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Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center
Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center (kirbymuseum.org) has great Kirby news, photos, videos and more
Friday, Oct 9
Some Lettering by Howard Ferguson
In this pursuit I like to assemble images of the letters from a single story. Of course there is always a certain amount of variation in the letters but I try to select somewhat typical examples. For these samples I only select letters from captions and balloons that are not bold or oversized.
Friday, Sep 25
Art of Romance, Chapter 21, Roussos Messes Up
Young Love #40 (December 1952) “Fallen Idol”, art by Jack Kirby According to the Jack Kirby Checklist, “forget Me, Fraulein” was penciled by Jack Kirby and inked by Mort Meskin. The biggest problem with that is there on the right edge just above the story panel is Meskin’s signature.
Friday, Sep 11
Art of Romance, Chapter 20, Romance Still Matters
August 1952 – October 1952: Young Romance #48 – #50, Young Love #36 – #38, Young Brides #1) Number of Romance Titles 1947 – 1954 (the period covered in this chapter is shaded in blue) Simon and Kirby not only created the romance genre of comics, they also made quite a bit of money from it quite [......
Monday, Aug 31
Happy Jack Kirby Day
Long time Kirby associate and biographer Mark Evanier has a short note and an old photo. Check out Kirby-Vison for some Kirby inspired artwork and Kirby Kinetics for a look at his story-telling. Bully has hourly posts about Kirby in comics and on film.
Friday, Aug 28
Jack Kirby, Fanboy
Red Raven (August 1940), art by Jack Kirby Somewhere around February 1940 (calendar dates) Joe Simon left his position as editor for Fox Comics and became Timely’s first comic book editor. It would seem that the first thing Joe did on arriving at Timely was to produce a new title, Red Raven C...
Thursday, Aug 20
Art of Romance, Chapter 19, More Artists
Young Romance #45 (May 1952) “The Things I Didn’t Know about Him”, art by Jack Kirby “A Man for My Birthday” is listed in the Jack Kirby Checklist as drawn by Kirby and inked by Draut. Without doubt this is in error and Bill Draut did both pencils and inks.
Thursday, Aug 6
Jack Kirby’s First Flight
Mystery Men #10 (May 1940) Wing Turner, art by Jack Kirby I recently posted on a couple of stories Simon and Kirby did for Prize Comics early in their collaboration (Ted O’Neil). Flying stories were not a big part of Simon and Kirby repertoire (but see The Milton Caniff Connection) and so I th...
Saturday, Jul 11
Upcoming Kirby – Various Marvel
Bunch of Kirby reprints in the latest batch of Marvel comics coming out in the fall. TALES OF ASGARD has some more modern coloured reprints. Mostly Kirby covers and a few issues of layouts in the second AVENGERS softcover Masterworks. Couple of Kirby reprints fill out the page count of some re...
Wednesday, May 20
Upcoming Kirby – Hulk, Asgard and, um, Bromance?
And yes, they’re publishing something called MARVEL BROMANCE. The Kirby story is a pretty good 10=page Captain America and Nick Fury team-up with inks by Frank Giacoia. THOR: TALES OF ASGARD BY STAN LEE & JACK KIRBY #4 (of 6) Written by STAN LEE Penciled by JACK KIRBY
Sunday, May 3
Upcoming Kirby – INHUMANS MASTERWORKS and more
The Children of the Atom are back in their classic adventures from the Silver Age! Launched by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the X-Men blended super-hero action, teen angst, and a metaphor for the turbulent social and racial issues of the ’60s into one potent package! After laying the foundati...
Saturday, Apr 11
“The Best of Simon and Kirby” Gets Reviewed
I guess I was not the only one to get an advance copy of Titan’s soon to be released “The Best of Simon and Kirby”. There is already a short review on the web by Mike Rogers . Among the many complements: Dazzling from beginning to end, The Best of Simon and Kirby is a monumental [...]
The Art of Romance, Chapter 13, Romance Bottoms Out
“My Tormented Heart” does not use the same letterer but then again not all Harvey comics that I have seen do. Both stories use the same splash page layout that is found in almost all Harvey romance comics. The title logo and the small circular caption are not typical for Simon and Kirby but can b...
Saturday, Apr 4
Fighting American, Chapter 1, Captain America Returns
Fighting American #1 (April 1954) “Break the Spy Ring” page 9, pencils by Jack Kirby Fighting American #1 (April 1954) “Baby Buzz Bombs” page 3, pencils by Jack Kirby Fighting American #2 (June 1954) “City of Ghouls” page 7, pencils by Jack Kirby
Friday, Mar 27
The Vigilante Rides Again
Footnote: There is a story floating around the Internet told by Jack Kirby about a conversation he had with Mort Meskin. However that is an obviously apocryphal story that reveals much about Kirby and provides no reliable information about Meskin.
Monday, Mar 23
Upcoming Kirby - SANDMAN BY S&K
At last, the classic 1940s Super Hero series by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby is collected from the pages of WORLD’S FINEST COMICS #6-7, ADVENTURE COMICS #72-97, #100-102 (1942-1946) and SANDMAN #1, the comic that reunited Simon & Kirby in 1974!
Saturday, Mar 14
The Little Shop of Horrors, Chapter 1, Expanding Their Fields
Young Romance #23 (July 1950) house ad, art by Jack Kirby Black Magic #2 (December 1950) “The Scorn of the Faceless People”, art by Jack Kirby Black Magic #2 (December 1950) “The Scorn of the Faceless People” page 3, art by Jack Kirby
Tuesday, Mar 10
New and Upcoming Kirby
Catching up on some Kirby release info, stuff’s been coming out steadily this year. One I missed on solicitations was that THOR #600 reprinted several “Tales of Asgard” shorts as backups, but more on that in a bit. Biggest release of the year so far is tomorrow, a collection of Kirby’s dozen O...
Friday, Mar 6
The Art of Romance, Chapter 12, A Smaller Studio
Bruno Premiani(?) has been a persistent presence in Simon and Kirby productions since August 1949. During this period Bruno provided 3 stories and 26 pages. While he did not appear as much as Kirby, Draut or Meskin what art he did was all first rate work. The romantic interest between an artis...
Saturday, Feb 28
The Eleventh Commandment
What was this unfinished page originally intended? Meskin did some marvelous work on his creation, the Vigilante, which started as a hero feature and ended up as a western. However Robinson was never associated with the Vigilante and the young man on this page of original art was clearly n...
Thursday, Feb 19
Bill Draut’s Demon
Stuntman #1 (April 1946) 3 Stuntman (Kirby) 1 Furnished Room (Draut) Boy Explorers #1 (May 1946) 1 Boys Explorer (Kirby) 1 Duke of Broadway (Simon) 1 Danny Dixon Cadet (Riley) 1 Calamity Jane (Draut) Stuntman #2 (June 1946) 2 Stuntman (Kirby) 1 Duke of Broadway (Simon)
Saturday, Feb 14
The Romance of Money
1937) page 1 (cover), art by Jack Kirby Early in his career Jack Kirby was employed by Lincoln News. There Jack worked on a number of strips for syndication but he also did the art for a give-away to be used by banks, “The Romance of Money”. Since this publication has a [...]
Tuesday, Feb 3
Upcoming Kirby - S&K at Titan news, JKQ #15 in Previews, etc.
Cover by JACK KIRBY The Young Allies, comics’ very first boy-adventure team, leap into four-color action once more with their debut MARVEL MASTERWORKS volume! Super-hero sidekicks unite when Captain America’s pal, Bucky and his Sentinels of Liberty team up with the Human Torch’s pro...
Saturday, Jan 31
It’s A Crime, Chapter 10, The Master and His Protégé
Justice Traps the Guilty #5 (July 1948), art by Jack Kirby Justice Traps the Guilty #18 (September 1950), art by Jack Kirby Justice Traps the Guilty #18 (September 1950) “Pirates of the Poor” page 9, art by Jack Kirby and Marvin Stein
Friday, Jan 23
Joe Simon at New York ComicCon 2009
At this point I have to admit that my observations and opinions are completely biased, I did the restorations for these lithographs. So take that in account when I say both are just stunning. No line art recreations here, both are based on scans from the original comics; pure Simon and Kirby. C...
Sunday, Jan 18
Black Magic at DC
Black Magic #29 (March 1954) “The Greatest Horror of Them All” page 2, art by Jack Kirby DC Black Magic #1 (November 1973) “The Greatest Horror of Them All” page 2, art by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon “The Girl Who Walked on Water” page 6, art by Jack Kirby
Sunday, Jan 11
Titan Announces Expanded Simon and Kirby Library
When Titan told me they wanted to include some stories from Marvel and DC in “The Best of Simon and Kirby” I must admit I was a bit skeptical. I have never been so pleased to have been proven wrong. The release describes DC Comics and Marvel Comics support as “generous” with which I heartedly agr...
Tuesday, Jan 6
2008 - A Kirby Odyssey
COUNTDOWN SPECIAL: THE NEW GODS A few one-shot comics reprinting some 1970s Kirby with tangential connections to then-current new DC comics. Only one Kirby story in the OMAC one, the other two are all Kirby, and the KAMANDI one includes one of the issues not yet reprinted elsewhere.
Sunday, Dec 7
“Tales of the Implosion” Available Again
I understand that reprints of Thomas Lammers’ “Tales of the Implosion, A History of the 1957 Atlas Implosion” are available once again. This work originally appeared in Alter Ego #49 (June 2005) but Tom expanded on it and added tables for his self published reprint. This is the best investi...
Joe Simon, Art Director
Of course layouts did sometimes include art so I will close this post with one of Jack Kirby’s best efforts for the Timely detective magazines. In “The Amazing World of Carmine Infantino” Carmine describes Kirby’s advice on how to draw a man hitting a woman:
Friday, Nov 21
Where Monsters Dwell #2 [1970]
A trio of Kirby/Ayers 7-pagers reprinted in this issue, giving a nice sample of the range of monsters that rampaged through the pre-hero Marvel line. Opening up is “I Created Sporr, The Thing That Could Not Die” from TALES OF SUSPENSE #11 [1960], which also provides the Kirby/Ayers cover f...
Tiger 21
Starman’s appearance in Fighting American was somewhat apt as the two shared a similar origin. Both involved the use of a machine to transfer the mind from one body to another. In Fighting American it was the mind from a frail body into that of his recently deceased brother. For Starman Zero it...
Friday, Nov 14
Joe Genalo, Prize Editor and Colorist
From this I would say that Joe Genalo was the editor for all Prize comics not produced by Simon and Kirby from at least 1953 until 1960. In 1960 Joe Simon returned to edit the romance comics, which were the only titles that Prize was still publishing. Genalo continued to work for Prize even afte...
Friday, Nov 7
Prize Comics Western, a Rough History
Prize Comics Western #74 (March 1949), art by Al Carreno Prize Comics Western #75 (May 1949), art by Jack Kirby Prize Comics Western #85 (January 1951) “American Eagle”, art by John Severin Prize Comics Western #118 (July 1956) “Liberty Belle”, art by Ted Galindo
Thursday, Oct 30
It’s A Crime, Chapter 9, Not The Same
But if the Prize crime comics were now being cheaply made, were Simon and Kirby still producing them? That is a question that is harder to provide a satisfactory answer. The lack of the “Produced by Simon and Kirby” label might suggest they were not producing the crime comics. But when the use...
Wednesday, Oct 22
Upcoming Kirby - Various early 2009 releases
THE JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #52 Winter 2009 - 84 pages - Tabloid Format THE X-MEN OMNIBUS VOL. 1 HC Written by STAN LEE & ROY THOMAS Penciled by JACK KIRBY, JAY GAVIN, WERNER ROTH & JACK SPARLING Covers by JACK KIRBY & ALEX ROSS
Thursday, Oct 9
The Most Poorly Reworked Story in the History of Comics
“I Went Too Far” from Hi-School Romance #19 (February 1953) was not that unusual for Harvey Comics. Harvey romances at that time were a little bit more risque then those produced Simon and Kirby for Prize Comics. By today’s standards they were still pretty tame stuff. Even then a youngster co...
Some Examples of Early Work by Leonard Starr
“Secret Assignment” was jointly signed by Leonard Starr and Frank Bolle. Bolle is an artist just a little older then Starr. Like Starr, Bolle’s career has included both comic book and syndication strip work. Since his name follows Leonard’s, Frank may have been the inker. But we have seen tha...
Friday, Oct 3
The Captain Aero Connections
The African American comic artist, Alvin C. Hollingsworth, only worked for Simon and Kirby for a short time (It’s A Crime Chapter 6 and Chapter 7) but left a lasting impression on Joe Simon who remembers him to this day. It is not the talented Hollingsworth that we saw in the art produced for Jo...
Thursday, Sep 18
It’s A Crime, Chapter 8, The Chinese Detective
I also wanted to include an action page. Briefer shows he can handle action just as well he could humor. Dick Briefer’s Charlie Chan stories really are a testament to what a great artist he was. However Charlie Chan #5 would be the final Prize issue. Years later Simon and Kirby would sell the idea...
Saturday, Sep 13
It’s A Crime, Chapter 7, A Studio With Many Artists
Justice Traps the Guilty #6 (September 1948) “The Capture of One-Eye”, splash panel by Jack Kirby, story panels by unidentified artist Justice Traps the Guilty #8 (January 1949) “Underworld Snob”, art by Jack Kirby and Warren Broderick
Thursday, Aug 28
The Art of Romance, Chapter 9, More Romance
Young Romance #15 (November 1949) “Back Door Love”, art by Jack Kirby Young Romance #16 (December 1949) “Dance Hall Pickup”, art by Jack Kirby The Art of Romance, Chapter 8, Kirby on the Range? Real West Romance & Western Love)
Friday, Aug 22
It’s A Crime, Chapter 5, Making a Commitment
Headline #26 (September 1947) “The Life and Death of Public Enemy Number One”, art by Jack Kirby Headline #28 (February 1948) “I Worked For the Fence”, art by Jack Kirby Headline #27 (November 1947) “Spirit Swindlers” page 7, art by Jack Kirby
Sunday, Jul 27
Upcoming Kirby - Jack Kirby Quarterly #15
Cover art by Jack Kirby and Bob McLeod The King of Comics and the King of Horror: Would ya believe: Kirby’s version of Dr. Phibes?! Opening Shots: A brief 1993 Kirby interview on Topps Comics and beyond A Final Chat: One of Kirby’s last ever interviews, January 20th 1994
Friday, Jul 11
A Date Without Romance
Kirby’s drawing for My Date is surprising good. I say surprising because Jack is most famous for his more realistic portrayals. Yet the Swifty Chase stories are filled with visually interesting characters all done in a more cartoony style then is typical for Kirby although not as cartoony...
Monday, Jun 23
Upcoming Kirby - Demon, Eternals, etc
A time of titans, terror and time travel - as only the King could conceive! Imagine a race of immortal beings possessed of seemingly limitless superhuman abilities including energy projection, strength and flight. Once worshipped as gods, this fantastic group left Earth to explore the...
Friday, Jun 13
The Art of Romance, Chapter 7, More Love on the Range
Leonard Starr can present somewhat of a challenge in recognizing his unsigned work. His drawing can vary somewhat from panel to panel. For instance generally his women have a child-like or elfin look. But then in another panel the woman’s face will have a more normal beauty. I am not sure, but I...
Friday, May 30
Boys’ Ranch, Simon and Kirby’s Most Successful Failure, Part 2
Boys’ Ranch #4 (April 1951) “The Bugle Blows At Bloody Knife”, pencils by Jack Kirby inks by Mort Meskin Boys’ Ranch #4 (April 1951) “Fight To the Finish”, art by Jack Kirby Boys’ Ranch #6 (August 1951) “Teeth for The Iron Horse” page 3, art by Jack Kirby and unidentified artist
Friday, May 23
Boys’ Ranch, Simon and Kirby’s Most Successful Failure, Part 1
Boys’ Ranch #2 (December 1950) pinup, art by Jack Kirby Boys’ Ranch #3 (February 1951) “Mother Delilah”, art by Jack Kirby Boys’ Ranch #3 (February 1951) “Mother Delilah” page 7, art by Jack Kirby Boys’ Ranch #3 (February 1951) “Mother Delilah” page 2, art by Jack Kirby
Saturday, May 17
Joe Simon and Timely Detective Magazines
The art with the unusual witch-like creature for “Detroit’s Zombi” is unsigned. I cannot say precisely why, but it looks like Avison’s work to me. There is some similarity to the crude bat with one on a cover that Al did for Speed Comics #15 (November 1941) but both are nothing more then primi...
Friday, May 9
The Beginnings of the Newsboy Legion
Star Spangled #9 (June 1942), art by Jack Kirby Star Spangled #7 (April 1942) page 1, art by Jack Kirby Star Spangled #8 (May 1942) “Last Mile Alley” page 10, art by Jack Kirby Star Spangled #12 (July 1942) “Prevue of Peril” page 1, art by Jack Kirby
