on a couple of newspaper strip ideas. I’d always liked Ross’ work, and Gil Kane helped me appreciate it even more by talking about the way Ross could show depth. But somehow, Ross’ work never looked quite as good inked as it did in pencil. It wasn’t Mike’s fault; it didn’t matter who inked it. Ross was one of those guys whose drawings didn’t translate as well into ink. He never liked working in comics, and I think he suffered for that.

Once, at a party at my apartment, Tony Mortellaro—Ross’ friend and frequent assistant, who was a production man at Marvel—and I cornered Ross, because Tony was determined to get Ross to say why he didn’t like working in comics. Tony said, “I know you must have liked it at one time. You liked it when you were studying at school, right?” Ross said, “Right.” Tony said, “When did you discover that you didn’t like it?” And Ross snapped back: “The first morning I went to work!” His first job was assisting Burne Hogarth on Tarzan, I think. Ross didn’t talk like a guy who had a lot of depth to him, but he did, and it came out in his work. He drew with a lot of intelligence.

When I did Sub-Mariner #37 with him, I loved it. Ditto the first issue of Doc Savage, which we plotted out together at my apartment. I got him to pencil Kull the Conqueror #1 with Wally Wood inking; I’d have kept that team together, but I think that, when a few months passed between issues, they wandered off. When I went to DC in 1980-81, one of my first assignments was writing a tabloid-size Fortress of Solitude book with him, which I just loved. He was also good at humor, like the take-off on the Golden Age Torch/Sub-Mariner battle in Not Brand Echh #1. He was never appreciated by comics fans as much as he was by those in the industry. Stan liked his work, but I think not as much as did as I and some of the younger writers—like Gerry Conway, Marv Wolfman, and Len Wein. But different people have different tastes, you know?

JA: A “Spider-Man” story that Ross drew ended up in Marvel SuperHeroes #14 because Stan didn’t like it, right?

THOMAS: I doubt Stan disliked it—but he must’ve decided he didn’t want it as a fill-in issue of Amazing Spider-Man, for which it had been intended. I really don’t think John Romita sprained his wrist or whatever, as a caption said. That became probably the best-selling issue of Marvel Super-Heroes, if not the only good-selling issue. [mutual laughter] It’s kind-of funny, because Ross later became the regular

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Spider-Man artist for years, and sold the book quite well with Gerry Conway.

“[Gil Kane] Was A Visionary” JA: Gil Kane was the most analytical comic artist I ever met.…

THOMAS: Yeah, he was. Sometimes, it got in the way of his work a little bit. People would say, “I don’t see that in his work,” but I think it was there. I think he got some of it off his chest through talking, but when it came time to do the work, it was very intelligent, though he’d sometimes get a bit rushed and take short cuts. I always appreciated the fact that he thought about the work so much. While some of my attitudes may have been partly shaped by him, I think that, from the first, there was also a natural affinity between our points of view— except when he said the artist ought to be the writer of the comic story. I didn’t necessarily see that as an improvement. I just feel, “Whatever works.”

But generally speaking—and including his championing of heavy captions, which some people didn’t like in the work he wrote or oversaw himself—he can be counted as one of the first practitioners of the graphic novel. Unfortunately, he was ahead of his time, and there was no way to market his work in paperback books. Paperbacks were just too small and inexpensive to support the kind of art he did in Blackmark.

But I appreciated the fact that he was always out there trying to do new things, partly from dissatisfaction, and partly because he was a visionary.

We started working together in 1969; before that, we’d met only in passing. One morning, I was still in bed, when suddenly I got an idea for a new approach for Captain Marvel, which was going down the tubes. I phoned Stan at home—something I almost never did—and told him I wanted to write the book. With his blessing, we gave [current scripter] Archie Goodwin another title, and I sent a plot to Don Heck. A day or so later, by sheer coincidence, Gil waltzed into the office and told Stan he’d like to try his hand at doing something with Captain Marvel; he had no idea what had already transpired. We got my plot back from Don

and gave him something else to do, and suddenly Gil and I became the team on Captain Marvel. The book was canceled twice during the five issues we worked on it together, but it was brought back both times due to improving sales, even though by the second time we were both too busy to continue it.

After that, we worked together whenever we could. I was less In the 1960s-70s, veteran artist Tony analytical and philosophical about Mortellaro worked as a production man at Marvel—and assisted John things than he was, but we had a Romita with backgrounds on lot in common in our views of the Amazing Spider-Man. Photo from artwork. We liked a lot of the same the 1969 F.F. Annual. [©2005 Marvel artists and writers, though I didn’t Characters, Inc.] know as many of them as he did. I already had a great affinity for Caniff, and I appreciated EC and the Biro stuff—some of the same things he liked—and although he probably shaped some of my views, I also think that to some extent it was the way the horse was already going.

JA: Since you mention Biro, it seems to me that in a sense, Stan Lee was the Charlie Biro of the ’60s.

THOMAS: Yeah, just as Gil thought of Al Feldstein as the Charlie Biro of the ’50s. There was a certain affinity there, and I think Stan admired Biro. How could you not admire an editor who managed to take—as Gil said in Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #10—just two or three magazines a month, and in a short time make them outsell everything else in the field?

“The People I Liked To Work With…

I Worked With Them A Lot” JA: Tell me about Tom Palmer.

THOMAS: Tom was a pleasant surprise. Dan Adkins put him onto us after Dan had done the first couple of book-length Dr. Stranges with me.

As a penciler, Tom wasn’t quite ready; that issue didn’t quite work out even with Dan’s inking [Dr. Strange #171]. So Stan decided Gene Colan would pencil the book. I was a big Colan fan and had already

Ross & Mike & Namor & Spidey Ross Andru (right) and his longtime partner and friend Mike Esposito, in a photo Mike supplied for an article in Comic Book Marketplace #25 in 2000. In the 1970s, Andru would become the regular penciler of Amazing Spider-Man, and draw the landmark Superman vs. Spider-Man crossover of 1975—but earlier he worked with Roy on Sub-Mariner #38 (July 1971), depicted at right, as well as on Kull the Conqueror #1 and Doc Savage #1. The AndruEverett “Spider-Man” panel at far right is from the inside-front-cover “contents page” of Marvel Super-Heroes #14 (May 1968), Ross’ first effort on the Web-Spinner. Thanks to Bob Bailey for the scan of the splash of Sub-Mariner #38. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

49

worked with him, of course. Adkins wandered off, but I believe he talked Stan into giving Tom a shot at inking Dr. Strange. I objected, because we’d never seen one iota of inking from this guy, not one page! Well, Tom turned out to be just wonderful—maybe the best inker Colan ever had. They were an ideal team from that time onward, on Dr. Strange, and then on Tomb of Dracula.

Tom was a young guy, very likable and hardworking. The only time he’d get his back up was when a penciler was very late and he’d have to make up for that by working all night. But no matter how much pressure might be generated by late penciling, somehow Tom’s work always came in looking like it had the same amount of labor put into it. You never got the feeling, “Oh, here’s a page where he took short cuts.” Maybe he did, but we couldn’t see them, which is the important thing.

JA: Since his name just came up again, tell me about Dan Adkins. He inked Kirby on Captain America, and of course, you mentioned Dr. Strange.…

But Can The Guy Ink??

Tom Palmer from the 1969 F.F. Annual—and the splash page of Dr. Strange #172 (Sept. 1968). When this Colan-penciled page came back to the Marvel offices, it was literally the first that either Stan or Roy (let alone Gene) had ever seen of Tom’s inking. Is it any wonder he got the regular gig? The entire 1968-69 run of Dr. Strange drawn by Adkins, Colan, and Palmer and scripted by Thomas was recently reprinted in Essential Dr. Strange, Vol. 2, so you can savor all that gorgeous artwork in black-&-white! [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

THOMAS: Dan was hired because he’d been working with Wally Wood. Stan loved Wood’s work, even though he and Wally were never on the same wavelength—or planet—so the idea was for Adkins to be another Wood. He wasn’t, but he inked a lot like Wood, and soon developed his own style. Then he started penciling, and even though he used a lot of swipes, he put them together well and told a good story. He was certainly one of the best inkers—possibly the best—for Gil Kane.

After the first issue of the Captain Marvel that Gil, Dan, and I did together, Gil tried to get Dan as his inker whenever he could.

JA: I liked Ralph Reese on Gil….

Raising Kane Gil Kane (depicted on p. 16) was on hand to do the art honors when Rick Jones slammed his Nega-Banded wrists together for the first time in Captain Marvel #17 (Oct. ’69), with script by Roy and inks by Dan Adkins. The entire tale was reprinted in the 2002 color trade paperback Marvel Visionaries – Gil Kane, which features some of the artist’s classic team-ups with Stan Lee, Roy T., et al. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

THOMAS: Ralph was absolutely fantastic. He inked Gil on Conan the Barbarian #17, but it was just too much work for him. Gil didn’t put many blacks in his work, so Ralph was doing a lot of work. Dan Adkins had to take over in the next issue. That one wonderful issue of Conan remains as kind-of an anomaly, but both those issues did very well, at least as well as the ones Barry had been doing. #18, with the cover penciled by Gil and inked by Romita, did especially well.

JA: Archie Goodwin arrived at Marvel in the late ’60s after leaving Warren, and I think “Iron Man” was one of the first things he did.…

THOMAS: Yeah, we kind-of knew each other, and Stan knew Archie by reputation, so we were glad to get him. Later, when I was editor-in-chief,

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I managed to get almost every writer I wanted to work for Marvel at that time, except Archie. His writing wasn’t flashy.

Some of his stuff sold and some of it didn’t, like with all of us.

He was also a lot of fun to have around, with a droll sense of humor that would crack us up from out of nowhere. A few months after I quit being editor-in-chief, I was talking to him on the phone one day, and he said that he was “about ready to make a move” away from DC, so I got on the phone with Marv Wolfman fast and told him, “I think Archie’s ready to jump!”

I just couldn’t quite get him while I was there.

Archie and I got along well. He was just a year or so older than I was. Last time I saw him was back in the late ’90s in New York, just a few months before he passed away. We had a nice, long talk in his office at DC. For a while in the ’70s we hung around together a bit. Once we and our spouses shot pool on the Upper West Side where they lived, and we went to a lot of parties at each other’s apartments. We were two of Gil Kane’s favorite collaborators, so we had a lot of Gil stories to share. I did get a bit frustrated that, in later years at DC, Archie kept promising to give me work and somehow never got around to it. Gil felt frustrated in that area, too, but it was just that Archie was slow and methodical, even before his health problems overtook him.

Somewhere Stands…

Dan Adkins!

Dan Adkins (you guess where we picked up the photo!), and his cover for Tales to Astonish #96 (Oct. 1967).

Repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Mike Burkey. (The “Sub-Mariner” story inside, however, was penciled by Bill Everett and inked by Vinnie Colletta.) So when is Marvel gonna launch an Essential Sub-Mariner series and reprint all that great art

by Colan, the Buscemas, Everett, Marie Severin, Adkins, Andru, et al.? [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

JA: Let’s talk about Jack Abel.

THOMAS: I didn’t know him very well, except as an inker. Sometimes he would flatten things out a bit, but he had a good inkline. As “Gary Michaels,” he inked the first Marvel super-hero story I ever worked on: in Tales of Suspense #73, over Gene Colan’s first “Iron Man” story.

Since I knew Jack liked poker, I once asked Mike Esposito and Sol why he didn’t play with us, and they said he got too angry when he was dealt bad cards. [laughter] Everybody found it too unpleasant to be around him then, so they wouldn’t play cards with him. He became a proofreader up at Marvel in later years, and he’d sit around talking about baseball, driving people crazy.

JA: One more person: Arnold Drake.

remember anything about that?

THOMAS: No, though I’m sure Stan would’ve loved Carmine to come over. After all, he was one of the most important artists in the DC resurgence in the late ’50s and early ’60s.

The one other guy Stan once told me he’d love to have come over from DC was Joe Kubert. But he wanted to have Joe inked by another artist. [Jim chuckles in disbelief] I told Joe about that years later, and he said, “What?!?” [mutual laughter] Actually, I can understand Stan’s viewpoint. He liked Joe’s structure and storytelling and dramatics, but Joe has a sort of sketchy, impressionist inking style, and Stan always preferred tighter inking. He was thinking that, if he could get that powerful penciling but just tighten up the inking.… The problem is, with Joe, all you’d have as pencils is scribbles, since so much of his artwork is in his inking.

THOMAS: I don’t know if I’d even met Arnold before Stan hired him. I liked his Doom Still, I’m sure Joe would’ve worked out very well at Marvel Patrol. There was a little problem then, as he did when he did a bit of work there years later. Of all at the time because Arnold— the artists I most wanted to work with and didn’t get a chance who’d just come over from DC, to, at the very top of the list was Joe. I ended up taking his where they paid higher rates— unused cover for All-Star Squadron #3, which he’d given Dann somehow wangled Stan into and me as a wedding present, and, with his permission, working giving him a higher rate than it in as a page in a Young All-Stars Annual, just so I could say I Gary Friedrich and I had. Of X-Men/Captain Marvel writer Arnold Drake, wrote one page with Kubert! But all I really did was to add a course, we didn’t hold that from a photo provided by himself. Congrats to caption to a drawing he’d done several years earlier.

Arnold for winning the very first Bill Finger against Arnold; it was just the Another guy I always wanted to work with more was John Award for his writing career. structure of the business. For Romita. All we ever did together was one 4-page “Satana” story, some reason, I recall that in one though we did work on a few designs together, including the of his X-Men stories, he wrote the line, “Radios don’t lie.” [laughter] design for Luke Cage. There were some artists I wanted to work with We didn’t know what that meant, so we took it out. and never got a chance to, and others I didn’t want to work with, and Arnold was a good writer and an intelligent guy. He used to come in sometimes it seemed like I worked with them forever. And they smoking these smelly Turkish cigars, and we would all run for the hills. probably felt the same way about me.

But he talked and acted like a real writer, and you had to admire that. I But you could tell some of the artists I liked to work with, because I don’t think he and Marvel were a totally good fit, which is odd when worked with them as much as I could. Gil Kane. Barry Smith. Neal you consider his DC work. Maybe he was happier at DC and elsewhere.

Adams. I liked working with John Buscema at least as much as anybody, He was certainly a nice guy, and I always enjoy talking with him. and we probably did more together than either of us did with anyone JA: Carmine Infantino said that, before he became art director at DC else. John’s work was always top-notch, or at the very least, very good. in 1967, Stan made him an offer to come to Marvel. Do you Oh, occasionally I could see him sloughing off a bit and sleepwalking

Rascally Roy Thomas Talks About The 1960s & Early ’70s

51

When this photo was taken in the mid-’70s for the Marvel Con program book, Dick Giordano a freelance artist, in between his two major editing gigs at DC. From 1965-67, however, he was editor of Charlton Comics.

through this or that “Conan” story after the 5000th page he’d drawn of the character, but even that was rare.

We all feel a little burned out from time to time. I worked with Andru whenever I could… and Marie… and later Rich Buckler and Dick Giordano and several others. Of course, I’m mostly just talking about 1960s-70s Marvel artists here, and even then I’m probably missing a few that I’ll hate myself for later.

Oh, I can’t forget Herb Trimpe! I always dialogued Herb’s Hulk pages faster than I did any other series I wrote. Yet I recall that, even

Carmine ’Round The (Ice) Mountain (Top left:) Golden/Silver Age great Carmine Infantino and Roy smile for Keif Simon’s camera at the Big Apple Con in April 2005, at the table of Vanguard Press. The fates decreed that Roy and the co-creator of the Silver Age Flash worked together at Marvel only on the story “The Lair of the Ice Worm” (above) in Savage Sword of Conan #34 (Oct. 1978), where he was inked by Alfredo Alcala—and at DC only on two pages in the 1986 Heroes for Hunger benefit comic! Or did we forget something? [Conan art ©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.]

though Hulk had been selling very well before under Herb and Stan, Marvel upped the print run twice based on sales while we were the team, which proves something-or-other. Of course, John Severin inking some of that run didn’t exactly hurt, but I think it was primarily the stories and the penciling. Herb and John were a great combination. Herb gave it a solid underpinning with that pseudo-Kirby thing that he did with a lot of intelligence, and then John would come along and give it this detailed, realistic style, and the combination was great.

“I Learned [From Stan Lee] How To Think About A Whole World… A ‘Marvel Universe’” JA: What was the most important thing that you learned from Stan?

Ralph Reese performed stellar service inking and embellishing Gil Kane’s first issue of Conan the Barbarian, #17 (Dec. 1971). [©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.]

THOMAS: I learned to think about a whole world… a Marvel Universe, if you will. Before that, I thought of comic books mostly in terms of the story; the story was it. Not long after Ditko quit, I remember being with Stan and John Romita, taking notes while they were talking about a particular Spider-Man story, one of the first John drew. They started discussing where they planned to be six months or so down the road, probably developing Mary Jane. Stan noticed an odd look on my face

52

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics

and asked me about it. I said, “I was just thinking how different this is from what I always thought comics were. I figured, you turn out a story, and then you do another story. But you’re talking about it as if it’s one ongoing life or story, which you’re chopping up into segments. It’s a whole different feeling.”

Stan had a sense—which he understood better than Ditko, Kirby, or anybody—of a real universe. He’s not the one who coined the term “The Marvel Universe,” but it was really his construct, far more than anybody else’s. He had the idea that this was a consistent world where all these people lived, and he was the ultimate puppet master. I had to take over some of those puppeteer chores as time went on and Stan got busier, but he was the one that set the mark to strive for. In addition, he was a great wordsmith. When he started writing Thor, he gradually evolved a Shakespearian feel that was better than what others who’d spent years studying Shakespeare in college could have done. And he gave a completely different feel to The Thing’s dialogue, or to the Hulk’s. Suddenly, comic book heroes didn’t all speak in the same way. I think that was remarkable. Sure, for some of the things he accomplished he definitely needed Jack Kirby or Steve Ditko, but for the big picture, he didn’t.

JA: How did working with Stan affect your editorial style?

THOMAS: It had to, because I didn’t have one. Stan’s style was quite different than Julie Schwartz’s or Mort Weisinger’s. As much as I liked Julie and his books, I don’t think I’d have been as happy working with

him as I was with Stan, because with Julie I’d have always felt under the editorial thumb. With Stan, you’d feel that way at first, but then Stan would have a little faith in you, and he’d turn you loose.

That’s what Al Jaffee and others have always said about him: if Stan trusted you at a certain stage, he’d turn things over to you, because he had other things to do besides looking over the shoulders of people who basically knew what they were doing. I think at DC in those days, no matter how long you’d been doing something, they’d still have wanted to look over your shoulder and second-guess you. They’d want to know, “Why’d you do this? Why’d you do that?” as if everything were equally important.

Stan’s approach, which I adopted, was: “Well, if you make a mistake this month, you’ll fix it up next month.” I think that was the right approach for the time. In fact, I think comics could use more of that, even today.

“Houseroy” In Triplicate While there are doubtless more palatable visuals with which we could end this piece, these three images of our intrepid interviewee and Smilin’ Stan seemed as appropriate as any. [Latter two images ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] (Top left:) Roy and Stan ran into each other most recently at the 2004 San Diego Comic-Con, when the nice Discovery Channel folks flew him out to California to help publicize the cable-TV group’s then-upcoming Travel Channel special, Marvel Super Heroes’ Guide to New York City. At a panel previewing highlights, Roy prevails upon his mentor to sign a comic book for a friend.

(Left:) For the 1970 Sgt. Fury Annual, Dick Ayers penciled and John Severin inked a behind-the-scenes featurette, with script by Groovy Gary Friedrich. This panel shows “Jocular John” (at left), Roy the Boy, and Stan the Man. Stan’s balloon indicates how busy R.T. was at this stage… though not much busier, timewise, than editing a 100-page magazine each and every month while working on three actual books and a few other projects. Admittedly, though, the comics did pay a little better….

(Above:) Perhaps the Rascally One’s most aesthetically-appealing photo ever is this one, taken circa 1970, with (l. to r.) Stan, Marie Severin, and John Romita—because Roy’s totally covered at right by the Spidey outfit he wore in 1960s Rutland (Vermont) Halloween parades and the 1972 Carnegie Hall show An Evening with Stan Lee and Marvel Comics. How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Go to work for Marvel Comics!

Roy Thomas’ Dynamic DC Comics Fanzine

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PLUS: PLUS:

Art ©2005 Jerry Ordway; Characters TM & ©2005 DC Comics

FOUR FABULOUS, FUN-FILLED DECADES WITH: ADAMS * ALCALA * AYERS * BUCKLER * BRODSKY * THE BROS. BUSCEMA * CHAN * COLAN COLÓN * DITKO * EVERETT * FOX * GIORDANO * GOLDBERG * HECK * INFANTINO * KANE KIRBY * LARK * LEE * MACHLAN * McFARLANE * ORDWAY * PÉREZ * PUGH * ROBBINS * ROMITA ROTH * SCHWARTZ * THE SEVERIN SIBLINGS * SHAW! * SMITH * TRIMPE * TUSKA * WEISINGER —not to mention the FAVORITE COMIC BOOK WRITERS & EDITORS OF THE 20th CENTURY!

Number 14, Summer 2005 • Hype and hullabaloo from the publisher determined to bring new life to comics fandom • Edited by John Morrow

A Good Cause, Is It In The Water? Pros@Cons!

A Great Guy! Award-winning artist/writer WM. MESSNER-LOEBS (JOURNEY, THE FLASH, WONDER WOMAN) has fallen into financial ruin, landing the beloved comics creator in a Salvation Army shelter. To make matters worse, his wife is chronically ill and there’s no medical insurance and no work or funds coming in. In response, TwoMorrows has joined forces with leading comics creators to produce HEROES AND VILLAINS (96 pages, $29 US), a gorgeous sketchbook and tribute shipping in July, the proceeds of which will directly benefit MessnerLoebs. Edited by CLIFFORD METH, the book will include art from MIKE ALLRED, BRENT ANDERSON, CHRIS BACHALO, MARK BAGLEY, JOHN CASSADAY, TRAVIS CHAREST, DAVE & PATY COCKRUM, GENE COLAN, ALAN DAVIS, MIKE DEODATO, CULLY HAMNER, DEAN HASPIEL, GREG HORN, RAFAEL KAYANAN, ANDY KUBERT, STEVE LIEBER, STEVE MCNIVEN, TOM PALMER, JOE QUESADA, DARICK ROBERTSON, WALT SIMONSON, HERB TRIMPE, BILLY TUCCI, SAL VELLUTO and a host of other top pros! PLUS: Written contributions from NEIL GAIMAN, PETER DAVID, and BEAU SMITH, and a new cover by NEAL ADAMS! Don’t miss your chance to help a worthy comics veteran; with more names being added daily, this powerhouse collection of talent will be unparalleled!

WAKE UP AND SMELL THE MOLD Don’t be caught seeping when SWAMPMEN: MUCK MONSTERS OF THE COMICS finally oozes your way in August! Behind an allnew FRANK CHO cover, editors JON B. COOKE and GEORGE KHOURY have assembled the ultimate look at SWAMP THING, MAN-THING, IT, THE BOG BEAST, MARVIN THE DEAD THING, THE SWAMP LURKER, and THE HEAP, through interviews with and rare and unseen art by BERNIE WRIGHTSON, LEN WEIN, ALAN MOORE, STEVE BISSETTE, STEVE GERBER, MIKE PLOOG, RICK VEITCH, JOHN TOTLEBEN, VAL MAYERIK, and a host of others! (200 pages, $29 US)

Good Things In Store!

The new, improved www.twomorrows.com is now up and running, with easier navigation and simpler ordering, plus occasional specials and items not available to the general public. Check us out!

First HANNAH-ROSE MORROW debuted in Jan. to TwoMorrows honchos JOHN & PAM MORROW. Now we find out that our trusty assistant ERIC NOLEN-WEATHINGTON’s wife DONNA is expecting their second child in October! Who’s next? Roy? Mike?

PÉREZ CAUGHT IN THE ACT! For our second DVD release (following our über-successful HOW TO DRAW COMICS FROM SCRIPT TO PRINT, still available), ERIC NOLEN-WEATHINGTON invaded the Florida studio of fan-favorite GEORGE PÉREZ for an unprecedented look at how he works his artistic magic! The perfect companion to our MODERN MASTERS book series, MODERN MASTERS: IN THE STUDIO WITH GEORGE PÉREZ gives you a personal tour of George’s studio, and lets you watch step-by-step as he illustrates a special issue of Top Cow’s WITCHBLADE! Also,you’ll see George as he sketches for fans at conventions, and hear his peers and colleagues—including MARV WOLFMAN and RON MARZ—share their anecdotes and personal insights along the way! This 120minute Standard Format DVD is only $34 US, and ships in limited release in July, so order now!

AE Hits 50!

Rascally ROY THOMAS celebrates his 50th issue of ALTER EGO ($8 US) in July with a retrospective covering his 40-year career from MODELING WITH MILLIE #44 (1965) to STOKER’S DRACULA (2005)—with AVENGERS, X-MEN, ALL-STAR SQUADRON, CONAN, INFINITY INC., et. al., in between! He talks & writes about working with NEAL ADAMS, DICK AYERS, RICH BUCKLER, THE BROTHERS BUSCEMA, ERNIE CHAN, GENE COLAN, ERNIE COLÓN, STEVE DITKO, BILL EVERETT, DICK GIORDANO, STAN GOLDBERG, DON HECK, GIL KANE, JACK KIRBY, STAN LEE, MIKE MACHLAN, TODD McFARLANE, JERRY ORDWAY, GEORGE PÉREZ, STEVEN PUGH, FRANK ROBBINS, JOHN ROMITA, WERNER ROTH, JULIE SCHWARTZ, THE SEVERIN SIBLINGS, SCOTT SHAW!, BARRY SMITH, HERB TRIMPE, GEORGE TUSKA, MORT WEISINGER, and many others! Let us also mention that, in 50 issues, ROY (and designer CHRIS DAY, plus associate editors JIM AMASH, BILL SCHELLY, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, MARC SWAYZE, and P.C. HAMERLINCK) NEVER missed a deadline, and the mag has never shipped late! When you consider AE’S amazing level of quality and the vast amounts of comics history the mag has documented, that’s a remarkable achievement for anyone.

Congrats, guys!

Be sure to track down the TwoMorrows gang at one of these summer conventions!

HEROES CON (Charlotte, NC, June 24-26) COMICON: INTERNATIONAL (San Diego, CA, July 13-17) WIZARD WORLD (Chicago, IL, August 5-7) BALTIMORE COMICON (Baltimore, MD, September 17-18)

COPYRIGHTS: Justice League, Swamp Thing TM & ©2005 DC Comics. Heroes & Villains cover art ©2005 Neal Adams. Conan, Red Sonja TM & ©2005 REH Estate. Vision, Thor, Sub-Mariner, Thing TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc. Pérez DVD characters TM & ©2005 CrossGen.

You Need A Companion!

Get a little JLC (that’s JUSTICE LEAGUE COMPANION) from TwoMorrows in July, as author MICHAEL EURY presents an exhaustive look at the Silver Age JLA, with a BRUCE TIMM cover! (224 pgs, $29 US) And look for the TITANS COMPANION this Fall (by the LEGION COMPANION’s GLEN CADIGAN) spotlighting the history of the TEEN TITANS! Who says this isn’t the TwoMorrows Age of cool history books about DC Comics’ superteams?

CONTACTS: John Morrow, publisher, JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR editor, & for subscriptions: twomorrow@aol.com Roy Thomas, ALTER EGO editor: roydann@ntinet.com Michael Eury, BACK ISSUE editor: euryman@msn.com Mike Manley, DRAW! editor: mike@actionplanet.com Danny Fingeroth, WRITE NOW! editor: WriteNowDF@aol.com Read excerpts from back issues and order from our secure online store at:

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TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Dr. • Raleigh, NC 27614 • 919/449-0344 • FAX 919/449-0327 • e-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

Vol. 3, No. 50 / July 2005

™

Editor Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout

Roy Thomas Shamelessly Celebrates 50 Issues of A/E, Vol. 3—& 40 Years Since “The Dragon Delinquent!”

Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor P.C. Hamerlinck

Comic Crypt Editor

Contents

Michael T. Gilbert

Editors Emeritus Jerry Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White, Mike Friedrich

Production Assistant Eric Nolen-Weathington

Michael T. Gilbert showcases Roy’s 1961 letters to veteran-pro idol Gardner Fox.

Two Weeks With Mort Weisinger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Roy relates why those 8-9 days in 1965 were like four years with an angry mob!

Cover Artists Jerry Ordway Alfredo Alcala, John Buscema, & Jack Kirby

Cover Colorist Tom Ziuko, Alfredo Alcala (portrait)

And Special Thanks to: Alfredo Alcala, Jr. Christian Voltan Alcala Estelita Alcala Heidi Amash Heather Antonelli Bob Bailey Jeff Bailey Mark Beazley John Benson Dominic Bongo Bob Brodsky Rich Buckler Mike Burkey William Cain R. Dewey Cassell Ernie Chan Lynda Fox Cohen Teresa R. Davidson Michael Dewally Shel Dorf Michael Dunne Jennie-Lynn Falk Shane Foley Jeff Fox Carl Gafford Janet Gilbert Dick Giordano Glen David Gold Stan Goldberg Bob Greenberger Curt Griff Ian Hamerlinck Jennifer Hamerlinck David G. Hamilton Daniel Herman Richard Howell Karen Hughes Stan Lee Larry Lieber Alan Light

Writer/Editorial: Up, Up—And Away! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Comic Crypt: The Fox And The Fan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Allen Logan Linda Long Don Mangus Sam Maronie Mike Mikulovsky Al Milgrom Fred Mommsen Brian K. Morris Frank Motler Owen O’Leary Denny O’Neil Dave Newton Jerry Ordway Tom Palmer George Pérez Don Perlin Mike Phoenix John G. Pierce Nick Pope Greg Preston Richard Pryor Ethan Roberts Peter Sanderson Eric Schumacher Carole Seuling Gwen Seuling Marie Severin Rick Shurgin David Siegel Keif Simon Joe & Betty Sinnott Paul Smith Zack Smith Britt Stanton Flo Steinberg Marc Swayze Dann Thomas Maggie Thompson Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Tom Wimbish Michele Wolfman

This issue is dedicated by Roy to his mother–––MRS. LEONA THOMAS

“1965 – A Watershed Year” (For Roy Thomas, Among Others) . . . . . 13 A brief word by Bill Schelly about how and why Roy jumped ship from DC to Marvel.

Roy Thomas Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 An illustrated and annotated guide to forty years of comic book writing and editing.

“The Company He Keeps…” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

The Comic Buyer’s Guide 2000 poll of 20th-century comics favorites, annotated by Peter Sanderson.

The Doctor Is In! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Found: more “Dr. Mid-Nite” art from that long-lost mid-1940s “Justice Society” story!

The Angels of A/E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 A Too-Brief Intro To Five Who Made Alter Ego What It Is Today—Whatever That Is!

FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) #108 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 P.C. Hamerlinck & John G. Pierce on Roy’s Fawcett Connection—plus Marc Swayze.

“Roy The Boy” In The Marvel Age Of Comics. . . . . . . . . . . . . Flip Us! People always said you’ve gotta stand on your head to appreciate Roy Thomas.

About Our Cover: We didn’t quite have room enough there to squeeze in this entire Justice Society-plus illustration by Jerry Ordway—so you’ll see it in full on the very next page! And yes, we noticed that Hawkman and Hawkgirl/Hawkwoman are the Silver Age/Earth-One versions of that pair, while of course Johnny Quick never was a JSAer—but collector Michael Dunne, who commissioned Jerry to do this great drawing, agrees with Ralph Waldo Emerson (and Ye Editor) that “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” Thanks to both Michael and Jerry for their blessing to use the piece as the perfect cover for the more-or-less “DC side” of Roy’s 40thanniversary issue! Oh, and the cover photo of Roy was taken by a professional photographer back in the 1980s, as a gift from his and Dann’s good friend Jennie-Lynn Falk, namesake of Jade’s alter ego. [Art ©2005 Jerry Ordway; characters TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

Above: We figured that most readers, even those halfway familiar with the work done by Roy Thomas since 1965, would be thrown for a loss by the use on our cover of the phrase “The Dragon Delinquent!”—so here it is again, on our capricious contents page! Roy’s article on pp. 9-11 will explain why it appears in both spots—and why the image atop this page is the Curt Swan/George Klein cover for Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #91 (March 1966). [©2005 DC Comics.]

Alter EgoTM is published monthly by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344.

Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Single issues: $8 ($10 Canada, $11.00 elsewhere). Twelve-issue subscriptions: $60 US, $120 Canada, $132 elsewhere. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in Canada.

FIRST PRINTING.

Title writer/editorial

2

Up, Up––And Away!

L

ike I was saying in my editorial on the flip side—you may find it a wee bit tricky to decide which side of this issue you read first!

That’s partly because, although probably my major “claim to fame,” such as it is, is the fifteen years I spent with Stan Lee and Marvel from 1965-1980, I actually arrived in Manhattan in late June ’65 to accept a staff position at DC Comics (then National Periodicals) under “Superman” editor Mort Weisinger. But in very early July, after only two weeks, I was “up, up, and away” to Marvel, as detailed in the following three pieces. Still, it was my entrée into the wacky world of professional comic books—and it’s unlikely I’d ever have moved to New York City without that offer from Mort. The end result, for me, has been a rewarding 40-year career as a comics writer and ofttimes editor— including returning to DC in the 1980s to develop All-Star Squadron and other titles.

My flip-side writer/editorial lists some of the items that had to be tossed overboard to keep the good ship Alter Ego #50 afloat even at 108

pages—indeed, there’s hardly space to do more than acknowledge that said milestone has been reached. But “50” is only a number, after all— not really that much different from #49 or #51.

Even so, I wanted to call particular attention in this issue to our four regular contributing editors—Bill Schelly, Jim Amash, Michael T. Gilbert, and P.C. Hamerlinck—and to A/E’s poor overworked layout guru Christopher Day. You can meet the men behind the mag on pp.

34-36. Thanks, guys! It’s been a blast so far—and if the best isn’t yet to come, it sure won’t be for lack of our trying, right?

Onward: to keep DC-related material in roughly chronological order, we’re starting this time with Michael T. Gilbert’s “Comic Crypt” section—which actually goes back to 1960-61, but deals with the period that sowed the seeds for the DC offer in ’65...!

Bestest,

Here, as promised a whole page ago, is a full-art version of Jerry Ordway’s gorgeous JSA-and-friends illo, as sent to us by collector Michael Dunne and printed with both lads’ permission. We wanted you to see the whole drawing, in untrammeled black-&-white. Hey, maybe one of these days we can even print Jerry’s original layout for the piece, which has a couple of the heroes in different positions! [Art ©2005 Jerry Ordway; characters TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

[The above art is a detail from Michael’s cover for the 1999 revised edition of Bill Schelly’s book The Golden Age of Comic Fandom.]

4

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt

The Fox And The Fan

by Roy Thomas, Guest Writer

H

i! Michael asked me to relate a few anecdotes to go with this combined helping of my earliest pro (even pre-Marvel!) comics work and my unabashedly fanboy letters at age 19-20 to Gardner F. Fox, co-creator of The Flash, Hawkman (twice), Justice Society, Dr. Fate, Skyman, The Face, Justice League, the Silver Age Atom, Adam Strange, and Earth-Two, among others—as Michael found and photocopied them five years ago, preserved at the University of Oregon. So here I go, with art, captions, and actual portions of letters interspersed.

(And our thanks go out, once again, both to Gardner’s kids Lynda Fox Cohen and Jeff Fox, and to Linda Long, head of Special Collections at the University of Oregon, at Eugene, OR, for their cooperation.)

My very first letter to “Mr. Fox” was written on Nov. 3, 1960, surely within a day of being sent (unasked) Gardner’s home address by his DC editor, Julius Schwartz, who informed me that not only was Gardner the scripter of the new Justice League of America, but that he’d also been the original writer of Michael did this illo of one of our mag’s pair of “maskots” especially for this “Justice Society of America” in the 1940s All-Star issue of A/E. Thanks, buddy! [Art ©2005 Comics which was my favorite comic book series Michael T. Gilbert; Alter & Capt. Ego TM of all time. Since Michael printed my entire initial & ©2005 Roy Thomas & Bill Schelly.] letter in A/E V3#5 (Summer 2000) and that issue’s still available from TwoMorrows (see pp. 14-15), there’s no sense printing it again. Suffice it to say that I told “Mr. Fox” that I’d be happy to purchase any old spare copies he might have lying around of All-Star. (How I’d have paid for same at the time, being a college student, I have no idea!) Gardner responded that he’d sold his All-Stars to one Jerry G. Bails of Detroit, and he sent me Jerry’s address—this was becoming a real chain letter!—but that’s another story, and in fact the story of, among other things, Alter Ego itself, which has been told most recently in A/E #46.

Together Again For The First Time—This Issue Michael says on his title page that you’ll see work from Roy’s first comics stories, so here are panels from Charlton’s Son of Vulcan #50 (Jan. 1966) and Blue Beetle #54 (Feb.-March 1966) which contain information about the Trojan War and Egyptian myth. Like Gardner Fox, Roy liked to work nuggets of knowledge into his stories. Art by Bill Fraccio & Tony Tallarico. [Son of Vulcan & Blue Beetle TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

In A/E V3#5, Michael also printed major portions of other early letters of mine to Gardner, but he and Mr. Monster understandably cut out most of the suggestions I made therein for future DC stories or series. But since, though I hardly knew it in late 1960, I was less than five years away from becoming a professional comic book writer myself, I figured it might be fun to see what notions I tried, in my fannish way, to foist upon one of the most important creators of the Golden and Silver Ages.

The Fox And The Fan

5

In my second letter to Gardner, dated Nov. 21, 1960—the day before my 20th birthday—I boldly presented no fewer than three brainchildren:

Gardner Fox at a Phil Seuling comicon in 1971. Photo courtesy of Gwen Seuling & Heather Antonelli, from a 1972 program book on loan from Fred Mommsen.

Interesting that I accidentally referred to DC’s long-lived “Boy Commandos” feature as the “Kid Commandos”—a name I would revive at Marvel in the mid-1970s in my WWII-era comic The Invaders, to include Bucky, Toro, and their new young allies Golden Girl and The Human Top. The “Kid Phantom” idea was partly a juvenile version of a hero I’d created at age 13 or so called “Phantom Man”—see my “vintage art” below.

Having fond memories of the original “Johnny Thunder” series , I even tried to merge some of its concepts with the JLA’s teen mascot, Snapper Carr!

(I’d forgotten I gave him Thor’s hammer, a year and a half before Journey into Mystery #83!)

After—And Before (Left:) The first time the phrase “Kid Commandos” was used for the name of an actual group of young heroes was in The Invaders #28 (May 1978), in a story written by Roy T. Pencils by Frank Robbins, inks by Frank Springer. Special thanks to Michael Dewally, Frank Motler, & Nick Pope. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] (Right:) This splash from a “Phantom Man” story done by Roy at age 12 or so shows both the Black Terror-influenced hero and his Casper-inspired sidekick, Hugo the Horror. This was, incidentally, “p. 140” of “Variety Comics”—and Roy actually wrote and drew the entire giant comic. He thought big, even back then! Thanks to Roy’s mother Leona Thomas for saving it. [©2005 Roy Thomas.]

6

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt

As seen in A/E V3#5, I returned to pushing for a Johnny Thunder comeback in my third letter to Gardner, dated Nov. 29, 1960. Here’s a more specific suggestion that wasn’t printed earlier:

At about this same time, upon receiving Jerry’s expanded outline re a 6" Atom, Julie wrote back to my college prof pen-pal to say that, “by a fantastic coincidence,” he’d already had “some similar ideas” and had had artist Gil Kane “do some sketches.” (For more about the convoluted creation of the Silver Age Atom, see A/E V3#2, which reproduces letters exchanged at the time between Jerry, Julie, Gardner, and myself.)

At this point I also mentioned an idea I had for a more sciencefictional revival of Dr. Fate, with an ancient Egyptian origin that involved a telepathic amulet, a cloak of levitation, and a telekinetic helmet. At this time, I’m not sure Jerry and I were yet aware that Gardner had co-created Dr. Fate back in 1940—but if not, we soon would be.

In a portion of my next letter (dated Feb. 3, 1961) which wasn’t printed in 2000, I held myself to merely suggesting a particular plotline for Justice League of America:

Well, at least one of my suggestions would soon bear fruit—an origin for the Justice League. But then, of course, besides my probably also pitching it to Julie, I’m sure the latter was literally bombarded with requests for a JLA origin around that time.

Sensing I was getting nowhere with Johnny Thunder per se, in the part of my fourth letter to Gardner (Jan. 10, 1961) that Michael didn’t print in A/E V3#5, I merged Johnny with another old-character name:

The last of my letters to Gardner Fox that Michael printed in part five years ago was sent on March 7, 1961, expressed my delight that he’d be handling “The Atom” in the upcoming Showcase revival—and asked for the return of Solomon Grundy:

Lots of irony in that short paragraph—for not only did I refer to Grundy as “the Nazi Frankenstein” (evidently thinking he must’ve been working for Hitler in some WWII story I hadn’t seen), but in point of fact it was only recently that I had recalled Grundy’s right name! In one of my earliest letters to Gardner, I’d misremembered it as “Gorgon Savage,” confusing it in part with that another Green Lantern foe, Vandal Savage. Not a bad name, actually, though—“Gorgon Savage”!

In fact, in the mid-1950s, when Ajax/Farrell had briefly revived Phantom Lady, Samson, The Flame, Wonder Boy, and Black Cobra, I had typed for my own amusement plots of a dozen or so stories of a “Crusaders of Justice” group composed of that quintet. One of the villains in those synopses was “Gorgon Savage”—basically Solomon Grundy.

Well, at least I was right in thinking the name “Mr. Terrific” had a potential cachet. When Batman briefly became the hottest thing on TV in 1966, there were soon two campy, short-lived knockoffs called Captain Nice—and Mr. Terrific. The latter had no connection with the 1940s DC hero from Sensation Comics.

I also mentioned in that same letter Jerry Bails’ idea for a new hero using the old name “The Atom,” but really based more on Quality’s minuscule Doll Man—a notion Jerry had first proposed to Gardner in an August 1960 letter and which we know Gardner had passed along (albeit apparently for other reasons) to editor Julie.

By the time I wrote Gardner again (April 8, 1961), Jerry had published the first issue of Alter-Ego, featuring my notion of a more scientifically plausible version of The Spectre. I sincerely congratu-

Dumb, Dumber, & Dumbest (Above right:) The Three Dimwits appeared in only one Silver Age comic—The Flash #117 (Dec. 1960), drawn by Carmine Infantino & Joe Giella, and scripted

by Gardner Fox. Editor Julie Schwartz presented Roy with the original art to that story, but nowadays he had to get hold of a copy of the splash through the good efforts of Bob Bailey. [Page ©2005 DC Comics.]

The Fox And The Fan lated Gardner on recent issues of Justice League and the like, then added:

The idea of all the males on Earth vanishing was, I suppose, based on a foggy remembrance of the “Flash” story in Comic Cavalcade #29 (Oct.-Nov. 1948), though I’m not sure I was consciously aware of it.

Only over the next few years would I get a chance to peruse many old comics. (“Miss Arrowette,” for those who don’t know, had appeared in a “Green Arrow” story or two by this time.)

In my next letter (April 18, 1961)—although parts of it are blotted out, making it difficult to reprint—I suggested the JLA be “trapped by a band of renegades from Rann,” leading Snapper Carr and Adam Strange to assemble an “Emergency Justice League” culled from various time periods: Super-Chief (the pre-Columbian Amerindian hero from AllStar Western), Space Ranger, Rip Hunter - Time Master, Tomahawk, Tommy Tomorrow, and the cowboy version of Johnny Thunder. (As can be seen on this very page, this is an idea I didn’t forget.)

In my “P.P.S.” to that missive, I added two more thoughts:

7

usual writer John Broome—and they’d been a resounding flop!

Reading this letter, though, for the first time since 1961, I was surprised to see my suggestion that aliens capture the JLA and that Snapper Carr bring the original JSA to life from an old issue of All-Star to save them. Oddly, this isn’t totally unlike the way I chose, more than a decade later, to end the Kree-Skrull War in Marvel’s Avengers comic!

By the time of the next Thomas letter (Nov. 19, 1961) that resides in the Gardner Fox Collection, I was teaching high school English in Sullivan, Missouri, on the old Route 66 west of St. Louis. But I was still in there pitching—this time, The Three Dimwits teamed up with The Elongated Man (and perhaps an “Elongated Baby,” since Ralph Dibny had recently gotten married), in “a comic book all their own.”

Apparently I had even sent a sketch of a cover for such a comic.

Mercifully, that drawing, unlike these letters, has not survived.

But I have—for forty years and counting in the comic book field, even if my work therein is a bit more sporadic nowadays—and I think I’ll end this piece while I’m ahead (or at least not too far behind) and go back to perusing my early-’60s letters to that dean of super-hero writers, Gardner Fox. There might just be yet another recyclable idea or two lurking around in there.

Never throw anything away!

Whew! Even at age 19-20, our editor was bursting with ideas!

Thanks for the memories, Roy! Next issue, we continue our tribute to Will Eisner in Part 2 of “Remembering Will.”

Till next time...

Whew! Be careful what you wish for! The Three Dimwits (Winky, Blinky, and Noddy, who’d provided comedy relief in many Golden Age “Flash” stories which would’ve been hard to take seriously even without them) didn’t appear in “Flash of Two Worlds”—thank heaven! Julie had tried them out in The Flash #117, with a script by Gardner instead of

It's About Time!

The Arvell Jones/Tony DeZuniga cover for All-Star Squadron #55 (March 1986), done in the middle of the tie-ins with Crisis on Infinite Earths, features Roy’s notion of a team of time-tossed heroes, as Firebrand spearheads Super-Chief, Johnny Thunder, Miss Liberty, Silent Knight, Black Pirate & Son, and Valda the Iron Maiden (from the Thomas-created Arak – Son of Thunder). Super-Chief and the cowboy J.T. were in Roy’s suggested 1961 team, while Miss Liberty was Tomahawk’s ladyfriend. In 1982, Roy’d had a similar notion for a comic idea he tentatively called Time Titans, but he and Dann had pitched Infinity, Inc. to DC, instead, as related in A/E #44. [©2005 DC Comics.]

The People Of The Book Roy’s suggestion to Gardner Fox in 1961 would’ve had JLA mascot Snapper Carr using an animation ray to bring the Justice Society to life from an old comic book to help the Silver Age super-group. In the Roy-scripted Avengers #97 (March 1972), Hulk/Captain Marvel/Captain America sidekick Rick Jones remembered some old comics he’d read, and, with a bit of nudging and heightened consciousness from the Kree Intelligence Supreme, materialized the Golden Age Timely/Marvel heroes Blazing Skull, Captain America, Vision, Sub-Mariner, Human Torch, Fin, Angel, and Patriot to tackle the Skrulls, in the climax to the classic Kree-Skrull War. Art by John Buscema & Tom Palmer. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

9

Two Weeks With Mort Weisinger Or, Four Years With An Angry Mob (Take Your Pick) A Reminiscence by Roy Thomas

T

his article saw print, in a slightly different form, in Comic Book Marketplace #58 (April 1998), in conjunction with other material about longtime DC editor Mort Weisinger. I was asked to write a few paragraphs for a sidebar on my brief experience with him, and got carried away, as is my wont. Article ©2005 Roy Thomas. Our thanks to Russ Cochran for his blessing to reprint it here, and to Brian K. Morris for a typing assist.

Since I was one of Mort Weisinger’s “discoveries”— though maybe “fiascos” is the word he’d have used—I felt it was high time I exorcised a few demons by writing about him.

Back in early-’60s comics fandom, Mort’s six “Superman” titles, clearly aimed at a younger audience than fellow DC editor Julius Schwartz’s mags, were pretty much taken for granted and rarely discussed in fanzines. Alter Ego, for instance, devoted a lot of space to the Justice Society and Captain Marvel, but practically none to the super-hero who’d started it all.

Because I corresponded from 1960-65 with Julie Schwartz, I knew he and Mort had been friends since even before they’d published one of the very first science-fiction fanzines back in the ’30s, but I knew little else about Mort. Still, when I wrote virtually my only fan letter to a “Superman” mag—one concerning Herko the Monster in a “Lois Lane” tale, because he reminded me of old Captain Marvel creatures (and why not? the artist was Kurt Schaffenberger!)— Weisinger responded with a courteous letter. As I did with every other pro I knew of, I sent him freebie copies of A/E [Vol. 1] #7-8 in ’64 and early ’65.

Time Travellers Two This photo of longtime friends and DC editors Mort Weisinger (seated) and Julius Schwartz—who as teenagers had launched The Time Traveller, one of the first sciencefiction fanzines, and had soon opened an sf literary agency—appeared in The Amazing Worlds of DC Comics #3 (Nov. 1974). But it had probably been taken a few years earlier, since Mort retired in 1970 and passed away in 1978.

Then, in spring of ’65, only days after accepting a graduate fellowship in foreign relations that was to be my ticket out of teaching high school, I received a second letter from Weisinger—offering me a trial position at National/DC as his assistant. My fellow teacher Albert Tindall—the guy who’d wangled the fellowship for me and who’d go on to become a prominent attorney in Missouri—was dumbfounded that, after

Superman’s Pal, Roy Thomas Roy, seen at left circa 1947-48, was clearly already a Superman fan by age 7—nearly two decades away from writing the script that would form the basis of the story “The Dragon Delinquent!” in Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #91 (March 1966). Art by Pete Costanza; script by Leo Dorfman. What? Never heard that R.T. was associated with that particular tale? Read on! The photo, by the way, was the sole visual that appeared with this article when it was originally published in Comic Book Marketplace. With thanks to Mrs. Leona Thomas. [©2005 DC Comics.]

pacing our apartment for half an hour, I accepted Mort’s offer and turned my back on an academic career. But, having sent two sample comics scripts earlier to Julie, and having just sold two scripts to Charlton, I wasn’t about to turn down a chance to work in the comics industry! (Besides, truth to tell, I had till summer’s end to formally reject the fellowship, so I could hedge my bets.)

Mort offered me a starting salary of $110 a week (about what I was then making as a teacher) and a two-month trial period. I borrowed and read a box full of “Superman” comics from my friend Biljo White, bought a new suit—and waited eagerly for summer.

During that time I spoke only once with Mort on the phone. One day he called me at school, out of the blue, for a reason I can’t recall. All I remember of the brief conversation is his speaking of “the Superman mythology.” By then I’d come to respect, at least to a certain extent, what he was doing with Bizarro, Imaginary Stories, way too many surviving Kryptonians, and all those shades of Kryptonite.

At his invitation, I also wrote a “Jimmy Olsen” script in which the young reporter went undercover to join a youthful street gang. I felt it needed more pages than the usual eight, but Mort said that was impossible, so I wrote it in eight and sent it off. Mort soon advised me that he wanted a rewrite, but said that could follow when I got to New York. I was paid a $50 advance (the rate was $10 a page), to help pay for the air flight out.

And so, on the last Monday in June, I arrived in Manhattan in the midst of a taxi strike, and carried my one suitcase and portable electric typewriter more than a dozen blocks to the DC offices at 575 Lexington Avenue. I was so excited that I accidentally passed right by the Standard Brands Building wherein DC was located, and had to backtrack a couple of blocks carrying my increasingly heavy load.

That day I met Mort Weisinger—and everything started to go wrong.

10

A Reminiscence By Roy Thomas E. Nelson Bridwell at the 1973 Academy of Comic Book Arts award banquet. Photo by Michele Wolfman from The ACBA Newsletter for June ’73; courtesy of Flo Steinberg.

Though Mort had known in advance when I was to arrive and had okayed the date, he now informed me he couldn’t put me on the payroll until the following week. The reason: he was still paying my predecessor—who turned out to be E. Nelson Bridwell, an Oklahoma comics fan-turned-pro who had contributed an article to Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #7 right before he’d become Mort’s assistant, almost exactly a year earlier. I now learned that Mort was firing Nelson, and that I was his replacement. A bit awkward, even if I had exchanged at most a couple of letters with Nelson, who at 34 was ten years older than I. Mort had a couple of other surprises for me, as well: (1) With no explanation, my salary had now become $100 a week instead of $110. (When I asked what had happened to the extra $10, he replied, with a contemptuous nod toward Nelson’s cubicle down the hall which he assumed explained everything: “I can’t pay you more than I’m paying that idiot.” End quote.)

(2) Likewise with zero explanation, the two-month trial period suddenly became two weeks. Sink-or-swim time. (Right about then, I felt around surreptitiously in my hip pocket for that grad fellowship, just to make certain it was still there.)

Still, the die was cast, so I determined to make the best of it. This was DC, after all! This was the comics biz, where I’d always wanted to work, even when not consciously thinking about it!

Since I’d made no provision for a place to stay, Mort phoned the George Washington Hotel on 23rd Street to secure me a room. I appreciated that gesture, and the irony that my fellowship was to George Washington University in Washington, DC, was not lost on me. After being shown the DC rounds, I was sent packing for the day, to begin work informally (no pay, remember?) the next morning.

Nelson was great all that week, despite the awkwardness of the situation. He showed me the ropes and never bad-mouthed Weisinger, even though it slowly became plain to me that he had doubts about how he was going to survive as a comic book freelancer, which is what he was about to become. He shared an office with DC romance editor Jack Miller and a youngish female assistant whose name I’ve forgotten.

Except when we were introduced, neither she nor Miller (who wasn’t around much) spoke a word to me for the next fortnight. [NOTE: Jim Amash reminded me her name was Barbara Friedlander.]

But, for the most part, the people at DC were great to the new kid on the block over those two weeks, which meld into a blur in my mind: • Joe Kubert recalled me from my fan letters and A/E and couldn’t have been nicer, taking me into his confidence about a new independent magazine he planned which would co-star “Tor,” one of my favorite creations of his (the mag emerged some years later as the sadly shortlived Sojourn).

ever seen him in a bowtie.

• Production chief Ed Eisenberg showed me around the production department, and was very friendly.

• Writers Gardner Fox and Otto Binder, longtime correspondents and boosters, each invited me to their homes. (I would shortly take both of them up on it.)

• Julie Schwartz was friendly from a distance, probably because he didn’t want to get in Mort’s way—but Mort told me Julie had already evinced an interest in having me write for him later.

Mort even took me to lunch one day with himself and Otto Binder at The Summit, a classy restaurant nearby.

I was in heaven… except for one thing: Mort was a tyrant.

He never actually yelled at me, as he reportedly did at many others (I can guarantee I’d have been back in Missouri like a shot if he had, as I’ve never taken yelling from anyone), but his voice could drip scorn as if it were a venom he produced from overactive glands. And, with his looming, perhaps 300-pound frame, he was physically intimidating as well. I once described him as a “malevolent toad,” and while that was unkind, it truly represented the way I felt at the time. Years later, when I saw Jabba the Hut in Return of the ]edi, I thought of Mort, and smiled.

When I test-proofread a “Superman” story at Mort’s behest and missed a reversal of two letters in a long, fictitious nation-name the second time it appeared in the tale, he was scathing in his rebuke. (I was told that one reason he had fired “that idiot” Nelson was because of inadequate proofreading; still, I had missed the misspelling.) Once, when I pointed out some minor error to him, he sneered and grunted: “Chickensh*t. You know, in the Army we had a word for stuff like this: chickensh*t.”

My desk in the three-person office was several doors down the hall from Mort’s, so when he wanted me, a buzzer sounded and I was off like a shot. I quickly developed a Pavlovian reaction of tenseness when that buzzer went off.

My first day on staff, he flashed a four-figure check he’d received from the Sunday supplement magazine Parade for his “Bonanza, USA” column, to show me he was a writer of a magnitude far beyond the reach of most mortals. (I was to learn later that, during those years, he showed such a check to everyone who applied to him for a job, and to many who didn’t.)

And yet, at the same time, Mort tried in his own way to be ingratiating and helpful: He introduced me to Irwin Donenfeld in the hall one day, telling DC’s publisher that I “came from the fanzines,” which was the only hint I ever had that he’d hired me for that reason rather than because of the letters I wrote to him and Julie.

• When I stayed after 5:00 one day, Murphy Anderson graciously talked with me as, awed, I watched him pencil and ink several “Hawkman” panels.

When I suggested, upon proofreading one story script wherein supposedly “the staff of the Daily Planet” was gathered around the hospital bed of an ailing Perry White, that perhaps we should see more than just Clark, Lois, and Jimmy—to indicate that there were more than three reporters on the Planet staff—he harrumphed at me scornfully.

But later he showed me he’d rewritten a balloon to have Perry explain why only those three were there. That worked just as well.

• Robert Kanigher verbally assaulted me in the production room because, he asserted, some fanzine writer (Paul Gambaccini, I believe he said) had described him as wearing a bowtie, and he loudly dared anyone within earshot—which was a considerable distance—to say they had

When I pointed out that, in completed artwork I was given to proof, when a big boulder on a hillside opened at a special touch, we probably shouldn’t see the words “Secret Lab” written on an arrow pointing the way inside, as it had been written, drawn, and lettered, he snorted

Two Weeks With Mort Weisinger

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The Superman Mythology In Action One of Mort Weisinger’s editorial strengths was the ever-widening, ever-deepening of the “Superman mythology,” as in these 1959-1960 stories: college student Clark Kent fell in love with Lori Lemaris (who turned out to be a fish-tailed mermaid from sunken Atlantis)—this one of many “untold tales” involved Red Kryptonite, which gave the hero a different weird power each time he was exposed to it—and his oddball opposite number “Bizarro,” who gave a new word to the English language. Pencils by Wayne Boring, Curt Swan, and Wayne Boring, respectively—as seen in the 1971 hardcover Superman from the 30’s to the 70’s. Hey, and we didn’t even show you any “Imaginary Stories”! [©2005 DC Comics.]

again—but later he called me into his office to show me that he’d had the arrow and sign removed. Now we simply caught a glimpse of the secret lab when the boulder slid to one side.

He also let me in on a little secret: in a few months, a Batman show would debut on TV, and I might want to buy some NPP stock to own a piece of DC at that time.

I realize, looking back on what I’ve written here, that I possibly haven’t really made Mort Weisinger look like the ogre that so many of us actually thought him. I believe this is partly because it was often his manner more than his words that browbeat me and others—and partly because, in spite of it all, I respected Mort, who’d had the puppeteer’s skill to develop the “Superman mythology” while using several different scripters.

And yet, I can clearly recall at least one evening, sitting alone in my room at the GW Hotel, having tears well up in my eyes after a particularly bruising day with Mort, and wondering if I could take it—if my dream of working in comics was going to end with my being let go by Mort, à la Nelson, at the end of my second paid week.

Let me stress that being Mort’s assistant was hardly my first job.

Through much of high school and college, I’d worked at a movie theatre in my hometown of Jackson, Missouri, as well as at a few other odd jobs here and there. I’d sung in a rock ’n’ roll band on weekends for two years for pin money. I’d spent four years as an English teacher, at two different high schools. I was no total babe in the woods, who crumpled at the first hint of criticism from an employer.

But verbal sadism was something else.

It all ended very suddenly, and I won’t go into it in undue detail here, because I’ve done so elsewhere, and because Bill Schelly gives a somewhat fuller account of that side of things in his piece that follows.

Suffice it to say that, without ever really quite intending to apply for a job at the much smaller Marvel Comics, I found myself on Friday, July 9th –the last day of my one paid, four-day week on staff at DC—sitting in the office of Stan Lee, a ten-minute walk from Mort’s office, and being asked what it would take to hire me away from National. “Just offer me what Mort promised me,” I answered, meaning $110 a week.

When Stan did, I accepted—and yeah, I’d have jumped for the $100 a week I was actually getting, too.

I told Stan that, in fairness to Mort, I’d have to give him time to hire

a replacement, and Stan reluctantly accepted that. So I trekked back to DC, having taken an extra half hour on my lunch break.

(In the elevator as I’d been leaving for that secret lunchtime meeting, I’d run into production manager Ed Eisenberg, who had said a few delicately-phrased words of encouragement about “hanging in there,” a clear indication that he knew what I was going through with Mort. That had given me a boost, and made me feel guilty about the fact that I was sneaking off to an appointment with Stan Lee.) I was no sooner back at my desk at DC than the buzzer sounded and I trudged down, not eagerly, to Mort’s office. To my amazement, he went into a little speech about how Eisenberg and Julie and maybe one or two others had spoken to him about his being a bit too hard on me, with vague hints of a possible change. (Later I would learn that it was suggested that he ease up on me, as I didn’t seem the type to “take it” forever as Nelson had. Whoever spoke those words had sized me up pretty accurately.)

Interrupting Mort politely, I told him that I very much appreciated what he was saying, but it was all a bit academic now, as I had accepted a job offer from Stan Lee. Mort seemed stunned. At least that’s how I interpreted his glare.

I suggested he re-hire Nelson, since he seemed to be able to accept the way Mort treated him, while I would not.

Mort said nothing.

I told him that I’d stay as long as he needed to find a replacement, even if that took several weeks.

Mort ordered me out of the building immediately, declaring I was “a spy for Stan Lee.” I rose, said I was sorry things had worked out this way, and left.

Back in the romance office, I began picking up the handful of personal items in my desk. Jack Miller wasn’t there, as usual; but for the first time since we’d been introduced, his female assistant looked over at me and spoke to me. She asked, “What are you doing?”

I told her I was clearing out my desk because I’d accepted a job with Stan Lee.

12

A Reminiscence By Roy Thomas him in the mail not long after I went to work for Marvel. (Incidentally, some months later, a totally rewritten form of that teenage gang story appeared in Jimmy Olsen #91, with no byline for me—and it had been expanded by 50% or more in page length, just as I’d asked Mort to do earlier.)

The Draggin’ Delinquent!

Roy can’t be 100% certain at this late stage, but he believes the idea of Jimmy Olsen disguising himself as a juvenile delinquent in order to infiltrate a motorcycle gang for a newspaper story was his idea, not Mort’s—as was the notion that, once in the gang, he learned that Robin the Boy Wonder had already done the same thing! Roy can’t swear, though, that Mort didn’t suggest one or both of those concepts to him. One thing Roy is sure about is that neither the title “The Dragon Delinquent!” nor the artificially-hunchbacked villain came from him.

That was the day I learned that it’s not always an exaggeration when people say that someone’s “jaw dropped.”

A few minutes later, I was gone. I had a passing notion to say good-bye to Julie, maybe Eisenberg, but I didn’t want to take the chance of encountering a glowering Weisinger in the hallway.

So I left. (Incidentally, Mort did re-hire Nelson almost immediately, not that I imagine my recommendation had much to do with it.)

According to longtime DC staffer/colorist Carl Gafford, this lead story in Jimmy Olsen #91 was written by veteran scripter Leo Dorfman, and was drawn by “new series artist” Pete Costanza, who in the 1940s-50s had worked on many a Fawcett “Captain Marvel” adventure.

Based on what he and others know of Weisinger’s modus vivendi, Roy suspects that Dorfman was handed the j.d./infiltration/ Robin plot seed by Mort as the latter’s own brainstorm, and probably had no idea where it had originally come from. [©2005 DC Comics.]

Ten minutes later, I was back at Marvel’s four little offices, and talking with Stan about scripting an already-drawn “Millie the Model” story over the weekend.

That night, by coincidence, I stayed overnight at Otto Binder’s home in Englewood, New Jersey—“The House That Captain Marvel Built”— as previously arranged. Otto, the soul of kindness, gave me a pep talk about how “everybody” felt more or less about Mort the way I did, even those who had known him for years—except maybe Julie, who had a special relationship with him going back so many years. Otto told me I’d done the right thing. He felt Mort was a “frustrated fiction writer,” which was why he liked to brandish those big checks from Parade or Reader’s Digest—to demonstrate that he, too, was a writer.

I ran into Mort only twice after that.

Just a couple of weeks later, at one of the first comics conventions, at the Broadway Central Hotel in lower Manhattan, Mort showed up unannounced and gave an impromptu speech after he was invited to join a panel composed of Otto, Bill Finger, and Gardner Fox. To my discomfited astonishment, he spoke of the fanzines as being the place where comics companies were going to look for future talent—quite a statement, considering how, as he’d stated that Friday, I’d “betrayed” him by taking DC’s money and “using it to get to New York to go to work for Stan Lee.” The two of us never let our eyes meet that day.

Some time afterward, I heard that he had told people I still owed DC repayment for that $50 advance… though I believe I placed a check to

It was perhaps a year or so later that I encountered him again at the funeral of someone in the comics field, but once more we avoided each other.

I wanted to go over and talk to him, to hold out my hand and say I respected him even though I’d felt I couldn’t go on working for him—but I didn’t. I wish I had, even if I still suspected that he’d have turned his back on me.

A few years later, he retired.

Some time after that, I heard he had died.

And I was sorry.

Though it was pros like Gardner Fox and Otto Binder and especially Julie Schwartz who had encouraged me in my half-formed hopes of entering the comics field, it was, after all, Mort Weisinger who’d actually taken the step of hiring me.

Though it was under Stan Lee at Marvel that I would find my greatest professional success, it was Mort who had brought me to New York so that, by a juxtaposition of fortunate circumstances, I would be on the spot when Stan was looking for a new writer.

The years haven’t appreciably altered my view that Mort had a sadistic streak, and that he enjoyed being cruel to those who worked under him, be they assistant editors, artists, or writers. Yet, at the same time, the decades have also increased my appreciation of Mort Weisinger as an important and in many ways a positive figure in the field.

Both as official editor in the 1960s and quasi-anonymously for years before as de facto editor serving under Whitney Ellsworth, Weisinger did indeed develop a “Superman mythology” which, if it perhaps owed a bit to the Marvel Family milieu of the 1940s, very definitely led in the direction that the field was destined to take for some years to come. It was around this same time, for instance, that students in college magazines began to write about Stan Lee’s “Marvel mythology”—and Julie Schwartz’s magazines likewise had a distinctive feel that advanced the comics industry.

Mort Weisinger, for all his human flaws (and we all have them), was a giant in the field.

I honor him for what he accomplished, and I thank him posthumously (as I often wish I could have thanked him personally) for bringing me into comics.

I only wish I could have liked him.

Or vice versa.

Title Comic Fandom Archive

13

“1965 – A Watershed Year” (For Roy Thomas, Among Others) How The Rascally One Went To Work For Marvel And Thereby Saved His Sanity

by Bill Schelly

N

OTE: Because of an illness in the family, Bill did not have time this month to write a new Comic Fandom Archive entry. However, we agreed that this issue concerning the pro career of Alter Ego’s editor would be a good time to run a few paragraphs from his acclaimed 1995 history The Golden Age of Comic Fandom about my accepting a job from Stan Lee and Marvel in July 1965.

This material from Chapter 7, “1965 – A Watershed Year,” has been edited slightly so that it can stand alone here, and is ©2005 Bill Schelly. —Roy.]

dialogue after the penciling was done, when nearly a hundred others had tried it unsuccessfully? Thomas took the test overnight, returned the pages to Sol Brodsky (Marvel’s production manager) the next day, and on the following morning received a phone call at DC from Flo Steinberg informing him that Stan wanted to see him.

Roy (who had not yet met Stan) rushed over to Marvel on his lunch hour and was ushered into Lee’s office. Strangely, nothing was said about how Thomas had fared on the writing test. “My memory of that meeting is crystal clear,” Roy said recently.

“Ten to fifteen minutes after we met, Stan— looking out a window—casually asked me, ‘So, what do we have to do to hire you away from National?’” Within the hour, Thomas had handed in his notice at DC, and when Weisinger angrily refused his offer to stay until a replacement could be found (calling him “a spy for Stan Lee”), Roy returned to Marvel and soon was looking over a Modeling with Millie issue he was to write.

In May 1965, Charlton managing editor Pat Masulli (in the form of an Open Letter which appeared in Rocket’s BlastComicollector, The Comic Reader, and elsewhere) offered members of comic fandom a chance to write scripts for either Son of Vulcan or Blue Beetle. Ultimately, he bought scripts from three fans: first Roy Thomas, then David Kaler and Tom Fagan.

Thomas, who had submitted “The Second Trojan War” for Son of Vulcan, was asked to try his hand at a Blue Beetle script. But, though Roy complied, his mind was elsewhere; in the interim, he’d received a more intriguing offer.

[At this point, Bill’s book relates events that led to Roy’s working briefly at DC Comics in summer of 1965. Since these are covered in the preceding article, those paragraphs are omitted here.]

Roy spent the July 4th holiday with Dick and Pat Lupoff, editors & publishers of the science-fiction & comics fanzine Xero, in Poughkeepsie, New York, his mind in a quandary. “It was when I returned to my hotel room [at the George Washington Hotel on 23rd Street in Manhattan] after my next day back at work that I found a request to phone Stan Lee at his office.”

Thomas’ First Trio If we discount the abortive “Jimmy Olsen” script he did for Mort Weisinger, Roy’s the first three professional comic scripts were, in order: Son of Vulcan #50 (cover date Jan. 1966)—Blue Beetle #54 (Feb.-March 1966)—and Modeling with Millie #44 (Dec. 1965). The latter, with a cover penciled by Stan Goldberg, actually hit the newsstands before the two Charlton issues, since Roy only did an 11th-hour dialogue job. The splash of the “Millie” story is printed on our flip side. Cover copy by Stan Lee. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Stan was answering an invitation to share a drink that Roy had sent him by mail the preceding week. Lee wasn’t interested in socializing, but asked if Roy (whom Stan knew from Alter Ego and his letters to Marvel) wanted to try his hand at a writing test that Lee had devised.

The test consisted of adding dialogue and captions to the artwork for pages 19 through 22 of “The Final Victory of Doctor Doom!” in Fantastic Four Annual #2. [NOTE: See interview with Roy on flip side.] Could Roy adapt to the “Marvel method” of adding captions and

“I even moved in with Dave Kaler in East Greenwich Village,” Thomas concluded his tale in the pages of the fanzine CAPA-Alpha, “where we live pretending to be starving writers and wearing our Dr. Strange t-shirts in the coffee houses.” Kaler’s two-room studio apartment was located on Avenue A near 2nd Street [in Manhattan], on the ground floor. It was nicknamed “Kaler’s Kave.”

(Eventually, both Denny O’Neil and Gary Friedrich would join them in that apartment, albeit briefly, both fellow Missourians having coming to NYC at Roy’s behest.)

In one respect, making the adjustment to pro-dom offered a unique difficulty for Roy. His friends in comicdom naturally asked him questions about developments at Marvel, but Stan Lee specifically requested that he not reveal future plots or other news to the fanzines. Thomas’ active participation in the fanzines came to an end (though he continued to attend gatherings in New York peopled by fans as well as pros).

[For more on the early history of the comic book fan movement, pick up a copy of Bill Schelly’s The Golden Age of Comic Fandom. See Hamster Press’ ad on p. 8.]

Prices include US Postage. Outside the US, Per Item Add $2 Canada, Elsewhere: $3 Surface, $7 Airmail.

Edited by ROY THOMAS The greatest ’zine of the ’60s is back, all-new, and focused on Golden & Silver Age comics and creators with articles, interviews, unseen art, plus FCA, Mr. Monster, and more!

AE #2: (100 pgs.) All-new!

EISNER “SPIRIT” story, KANE, FOX & SCHWARTZ on The Atom, L. LIEBER & JACK BURNLEY intvs., KANIGHER, FCA, new color BURNLEY & KANE covers, more! $8 US

AE #3: (100 pgs.) ALEX ROSS cover & interview, JERRY ORDWAY, BILL EVERETT, CARL BURGOS, Giant FAWCETT (FCA) section with C.C. BECK, MARC SWAYZE, & more! $8 US

AE #4: (100 pgs.) 60 years of HAWKMAN & FLASH! ROY THOMAS remembers GIL KANE, intvs. with KUBERT, MOLDOFF, LAMPERT, FOX, FCA with BECK & SWAYZE, KUBERT covers, more! $8 US

AE #5: (100 pgs.) JSA issue!

Intvs. with SHELLY MAYER, GIL KANE, MART NODELL, GEORGE ROUSSOS, FCA with BECK & SWAYZE, NEW INFANTINO / ORDWAY wraparound cover, more! $8 US

AE #6: (100 pgs.) GENE COLAN intv., how-to books by STAN LEE & KANIGHER, ALLSTAR SQUADRON, MAC RABOY section, FCA with BECK & SWAYZE, COLAN & RABOY covers, more! $8 US

AE #7: (100 pgs.) Companion issue to the ALL-STAR COMPANION! J. SCHWARTZ intv., JLA-JSA teamups, MAC RABOY, FCA with BECK & SWAYZE, BUCKLER & BECK covers, more! $8 US

AE #8: (100 pgs.) Bio of WALLY WOOD, ADKINS & PEARSON intvs., KUBERT intv., FCA w/ BECK, SWAYZE, & ORDWAY, MR. MONSTER, WOOD & KUBERT covers, more! $8 US

AE #9: (100 pgs.) JOHN ROMITA intv. & gallery, plus ROY THOMAS’ dream projects! FCA with BECK, SWAYZE, & TUSKA, MR. MONSTER, ROMITA & DICK GIORDANO covers! $8 US

AE #10: (100 pgs) CARMINE INFANTINO intv. & art, neverseen FLASH story, VIN SULLIVAN & MAGAZINE ENTERPRISES, FRED GUARDINEER, AYERS, FCA, MR. MONSTER, more! $8 US

AE #11: (100 pgs) Interviews with SYD SHORES, MICKEY SPILLANE, VINCE FAGO, MAGAZINE ENTERPRISES Part Two, FCA with BECK, SWAYZE, DON NEWTON, MR. MONSTER, more! $8 US

AE #12: (100 pgs) GILL FOX on QUALITY COMICS, neverseen PAUL REINMAN Green Lantern art, origins of ALLSTAR SQUADRON, FCA, MR. MONSTER on WALLY WOOD, more! $8 US

AE #13 (100 pgs.) TITANS OF TIMELY/MARVEL Part Two! JOE SIMON & MURPHY ANDERSON covers, Silver Age AVENGERS section (with BUSCEMA, HECK, TUSKA, & THOMAS) & more! $8 US

AE #14 (100 pgs.) JSA FROM THE ’40s TO THE ’80s! MIKE NASSER & MICHAEL T. GILBERT covers, intvs. with ORDWAY & LEE ELIAS, neverseen 1940s JSA pgs., ’70s JSA, & more! $8 US

AE #15 (108 pgs.) JOHN BUSCEMA TRIBUTE ISSUE! BUSCEMA covers & interview, unseen art, ROY THOMAS on their collaborations, plus salute to KURT SCHAFFENBERGER, & more! $8 US

AE #16: (108 pgs.) COLAN, BUSCEMA, ROMITA, SEVERIN interviews, ALEX ROSS on Shazam!, OTTO & JACK BINDER, KURTZMAN, new ROSS & FRADON/SEVERIN covers, more! $8 US

AE #17: (108 pgs.) LOU FINE overview & art, ARNOLD DRAKE & MURPHY ANDERSON interviews, plus EISNER, CRANDALL, DAVIS & EVANS’ non-EC action comics, FCA, LOU FINE cover, more! $8 US

AE #18: (108 pgs.) STAN GOLDBERG interview & art, plus KIRBY, DITKO, HECK, ROMITA, BUSCEMA, EVERETT, WALLY WOOD’S Flash Gordon, FCA, KIRBY & SWAYZE covers, more! $8 US

AE #19: (108 pgs.) DICK SPRANG interview & art, JERRY ROBINSON on FRED RAY, BOB KANE, CARMINE INFANTINO, ALEX TOTH, WALLY WOOD, FCA, SPRANG & RAY covers, more! $8 US

AE #20: (108 pgs.) TIMELY/ MARVEL focus, INVADERS overview with KIRBY, KANE, ROBBINS, BOB DESCHAMPS intv., panel with FINGER, BINDER, FOX, & WEISINGER, FCA, rare art, more! $8 US

AE #21: (108 pgs.) IGER STUDIO with art by EISNER, FINE, MESKIN, ANDERSON, CRANDALL, CARDY, EVANS, “SHEENA” section, THOMAS on the JSA, FCA, DAVE STEVENS cover, more! $8 US

AE #22: (108 pgs.) EVERETT & KUBERT interviewed by GIL KANE & NEAL ADAMS, ROY THOMAS on Sub-Mariner, COLAN, BUSCEMA, SEVERIN, WOOD, FCA, BECK & EVERETT covers, more! $8 US

AE #23: (108 pgs.) Two unseen Golden Age WONDER WOMAN stories examined, BOB FUJITANI intv. Archie/ MLJ’s JOHN ROSENBERGER & VICTOR GORELICK intv., FCA, rare art, more! $8 US

AE #24: (108 pgs.) NEW X-MEN intvs. with STAN LEE, COCKRUM, CLAREMONT, WEIN, DRAKE, SHOOTER, THOMAS, MORT MESKIN profiled, FCA, covers by COCKRUM & MESKIN! $8 US

AE #25: (108 pgs.) JACK COLE & PLASTIC MAN! Brother DICK COLE interviewed, Cole celebrated by ALEX TOTH, THOMAS on All-Star Squadron #1, JERRY BAILS tribute, FCA, cover by TOTH! $8 US

AE #26: (108 pgs.) JOE SINNOTT interview, KIRBY and BUSCEMA art, IRWIN DONENFELD, Superman art by SHUSTER, BORING, SWAN, FCA, Mr. MONSTER, covers by SINNOTT & BORING! $8 US

AE #20: TIMELY/ #27: (108 (108pgs.) pgs.)

VIN MARVEL INVADERS SULLIVAN focus, intv., “Lost” KIRBY overview with KIRBY, KANE, HULK covers, the 1948 NY ROBBINS, DESCHAMPS CON, “GreatBOB Unknown” artists, intv., panel FCA, withALEX FINGER, KURTZMAN, TOTH, BINDER, FOX, & WEISINGER, MR. MONSTER, covers by FCA, rare art, more! $8 $8 US US BURNLEY & KIRBY!

AE #28: (108 pgs.) JOE MANEELY spotlight, scarce Marvel art by EVERETT, SEVERIN, DITKO, ROMITA, extra-size FCA, LEE AMES intv., covers by MANEELY & DON NEWTON! $8 US

AE #29: (108 pgs.) FRANK BRUNNER intv., EVERETT’s Venus, Classics Illustrated adapting Lovecraft, LEE/KIRBY/ DITKO prototypes, ALEX TOTH, FCA with GENE COLAN, BRUNNER cover! $8 US

AE #30: (108 pgs.) SILVER AGE JLA special, ALEX ROSS on the JLA, MIKE SEKOWSKY, DICK DILLIN, GOLDEN AGE SIMON & KIRBY scripters speak, FRENCH HEROES, ROSS & RUDE covers! $8 US

AE #31: (108 pgs.) DICK AYERS intv., HARLAN ELLISON’S Marvel work (with Bullpen artists), LEE/KIRBY/ DITKO prototypes, Christmas cards from cartoonists, AYERS & RAY covers! $8 US

AE #32: (108 pgs.) Golden Age TIMELY ARTISTS intv., MART NODELL, MIKE GOLD on the Silver Age, art by SIMON & KIRBY, SWAN, INFANTINO, KANE, GIORDANO & GIL KANE covers! $8 US

AE #33: (108 pgs.) MIKE SEKOWSKY tribute, intvs. with wife PAT SEKOWSKY and Golden Age inker VALERIE BARCLAY, art by ANDERSON, ANDRU & ESPOSITO, INFANTINO, FRENZ covers! $8 US

AE #34: (108 pgs.) QUALITY COMICS, intvs. with ALEX KOTZKY, CHUCK CUIDERA, DICK ARNOLD, TOTH, KURTZMAN, art by FINE, EISNER, COLE, CRANDALL and NICHOLAS covers! $8 US

AE #35: #20: (108 (108pgs.) pgs.)STAN TIMELY/ LEE, MARVEL focus,DICK INVADERS JOHN ROMITA, AYERS, overview with KIRBY, KANE, ROY THOMAS, & AL JAFFEE ROBBINS, BOB DESCHAMPS on the 1940s & 1950s Golden intv., FINGER, Age at panel Timely/with Marvel, FCA, BINDER, FOX, & ROMITA WEISINGER, MR. MONSTER, and $8 US FCA, rarecovers! art, more! $8 US JAFFEE

AE #36: (108 pgs.) JOE SIMON intv. & cover, GOLDEN AGE HEROES of Canada, ELMER WEXLER, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on MR. MONSTER’S ORIGINS, FCA, ALEX TOTH, and more! $8 US

AE #37: (108 pgs.) BECK & BORING covers, SY BARRY intv., Superman “K-Metal” story, FCA with C.C. BECK, MARC SWAYZE, DON NEWTON, and Shazam!/Isis!, MR. MONSTER, and more! $8 US

AE #38: (108 pgs.) JULIUS SCHWARTZ tribute & interviews, art by INFANTINO, ANDERSON, KUBERT, KANE, TOTH, SWAN, SEKOWSKY, FCA section, INFANTINO and HASEN covers, more!! $8 US

AE #39: (108 pgs.) Full issue JERRY ROBINSON spotlight, with comprehensive interview and unseen Batman art, AL FELDSTEIN on EC, GIL FOX, MESKIN, ROUSSOS, & ROBINSON covers! $8 US

AE #40: (108 pgs.) JULIUS SCHWARTZ memorial issue with tributes by pros, GIL KANE interview, comprehensive interview and unseen art by RUSS HEATH, GIL KANE and HEATH covers! $8 US

ALTER EGO #41

ALTER EGO #42

ALTER EGO #43

ALTER EGO #44

ALTER EGO #45

Covers by WRIGHTSON & MARC SWAYZE, WRIGHTSON on his ’70s FRANKENSTEIN, art by KALUTA, BAILY, MANEELY, PLOOG, KUBERT, BRUNNER, COWAN, BORING, OKSNER, TUSKA, CRANDALL, SUTTON, and others! Plus FCA #100, ALEX TOTH, MICHAEL T. GILBERT—and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

Covers by FASTNER & LARSON and ERNIE SCHROEDER, a celebration of DON HECK, WERNER ROTH, and PAUL REINMAN, rare art by KIRBY, DITKO, AYERS, Hillman & Ziff-Davis remembered by SCHROEDER, HERB ROGOFF, and WALTER LITTMAN, FCA, ALEX TOTH, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

Flip covers by TUSKA and STEVENS, yuletide art by SINNOTT, BRUNNER, CARDY, TOTH, NODELL, and others, interviews with Golden Age artists TOM GILL (Lone Ranger) and MORRIS WEISS, exploring 1960s Mexican comics, FCA, MR. MONSTER, ALEX TOTH, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

Interviews with JOE KUBERT, IRWIN HASEN, MURPHY ANDERSON, JERRY ORDWAY, 1940s Atom writer ARTHUR ADLER, art by TOTH, SEKOWSKY, HASEN, PEDDY, MACHLAN, BUCKLER, OKSNER, INFANTINO, FCA, MR. MONSTER, cover

by ORDWAY, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

Interviews with Golden Age Sandman artist CREIG FLESSEL and 1940s creator BERT CHRISTMAN, MICHAEL CHABON on researching his Pulitzer-winning novel Kavalier & Clay, art by EISNER, KANE, KIRBY, & AYERS, FCA, MR. MONSTER, ALEX TOTH, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

(108-page magazine) $8 US

(108-page magazine) $8 US

(108-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

ALTER EGO #46

ALTER EGO #47

ALTER EGO #48

ALTER EGO #49

ALTER EGO #50

The VERY BEST of the 1960s-70s ALTER EGO! EVERETT/SEVERIN cover, classic 1969 BILL EVERETT interview, art by BURGOS, GUSTAVSON, SIMON & KIRBY, and others, 1960s gems by DITKO & E. NELSON BRIDWELL, FCA, TOTH, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

MATT BAKER, Golden Age cheesecake artist of PHANTOM LADY, plus art from AL FELDSTEIN, VINCE COLLETTA, ARTHUR PEDDY, JACK KAMEN & others, FCA, BILL SCHELLY talks to BUD PLANT, MR. MONSTER, ALEX TOTH, and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

The late WILL EISNER discusses ’40s Quality Comics with art by FINE, CRANDALL, COLE, & CARDY! EISNER tributes by STAN LEE, GENE COLAN, & others! ’40s Quality artist VERN HENKEL interviewed, FCA, MR. MONSTER, TOTH, & more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

Interview with CARL BURGOS’ daughter!

Unused 1941 cover layouts by BURGOS and other Timely titans! The 1957 Atlas Implosion, MANNY STALLMAN, and the BLUE FLAME! Also, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT and MR. MONSTER and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

ROY THOMAS covers his 40-YEAR career in comics, with ADAMS, BUSCEMA, COLAN, DITKO, GIL KANE, KIRBY, STAN LEE, ORDWAY, PÉREZ, ROMITA, and many others! Also, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT and MR. MONSTER and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

™

SUBSCRIBE TO ALTER EGO! Twelve Issues in the US: $60 Standard, $96 First Class (Canada: $120, Elsewhere: $132 Surface, $180 Airmail).

NOTE: IF YOU PREFER A SIX-ISSUE SUB, JUST CUT THE PRICE IN HALF! (The cover price of Alter Ego increases by $1 as of #52, but the subscription price remains the same.)

ALTER EGO #51 (AUG.)

ALTER EGO #52 (SEPT.)

ALTER EGO #53 (OCT.)

Golden Age Batman artist/Bob Kane ghost LEW SAYRE SCHWARTZ interviewed, the Golden & Silver Ages of AUSTRALIAN SUPER-HEROES, Mad artist DAVE BERG interviewed, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on WILL EISNER, ALEX TOTH and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

JOE GIELLA on the Silver Age at DC, the Golden Age at Marvel, and JULIE SCHWARTZ, with rare art by INFANTINO, GIL KANE, SEKOWSKY, SWAN, DILLIN, MOLDOFF, GIACOIA, SCHAFFENBERGER, and others, JAY SCOTT PIKE on STAN LEE, MARTIN THALL, and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

GIORDANO and THOMAS on STOKER’S DRACULA, never-seen DICK BRIEFER Frankenstein strip, MIKE ESPOSITO on his work with ROSS ANDRU, Halloween art

by COLAN, WRIGHTSON, MIGNOLA, BRUNNER, BISSETTE, KALUTA, HEATH, MANEELY, EVERETT, DITKO, and others!!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

(100-page magazine) $9 US

(100-page magazine) $9 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

NOMINATED FOR A 2004 EISNER AWARD FOR BEST COMICSRELATED MAGAZINE!

Single Issue Prices Include US Postage. Outside the US, add $2 Per Item Canada, $3 Per Item Surface, $7 Per Item Airmail

TwoMorrows. Bringing New Life To Comics Fandom.

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Dr. • Raleigh, NC 27614 • 919/449-0344 • FAX 919/449-0327 • e-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

16

Roy Thomas Checklist [NOTE: The following is adapted from information supplied by Dr. Jerry G. Bails in his Who’s Who of 20th-Century Comic Books. Those interested in being informed when Jerry’s updated version of the Who’s Who will be available should e-mail him at JerryBails@aol.com. Some data added by Roy Thomas. Except where otherwise noted, all credits below are for writing or co-writing (often, esp. after 1981, with wife Dann Thomas). Roy was also officially the editor of material he wrote at Marvel from late 1972-1981, and of his DC work from 1983-89, but that status is not generally noted in this Checklist. Titles not in italics often refer to features which appeared at various times both in their own magazines and in anthologies. Key: (e) = editor; (n.c.) = no credit; G.A. = Golden Age.]

Name: Roy William Thomas, Jr. (b. 1940) (writer, editor)

Innocents Abroad?

(Above:) Dann and Roy at the Vatican, 2003—and (right) a caricature of the happy couple done by artist Paul Smith for Roy’s 1979 birthday bash, near the end of Ye Editor’s first stint as writer of Marvel’s Conan mags. [Art ©2005 Paul Smith.]

Pen Name: Justin Arthur (Conan the Barbarian #240 only) Education: B.S. in Education, Southeast Missouri State University, 1961; Master’s degree in Humanities from California State University, 2005 Non-Comics Influences: Joseph Heller, Homer, Robert E. Howard, William Shakespeare Comics Writing/Editing Influences: Stan Lee, Joe Simon & Jack Kirby, Walt Kelly, Harvey Kurtzman, Otto Binder, Gardner Fox, Julius Schwartz

Will The Non-Pérez F.F. Art Please Sit Down?

(Right center:) For a Marvel-UK reprinting of the Impossible Man-starring F.F. #178 (Nov. 1976), whose tale had to be broken into two weekly parts, this new panel (prepared by the New York staff—artists and writer uncertain) depicts a conference between George Pérez, Stan Lee, Roy, and Jack Kirby. It replaces a Pérez/Sinnott panel which had been printed at the end of the first part, and led directly into the following four-panel sequence in the second: (Bottom center:) Pérez/Sinnott panels from F.F. #176 of that selfsame story conference. Script by R.T. (Far right:) For sitting through all that, we figure you deserve to see this actual sketch of the F.F., courtesy of artist George Pérez and collector Curt Griff.

[Panel art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.; sketch ©2005 George Pérez; Fantastic Four TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Member: CAPA-Alpha, 1965-66

Contributing Writer: All in Color for a Dime (1970 book, reprinted from Xero #9, 1962); introductions to various Chronicles of Conan [Dark Horse], DC Archives, Marvel Masterworks, and other books related to comic books Comics Based on Atari Video Games: Atari Force (1982, mostly written by Gerry Conway); Swordquest (limited distribution; some cowritten with Gerry Conway)—both done through DC Writer (Special Material): Marvel’s Carnegie Hall Concert, Jan. 1972 Writer: Topps Batman cards 1966 (some with Gary Friedrich?) & superhero parodies c. 1967

Roy Thomas Checklist Writer (Published Screenplays): Doc Dynamo (with Gerry Conway) 2005; Rivers of Time 2005

Lifetime Fandom Award, Diamond Distributors 1992; Haxtur/Autor Que Amamus award, the Salón Internacional del Comic del Principado de Austurias, Gijon, Spain 1996, et al.

Screenwriter: Fire and Ice (20th Century-Fox, animated) 1983; Conan the Destroyer (Universal) 1984—both co-written with Gerry Conway

Syndicated Credits: Conan the Barbarian (daily & Sunday) 1978-80 Comics in Other Publications: “Bestest League of America,” Alter-Ego [Vol. 1] #1-3 (w, a) 1961; “Bestest League of America Meets Da Frantic Four,” Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #6 (w, a) 1964 (with Grass Green) (reprinted in The Golden Age of Comic Fandom 1995); Topps super-hero parodies, reprinted various places incl. Alter Ego: The Comic Book Artist Collection (w) 2001; “Starhawk,” Marvelmania #4 1971?; “Warrior of Llarn,” Star-Studded Comics (adapting Gardner Fox novel) 1971 (written in 1965); TV Guide (Hercules & Xena comic story) 1996; TV Guide (Xena comic story) 1997

TV Writer (Live Action): Super Force; Xena: Warrior Princess (with Janis Hendler), both 1990s TV Animation: Fantastic Four (De PatieFreleng) c. 1979; Plastic Man (Ruby-Spears); G.I. Joe; Conan the Adventurer (with Carla Conway); G.I. Joe Extreme (date uncertain) Editor: Stan Lee Presents The Incredible Hulk (1979 paperback utilizing stills from first TV movie) Honors as Professional: Alley Award, Best Comic Book Writer (fan award) 1969; Goethe, Favorite Writer (fan award) 1970; Goethe, Favorite Editor (fan award) 1973; Eagle Award, Best Comics Writer (British fan award) 1970s; Academy of Comic Book Arts Shazam, Best Dramatic Writer 1971, 1972; ACBA Shazam, Best Editor 1973; ACBA Shazam, Superior Achievement by an Individual 1974; Inkpot Award, San Diego Comic-Con 1974; Alfred Award (fan conference in Angouleme, France), Best Comics Writer in a Foreign Language 1974;

17

Xena, Xena, Xena (With Apologies To Vic Damone) Topps Comics’ issues of Xena: Warrior Princess were published with two alternate covers—one a drawing or painting, the other a photo of Lucy Lawless as Xena. Since Roy also co-scripted an episode in the first season of the TV show itself (“Beware the Greeks Bearing Gifts”), we’re featuring the photo cover of Xena #1 (Aug. 1997). [©2005 Universal Television Enterprises, Inc.]

Co-Creator (as Writer): All-Star Squadron (as concept); Alter Ego (super-hero); Amazing-Man (1980s hero); Anthem; Arak, Son of Thunder (with Dann Thomas), Banshee; Black Knight (1968 version); Captain Carrot & His Amazing Zoo Crew! (with Dann Thomas & Gerry Conway); Captain Thunder and Blue Bolt (with Dann Thomas); Crime Smasher (with Dann Thomas); The Crusaders (in Invaders); The Defenders (as concept); Firebrand (heroine, AllStar Squadron); Havok; Helix (with Dann Thomas); Infinity, Inc. (with Dann Thomas);

The Screenplays That Time Forgot!

- Now Available On Line From BLACK COAT PRESS “RIVERS OF TIME”

by Roy Thomas based on “A Gun for Dinosaur” & related stories

by L. Sprague de Camp Cover by Steve Bissette

“DOC DYNAMO” A takeoff on 1940s movie serials

by Gerry Conway & Roy Thomas Cover by Gil Formosa (Plus more unproduced but fun screenplays by comic book writers Marv Wolfman, Mike Baron, Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficier, Steve Englehart, et al.)

$15.95 apiece at www.blackcoatpress.com

Adapted From Jerry G. Bails’ Who’s Who Of American Comic Books

18

The Axe And The Sword Roy with the first award he ever won: fandom’s Alley, a statuette of Alley Oop (made by the late Ronn Foss), for early-1960s fan-writing for Alter Ego, Vol. 1, not covered in this Checklist—plus two examples of the fulfillment of a minor dream of his, to write a newspaper comic strip, as he did from 1978-80. (Top:) The very first Conan the Barbarian daily (9-4-78), drawn by John Buscema—and (below) an early daily by Ernie Chan (11-1-78), who for years was Big John’s major inker/finisher on the color comic book. The Conan strip guest-starred Red Sonja in one adventure a year. [Strips ©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.; Red Sonja TM & ©2005 Red Sonja Properties, Inc.]

The Invaders (as concept); Iron Fist; Jonni Thunder, a.k.a. Thunderbolt (with Dann Thomas & Gerry Conway); Liberty Legion (as concept); Living Lightning (with Dann Thomas); Man-Thing (with Stan Lee & Gerry Conway); Mr. Bones; Morbius the Living Vampire; Red Sonja (based on heroine created by Robert E. Howard); Red Wolf; Spitfire; Sunfire; 3-D Man; Union Jack; The Vision (1968 version); Werewolf by Night (with Jean Thomas & Gerry Conway); Warlock; What If (as concept); The Young All-Stars (with Dann Thomas). [NOTE: In his editorial capacity at Marvel, Roy also had a hand in the creation of Wolverine, Ghost Rider [1970s hero, visual conception only], Luke Cage - Hero for Hire, Brother Voodoo, Son of Satan, Man-Wolf, The Zombie, The Golem, and various other characters. In all concepts listed under this “Co-Creator (as Writer)” category, there was also a co-creating artist, though only writers are listed here.]

COMIC BOOKS (Foreign): Anthem #1 & Carmilla #1 (both for Dude Comics, Spain) 2000 COMIC BOOKS (Mainstream & Alternative US) Blue Comet Press: Crime Smasher #1 1987 Chanting Monks Studios: Doc Behemoth #1 1998

COMING SOON FROM ROY THOMAS!

WORLD WAR II! YOU ONLY THINK YOU KNOW WHO WON! Learn the startling secret of— TM

A darker saga of an alternate Earth—and the heroes who were born to save it!

NOTE: The US debut of Anthem, originally slated for 2004, has been delayed by Heroic Publishing’s scheduling of Alter Ego: The Graphic Novel and Captain Thunder and Blue Bolt for earlier release. But watch this space for news of Anthem!

TM & ©2005 Roy Thomas & Dude Comics

Roy Thomas Checklist

19 Charlton: Blue Beetle 1966; Son of Vulcan 1966; romance (n.c.) 1967 Cross Plains Comics: H.P. Lovecraft: The Coming of Cthulhu c. 1999; Red Sonja: A Death in Scarlet 1999; Robert E. Howard Horror c. 1999; Robert E. Howard’s Wolfshead c. 1999; Robert E. Howard’s Worms of the Earth (graphic novel, co-published by Wandering Star; reprint of Marvel material) 2000 Dark Horse: Almuric (graphic album reprint of Marvel Epic adaptation) 1991; Classic Star Wars (graphic album reprint of Marvel adaptation) 1994; Cormac Mac Art 1990; Ironhand of Almuric (1991); Kings of the Night 1990; Star Wars #0 (graphic album reprint from Marvel’s Pizzazz magazine) 1994 DC Comics & related: All Star Comics 80Page Giant 1999; All-Star Squadron 1981-87; Arak – Son of Thunder 1981-85; Atom (G.A.) 1988; Batman 1981, 1986; Black Condor 1987; Black Pirate 1982; Captain Carrot and His [Continued on p. 22]

Roy Goes To The Well(s) (Left:) Michael Lark’s cover (perfection itself, sez Roy) for their DC Elseworlds 1999 graphic novel Superman: War of the Worlds, set on an Earth in which the Man of Tomorrow made his first appearance in 1938 (gee, what’ll they think of next?)—the very year in which Orson Welles scared the bejeebers out of folks with his radio adaptation of H.G. Wells’ 1998-99 novel War of the Worlds. Roy and Michael had fun combining the last son of Krypton and the Martians—only DC couldn’t get the rights to the airwaves version, so they stuck to the book. It worked out just as well.

(Right:) Roy followed it up with a second H.G. Wells/Elseworlds effort, JLA: The Island of Dr. Moreau (2002), with powerful art by Steve Pugh. The lads even worked in Jack the Ripper! But, alas, Roy’s desire to complete his projected Wells trilogy by putting Batman in The Time Machine and bringing the Morlocks to Victorian London was snafued when DC cut back drastically on its Elseworlds line. [Both covers ©2005 DC Comics.]

NOW ON SALE

Collected for the first time as a trade paperback!

Roy Thomas and Ron Harris present their classic 1986 tribute to the Golden Age of Comics!

Full-color - 128 pages - $17.95 ISBN 0-929729-02-1 Can’t find it? Order it from: 6433 California Avenue Long Beach, CA 90805 Visit Our Website At: www.heroicpub.com

20

Adapted From Jerry G. Bails’ Who’s Who Of American Comic Books

Howard Heroes By Thomas (Above:) After scripting the first 115 issues of Conan the Barbarian, five “Conan” stories in Savage Tales, 60-plus issues of The Savage Sword of Conan, King Conan #1-8, What If #13 (in which Conan came to the 20th century), and various comics starring Red Sonja, King Kull, Solomon Kane, et al., Roy left Marvel for DC in late 1980. The next hero created by Robert E. Howard that he would write—under personal license, this time—was Cormac Mac Art, a 6th-century Celtic warrior featured in a four-issue black-&-white series from Dark Horse. Above is E.R. Cruz’s splendid splash for #2 (1990), in which Cormac gives a phony name to some enemies.

[Script ©2005 Roy Thomas; art ©2005 Estate of E.R. Cruz; Cormac Mac Art TM & ©2005 REH Properties, Inc.] (Top center:) Roy returned to write the Marvel version of Howard’s surly Cimmerian from the early 1990s till Marvel relinquished the hero after publishing several three-issue mini-series at decade’s end. Here’s the cover (by interior penciler Stefano Raffaele) to Conan: The Lord of the Spiders #3 (May 1998). [©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.] (Top right:) Steve Lightle’s cover for Red Sonja: Death in Scarlet #1 (1999).

Roy and Steve co-plotted the story for Cross Plains Comics editor/publisher Richard Ashford, a former Marvel Conan editor. Sellthrough of the several CPC titles was good, and many retailers tried to reorder—but because they’d ordered too timidly the first time around, there was no #2 of this series or any other from CPC, and the fledgling company became moribund. [©2005 Red Sonja Properties, Inc.]

Funny Animals In Long Underwear In Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! #3 (May 1982), Roy and penciler Scott Shaw! decided to delay the splash page till p. 23. The main villain that issue was Frogzilla—actually a mutated J. Fenimore Frog, from the 1940s-50s DC series “The Dodo and the Frog.” [©2005 DC Comics.]

Roy Thomas Checklist Justice Society: Generations [Clockwise from top right:] Roy’s favorite comic to write of all time—above even Conan the Barbarian, The Avengers, and The Invaders—was All-Star Squadron, relating the exploits of DC’s and Quality’s combined Earth-Two/Earth-X super-heroes of World War II: the Justice Society, the Seven Soldiers of Victory, the (future) Freedom Fighters, et al., with occasional guest shots by Earth-S’s Marvel Family. Rich Buckler’s penciled splash for issue #1 (Sept. 1981) was among several pages that went lost in the mail, so Jerry Ordway had to ink them on vellum from poor photocopies—not that you could tell it from the finished product. Roy commenced the saga by spotlighting Hawkman, his favorite Golden Age hero—drawn (at his request) with an anachronistic 1946 Joe Kubert version of the mask.

The sons, daughters, and spiritual heirs of the JSA were the focus of Infinity, Inc., which Roy created with artists Mike Machlan & Jerry Ordway and (unofficially) with wife Dann.

Mike penciled and Jerry inked this cover for #2 (May 1984)—repro’d here from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Jerry.

Todd McFarlane, just a year or two before his abrupt rise to super-star status, had his first ongoing gig as penciler of mid-1980s issues of Infinity, Inc. With Tony DeZuniga inking, his penciling for #19 (Oct. ’85) graced the final pre-that-damn-Crisis JLA-JSA team-up, with the All-Star Squadron’s Commander Steel tossed in as the loose-screw villain. This was the era of what Gerry C. called his “All-Conway Squad” of the Justice League, composed entirely of heroes he’d co-created, because he was tired of getting grief from other DC editors about using “their” big-name heroes in JLA stories. (Todd himself was the first artist to draw Infinity’s opposite-number group Helix, including Mr. Bones, one of Roy’s favorite DC co-creations.)

The McFarlane/DeZuniga double-page splash from #19 shows the Infinitors rushing an unconscious Jade to the hospital—where the future Dr. Midnight (Dr. Beth Chapel) is on duty, seen at right. Though Infinity, Inc. itself is long gone, its Thomas/Machlan/Ordway-created heroes have been dispersed over the length and breadth of the DC Universe, with Silver Scarab (Hector Hall) morphing into Dr. Fate, and Al Rothstein/Nuklon rechristened (and re-garbed) as Atom Smasher. It’s nice getting royalties from DC for merchandise that features them, but frankly, Roy’d rather have kept them together in a title he scripted. [All art in this grouping ©2005 DC Comics.]

21

Adapted From Jerry G. Bails’ Who’s Who Of American Comic Books

22 [Continued from p. 19]

Marc Lofficier) 1996; Superman: War of the Worlds (graphic novel) 1999; text pieces 198189; Valda the Iron Maiden 1982-84; Wonder Woman 1981-83 (some n.c.); The Young All-Stars 1987-89; Zatara 1988 (some DC material co-written with Dann Thomas, Gerry Conway, RJM Lofficier, et al.)

Amazing Zoo Crew! 1982-83; Captain Comet 1987; Crimson Avenger 1986, 1988; DC Challenge 1986; Dr. Fate 1988; Dr. Mid-Nite 1987; Dr. Occult 1987; Doll Man 1986; Dragonlance (graphic novels) 199091; Dyna-Mite 1988; Flash (G.A.) 1986; Fury 1987; Green Lantern 1981; Green Lantern (G.A.) 1987; Grim Ghost 1989; Guardian 1987; Hawkgirl 1981; Hawkman 1987; Heroes against Hunger 1986; Hourman 1987; Infinity, Inc. 1984-88; JLA: Island of Dr. Moreau (graphic novel) 2002; Jonni Thunder, a.k.a. Thunderbolt 1985; Johnny Thunder 1987; Justice League of America 1982-83; Justice Society of America 1984-85, 1988; Legion of Super-Heroes 1981; Manhunters 1988; MGM’s Marvelous Wizard of Oz (DC & Marvel) 1975; Midnight 1988; Mr. America 1988; New Teen Titans 1982, 1987; The Oz-Wonderland War (e & concept) 1986; Plastic Man 1988; Ring of the Nibelung 1989-90 (graphic album reprint by DC & Warner 1991; by ExPress 1997); Robin 1981 (n.c.); Sandman 1986; Secret Origins 1986-89; Shazam! 1981-82, 1984, 1986-88; The Spectre 1987; StarSpangled Kid 1986; Supergirl 1981; Superman 1981, 1986; Superman: Metropolis (graphic novel with Jean-

First Comics: Alter Ego 1986; Elric 1986-89 Hamster Press: Heroes vs. Hitler (with Bill Schelly) 2000 Heroic Publishing: Captain Thunder and Blue Bolt (with Dann Thomas) 1987-88, 1992; Alter Ego: The Graphic Novel 2005 (collects all four 1986 First Comics issues) Marvel Comics & related: Almuric (in Epic Illustrated) 1980; Anachronauts; Avengers 1966-72, 1975, 1989-92, 2001; Avengers West Coast 1990-93; Black Knight 1968, 1990; Black Panther 1993; Black Widow 1971; Book of the Vishanti 1989-91, Bran Mak Morn 1979; Captain America 1967, 1973, 1977, 1990; Captain Marvel 1968-70;

Read ’Em And Reap!

Roy makes no bones about the fact that, prior to his 1980-81 move to DC, he deliberately backpedaled on co-creating new heroes because he knew he’d have no ownership or merchandising rights in them. But he did feel a responsibility to dream up new villains for series he wrote—including The Grim Reaper in The Avengers. Some years later, co-creator John Buscema drew this pencil sketch of the Reaper now owned by collector Dave Newton—though it may not repro especially well here. [Art ©2005 Estate of John Buscema; Grim Reaper TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

You Can Go Home Again—If You Can Find A Place To Park In the latter 1960s, Roy wrote such Marvel titles as X-Men, Avengers, and Dr. Strange. In the late ’80s and since, he’s written for Marvel occasional tales of X-Men and Avengers, lots of Dr. Strange—and Avengers West Coast, a series he and Dann co-scripted beginning with #60 in 1990. Roy is proud of helping bring to the feature (via photo-reference he sent to talented artists like Paul Ryan and David Ross) a real feel of Southern California, compared to its earlier look that more than one reader described as “New York with palm trees”—but alas, the series was canceled with #101 in 1993, and replaced with something called Force Works.

Does it make Roy seem churlish to admit he was quietly happy when that Thomas-less successor series proved to be short-lived? If so, then so be it! Here, SpiderMan helps Hollywood’s super-heroes battle the cabal called Death-Web in AWC #85 (Aug. 1992); art by Dave Ross & Tim Dzon. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Roy Thomas Checklist

23 The Cat 1972; Chamber of Chills 1973; Chamber of Darkness 1969-70; Code Blue 1994; Conan 1970-80, 1992-96; Conan: The Horn of Azoth (graphic novel, with Gerry Conway) 1990; Conan of the Isles (graphic novel) 1988; Conan: The Ravagers Out of Time (graphic novel) 1992; Conan the Rogue (graphic novel, with John Buscema) 1991; Crazy (magazine) 1973-74; Daredevil 1969-70; The Defenders 1971-72; Doc Savage 1973; Dr. Doom 1970; Dr. Druid 1990, Dr. Strange 1966-69, 1972, 1977, 1989-92; Dracula 1973-75, 2004-05; Elric 1980, 1982; Elric: The Dreaming City (graphic novel) 1982; Eternals 1991, 1994; Fantastic Four 1972-77, 1987, 1989-90, 1992-95; Ghost Rider 1967; Gullivar Jones, Warrior of Mars 1972; horror 1973-75; Human Torch 1975, 1977, 1990; The Incredible Hulk 1968-72, 1974; The Impossible Man 1990; The Inhumans 1971; The Invaders 1975-79, 1993; Iron Fist 1974; Iron Man 1966, 1971-72, 1990; Journey into Mystery 1972; Ka-Zar 1970-72; Kid Colt 196667; Kull 1971-73, 1975, 1991-92; Liberty Legion 1975-76; Man-God 1976; Mark of Kane 1976-77; The Marvel Treasury of Oz 1975; MGM’s Marvelous Wizard of Oz (Marvel & DC) 1975; Millie the Model 1965-66; Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. 1967; [Not] Brand Echh 1967-68; Patsy and Hedy 1966; Rawhide Kid 1968, 1971; Red Sonja 1975-79,

Drac’s Back!

Roy and artist Dick Giordano began their lengthy, ultra-faithful adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula in Marvel’s black-&-white title Dracula Lives! in 1974-75. That mag was canceled after they’d finished only 40% of it. But in 2004 editor Mark Beazley— who may or may not have been born when the first part was published—invited them to complete it, and this particular Thirty Years’ War had a happy ending, as the four-issue series Stoker’s Dracula showcased the entire adaptation in 2004-2005. This page of Dick’s pencil roughs is from the climactic scene in issue #3. Look for a nearly 200-page trade paperback compilation this Halloween of what Roy and Dick always hoped to eventually see published one day as a “graphic novel”—before even Jack Katz, let alone Will Eisner, had come to that form, though not before such visionaries as Arnold Drake and Gil Kane had pioneered it. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

Between Arak And A Hard Place Cover art by Ernie Colón & Dick Giordano for Arak – Son of Thunder #1 (Sept. 1981). Danette Couto (soon to be Dann Thomas) had this idea: What if a Native American had discovered Europe? This sword-and-sorcery series, set in the late 8th century, debuted, if Roy remembers a-right, a week or so before All-Star Squadron #1, the other new title he initially co-created under his first writing contract with DC. Art repro’d from the June ’81 DC Coming Attractions, a publication given away at comics shops. A bit more text was added to the published cover. [©2005 DC Comics.]

24

Adapted From Jerry G. Bails’ Who’s Who Of American Comic Books

Okay, Axis, Here Come Roy And Rich!

As a teenager, Roy loved Bill Everett’s 1953-55 “Sub-Mariner” revival—in the mid-’70s he originated the World War II-set comic The Invaders—and he’s always enjoyed working with artist Rich Buckler—so let’s kill three birds with one stone here, by spotlighting the boys’ 12-issue Saga of The Sub-Mariner, a pictorial biography of Prince Namor. This page from #5 (March ’89) is an homage to the Frank Robbins/John Romita 1975 cover of Giant-Size Invaders #1, with Union Jack and Spitfire tossed in. Inks by “Richardson & Co.,” which included Rich’s son Rich Buckler, Jr. Above is a photo taken by Keif Simon of Rich and Roy at the April 2005 Big Apple Con. [Art ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

RICH BUCKLER artist/painter 1983, 1991, 1992; The Renegades 1970; Scarlet Witch 1992; The Secret Defenders 1993; Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos 1966-67; Spider-Woman 1993; Spider-Man 1971-72, 1992; Spoof 1970, 1972; Star Wars 1976-78; Sub-Mariner 1967-71, 1975, 1977, 1988-89, 1993; SubMariner & Dr. Doom 1975; Stoker’s Dracula 2004-2005; Supernatural Thrillers 1972-73; The Thing 1976; Thor 1978-80, 1989-90, 1992, 199495; Thor of 2591 1992; 3-D Man 1977; Tigra 1990; Tower of Shadows 1969-71; Two-Gun Kid 1967; text pieces 1967, 1974-80, 1990s; Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction (magazine, also e) 1975-76; Valeria 1982; The Vision 1990; Warlock 1972; The Wasp 1991; The Way to Dusty Death (with Gerry Conway, graphic novel) 1992; Werewolf by Night 1972; What If 1977-79, 1989-92; Wolverine 1991-92; Wonder Man 1991; World of Warlocks 1973; Worlds Unknown 1973; X-Men 1966-70, 1990-91, 2000 (some Marvel material co-written with Dann Thomas, RJM Lofficier, et al.)

Now available for special commissioned drawings, cover recreations and original paintings.

Millennium Publishing: H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu (with Jean-Marc Lofficier) 1993+ Pacific Comics: Elric 1983-86 Star*Reach Publications: Spider-Man (Christmas benefit comic) 1991

Art ©2005 Rich Buckler; Silver surfer TM & ©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

For Inquiries, please email me at bucklersr@aol.com

Roy Thomas Checklist

25

You’re The Topps!

Roy had a ball in the 1990s working for Topps Comics with editors Len Brown (his 1967-68 Brooklyn apartment-mate) and Jim Salicrup (whom he had happily suggested to Topps for the job) and Renee Witterstaetter. Along with TV-related series Hercules and Xena and adaptations of big-budget (but not well-realized) ’90s film versions of Dracula and Frankenstein and a biography of Vlad the Impaler, he got a particular kick out of doing the colorful quartet of titles below [clockwise from top left]: Jack Kirby’s Secret City Saga and related one-shots were based on notes and concept sketches by the King, and drawn by such Silver Age Marvel heavyweights as Steve Ditko, who did this cover for #2 (June 1993), on which Captain Glory, Night Glider, and Bombast shield President Clinton from evildoers. Monica must’ve managed to sneak by them! [©2005 Topps Comics, Inc.; characters TM & ©2005 Estate of Jack Kirby.]

Roy also scripted The X-Files: Season One, adapting the scripts of the shows with various artists. He’d actually written 14 in all by the time the comic was cancelled, but the TV people caused such deadline delays and extra expenses with their nitpicking in the approval process that, after publishing 8-9 issues, Topps let its license lapse. The episode called “Squeeze” was one of the creepiest, and caused Roy to look nervously once or twice at a heating vent in his and Dann’s bedroom! This cover is by John Van Fleet. [©2005 20th Century-Fox Film Corporation.]

It was a blast to have two classic monsters clash—in stories that grew organically from the novels by Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker—in the three-issue Frankenstein/Dracula War. Interior art was by Claude St. Aubin; the covers (such as #1, Feb. 1995) were by Mike Mignola, Roy’s collaborator on the adaptation of the Coppolla film Bram Stoker’s Dracula. [©Topps Comics, Inc.] Roy’s very favorite Topps project, though, was the trio of 3-issue mini-series that grew out of Mark Schultz’s Xenozoic Tales, under its alternate title Cadillacs and Dinosaurs. This cover for the inaugural one in 1994 is by dinosaur delineator par excellence William Stout. Roy also wrote (and various artists drew) an entire fourth 3-issue C&D series that’s never been published. How about it, Dark Horse? [©2005 Mark Schultz.]

Topps Comics: Bombast 1993; Bram Stoker’s Dracula 1992-93 (collected as graphic novel 1993); Cadillacs and Dinosaurs 1994; Captain Glory 1993; Dracula: Vlad the Impaler 1993; Frankenstein/ Dracula War 1994; Hercules: The Legendary Journeys 1996; Jack Kirby’s Secret City Saga 1993; Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein 1994 (collected as graphic novel outside US, 1994); Night Glider 1993; Space: Above and Beyond 1996; text pieces 1994, 1996; Xena: Warrior Princess 1997; Xena and Hercules 1996; X-Files: Season One 1997-98

Monthly! The Original First-Person History!

TSR, Inc.: Dragonlance 1987-88; Warhawks Comics Module 1990 TwoMorrows Publishing: Streetwise (story in graphic album) 2000

Write to: Robin Snyder, 3745 Canterbury Lane #81, Bellingham, WA 98225-1186

26

“The Company He Keeps…”

The Comic Buyer’s Guide’s 1999-2000 Poll Of Comic Book “Favorites”

R

by Peter Sanderson, with Roy Thomas

oy here, relating all art captions and italicized paragraphs that follow—with Peter’s analysis in non-italicized text below: In issues dated January 2000, the popular tabloidformat Comic Buyer’s Guide, under editor Maggie Thompson, conducted a wide-ranging poll of comic book fans and professionals alike concerning their “Favorite” writers, editors, artists, stories, companies, etc., of the 20th century—while emphasizing that “Favorite” is not necessarily the same thing as “Best.”

While naturally no poll of this sort can ever be anything like definitive, the project was intriguing as the major experiment of its kind— and I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t both surprised and gratified, when the results were announced, to find myself ranked #5 among “Favorite Writers” and #4 among “Favorite Editors.” If, as they say, a man is known by the company he keeps, I was pleased to find myself in some very formidable company—and while I wouldn’t argue overmuch with those who’d place me somewhat (or even considerably) lower on those particular totem poles, I decided to use the occasion of this 50th issue of Alter Ego to recapitulate and comment upon the selection, half a decade later. All specific art and photos, incidentally, have been added for this A/E presentation.

The CBG poll was conducted and its results announced on three levels, as explained and defined in the magazine itself: the voting of “General Fandom,” of “Comics Professionals,” and “CBG Readers.” The results in the three areas were listed separately, with the top 13 to

15 choices listed in the first two divisions, and The cover of Comic Buyer’s Guide #1365 (Jan. 14, the top 26 to 30 2000), which spotlighted the poll of pros and fans in the “CBG” examined in this article. Art by John Drury. division. The [©2005 Krause Publications, Inc.] results are roughly summarized below after each division. The Comic Buyer’s Guide gave special prominence to the five “Favorite” creators in each category as averaged from the above three divisions; so it’s those choices that are analyzed below, in brief professional biographies written by comics historian and longtime Marvel staffer Peter Sanderson.

While this issue covers only the “Writer” and “Editor” choices, it is planned that in a near-future issue Peter will discuss the results of the poll in artistic and other categories. And a special thanks to Maggie Thompson, senior editor of Comic Buyer’s Guide, and to Krause Publications, for permission to utilize this one-of-a-kind poll.

And now, with no further ado, I turn you over to the blandishments of Peter Sanderson….

The Favorite Editors of the Century (1) STAN LEE. Starting out as a teenage “go-fer” at Timely Comics in the early 1940s, Stan Lee quickly

The Not-So-Secret Origins Of Marvel Comics Stan Lee in the mid-1970s—plus the splash pages of the two most important stories he ever edited (as well as wrote). Fantastic Four #1 (Oct. 1961) inaugurated a new approach to super-heroes with dynamic penciler/coplotter Jack Kirby and an unidentified inker—while in Amazing Fantasy #15 (Aug. 1962) Stan as editor replaced the redoubtable Kirby with Steve Ditko as artist of the very first “Spider-Man” tale, thereby mutating that “new approach” yet further, since Ditko would prove to be unsurpassed in his ability to convey everyday emotion and events in a super-hero feature. The instincts shown in both these choices are what make for a great editor, though of course he had the ideal writer working for him, as well—namely, himself. [©2005 Marvel Characters.]

“The Company He Keeps...” rose to become editor-in-chief of the comics company now known as Marvel. At points during the late 1950s, he was the only person on staff, keeping the company functioning during those dark times. Having survived for two decades, in 1961 Stan Lee started the revolution that transformed both Marvel and the American comic book industry. In collaboration with artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko and other major talents, he co-created a pantheon of new super-heroes for a new generation: Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, Spider-Man, The X-Men, Thor, Iron Man, Dr. Strange, and more. By endowing his characters with multidimensional personalities, Lee opened the way to super-hero comics for older, more sophisticated readers. He encouraged his artists to give him visually dynamic storytelling that altered the look of comics. Through his editorial supervision and vivid dialogue, he placed his personal stamp on all the comics that together comprised the new “Marvel Universe.” Every Marvel writer since has been working within the framework that Stan Lee established back in the 1960s.

(2) JULIUS SCHWARTZ. Had he never worked in comics, Julius Schwartz would still be a major figure in the history of American popular culture. He was a cofounder of science-fiction fandom, who went on to become the first literary agent specializing in science-fiction, fostering brilliant new talents such as Ray Bradbury.

In the 1940s he began a new career as a comics editor at All-American Comics, an affiliate of National/DC, but it was beginning in the 1950s that he truly made his mark. In Showcase #4 in 1956, he introduced a new version of one of DC’s Golden Age characters, The Flash, thereby inaugurating the great revival of the super-hero genre now known as the Silver Age of Comics. Schwartz also oversaw the creation of the Silver Age Green Lantern, Atom, and Hawkman, a revival of The Spectre, new characters such as Adam Strange, and the Justice League of America.

Within a decade he revamped “Batman” not once but twice, first

The Julie Age Of Comics Julius Schwartz (above) in uncharacteristically formal attire—next to the cover of one of at least four comic book issues he edited which must be deemed his most important. Showcase #4 would have to take first prize, of course, for its relaunching of a new “Flash”—followed by Showcase #29 (“Green Lantern”) and The Brave and the Bold #28 (“Justice League of America”)—but probably fourth on the list would be The Flash #123 (Sept. 1961), which, by resuscitating the original Flash and introducing the concept of “Earth-Two,” paved the way for the return of the DC’s 1940s heroes and a widening of the DC Universe that lasted till the 1985-86 Crisis on Infinite Earths. Of those four Julie-edited covers and tales—well, since the CBG poll was one of “favorites,” Roy felt justified in spotlighting Flash #123. The story (and the Earth-Two concept, as well as the 1940s Flash himself) was co-conceived by scripter Gardner Fox—but then, one of an editor’s most essential qualities is the ability to pick good writers. Photo from the Julius Schwartz Collection, with thanks to Robert Greenberger. [Flash cover ©2005 DC Comics.]

27

through the “New Look” modernization circa 1964, and then, following the “camp” TV show disaster, by returning Batman to his “Dark Knight” roots, a characterization that endures today. In the 1970s he worked the same magic on the moribund “Superman” series, revitalizing it for another decade and a half. At his death in 2004, Schwartz was not only hailed as a giant of the comics medium but as a beloved figure by fans and pros alike.

(3) ARCHIE GOODWIN. Universally acknowledged among his fellow professionals as a consummate craftsman in comics writing, Archie Goodwin even had an greater impact on the medium through his long career as an editor. Inspired by the classic EC Comics, he worked as an associate editor and writer on a remarkable assortment of visually dazzling stories in Warren Publishing’s horror and war magazines. He served for two years as Marvel’s editor-in-chief during the 1970s, but was more comfortable in his long reign presiding over Marvel’s Epic division in the 1980s.

This line of creatorowned comics not only pushed the envelope of sophistication in mainstream comics but empowered talented comics professionals to try their wings beyond the confines of the work-for-hire system. Goodwin and Epic set a precedent for the alternative comics companies of today.

Following one of Marvel’s recurring upheavals, he returned to DC, where he had briefly edited in the 1970s, (Almost) Everything’s and oversaw such Archie! series as “Starman.”

We wanted to show Continuing to work something edited by but not despite his long, written by Archie Goodwin debilitating bout during his early years as with cancer, Archie editor of the b&w horror Goodwin passed comic Creepy, but it wasn’t as away in 1998, and is easy as you’d think—because Archie (seen above) wrote much missed by the virtually the entire contents entire comic book of that mag (and of Blazing industry.

Combat). So we settled on this tale from Creepy #15 written and drawn by Johnny Craig, who had likewise been a writer/artist (and editor) at EC during the 1950s. [©1991 Harris Publications.]

(4) ROY THOMAS. Like Julius Schwartz, Roy Thomas’ story begins with a fanzine—in his case, as co-editor of the pioneering Alter-Ego, whose latter-day descendant you now hold in your hands. After a very brief and unhappy stint working for DC editor Mort Weisinger, he joined the then-tiny staff at Marvel Comics. When Stan Lee moved up to the post of publisher in 1972, Thomas stepped up as

28

The CBG 1999-2000 Poll Of Comic Book “Favorites”

editor-in-chief—Marvel’s first new one in over two decades! In that role he oversaw the arrival of a new generation of comics artists and writers, inspired by Lee’s work and eager to build further upon it.

Thomas also conceived numerous new series as Marvel expanded, including a new, international version of The X-Men. After stepping down as editor-in-chief in late 1974, he continued as writer/editor of numerous Marvel titles, most famously the family of “Conan” books and his Golden Age homage, The Invaders. In the early 1980s he shifted over to DC, writing (and often editing) a variety of projects ranging from All-Star Squadron to Captain Carrot. Though still occasionally keeping his hand in comics writing, Roy Thomas has currently returned to his roots as a comics historian, as editor of the revived Alter Ego, and as author of a growing number of books.

(5) DENNIS O’NEIL. Formerly a journalist, Dennis O’Neil tried his hand at writing comics at Marvel (naming Dr. Strange’s girlfriend Clea, for example) and Charlton (as “Sergius (Left:) Denny O'Neil, as depicted by Neal Adams for early-1970s DC comics; with thanks to Bob Brodsky. [©2005 DC Comics]

O’Shaughnessy”) in the 1960s before forging a remarkable creative partnership with artist Neal Adams and editor Julius Schwartz at the end of the decade.

Together they sent shock waves through super-hero comics with the now-classic Green Lantern/Green Arrow series, in which the two heroes confronted not costumed villains and space aliens but the actual social and political problems of contemporary America. O’Neil, (Above:) Roy, like Archie, scripted much of the material Adams, and he edited. But he’s especially proud of the b&w scienceSchwartz were also fiction comic Unknown Worlds of Science Fiction which the most important he created and edited from 1975-76. Michael W. Kaluta figures in reconpainted the cover for issue #2 (March ’75), depicting ceiving “Batman,” a scene from the story “War Toy” which Roy conceived, reviving his original but which was written by Tony Isabella and illustrated characterization as a

by George Pérez & Rico Rival. Thanks to Zack Smith for the scan. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.] grim avenger in updated form.

O’Neil and Adams created Ra’s al Ghul, who later became the principal villain of 2005’s Batman Begins movie. Highly respected at both Marvel and DC, O’Neil has worked as an editor at both companies. At Marvel he is best remembered for editing Frank Miller’s landmark work on Daredevil in the early 1980s; he later succeeded Miller as the series’ writer. But O’Neil left his most lasting mark as editor when he returned to DC Comics later in the decade. From then until a very few years ago, he was the principal editor of the “Batman” titles, both guarding the integrity of the character and continually keeping the series relevant to its times. Now retired as an editor, Dennis O’Neil continues to write novels and comics, as well as teaching the craft of comics writing.

Roy again: We had planned a more extended section on the CBG poll, but space, alas, simply will not allow. Instead, there is only room below to briefly list the rankings in the three separate divisions in the “Favorite Editors” category.

In the “CBG Readers” part of the poll, the top-15 rankings were, in order: Stan Lee, Julius Schwartz, Archie Goodwin, Roy Thomas, Dennis O’Neil, Jim Shooter, Mark Gruenwald, Karen Berger, Mike Carlin, Harvey Kurtzman, Bill Gaines, Dick Giordano, Mort Weisinger, Bob Harras, and Gary Groth.

From Bat-Writer to Bat-Editor After helping to redefine “Batman” as writer following the end of the camp-TV era, Denny eventually became editor of DC’s “Batman” titles. Seen above is a starkly effective Batman: Year One page executed by writer Frank Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli under his editorial aegis in 198687 and gathered in graphic novel form in 1988. [©2005 DC Comics.]

Among “Comics Professionals,” the top 15 were: Julius Schwartz, Stan Lee, Archie Goodwin, Bill Gaines, Harvey Kurtzman, Karen Berger, Rick Oliver, Dick Giordano, Vin Sullivan, Roy Thomas, Sheldon Mayer, Al Feldstein, Barbara Kesel, Jim Shooter, and Mort Weisinger.

Among “General Fandom”: Stan Lee, Julius Schwartz, Roy Thomas, Denny O’Neil, Mike Carlin, Bob Harras, Dick Giordano, Archie Goodwin, Karen Berger, Mark Gruenwald, Jim Shooter, Bill Gaines, Harvey Kurtzman, Mike Gold, and Marv Wolfman.

“The Company He Keeps...”

29

The Favorite Writers Of The Century (1) STAN LEE. In 1961 Stan Lee had already been writing comics for twenty years. But, however entertaining characters such as Fin Fang Foom may have been, it is unlikely that many people would remember his work had he carried out his original intention of quitting the comics business that year. Instead, his wife Joan encouraged him to write the kind of comics that he, a mature adult, would want to read. This was the inspiration he needed to launch a new breed of super-hero. In partnership with Jack Kirby, he created the Fantastic Four, who were not just superhumans but believable human beings as well: they quarreled, they had fits of temper, and yet they were bonded together by loyalty and love. From this point on, Lee asked himself and his readers: what would it be like if real people received superhuman powers and had to function in the real world? From now on, super-hero comics were not just wish fulfillment fantasies for amusing children; they could explore human psychology, comment on politics and society, and evoke emotions beyond a child’s sense of wonder. Superman was the ideal that every boy wanted to be; Lee’s Spider-Man was an everyman, who, despite his super-powers, was struggling through life just as every teenager—or adult—does. Through his classic stories of the 1960s, he demonstrated the potential not just of the super-hero genre, but of comics as a means of personal expression. Every writer in mainstream American comics is in his debt. Today, Stan Lee is not just deservedly a household name; he is a key figure in the history of American popular culture.

(2) ALAN MOORE. The first and most revolutionary member of comics’ “British Invasion” of the 1980s, Alan Moore brought a new level of literary sophistication to mainstream American comics. Even his early work for Marvel-UK on “Captain Britain” demonstrates his conceptual

“Plow Thru It? I Can’t Even See It!” (Above:) You already know what Stan Lee looks like—so here’s page 11 from Fantastic Four #56 (Nov. 1966), whose 4th panel dialogue (combined, of course, with the Kirby/Sinnott art) actually made Roy T. laugh out loud when he first read it, while proofreading the issue in the Marvel offices in mid-’66.

Since, like we said, the CBG poll was all about “favorites,” A/E’s editor used that same criterion for selecting this illo. [©2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.]

inventiveness and eagerness to experiment. With Miracleman (a revamping of the British super-hero Marvelman), Moore undertook his first revisionist examination of the super-hero myth. His breakthrough work in American comics was for DC’s Swamp Thing, reconceiving the monster as a god of the “green,” the world of vegetation. His challenging work on Swamp Thing is the true progenitor and inspiration for DC’s Vertigo line for mature audiences.

So far, his masterpiece is The Watchmen, an alternate history of 1980s America on the brink of Armageddon, whose super-heroes are more complex figures than any presented before or since. Among Moore’s other landmark works are V for Vendetta, his saga of a oneman rebellion against a fascist British government, and From Hell, a portrait of Victorian England through a retelling of the legend of Jack the Ripper. More recently he co-created several series for Wildstorm’s America’s Best Comics imprint. Although Alan Moore semi-retired from comics in 2004, he continues work on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, his encyclopedic portrait of an alternate

From Britain, With Legumes Alan Moore (above) and the splash of his first Swamp Thing issue (#21, Feb. 1984); art by Stephen Bissette (penciler) & John Totleben (inker). Moore stood the Len Wein/Bernie Wrightson concept on its head, and gave the comics field a second great series starring the same creation. [©2005 DC Comics.]

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The CBG 1999-2000 Poll Of Comic Book “Favorites”

Earth in which all fictional characters are real.

(3) NEIL GAIMAN. A former journalist in his native Britain, Neil Gaiman was inspired to write comics by the revolutionary work of Alan Moore, who became his mentor and friend. With his frequent collaborator, artist Dave McKean, he first made his mark with his semi-autobiographical graphic novel Violent Cases.

Gaiman and McKean got their feet in the door at DC Comics by pitching a revisionist version of the obscure super-heroine Black Orchid to editor Karen Berger. In 1989, under her editorial aegis, Gaiman launched his signature series Sandman, whose title character was Morpheus, the lord of dreams, and which became the only comic book story ever to win a World Fantasy Award (in 1991). Creating his own mythology, coupled with a gallery of memorable characters, he won an intense cult following that soon expanded far beyond the traditional comics readership.

Following the conclusion of Sandman in 1996, he has continued to work from time to time in comics, even interpreting the classic 1960s Marvel heroes in Marvel 1602. But, as American comic books’ first true crossover figure, he has increasingly turned his hand to novels (American Gods), radio drama, television (Neverwhere), and screenwriting (the forthcoming MirrorMask and Beowolf). Having directed the short subject A Short Film about John Bolton, Neil Gaiman is now preparing to direct his first feature film, based on his Death character from Sandman.

(4) GARDNER FOX. Trained as a lawyer but practicing only briefly, Gardner Fox instead became one of the most prolific and imaginative writers of DC’s Golden and Silver Ages. He was the second writer to work on DC’s “Batman.” In the 1940s he co-created the original Flash, Hawkman, and Dr. Fate (and, some claim, Sandman and Starman). He was also the co-creator and principal writer of “The Justice Society of America,” the team of DC’s leading Golden age heroes, in All-Star Comics. When editor Julius Schwartz inaugurated comics’ Silver Age, Fox was one of his two principal writers.

It was Fox who co-created Adam Strange and the Silver Age Atom and Hawkman, writing all three series in the 1960s. Under Schwartz’s direction, he also co-created the Justice League of America; his dazzlingly creative run on that series has never been surpassed. In addition, he wrote the revival of The Spectre and contributed to The Flash, Green Lantern, and the “Batman” books. It was Fox who wrote the landmark “Flash of Two Worlds” story in Flash #123, in which the Golden and Silver Age Flashes met, paving the way for the reintegration of the Golden Age DC heroes into modern continuity.

Following a dispute with management at the end of the 1960s, he and other writers left DC. A few years later, he scripted briefly for Marvel and elsewhere.

But though he afterward disappeared from comics,

Sand Gets In Your Eyes Neil Gaiman—and Morpheus, as drawn by Miguelanxo Prado, one of several artists illustrating the stories collected in the 2003 volume The Sandman: Endless Nights. A long, long way from gas masks and wirepoons and even the Dream Stream. [©2005 DC Comics.]

Fox continued to turn out novels under his own name and pseudonyms until his death in 1986.

(5) ROY THOMAS. A passionate devotee of the comics of the “Golden Age” of the 1940s, Roy Thomas was inspired by Julius Schwartz’s and Stan Lee’s brilliant “Silver Age” revivals of the superhero genre. After a very short stint at DC, he cast his lot with Marvel, where the overworked Lee soon allowed him to take the writing reins of various series. Among super-heroes, Thomas took on first The X-Men, then The Avengers, for which he co-created a Silver Age version of The Vision. The high points of his runs on both series were his spectacular collaborations with Neal Adams, most notably the intergalactically epic Kree-Skrull War. Somewhat reluctantly at first, in 1970 he started writing Marvel’s comics adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian, commencing the most important body of work of his career.

For a decade, he chronicled Conan’s exploits in his monthly comic, in the black-&-white Savage Sword of Conan, and other comics, with a degree

Fox Of Two Worlds Above, Gardner Fox (photo on p. 19) confers with editor Julius Schwartz in the oddball story “The Strange Adventure That Really Happened!” in Strange Adventures #140 (May 1962)—in a panel that feels no need to leave much room for artwork by Sid Greene. And, since Julie mentions their 1961 collaboration “Flash of Two Worlds”—at right is a panel from that already-classic story. Therein, Jay Garrick becomes the first super-hero to have aged naturally, so that, being 40ish, he gets winded, something he never did during his 1940s heyday—and he fans himself with his Mercurial helmet, thus making a virtue out of one of the ostensibly sillier things associated with the Golden Age speedster.

Art by Carmine Infantino (pencils) & Joe Giella (inks). [©2005 DC Comics.]

“The Company He Keeps...” of literary skill that no subsequent “Conan” writer at Marvel ever rivaled; he later returned to the hero for most of the 1990s. From aspects of an obscure REH character, Thomas also co-created Red Sonja, who became a star in her own right. In the mid-’70s he applied a modern Marvel treatment to his beloved Golden Age super-heroes in his Invaders series, set during World War II. In 1977 he brought to Marvel and adapted an upcoming science-fiction film that no one else at the company expected to be particularly successful: Star Wars. Migrating to DC in 1980, he related new wartime adventures of its vast array of 1940s heroes in All-Star Squadron and introduced their children and heirs in Infinity, Inc. In later years Roy Thomas has written for various comics companies, most recently completing for Marvel the adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula that he and artist Dick Giordano had started three decades earlier!

Roy’s back: Following are the choices for the 15 “Favorite Writers of the Century” in all three divisions of the poll, beginning with the combined listing.

Among “CBG Readers,” the order was: Stan Lee, Alan Moore, Gardner Fox, Frank Miller, Neil Gaiman, Carl Barks, Roy Thomas, Will Eisner, Peter David, Kurt Busiek, Denny O’Neil, Chris Claremont, Steve Englehart, John Broome, and John Byrne— followed in order by Bill Finger, Archie Goodwin, Jerry Siegel, Mark Waid, and Marv Wolfman.

Among “Comics Professionals,” only the top 13 were listed: Stan Lee, Alan Moore, Roy Thomas, Gardner Fox, Will Eisner, Denny

31

O’Neil, Carl Barks, Neil Gaiman, John Broome, Robert Kanigher, George Carlson, Jim Starlin, and Len Wein.

Among “General Fandom,” the ranking was: Alan Moore, Stan Lee, Chris Claremont, Neil Gaiman, Peter David, Mark Waid, Carl Barks, Kurt Busiek, Roy Thomas, Harvey Kurtzman, Gardner Fox, Rumiko Takahashi, and Frank Miller.

If I may be permitted a personal comment in closing: Naturally, the biases of those polled in the various divisions are clear to see, and perhaps inevitable. First of all, of course, pros and fans alike who were uninterested—let alone those who had passed away—played no part in the voting. It may have been unavoidable that both super-heroes (the focus of so much of the major activity in comic books over the preceding 2/3 of a century, and particularly since the 1960s) and pros who did their work in more recent decades when credits are commonplace received precedence over those whose work was earlier and/or less often credited.

For my own part—allowing myself a bit of editorial privilege, in what is after all my own “anniversary” issue—it is hard for me to imagine any “top ten” list of writers which would not include Will Eisner (slighted by “General Fandom”), Bill Finger (for his “Batman” work alone!), Al Feldstein (who finished 18th in the “CBG Readers” section)—and, although he apparently didn’t write as large a proportion of Lev Gleason scripts as was once thought, Charles Biro.

William Woolfolk and Otto Binder are two other Golden Age writers, noted particularly for their work on “Captain Marvel,” whose names

Roy The Boy Writer (Center:) In 1985, Roy Thomas was perplexed but happy to be enumerated as one of 50 Who Made DC Great in the odd DC publication by that name, surrounded

by Steven Petruccio cartoons depicting his pre-1965 fan activities. Since he’s divided his pro scripting time mostly between Marvel and DC, and since his two “dream titles” to script were Conan the Barbarian and All-Star Squadron, he’s flanked here by pages from each incarnation, in dream-related situations: (Left:) An uncharacteristically thoughtful Cimmerian in Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian #2 (Dec. 1970), with art by Barry Smith & Sal Buscema. When this story was nominated for a Shazam award by their fellow pros, and Roy for best writer, the original art of this page was the one selected for display at a meeting of the Academy of Comic Book Arts. [©2005 Conan Properties, Inc.] (Right:) The final panels of All-Star Squadron #20 (April 1983, art by Jerry Ordway), in which the Green Lantern of World War II realizes that, in his righteous wrath, he has destroyed an entire civilization—and the fact that it was only a dream makes no difference to him, none at all. The quotation from the Hindu Mahabarata, of course, is the same that, on our Earth, would be voiced by scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer in 1945 when he beheld the atomic explosion he had helped make possible. [©2005 DC Comics.]

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The CBG 1999-2000 Poll Of Comic Book “Favorites”

are totally absent. Nor did Jerry Siegel fare particularly well, despite his important work on “Superman” from the 1930s through, eventually, the 1960s.

The absence of Charles Biro also on any of the lists in the “Favorite Editors” category moves the poll results even further away from being considered a ranking of the “best” that comics had to offer in the 20th century—and how EC “managing editor” Bill Gaines could’ve aced out his own line editor Al Feldstein is beyond me. Sheldon Mayer, too, was given less than his just desserts by the fans, while other important early figures (e.g., Whitney Ellsworth) were roundly ignored. Nor was any recognition given to a single Fawcett editor, perhaps because Bill Parker was the writer/editor who conceived “Captain Marvel,” but was soon succeeded by others, vitiating the prominence of any individual editor (except perhaps executive editor Will Lieberson) at the company which, for several years in the 1940s, published the best-selling super-hero comic in the world. And some recognition must be given to the editor(s) who guided Dell Comics on both coasts—and who thus over the years hired Carl Barks (Donald Duck, Uncle Scrooge), Walt Kelly (Animal Comics, Pogo Possum), and the other talents who made that company’s funny-animal comics of the 1940s-50s some of the best (and best-selling) comics.

None of the above, I hasten to assure you, is to slight in any way the Comic Buyer’s Guide or the conscientious folks who conceived and oversaw the poll. It is difficult to imagine how surveying any other likely 1999 grouping—another magazine’s readers, a comicon’s attendees, etc.—would have brought much different (or at least more uncontestable) results. The CBG poll was a one-of-a-kind event, and there can’t really be its like again—at least not for another 95 years!

And, frankly, I won’t care how I fare on that one!

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33

The Doctor Is IN! Yet Another Tier Of Art From That NeverPublished Golden Age “JSA” Tale!

W

by Roy Thomas

hat good is a birthday (such as Alter Ego’s 50th issue) or an anniversary (such as my own 40th year as a comic book writer) —if you don’t get a present? And I got a real whiz-banger—a visual treat that someone sent me, and that I’m now sharing with you:

the reclusive Abel Northrup— who clearly doesn’t want to be found!

Part VI

A beautiful full-size photocopy of the original art was sent to me by collector Ethan Roberts. Incidentally, the 200-page All-Star Companion, Vol. 2, which will relate more about the Golden Age Justice Society, the 1940s roots of the 1980s All-Star Squadron, and lots in between, is finally hard-scheduled for publication in spring of 2006—and I can’t wait to finally finish putting it together!

But, in the meantime, I’ve gotta get back to searching for the remaining art and story from that elusive lost “JSA” story.

I definitely don’t want to be left out of the “Will”!

And if you’ve no idea of what I’m talking about—I’ll just refer you to Volume 1 of my TwoMorrows trade paperback The All-Star Companion, as well as to A/E #7, 14, 21, & 44. All I’ll say here is that the previouslyunpublished tier at right is obviously the final three panels on page 4 of the 6-page “Dr. Mid-Nite” chapter of the Golden Age “JSA” tale named above, with script by the group’s co-creator Gardner F. Fox and art by Stan Aschmeier. Doc is hot on the trail of

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Still another row of panels from the unpublished mid-1940s “Justice Society of America” story titled “The Will of William Wilson”!

34

The Angels of Alter Ego A Too-Brief Intro To Five Who Made A/E What It Is Today—Whatever That Is!

by Roy Thomas

Y

ou don’t get to 50 issues of a magazine like Alter Ego—or at least I didn’t—without the enthusiastic help of people who are just as nutty about the subject matter as the editor is.

Actually, in A/E’s case, there are seven people in particular I ought to thank—eight, if I count my old friend Jerry G. Bails, who founded the fanzine in 1961 and has given inestimable help to this volume, as well— because I should definitely include John Morrow, the lesser half of TwoMorrows Publishing, and TwoMorrows staffer Eric NolenWeathington, who’s been aboard for several years himself. But, alas, we’ll have to cover John and Eric another time. (Oh, and thanks to Jon B. Cooke for convincing me to revive A/E in 1998!)

But I did whatever squeezing had to be done in order to introduce the four guys who basically edit their own segments of each issue before I get a chance at them, plus one who then assembles the magazine from the marked-up text files and art copies I ship him each month. Bill Schelly has been listed as associate editor since V3#1, and also handles

the vital “Comic Fandom Archive” section—Jim Amash came aboard with #11, at the time of his first A/E interview (with Vince Fago), and even helps with the proofreading of each issue—Michael T. Gilbert has been on hand every single time with his always-intriguing “Comic Crypt”—P.C. Hamerlinck segued his ambitious incarnation of FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America) over into A/E with V3#1, and, just the like other three, has never missed a deadline! Neither has Christopher Day, who assumed layout responsibilities on the mag with #8, and over the past few years has bailed me out of innumerable tough spots— including this issue.

At the last minute, I asked each of this fabulous fivesome to rush me brief auto-bios. So let’s hear a hearty hand for these tireless “Angels of Alter Ego”! Thanks, guys. I couldn’t do it without you.

Fact is, as you well know—I can barely do it with you!

But now, I’ll let you speak for yourselves…!

Bill Schelly

Jim Amash

I was born in 1951 in Walla Walla, Washington. For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to be a writer. When I was a kid of 9 or 10, I wrote short stories and even tried to write a novel. With my discovery of comics fandom in 1964, I found my métier: fanzine publishing. I think I’ve had printer’s ink in my blood ever since.

I was always interested in art. I was fascinated by George “Superman” Reeves on television and started drawing him. But being a fickle sort at 5 years old, I diverted my attention to Batman when Adam West turned up in the cape and cowl in January of 1966. So I drew super-heroes and villains fighting on brown paper bags, in textbooks, on the living room walls (behind the couch, of course), on sidewalks, and in tunnels. I thought I had my future well in hand, because I was going to be a comic book artist.

I stayed active in fandom, publishing a slew of marginal-quality zines like Super-Heroes Anonymous, Fantasy Forum, Incognito, and my best-known, Sense of Wonder. But when I was rejected by DC’s “new talent” program in 1973, I drifted away from comics until I got my feet on the ground. My first book was Harry Langdon, a hardcover from Scarecrow Press, which came out in 1982.

I quickly learned there was more to being an artist than drawing heroes and villains knocking each other’s teeth out. My first grade history book was full of exciting stories about the founding of this country. The pages were full of detailed drawings, engravings, and painted scenes of Daniel Boone taming the wilderness, George Washington liberating the American Colonies from British rule, and Abraham Lincoln freeing the slaves and saving the Union. On television, I saw Martin Luther King, Robert Kennedy, and Roberto Clemente fighting a very different kind of battle. All these influences taught me that heroes come in all shapes, colors, uniforms, eras, and

In 1985, when I took a job in a building that also housed a comics specialty store, my interest in comic books was re-kindled, and it was just a year later than I opened Super Comics and Collectibles, the first comics store in Seattle’s University District. But it wasn’t until I linked up with some old fandom cronies in the pages of CAPA-Alpha that I began researching what became the first book-length history of fandom, The Golden Age of Comic Fandom (1995). In the course of writing and designing that book, I asked Roy Thomas if he would write its introduction. Thus began a sort of fandom partnership with the Rascally One that led to my role as associate editor of the new Alter Ego. In fact, I was the one who introduced John Morrow to Roy (at the 1997 Chicago comicon), which got the ball rolling.

The past dozen years since my re-entry into the wonderful and wacky world of Comicdom have been the most creative and prolific times of my life. I love being a small part of the new Alter Ego story, and only wish there were more hours in the day so that I could contribute more. Oh, and one other thing: I haven’t lost my sense of wonder!

The Angels Of Alter Ego

35

cultures, and the variety of artistic renderings proved that there was more than one way to draw the stories I wanted to tell.

Eventually I told my stories in different venues. I made my own comics until I went to college. Once there, I focused my attention on drawing portraits and landscapes, which tell their own kinds of stories.

Inspired by fine artists past and present, I used the landscape as a tool to comment on people and the places they lived in. I also illustrated stories for a small local newspaper, did a radio talk show, ran the Acme Comics shop, and put on many well-received conventions, until I became a professional comic book inker.

I wasn’t telling enough stories in enough areas to suit me. Even though I appreciated the attention I got at comic conventions for the work I did, I felt a certain frustration whenever I saw older artists and writers being neglected by fans. Fortunately, the opportunity to rectify the situation presented itself when Roy restarted Alter Ego. I’m in my fifth year of interviewing and writing about the people who helped build this vital storytelling medium, and expect to continue for as long as I can. People like Gill Fox, Stan Goldberg, Dave Gantz, Matt Baker, Herb Rogoff, Sam Burlockoff, Ernie Schroeder, and all the rest deserve no less. And in the meantime, I still tell my own stories in my own way, through the other work that I do.

My Life In Two Paragraphs!

By Michael T. Gilbert I’m just your average 54-year-old comic book nut. In addition to collecting funny-books, I also create comics from my studio in Eugene, Oregon. My first story appeared in 1973 in New Paltz Comix #1. Since then I’ve been privileged to write and/or draw such diverse characters as Elric, The Wraith, The Spirit, Superman, Dr. Strange, Radioactive Man, Mickey Mouse, and Donald Duck.

My stories have appeared in Batman: Legends Of The Dark Knight, Walt Disney’s Comics & Stories, Disney Adventures, Heavy Metal magazine, Slow Death, American Splendor, Star*Reach, and Quack! Quite an eclectic bunch! However, I’m mainly known for my monster-fighting super-hero, Mr. Monster, which I created in 1984.

My Alter Ego career began in 1998 in the first TwoMorrows issue, back when it was still connected to Comic Book Artist.

However, in the interests of journalistic accuracy, I actually began working on A/E in 1978, when I colored the cover of the very last issue of the first series! (This was the Bill Everett tribute cover, recently reprinted with new colors.) Since 1998, I’ve somehow produced over 50 installments of “Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt” for Alter Ego magazine. Whew! Thanks go to Roy Thomas, John Morrow, and my fellow A/E contributors for making Alter Ego such a fun magazine! And extra-special thanks to my wife Janet for editing and improving my articles. What a sweetie!

Photograph © 2003, 2005 by Greg Preston

From Dark Horse's series Star Wars: Enemy of the Empire (1998)— John Nadeau, pencils, & Jim Amash, inks. Jim currently inks Sonic the Hedgehog and various “Archie” comics. [©2005 Lucasfilm, Inc.]

Christopher Day Christopher Day doesn’t know what to write about himself, but Roy has been bugging him for a year to do so. He has been working on Alter Ego since issue #8, and having a ball doing so. He has also done a variety of other work for TwoMorrows, including laying out the first eight issues of Write Now! as well as several book projects, including Fawcett Companion, The Legion Companion, The Life and Times of Murphy Anderson, and The Best of the Legion Outpost.

Originally from Maryland, outside of Washington, DC, Chris has lived in Chicago for over ten years now and does many things there, including performing improv, writing sketch comedy, and doing print and web design. He also recently graduated from Dominican University with a Master’s in Library and Information Science, because you can never be too busy and never have too many degrees. His performing career has included five years at Chicago’s famous ImprovOlympic theater, a stunning run as the singing-dancing C3PO in The Fandom Menace (a Star Wars musical parody), and two shows with the science-based sketch comedy group the Galileo Players.

Chris has been collecting comics for over twenty years, although before that he did learn to read from Mad magazine, Spidey SuperStories, Howard the Duck, and Star Wars (thanks, Roy) comics back in the ’70s. You can see how obsessive he can be about comics at his web site Sequential Ellison: The Harlan Ellison Comic Book Bibliography (www.sequentialellison.com). He has written so many bios for programs that he can only refer to himself in the third person.

36

Five Who Made A/E What It Is Today—Whatever That Is!

P.C. Hamerlinck A commercial artist by day, P.C. Hamerlinck has been editor of FCA since 1995. An historian of Captain Marvel and Fawcett Publications— with close associations over the years with many of those involved with both character and company—he edited the 2001 TwoMorrows book Fawcett Companion, and wrote the introduction to DC’s Shazam! Archives, Vol. 4.

He has also contributed to various comics-related publications and books, including Streetwise, Comic Book Artist, and AC Comics’ Men of Mystery. Some of his current book projects are: a biography of Captain Marvel artist/co-creator C.C. Beck; editing/designing Myth, Magic, and a Mortal by actor Jackson Bostwick (TV’s Captain Marvel), and editing a comprehensive history of the Big Red Cheese.

P.C. enjoys long-distance running and tropical vacations. He is also active as a Christian youth leader and in developing related publications.

His wife and love of his life is Jennifer Go, investment representative for Edward Jones, and they have a super 11-year-old son, Ian, a Dr. Fate fan who likes drawing various heroes with Dad.

Jennifer, Ian, and P.C....

Kurt Schaffenberger panel from The Marvel Family #86 (Aug. 1953). [©2005 DC Comics.]

Missing a Back Issue?

Got a hole in your Mr. Monster collection? We’ll gladly e-mail you a free Mr. Monster EEEK-Mail Catalog! Just Contact Michael T. Gilbert at:

mgilbert00@comcast.net

For a printed version, send one dollar to Michael T. Gilbert, P.O. Box 11421, Eugene OR 97440

[Captain Marvel TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

VISIT MY WEBSITE AT: www.albertmoy.com

Ken Bald

Dave Bullock

Richard Corben

Mike Golden

Erik Larsen

Jim Lee

John Byrne

John Cassaday

Darwyn Cooke

Jae Lee

Sam Kieth

Jack Kirby

John Severin

WANTED: Neal Adams

(covers, sketches, roughs, pages, pencils, illustrations, and paintings).

Other artists of interest: Art Adams, John Byrne, John Buscema, Gil Kane, Adam Hughes, Lou Fine, Reed Crandall, Steve Ditko, Jack Kirby, Alex Toth, Joe Kubert, Wally Wood, Hal Foster, Alex Raymond, Charles Schultz, and many more. Interested in EC artwork, any Large Size covers, any Marvel and DC covers, large and small.

Exclusive Agent For: Jae Lee, Jim Lee, Sam Kieth, John Cassaday, Ken Bald, David Bullock, Bruce Timm, Peter Snejbjerg, Darwyn Cooke, Erik Larsen, and Aron Wiesenfeld.

Albert has much more art than the selection shown here. Please call him at (718) 225-3261 (8-11:30PM EST weekdays, all day weekends) if you are looking for something in particular and do not see it listed.

Peter Snejbjerg

Bruce Timm

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39 pages were apt to appear “dull and lifeless.” The reason, it was explained, was possible failure at some of the printing locations to extend one of the more lively colors to overprint the solid blacks.

My employer apparently saw it as a temporary matter of little importance and moved on to something else, leaving its solution up to me. I turned to what I’ve always thought of as “the reflected light.”

By mds& logo ©2005 Marc Swayze; Captain Marvel © & TM 2005 DC Comics] (c) [Art

It was a period when much spare time was being spent in an endeavor to master the devilish little flexible pen. In painting classes at school there had been an interesting concept involving an imagined secondary glow that lent to a foreground subject a “solidity” … a 3-dimensional quality. I combined the two … the “reflected light” … rendered as “feathering” with the flexible pen … as a solution to the dull black areas on the Sunday page comics. It was an experiment … rendered rather hastily … and the problem itself was soon forgotten.

But the “reflected light” … and the technique for rendering it … remained throughout the career in comics.

[FCA EDITORS NOTE: From 194153, Marcus D. Swayze was a top artist for Fawcett Publications. The very first Mary Marvel character sketches came from Marc’s drawing table, and he illustrated her earliest adventures, including the classic origin story, “Captain Marvel Introduces Mary Marvel (Captain Marvel Adventures #18, Dec. ’42); but he was primarily hired by Fawcett So did the respect for “solid blacks.”

Publications to illustrate Captain There were several outstanding comic Marvel stories and covers for Whiz strip creators known for the expert Comics and Captain Marvel handling of the solid black panels consisAdventures. He also wrote many tently appearing in their work.

Captain Marvel scripts, and continued to do so while in the military. After Russell Keaton was unsurpassed with leaving the service in 1944, he made an his handling of the concept … always A scene described by editor Kathleen Caesar of the Bell Syndicate arrangement with Fawcett to produce executing it in harmony with the story as “superb newspaper art”—a detail from the Flyin’ Jenny daily art and stories for them on a freelance … never indicating a tendency to strip for 11-9-40. Art by Russell Keaton. [©2005 Bell Syndicate or basis out of his Louisiana home. There overuse it. I once happened to see a its successors in interest.] he created both art and story for The message he had received from the Phantom Eagle in Wow Comics, in addition to drawing the Flyin’ syndicate. It involved his illustration of a specific scene where title Jenny newspaper strip for Bell Syndicate (created by his friend and character, Jenny, clung to an airport fence, in a brisk gale … mostly in mentor Russell Keaton). After the cancellation of Wow, Swayze silhouette. Editor Kathleen Caesar had described it as an example of produced artwork for Fawcett’s top-selling line of romance comics, “superior newspaper art”! including Sweethearts and Life Story. After the company ceased And it was. And of the use of “solid blacks.” To me, however, it publishing comics, Marc moved over to Charlton Publications, where remained as a most memorable sample of “spontaneity” … the spirit of he ended his comics career in the mid-’50s. Marc’s ongoing profesthe moment! sional memoirs have been FCA’s most popular feature since his first column appeared in FCA #54, 1996. Last issue he discussed his writing of Captain Marvel scripts, and the usage of the World’s Mightiest Mortal’s 14-year-old alter ego in the stories. This go-round, Marc recalls some of the art techniques used while working on the Flyin’ Jenny comic strip with its creator, Russell Keaton. —P.C. Hamerlinck.]

In my first days as an assistant to a comic strip artist I began to hear terms not remembered from art classes … or on the milk route.

“Feathering,” for example … “Spontaneity” … “the Two-Ninety pen.”

And “solid blacks.” Oh, there may have been vague references made to the subject, by instructors in discussions of “values,” the light and dark tones of an illustration. But not, with any special emphasis, of solid blacks.

It wasn’t that way, though, working with Russell Keaton. We had been alerted that the solid black areas on the colored Sunday The “reflected light” is used in solving a problem with solid blacks on Sunday (colored) pages by Russell Keaton. A detail from the strip for 7-7-40. [©2005 Bell Syndicate or its successors in interest.]

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Fawcett Collectors Of America Much can be recalled of that period with Russell Keaton. I’m reminded of one of the visits by Rick Yager of Buck Rogers. In the Keaton studio, at Rick’s insistence to “help out,” he was handed a script including a scene to be penciled … a temporary supporting character kneeling on one knee … on a beach … holding something like maybe a jug with a note in it. It was understood that only the pencil work was needed … that I would be finishing it up with the pen.

Further on, a glance over Rick’s shoulder told me the scene was being drawn carefully and well, although the character appeared to have just stepped over from the Buck Rogers page. A little later, at an appropriate moment, Russell whispered to me, “Make it look like our work!”

“Our work!” Only two little words, but I can still hear them. “Our work!” Imagine … last year’s milkman included as part of the art of a great, great comic strip creator.

Wonderful day!

[More Golden Age memories from Marc Swayze next issue.]

An early effort to master the “Two-Ninety pen.” Practice sketches by Marc Swayze. [©2005 Marc Swayze.]

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41

Touting Thomas Roy Thomas Spotlighted By John G. Pierce, P.C. Hamerlinck—And, Er, Roy Thomas

A

look at R.T.’s own special “Fawcett connection” over the years, as both fan and pro, as examined by regular contributor John G. Pierce and by FCA’s editor—and then, from an earlier issue of FCA, in RT’s own words….

I. A Tribute To A Fannish Influence

by John G. Pierce Edited By P.C. Hamerlinck It was not long after I discovered Julius Schwartz’s early Silver Age comics, in the late 1950s, that I also discovered Roy Thomas. He was there, in those entertaining letter columns, and it was he who first referenced an earlier age of comicdom that I’d missed out on. It was Roy who first alluded to the original versions of The Flash, Green Lantern, and other characters. In fact, my own very first published letter, in The Flash, picked up on a point made by Roy in an earlier letter of his own.

Not long after all that, in early 1961, Alter-Ego #1 turned up my mailbox. It was the first fanzine I’d ever seen or even heard of. And was I surprised that there his name was as co-editor of this marvelous publication? I no longer recall, but if so, I probably shouldn’t have been. Roy’s articles, not only in A/E but in other fanzines, as well, informed me about the Golden Age. He covered Timely’s All Winners Squad in A/E #2, for example.

Countdown to Xero FCA and Alter Ego have both printed the 1946-47 photo of Roy at age 6, sporting his Captain Marvel sweater—so we’ll lead off with this mid-1940s Fawcett house ad. The cover art from an oversize issue of Gift Comics, spotlighting Captain Marvel, Spy Smasher, Bulletman, Mr. Scarlet, Golden Arrow, and Ibis the Invincible, was adapted by R.T. as the title art for his article “Captain Billy’s Whiz Gang” in the 9th issue of the Lupoffs’ legendary sf/comics fanzine Xero in 1962.

[Heroes TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

In another fanzine named Spotlite, he wrote about Plastic Man. And then there was his entertaining “Captain Billy’s Whiz Gang” in the 9th issue of the Lupoffs’ Xero, which treated the other Fawcett stars such as Bulletman, Spy Smasher, et al. It was this piece, incidentally, which provided the first mention of Fawcett’s one-and-only attempt at a JSA-type group, the Crime Crusaders Club from Master Comics #41.

But it wasn’t just articles. For Alter Ego, Roy also

Cap’n Biljo & Corporal Roy In 1964, fan-artist Biljo White let his fellow Missourian Roy research his virtually complete collection of comics featuring Captain Marvel and his offshoots for Roy’s Alley-winning article “One Man’s Family” in Alter Ego [Vol. 1] #7.

For the illo at right, which accompanied the piece, Biljo adapted C.C. Beck’s classic cover for Marvel Family #10 (April 1947), on which Cap and kin are beating up Dr. Sivana’s.

Wonder how they’d all have fared on Family Feud!?

[Characters TM & ©2005 DC Comics.]

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Roy Thomas Spotlighted By John G. Pierce, P.C. Hamerlinck—And, Er, Roy Thomas

wrote a prose story, with spot illustrations, of his own proposed revival of The Spectre. And, of course, who can forget his delightfully funny parody of the JLA, “The Bestest League of America”?

of All-Star Squadron. It was almost too much excitement for me to bear—the JSA (and hangers-on from the early ’40s) having their own feature again, and Captain Marvel being handled by Roy?

Roy and I appeared together in a fanzine called Headline, published

by Roy’s fellow Missourian, and future Marvel co-worker, Steve Gerber.

Roy wrote about some of his childhood creations, while I contributed original prose fiction in the form of stories about a creation of mine called The Black Hand—a Spectre imitation! So Roy was partly responsible for my own contributions to that fanzine, as well as his own!

Oh, admittedly, I wasn’t too crazy about his idea of a totally new, Earth-1 Captain Marvel, drawn in a more realistic style. “I’m sorry if this isn’t your idea of a ‘Captain Marvel fan,’ I really am,” Roy wrote.

“I simply feel that, much as I often dislike the idea, ‘that was then, this is now.’”

But perhaps my favorite piece of his came in A/E #7 (1964), with his “One Man’s Family,” an article about Fawcett’s Marvel Family. Oddly enough, though Captain Marvel was mentioned from time to time in early fanzines, there weren’t really all that many articles about him. (The earlier articles which had appeared in Xero aren’t counted here, because that was a science-fiction fanzine, and besides, I never saw those pieces!)

So Roy’s loving treatise on not just Cap, but the rest of the clan as well, was most welcomed. I’d have to say that this one piece went a long way toward fueling my growing interest in Captain Marvel, foreshadowing the day when I would become a full-blown Fawcett fan, collector, the publisher of my own Marvel Family fanzine (The Whiz Kids), and a writer of articles about the Big Red Cheese and his companions.

But then Roy broke into the comics industry. Should this have been a surprise, either? Anyone with his love of and devotion to the four-color world was bound to end up in the field. In fact, it would be hard to imagine such a person as thriving anywhere else. He started at DC, and almost before anyone was the wiser, he was over at Marvel. (I have to be honest and say that, while I read some of Roy’s stuff from Marvel, there’s quite a lot I didn’t read, as well. I know it is practically a first-order heresy in fandom to admit this, but I’ve never been a great Marvel enthusiast.)

However, I was there when Roy took over a character named Captain Mar-Vell (for the second time), and turned that name-stealer into an updated, Marvelized version of the original, as he linked the Hulk’s former ally, Rick Jones, with Cap via Nega-Bands. The slamming together of the wrist-bands brought Cap from his imprisonment in the Negative Zone, while sending Rick there, and vice versa— his own version of yelling “Shazam!”

With outstanding Gil Kane art, Marvel’s Captain Marvel became a feature worth following for a while. As Rick Jones was fond of saying at the time, it was “faaantastic.”

And then came 1981, with Roy’s return to DC. And what should he write, upon his return, but one of his Golden Age favorites, the DC version of the original Captain Marvel! A letter from him to me, dated Oct. 10, 1980, informed me of this, as well as some of his plans for another old favorite, the JSA, in the form

However, I was quite enthusiastic about what Roy had told me about his story for DC Comics Presents #33-34, as his letter continued: “Still, just to be inconsistent, I took the opportunity in DC Presents #34 to toss Superman and Captain Marvel (whom I’m trying to forge into fast friends, since they have far more in common than Superman and Batman, say) into a funny-animal dimension, while using Hoppy the Marvel Bunny for the first time in 30 years.” Although I had heard about Hoppy back in the early ’60s, it was that aforementioned “One Man’s Family” article in A/E #7 which had provided me with my first look at the character (in the form of a Biljo White re-creation illustration) and more information about him. And ever since, I had loved the idea of a rabbit version of the Big Red Cheese. So to contemplate his return, even if only for one story, generated more fannish excitement than I’d had in years!

And that story (co-plotted by Gerry Conway) turned out to be good fun, too, with Hoppy’s return to save the day in Part Two being the definite high point for me. At one point, Hoppy starts to remember an adventure he had shared with Mary Marvel (the only one of the “human” Marvels he had ever met to that point)—a story Roy had cited in “One Man’s Family.” Hoppy is cut off before he can complete the thought, and no editor’s note referenced the Golden Age story, but to cognoscenti, it was clear that this was what Roy had in mind.

The Magic Went Away In a slightly grittier vein than the 1939-40 original by writer/editor Bill Parker and artist C.C. Beck, scripters Roy & Dann Thomas and artist Tom Mandrake portray the first time Billy Batson changes into the World’s Mightiest Mortal, in Shazam! The New Beginning #1 (April 1986). (The fact that this page is repro’d from a Spanish-language edition shouldn’t confuse anybody all that much.) Roy appreciates hearing that then-DC editorial head honcho Dick Giordano confirmed to John Pierce what Roy’s always maintained: that sales on that 4-issue series should’ve led to a full-scale monthly Shazam! comic book, but that DC dropped the ball. Roy never felt Dick was sabotaging him… but he’s still not so sure about a few other people. Even after two decades, the Shazam! episode and the deep-sixing of All-Star Squadron due to Crisis still cast a cloud over Roy’s memories of his time at DC, whose characters he’s always loved. [©2005 DC Comics.]

Later on, DC did give Roy the opportunity to bring forth his own new version of “Captain Marvel,” in a miniseries titled Shazam! The New Beginning. After that, however, apart from a later serialized story in Action Comics Weekly, the character was hardly seen. Dick Giordano explained to me at a Mid-Ohio Comics Convention in the late 1980s that the New Beginning mini-series had sold very well, but that DC had erred by not following it up with a regular series.

Although I have to admit I didn’t care much for Roy’s new version of Cap, I did have to feel sorry for him, that he didn’t get the opportunity to follow through with this project which obviously meant a great deal to him.

As for All-Star Squadron, Roy’s WWII enlargement of the fabled Justice Society of America—his and Jerry Bails’ obvious fascination with the All-Stars

Touting Thomas

43

The Captains And The Kane which had rubbed off on me very early on. To this day, JSA is one of the few titles I read on a regular basis.

Roy plotted—then didn’t have time to dialogue—the Superman/Captain Marvel team-up in DC Presents Annual #3 (1984), featuring art by the late great Gil Kane, who merged the C.C. Beck “look” of CM with his own highly individualistic style. Dialogue by Joey Cavalieri. This panel featuring a super-powered “Captain Sivana” is repro’d from a photocopy of the original art, courtesy of Mike Mikulovsky. [©2005 DC Comics.]

Never having been interested in barbarian features, I can’t comment much on Roy’s Arak, Son of Thunder (except to say that it was certainly an original take-off on the genre), but another book he did for DC was a great favorite. I refer to the uproariously funny Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew! The humor he had exercised back in those “Bestest League” tales in A/E certainly had not been dulled by years of writing more serious fare.

There’s a lot more I could write about the multi-faceted career of Roy Thomas. I’ve barely discussed his professional work, especially at Marvel, but for me, far more than a pro, Roy remains the Compleat Fan. His obvious excitement for the medium shines through in everything he does. It is terrific to have him back at the helm of Alter Ego, and it is my own great pleasure to be one of his writers.

Keep up the good work, Boy Wonder. You continue to be an influence, in ways you probably don’t even realize.

II. Hero Of The Past, Present, & Future

by P.C. Hamerlinck Roy Thomas’ love for comics and his care for the history of the medium have been clearly evident throughout all his work as a comics fan, professional, and historian.

wonderfully illustrated by the great Gil Kane. Later, Hoppy the Marvel Bunny showed up in the Oz-Wonderland War mini-series and—thanks also to Roy—a one-shot art appearance was made by Fawcett’s Marvel Bunny artist/creator Chad Grothkopf, who was briefly ushered in to illustrate some Captain Carrot pages. Roy also retrofired the JSA in various specials, and his All-Star Squadron became perhaps his mightiest feat of all during his DC ’80s stint. Roy couldn’t keep down the fan inside of him or his enthusiasm for old comics ... and readers benefited from that fact. They always will.

Fast-forward to the ’90s: In a not-so ironic twist of fate, I became the editor and self-publisher of the Fawcett Collectors of America zine. To no surprise, a Mr. Roy Thomas is on the mailing list. Knowing of his affection and connection with the Marvel Family, I ask him if he would like to be an FCA columnist alongside Marc Swayze’s amazing memoirs At 20/25 cents a pop, it was still affordable entertainment—and of the Golden Age, C.C. Beck’s just-slightly-opinionated posthumous worth mowing a few more lawns—to sample a good chunk of Marvel’s essays, and my own shovel-digging of Fawcett (and everyone else’s) books. Unknown to me at the history. Roy cheerfully agrees and gives his time, Roy’s fan background and his flair for comics column a unique (if somewhat awkwardhistory would often seep into some of Marvel’s sounding) title: “Second-Hand Leaks from a finest (most notably Roy’s use of Timely’s “Big 3” Fawcett,” premiering in FCA #58, 1997 (slightly World War II heroes in The Invaders, teaming up changed to “Second-Hand Leaks from a Firstwith artist Frank Robbins). Then there was Roy’s Class Fawcett” the following issue). The column involvement with that cosmic “Mar-Vell” guy. And lasted only two issues, unfortunately. Roy regretI still remember the first time I got a glimpse of fully had to bail out of his spot in FCA since Marvel’s rascally editor-in-chief in Iron Man #72, Alter Ego, the seminal comics publication from when ol’ Shell-Head found himself at—of all long ago, was being revived as a section within places—a comic book convention.

Jon B. Cooke’s Comic Book Artist magazine In the late ’70s I learned of Roy’s fandom (published by the World’s Friendliest Publisher, association ... his memorable Fawcett hero chapter TwoMorrows). Soon the new A/E broke out as a in the groundbreaking All in Color for a Dime full magazine once again. The A/E-FCA merger book (reprinted from Xero) and the classic Alter occurred with the premiere issue of A/E, Volume Ego fanzines from the ’60s. The Alley Award3, and I am proud to be collaborating with Roy winning A/E #7, with its Biljo White four-color each month. Most of all, I’m proud to be a friend Marvel Family cover and Roy’s comprehensive and associated with someone whose work I FCA’s editor labeled this photo “A new“One Man’s Family” article, became a essential generation Roy Thomas fan”: P.C. admire so much. component to my already-abundant fascination Hamerlinck’s son Ian, enjoying Alter Ego: Roy is a comic hero of the past, present, and The Graphic Novel during his 2005 spring with the Big Red Cheese. break. (See ad for same on p. 19.) It’s only future. His work in comics will be revered ... and Roy’s tenure with DC in the ’80s gave us his fitting the photo appear in FCA, since reverberate to future generations. This was rethe 1986 super-hero called Alter Ego, interpretation of Captain Marvel, as well as some confirmed to me recently after my 11-year old co-created by Roy and Ron Harris with memorable team-up tales with Cap and Superman son, Ian, during his spring break enthusiastically input from Dann, was partly inspired by in DC Comics Presents #33-34 and the DCCP read (and refused to put down) Roy’s Alter Ego: the Big Red Cheese, along with Captain 3-D, Annual #3, the latter featuring a Roy-plotted story The Graphic Novel.

Ronn Foss’ fannish Limbo Legion, and that had Doc Sivana as a powerful super-villain, I first became familiar with Roy during his lengthy editorship at Marvel Comics, years before I became aware of his not-so secret origins in comics fandom.

several other sources.

44

Roy Thomas Spotlighted By John G. Pierce, P.C. Hamerlinck—And, Er, Roy Thomas

III. Second-Hand Leaks [The following is an excerpt from Roy’s debut FCA column in 1997.]

It’s strange: Although I broke into pro comic books at DC in 1965 and was a writer/editor for DC for much of the ’80s—although I’m primarily identified with Marvel Comics, where I spent 1965-80 and for whom I’ve written again since 1987—and although I’ve scripted quite a few Topps Comics since ’92—I have far closer connections with the wonderful world of Fawcett comics than most FCA readers might suspect.

Thus, when P.C. Hamerlinck asked me to contribute to FCA, I was happy to take him up on it. I started out as a thorough-going comics fan; and while my reminiscences on Fawcett-related matters will never rival in importance those of C.C. Beck, Marc Swayze, and others, P.C. felt some of my musings and memories might be of interest to my fellow FCAers. [At this point, Roy previews a few items he intended to cover in future issues; this section has been omitted.]

First things first:

This second header for Roy’s short-lived FCA column was designed by P.C. Hamerlinck, and appeared in FCA #59. The first was printed in A/E #41, which celebrated the 100th edition of FCA. [©2005 P.C. Hamerlinck.]

My mother bought me my first comic books in 1945, when at age four I spotted their colorful covers on the drugstore racks in my hometown of Jackson, Missouri. The earliest comics I saw almost certainly starred Superman and Batman, already popular icons of a sort; and by the summer of ’45 I’d discovered my all-time favorites, the Justice Society of America. Soon afterward I also encountered Timely/Marvel’s Captain America, Human Torch, and Sub-Mariner ... and Captain Marvel, who for a time I thought was Captain “Marble.”

I recall two stories in particular from those early days. I remember sitting in a barbershop reading a tale in which Cap was trapped in an anthill. The other story was from Captain Marvel Adventures #45, April 1945, the second-from-last chapter of the “Monster Society of Evil” serial. Oddly, I recall it not just because of Mr. Mind but because it also contained some very cartoony sea serpents which for some reason made a strong impression on my young brain.

As a kid in the mid- to late ’40s, I owned some Captain Marvel merchandise, too: a wonderful sweater depicting Cap and a Captain Marvel

Snakes and Bugs (Above:) Mr. Mind’s cartoony sea serpent in Chapter 24 of the “Monster Society of Evil” serial in Captain Marvel Adventures #45 (April 1945) made a strong impression on 4-year old Roy, who couldn’t yet read but sure liked looking at C.C. Beck’s pictures! When he soon learned to read at age 5, he loved Otto Binder’s story, too!

(Right:) Roy encountered CMA #47 (July 1945) while waiting (probably with one of his parents) to get a haircut. Of course, since magazines you read in barbershops are usually old ones, he may have been all of five or six by the time he saw this one! “The Marvel Ant,” even more than Ant-Man, influenced him two decades later to write the similarlythemed story “The Agony and the Anthill” for The Avengers #46 (Nov. 1967). Roy extends a sincere and hearty thankyou to PCH for going above and beyond the call of duty to locate this story—which Roy hadn’t seen since the mid1940s! Art by C.C. Beck. [Both art spots ©2005 DC Comics.]

Touting Thomas wristwatch. I also recall getting the 1946 Whiz Comics giveaway from a box of Wheaties, though I’ll admit I was even fonder of my Flash Comics Wheaties giveaway, with its Kubert Hawkman story.

Like most other comic-reading boys back then, I wanted to see Cap and Superman slug it out to see which was stronger, even though I had little doubt in my heart of hearts that the Man of Steel could take the World’s Mightiest Mortal. Somehow, the fact that Supes had X-ray vision and Cap didn’t—one of the few areas in which their powers didn’t overlap—seemed to tip the scales for me, though I’m not sure how. I liked both heroes, and I can’t honestly say I preferred one to the other.

I do know I had at least as much enthusiasm for Captain Marvel Jr., partly because I dug his red and blue costume, but mostly because I was christened Roy Thomas, Jr., and this was the only super-hero with whom I shared part of a name.

As a big fan of DC’s Justice Society of America, I remember being thrilled when Cap Jr., Mary, and Uncle Marvel teamed up in Marvel Family #1 in 1945 to fight Black Adam (whose name I misremembered

45

for years as Black Marvel). I was disappointed that most early Marvel Family issues contained only one too-short “Family” story, with solo exploits filling out the book. Heck, I could get those solo tales of the Marvels in more than half a dozen other Fawcett comics, not even counting the Marvel Bunny titles!

Weirdly, though, I never knew in the ’40s or ’50s how to pronounce Cap’s magic word. Not having seen (or even heard of) Cap’s 1941 Republic movie serial, I always pronounced it as if it were spelled “Shaz’m,” accenting the first syllable. (Yeah, I was one of those who said “Sub-Ma-REENer,” too, back then.)

When super-hero comics began to drop by the wayside in the late ’40s, the Marvel Family plowed on—outlasting The Black Terror, Fighting Yank, Timely’s Big Three, even the JSA—just as I’d earlier seen them outdistance fellow Fawcetteers Bulletman, Spy Smasher, Captain Midnight, Phantom Eagle, Mr. Scarlet, Commando Yank, and Ibis.

I dared hope that the Marvel Family might survive where so many others were dying, but the signs were growing that they might not (Mary Marvel had already lost her own book and her spot in Wow Comics before the end). What’s more, while I could still buy DC, Timely, Dell, and others at two drugstores in town, by the early ‘50s only one store still carried Fawcetts. And when one day Fawcett comics vanished even from Cox’s Five-and-Dime, I knew the end had come, even though I wouldn’t learn about the DC/Fawcett lawsuit for years.

Still, Captain Marvel and crew retained an honored place in my memory. When “Captain Marbles” popped up in Mad #4 in 1953 to challenge “Superduperman,” I was nearly as thrilled as I would’ve been to see the real Superman and Captain Marvel duke it out—and for years, like many another EC Fan-Addict, I knew what the letters of “Shazoom” stood for just as well as I remembered what “Shazam” stood for. I still do.

I also remember a distinct surge of pleasure more than a year later when, months after Cap’s demise, Mad #14 mentioned him, along with The Flash and Sub-Mariner, two longer-departed heroes, in the introduction to its parody of Plastic Man. (“Where has Captain Marvel Shazzamed to?” it asked.)

Since I didn’t throw away my old comics (even though I did cut up some of them, thereby ruining them), I always had a few Fawcetts lying around in the attic, so I never had a chance to even begin to forget Captain Marvel after he went into limbo in late 1953.

One favorite I kept was Captain Marvel Adventures #144, “The Theft of the Shazam Powers.” The cover showed Cap staked out in the desert, looking hapless as Sivana danced gleefully atop his chest.

And then—was it really only 2H years after the death of Fawcett comics?—came July 4, 1956 [or thereabouts], when I walked into a local drugstore and stumbled across DC’s Showcase #4, with the new incarnation of The Flash.

Battle Of The Wheat Cereals Even though he preferred (the long-discontinued) Kellogg’s Pep, which sponsored the radio Adventures of Superman, Roy did occasionally eat his Wheaties, as well—and recalls having a copy of the latter’s Whiz Comics giveaway. Or was it the Captain Marvel giveaway he actually saw? General Mills simply taped the comics onto the cereal boxes. [©2005 DC Comics.]

My first thought—after my general delight at his return—was that the new Flash’s outfit looked a whole lot like Captain Marvel’s. Had I known then about the DC/Fawcett lawsuit, I’d have thought my favorite company DC downright unethical. It was like murdering someone and then stealing his clothes and customizing them to cover up the crime.

46

Roy Thomas Spotlighted By John G. Pierce, P.C. Hamerlinck—And, Er, Roy Thomas With the resurgence of the superheroes over the next few years, I dared hope for a return of The Marvel Family, but I was a bit confused as to why no one else had the same great idea. Little did I know it was a virtual impossibility at the time.

And then came comics fandom.

In late 1960, through DC pros, I got into contact by mail with a Detroit college professor named Jerry Bails. We were both super-hero (and especially Justice Society of America) fans. By early 1961 Jerry was editing and publishing— with me as writer and “assistant editor” [actually, the listing was “co-editor”]—a spirit-duplicated magazine called AlterEgo (title originally hyphenated), distributed through the mail and devoted equally to the ’60s super-hero revival and to the comics of the ’40s and ’50s.

If The Flash and Green Lantern had come back and formed the Justice League of America—could Captain Marvel and his family be far behind?

If no one would bring The Marvel Family back, I’d sure as heck see that they’d never be forgotten!

“Stolen” Moments Since we printed the cover of Captain Marvel Adventures #144 (May 1953) in A/E #43, here’s C.C. Beck’s splash for “The Stolen Shazam Powers”—one of Roy’s all-time favorite “CM” stories, even if he slightly misquoted the name from memory in his FCA piece. Script by Otto Binder. Years ago, Roy had his copy of that issue bound into a hardcover volume along with Special Edition Comics #1 (the first all-CM mag), Whiz Comics #34, and Marvel Family #10, #21, & #84. It sits proudly on his bookcase near hardbound volumes of All-Star Comics, Comic Cavalcade, Pogo, Mad, Tor, Funny Stuff featuring The Terrific Whatsit, Jack Kirby’s “Fourth World,” Manning’s and Kubert’s Tarzan adaptations, some non-hero WWII comics, the 1953-55 Timely/Atlas “Big Three” revivals, Marvel Boy, Yellow Claw, Black Knight, Marvel titles from 1961-74, and other comics Roy himself wrote or Kirby drew—and right next to one containing tales of “Hoppy the Marvel Bunny”! [©2005 DC Comics.]

If you’re viewing a digital version of this publication, PLEASE read this plea from the publisher! his is COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL, which is NOT INTENDED FOR FREE T DOWNLOADING ANYWHERE. If you’re a print subscriber, or you paid the modest fee we charge to download it at our website, you have our sincere thanks—your support allows us to keep producing publications like this one.

If instead you downloaded it for free from some other website or torrent, please know that it was absolutely 100% DONE WITHOUT OUR CONSENT, and it was an ILLEGAL POSTING OF OUR COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. If that’s the case, here’s what you should do: 1) Go ahead and READ THIS DIGITAL ISSUE, and see what you think.

2) If you enjoy it enough to keep it, DO THE RIGHT THING and purchase a legal download of it from our website, or purchase the print edition at our website (which entitles you to the Digital Edition for free) or at your local comic book shop. We’d love to have you as a regular paid reader.

3) Otherwise, DELETE IT FROM YOUR COMPUTER and DO NOT SHARE IT WITH FRIENDS OR POST IT ANYWHERE. 4) Finally, DON’T KEEP DOWNLOADING OUR MATERIAL ILLEGALLY, for free. We offer one complete issue of all our magazines for free downloading at our website, which should be sufficient for you to decide if you want to purchase others. If you enjoy our publications enough to keep downloading them, support our company by paying for the material we produce.

We’re not some giant corporation with deep pockets, and can absorb these losses. We’re a small company—literally a “mom and pop” shop—with dozens of hard-working freelance creators, slaving away day and night and on weekends, to make a pretty minimal amount of income for all this work. We love what we do, but our editors, authors, and your local comic shop owner, rely on income from this publication to stay in business. Please don’t rob us of the small amount of compensation we receive. Doing so will ensure there won’t be any future products like this to download.

TwoMorrows publications should only be downloaded at

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TwoMorrows Publishing.

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Swingin’Summer 2005 Catalog READ EXCERPTS & ORDER AT: www.twomorrows.com TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • e-mail: twomorrow@aol.com

GEORGE PÉREZ CAUGHT IN THE ACT! MODERN MASTERS: IN THE STUDIO WITH

Who We Are...

In 1989, my wife PAMELA and I started TWOMORROWS ADVERTISING in Raleigh, North Carolina, providing advertising and graphic design services to local and national accounts. (“TwoMorrows” is a play on our last name—there’s two of us!) In early 1994, after hearing of Jack Kirby’s death, I (being a lifelong Kirby fan) dug out my Kirby comics and, after spending that Spring re-experiencing what had drawn me to Kirby’s work originally, decided to produce a newsletter about him in my spare time. The result was THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #1 in September 1994, mailed free to 125 other Kirby fans.

TJKC quickly caught on, and things snowballed from there.

In 1998, we teamed with editor Jon Cooke to produce the Eisner Award-winning COMIC BOOK ARTIST, followed by the revival of Roy Thomas’ 1960s fanzine ALTER EGO in 1999. With 2000 came Brian Saner-Lamken’s criticallyacclaimed COMICOLOGY (covering the contemporary comics scene), while Mike Manley’s DRAW! (the professional how-to magazine about comics, cartooning, and animation) debuted in 2001, and Danny Fingeroth’s WRITE NOW! (offering tips and lessons on writing for comics) premiered in 2002. As we enter our eleventh year of publishing in 2005, we’re again fueling the imaginations of comics fans everywhere with our latest magazine BACK ISSUE! (edited by Michael Eury), covering the best comics of the 1970s, ’80s, and today.

GEORGE PÉREZ This DVD companion to the Modern Masters book series gives you a personal tour of George’s studio, and lets you watch step-by-step as the fan-favorite artist illustrates a special issue of Top Cow’s Witchblade! Also, see George as he sketches for fans at conventions, and hear his peers and colleagues—including Marv Wolfman and Ron Marz— share their anecdotes and personal insights along the way!

120-MIN. STANDARD FORMAT DVD • $34 US Postpaid Witchblade TM & ©2005 Top Cow Productions, Inc.

THE LATEST FROM THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR:

In addition, we publish a line of highly respected and awardwinning TRADE PAPERBACKS, encompassing a wide variety of interests. But regardless of what time period or genre we cover, we always try to provide our readers what they want: in-depth coverage of comics history and creators, with a fun, positive slant, in the most professional manner possible.

Our company slogan is “BRINGING NEW LIFE TO COMICS FANDOM” and for eleven years we’ve been geared toward that goal. Sample any of our publications, and I’m confident you’ll see it’s more than just a catchy phrase—it’s what we’re all about.

JOHN MORROW Publisher

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JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #43 (JULY)

JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #44 (OCT.)

Spotlights 2004 KIRBY AWARD winners, including STEVE SHERMAN and others sharing memories and never-seen art from JACK and ROZ, a never-published 1966 interview with KIRBY, MARK EVANIER’S regular column, a Kirby pencils-to-Sinnott inks comparison of TALES OF SUSPENSE #93, new covers featuring unseen Kirby art (SILVER SURFER inked by JOE SINNOTT, & Jack’s original ’70s SILVER STAR concept art), & more! Edited by JOHN MORROW.

Focuses on KIRBY’S MYTHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS, including THE DEMON, THOR, ATLAS, ETERNALS, and others! Plus, a rare interview with KIRBY, MARK EVANIER’S regular column, Kirby pencil art galleries of THE DEMON and other classic mythological characters, a never-reprinted BLACK MAGIC story, an interview with Kirby Award winner & family friend DAVID SCHWARTZ, new Kirby Demon cover inked by MATT WAGNER, & more! Edited by JOHN MORROW.

(84-page Tabloid) $13 US

(84-page Tabloid) $13 US

SAVE MONEY WITH OUR BUNDLES! WRITE NOW! DRAW! DVD BUNDLE: $39 US POSTPAID (SAVE $11!)

Purchased separately, you’d pay $50 for the groundbreaking “how-to” crossover between WRITE NOW! #8 and DRAW! #9, and the companion “HOW TO DRAW COMICS, FROM SCRIPT TO PRINT” DVD! But for a limited time, the bundle is only $39 US POSTPAID! ($11 Savings) Watch the pros create a comic from scratch, as WRITE NOW! Magazine Editor-inChief (and former Spider-Man Group Editor) DANNY FINGEROTH and DRAW! Magazine EIC and artist MIKE MANLEY combine forces to demonstrate the creative process from initial idea, to script, to drawn, colored and printed first story! You’ll sit in as Mike and Danny brainstorm their new characters and concepts. Then, Danny discusses the scripting, and Mike walks you through step-by-step as he produces layouts, pencils, inks, coloring, lettering, and more! The DVD also includes BONUS FEATURES to augment the magazine tutorials, showing the secrets and tools the pros use in their daily work! PLUS: DRAW! #9 includes the finished, FULL-COLOR COMIC inserted, so you can see the end result. Don’t miss it!

Looking for something really scary? Check out Pete Von Sholly’s spoof of old monster mags, CRAZY HIP GROOVY GO-GO WAY OUT MONSTERS! We’ve published two 48-page issues to date (#29 and #32), and they’ve had fans laughing their pants off—right after they soiled themselves from sheer terror!

Add to that the 136-page trade paperback MR. MONSTER, HIS BOOKS OF FORBIDDEN KNOWLEDGE, VOLUME ZERO, featuring 12 tales of Doc Stearn, plus 30 all-new pages by Michael T. Gilbert, the lost Mr. Monster newspaper strip, and a new 8-page FULL-COLOR STORY by Keith Giffen and Michael T. Gilbert, and you’ve got one scary bundle! Normal price is a frightening $36, but with this exclusive bundle, all this horror is yours for only $19 US POSTPAID!

All three items: $39 US Postpaid WRITE NOW! #8 and DRAW! #9: $8 Each Postpaid HOW TO DRAW COMICS, FROM SCRIPT TO PRINT DVD: $34 US Postpaid

All three items: $19 US Postpaid CHGGGWOM #29 and #32: $8 Each Postpaid or both for $12 Postpaid MR. MONSTER VOL. ZERO: On Sale for $14 US Postpaid (Regularly $20)

MR. MONSTER/CHGGGWOM BUNDLE: $19 US POSTPAID (SAVE $17!)

THE CBA CHARLTON/HARVEY BUNDLE: $18 US POSTPAID (BUY 2, GET 1 FREE!)

Mark Evanier’s been writing his weekly “POV” column for years, and we’re proud to offer all three collections as an exclusive bundle! COMIC BOOKS & OTHER NECESSITIES OF LIFE, WERTHAM WAS RIGHT!, and SUPERHEROES IN MY PANTS! collect Mark’s best essays and commentaries about the comics industry and its practitioners, plus new essays and new illustrations and covers by Mark’s GROO collaborator and MAD artist SERGIO ARAGONÉS! Normally $17 each, you can get all three volumes as a bundle for only $34 US POSTPAID (that’s getting ONE FREE when you buy two)!

Eisner Award-winning magazine COMIC BOOK ARTIST devoted two separate issues to the history of CHARLTON COMICS; #9 and #12, featuring art by and interviews with DICK GIORDANO, PETER MORISI, JIM APARO, JOE GILL, FRANK MCLAUGHLIN, SAM GLANZMAN, JOE STATON, JOHN BYRNE, DON NEWTON, TOM SUTTON, MIKE ZECK, NICK CUTI, and other Charlton greats!

The two issues document the complete history of the comics company who brought us CAPTAIN ATOM, BLUE BEETLE, and a host of other characters who inspired the groundbreaking WATCHMEN graphic novel. Then, in issue #19, CBA tackled a retrospective of HARVEY COMICS, with interviews and features on SIMON & KIRBY, WALLACE WOOD, AL WILLIAMSON, GIL KANE, and others. In this exclusive “BUY 2, GET 1 FREE” bundle, you get all three mags— normally $27—for only $18 US POSTPAID.

All three items: $34 US Postpaid Each book separately: $17 US Postpaid

All three items: $18 US Postpaid Each magazine separately: $9 US Postpaid

MARK EVANIER “POV” BUNDLE: $34 US POSTPAID (BUY 2, GET 1 FREE!)

HURRY! FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY! (No substitutions, please!)

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THE SUMMER HEATS UP WITH THESE NEW MODERN MASTERS VOLUME 5:

JOSÉ LUIS GARCÍA-LÓPEZ

Possibly the finest draftsman in comics, spotlighted with a comprehensive career-spanning interview, tons of rare and unseen work, and an extensive gallery of eye-popping art!

128-page trade paperback • $19 US Postpaid

Secrets In The Shadows: The Art & Life Of

GENE COLAN! Ultimate retrospective of the Silver Age legend, with extensive biography, reams of rare Colan pencil art, new collaborations with BYRNE, KALUTA, PÉREZ, & more!

168-page softcover: $26 US Postpaid 192-page Deluxe Hardcover (1000 copies): $49 US Postpaid (with 16 extra B&W pages and 8 extra color pages)

CBA COLLECTION

VOL. 3

Reprinting the Eisner Award-winning COMIC BOOK ARTIST #7 and #8 (’70s Marvel and ’80s independents), featuring a new MICHAEL T. GILBERT cover, plus interviews with Gilbert, Rude, Gulacy, Gerber, Don Simpson, Chaykin, Scott McCloud, Buckler, Byrne, Denis Kitchen, plus a new section featuring over 30 pages of previously-unseen stuff! Edited by Jon B. Cooke.

224-page trade paperback • $29 US Postpaid 4

All characters TM & ©2005 their respective holders.

TITLES FROM TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING: BRUCE TIMM COVER!

JUSTICE LEAGUE

COMPANION

A comprehensive look at the Silver Age JLA’s history, with vintage and allnew interviews with the creators, an index of the 1960–1972 issues, neverseen artwork, and more! With O’Neil, Anderson, Giella, Friedrich, Adams, Ross, Infantino, Cardy, and many others!

224-page trade paperback • $29 US Postpaid

MUCK-MONSTERS OF THE COMICS:

SWAMPMEN!

The definitive tome detailing the macabre history of Swamp Thing, Man-Thing, It, the Bog Beast, Marvin the Dead Thing, the Swamp Lurker, and The Heap!

Featuring unpublished artwork and interviews by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette, Steve Gerber, Mike Ploog, Rick Veitch, John Totleben, Val Mayerik, & more!

New Frank Cho cover!

200-page trade paperback • $29 US Postpaid

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS

The ultimate book on Wallace Wood’s super-team of the 1960s, featuring interviews with Woody and other creators involved in the T-Agents over the years, plus unseen art, a rare 28-page story drawn by Paul Gulacy, unpublished stories by Gulacy, Paris Cullins, and others, and a Jerry Ordway cover! Edited by CBA’s Jon B. Cooke.

COMPANION

192-page trade paperback • $29 US Postpaid 5

GET BACK ISSUES OF

T H E U LT I M AT E C O M I C S E X P E R I E N C E !

TM

Edited by MICHAEL EURY (former DC and Dark Horse editor/writer and author of books on CAPTAIN ACTION and DICK GIORDANO), BACK ISSUE celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through recurring (and rotating) departments.

SUBSCRIBE TO BACK ISSUE!: Six issues in the US: $30 Standard, $48 First Class (Canada: $60, Elsewhere: $66 Surface, $90 Airmail).

#5: HOLLYWOOD ISSUE! ALEX ROSS AND ADAM HUGHES FLIP-COVERS!

• WONDER WOMAN: A new LYNDA CARTER interview and WW art gallery

by GEORGE PÉREZ, DICK GIORDANO, PHIL JIMENEZ, and others!

• MARVEL ON TV: The Hulk, SpiderMan, Captain America, and Dr. Strange, & a new interview with LOU FERRIGNO! • GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: TEEN TITANS, FLASH, METAMORPHO, and other cartoons you didn’t see!

• ROUGH STUFF: ORDWAY pencil art!

• BEYOND CAPES: Marvel’s & DC’s STAR TREK overview by MIKE W. BARR, with art by COCKRUM, SUTTON, & more!

• OFF MY CHEST: JOHN ROMITA SR. on Marvel’s cinematic adaptations!

• COVERS by HUGHES & ALEX ROSS!

100 PAGES! SINGLE ISSUES: $8 POSTPAID US 6

#1: DC VS. MARVEL! GEORGE PÉREZ COVER!

#2: TOTALLY ’80s!

ADAM HUGHES COVER!

#3: LAUGHING MATTERS! #4: MARVEL MILESTONES! BRIAN BOLLAND COVER! JOHN BYRNE COVER!

• PRO 2 PRO INTERVIEW: A dialogue between GEORGE PÉREZ and MARV WOLFMAN), with rare Pérez artwork!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: The original JLA/AVENGERS crossover, with unseen PÉREZ art!

• ROUGH STUFF: JACK KIRBY’S ’70s and ’80s DC and Marvel PENCILED art!

• BEYOND CAPES: An evaluation of DC’s and Marvel’s TARZAN series with artwork by JOE KUBERT and JOHN BUSCEMA, and interviews with KUBERT, CARMINE INFANTINO, and ROY THOMAS! • OFF MY CHEST: Guest editorial by former DC editorial director CARMINE INFANTINO, recalling DC’s 1970s’ battle plan to challenge Marvel’s dominance!

• PRO 2 PRO INTERVIEWS: ADAM HUGHES and MIKE BARR, plus MATT WAGNER and DIANA SCHUTZ, with Hughes & Wagner art!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: STEVE RUDE’s Space Ghost vs.

Herculoids, plus ARTHUR ADAMS art!

• BEYOND CAPES: BRUCE JONES’ Twisted Tales and Alien Worlds series, with art by DAVE STEVENS! • OFF MY CHEST: MIKE BARR on the DC Implosion! Art by STEVE DITKO, JIM APARO, & JOE KUBERT! • ROUGH STUFF: Pencil art by ADAM HUGHES! • PLUS: A look at the history of the COMICO comics company!

• BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: The Joker’s history, with DENNY O’NEIL, NEAL ADAMS, STEVE ENGLEHART, MARSHALL ROGERS, JIM STARLIN, & BRIAN BOLLAND! • PRO 2 PRO INTERVIEW: KEITH GIFFEN, J.M. DeMATTEIS, and KEVIN MAGUIRE on their JUSTICE LEAGUE series, with art by Maguire and Giffen!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: Two never-seen PLASTIC MAN movies, plus Schwarzenegger as SGT. ROCK! • ROUGH STUFF: Pencil artwork and rare sketches by SERGIO ARAGONÉS, MIKE MANLEY, RAMONA FRADON, SCOTT SHAW!, JACK KIRBY and others!

• OFF MY CHEST: MARK EVANIER on why writing “funny” books is hard work!

• PRO2PRO INTERVIEWS: BYRNE and CLAREMONT on WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN, and WALTER SIMONSON and JOE CASEY on the 20th anniversary of Walter’s run on THOR! • GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: Wolverine’s creator LEN WEIN on the TEEN WOLVERINE you never saw!

Plus, unseen Wolverine art by DAVE COCKRUM! • ROUGH STUFF: Wolverine’s 30th anniversary is celebrated with pencil artwork by JOHN BUSCEMA, JIM LEE, ADAM HUGHES, ROB LIEFELD, MARC SILVESTRI, & others!

• PLUS: Spotlights on the PUNISHER’s 30th birthday and the 20th anniversary of SECRET WARS!

#6: HALLOWEEN ISSUE! GENE COLAN COVER!

#7: SUPER-TEAMS OF THE ’70s & ’80s! SWAN & ANDERSON COVER!

#8: ’70s & ’80s BLACK SUPER-HEROES! KYLE BAKER COVER!

#9: ’70s & ’80s COSMIC COMICS! RUDE COVER!

• BRING ON THE BAD GUYS: Marvel’s Tomb of Dracula series, with MARV WOLFMAN and GENE COLAN! • PRO2PRO INTERVIEWS: LEN WEIN and BERNIE WRIGHTSON on Swamp Thing’s roots, plus STEVE BISSETTE and RICK VEITCH on their ’80s series!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: “Swamp Thing & Man-Thing: Who Came First?” with Wein, Wrightson, GERRY CONWAY, ROY THOMAS, VAL MAYERICK, and JOHN BYRNE! • ROUGH STUFF: Pencil artwork from FRANK BRUNNER, PAUL SMITH, CARL POTTS, MIKE PLOOG, plus Bissette, Wrightson, and Colan!

• OFF MY CHEST: ROY THOMAS on his unfinished Dracula adaptation at Marvel, with rare DICK GIORDANO art!

• BEYOND CAPES (x2): Marvel’s Godzilla series with HERB TRIMPE artwork, and a behind-the-scenes study of Charlton Comics’ 1970s horror line!

• PLUS: Go on the presidential campaign trail with HOWARD THE DUCK, PREZ, CAPTAIN AMERICA, and others!

• THE BRAVE & THE BOLD: A history of the team-up book, including a JIM APARO interview and a tribute to writer BOB HANEY! PLUS: Fantastic Four contributors from STAN LEE to MARK WAID share their FF insights!

• DNAgents: MARK EVANIER and WILL MEUGNIOT on their ’80s series!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: TEEN TITANS SWINGIN’ ELSEWORDS and Marvel’s SANTA CLAUS, with art by JAY STEPHENS, NICK CARDY, KIERON DWYER, & JOHN ROMITA! • ROUGH STUFF: Pencil art by ALEX ROSS, ALEX TOTH, DAVE COCKRUM, DON HECK, FRANK ROBBINS, DON NEWTON, CARMINE INFANTINO, and JOHN BYRNE (his FF tryout)!

• OFF MY CHEST: DENNY O’NEIL’s editorial on super teams!

• PLUS: Art by GIORDANO, FRADON, ADAMS, CARDY, SIMONSON, AUSTIN, SIENKIEWICZ, RUDE, MOEBIUS, PÉREZ, and more!

• PRO2PRO INTERVIEW: DENNY O’NEIL and Justice League Unlimited voice actor PHIL LaMARR discuss GREEN LANTERN JOHN STEWART, plus NEAL ADAMS’ GL insights and art!

• ROUGH STUFF: NEW X-MEN art by NEAL ADAMS, ARTHUR ADAMS, LARRY STROMAN, BOB McLEOD, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, ALAN DAVIS, JIM LEE, ADAM HUGHES, and more!

PLUS: STORM’s 30th birthday history!

• BACKSTAGE PASS: Animated TV’s black heroes, from BLACK VULCAN to the BROWN HORNET, with TOTH art!

• OFF MY CHEST: TONY ISABELLA on BLACK LIGHTNING, plus an all-new interview with TREVOR VON EEDEN! • PLUS: Interview with writer DWAYNE McDUFFIE, a history of AfricanAmericans in comics, and commentary and art by COWAN, ROMITA, BYRNE, COCKRUM, CLAREMONT, TERRY AUSTIN, COLAN, ENGLEHART, PÉREZ, ZECK, and more!

• PRO2PRO INTERVIEW: Writer MIKE BARON and artist STEVE RUDE revisit the early days of their landmark NEXUS! • ROUGH STUFF: GIL KANE pencil art gallery, featuring GREEN LANTERN, THE MICRONAUTS, CONAN, SPIDER-MAN, SUPERMAN, and a few surprises!

• BEYOND CAPES: Examination of Marvel’s STAR WARS comics, with interviews with and art by HOWARD CHAYKIN, ROY THOMAS, AL WILLIAMSON, CARMINE INFANTINO, WALT SIMONSON, TOM PALMER, RON FRENZ, and more!

• GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD: An exposé of DC’s unrealized Crisis on Infinite Earths sequel CRISIS OF THE SOUL, with art by JERRY ORDWAY! • OFF MY CHEST: Guest editorial by First Comics’ MIKE GOLD! • PLUS: MIKE MIGNOLA and JIM STARLIN’s COSMIC ODYSSEY; TRUMAN and OSTRANDER’S GRIMJACK, then and now; TIME WARP revisited; and more!

THE LATEST ISSUES OF BACK ISSUE!:

BACK ISSUE #10 (NOW SHIPPING)

BACK ISSUE #11 (JULY)

BACK ISSUE #12 (SEPT.)

Gemstone/Diamond’s Scoop e-newsletter selected BACK ISSUE as the #1 “Best Publication About Comics for 2004”! Here’s your chance to discover why in BACK ISSUE #10 (100 pages, $8 US Postpaid), our “Pulp Fiction Issue!” “Bring on the Bad Guys” explores the history of Batman-foe RA’S AL GHUL, with commentary by NEAL ADAMS and DENNY O’NEIL (and rare art by Adams)!

O’Neil returns to join artist MICHAEL W. KALUTA for a “Pro2Pro” interview about THE SHADOW, and ROGER STERN and RON FRENZ go “Pro2Pro” about their muchloved “The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man.” Plus: MIKE GRELL’s JON SABLE, FREELANCE (including a “Backstage Pass” look at the SABLE TV show); a HOWARD CHAYKIN interview; MIKE W. BARR’s examination of DOC SAVAGE in comics; a spotlight on THE HUMAN TARGET; a speculative look at why DC bypassed the B&W boom of the 1970s; a BATMAN “Rough Stuff” art gallery, featuring BILL SIENKIEWICZ, WALTER SIMONSON, PAUL SMITH, BRIAN BOLLAND, ED HANNIGAN, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, and others; and a “New in Print” look at Batman: Dark Detective, reuniting STEVE ENGLEHART, MARSHALL ROGERS, and TERRY AUSTIN! With an eye-popping RA’S AL GHUL cover by NEAL ADAMS! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

Diamond’s “Best Publication About Comics” lets “Gods and Warriors” muscle their way into BACK ISSUE #11 (100 pages, $8 US Postpaid)! And who better to headline the ish than CONAN? ROY THOMAS, KURT BUSIEK, and JOE JUSKO spill their guts in a meaty retrospective of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian series, with tons of rare and classic art by JOHN BUSCEMA, BARRY WINDSORSMITH, NEAL ADAMS, Jusko, and others. SERGIO ARAGONÉS and MARK EVANIER chew the fat about GROO THE WANDERER in a “Pro2Pro” interview, and Heavy Metal artist extraordinaire ARTHUR SUYDAM shares his insights and illustrations in an exclusive interview. Plus: “The Greatest Stories Never Told” investigates DC’s never-published KING ARTHUR series by GERRY CONWAY and NESTOR REDONDO, unveiling for the first time several of Redondo’s glorious pages from the series; a Gods and Warriors “Rough Stuff” art gallery by JACK KIRBY, MOEBIUS, GEORGE PÉREZ, JOSÉ LUIS GARCIA-LOPEZ, DON HECK, and others; the scoop on the secret artist who contributed to the 1976 clash of titans SUPERMAN VS. THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN; and a spotlight on BRIAN BOLLAND’s covers for 1980s British Annuals! With a striking painted CONAN cover by JOE JUSKO, recreating JOHN BUSCEMA’s frontispiece to Savage Sword of Conan #17! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

BACK ISSUE #12 (100 pages, $8 US Postpaid) examines comics revamps of the ’70s and ’80s in our “Extreme Makeovers” issue! Pulitzer Prize-winner MICHAEL CHABON, DAVE GIBBONS, ROY THOMAS, KURT BUSIEK, and other insiders explore the history of the postmodern super-hero—from Squadron Supreme to Watchmen to today—with rare Gibbons Watchmen art! TOM DeFALCO and RON FRENZ go “Pro2Pro” to unravel the true story behind Spider-Man’s 1980s costume change, while DENNY O’NEIL and friends unlock the secrets of Superman’s 1970 revamp (with art by CURT SWAN and MURPHY ANDERSON)! BOB ROZAKIS and MARSHALL ROGERS plug us in to the Calculator, recently rebooted in DC’s Identity Crisis, and “The Greatest Stories Never Told” spotlights JOHN BYRNE’s aborted SHAZAM! Plus: MIKE FRIEDRICH’s “Off My Chest” editorial reminds us of how Star*Reach changed the comics world; TONY DeZUNIGA draws bead on Jonah Hex, the anti-hero that reinvented the Western comic (with JOHN ALBANO’s never-beforepublished roughs for the first Hex story); a look at how STEVE GERBER and JACK KIRBY’s Destroyer Duck took a stand for creator rights; a “Rough Stuff” pencil-art gallery featuring FRANK MILLER’s Elektra, LEE WEEKS’ Daredevil, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI’s Batman: Year One, CHARLES VESS’ Spider-Man, and more; plus extra surprise features!

With an all-new SPIDER-MAN cover by RON FRENZ and JOE RUBINSTEIN! Edited by MICHAEL EURY.

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

HEROES & VILLAINS: THE WILLIAM MESSNER-LOEBS TRIBUTE SKETCHBOOK (JULY) (100-page magazine) $8 US

Award-winning artist/writer WM. MESSNER-LOEBS (JOURNEY, THE FLASH, WONDER WOMAN) has fallen into financial ruin, landing the beloved comics creator in a Salvation Army shelter. To make matters worse, his wife is chronically ill and there’s no medical insurance and no work or funds coming in. In response, TwoMorrows Publishing has joined forces with leading comics creators to produce HEROES AND VILLAINS, a gorgeous sketchbook and tribute shipping in July, the proceeds of which will directly benefit Messner-Loebs. Edited by CLIFFORD METH, the book will include art from MIKE ALLRED, BRENT ANDERSON, CHRIS BACHALO, MARK BAGLEY, JOHN CASSADAY, TRAVIS CHAREST, DAVE & PATY COCKRUM, GENE COLAN, ALAN DAVIS, MIKE DEODATO, CULLY HAMNER, DEAN HASPIEL, GREG HORN, RAFAEL KAYANAN, ANDY KUBERT, STEVE LIEBER, STEVE MCNIVEN, TOM PALMER, JOE QUESADA, DARICK ROBERTSON, WALT SIMONSON, HERB TRIMPE, BILLY TUCCI, SAL VELLUTO and a host of other top pros! PLUS: Written contributions from NEIL GAIMAN, PETER DAVID, and BEAU SMITH, and a new cover by NEAL ADAMS! Don’t miss your chance to help a worthy comics veteran; with more names being added daily, this powerhouse collection of talent will be unparalleled!

96 pages, $29 US POSTPAID

Prices Include US Postage. Outside the US, Add $2 Per Item Canada, $3 Per Item Surface, $7 Per Item Airmail

7

BACK ISSUES

Prices include US Postage. Outside the US, Add $2 Per Item Canada, $3 Per Item Surface, $7 Per Item Airmail (except Hardcover Books: add $14 Airmail)

DRAW! (edited by MIKE MANLEY) is the professional “How-To” magazine on comics, cartooning, and animation. Each issue features in-depth interviews & step-by-step demos from top comics pros on all aspects of graphic storytelling. NOTE: Contains nudity for purposes of figure drawing. Intended for Mature Readers.

DRAW! #11 (JULY)

WRITE NOW! #11 (OCT.)

STEVE RUDE demonstrates his approach to comics & drawing!

ROQUE BALLESTEROS on Flash animation! Political cartoonist JIM BORGMAN on his daily comic strip Zits! Plus DRAW!’S regular instructors BRET BLEVINS, ALEBERTO RUIZ and more! Edited by MIKE MANLEY.

BENDIS, WAID, DAVID, DEMATTEIS, DeFALCO, O’NEIL, DIXON, ALONSO and 17 others reveal PROFESSIONAL WRITING SECRETS, plus DeFALCO and FRENZ on working together and an all-new SPIDER-GIRL cover by FRENZ and SAL BUSCEMA! Edited by DANNY FINGEROTH.

(96-page mag with color) $8 US

2005 EISNER NOMINEE!

(80-page magazine) $8 US

SUBSCRIPTION RATES:

DRAW! OR WRITE NOW! SUBS: 4 issues: $20 Standard, $32 First Class (Canada: $40, Elsewhere: $44 Surface, $60 Airmail).

HOW TO DRAW COMICS, FROM SCRIPT TO PRINT DVD: DRAW’s MIKE MANLEY and WRITE NOW’s DANNY FINGEROTH create a new character created from scratch, and create a story drawn from script to roughs, pencils, inks, and coloring— even lettering! It’s 120 minutes of “howto” tips, tricks, and tools of the pros, plus bonus features! $34 US Bundled with WRITE NOW! #8 & DRAW! #9: $39 US

DRAW #3: (80 pgs.) “How-To” DRAW #4: (92 pgs.) “How-To” DRAW #5: (88 pgs.) “How-To” DRAW #6: (96 pgs.) “How-To” demos & interviews with DICK demos & interviews with ERIK demos/intvs. with BENDIS & demos & interviews with BILL GIORDANO, “Action” by BRET LARSEN, KEVIN NOWLAN, OEMING, MIKE WIERINGO, WRAY, STEPHEN DeSTEFANO, BLEVINS, CHRIS BAILEY, DAVE COOPER, “Figure MARK McKENNA, “Hands” by CELIA CALLE, MIKE MANLEY, MIKE MANLEY, new column Composition” by BRET BRET BLEVINS, PAUL “Light & Shadow” by BRET

by PAUL RIVOCHE, reviews of BLEVINS, PAUL RIVOCHE, RIVOCHE, color section, BLEVINS, ANDE PARKS, color art supplies, more! $8 US color section, more! $8 US product reviews, more! $8 US section, and more! $8 US

DRAW #7: (96 pgs.) “How-To” DRAW #8: (96 pgs.) “How-To” DRAW #9: (96 pgs.) Pt. 2 of DRAW #10: (96 pgs.) “Howdemos & interviews with DAN demos & interviews with crossover with WRITE NOW!, To” demos & interviews with BRERETON, PAUL RIVOCHE, MATT HALEY, ALBERTO RUIZ, showing a comic created from RON GARNEY, GRAHAM ZACH TRENHOLM, MIKE TOM BANCROFT, ROB script to print (with full-color NOLAN, Lettering with TODD MANLEY, “Sketching” by CORLEY, “Drapery” by BRET comic insert), plus BRET KLEIN, step-by-step with BRET BLEVINS, color section, BLEVINS, color section, BLEVINS, ALBERTO RUIZ, ALBERTO RUIZ, BRET product reviews, more! $8 US product reviews, more! $8 US SCOTT KURTZ, & more! $8 US BLEVINS, and more! $8 US

WRITE NOW! (edited by DANNY FINGEROTH), the mag for writers of comics, animation, & sci-fi, puts you in the minds of today’s top writers and editors. Each issue features writing tips from pros on both sides of the desk, interviews, sample scripts, reviews, and more.

WN #1: (88 pgs.) MARK WN #2: (96 pgs.) ERIK WN #3: (80 pgs.) DEODATO BAGLEY cover & interview, LARSEN cover & interview, JR. Hulk cover, intvs. & articles BRIAN BENDIS & STAN LEE STAN BERKOWITZ on the by BRUCE JONES, AXEL interviews, JOE QUESADA on Justice League cartoon, TODD ALONSO, JIMMY PALMIOTTI, what editors really want, TOM ALCOTT on Samurai Jack, LEE KURT BUSIEK, FABIAN DeFALCO, J.M. DeMATTEIS, NORDLING, ANNE D. NICIEZA, STEVEN GRANT, more! $8 US BERNSTEIN, & more! $8 US DENNY O’NEIL, more! $8 US

WN #4: (80 pgs.) Interviews WN #5: (80 pgs.) Interviews WN #6: (80 pgs.) Interviews WN #7: (80 pgs.) Interviews WN #8: (80 pgs.) Pt. 1 of WN #9: (80 pgs.) NEAL WN #10: (80 pgs.) Interviews and lessons with WARREN and lessons by WILL EISNER, and lessons with BENDIS and and lessons by JEPH LOEB & crossover with DRAW!, ADAMS on his writing (with and lessons by Justice League ELLIS, HOWARD CHAYKIN, J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI, OEMING on POWERS, MARK TIM SALE, JIM LEE, CHUCK showing a comic created from lots of Adams art), plus inter- Unlimited’s DWAYNE McDUFFIE, PAUL DINI, FABIAN NICIEZA, BOB SCHRECK, FABIAN WAID on FANTASTIC FOUR, DIXON, JOHN JACKSON script to print, plus interviews views and lessons by GEOFF “Hate’s” PETER BAGGE, comics KURT BUSIEK, TOM DeFALCO, NICIEZA, PAUL DINI, JOEY BOB SCHRECK continues, MILLER, MARK WHEATLEY, and lessons by STUART JOHNS, MICHAEL OEMING, scripter/editor GERRY CONWAY, STEVEN GRANT, DENNY CAVALIERI, DIANA SCHUTZ, DIANA SCHUTZ, SCOTT M. DENNY O’NEIL, YVETTE MOORE, DON McGREGOR, & BATTON LASH, secrets of writer/editor PAUL BENJAMIN, O’NEIL, more! $8 US DENNY O’NEIL, more! $8 US ROSENBERG, more! $8 US KAPLAN, more! $8 US Indy creator secrets! $8 US pitching ideas, & more! $8 US & more! $8 US

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1 ST SERIES BACK ISSUES! CBA is the 2000-2003 Eisner Award winner for BEST COMICSRELATED MAG! Edited by Jon B. Cooke, it features in-depth articles, interviews, and unseen art.

Back issues are ONLY AVAILABLE FROM TWOMORROWS!

CBA #9: (116 pgs.) CBA #10: (116 pgs.) WALTER CBA #11: (116 pgs.) ALEX CHARLTON COMICS: PART SIMONSON, plus WOMEN OF TOTH & SHELDON MAYER! ONE! DICK GIORDANO, THE COMICS! RAMONA TOTH interviews, unseen art, PETER MORISI, JIM APARO, FRADON, MARIE SEVERIN, appreciations, checklist, & JOE GILL, MCLAUGHLIN, TRINA ROBBINS, JOHN more. Also, SHELLY MAYER’s GLANZMAN, new GIORDANO WORKMAN, new SIMONSON kids, the real life SUGAR & cover, more! $9 US SPIKE! $9 US cover, & more! $9 US

WARREN COMPANION The ultimate guide to Warren Publishing, the publisher of such mags as CREEPY, EERIE, VAMPIRELLA, BLAZING COMBAT, and others. Reprints COMIC BOOK ARTIST #4 (completely reformatted), plus nearly 200 new pages: • New painted cover by ALEX HORLEY! • A definitive WARREN CHECKLIST! • Dozens of NEW FEATURES on CORBEN, FRAZETTA, DITKO and others, and interviews with WRIGHTSON, WARREN, EISNER, ADAMS, COLAN & many more!

(288-page unsigned Hardcover) $44 US

CBA #12: (116 pgs.) CBA #13: (116 pgs.) MARVEL CBA #14: (116 pgs.) TOWER CBA #15: (116 pgs.) LOVE & CHARLTON COMICS OF THE HORROR OF THE 1970s! Art/ COMICS! Art by & intvs. with ROCKETEERS! Art by & intvs.

1970s! Rare art/intvs. with interviews with WOLFMAN, WALLY WOOD, DAN ADKINS, with DAVE STEVENS, LOS STATON, BYRNE, NEWTON, COLAN, PALMER, THOMAS, LEN BROWN, STEVE BROS. HERNANDEZ, MATT SUTTON, ZECK, NICK CUTI, a ISABELLA, PERLIN, TRIMPE, SKEATES, GEORGE TUSKA, WAGNER, DEAN MOTTER, NEW E-MAN strip, new MARCOS, a new COLAN/ new WOOD & ADKINS covers, new STEVENS/HERNANDEZ STATON cover, more! $9 US PALMER cover, more! $9 US more! $9 US cover, more! $9 US

COMIC BOOK ARTIST COLLECTION, VOL. 3 Reprinting the Eisner Award-winning COMIC BOOK ARTIST #7 and #8 (’70s Marvel and ’80s independents), featuring a new MICHAEL T. GILBERT cover, plus interviews with GILBERT, RUDE, GULACY, GERBER, DON SIMPSON, CHAYKIN, SCOTT McCLOUD, BUCKLER, BYRNE, DENIS KITCHEN, plus a NEW SECTION featuring over 30 pages of previouslyunseen stuff! Edited by JON B. COOKE. (224-page trade paperback) $29 US

EXCLUSIVE BUNDLE! GET CBA #9, 12, AND 19 TOGETHER FOR $18 POSTPAID! SAVE $9!

CBA #16: (132 pgs.) ’70s CBA #17: (116 pgs.) ARTHUR CBA #18: (116 pgs.) COSMIC CBA #19: (116 pgs.) HARVEY CBA #20: (116 pgs.) FATHERS CBA #21: (116 pgs.) THE ART CBA #22: (116 pgs.) GOLD ATLAS/SEABOARD COMICS! ADAMS & CO.! ART ADAMS COMICS OF THE ’70s! Art by COMICS! Art by & intvs. with & SONS! Art by & intvs. with OF ADAM HUGHES! Art, KEY COMICS! Art by & intvs.

Art by & interviews with interview & gallery, remem- & intvs. with JIM STARLIN, SIMON & KIRBY, WALLY the top father/son teams in interview & checklist with with RUSS MANNING, WALLY ERNIE CÓLON, CHAYKIN, bering GRAY MORROW, ALAN WEISS, ENGLEHART, WOOD, AL WILLIAMSON, GIL comics: ADAM, ANDY, & JOE HUGHES, plus a day in the life WOOD, JESSE SANTOS, ROVIN, AMENDOLA, HAMA, GEORGE ROUSSOS, GEORGE AL MILGROM, LEIALOHA, KANE, SID JACOBSON, FRED KUBERT & JOHN ROMITA SR. of ALEX ROSS, JOHN MARK EVANIER, DON GLUT, new CÓLON & KUPPERBERG EVANS, new ART ADAMS ’60s Bullpen reunion, new RHOADES, MITCH O’CONNELL & JR., new ROMITA & BUSCEMA tribute, new new BRUCE TIMM cover, cover, more! $9 US covers, more! $9 US STARLIN cover, more! $9 US cover, more! $9 US KUBERT covers, more! $9 US HUGHES cover, more! $9 US more! $9 US

CBA #23: (116 pgs.) MIKE CBA #24: (116 pgs.) COMICS CBA #25: (116 pgs.) ALAN MIGNOLA SPOTLIGHT, plus OF NATIONAL LAMPOON with MOORE’S ABC COMICS with JILL THOMPSON: Sandman to GAHAN WILSON, BODÉ, NEAL MOORE, KEVIN NOWLAN, Scary Godmother! Mignola ADAMS, FRANK SPRINGER, GENE HA, RICK VEITCH, J.H. INTERVIEW & ART GALLERY, ALAN KUPPERBERG, BOBBY WILLIAMS, SCOTT DUNBIER, extensive CHECKLIST, new LONDON, MICHAEL GROSS, JIM BAIKIE, and NOWLAN & cover, & more! $9 US WILLIAMS covers! $9 US more! $9 US

COMICOLOGY (edited

by BRIAN SANER LAMKEN), the highlyacclaimed magazine about modern comics, recently ended its four-issue run, but back issues are available, featuring never-seen CC #2: (100 pgs.) MIKE CC #3: (100 pgs.) CARLOS CC #4: (116 pgs., final issue) art & interviews.

ALLRED interview & portfolio, PACHECO interview & portfolio, ALL-BRIAN ISSUE! Interviews 60 years of THE SPIRIT, 25 ANDI WATSON interview, a look with BRIAN AZZARELLO, years of the X-MEN, PAUL at what comics predicted the BRIAN CLOPPER, BRIAN GRIST interview, FORTY future would be like, new color MICHAEL BENDIS, BRIAN WINKS, new color ALLRED & PACHECO & WATSON covers, BOLLAND, huge BOLLAND GRIST covers, & more! $8 US & more! $8 US portfolio, & more! $8 US

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Prices Include US Postage. Outside the US, Add $2 Per Item Canada, $3 Per Item Surface, $7 Per Item Airmail

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The KIRBY COLLECTOR (edited by JOHN MORROW) celebrates the life & career of the “King” of comics through interviews with Kirby & his contemporaries, feature articles, & rare & unseen Kirby artwork. Now in tabloid format, the magazine showcases Kirby’s art at even larger size.

KIRBY UNLEASHED: (60 pgs.)

New, completely remastered version of the scarce 1971 portfolio/biography, with 8 extra B&W and 8 extra color pages, including Jack’s color GODS posters. $24 US

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOL. ONE: (240 pgs.) Reprints TJKC #1-9, plus over 30 pieces of NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED KIRBY ART! $29 US

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOL. TWO: (160 pgs.) Reprints TJKC #10-12, plus over 30 pieces of NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED KIRBY ART! $22 US

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOL. THREE: (176 pgs.) Reprints TJKC #1315, plus over 30 pieces of NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED KIRBY ART! $24 US

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOL. FOUR: (240 pgs.) Reprints TJKC #1619, plus over 30 pieces of NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED KIRBY ART! $29 US

JACK KIRBY CHECKLIST (100 pgs.) Lists all of Jack Kirby’s published comics in detail, plus Portfolios, unpublished work; even cross-references reprints! Filled with rare Kirby artwork! $7 US

CAPTAIN VICTORY: GRAPHITE EDITION (52 pgs.) Kirby’s 1975 Graphic Novel in original pencil form. Unseen art, screenplay, more! Proceeds go to preserving the 5000-page Kirby Archives! $8 US

TJKC #20: (68 pgs.) KIRBY’S WOMEN! Interviews with KIRBY, DAVE STEVENS, & LISA KIRBY, unused 10-page story, romance comics, Jack’s original CAPTAIN VICTORY screenplay, more! $8 US

TJKC #21: (68 pgs.) KIRBY, GIL KANE, & BRUCE TIMM intvs., FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE (LEE dialogue vs.

KIRBY notes), SILVER STAR screenplay, TOPPS COMICS, unpublished art, more! $8 US

TJKC #22: (68 pgs.)

VILLAINS! KIRBY, STEVE RUDE, & MIKE MIGNOLA interviews, FF #49 pencils, FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE, KOBRA, ATLAS MONSTERS! Kirby/Stevens cover. $8 US

TJKC #23: (68 pgs.) Interviews with KIRBY, DENNY O’NEIL & TRACY KIRBY, more FF #49 pencils, FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE, unused 10page SOUL LOVE story, more! $8 US

TJKC #24: (68 pgs.) BATTLES! KIRBY’S original art fight, JIM SHOOTER interview, NEW GODS #6 (“Glory Boat”) pencils, FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE, more! Kirby/ Mignola cover. $8 US

TJKC #25: (100 pgs.) SIMON & KIRBY! KIRBY, SIMON, & JOHN SEVERIN interviews, CAPTAIN AMERICA pencils, unused BOY EXPLORERS story, history of MAINLINE COMICS, more! $8 US

TJKC #26: (72 pgs.) GODS! COLOR NEW GODS concept drawings, KIRBY & WALTER SIMONSON interviews, FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE, BIBLE INFLUENCES, THOR, MR. MIRACLE, more! $8 US

TJKC #27: (72 pages) KIRBY INFLUENCE Part One! KIRBY and ALEX ROSS interviews, KIRBY FAMILY Roundtable, all-star lineup of pros discuss Kirby’s influence on them!

Kirby / Timm cover. $8 US

TJKC #30: (68 pgs.) ’80s WORK! Interviews with ALAN MOORE & Kirby Estate’s ROBERT KATZ, HUNGER DOGS, SUPER POWERS, SILVER STAR, ANIMATION work, more! $8 US

TJKC #31: (84 pgs.) TABLOID FORMAT! Wraparound KIRBY/ ADAMS cover, KURT BUSIEK & LADRONN interviews, new MARK EVANIER column, favorite 2-PAGE SPREADS, 2001 Treasury, more! $13 US

TJKC #32: (84 pgs.) TABLOID! KIRBY interview, new MARK EVANIER column, plus Kirby’s Least Known Work: DAYS OF THE MOB #2, THE HORDE, BLACK HOLE, SOUL LOVE, PRISONER, more! $13 US

TJKC #33: (84 pgs.) TABLOID ALL-FANTASTIC FOUR issue!

MARK EVANIER column, miniinterviews with everyone who worked on FF after Kirby, STAN LEE interview, 40 pgs. of FF PENCILS, more! $13 US

TJKC #34: (84 pgs.) TABLOID! JOE SIMON & CARMINE INFANTINO interviews, MARK EVANIER column, unknown 1950s concepts, CAPTAIN AMERICA pencils, KIRBY/ TOTH cover, more! $13 US

TJKC #35: (84 pgs.) TABLOID! GREAT ESCAPES with MISTER MIRACLE, comparing KIRBY & HOUDINI, Kirby Tribute Panel with EVANIER, EISNER, BUSCEMA, ROMITA, ROYER, & JOHNNY CARSON! $13 US

TJKC #36: (84 pgs.) TABLOID ALL-THOR issue! MARK EVANIER column, SINNOTT & ROMITA JR. interviews, unseen KIRBY INTV., ART GALLERY, FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE, more! $13 US

TJKC #37: (84 pgs.) TABLOID HOW TO DRAW THE KIRBY WAY issue! MARK EVANIER column, MIKE ROYER on inking, KIRBY interview, ART GALLERY, analysis of Kirby’s art techniques, more! $13 US

TJKC #38: (84 pgs.) TABLOID KIRBY: STORYTELLER! MARK EVANIER column, JOE SINNOTT on inking, SWIPES, talks with JACK DAVIS, PAUL GULACY, HERNANDEZ BROS., ART GALLERY, more! $13 US

TJKC #39: (84 pgs.) TABLOID FAN FAVORITES! EVANIER column, INHUMANS, HULK, SILVER SURFER, tribute panel with ROMITA, AYERS, LEVITZ, McFARLANE, TRIMPE, ART GALLERY, more! $13 US

TJKC #40: (84 pgs.) TABLOID “WORLD THAT’S COMING!” EVANIER column, KAMANDI, OMAC, tribute panel with CHABON, PINI, GOLDBERG, BUSCEMA, LIEBER, LEE, ART GALLERY, more! $13 US

TJKC #41: (84 pgs.) TABLOID! 1970s MARVEL, including Jack’s last year on FF, EVANIER column, GIORDANO interview, tribute panel with GIBBONS, RUDE, SIMONSON, RYAN, ART GALLERY, more! $13 US

TJKC #42: (84 pgs.) TABLOID! Spotlights Kirby at ’70s DC Comics, from Jimmy Olsen to Spirit World! Huge Kirby pencil art gallery, covers inked by KEVIN NOWLAN & MURPHY ANDERSON! $13 US

TJKC SUBSCRIPTIONS! 4 tabloid issues: $36 Standard, $52 First Class (Canada: $60, Elsewhere: $64 Surface, $80 Airmail).

10

THE TWOMORROWS LIBRARY NNER!

WI WARD A R E EISN

Top creators discuss all aspects of the DESIGN OF COMICS:

DICK GIORDANO

CHANGING COMICS, ONE DAY AT A TIME MICHAEL EURY’s biography of comics’ most prominent and affable personality!

• Covers his career as illustrator, inker, and • WILL EISNER • SCOTT HAMPTON editor, peppered with DICK’S PERSONAL • MIKE WIERINGO • WALTER SIMONSON REFLECTIONS on his career milestones!

• MIKE MIGNOLA • MARK SCHULTZ • DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI • MIKE CARLIN • Lavishly illustrated with RARE AND NEVER SEEN comics, merchandising, and • DICK GIORDANO • BRIAN STELFREEZE advertising art (includes a color section)!

• CHRIS MOELLER • MARK CHIARELLO • Extensive index of his published work!

If you’re serious about creating effective, • Comments & tributes by NEAL ADAMS, innovative comics, or just enjoying them DENNIS O’NEIL, TERRY AUSTIN, PAUL from the creator’s perspective, this guide is LEVITZ, MARV WOLFMAN, JULIUS must-reading!

SCHWARTZ, JIM APARO & others!

(208-Page Trade Paperback) $26 US • With a Foreword by NEAL ADAMS and Afterword by PAUL LEVITZ! (176-pg. Paperback) $24 US

STREETWISE

TOP ARTISTS DRAWING STORIES OF THEIR LIVES An unprecedented assembly of talent drawing NEW autobiographical stories: • Barry WINDSOR-SMITH • C.C. BECK • Sergio ARAGONÉS • Walter SIMONSON • Brent ANDERSON • Nick CARDY • Roy THOMAS & John SEVERIN • Paul CHADWICK • Rick VEITCH • Murphy ANDERSON • Joe KUBERT • Evan DORKIN • Sam GLANZMAN • Plus Art SPIEGELMAN, Jack KIRBY, more!

Cover by RUDE • Foreword by EISNER (160-Page Trade Paperback) $24 US

CAPTAIN ACTION

THE ORIGINAL SUPERHERO ACTION FIGURE CAPTAIN ACTION debuted in the wake of the ’60s Batman TV show, and could become 13 different super-heroes. With over 200 toy photos, this trade paperback chronicles his history (including comic book appearances), with historical anecdotes by the late GIL KANE, JIM SHOOTER, STAN WESTON (co-creator of GI Joe, Captain Action, and Mego’s World’s Greatest Super-Heroes), and others, plus never-seen artwork by GIL KANE, JOE STATON, CARMINE INFANTINO, JERRY ORDWAY, and MURPHY ANDERSON! Includes a color section! Written by MICHAEL EURY!

“I HAVE TO LIVE WITH THIS GUY!” Explore the lives of the partners and wives of the top names in comics, as they share memories, anecdotes, personal photos, momentos, and never-before-seen art by: • ALAN MOORE • WILL EISNER • STAN LEE • GENE COLAN • JOE KUBERT • JOHN ROMITA • HARVEY KURTZMAN • DAVE SIM • HOWARD CRUSE • DAN DeCARLO • DAVE COOPER and many more!

(208-Page Trade Paperback) $24 US

(176-Page Trade Paperback) $20 US THE

PANEL DISCUSSIONS

TOP ARTISTS DISCUSS THE DESIGN OF COMICS

ART OF GEORGE TUSKA

THE LEGION COMPANION • A history of the Legion of Super-Heroes, with DAVE COCKRUM, MIKE GRELL, JIM STARLIN, JAMES SHERMAN, PAUL LEVITZ, KEITH GIFFEN, STEVE LIGHTLE, MARK WAID, JIM SHOOTER, JIM MOONEY, AL PLASTINO, and more!

• Rare and never-seen Legion art by the above, plus GEORGE PÉREZ, NEAL ADAMS, CURT SWAN, and others!

• Unused Cockrum character designs and pages from an UNUSED STORY! • New cover by DAVE COCKRUM and JOE RUBINSTEIN, introduction by JIM SHOOTER, and more!

(224-page Trade Paperback) $29 US

COMIC BOOKS & OTHER NECESSITIES OF LIFE WERTHAM WAS RIGHT! SUPERHEROES IN MY PANTS! Each collects MARK EVANIER’S best essays and commentaries, plus new essays and illustrations by Mark’s GROO collaborator and MAD artist SERGIO ARAGONÉS! 200-page Trade Paperbacks • $17 US EACH ALL THREE BOOKS: $34 US POSTPAID

BEST OF THE LEGION OUTPOST Collects the best material from the hardto-find LEGION OUTPOST fanzine, including rare interviews and articles from creators such as DAVE COCKRUM, CARY BATES, and JIM SHOOTER, plus neverbefore-seen artwork by COCKRUM, MIKE GRELL, JIMMY JANES and others! It also features a previously unpublished interview with KEITH GIFFEN originally intended for the never-published LEGION OUTPOST #11, plus other new material! And it sports a rarely-seen classic 1970s cover by Legion fan favorite artist DAVE COCKRUM! (160-page trade paperback) $22 US

ALL-STAR COMPANION VOL. 1

HERO GETS GIRL!

ROY THOMAS has assembled the most thorough look ever taken at All-Star Comics:

THE LIFE & ART OF KURT SCHAFFENBERGER

• Covers by MURPHY ANDERSON! • Issue-by-issue coverage of ALL–STAR COMICS #1–57, the original JLA–JSA teamups, & the ’70s ALL–STAR REVIVAL! • Art from an unpublished 1945 JSA story!

• Looks at FOUR “LOST” ALL–STAR issues!

• Rare art by BURNLEY, DILLIN, KIRBY, INFANTINO, KANE, KUBERT, ORDWAY, ROSS, WOOD and more!!

MARK VOGER’s biography of the artist of LOIS LANE & CAPTAIN MARVEL!

(208-page Trade Paperback) $26 US

• Covers KURT’S LIFE AND CAREER from the 1940s to his passing in 2002!

• Features NEVER-SEEN PHOTOS & ILLUSTRATIONS from his files!

• Includes recollections by ANDERSON, EISNER, INFANTINO, KUBERT, ALEX ROSS, MORT WALKER and others!

A comprehensive look at Tuska’s personal and professional life, including early work with Eisner-Iger, crime comics of the 1950s, and his tenure with Marvel and DC Comics, as well as independent publishers.

The book includes extensive coverage of his work on IRON MAN, X-MEN, HULK, JUSTICE LEAGUE, TEEN TITANS, BATMAN, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS, and many more! A gallery of commission artwork and a thorough index of his work are included, plus original artwork, photos, sketches, previously unpublished art, interviews and anecdotes from his peers and fans, plus George’s own words!

(128-page trade paperback) $19 US

(128-page Trade Paperback) $19 US

REVISED EDITION! T.H.U.N.D.E.R. AGENTS COMPANION The definitive book on WALLACE WOOD’s super-team of the 1960s, featuring interviews with Woody and other creators involved in the T-Agents over the years, plus rare and unseen art, including a rare 28-page story drawn by PAUL GULACY, UNPUBLISHED STORIES

by GULACY, PARIS CULLINS, and others, and a JERRY ORDWAY cover.

Edited by CBA’s JON B. COOKE. (192-page trade paperback) $29 US

11

COMICS ABOVE GROUND

SEE HOW YOUR FAVORITE ARTISTS MAKE A LIVING OUTSIDE COMICS

TRUE BRIT

CELEBRATING GREAT COMIC BOOK ARTISTS OF ENGLAND A celebration of the rich history of British Comics Artists and their influence on the US with in-depth interviews and art by: • BRIAN BOLLAND • ALAN DAVIS • DAVE GIBBONS • BRYAN HITCH • DAVID LLOYD

• DAVE MCKEAN • KEVIN O’NEILL • BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH and other gents!

(204-page Trade Paperback with COLOR SECTION) $26 US

BEST OF DRAW! VOL. 1 Compiles material from the first two soldout issues of DRAW!, the “How-To” magazine on comics and cartooning!

Tutorials by, and interviews with: DAVE GIBBONS (layout and drawing on the computer), BRET BLEVINS (drawing lovely women, painting from life, and creating figures that “feel”), JERRY ORDWAY (detailing his working methods), KLAUS JANSON and RICARDO VILLAGRAN (inking techniques), GENNDY TARTAKOVSKY (on animation and Samurai Jack), STEVE CONLEY (creating web comics and cartoons), PHIL HESTER and ANDE PARKS (penciling and inking), and more!

(200-page trade paperback) $26 US

COMICS ABOVE GROUND features top comics pros discussing their inspirations and training, and how they apply it in “Mainstream Media,” including Conceptual Illustration, Video Game Development, Children’s Books, Novels, Design, Illustration, Fine Art, Storyboards, Animation, Movies & more! Written by DURWIN TALON (author of the top-selling PANEL DISCUSSIONS), this book features creators sharing their perspectives and their work in comics and their “other professions,” with career overviews, neverbefore-seen art, and interviews! Featuring: • BRUCE TIMM • BERNIE WRIGHTSON • ADAM HUGHES

• LOUISE SIMONSON • DAVE DORMAN • GREG RUCKA & MORE!

MR. MONSTER, HIS BOOKS OF FORBIDDEN KNOWLEDGE, VOLUME ZERO • 12 Tales of Mr. Monster, with 30 ALL-NEW pages by MICHAEL T. GILBERT! • Collects hard-to-find stories & the lost NEWSPAPER STRIP! • New 8-page FULL-COLOR STORY by KEITH GIFFEN & MICHAEL T. GILBERT! (136-pg. Paperback) $14 US

(168-page Trade Paperback) $24 US

CALL OR WRITE FOR OUR NEW CATALOG, OR DOWNLOAD IT NOW AT www.twomorrows.com

G-FORCE: ANIMATED

THE OFFICIAL BATTLE OF THE PLANETS GUIDEBOOK The official compendium to the Japanese animated TV program that revolutionized anime across the globe! Featuring plenty of unseen artwork and designs from the wondrous world of G-FORCE (a.k.a.

Science Ninja Team Gatchaman), it presents interviews and behind-the-scenes stories of the pop culture phenomenon that captured the hearts and imagination of Generation X, and spawned the new hit comic series! Co-written by JASON HOFIUS and GEORGE KHOURY, this FULL-COLOR account is highlighted by a NEW PAINTED COVER from master artist ALEX ROSS! (96-Page Trade Paperback) $20 US

MODERN MASTERS SERIES Edited by ERIC NOLEN-WEATHINGTON

AGAINST THE GRAIN: MAD ARTIST

WALLACE WOOD

WARREN COMPANION

The definitive biographical memoir on one of comics' finest artists, 20 years in the making! Former associate BHOB STEWART traces Wood's life and career, with contributions from many artists and writers who knew Wood personally, making this a remarkable compendium of art, insights and critical commentary! From childhood drawings & early samples to nearly endless comics pages (many unpublished), this is the most stunning display of Wood art ever assembled! BILL PEARSON, executor of the Wood Estate, contributed rare drawings from Wood's own files, while art collector ROGER HILL provides a wealth of obscure, previously unpublished Wood drawings and paintings.

The ultimate guide to Warren Publishing, the publisher of such mags as CREEPY, EERIE, VAMPIRELLA, BLAZING COMBAT, and others. Reprints COMIC BOOK ARTIST #4 (completely reformatted), plus nearly 200 new pages:

(336-Page Trade Paperback) $44 US

WALLACE WOOD CHECKLIST

• New painted cover by ALEX HORLEY! • A definitive WARREN CHECKLIST! • Dozens of NEW FEATURES on CORBEN, FRAZETTA, DITKO and others, and interviews with WRIGHTSON, WARREN, EISNER, ADAMS, COLAN & many more!

(288-page unsigned Hardcover) $44 US

FAWCETT COMPANION THE BEST OF FCA Presenting the best of the FAWCETT COLLECTORS OF AMERICA newsletter!

• New JERRY ORDWAY cover!

• Index of ALL FAWCETT COMICS! • Looks inside the FAWCETT OFFICES! • Interviews, features, and rare and previously unpublished artwork by C.C. BECK, MARC SWAYZE, KURT SCHAFFENBERGER, MAC RABOY, DAVE BERG, ALEX TOTH, BOB OKSNER, GEORGE EVANS, ALEX ROSS, Foreword by MARC SWAYZE, and more!

(160-page Trade Paperback) $20 US

MODERN MASTERS: IN THE STUDIO WITH GEORGE PÉREZ DVD

Lists Wood’s PUBLISHED COMICS WORK in detail, plus FANZINE ART, ADVERTISING ILLUSTRATIONS, UNPUBLISHED WORK, and more.

Illustrated with rare and unseen Wood artwork!

This DVD companion to the Modern Masters book series gives you a personal tour of George Pérez’s studio, and lets you watch step-by-step as the fan-favorite artist illustrates a special issue of Top Cow’s Witchblade! Also, see George as he sketches for fans at conventions, and hear his peers and colleagues—including Marv Wolfman and Ron Marz—share their anecdotes and personal insights along the way!

(68 Pages) $7 US

(120-minute DVD) $34 US

A new series of trade paperbacks devoted to the BEST OF TODAY'S COMICS ARTISTS! Each volume contains RARE AND UNSEEN ARTWORK direct from the artist’s files, plus a COMPREHENSIVE INTERVIEW (including influences and their views on graphic storytelling), DELUXE SKETCHBOOK SECTIONS, and more!

VOL. 1: ALAN DAVIS

VOL. 3: BRUCE TIMM

(128-Page Trade Paperback) $17 US

(120-Page TPB with COLOR) $19 US

VOL. 2: GEORGE PÉREZ

VOL. 4: KEVIN NOWLAN

(128-Page Trade Paperback) $17 US

(120-Page TPB with COLOR) $19 US

Prices Include US Postage. Outside the US, Add $2 Per Item Canada, $3 Per Item Surface, $7 Per Item Airmail

12

KIRBY UNLEASHED (REMASTERED)

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR, VOLUMES 1-4 See for yourself what thousands of comics fans, professionals, and historians have discovered: The King lives on in the pages of THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR! These colossal TRADE PAPERBACKS reprint the first twenty sold-out issues of the magazine for Kirby fans. Volumes 1-3 are now back in print after several years (sporting a new cover design), while Volume 4 is a new volume due to popular demand!

• VOLUME 1: Reprints TJKC #1-9 (including the Fourth World and Fantastic Four theme issues), and includes more than 30 pieces of Kirby art never before published in TJKC! • (240-page Trade Paperback) $29 US • VOLUME 2: Reprints TJKC #10-12 (the Humor, Hollywood, and International theme issues), and includes a new special section detailing a fan’s private tour of the Kirbys’ remarkable home, showcasing more than 30 pieces of Kirby art never before published in TJKC! • (160-page Trade Paperback) $22 US • VOLUME 3: Reprints TJKC #13-15 (the Horror, Thor, and Sci-Fi theme issues), plus 30 new pieces of Kirby art! • (176-page Trade Paperback) $24 US • VOLUME 4: New volume, reprinting TJKC #16-19 (the Tough Guys, DC, Marvel, and Art theme issues), plus more than 30 pieces of Kirby art never before published in TJKC! • (240-page Trade Paperback) $29 US

COMIC BOOK ARTIST COLLECTION, VOL. 3 Reprinting the Eisner Award-winning COMIC BOOK ARTIST #7 and #8 (’70s Marvel and ’80s independents), featuring a new MICHAEL T. GILBERT cover, plus interviews with GILBERT, RUDE, GULACY, GERBER, DON SIMPSON, CHAYKIN, SCOTT McCLOUD, BUCKLER, BYRNE, DENIS KITCHEN, plus a NEW SECTION featuring over 30 pages of previouslyunseen stuff! Edited by JON B. COOKE. (224-page trade paperback) $29 US

SWAMPMEN: MUCK MONSTERS OF THE COMICS The definitive tome detailing the macabre history of the muck monsters of the comics, including SWAMP THING, MANTHING, IT, THE BOG BEAST, MARVIN THE DEAD THING, THE SWAMP LURKER, and the one who started it all, THE HEAP! Featuring unpublished artwork and interviews by ALAN MOORE, STEVE BISSETTE, STEVE GERBER, MIKE PLOOG, RICK VEITCH, JOHN TOTLEBEN, VAL MAYERIK, & more! All behind a new Swamp Thing cover by FRANK CHO! Edited by CBA’S JON B. COOKE! (200-page Trade Paperback) $29 US

The fabled 1971 KIRBY UNLEASHED portfolio, COMPLETELY REMASTERED! This scarce collectible spotlights some of JACK “KING” KIRBY’S finest art from all eras of his career, including 1930s pencil work, unused strips, illustrated World War II letters, 1950s pages, unpublished 1960s MARVEL PENCIL PAGES AND SKETCHES, and FOURTH WORLD PENCIL ART (done expressly for this portfolio in 1970)! We’ve gone back to the original art to ensure the best reproduction possible, and Kirby’s assistants at the time—MARK EVANIER and STEVE SHERMAN—have updated the extensive Kirby biography from the original printing, and added a NEW FOREWORD explaining how this portfolio came to be! PLUS: We’ve recolored the original color plates, and added EIGHT NEW BLACK-&-WHITE PAGES, plus EIGHT NEW COLOR PAGES, including Jack’s four GODS POSTERS (released separately in 1972), and FOUR ADDITIONAL KIRBY COLOR PIECES! It’s all presented at the KIRBY COLLECTOR tabloid size!

(60-page Tabloid) $24 US

MODERN MASTERS VOL. 5: GARCÍA-LÓPEZ

JUSTICE LEAGUE COMPANION VOL. 1

SECRETS IN THE SHADOWS: GENE COLAN

Latest in our series of trade paperbacks devoted to the BEST OF TODAY'S COMICS ARTISTS, this time spotlighting arguably the best draftsman in comics, JOSÉ LUÍS GARCÍA-LÓPEZ! Features RARE AND UNSEEN ARTWORK direct from the artist’s files, spotlighting his immense talent! Features a COMPREHENSIVE INTERVIEW, never-seen DC promotional and merchandising art, DELUXE SKETCHBOOK SECTION including color plates, and more!

A comprehensive examination of the Silver Age JLA written by MICHAEL EURY (author of the critically acclaimed CAPTAIN ACTION and co-author of THE SUPERHERO BOOK). It traces the JLA's development, history, imitators, and early fandom through vintage and all-new interviews with the series' creators, an issue-byissue index of the JLA's 1960-1972 adventures, classic and never-before-published artwork, and other fun and fascinating features. Contributors include DENNY O'NEIL, MURPHY ANDERSON, JOE GIELLA, MIKE FRIEDRICH, NEAL ADAMS, ALEX ROSS, CARMINE INFANTINO, NICK CARDY, and many, many others. Plus: An exclusive interview with STAN LEE, who answers the question, “Did the JLA really inspire the creation of Marvel's Fantastic Four?” With an all-new cover by BRUCE TIMM (TV's Justice League Unlimited)!

The ultimate retrospective on COLAN, with rare drawings, photos, and art from his nearly 60-year career, plus a comprehensive overview of Gene’s glory days at Marvel Comics! MARV WOLFMAN, DON MCGREGOR and other writers share script samples and anecdotes of their Colan collaborations, while TOM PALMER, STEVE LEIALOHA and others show how they approached the daunting task of inking Colan’s famously nuanced penciled pages! Plus there’s a NEW PORTFOLIO of never-before-seen collaborations between Gene and such masters as JOHN BYRNE, MICHAEL KALUTA and GEORGE PÉREZ, and all-new artwork created specifically for this book by Gene! Available in Softcover and Deluxe Hardcover (limited to 1000 copies, with 16 extra black-and-white pages and 8 extra color pages)!

(224-page trade paperback) $29 US

(168-page softcover) $26 US (192-page trade hardcover) $49 US

(120-Page Trade Paperback) $19 US

NOW SHIPPING!

SHIPS AUG. 2005!

AND COMING SOON:

SHIPS JULY 2005!

HOW TO DRAW COMICS FROM SCRIPT TO PRINT DVD See a comic created from scratch, as the editors of DRAW! and WRITE NOW! magazines create a new comic, step-by-step, before your eyes!

(120-minute DVD) $34 US Bundled with Write Now! #8 & Draw! #9: $39 US

BRAVE & BOLD ART OF JIM APARO, OCTOBER 2005

THE TITANS COMPANION NOVEMBER 2005

ALL-STAR COMPANION V2 MARCH 2006

ACTING WITH A PENCIL SPRING 2006

13

COMING SOON FROM TWOMORROWS!

DIAMOND’S “2004 BEST PUBLICATION ABOUT COMICS!”

ALTER EGO #51 (AUG.) BACK ISSUE #11 (JULY) Golden Age Batman artist/Bob Kane ghost LEW SAYRE SCHWARTZ interviewed, the Golden & Silver Ages of AUSTRALIAN SUPER-HEROES, Mad artist DAVE BERG interviewed, FCA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT on WILL EISNER, ALEX TOTH and more!

Edited by ROY THOMAS.

DRAW! #11 (JULY)

WRITE NOW! #10 (JULY)

THOMAS, BUSIEK, and JUSKO on CONAN STEVE RUDE demonstrates his approach to “HOW-TO” TIPS and interviews on (with art by BUSCEMA, WINDSOR-SMITH, comics & drawing! ROQUE BALLESTEROS writing for comics, animation, and sci-fi, ADAMS, JUSKO, & others), ARAGONÉS & on Flash animation! Political cartoonist JIM with Justice League Unlimited’s DWAYNE EVANIER on GROO, DC’s never-published BORGMAN on his daily comic strip Zits!

McDUFFIE, ”Hate’s” PETER BAGGE, KING ARTHUR, art gallery by KIRBY, PÉREZ, Plus DRAW!’S regular instructors BRET legendary comics writer GERRY CONWAY, MOEBIUS, GARCIA-LOPEZ, BOLLAND, BLEVINS, ALEBERTO RUIZ and more! writer/editor PAUL BENJAMIN, and more! and others! Edited by MICHAEL EURY. Edited by MIKE MANLEY. Edited by DANNY FINGEROTH.

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(100-page magazine) $8 US

(96-page magazine with color) $8 US

(80-page magazine) $8 US

THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #43 (JULY)

JUSTICE LEAGUE COMPANION (JULY)

MODERN MASTERS VOLUME FIVE: GARCIA-LOPEZ (NOW!)

SECRETS IN THE SHADOWS:

Spotlights 2004 KIRBY AWARD winners, Traces the JLA’s history, imitators, and early including assistant STEVE SHERMAN and fandom through interviews and never-seen others sharing memories and never-seen artwork by DENNY O’NEIL, JOE GIELLA, art from JACK and ROZ, a never-published MURPHY ANDERSON, MIKE FRIEDRICH, 1966 interview with KIRBY, MARK NEAL ADAMS, ALEX ROSS, CARMINE EVANIER’S regular column, a Kirby pencils- INFANTINO, NICK CARDY, and others, to-Sinnott inks comparison of TALES OF plus STAN LEE on the JLA’s inspiration of SUSPENSE #93, new covers featuring the Fantastic Four, index of the 1960–72 unseen Kirby art (SILVER SURFER inked by adventures, new cover by BRUCE TIMM, JOE SINNOTT, & Jack’s original ’70s & more! Written by MICHAEL EURY. SILVER STAR concept art), & more! Edited (224-page trade paperback) $29 US

by JOHN MORROW. (84-page Tabloid) $13 US

The latest volume in our series devoted to the best artists working in comics today spotlights José Luis García-López, arguably the best draftsman in the business, and a favorite of fans and fellow pros alike.

Features an extensive, career-spanning interview lavishly illustrated with rare and unpublished art, as well as a large sketchbook section!

(128-page trade paperback) $19 US

GENE COLAN (JULY)

The ultimate look at COLAN’S life & art!

WOLFMAN, MCGREGOR & other writers share scripts from their Colan collaborations, while TOM PALMER & other artists show how they inked Colan’s pencils! Plus never-seen collaborations between Gene and BYRNE, KALUTA and PÉREZ, and allnew Colan art created specifically for this book! DELUXE HARDCOVER is limited to 1000 copies, with 16 extra black-andwhite pages and 8 extra color pages.

SUBSCRIPTIONS:

(168-page softcover) $26 US (192-page hardcover) $49 US

THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR: Four tabloid issues in the US: $36 Standard, $52 First Class (Canada: $60, Elsewhere: $64 Surface, $80 Airmail).

BACK ISSUE!: Six issues in the US: $30 Standard, $48 First Class (Canada: $60, Elsewhere: $66 Surface, $90 Airmail).

DRAW! or WRITE NOW!: Four issues in the US: $20 Standard, $32 First Class (Canada: $40, Elsewhere: $44 Surface, $60 Airmail).

ALTER EGO: Twelve issues in the US: $60 Standard, $96 First Class (Canada: $120, Elsewhere: $132 Surface, $180 Airmail).

NOTE: IF YOU PREFER A SIX-ISSUE ALTER EGO SUBSCRIPTION, JUST CUT THE PRICE IN HALF!

TwoMorrows. Bringing New Life To Comics Fandom.

TwoMorrows Publishing • 10407 Bedfordtown Dr. • Raleigh, NC 27614 • 919/449-0344 • FAX 919/449-0327 • e-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com