W ho is Joe Kubert?
Born Yosaif Kubert in Yzeran, Poland, on Sept. 18, 1926, Joe came to America with family as an infant, growing up in hard-scrabble Brooklyn, New York, where nascent drawing talent and early exposure to newspaper adventure comic strips set him on a career path. Coming of age during the Great Depression with a strong work ethic that would guide him throughout his 85 years, the only son was instilled with an enduring desire to lead by example. Joe eagerly sought out comics studios, where he swept floors at the tender age of 11, soon selling his first professional work as artist. Early on the youngster developed a sustained gratitude for the opportunity to learn from more seasoned pros who unselfishly shared expertise and experience with this kid from off the street. Joe Kubert’s professional accolades are tremendous: Influential fan favorite with his ’40s “Hawkman” work; co-creator of 3-D comics; artist of exemplary war comics with “Sgt. Rock” and “Enemy Ace”; early supporter of comics fandom; newspaper strip artist; innovative and hugely respected comics editor; talented writer; likely the finest comics adapter of Tarzan; founder/head instructor of the first — and only — institution devoted to teaching the art of the comic book; progenitor of graphic novels, beginning with the proto-journalism of Fax from Sarajevo and culminating in his masterpiece, Yossel: April 19, 1943. To the end, which occurred on Aug. 12, 2012, Joe always strove to create better work. Family was always paramount to Joe, so much so his beloved wife, Muriel, was also his partner in the Kubert School, and so much so that two of his sons were inspired to follow him into the field, where they have excelled on their own. Words cannot attest to the quality of his artistry, but we can say without equivocation that Joe Kubert was one of the best stylists and storytellers to ever grace the field of the comic book, American or otherwise. Come see in these pages and judge for yourself. And learn more about this wonderful man.
Frontispiece: Background is, courtesy of Heritage Auctions, Joe Kubert’s preliminary Tarzan sketch, rendered about the time DC Comics obtained the license in the early ’70s. Circular inset is a detail from Joe’s “Gargoyles” two-pager, which appeared, among other places, in black-&-white in the TwoMorrows book, Streetwise. You’ll find the fully-hued version courtesy of Peter Carlsson and The Kubert School inside these pages, ably colored by Joe Panico of Tell-A-Graphics. Page two-three spread: Seth Kushner shared this evocative portrait of Joe from Autumn 2008, originally shot for Seth and Christopher Irving’s book, Leaping Tall Buildings: The Origins of American Comics. Page four: Joe Kubert’s drawing table, as he last left it, in his Kubert School office. Photos by Ye Ed, Mar. ’13. Page five: Ye Ed’s own copy of DC Special #5 [Oct.-Dec. ’69], a comic entirely devoted to Joe Kubert, who personally inscribed the cover during Joe and Ye Ed’s first meeting in Feb. ’97. This page: Joe Kubert and his three-and-a-half year old youngest son, Andy, at the drawing board working on the syndicated newspaper adventure comic strip Tales of the Green Berets. Andy wrote on a DC blog about this Morristown Daily Record photo from 1965: “It was taken in my dad’s studio in the house I grew up in… his studio was above the attached garage overlooking the woods in the backyard. I still remember the smell of the paper and ink in there. He would let me set up a little area to draw and read comics as he drew. I loved the war, mystery and Superman and Batman comics. He would also show me a few drawing tricks… From the looks of the photo, I don’t know how he put up with me in there!” Next page: [clockwise from top] The Kubert School lensed by Sara Harper-Hudson and courtesy of Jae H. Choi & TKS; Joe confers with an aspiring artist at a Kubert School open house in recent years; and the old Baker Mansion, original abode of the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art, Inc., and now a school dormitory. Courtesy of William Bossert.