Back Issue #8 by TwoMorrows Publishing

2005

N$5o..985

StormS TURN

2P PRO RO

FLASHB DENNY O’NEIL & PHIL LaMARR

CK BLA E RSUP O HE R Y OR HIST

30 S YEAR W E N OF N E X-M

Y Y CCH HEE M M S FF

ROUGH

30!

BLAC LIGHTN K ING’S C REAT ORS SPEAK

UFF ST

BLACK VULCAN • BLADE • CYBORG • BROTHER VOODOO • LUKE CAGE • VIXEN • AND MORE!

Fe b r u a r y

K K AACC

SALUTING THE BLACK SUPER-HEROES OF THE 1970S AND 1980S!

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 !

A plea from the publisher of this fine digital periodical: TwoMorrows, we’re on the Honor System with our Digital Editions. We don’t add Digital Rights Management features to them to stop piracy; they’re clunky and cumbersome, and make readers jump through hoops to view content they’ve paid for. And studies show such features don’t do much to stop piracy anyway. So we don’t include DRM in our downloads.

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TwoMorrows.Celebrating The Art & History Of Comics. (& LEGO! ) TwoMorrows • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

The Ultimate Comics Experience!

Volume 1, Number 8 February 2005 Celebrating the Best Comics of the '70s, '80s, and Today! EDITOR Michael Eury PUBLISHER John Morrow DESIGNERS Robert Clark and Corey Bryant PROOFREADERS John Morrow and Eric Nolen-Weathington SCANNING AND IMAGE MANIPULATION Rich Fowlks COVER ARTIST Kyle Baker SPECIAL THANKS Arthur Adams Neal Adams Terry Austin Kyle Baker Spencer Beck Lee Benaka Al Bigley Jerry Boyd M.D. Bright Mike Burkey John Byrne Chris Claremont Dave Cockrum Gene Colan Denys Cowan Alan Davis Steve Englehart John Eury Steve Fastner Tom Field Sean Galloway Grand Comic-Book Database Mike Grell David Hamilton Cully Hamner Ben Herman Heritage Comics Richard Howell Mark Huesman Adam Hughes Tony Isabella Roger Janecke Dan Johnson Phil LaMarr Rich Larson Ted Latner Jim Lee Steve Lightle Andy Mangels

FLASHBACK: AFRICAN-AMERICAN HEROES .............................................................................................................................................................................................. A history of blacks in super-hero comics, plus “New in Print” looks at The Superhero Book and Black Images in the Comics

INTERVIEW: MARV WOLFMAN ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. A chat with the creator of Blade and Cyborg

OFF MY CHEST: BLACK MARVELS ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. Relive the 1970s House of Ideas with guest commentator Jerry Boyd

ROUGH STUFF: 30 YEARS OF THE NEW X-MEN .................................................................................................................................................................................... X-Men pencil and unpublished art by Adams (Neal and Art), McLeod, Sienkiewicz, Mazzucchelli, Stroman, Hughes, Davis, Lee, and Kane

David Mazzucchelli Dwayne McDuffie Bob McLeod PRO2PRO: DENNY O’NEIL AND PHIL LAMARR ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 32 Darrell McNeil Clifford Meth The original writer and the TV voice of John Stewart discuss Green Lantern Will Meugniot Gina Misiroglu PRO2PRO PLUS: NEAL ADAMS ............................................................................................................................................................................................................... 39 Brian K. Morris John Stewart GL’s co-creator fills us in on . . . Lincoln Washington?? Eric NolenWeathington Dennis O’Neil 43 BACKSTAGE PASS: BLACKSTAGE PAST.................................................................................................................................................................................................... Mary Beth Perrot Animator Darrell McNeil on the black super-heroes of TV toons John Petty Adam Philips OFF MY CHEST: TONY ISABELLA ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 48 Fabrice Renault Black Lightning’s creator in a guest editorial John Romita, Sr. Rose Rummel-Eury Peter Sanderson 52 INTERVIEW: TREVOR VON EEDEN............................................................................................................................................................................................................ Rick Shurgin The original Black Lightning artist offers his perspective—and rare art! Bill Sienkiewicz Barry WindsorFLASHBACK: THE PERFECT STORM .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 61 Smith Tom Stewart From 1975’s Giant-Size X-Men #1 to today, an in-depth look at the X-Men’s Larry Stroman Ororo Roy Thomas Bruce Timm INTERVIEW: DWAYNE MCDUFFIE ............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 77 J.C. Vaughn One of comics’ and animation’s top writers, on characters of all colors Visible Ink Press Trevor Von Eeden David Walker BACK TALK ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 88 Jim Warden Reader feedback on issue #6 Tony Washington Len Wein Mike Wilbur BACK ISSUE™ is published bimonthly by TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614. Michael Eury, Marv Wolfman Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Editorial Office: BACK ISSUE, c/o Michael Eury, Editor, 5060A Foothills Dr., Lake Oswego, OR 97034.

Email: euryman@msn.com. Six-issue subscriptions: $30 Standard US, $48 First Class US, $60 Canada, $66 Surface International, $90 Airmail International. Please send subscription orders and funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial office. Storm, Falcon, X-Men, and New Mutants TM & © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc. Green Lantern, Justice League, and Black Lightning TM & © 2005 DC Comics. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © 2005 Michael Eury and TwoMorrows Publishing. BACK ISSUE is a TM of TwoMorrows Publishing. Printed in Canada. FIRST PRINTING.

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AfricanAmerican

Heroes: A History

of Blacks in

American

Comic Books by

staff editors why virtually all of the DC super-

Superhero Book: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Comic-Book Icons

heroes were white: “Because they were created in the 1940s by Jews and Italians who wrote and drew what they knew,” he replied.

and Hollywood Heroes,

FROM INVISIBILIT Y

edited by Gina Misiroglu

TO COMIC RELIEF

(Visible Ink Press, 2004). © 2004 by Visible Ink Press®. Reprinted by permission of Visible Ink Press. The images appearing herein are not from The Superhero Book and were selected by author and BACK ISSUE editor

Super-hero comic books have mirrored societal trends since their inception, and when the medium originated in the late 1930s, African-Americans cast no reflection: Segregation made blacks invisible to most whites. When African-Americans did appear in the early comics, they were abhorrently stereotyped with wide eyes and exaggerated pink lips, portrayed as easily frightened to elicit a chuckle from the

Michael Eury.

white reader, and characterized as utterly depend-

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the Black Panther,

is reprinted from The

Giordano was asked by one of his young

Characters, Inc.

The following essay

by Jack Kirby and

In 1990, DC Comics editorial director Dick

Editor’s Note:

Prince T’Challa,

l Eury

Comics’ First Black Super-Hero

Michae

ent upon their Caucasian benefactors. The cover of The Spirit #1 (1944) promised “action, thrills, and laughs,” the latter provided by black sidekick Ebony White, nervously tiptoeing through a graveyard while sticking close to his protective mentor, the white Spirit. Timely (later Marvel) . ht Holders e Copyrig e Respectiv Th 05 20 ©

Comics’ kid team the Young Allies included an African-American teen named Whitewash Jones— the “comic relief” equivalent of Buckwheat from the Our Gang (aka “The Little Rascals”) theatrical shorts—who was frequently rescued by white heroes Bucky and Toro. No black sidekick was more offensive than Spirit-clone Midnight’s aide Gabby, the talking monkey, drawn in some stories to resemble a chimp-sized black person with a tail. Other portrayals of people of color depicted them in subservience. A black butler answering the door in the Vision story in Marvel Mystery Comics #13 (1940) announced to white visitors, “Ise sorry, gennilmun, de doctor is pow’ful busy, experuhmintin!” Lothar, the aide to comic-strip hero Mandrake the Magician, “served for many years as the dumb, faithful factotum of the intelligent white man,” wrote Reinhold Reitberger and Wolfgang Fuchs in their book Comics: Anatomy of a Mass Medium (1972). “This black man, dressed in a lion skin and wearing a fez, could be trusted at first to perform only the simplest of tasks for the intellectual Mandrake.” Sidekicks and servants aside, the integration of white and black Americans was mostly avoided during comics’ Golden Age (1938–1954). DC Comics, however, published at least two stories in the later Golden Age that included early attempts at enlightenment. World’s Finest Comics #17 (1945)

The Res pective Copyrig ht Hold ers.

shows African-American World War II servicemen on leave being denied service in a “white-only” restaurant, and in Batman #57 (1950), the hero stops a fight between a white man and a black man. But instances such as these were rare. African-Americans remained in the background, if seen at all, in comic books of the late 1940s and 1950s, although a handful of titles specifically targeted a black audience: All-Negro Comics (1947), Negro Heroes (1947–1948), and Negro Romance (1950).

THE FIRST BLACK SUPER-HERO During the early Silver Age (1956–1969), African-Americans were nonexistent in the pages of DC Comics’ super-hero series like Superman, The Flash, or Green Lantern. Remarked historian Bradford W. Wright in his tome Comic Book Nation (2001), “Handsome super-heroes resided in clean, green suburbs and modern, even futuristic cities with shimmering glass skyscrapers, no slums, and populations of well-dressed white people.” The burgeoning Marvel universe, commencing from the release of Fantastic Four #1 (1961), occasionally depicted a token person of color amid Manhattan crowd scenes, or in an urban school class with Peter (Spider-Man) Parker. By 1965, war— ”the great leveler,” according to Reitberger and Fuchs—afforded African-Americans equality in the fictional realm of war comics, with black soldiers like Jackie Johnson (from the “Sgt. Rock” series in DC’s Our Army at War) and Gabriel Jones (from Marvel’s Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos) valiantly fighting alongside whites in stories set during World War II. Marvel made history by introducing the Black Panther in Fantastic Four #52 (1966). Whether the comic’s writer, Stan Lee, intentionally named the hero after the militant civil rights group, the Black Panthers, is uncertain. The Panther—actually Prince T’Challa of the affluent, industrialized African nation of Wakanda—was highly educated, extremely noble, and amazingly lithe, becoming a colleague of the Fantastic Four’s resident brain, Reed Richards (aka the immodestly nicknamed Mr. Fantastic). The Black Panther broke the color barrier for African-Americans in the world of super-heroes and was

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portrayed as an admirable role model for readers of any race. The impact of his introduction, however, was not apparent from an examination of the cover: The Black Panther’s full facemask provided no hint as to his ethnicity. Though the 1966 premiere of the Black Panther is regarded as acutely influential from a long-term historical perspective, the hero appeared sporadically at first, and no other African-American super-heroes followed his lead. The comics industry was experiencing a superhero boom during the mid-1960s and regarded black super-heroes as a financially risky venture given the social unrest playing out on college campuses and in American streets of the day. Yet through the actions of real-life activists, most notably the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.—the greatest African-American hero of

vehemently resisted by the ignorant, and violently opposed by the bigoted. Avengers #52 (1968) took the next giant step for African-American heroes in comics by admitting the Black Panther into the roster of Marvel’s mighty super© 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

team—and this time, the color of T’Challa’s skin was clearly evident on the cover (and in the interiors), as his facemask was modified to reveal his nose, mouth, and chin. Scribe Roy Thomas dropped the “Black” from the hero’s name to distance Marvel’s Panther from the militant group, and showed no fear in chronicling white America’s distrust of people of color. When T’Challa arrived at Avengers headquarters to report for duty, he discovered three of his new teammates apparent-

timeline:

ly dead, and was suspected of and arrested for the crime by Caucasian operatives of the covert organization S.H.I.E.L.D. The Panther was soon cleared, and his fellow Avengers, unlike S.H.I.E.L.D., were colorblind, accepting T’Challa with no hesitation. Then came the Falcon, a black hero flying into Captain America #117 (1969). Behind his feathered fighting togs was Harlem social worker Sam Wilson, who guest-starred with Marvel’s “Star-Spangled Sentinel” before actually becoming his teammate, sharing cover co-billing. Noteworthy is the fact

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1966

Black Super-Heroes of the BACK ISSUE Era

the decade—a blending of cultures was transpiring across America, warmly welcomed by the progressive,

Mal Duncan.

that Captain America, the super-heroic embodiment of American ideals, was the first white super-hero to partner with a black super-hero; he also endorsed the Black Panther’s membership in the Avengers. Cap’s actions tacitly endorsed racial equality, imprinting the mores of many of Marvel’s readers. “Alienated super-heroes like the Hulk and the Silver Surfer especially empathized with African-Americans,” historian Wright observed. “The green Hulk befriends an impoverished black teenager and explains to him, ‘World hates us . . . both of us! . . . Because we’re different!’” African-Americans were now a part of the Marvel universe. Outside of the occasional in-house public-service announcement extolling racial harmony, however, DC’s world—its super-heroes, its supporting cast, and its incidental background characters—was almost exclusively white. But DC was about to receive a wake-up call.

"THERE’S SKINS YOU NE VER BOTHERED WITH" Writer Denny O’Neil grabbed DC Comics and its readers by their collective collar and forced them to address racism in the landmark Green Lantern/ Green Arrow #76 (1970). A haggard old African-

Controversial Content

American man asked Green Lantern, the power-ring-

wielding, conservative cosmic cop, the question at left. On the 2003 History Channel documentary, Comic

Author Don McGregor

Book Super-Heroes: Unmasked, O’Neil revealed his rationale

pulled no punches as

behind that speech: “It was too late for my generation,

the writer of the Black

but if you get a real smart 12-year-old, and get him

Panther’s first solo series,

thinking about racism” [then change can be effected].

in the inappropriately

A “relevance” movement swept DC’s comics, and people of color at last gained visibility. “It’s

titled comic Jungle Action.

important that I live the next 24 hours as a black woman!” asserted Metropolis’ star reporter to the

From issue #22 (1976);

Man of Steel as Lois Lane—now with brown skin and an Afro hairdo—exited

art by Rich Buckler and

a pigmentation-altering “body mold.” This scene played out on the cover of

Jim Mooney. Courtesy

Superman’s Girl Friend Lois Lane #106 (1970), in a tale titled “I Am Curious

of Tom Field.

(Black),” described by writer Les Daniels in his book, Superman: The Complete

John Stewart, the African-American “substitute” Green Lantern, first seen in Green Lantern/Green Arrow #87 (1972). Stewart so extolled “Black Power” that GL/GA #87’s cover blurb touted, “Introducing an unforgettable new character who really means it when he warns . . . ‘Beware My Power.’” Even DC’s romance

Black Racer.

John Stewart.

Vykin the Black.

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titles, long the home for fairy tales starring spoiled white debutantes, printed love stories featuring black women (often social workers) and men. One “relevant” moment in a DC comic ignited a firestorm of controversy. In Teen Titans #26 (1970), Mal Duncan, a black member of the Titans, was given an innocent farewell kiss by his teammate Lilith—who was white. “This was a super-hero group, and Mal and Lilith were friendly—why wouldn’t she kiss him good-bye?” thought Giordano, the editor of that issue, in his recollections in his biography, Dick Giordano: Changing Comics, One Day at a Time (2003). When others at DC objected to the scene prior to its publication, Giordano instructed the colorist to color the scene monochromatically, to call less attention to it. “Regardless of its hue, it made some readers see red,” observed Giordano biographer Michael Eury. Some readers wrote hate mail to the editor—including a death threat! —but a flood of supportive letters validated Giordano’s gutsy interracial encounter. Outside of comics, doors were opening for African-Americans in popular culture. Primetime television introduced series featuring

The Falcon

black leads, including Julia (1968–1971) and Sanford and Son

The Falcon and

(1972–1977). The interracial friendship of real-life Chicago

his feathered friend

Bears football stars was chronicled in the tearjerker telefilm Brian’s Song (1971), starring Billy Dee

Redwing in a com-

Williams as Gayle Sayers and James Caan as Brian Piccolo. “Blaxploitation”—a trend of low-

missioned illo by Bob

budget movies starring black action heroes—became popular through vehicles like Shaft (1971)

McLeod. Courtesy of

and Superfly (1972).

Ben Herman and Bob McLeod.

I’M BLACK AND I’M PROUD Marvel Comics once again took a momentous stride forward by producing the first comic-book

series starring an African-American super-hero: Luke Cage, Hero for Hire #1 (1972). “Lucas” was a streetwise black man unjustly incarcerated and given superpowers—super-strength and ultra-dense skin—in a scientific “experiment” intended to destroy him. He punched his way through the stone walls of jail and, as a free man, sold his augmented talents as a mercenary. With his Afro, openshirted funky disco outfit, and bad-ass attitude, Cage was Shaft as a super-hero—the cover to his first issue, in fact, was blatantly inspired by the montage motif so common among blaxploitation movie posters. He eventually called himself “Power Man,” beginning in issue #17 of his magazine.

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Nubia the Amazon.

Misty Knight (MTU #1).

Blade the Vampire Slayer.

1973 Brother Voodoo.

(Nicolas Coppola, a young fan

Bustin’ Loose

of Luke Cage, Hero for Hire, was

Artist Billy Graham’s

so enamored of the character

pencil layouts for an

that he took his name, and is

unpublished Hero for

better known as Academy

Hire cover. Courtesy

Award–winning actor Nicolas

of Tom Field.

Luke Cage, Hero for Hire trailblazed a trend: Marvel broadened its universe with new black super-heroes. Tomb of Dracula #10 premiered the vampire slayer Blade, a human /vampire crossbreed with a mission to destroy Deacon Frost, the vampire that killed his mother as she was giving birth to him. Blade rode the wave of 1970s super-hero blaxploitation, then retreated into the void until several 1990s revivals and a successful 2000s franchise of live-action movies. Brother Voodoo, first seen in Strange Tales #169

Jericho Drumm, a U.S.-school-

Cage Goes "Ladder 49" on Spidey

ed physician who returned to

(left) Power Man

his native Haiti to avenge his

saves Spider-Man’s

brother’s death by using occult powers. The Black Panther leapt into his own series beginning with

skin in Marvel Team-

Jungle Action #5 (1974), in an acclaimed collaboration by writer Don McGregor and African-American

Up #75 (1978). Art

artist Billy Graham. This duo handled provocative subject matter, including T’Challa’s war with

by John Byrne and

the Ku Klux Klan (issues #19–#23 [1975–1976]). Despite its innovation, Jungle Action was canceled in

Al Gordon. Courtesy

1976 and replaced with the hero’s own title, produced by the legendary Jack Kirby, who, unfortunately,

of Fabrice Renault.

made Black Panther (1977–1979) a routine super-hero comic.

(1973), mixed the supernatural with super-heroics. He was

Storm.

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Tyroc.

Black Goliath.

Shilo Norman.

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Storm, the African weather-controlling goddess, moved to the U.S. to join Marvel’s menagerie of mutants in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (1975), and black scientist Bill Foster became a ten-foot super-hero in the short-lived series Black Goliath (1975–1976). Discounting Storm’s inclusion in the popular X-Men series, these titles failed to attract their target audience— black readers—and carried marginal appeal to whites of the era. Only Cage’s comic survived past the 1970s, and did so by incorporating a white co-star, Iron Fist. Penned commentator Aylze Jama-Everett in the irreverent magazine BadAzz MoFo vol. 2 #3 (1998), “There are just more white geeks in America than black. And sadly, little cracker geeks ain’t down with brothers and sisters kicking honky ass on a monthly basis.” Just when the 1970s black-hero boom was dying, DC joined in with its own African-American headliner. Black Lightning #1 (1977) starred Jefferson Pierce, an inner-city high-school teacher in the “Suicide Slum” district of Superman’s burg, Metropolis. To help clean up the community’s drug traffic—and to give teens in the ’hood an empowering role model—Pierce donned a voltage-generating belt, a blue bodysuit with stylized yellow lightning bolts, and a white mask (with an Afro attached!) and took to the streets as Black Lightning. His title was discontinued after 11 issues, falling prey to the 1978 “DC Implosion,” a collapse brought on by an overaggressive expansion the year prior.

THE CULTURAL BLEND

"Fears of a Go-Go Girl Can Come True"

depicted as super-heroes. Cyborg, a black teen whose nearly destroyed body had been outfitted

A page from the

with cybernetics, premiered in [DC Comics Presents #26 (1980), a special preview insert promoting

never-published, early

the release of] The New Teen Titans #1 (1980). New Orleans Police Captain Monica Rambeau

1970s Soul Love black-

acquired the ability to become living energy as Captain Marvel in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual

and-white magazine,

#16 (1982), but later changed her heroic name to Photon. In a storyline running from 1979 to 1985

written and drawn by

in the pages of Marvel’s Iron Man, white industrialist Tony Stark, secretly Iron Man, succumbed so

Jack Kirby. Courtesy of

deeply to alcoholism that his best friend, African-American Jim Rhodes, temporarily replaced him

John Morrow and The

in the supercharged armor. Black Lightning returned, not as a solo character, but as a team

Jack Kirby Collector.

member, in DC’s Batman and the Outsiders/The Outsiders (1983–1988). Other people of color came

The shackles had been broken, and beginning in the 1980s African-Americans were regularly

and went through myriad series, some as heroes, some as supporting cast members or villains.

Since the 1980s, black super-heroes have occasionally received their own comics. Notable examples include: the four-issue Black Panther miniseries (1988) that addresses apartheid; Green Lantern:

1977-78

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Tempest.

Black Lightning.

Bronze Tiger.

Super-Hero Stickers Blade, the Falcon, Black Goliath, and Luke Cage were among the characters included in Marvel’s Super-Hero Sticker Set from 1976. Courtesy of John Eury. © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

Supernatural Team-Up Brother Voodoo made a handful of appearances outside of his Mosaic (1992–1993), starring John Stewart; DC’s Steel (1994

own Strange Tales

–1998), a Superman spinoff; a monthly Black Panther series (1998

series, like this one

–2003) examining Wakanda’s role in a volatile and vastly chang-

(drawn by Don Perlin)

ing global landscape; and several attempts to revive Power Man,

in Werewolf by Night

including the hard-hitting, graphically shocking Marvel “MAX”

#39 (1976). Courtesy

interpretation Cage (2002). The mainstream media took note

of Lee Benaka.

which revealed that the “super-soldier serum” that created

Cyborg.

Muhammad Ali.

Impala (Super Friends #7).

1980-81

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Cage Unplugged An unused version of

Captain America had actually been

the cover to Power Man

tested on black GIs, one of whom had

and Iron Fist #121 (1986).

a secret career predating the Captain’s.

Courtesy of Ted Latner.

This was followed by a series (telling the

story of the secret Captain America’s son) that did not cause a stir with the general public but was more anticipated in fan circles: The Crew (2003), by popular Black Panther writer Christopher Priest,

is unusual both for starring a black and Latino superteam and for its unflinchingly realistic look at modern race and class relations. In the early 1990s, a group of African-American comic-book writers and artists banded together to produce super-hero comics starring multicultural (largely black) characters, presenting “a range of characters within each ethnic group, which means that we couldn’t do just one book,” explained Dwayne McDuffie, one of the partners involved, in DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes. “We had to do a series of books and we had to present a view of the world that’s wider than the world we’ve seen before.” Under the DC Comics–published imprint Milestone Media, a handful of series were

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Sunspot.

Cloak.

Captain Marvel.

1982 Sabre.

Suicide Slum’s Super-Hero The cover art to Black Lightning #9 (1978), by Rich Buckler and Vince Colletta. Courtesy

Foxy Lady

of Heritage Comics.

DC’s first black super-heroine, the Vixen, was intended to headline her own title but fell into limbo as part

of the "DC Implosion." This page from the never-published Vixen #1 (1978) was written by Gerry and Carla Conway, penciled by Bob Oksner, and inked by Vince Colletta. Courtesy of Rick Sturgin. © 2005 DC Comics.

released, spanning several years of publication. Milestone titles included Icon (1993–1997), Hardware (1993–1997), The Blood Syndicate (1993–1996), and Static (1993–1997). Arguably the most famous African-American super-hero is Spawn. Published by Image Comics, Spawn #1 (1992) sold 1.7 million copies, and made its creator, Todd McFarlane, a wealthy superstar. African-American heroes have been visible in films and on television since the 1970s. Black Vulcan, inspired by DC’s Black Lightning, appeared in TV’s animated All New Super Friends Hour (1977), and Cyborg was among the cast of Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians (1985) [Cyborg is currently seen on the Cartoon Network’s Teen Titans]. Meteor Man (1994), starring Robert Townsend as an African-American caped superman, and Blankman (1994), a super-hero satire featuring comedian

AmazingMan.

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James Rhodes becomes Iron Man.

Invisible Kid II.

1983-85

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Black Bad Guys, Too Spider-Man foe Rocket Racer was one of several black supervillains to emerge in the 1970s and 1980s (others include Aquaman’s Black Manta, Batman’s Black Spider, and Superman’s Bloodsport). Art by Ross Andru and Mike Esposito. Courtesy of Heritage Comics. © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Amanda Waller.

Dr. Midnight.

1986-88 Jet.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday January 20, 1986 marked the first national celebration of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, as guest star Luke Cage reminded readers in the 1986 Vision and Scarlet Witch maxiseries. From the Richard Howell/Carol Kalish collection. © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

Damon Wayans, failed to attract large box-office receipts. A similar sad fate

The Superhero Book: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Comic-Book Icons and Hollywood Heroes

was met by the Fox network’s oneseason show M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994–

exoskeletoned super-scientist in moody adventures. A live-action theatrical version of Spawn (1997) was followed by made-for-video sequels and an HBO animated series. Basketball star Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal portrayed DC’s iron man in the poorly reviewed theatrical Steel (1997). Townsend returned to tights as the “Bronze Eagle” in the Disney Channel telemovie Up, Up, and Away! (2000), featuring a family of black super-heroes. Wesley Snipes sizzled on the big screen as Marvel’s martial artist/vampire slayer in Blade (1998), Blade II (2002), and Blade:Trinity (2004). And Green Lantern John Stewart is among the most popular heroes on the Cartoon Network’s Justice League (2001–present).

NEW In Print! New Comics. Classic Appeal.

1995), staring Carl Lumly as an

Edited by Gina Misiroglu, with David A. Roach • Visible Ink Press • 748 color pages • 7.25" x 9.25" Paperback • $29.95 • www.superherobook.com This heavily illustrated, fun, fact-filled encyclopedia spotlights caped crusaders and paranormals from the Golden Age to today in histories that include examinations of the heroes’ social significance. BACK ISSUE regulars Andy Mangels, Adam McGovern, and Michael Eury are contributors. Readers who fondly remember Jeff Rovin’s Superheroes/Supervillains Encyclopedias of the 1980s will find The Superhero Book a worthy heir.

Black Images in the Comics: A Visual History By Fredrik Strömberg • Fantagraphics Books • 240 B&W pages • 5.94" x 6.26" Hardcover • $15.95 US • www.fantagraphics.com This is a little book that handles a big topic. In almost 100 illustrated mini-essays, comics scholar Strömberg examines cartoon depictions of people of color in international comic strips, comic books, and graphic novels from the past century, covering the gamut from

Chunk.

racist, derogatory interpretations to the emergence of positive black characters and voices. Black Images is a fascinating look at sociology through illustration.

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Conducted via email on September 14, 2004

EURY: You conceptualized Blade the Vampire

creator of what you call “arguably the two

Slayer before writing Tomb of Dracula for

most famous black super-heroes,” Blade and

Marvel. When did you come up with the

Cyborg. Hey, what about Spawn?

character, and what were your original,

MARV WOLFMAN: I don’t think anybody

pre-Dracula plans for him?

ever thinks that Spawn is black—

WOLFMAN: I came up with him while at

which is good, by the way. It

Warren. I was the editor there and trying

means they just see him as a

to do something with the books that were

character and not by color.

different. The Warrens always had 5-7 non-

But to cover myself, I did

related short stories in every issue and I

say “arguably.”

decided to do a couple of theme issues. So I had planned and commissioned the history of vampires for one issue of Eerie and assigned stories to my writers from the first vampire to the last. Had I used him at Warren, Blade would have been in my “current”-day story, the only one I would

interview

by Michael Eury

MICHAEL EURY: You are the creator or co-

write. I also commissioned a history of werewolves issue and I think a few others. As I say, I was trying to come up with new ideas for the book and I thought since Warren at that time didn’t do series, that theme books would make them special.

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did his ethnicity evolve as you developed

Beyond Wolfman

the hero?

Chris Claremont,

WOLFMAN: Because Joshua, the black hero

not Marv Wolfman,

EURY: Was Blade envisioned as black, or

Len Wein and I created for the original Teen

wrote this Blade solo

Titans story way back in the late ’60s was

story (illustrated by

never printed (some of the Nick Cardy pages

Tony DeZuniga) in

for that story as well as its cover did see

Marvel Preview #3

print but incorporated into a new story

(1975)—although

Neal Adams wrote and drew utilizing as

Marv was involved

many of Nick’s pages as he could) I swore

with the tale,

the next hero I created would be black. So

as editor.

Blade was black from the moment I came

up with him. EURY: Blade followed the footsteps of Black Panther and the Falcon as one of Marvel’s few characters of color. What was the reader reaction to Blade? WOLFMAN: Blade was, I believe, the first non spandex-costumed Marvel hero type, unlike the others, to fit in better with the Dracula comic. The readers seemed to like him, enough for me to commission some spin-off Blade stories written by me, Steve Gerber and I think others for our other vampire black-and-white title. I really loved the character

EURY: Were you consulted for any of the Blade movies?

and as I developed him and realized how good he was,

WOLFMAN: No. And I had to pay my eight-ten bucks to

I actually pulled him out of Dracula to rethink him a bit. I

see the movie like everyone else. So did Gene [Colan],

was getting antsy about the Marvel clichéd black dialogue

by the way.

I was using and wanted to fix him up. My own writing

EURY: So, does the creator of Blade see his character on

was getting better and I wanted Blade’s dialogue to reflect

screen when watching Wesley Snipes in the role?

my improvement. Don’t know if that came through or

WOLFMAN: I really liked the first movie portrayal—that

not. Then I did something very different—at the end of

was 90% Blade. I could have hoped for a bit of humor—

his story, when Blade found Deacon Frost and killed him,

he was too stoic—but I can’t imagine anyone else doing

I wrote him out of the book. He didn’t appear again. His

a better job. The perfect Blade. Second film was a pretty

story, as far as I was concerned, was done and unlike the

decent vampire film but I thought it was a poor Blade

other Marvel characters who kept coming back, I let him

movie—it had nothing to do with him, really. I’m anxious

ride off into the sunset. When we did the later four-part

to see the third movie when it comes out.

Dracula series, which I thought was just plain awful, by

EURY: If Blade fought Buffy, whose butt would get kicked?

the way, I brought him back, but as someone who had

WOLFMAN: Why would they fight? They both hunt

gone insane over what he’d been doing all his life. I

vampires.

wanted, however unsuccessfully, to show the ramifications

EURY: In 1980, when you were developing the new Teen

of his life till then.

Titans with George Pérez and Len Wein, how much empha-

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sis was placed upon Cyborg’s ethnicity? WOLFMAN: Cyborg was black from the begin-

When Victor Met Sarah. . .

ning. I was actually con-

From the celebrated

in the book at one point,

“A Day in the Lives,”

the other being Raven,

sidering having two blacks

published in 1981‘s

but her name made me

New Teen Titans #8.

decide not to. I hate being

spot on and clichéd that way. Green Lantern isn’t green and there’s no character

extremely controversial (sadly, they still are to some). Was

called White Superman just because he’s white. I mean,

their relationship ever an issue with readers?

we had a yellow girl, a green boy, and another girl who

WOLFMAN: I don’t remember if we ever got any mail

had a red father in the comic, too. I wanted to gloss over

on it. We developed the relationship by starting them as

the obvious color stuff. This was a book about teenagers

friends and things grew. I think if you liked the middle-

who became friends, not an overly strident diatribe about

of-the-road liberal philosophy of the Titans you just

the white man and the black man and the golden girl.

accepted it. I mean, nobody ever complained about the

EURY: Tech-savvy Victor Stone was one of the smartest

interspecies relationship between Robin and Starfire. If

Titans, yet in his earliest appearances he talked “street,”

our people descended from apes, hers came from cats.

at least for the day, and was (understandably) outraged

There were more (maybe 2–4) letters of protest about

over his “half man, half

them sleeping together than of them being human and

machine” plight. Did any

alien. I sort of credit folk for understanding this was a

re a d e r s d e l i v e r “ a n g r y

comic and going with the flow. Also, I don’t like to point

black man” charges against

out the obvious. We just had the relationship happen

the hero?

and didn’t surround it with neon lights and write giant

WOLFMAN: I remember

cover blurbs telling everyone how daring and cutting

we talked early on about

edge we were. We didn’t think of it as anything but a

him starting out more tra-

logical development of their relationship.

ditionally with comic-book

EURY: Aside from Blade and Cyborg, which black super-

dialogue, the angry young

hero has most impressed you?

black kid, but then, very

WOLFMAN: Several of the characters from the Milestone

quickly, once he realized how

comics, actually, names long since forgotten. I told Dwayne

his father sacrificed every-

McDuffie at the time that those books were some of the

thing for him, changed him

best comics being published anywhere. His writing was

to what he was; educated,

sharp and fun and the stories were all different and orig-

Tek Titan

smart but suspicious. Education and being black were

Cyborg, created by

not and shouldn’t be mutually exclusive. Other than being

Marv Wolfman and

New York City-angry when the others generally weren’t,

George Pérez.

we didn’t want to emphasize Vic’s color over his personality. EURY: Victor’s friendship with Sarah Simms, who was

white, grew very organically in the series, but came during an era when interracial relationships were

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inal. Good stories and good characters.

Visit Marv’s website at www.marvwolfman.com.

A Look at the House of Ideas’ Black Super-Heroes of the 1970s Who’s Stronger, Black Panther or Daredevil? The author assesses T’Challa’s super-powers (or lack thereof). This commissioned pencil drawing by Gene Colan comes to us courtesy of Ted Latner.

guest editorial by jerry boyd

During the height of the 1960s civil-rights movement, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. took a famous pause in his crusade to ask actress Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura of TV’s Star Trek) to not abandon her role to take an active part in the movement. As one of the few blacks regularly seen on a dramatic (if futuristic) program, she’d inspire thousands of young black children to “seek the stars one day in their endeavors” by her positive example, as King put it.

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Ms. Nichols has told this wonderful anecdote at many

Still, there were problems.

a convention over the years,

The Panther, though well-conceived by Stan Lee and

and this African-American

Jack Kirby, was the least powerful of all of Marvel’s

writer was proud to have

prince/kings, with the exception of the Inhumans’

heard it.

Maximus (whom he never had to battle). Black Bolt,

There are no records I’ve

Thor, Loki, Hercules, and Sub-Mariner were all rulers or

discovered of Dr. King com-

heirs to a throne and incredibly powerful as individuals.

ing across the Black Panther

Unfortunately, the Panther, the son of T’Chaka, was not.

in the pages of Marvel

Though he possessed the “speed of a bounding cheetah,”

Comics, but if he’d seen or

which should have placed him behind Quicksilver but

heard about the first black

alongside Spider-Man (in my assessment) in quickness,

super-hero, I’m sure he’d

the Jungle Lord seemed no faster and no physically

have been very pleased.

stronger (though he’d outfought a giant panther

Dignified, upstanding

conceived of Klaw’s sound in Fantastic Four #53) than

images in the media were

Daredevil, whose sole super-powers came from his

happy by-products of the

heightened senses. In addition, the Panther’s two

era and millions of blacks

greatest single enemies, Klaw and the Man-Ape, were

supported their new heroes

more powerful than their catlike foe. Can you picture

on the small screen. Don

the Red Skull or Zemo being able to back up Cap every

Marshall (Land of the Giants), Ivan Dixon (Hogan’s

The Panther’s Quest

tifully, in my opinion.

time they fought?

Heroes), Peggy Fisher (Mannix), Bill Cosby (I Spy),

The problem was (and remains today) that the

A Gene Colan

Clarence Williams III (The Mod Squad), Don Mitchell

Panther needed to be more of a black superman. He

penciled page from

(Ironside), Diahann Carroll (Julia), and the elegant,

had no shield, no utility belt, no billy club, enchanted

“The Panther‘s Quest,”

outstanding Sidney Poitier in films were all the rage.

hammer, webs, repulsor rays, etc., to defend himself

writer Don McGregor‘s

The Marvel Universe eased into integration a lot

or to neutralize his foe’s attack, hence he stood

serial appearing in the

easier than its competitors, but Stan Lee and his

unprotected in many situations and out-muscled just

early 1990s anthology

coworkers instinctively knew that black characters

as often.

Marvel Comics Presents.

came with a set of “odd baggage” that an often-hostile society had placed on them.

Courtesy of David Hamilton.

It was somewhat ironic in a time in which real “black supermen” began to emerge from the stereotypes

With race riots erupting in the nation’s larger

and societal constraints of the world (and often rising

cities, it made sense for the Black Panther to not only

to the pinnacles of their chosen endeavors)—Muhammad

combat the Masters of Evil and Kang as a member of

Ali in boxing; Dr. King, Adam Clayton Powell, and

the Avengers, but also to battle the hooded bigotry

Malcolm X in the socio-political arena; Bob Gibson,

of the Sons of the Serpent (Marvel’s KKK). With the

Willie Mays, and Frank Robinson in baseball; Bill Cosby

proliferation of illegal narcotics becoming common-

and Dick Gregory in comedy; Miles Davis in jazz; and

place, it made sense for the Falcon, Captain America,

Jim Brown, Gale Sayers, and Deacon Jones in football

Luke Cage, and others to tackle the crimelords of the

—that the first black super-hero seemed so less super

inner city. And black characters, newly emerging from

in a dimension filled with supermen.

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the old stereotypes, had to be treated with sensitivity.

These days in Marveldom, the African Avenger fares

It was all in the name of realism, something Marvel

better, I’m told. But the lack of continuity, the change-

had invested in heavily for some time. The Marvel

ups in creative teams, and the lack of a consistent

Bullpenners responded to their new characters beau-

editorial vision for the character has led to a degree

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of indifference among long-term fans and old Marvelites.

tainly didn’t affect Sam Wilson all that much,

Yet, in this respect, Prince T’Challa is equal to many of

because he was not Luke Cage.

ongoing considerations.

“Sam interacted with the street part of town through his girlfriend and a gang boss, but I never

In 1969, the Falcon was introduced in the pages of

made him the star of any great Racial Saga. Part of

Captain America. By the early ’70s, he was Cap’s partner,

that was that he had decided to become Captain

and without the benefit of a prosperous, well-organized

America’s partner, so he had to represent, in his

jungle kingdom like T’Challa’s, had to make it as an

own way, a wider spectrum of American than just

urban social worker.

the black part—and part of that was, the Racial Sagas

I always fancied the Black Panther’s unmasked look

he’d starred in for earlier writers had not work out all

(by “King” Kirby) to lean toward Sidney Poitier. Gene

that well, IMHO. In any event, I never saw him as just

Colan, Falc’s visual creator, said about his creation, “I

an “inner-city” hero, and I never saw anything other

always enjoyed the team of Cap and the Falcon. I always

than professional respect in his and Cap’s relationship.

enjoyed drawing black people. Still do. I find their

He was always defending Cap when the more radical

faces full of character. So I was glad when I was given

blacks laid into him for hanging with the white guy,

that challenge.

and his color never meant a damn thing to Cap. The

“I took my time going through my reference

Falcon was definitely a lesser hero than Captain America,

material and ultimately came up with a young sports

and yet that never became an issue, because the two men

hero named O.J. Simpson. He was a handsome fellow

involved just did their jobs. They were a solid team.

at that time and certainly a hero in most folks’ eyes.

“Which is what led to my final Cap story, where it was

Today, of course, it’s another story. Sadly.”

been molded into the perfect Negro by the Red Skull.

America and the Falcon, following an interesting run in

I was leaving that for the next writer to play with—

which writers Stan Lee and Mike Freidrich gave angst

was it true or was it a

to Sam (Falcon) Wilson’s being a “poor sidekick” of Cap’s

mindf#ck?—so I have no

rather than a real partner, had this to say about incor-

idea what I’d have done with

porating Falc’s blackness as a part of the storylines:

it. I know that a guy like Sam

“As for Sam—so much of what I’ve done in comics

Wilson was, in some circles,

and elsewhere stems from the decisions I made when

too good to be true—and in

I got my first major super-hero book. Since that book

others, a legitimate good guy.

was Captain America and the Falcon, then [I believed that]

I bought the legitimate good

the Falcon should play an equal role in the plotting.

guy. But I was a storyteller,

This had nothing to do with racial consciousness; it

and I was always exploring

was simply fair play for the guy who was supposed to

new avenues. . . .

be the co-star. So I took what we knew about him and

“And racial statements I

ran with it. Fortunately, he was an upwardly mobile guy,

had really came in the Gabe

so he didn’t have to be particularly street; that, of course,

and Peggy relationship,

led to the various charges of his being a sellout. But Sam

where the black guy and

did not call upon me to be particularly street myself.

white woman found their

Not long thereafter, I got [to write] Hero for Hire, which

own private relationship.

was associated with the art, and he undertook to school me in what I needed to know for Luke Cage. That cer-

”They were a solid team,” remarks writer Steve Englehart of the Falcon and Captain America. Original cover art to issue #160 (1973) courtesy of Heritage Comics; art by Gil Kane and

revealed that Sam really was a streetwise guy who’d

Steve Englehart, who ushered in a grand era of Captain

did require a streetwise black. Billy Graham, who’s black,

his white counterparts who could use the same type of

“Yes, I liked the character [of the Falcon].” M r. E n g l e h a r t ’s S a m

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Wilson pre-

was the most physically powerful black hero up to

sented comics

that time. Bulletproof and able to smash through walls

readers not

and even somewhat invulnerable, Cage was an ex-con

only with a

(who got his powers in an accident) and decided to

more interest-

make the most of it by charging fees for his services.

ing take on the

For many black comics fans, Cage was a prayer

Falcon than

come true. For me, he came off like black action-movie

previously

star Fred Williamson (or Jim Brown) on newsprint for

done, but also

20 cents. Cage’s stories were good and Billy Graham’s

the ver y real

art was very good (though hampered in color; his over-

dilemma many

rendering was better served in black-and-white—see

black people (in

his Creepy and Vampirella work from the same period).

Takin’ it to the Streets

the still-integrating America of the early ’70s) had to

Luke, however, suffered from too much attitude and

face. The question: Was your blackness defined by your

a lack of the self-pity Marvelites had grown accustomed

A three-panel sequence

neighborhood, your attitude toward that community,

to in Ben Grimm, Peter Parker, and even Sam Wilson.

from page 9 of Hero

your allegiance to black causes, or none of the above?

Like the black action-movie heroes popular at the time,

for Hire #8, written by

Falc chose to be Cap’s partner and rightly so owed the

Cage was too one-dimensional to be loved.

Steve Englehart and

Star-Spangled Avenger his allegiance and his best efforts.

His penchant for being paid before going into action

drawn by George Tuska

Steve Englehart is correct in this. By fighting against

also struck at the notion of the self-sacrificing, noble

and Billy Graham.

the Skull, Hydra, and other nefarious entities, he was

masked marvel. For millions of poverty-level blacks, this

From the original art

fighting for all Americans and had to be applauded

would not be seen as a detriment. Yet in Cage’s slugfest

collection of Richard

for his efforts. But to street-hardened blacks like Leila,

with Spidey (Amazing Spider-Man #123—one issue after

Howell and Carol Kalish.

Rafe, and the others who didn’t dig the Falcon, he was

Gwen Stacy’s death), this Hero for Hire was not only

just another “part-time black man” waiting his turn

soundly beaten by the understandably enraged Web-

to sell out and eventually abandon his community, etc.

slinger (how often did the Marvel heroes actually beat

True, Englehart didn’t make Sam the star of a great Racial

one another?), but lectured to on the money-grabbing

Saga, but one wasn’t needed, really. The subplots sur-

aspect of the situation. Cage might have responded

rounding Sam and Steve Rogers’ friendship were quite

that he needed the money to survive, but writer Gerry

interesting enough.

Conway only had him splutter angrily as Spidey calmed

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It was always strange to me that Cap (who’d risked

down and softened his criticisms. It was tough for me

his life and limb against the ultimate bigotry of the

to not see Luke as a mercenary after that, even though

Nazis and other world threats like A.I.M., Hydra, the

he returned J. Jonah Jameson’s money to him by the

Serpents, etc.) would have any detractors in the

story’s end . . . especially since Cage continued to charge

black communities of the nation! Did the Falcon

for his heroics.

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really have to endure putdowns from other African-

Brother Voodoo was set in the supernaturally charged

Americans because he teamed up with a white

land of Haiti and made his debut, appropriately enough,

crime fighter? And a living legend, at that?!

in Strange Tales #169 (1973), by writer Len Wein and

Still, in the still-integrating America of

penciler Gene Colan. It would be difficult to do a strip

’72–’76, both blacks and whites were unfairly

about zombies, root spells, and island-based spirit

maligned simply . . . for having friends outside

legends and charms without blacks, so Jericho (Brother

of their race.

Voodoo) Drumm was a natural.

Luke Cage, the first “street brother” to emerge

Comics Code restrictions had relaxed by this time

from Marvel’s Madison Avenue headquarters,

and Brother Voodoo was in good company with the

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Son of Satan, Dracula, Dr. Strange, and others of Marvel’s

individuals in the real world, comics creators need to

horror/hero lineup. Concerning that title, Gene Colan

remember that it’s the uniqueness of the character,

told me, “I enjoyed interpreting the voodoo aspect of

his/her environment, supporting characters, villains,

the Brother Voodoo character. There was mystery in

and storylines, that make a magazine a success, regard-

it and that’s always fun.”

less of a character’s color.

I enjoyed Colan’s artwork and Wein’s scripting on

And for the most part, in these respects, Mighty

Brother Voodoo a great deal, but by issue #173, it was

Marvel had and has (in Stan Lee’s proclamation)

Storm and Her X-Mazing Friends

all over. Still, there remains a goodly amount of potential

moved “Onward!”

(bottom left) John Byrne’s cover art to

unrealized in Brother Voodoo due in part of tampering and overhauls other characters have been subject to over the years. He remains a short-lived experiment of the House of Ideas’ ’70s horror/hero explosion, and maybe someday he’ll be unearthed from his Haitian “grave.” By the mid-to-late part of the decade, black heroes

The Essential X-Men

Special thanks to Michael Eury, Steve Englehart, and Gene Colan for their cooperation.

Vol. 3, from a 2002 Heritage Comics art

Jerry Boyd has written numerous articles for The Jack Kirby

catalog. Courtesy of

Collector. He is a professional schoolteacher and an aspiring

Jerry Boyd.

screenwriter who lives in southern California.

(and super-villains) were regular sights in the Marvel

Universe. Jack Kirby returned to the House of Ideas in ’75 [after creating The New Gods, The Demon, and other series for DC] and the Black Panther, Cap and the Falcon (under Kirby’s editing and writing) were past or above racial issues. Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson got along as well as Gold Key’s Brothers of the Spear, and the Panther tackled some truly wonky-wild high-tech concepts in his own land. The X-Men’s Storm fit into her new team and surroundings with ease. (Chris Claremont’s written better black women characters than anyone in comics.) Marv Wolfman’s Blade was the most interesting character in Tomb of Dracula, besides the thirsty count himself. Cage even briefly substituted for the Thing in Fantastic Four, and fought alongside the Defenders.

Hissy Fit

As in all creative endeavors, it’s proper

A 2004

execution that counts. Comics readers

Brother Voodoo

don’t need a black Iron Man, a black

commissioned

Captain Marvel, or a Black Goliath.

sketch by Gene

(Despite solid efforts from Claremont

Colan, courtesy

and artist Don Heck, Bill [Black Goliath]

of Jerry Boyd.

Foster—the third Goliath to come along

—could offer little in the way of surprises and didn’t last long.) Because we’re all

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Before we cover the thirtysomething “new” X-Men, let’s honor the “old”: Neal Adams’ magnificent cover for X-Men #56 (1969) was reportedly rejected on the baseless notion that the figures obscured the logo! (News flash: Given the poor sales of X-Men at the time, that might’ve helped the book!) The inset shows the published version.

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ORIGINAL X-MEN • N EA L A D A M S

vid

by Da

milton e” Ha n o b “Ham

Arthur Adams (no relation) started

LONGSHOT • A R T H U R A D A M S

his series career at Marvel with the 1985–86 miniseries Longshot, an X-Men spinoff written by Ann Nocenti. Yes, these detail-rich pages are Art’s

pencils!

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looked. This is his cover for Marvel Graphic Novel #4 (1982), premiering the New Mutants, scanned from his original rough.

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NEW MUTANTS • B O B M c L E O D

Many people know Bob McLeod as a very slick inker—but his pencil artwork is sometimes (unfortunately) over-

NEW MUTANTS • B I LL S I E N K I EW I C Z

Bill Sienkiewicz enjoyed a fairly long run on New Mutants —here’s a page of his loose pencils from issue #23 (1985). The inset shows Bill’s cover to the issue, featuring

Cloak and Dagger!

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X-FACTOR • D A V I D M A Z Z U C C H E L LI

Boy, ol’ Dave (He hates being called that! I don’t know why!) Mazzucchelli has truly come full circle (in a way): from comics (here, a totally ’80s, unused X-Factor cover) to political magazine work . . . to living in Japan for a time (long story) . . . to animation, doing, of all things, X-Men members (again!). Now all he needs to do is a cover painting

for a mutant novel.

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X-MEN • L A R R Y ST R O M A N

Larry (Tribe) Stroman —a brilliant artist and designer with too brief a career in comics— sent me this rough (from an X-Men project I can’t identify—can ya help?) attached to a

“thank you” note some years back . . . 1995 (?). Produced directly from the original.

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X-MEN • A D A M H U G H E S

Nightcrawler, Wolverine, and Cyclops come from our buds at Heritage Comics.

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Alan Davis may be

mutant circles for Excalibur, but here he plays costume designer for two of the X-Men’s loveliest ladies, our cover girl Storm and the perky Kitty Pryde.

STORM AND KITTY PRYDE • A L A N D A V I S

best known within

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X-MEN • J I M L EE

What X-Men “Rough Stuff” would be complete without Jim Lee? None! This one’s from the early 1990s, a tad past our 1970s/1980s focus, but, hey, it’s Jim Lee. Who’s gonna complain?

Enjoy, people!

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X-MEN #95 • G I L K A N E The one, the only, Mr. Gil Kane penciled this, the cover to the third appearance of the new X-Men, from 1975’s X-Men #95. As the inset shows, it was ably inked by Dave Cockrum. (“Sugar” Kane fans, tune in next ish for an all-Kane “Rough Stuff”!)

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Beware His Power, John Stewart’s Might An Interview with Denny O’Neil and Phil LaMarr

Samurai John Bruce Timm’s mega-cool painting of Green Lantern in Samurai Jack-style can be seen in color on Phil LaMarr’s site (see datacard for info).

interview

by Dan Johnson

Conducted on August 20, 2004

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Very few names in comics are as revered as that of Green Lantern, possessor of the amazing power ring. For decades, various heroes have fought for justice under that moniker. One of the most unique men to wear a power ring is John Stewart. When the character was first introduced in Green Lantern/Green Arrow #87 (Dec. 1971–Jan. 1972), he not only took on the assignment of becoming GL Hal Jordan’s back-up, but also DC Comics’ first costumed African-American hero.

really thought out what the Guardians’ requirements would be to become a member of the [Green Lantern] Corps. In the

It has been over 30 years since John Stewart first took flight, and a

original story, Hal Jordan was

lot has since changed for both the character and in how African-

fearless. Well, Hal Jordan would

Americans are portrayed in comics. When deciding who would participate

have to be a moron to be fearless.

in this Green Lantern “Pro2Pro,” the conclusion was drawn to chat with

We kind of skipped over that.

two men who have given John Stewart “voice”: Denny O’Neil, the writer

LaMARR: And Darwyn Cooke

who crafted the hero’s origin story, and Phil LaMarr, the voice actor who

[writer/artist of the retro series,

plays John Stewart on the Cartoon Network’s Justice League Unlimited. —Dan Johnson

DC: The New Frontier] thanks you for skipping over that! O’NEIL: Right, right! Some later

“Ancient” History

writers did explore that there was

Denny O’Neil in

some sort of genetic deposition

1974, two years

DAN JOHNSON: Gentleman, I want to thank you both for

to using the ring, I don’t know. The original John Stewart

sitting down with BACK ISSUE to do this special “Pro2Pro.”

was an angry black man and it sort of fit in with the political

after co-creating

PHIL LaMARR: I just want to say that this is an honor for

tenor of that series, which was pretty angry.

John Stewart. This

me, Denny. I was a big Batman fan when I started [read-

JOHNSON: I would have to say you handled the portrayal

photo originally

ing comics] in the late ’70s. You had a huge impact on

of John Stewart as a black character better than Marvel

appeared in The

my imagination.

was handling some of their black characters in that same

Amazing World of

DENNY O’NEIL: That’s very complimentary, thank you.

time period.

Now, I think you were born about two years after I started

LaMARR: Yeah, they handled him a lot better because they

[writing comic books], in 1967?

didn’t call him Black Lantern. That was the going formula,

LaMARR: Right.

back in the day.

O’NEIL: Wow, that makes me feel ancient.

JOHNSON: True. With John Stewart there seemed to be more

JOHNSON: Denny, get us started—tell us about the history

characterization than with Marvel’s efforts. It is really

of John Stewart.

painful today to look at the original Luke Cage with the jive

O’NEIL: I run into this problem all the time. That was 30 years

talk and everything. At least with John there was an attempt

ago and no one was taking notes. Nobody thought that

to make him realistic.

anyone would remember [the character] beyond four or

O’NEIL: Ideally, of course, he would have been written by

five years. With the Green Lantern/Green Arrow series, Neal

a black writer, but there were virtually none in the field back

[Adams] and I were kind of aware that we were pushing the

then. I always feel a little awkward when I’m doing an ethnic

envelope a little bit. I think it was just a consensus between

character because it’s not Irish Catholic, but sometimes you

the two of us and [editor] Julie Schwartz that we needed a

have to do what you have to do.

black character. The rationale for being a Green Lantern made

LaMARR: Well, yeah, to tell a story. Was there any thought

it very easy to create an African-American [Green Lantern]

to the character [being used] beyond that first story?

because there is no reason that a guy like that couldn’t get

O’NEIL: I don’t know that we thought about it. If we had, we

the ring.

would have certainly realized it would have had an afterlife.

LaMARR: Right. Abin Sur was magenta.

LaMARR: Was continuity as big an issue for you guys

O’NEIL: Exactly! I don’t think until this day anyone has

writing then?

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LaMARR: That just blows my mind, because I think we have come a long way. Now if you were to do it, you would still have a controversial reaction, but it would more likely to be from blacks complaining about the portrayal of the character, instead of racist whites. O’NEIL: Again, I didn’t experience that directly, and I got it by indirection. It was a nastier world back then. What’s discouraging about that series, is that I look at the reprints and we still have these problems all these years later and we have made no more than baby steps. LaMARR: You would kind of hope something like that would be dated now, the drug issues, society, and the racial issues. JOHNSON: Phil, when did you first discover John Stewart? Was it through the Justice League animated series, or had you found out about him through being a comics fan?

No Masked Man John Stewart first

O’NEIL: No, it wasn’t. I felt at the time about it the way I

LaMARR: I wasn’t a huge Green Lantern reader. I think I got

do now, [continuity] is a storytelling tool. Unfortunately for

into Green Lantern via Justice League, and Justice League via

a lot of fans-turned-professionals, it is the tail that wags the

Batman. Batman was my core hero. I think I first discovered

dog. They get totally absorbed in little bits of minute

Lantern gear: from

John Stewart in the ’80s, when they brought him back

information. That particular series had a strong continuity

and sort of revamped the character. Then the reprints of

GL/GA #87.

from issue to issue, but I don’t think we were thinking

the classic Green Lantern/Green Arrow series came out and I

about it as continuity, and each issue was pretty much

started looking at those because I had a huge affinity for

self-contained. That is absolutely unheard of today in

Denny and Neal’s work on Batman. Once I was able to

super-hero comics.

get a hold of reprints of Green Lantern/Green Arrow, that’s

dons the Green

JOHNSON: What kind

when I went straight to John Stewart.

of response did DC get

JOHNSON: Phil, how did you come to be involved with

when John was intro-

Justice League and this character?

duced?

LaMARR: I had been working for Warner Bros. on another

O’NEIL: It was mixed.

show, Static Shock, and I was brought in to audition for Justice

en Arrow / Batman / Green Lantern/Gre The Shadow / / nts oce Inn the Slaughter of stion / Que Batman: Knightfall / The a eric Am of gue Justice Lea

I would say it was

League. As a comics reader, it was definitely interesting to

overwhelmingly pos-

see what characters had been picked [to make up the

Works in Progress:

country, the comics

had John Stewart as the Green Lantern was very interesting.

did not leave the

Once I started working on the show, I asked Bruce [Timm]

[distributors’] box-

about that. I don’t think this was the only reason, but the first

Beginnings:

ics (1960s) Patsy and Hedy, Marvel Com

Milestones:

en Lantern novel) Hero’s Quest (forthcoming Gre

Cyberspace:

om/boards/dennyoneil www.comicscommunity.c

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itive, but I think in

League]. We didn’t know if these were the only characters

certain sections of the

[they would be using on the show], but the fact that they

cars and we got one

thing he mentioned was, “Well, I just didn’t want it to be

or two nasty letters.

a bunch of white guys going around saving the universe.”

I was just a freelance

O’NEIL: I think that’s perfectly balanced.

writer, and I only

JOHNSON: I know a few comic-book purists who, in the

saw what DC want-

beginning, argued that the Green Lantern should be either

ed me to see, or

Hal Jordan or Kyle Rayner. Once the show started, though,

what I happened

it was amazing how quickly any doubts about John Stewart’s

to see when I was

role in the series faded. I like the fact that, on the show,

visiting the office.

the minute Superman and Batman leave the room, the rest

I think there was

of the League looks to John for guidance and leadership. I

some racist reac-

thought that was one of the unique qualities of the character

tion to him.

and a reflection of the military training that the writers

introduced into his background for the series.

Stewart. In that miniseries, John’s actions cause the

LaMARR: It is interesting because [the writers] rewrote the

destruction of an entire planet and the deaths of billions of

character in many ways. At first I though John was just

beings. After that, the character couldn’t be as cocky as he

going to be Hal Jordan in brown skin. I figured, “Okay, he’s

was before, and he wasn’t as sure of himself or his right to

the Green Lantern, he’s the hero who’s always been Green

weld what essentially is one of the most powerful weapons

Lantern,” but they gave him a different background and a

in the universe.

different personality. Hal was more of a guy’s guy than

O’NEIL: I think that’s perfectly valid in terms of dramatic

John Stewart is. This John Stewart doesn’t have any buddies

writing.

in the League.

LaMARR: I think the fallout is that the character is more

JOHNSON: The closest might be the Flash, and half the time

tentative. For years he’s been talking Kyle Rayner down,

I think the viewers are waiting for John to smack Wally

saying, “Now, Kyle, I’ve made mistakes too.” He’s a little more

West [aka Flash] upside the head. Again, it’s a great example

tortured than he certainly had been up to that point.

of how the dynamics have changed from the comics for

O’NEIL: Well, that’s what we were talking about earlier.

the animated series.

Characters have to evolve.

LaMARR: It is interesting, because Barry Allen and Hal Jordan

JOHNSON: If we’re speaking about the evolution of the

were two guys who were the same age and they seemed

character, the next step for John was the Green Lantern:

John Stewart Returns In his second appearance, in Justice League of America

to be from relatively the same background, and they sensed

Mosaic series.

#110 (1974), the then-

they would be buddies. But this is Wally West as the Flash,

LaMARR: I do remember that. That was when DC moved

stand-in GL didn’t even

who’s younger, and John Stewart as Green Lantern, so

John out of town.

make it onto the cover!

they have a grudging buddy relationship. It’s like [John is thinking], “This guy I work with is so annoying, but he’s kind of fun.”

JOHNSON: Right, and it all came down to one big show-

down in the end with Hal Jordan, with Green Lantern Guy Gardner along for he ride. I seem to recall there was some

JOHNSON: I liked the episode “Eclipsed,” where the show

discussion before it was cancelled about making it part of

had a nice tip of the hat to Denny and Neal’s Green Lantern/

the Vertigo line of comics. I think DC nixed the idea

Green Arrow stories with the Flash van and the suggestion

because they didn’t

by the Flash that he and John should hit the road together,

want any series tied

much like Hal and Ollie [Queen, aka Green Arrow] did.

to an established

LaMARR: Right!

character like Green

JOHNSON: Denny, I don’t know if you saw that episode

Lantern being brand-

or not.

Beginnings:

ed a mature title.

O’NEIL: No, I did not.

O’NEIL: I guess

Voiceover role as Woody on the NBC cartoon Mr. T (1980s)

JOHNSON: It was a very loving tribute to the first few Hal

that is possible.

and Ollie stories.

JOHNSON: Of

LaMARR: Oh, yes. It was a very conscious homage.

course, the biggest

JOHNSON: Denny, the second time John appeared was in

step for John Stewart

a Justice League story that Len Wein had written. I was curious

so far has been his

what your take was on the way the character was handled

inclusion on Justice

by him and other writers.

League. Denny,

O’NEIL: It depends on how skillfully they do it. It’s a mistake

what do you think

to think that with a character that’s been around for as long

of the way the

as most of these guys that there is only one, absolute right

producers of that

way to interpret them. If you watch Lawrence Olivier and Mel

series have handled

Gibson play Hamlet, it’s a very different play and they’re both

John Stewart?

valid on their own terms. It depends on the skill with which

O’NEIL: On the

it is done. [The later stories] are not my version certainly,

basis of having

but that’s fine. As long as on its own terms it works, I have

seen one or two

no quarrel at all.

episodes, it was

JOHNSON: I did want to get both of your takes on Cosmic

not our version of

Odyssey. That was considered a turning point for John

the character, but

Milestones: Mad TV (seasons 1–3) / Metal Gear Solid 2/ Pulp Fiction / Justice League (Cartoon Network) / Static Shock / Samurai Jack

Works in Progress:

Ongoing episodes of the Cartoon Netw ork’s Justice League Unlimited (as the voice of Green Lantern) and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends

Cyberspace: www.phil-lamarr.com

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it did seem to be perfectly valid. If there is anyone on this

[The producers and writers] told me about the military

planet that I trust to do a good adaptation, it’s Bruce Timm.

background, and in my experience, most of the black guys

I though that the Fox Batman series, up to that time, was the

that age who went into the army did so to get out of bad

best transposition of comic-book material to another medium.

circumstances. They didn’t have a ton of opportunities and

There is always a process of re-inventing, and that infuriates

[the military] was one of the best ones. Also, my dad is from

fans sometimes because these adaptations are not like the

Detroit, and I modeled a lot of [John’s] voice on him. He’s a

comic books. They can’t be. They are a different media, and

very intelligent guy, but not excessively educated. He’s

they have different requirements. I thought Timm and

someone who can think, but you can still hear the old

Paul Dini did that with Batman just extraordinarily well.

neighborhood in the voice.

JOHNSON: To kind of backtrack a little, I wanted ask you

JOHNSON: I loved the “Legends” episode from the first

about Julie Schwartz, Denny. He was editing Green Lantern/

season of Justice League, which was a great tribute to writer

Green Arrow when you created John Stewart. I was curious

Gardner Fox and the Justice Society. I know you’re a big

what Julie’s take on the character was.

comics fan yourself, Phil, and I was wondering if that had

O’NEIL: Julie was totally supportive. Here’s one of the things

anything to with the fact that the writers made John the

that was extraordinary about Julie Schwartz, he had an almost

League’s resident comic-book fan.

fanatic respect for the past. He liked nothing better, when

LaMARR: I think that was a conscious nod from the writers.

I used to see him on Thursday mornings, than to pull out

They did that once they realized I was a big geek like them.

photographs of the old science-fiction guys and talk about

Once you find that fact out, it doesn’t seem out of character

his participation in

them. Yet, as far as the work went, he was always interested

[for John], but if someone was to tell you before hand, you

1985–86’s Crisis on

in the next thing. Julie personally evolved so many characters,

would be like, “Really!?! John Stewart reads comics!?!” Once

Infinite Earths.

starting when he was given the job of re-introducing the

you see it in play, it all makes sense.

Flash. He re-invented the character, and he did the same with

JOHNSON: That episode also had a line that I wanted to

Green Lantern, then the Justice League and then with

ask you about, Phil. It really took me aback when I heard the

Superman. Almost more than any other editor, except for

Streak (who was the stand-in for the Flash) tell John that he

maybe Stan Lee, Julie realized [comics] have to evolve and

was “a credit to his people.”

it has to be contemporary. I think Julie was 100% in favor of

LaMARR: When we read it in the script, it was just like,

introducing a black character. Although, it may have been

“Whoa,” and you do a double-take, but that does make sense

Neal’s idea to do it. [Editor’s note: See this issue’s Neal Adams

[given the time period these characters came from]. That’s

GL in Crisis Another big moment for John Stewart was

His Own Series Green Lantern: Mosaic

interview for more details.]

just an aspect of those characters, that, if you were to portray

JOHNSON: I was just wondering because you mentioned

them now, it’s a flaw you wouldn’t necessarily choose to show.

how characters and concepts have to change to fit into

JOHNSON: Is there anything else you have suggested for

animation. That put me in mind of the changes that Julie

the character that the writers have picked up on, Phil?

implemented to make the Flash and Green Lantern relevant

LaMARR: Actually, no. The way television is done, all the

for kids in the ’50s and ’60s. The Justice League animated

stories are done, or at least decided upon, long before the

series strikes me as something that Julie would have been

voice actors ever even start recording. Even if the scripts

in favor of because they have taken characters, like John

aren’t completely written, there’s just really not much room

Stewart, and made them accessible for a new generation of

[for our input].

fans. Phil, what input have you had in shaping John Stewart

JOHNSON: On Justice League, I think John Stewart has been

for the show?

one of the best represented characters. I think he has easily

LaMARR: As a voice actor, your contribution is very subtle.

become one of the most fleshed out members of the League.

You come into the process long after the scripts are done,

LaMARR: Now that you’re asking this, as the comic-book

so really what happens is it becomes a cumulative effect.

geek, I think I spent more time hanging around the writers

ran from #1 (June 1992)

The way you perform the words in one episode gives the

asking them what was coming next. I had an emotional

through 18 (Nov. 1993).

writers a voice that helps them write the next episode. I

investment in these characters, so they probably went,

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chose to give John Stewart a very deep, powerful voice. For

“Hey! Let’s give Phil more lines!”

me that couldn’t be avoided, given the way Bruce designs

JOHNSON: While hanging around the writers, did you

characters. You have this gigantic chest and that says to me

ever suggest that it might be more realistic if John had

this guy has a huge resonating chamber [and] his voice

Hawkgirl and Wonder Woman? [laughter from everyone]

has to boom.

Denny, when you get a chance to see more of Justice League,

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that is something you’ll get to see unfold, a great romantic

JOHNSON: Here’s a question I want to pose to both

relationship that developed between John and Hawkgirl.

of you gentlemen. Denny, I want to ask this of

That was a very well handled, very adult relationship. It was

you because, as you stated before, when you

perhaps one of the most mature relationships I had ever

first introduced John Stewart, he was the

seen in animation, ever.

typical, angry young black man in the

LaMARR: It was one of the most mature relationships on

comics. Phil, I wanted to ask this of

television. The characters didn’t fall into bed. They had a

you as someone who has had a

courtship that went over two or three story arcs. The one

chance to play this character for

Christmas episode had just a really sweet, romantic dating

a while. It is based on an idea

scene between the two of them.

that was presented in the “Only

JOHNSON: You could see the first signs of what was to

A Dream” episode of Justice

come in the first season episodes, I think. The way these

League, where the audience got

characters were allowed to bounce off each other, griping

to see that John’s greatest fear

and bitching at one another, you could tell there was

is that he can’t go home again

chemistry there.

because of the power ring he has

O’NEIL: [Romantic relationships] sometimes happen like

been given. Where he started out

that. That’s actually a mature way to handle a relationship.

as someone who grew up feeling like

When we were doing Green Lantern/Green Arrow, it was

an alien to begin with (being a black

obvious that Ollie and Dinah were more than just good

man around white people), he now feels

friends. Adults would understand that, and kids wouldn’t.

alien with all human beings, except for a

If you did understand that, that’s fine. If you didn’t, it didn’t

select few who have been given power rings by

harm the story. They were behaving like adults, and what

the Guardians. It’s that you have this man who says,

they did in the privacy of their homes was basically none

“I’m black and I’m never going to fit into the white man’s

of our business.

world—”

JOHNSON: Is there anything about the upcoming season

O’NEIL: “—and now I have these powers and I’m not

you can let us in on, Phil? Justice League Unlimited has

going to fit into the human world.”

brought a new appearance for John Stewart already. What

JOHNSON: Exactly! It’s like John started out not being

else can we expect?

sure how to deal with people of a different race, now he is

LaMARR: I have to think that maybe I had some influence

elevated to a position where he may be unsure of how to

on [John’s new appearance]. He had the very ’80s haircut

deal with all people in general.

when we started the show in 1999, and I didn’t want to

O’NEIL: That’s the stuff of drama. That’s the kind of thing

Courtesy of Eric Nolen-

complain, because I’m a hired hand. I did drop hints here

a good writer could really run with.

Weathington.

and there so that now they’ve finally given him a more

LaMARR: Yeah, there is so much loaded there with reso-

updated hair-do. The only thing I can say about the

nances. As a black man, especially a black man from America,

upcoming season is Hawkgirl will be back, in some respect,

which is a completely different psychology then someone

John Stewart sans power ring in a sketch by Cully Hamner, the original Mosaic artist.

and because of that there will be more subtle adult relation-

from a majority black culture, there are different strata. There

ship for John Stewart.

is always a question of can you go back. If you move to a

JOHNSON: As a comic-book fan yourself, Phil, what would

white neighborhood and get a big house, are you still truly

you like to see for the character that you don’t think has

black? If you have the most powerful weapon in the universe

been touched on yet?

and you can travel through out the galaxy without the aid

LaMARR: They went back to his hometown in the “In

of a ship, are you still a human being?

Blackest Night” episode very early on, and you got to see a

O’NEIL: The answer that they deposited in Watchmen

little of where John was from. For me, that was really helpful

was no. If you were Superman, after a while, you couldn’t

and gratifying because as a black comic-book reader, and a

relate to ordinary people. Your concerns would be com-

black viewer, you don’t see many of our faces in any context

pletely different.

and that’s always great. As a comic-book fan, in thinking

JOHNSON: John strikes me as someone for whom these

of John Stewart, I would actually like to see a little more

kind of questions would really weigh on his mind, more so

of his galactic presence. I would love for the writers to

than it would other members of the Justice League.

find some way to flesh out that aspect of his character.

LaMARR: That’s something where there is room for explo-

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ration because the audience [for Justice League] doesn’t have

line, it just hasn’t been rehashed as so many others. In my

as strong an idea of John’s background as they do

mind, the John Stewart on Justice League is the guy you

Superman’s or Batman’s. I think it would be really interest-

created, Denny. He just has gone through a military life as

ing to find out if he was an angry young man, and is he still

well. I think he is a little older, but he still has that level of

when he is not faced with earth-shattering crises. I think

energy. He suffers no fools and he’s still very no-nonsense,

that may be why [the writers] have spent more time with

but he’s also a little tempered. This is also a different time,

John than some of the others—there is more story to tell.

too. The social wounds aren’t as raw, so the anger is not

JOHNSON: Right. I can see the char-

as present.

acter that Denny created in Cosmic

JOHNSON: What are your thoughts on that, Denny? What

Odyssey, someone who is cocky and

do you think your take on John would have been if you had

who takes his shots and doesn’t stick

the chance to do some more stories about him?

around to answer for them and then

O’NEIL: It probably wouldn’t be too far from the character

you see this man screw up royally and

Phil is playing. It’s awkward for me [to answer] because I’m

he realizes too late that you have to

not black. I know about Malcolm X, and I think his life arc is

see the big picture and not just yourself.

kind of the character you are describing, going from anger

They really did a lot of that in Green

to trying to reach a deeper understanding. I think that is

Lantern: Mosiac as well.

what John Stewart has done.

LaMARR: There is definitely a story-

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The Art of Diversity: Neal Adams on the Creation of John Stewart Unforgettable Character, Unpublished Version Neal Adams’ self-rejected original cover art to Green Lantern/Green Arrow #87, courtesy of the artist. The inset shows the published version.

interview

by Dan Johnson

conducted August 27, 2004

You know that when a character makes his first appearance on a Neal Adams cover, he is off to a flying start—the only thing that could weigh more in his favor would be if Neal has a hand in his creation. That was certainly the case with Green Lantern John Stewart. The artist who drew Denny O’Neil’s script for Green Lantern/Green Arrow #87 reveals that his contributions went well beyond adding pencil to paper. —Dan Johnson

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DAN JOHNSON: You’ve previously mentioned that you thought the creation of John Stewart was a logical extension of the idea behind the Green Lantern concept. . . .

NEAL ADAMS: I was sitting with Julie [Schwartz, Green Lantern editor] and I was talking about the idea of doing another Green Lantern. Of course, Julie showed me how stupid I was because someone had already done that with a guy named Guy Gardner. I asked Julie about that character, and he pulled out a comic book and showed [Guy] to me. Julie then asked me what I had in mind for a new Green Lantern. I said I thought it would be nice to have a Green Lantern who shows up and perhaps is a little more adventurous, someone who could really take over and who could really be an interesting character. I said, “Let me just ask you a question, Julie. If you were to do another Green Lantern, do you think you would make him a white guy?” Julie said yes, he thought so, to sell comics. “Why are you asking?” I said, “Well, you have a Green Lantern who came to Earth, Abin Sur, and he was going to die. So he sent out the ring and the ring was to find the most noble and bravest guy on Earth to become Green Lantern. Presumably the Green Lantern Corps is able to do this. They can find the best [candidate] on any given planet and [the ring] found Hal Jordan. It makes sense to me that it would find Hal Jordan. Hal Jordan was a test pilot, who under various people’s tutelage seemed to have been a pretty good fella. Then the ring went out and found a replacement [for Hal] and it turned out that this replacement, Guy Gardner, happened to be a white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant, blond-haired gym teacher. Now this has to be straining the edge of credulity, that the second best guy on Earth [to become Green Lantern] is a white guy.” I personally had a little problem with this Guy Gardner fella already. It seemed to me that if the ring was going to go out a third time, I don’t think it’s going to find a white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant guy. It’s going to find an Oriental guy or a black guy. The gist of my question to Julie was, “Can’t we find a black Green Lantern?” Julie, overpowered by awfully obvious logic, said, “All right, I’ll talk to Denny.” JOHNSON: What were your thoughts when you read the script that Denny wrote to introduce John Stewart? ADAMS: Troubled. I got the first pages of the script, and [the story was originally about] this fellow named “Lincoln Washington.” I [went to Julie] and said, “I’m having a little trouble with this name.” Julie, in his generation’s innocence, asked why. I said, “Julie, that’s a slave name. I don’t think you could find a more slave name than Lincoln Washington.” There were black guys in America then who were changing their names to Muslim names to avoid slave names, I explained. Julie asked me what I thought his name ought to be. I said, “I don’t know if you want to go to the Muslim thing, but just give him a regular name, like John Stewart, that would be a really good name.” I had originally asked that he be made an architect, and be given a profession that anyone who is black would look at it and say, “Yeah, I could buy that.”

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JOHNSON: In speaking with Phil LaMarr, the actor who does the voice for John Stewart on the Justice League animated series, I get the impression that as an African-American reader he liked the fact that John Stewart was handled the way he was, having been written and drawn realistically. ADAMS: On an adjacent subject, there are also artists who, when they draw black people, draw a standard face. They have a face they think of and many of the things they do are controlled by their desire not to offend. In fact, some of these artists are Afro-American themselves. That’s why my John Stewart looks unique and singular and like no other black face I’ve done. I ran into a couple of other problems when I did John Stewart. Julie mentioned I was doing [John’s] lips a little big. I said to Julie, “You know, one of the things about an African’s face is that their lips tend to be big, that’s not a bad thing. Their noses are broad too, and that’s not a bad thing.” No offense, but many people in America, and many people around the world, have a really bad standard of beauty. It’s what I see [an as an artist], and that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Putting thick lips on John Stewart was the right thing to do. They weren’t overly thick, they were handsomely thick. He was a very handsome guy, John Stewart. DC Comics had this rule that said if someone had dark skin, you were supposed to color them YR2B2. That’s solid yellow, red 25% and blue 25%, that was [their] color for black people. At Marvel Comics, it was Y2R2B2, which essentially is a grey. At DC Comics, YR2B2 is also the color of khaki uniforms in the war books. Not many people of an African persuasion had that color skin. On the other hand, most people who are African-American have fairly dark skin, so I made John’s skin darker. I did it YR3B2, which is a richer, redder brown, using 50% red. When I did that, the head of production, Sol Harrison, came to me and said, “Neal, this is awfully brown. Don’t you think some black Americans might be offended?” (You can see my life in those days was filled with questions that were asked of me that I never thought would enter a human mind.) I told him I thought they would be [more] offended if you colored their skin khaki or colored their skin grey. I said, “I’m sure that if I had brown skin, I would want you to color it brown, I think that’s the way it’s supposed to be, don’t you, Sol?” JOHNSON: You made changes to the cover of the first comic with John Stewart. Did any of those changes have to do with the way John was presented? ADAMS: No, I did that cover over because I didn’t like the [first] drawing. I just wanted it to be a very strong cover. [The new] cover was essentially this new Green Lantern taking over after [Hal Jordan] has collapsed and is unconscious and [John’s] standing over him, flashing his green ring, protecting him. It’s an indication of the kind of story that I wanted to do and the kind of story on the inside. If I were a black kid reading that comic book, and I saw that cover, I’d get it and I’d keep it. The first try was essentially the same, but I didn’t draw it very well. I rejected it myself.

ADAMS: I think that is an impression people like to play on. I think there were some rumors about that, I just don’t think that’s true. You could find one freaked out, crazy distributor who might be reluctant to put the copies on the newsstand, but once it makes it to the newsstand, you know darn well what’s going to happen. Black guys in the neighborhood are going to buy [that issue], and the white guys are going to buy it, too. Everyone was following Green Lantern and Green Arrow. I did a syndicated strip based on the Ben Casey television series. This might be a longer story than you want, but I’ll tell it to you anyway. JOHNSON: That’s okay, I would love to hear it. ADAMS: This was a couple of years before Green Lantern and Green Arrow, and you have to remember we’re going through an evolutionary time in America. If you grew up in the ’50s, you didn’t know you lived in a bigoted country. Let me tell you, it was a bigoted country. When I was working for a company called Johnstone and Cushing, I was asked whether or not I would do a comic book that was being produced for a Southern state that was pushing the idea of “separate but equal” schools and how “good” they were. They were actually producing a commercial comic book that they would hand out to millions of kids in schools, and the people in the community, talking about how it was good to have “separate but equal” schools. I didn’t work on it, and I couldn’t believe that the company I had done work for would want to be involved with such a thing unless they were in financial difficulties, and even that wouldn’t be a good enough reason alone to participate. Yet, that was the kind of thing being done in those days. There were definitely people who were against any movement forward, and were in fact pushing things backwards. Two years later, I had the Ben Casey strip and every once and awhile, I would put a black person in the strip. Seems odd to even say this today, doesn’t it? One day I had a Sunday page and I had an ambulance [scene], and there were two guys in the front seat talking about somebody who was being brought to the hospital. The guy in the passenger’s seat was black, and the guy in the driver’s seat was white. I thought it was interesting to make the guy in the passenger’s seat black. It was of little interest to me that this person was black. I thought nothing of it. I handed the Sunday page into my syndicate, which was in Cleveland, Ohio. I mention it was Cleveland, Ohio, because there is nothing [there] that was any more bigoted than, say, New York. It was a regular, Midwestern good place. Nothing bad went on there. Well, I got a proof of that Sunday page, and I noticed somebody at the syndicate had taken the head of the guy sitting in the passenger’s seat and traded it with the head of the driver. They actually physically cut the head’s off and reversed them. I called [the syndicate] up and asked them, “What’s going on?” They said, “Neal, please understand, we’re not prejudiced here, of course,

but doesn’t it seem odd to you that the guy sitting in the passenger’s seat of an ambulance, which is usually the seat for the doctor, is black and the guy who is driving is white? Wouldn’t it be the other way?” I said, “No, why would it be the other way? Aren’t there black doctors?” They said, “We felt it would be more sensible if the guy driving the ambulance were black and it would offend fewer people. You know you have to worry about that, Neal. This is a newspaper syndicate, and there are some people, who when they see something like that, will actually drop a comic strip.” JOHNSON: The scary thing is that I can believe that, considering the Ben Casey strip was produced in the ’60s. ADAMS: I asked them, “Am I living in some kind of fantasy world that’s turned upside down that you think, 1) People would do this, but 2) if they do it, you actually think that’s a good reason for cropping the heads off of people and changing them so those people would be satisfied?” They said, “Well, Neal, we’ve been doing this for many years.” Now, I’m talking to people from the Midwest, not the South, who were themselves newspaper reporters. This syndicate was managed and run by ex-newspaper reporters who were sort of semi-retired. These were guys who had bylines, guys who were well known in the newspaper business, [and] they were doing me a big favor to help me avoid rocking the boat. So I hung up the phone a little stunned, but I sent them a letter. [It was] a two-page letter, single spaced. I think I started the letter with, “If anybody at this syndicate ever decides to masturbate on my work again, I will personally come down there and punch them in the face.” That’s how I started the letter. Basically, the letter was about hidden bigotry.

JOHNSON: Denny O’Neil said the response to this issue was fairly positive, but he did mention that there was one negative letter that DC had gotten. He also said that in some parts of the country, the book didn’t even make it off the trains.

[I wrote,] “You can’t believe that you’re not a bigot if you do this. If you do, you’re just fooling yourself. I don’t really think you guys are bigots, but on the other hand, you’re acting like bigots. We can’t do this. I want you to understand, no matter what you think, or for whatever reason, if anyone ever does this to my strip again, I am no longer doing the strip, I’m out. I will look for work elsewhere.” It was a pretty hostile letter. Of course, anytime I would send letters to the syndicate, they would pass them around to everybody in the place. I got a phone call from the fellow who was in charge of the syndicate, Ernest Lynn (a famous reporter in his day) and he said, “Neal, you’re right. If you feel that if we lose papers on your strip, and that’s okay with you, then that’s okay with us. It’s a little hard to be called a bigot. We’re taking it as well as we can, and you’ve made us feel ashamed, unfairly, we think, because we felt we were helping you. . .” “Well, you weren’t helping me,” I interrupted. He said, “We all understand your point exactly. This will never happen again.” I said, “You know, I’m going to test you.” He laughed, “I bet you do.” The next time, I had a scene in the strip with two guys who were members of an orchestra and they were talking about the orchestra leader. One of them said, “Well, he seems to be a whole lot nicer these days.” And the other one says, “Yeah, he’s acting way more human.” I made that the black guy saying that last line. It may not seem like much to people these days, but in the ’60s, to have a black guy say that line, was a very big deal.

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did. I have suggested to DC this atrocity has to be undone. [As for John Stewart], I think they’ve been doing him okay. One of the reasons why I fought so hard to have a black Green Lantern was I did not want anybody to have any reason to say this character shouldn’t exist. The ring went out and sought out the best. Because John was the best, it gave him the prize, and the prize was that he got the job of cleaning up everyone else’s mess, and if he was willing to take it, he wasn’t going to have any reward, all he would have is a little gold star in his notebook and he would be a hero. That prize was given once to a white guy and a couple of times to some assholes, but it was given to John Stewart rightly and John Stewart to me is a real hero as opposed to a secondary hero. Even when he first came out, which I’m really so proud of Denny O’Neil for this, John just didn’t take crap from Hal Jordan. I felt that was exactly the way he ought to be. John Stewart became the other Green Lantern, and not just “junior Green Lantern” or a replacement. That was really what I hoping for from the beginning.

sidebar Before John Stewart. . . . . .Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Black Canary, and their Guardian bud were “hard-traveling heroes.” This stunning page from issue #81 comes to us from Heritage Comics. © 2005 DC Comics.

JOHNSON: Again, you really have to look at it in context to the times. Back then, that was a very important thing to do. ADAMS: You don’t realize the times you come out of until you look back and go, “What the hell was that?” That was insane. But that’s the time I came out of. We were warned that we were going to lose papers, but we didn’t lose a paper. I’m not saying there aren’t consequences to things that you do. The truth of the matter is, you can’t do them thinking that there are consequences because if what you are doing is right, you have to take the consequences. JOHNSON: Have you had much of a chance to see what DC has done with the character of John Stewart since you and Denny first introduced him? ADAMS: I would say that the character of Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern couldn’t be screwed up much more than [DC] already has. If the power ring sought out the very best person on Earth, and did not find Superman or Batman or the Atom or anyone else, but instead found Hal Jordan, then the things that we have seen, that presumably Hal Jordan did, could not have happened. The very best that Earth could provide could not have done the things that the character

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John Stewart: Classified John Stewart is a regular player in DC’s current titles, including the recently launched JLA: Classified.

sidebar•sidebar•sidebar sidebar•sidebar•sidebar sidebar•sidebar•sidebar sidebar•sidebar•sidebar Born Again Former Green Lantern/Parallax/ Spectre Hal Jordan is doing the ring thing again, as seen in the recent miniseries Green Lantern: Rebirth.

Blackstage Past “Ghettohood” ’Fess up—is this gathering of cinema giants cool, or what? Our designer Robert Clark found this illustration online, and BACK ISSUE is honored to share it with you here. It’s courtesy of artist Sean Galloway (www.ledheavy.com/ lh2003/sean.html) and

(or: This Dude’d Better Not Let Me Near “Off My Chest”)

colorist Tony Washington

Darrell “Big D” McNeil

(too bad we’re a blackand-white mag—but you can see this in color on Sean’s site). Thanks, Sean and Tony! Cyborg and Steel © 2005 DC Comics. Storm, Luke Cage, and Blade © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc. Black Vulcan © 2005 Hanna-Barbera. Fat Albert and Brown Hornet © 2005 Bill Cosby Productions.

Well, the good folks at BACK ISSUE were inundated . . . I say inundated . . . with emails as to my last appearance in these pages [issue #5]. Unfortunately for those writers, I’m back anyway! (A word to the wise: Trying to email a guy who doesn’t have email [me] almost ensures he’ll never read it. Savvy?) Anywho, in keeping with this issue’s theme of “black by popular demand,” I will now delve into this issue’s historical dissertation: the emergence of black super-heroes into the ’70s/’80s supertoon ranks. First, a couple of disclaimers. One: Six of the eight characters I’m going to talk about, I actually worked on their production in the ’70s and ’80s. The second may put me at odds with others of my brethren who’ll appear in these pages but, to quote a similar “darker” dude, Daffy Duck: “What the hey, I gotta have some fun! Besides, it’s really duck season!” Seriously, I understand (and appreciate) the whole idea of “seeing people who look like you,” the whole “it’s good for black kids growing up to see representations of people of their color/skin type on screen.” (I’m 47, by the time you read this.) There were no black super-heroes on TV, in any form, toon or otherwise, when I was a kid. (Unless you count Space Ghost, who wore black!) And while there were blacks in animation when I was a kid, I didn’t know they were there. Fact is, I didn’t know that blacks did cartoons until I first walked through Hanna-Barbera’s (H-B) doors as a show creator/breakdowner when I was 18 and met some

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of ’em. Now, did the fact that there were no black super-heroes in cartoons or no black animators (to my knowledge) stop me from wanting to be an animator or do cartoons? Uh-uh, my brother! It was seeing the movement, the colors, hearing the dialogue, the music, the ray blasts and explosions . . . the kinda stuff my comic books could not give me . . . that made me look at Space Ghost, The Herculoids, Mighty Mightor, Superman, The Impossibles, et al., and made me as a kid decide: “I wanna do that!” (Plus, seeing my name on TV was a kinda fun thing to look forward to, too!) It was the imagination that colored my inspiration, not the color of that imagination that colored it. Having said that, I have to admit it was the chocolate icing on my cartoon cake when black characters, starting with Pete Jones on ABC’s The Hardy

ASTREA Astrea, in said trifecta, was not only black but female and her group’s leader. She was the leader of NBC’s Young Sentinels (1977), one of Filmation’s rare series not based on a pre-existing property. It featured the exploits of a trio of super-heroes whose powers were derived from the gods of legend. The black Astrea (which wasn’t a Roman god that I’d heard of . . . and I’m a mythology nut!) possessed the ability to change into different animals. Leading the Caucasian Hercules (super-strength) and the Asian Mercury (super-speed), Saturday morning’s first multiracial super-team patrolled the planet under the watchful eye of Sentinel One and his R2-D2-like assistant M.O. for a single season.

Boys (Filmation, 1969), then continuing with Valerie on CBS’ Josie and the Pussycats (H-B, 1970), and The Harlem Globetrotters (H-B, 1970), joined our Caucasian members of the cartoon fraternity. Quick quiz time: What Saturday toon actually used the negative epithet “Uncle Tom”? Give up? It was 1974’s U.S. of Archie (Filmation), when a bunch

TV’s First Black Super-Heroine

of black kids newly arriving at Riverdale High called then new (and black) Archie kid Chuck Clayson an “Uncle Tom” for hanging out with a group of “white

Animal-mimicker

boys” (in this case, Reggie and Jughead). (Filmation

Astrea.

had been producing Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids since ’72 and they hadn’t used that phrase yet!) This is

kinda my elliptical way of getting into the meat of this dissertation of the black animated TV super-hero . . . . . . and it’s also funny that this leads into Filmation, the Saturday-morning producer second only to HannaBarbera in terms of production during the ’60s and ’70s. Although most famously (or, depending on your

Far-Out Freedom Fighters

point of view, infamously) known for their almost total reliance on reused stock animation in their

(Above right)

productions (kind of the Adult Swim of their day), the

Black Vulcan in

studio, through executive producers Norm Prescott

space, with two of

and Lou Scheimer, also exhibited a social conscience

his Super Friends.

unlike other studios at the time. When the three networks of the day [ABC, CBS, NBC] started to

(usually) gently prod the studios to put more of a minority face on their shows’ characters, Filmation, starting with Fat Albert, jumped in with both feet, not only putting black and other race characters in prominent places in their groups, but, in our first case, scoring a trifecta, with Saturday morning’s first

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Black Vulcan is probably the most famous (or, depending upon your point of view, infamous) of the heroes you’re going to read about in this treatise, due in part to his continuing Super Friends presence and partly due to a recent, somewhat funny, guest appearance on the usually terminally unfunny Harvey Birdman on the Cartoon Network. (Note to said Harvey and Space Ghost and Sealab 2021 producers: It’d be nice if your “creative” genius could create your own characters to screw around with and leave my childhood icons alone. Yeah, like that’ll happen. . . ) I got to animate Black Vulcan’s very first appearance, in a guest-star adventure with Aquaman, working off my “unca” Alex Toth’s model sheet of same (although in this, and his second appearance—“Day of the Rats,” with Batman—his whole body transformed into a lightning bolt). As everyone who knows the character knows, electrical power-casting was his thing, as exemplified by . . . oh, the lightning patterns on his suit. (So why, you axe, was he named after the

black super-hero(ine). . .

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Roman god of fire? I guess it’s ’cuz the writers

said legal action in regard to the Super 7’s

thought that having him yell “Black Jupiter!” didn’t

Web Woman.) The result of the legal action:

have the same zing!) Basically (and truly long story

Filmation agreed not to produce any more

short), BV was part of an ABC network edict to create

segments of the offending shows; though

some multicultural heroes to team with the core

the ratings the shows did for CBS partly

Super Friends. Apache Chief, Samurai, and later, El

inspired ABC to broadcast Plastic Man and

Dorado, were also part of that same network edict.

Spider-Woman the following season. (A li’l more personal privilege here: Tarzan and the

SUPERSTRETCH AND MICROWOMAN

Super 7 was the first series I got screen credit for—and before I turned 21, which was a goal

These lead, original heroes in Filmations’ 1978 CBS

of mine.) Even bigger, however, was that,

series, Tarzan and the Super 7, laidback scientist Chris

dressed as Superstretch, with a properly attired

Cross gave himself the Plastic Man-like power to

black Barbie doll as Microwoman, I won the

stretch to incredible lengths and alter his shape

annual Filmation Halloween costume contest that

(although I thought his turning into a working

season. And believe me, walking around in town in

Big D and “Unca” Alex

helicopter “stretched” things just a tad) and gave his

pink pants back then really took cajones!

A 2004 photo of

wife Christy the Atom-like power to shrink herself.

Darrell McNeil and

Why, you again axe, am I specifically mentioning

THE BROWN HORNET

the DC-cited heroes in this character description?

Fat Albert’s oft-cited favorite comic-book super-hero

’Cuz DC Comics did when they filed suit against

became an actual segment of The New Fat Albert Show

sometime (and future) animation partner Filmation

starting in 1979 when the Hornet and his sidekick

for coming too close, character-wise, to their Plas and

Stinger appeared in five-minute comic adventure

Alex Toth, courtesy of Darrell, who’s wearing pink pants in this pic (maybe

Atom (DC added to the suit Filmation’s Manta and

shorts, usually ending in a non sequitur-ed cliffhanger

it’s good we’re a

Moray, which they felt was too “close” to their

that reinforced the moral lesson embodied in the

black-and-white

Aquaman, and let’s not even get into Marvel’s joining

main Fat Albert episode. I got to do layouts on this

mag after all!).

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one in ’79, along with a show for H-B that embodied

Scooby-Doo from CBS), he landed at NBC, hoping to

two of my animation loves, that show being. . .

bring them the same programming magic that gave

(WARNING: If you don’t want to have your mind

him the nickname “The Man with the Golden Gut.”

blown off the “you can’t believe they did that!” scale,

When he arrived at NBC, the network had just had a

skip the next story.)

disastrous fall, Saturday morning-wise, with such high-priced fare as The Kroft Superstar Hour flaming

THE SUPER GLOBETROTTERS

To and Fro

(With my sense of humor, you just have to know this

(bottom left and

is my favorite one of this bunch of characters!) The

far right) You’d have

Super Globetrotters has an interestingly checkered

to look hard to find a

history. To wit: When mastermind Fred Silverman, the father of Saturday-morning television, was head

freakier toon than The

of CBS programming, among the many series he put

Super Globetrotters.

on the air were Superman, The Wacky Races, Space Ghost, Frankenstein Jr. and the Impossibles, The Archie

Show, and The Harlem Globetrotters. After serving time at ABC (where, among other achievements, he snatched

out big time. Silverman asked Hanna-Barbera if they could put together some classic (read: “cheap”) programming to help stanch the bleeding. H-B’s response: Go-Go Globetrotters, a two-hour package featuring several series Silverman had championed at his previous networks: Space Ghost, The Herculoids, Motormouse and Autocat, and The Harlem Globetrotters, all bracketing (and therefore salvaging) H-B’s C.B. Bears hour. The ratings did kick up a few notches, enough to encourage Silverman to order all-new series featuring most of the stars of the Go-Go package over the next few seasons. First one up was The Super Globetrotters, the culmination of several years’ efforts by H-B to put a new series starring the venerable basketballers back on the air (including one called Jr. Harlem Globetrotters, which then-producer Alex Lovy had wanted your not-so-humble one to provide young Meadowlark’s voice for). This ’Trotters take was a combination of the previous ’Trotters toon and The Impossibles, both two of my all-time faves when growing up. This show featured several real-life ’Trotters as characters, à lá the previous incarnations, but with interesting diffs. Among ’em: Meadowlark Lemon, the team’s previous leader, both in toon and on court, was no longer a member of the team. So Scatman Cruthers, who was the voice of Meadowlark, now became the voice of new team leader Nate Branch. Curly and Geese came over from the old show, with old teamers Pablo, Gip,

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and Bobby Joe replaced by Twiggy Sanders and “Sweet” Lou Dunbar. And whom, you axe, did they replace lovable Granny and dog Dribbles with? An orbiting basketball. Yes, you read that right. The Crime Globe, a basketball-looking satellite, orbited Earth, scoping out various super-villains and their dastardly deeds. When they committed their nefarious acts, Crime Globe would summon their agents, the Globetrotters, who, when not traveling the world performing their basketball wizardry, would then charge into their “Porta-Lockers,” then exit said lockers in their super-powered guises as the Super Globetrotters. You say, “impossible”? They said, “Impossibles,” as their super-selves were then-modern day versions of H-B’s classic Impossibles super-team (Coil Man, Fluid Man, and Multi Man). Nate became Liquid Man (though he wored an “F” on his chest . . . go fig!); Geese became Multi Man, who made multiples of himself; Twiggy became Spaghetti Man, who

“He didn’t look black to me!” Well, he was pitched

Ch-Ch-Changes

embodied the stretching aspects of Coil Man; while

that way, but CBS was a li’l skittish (because of a possible

Teen Force member

Curly became Sphere Man, literally a basketball with

“middle America” reaction), to a hard action-adventure

Moleculad.

arms and legs, which epitomized the bouncing

fantasy with a black male lead, so he was “changed”

aspect of Coil Man. “Sweet” Lou become the one

into a deeply tanned lead instead.

member not previously on The Impossibles, Gizmo

So anybody looking for Filmation to come up

Man, who had multiple items, gizmos and gadgets,

with a new black hero in 1981 would have to settle

inside his oversized Afro. (That just screams ’70s, don’t

for Misty Magic, the Sabrina doppelganger in their

it?) Say what you want about this show, I had fun

“Super Archies”-proposed, Hero High-executed series

working on it, being that is was as close to The

NBC aired as part of the Kid Super Power Hour (with

Impossibles as I was ever gonna get!

Shazam!). And yep, I worked on that one, too!

MOLECULAD

hero on the list), I.Q., the black member of TMS’

Finally, one I didn’t do (and coincidentally, the last

Another show that Fred Silverman ordered, a season

Bionic 6 series (1986), not to be confused with the

(1980) after Space Ghost (but not airing until 1981

I.Q. featured in James Bond Jr. five years later. (And

because of a pair of strikes in ’81), was The Space

no, they don’t all look alike!)

Stars, all-new adventures of Space Ghost, the

So until I make

Herculoids, and Astro (from The Jetsons), with an

my next appearance

all-new series, Teen Force, H-B’s take at a multiracial

in these pages (let

super-teen team. Among its members was the next

the emails com-

black super-hero I got involved with: Moleculad, one

mence!), a word to

of the three TF members. His power was transforming

the wise: Buy The

into . . . molecules. You know what? Even when

Mo t h ! (By Steve

working on the show, we never knew just what he

Rude and Gary

turned into! All we knew was, he wasn’t Gloop or

Martin, from Dark

Gleep, the scripts and (story)boards said. Yeah, that

Horse Comics.) Buy

made it clear as crystal! Oh, well, he was fun to do

The Moth!! (So, it’s

anyway . . . even if that helmet was a pain in the a—

three words!) Buy

A brief sidebar to mention the hero that wasn’t.

The Moth!!! Laters!

Remember CBS’ fantasy-adventure (and response to ABC’s hit Thundarr) Blackstar? You’re probably saying,

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DC’s Newest Hero. . . . . .and its first black headliner was previewed in this Jan. 1977 edition of The Comic Reader. Cover art by Trevor Von Eeden and Joe Orlando; courtesy of David Hamilton.

guest editorial by tony isabella

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OUT of fairness Jefferson Pierce, perhaps better known as Black Lightning, was the best character I ever created and represents the best work that I ever did in comics. The two questions I get asked most often at conventions and in emails are: Why did you create Black Lightning? How did you create Black Lightning? The “why” comes from ideals taught to me by my parents and the comic books I read as a child and as a teenager. I was raised to believe that the world should be what it never was and likely never will be . . . fair. To this day, my views on the comics industry and the larger world beyond it are shaped by the dual concepts that things should be fair and, if they aren’t, we should do something about it. There were no African-Americans in my Cleveland neighborhood, in my elementary school, or in my high school. My first African-American friends were the ones I met

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Jefferson Pierce Black Lightning’s alter ego in pencil form, courtesy of artist Trevor Von Eeden. If the names were a bit blaxploitation, it was because

through the comics industry. Our backgrounds might

those were the movies I was seeing with Arvell and the guys.

have been different—though not so different as some

With Black Goliath, I wanted to visit some new territory.

might think—but we had the love of comics in common.

The Panther was an African king. Cage was a streetwise

I had African-American friends who read comic books.

ex-convict, albeit an unjustly convicted one. The Falcon

Going to comics conventions and writing for fanzines, I

was revealed to be a brainwashed criminal. Blade and living

became aware there were many African-American comics

mummy N’Kantu were based in Europe and the Mideast.

readers. It didn’t seem fair to me—then or now—that

Misty was as streetwise as the characters which had inspired

there were so few African-American heroes in comics.

her. It was all foreign or street with little middle ground.

Prior to the first issue of Luke Cage, Hero for Hire, we had

My intention for Black Goliath was, as a change of pace,

supporting characters Jackie Johnson (a member of Sgt.

was to involve him in more traditional “save the world”

Rock’s Easy Company), Mal (of the non-costumed Teen

and “stop the super-villain” stories. But neither I nor his

Titans), and the then one-shot John “Green Lantern”

book were around long enough for that to be realized.

Stewart at DC. Marvel had Gabe Jones in Sgt. Fury, Robbie

While completing my exclusive arrangement with

Robinson in Amazing Spider-Man, the Black Panther in

Marvel, I kept thinking about creating a new African-

Fantastic Four, scientist Bill Foster in Avengers, and Captain

American hero. I wanted to create a character to whom

America’s new ally, the Falcon, the only one getting shared

all of our young readers could relate, a character who would inspire them as Superman and Captain America had

That didn’t seem fair.

inspired me. Unexpectedly, a DC Comics editorial misstep

After going to work for Marvel Comics in the fall of

would give me that opportunity.

conventions, reading their fan letters, and working with

I keep trying to find a shorter way to explain the next part of my story. I’ll have another go at it:

young talents like Ron Wilson, Keith Pollard, Arvell Jones,

DC purchased two scripts for a planned new series called

and Aubrey Bradford, I quickly came to feel the imbalance

The Black Bomber. The hero, who would be their first

between a significant portion of our readership and the

“black” character to star in his own title, was a white racist

insignificant number of characters reflective of them

Vietnam vet, who, as a result of taking part in chemical

was something we needed to address.

experiments to allow soldiers to blend in better with the

Out of fairness.

jungle, turned into a black super-hero in moments of stress.

Excited young comics pro that I was, it never occurred

It gets worse.

to me at the time that I was making political/social

In each of the two well-intentioned scripts, the hero

statements by trying to add more such characters to

would, in his white racist persona, save a person he couldn’t

comics. I just wanted the world to be a little more fair.

see clearly and, on finding out the person was black,

At Marvel, the 1970s were an exciting time in this

exclaim something along the lines of—and this is a quote

regard. In addition to Cage, the Panther was now starring

—“You mean I risked my life to save a jungle bunny?”

in the unfortunately named Jungle Action, brilliantly written

And it gets worse.

by Don McGregor, and Marv Wolfman’s Blade made his debut in Tomb of Dracula. In Supernatural Thrillers, the Living Mummy was black underneath his wrappings, but you would have had to read the comic to know that.

1972, and meeting more African-American readers at the

title billing. That didn’t seem like enough.

through comics fandom and, not so many years later,

on The Black Bomber with the third issue. I begged

I was writing the renamed Luke Cage, Power Man and,

them to reconsider the series. I warned of protestors

for that matter, the Living Mummy series, but it didn’t seem

marching outside their offices with me in the front lines.

like enough. I added a Pam Grier-inspired Misty Knight

Ultimately, I convinced them to consign the Bomber to

to the Iron Fist series and turned Bill Foster into Black Goliath.

limbo with a question: “Do you actually want your first

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black super-hero to be a white bigot?”

“Nobody Beats a Superman”

lasso a “black lightning bolt” while shouting “HERA help

Common sense prevailed.

me stop this BLACK LIGHTNING before it splits this

I returned to my Cleveland roots for three weeks and

building in TWO!”

came back to the DC offices with Jefferson Pierce. He was

Black Lightning. It sounded very cool to me and Jeff

Tony Isabella’s

a teacher because, in a moment of clarity, I realized the

liked it too. Neither one of us remembered that it had also

script to page 1 of

one thing the vast majority of our readers had in com-

been the name of western hero Johnny Thunder’s horse.

Black Lightning #5,

mon was that they all had gone/were going to school. He

After that initial burst of creation, which included my

courtesy of Trevor Von Eeden, who

was based in an urban setting because I had become

coming up with Lightning’s original uniform, Jefferson

more political since starting my comics career and those

took over his own creation. Though it sounds crazy even

were the stories I wanted to tell . . . and still do. He was an

to me, he became more real the more I learned about him.

confesses he

Olympic athlete because logic told me he had to have some

I didn’t get it all into the first Black Lightning series

doesn’t know

sort of edge that was not the result of science or muta-

in 1977, or his second in 1995, but, even 25-plus years ago,

tion.

Jeff was telling me about his life. I knew what events in

The only thing I didn’t have for my new character was

his childhood and teen years had shaped him. I knew his

a super-hero name. Jeff and I found that name in the office

moral character. I knew his religious affiliation—northern

of legendary editor Julius Schwartz. On Julie’s wall, I spotted

liberal Baptist. I knew why his marriage failed. I knew how

a Wonder Woman cover in which she was attempting to

he could come away from the Olympics with gold medals and never make a dime off that fame. I knew why it took him so long to get back to his Metropolis neighborhood. I knew who he was and why. And I admired him tremendously. Jefferson Pierce inspires me to this day. When I first agreed to this piece, BACK ISSUE editor Michael Eury gave me carte blanche to write about my ongoing conflicts with DC over their handling of my creation and their many failures to live up to the spirit of the original agreement under which I created Black Lightning. He gave me the okay to write about the poor treatment of African-American characters in comics and entertainment in general. He gave me the go-ahead to discuss the shocking lack of AfricanAmerican editors and writers. Jeff Pierce, who, by all rights, should be a DC Comics icon, steered me another way. Despite the unconscionable distortions he has suffered under editors and writers who neither appreciate nor understand him, he thought this piece should celebrate the positive things which have come from our partnership.

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Let’s start with the countless comics readers who have told me how much Black Lightning has meant and still means to them. Not a week goes by without my receiving an email or three to remind me that my dreams for this character still live. How about the popular entertainer who phoned me to tell me how much Lightning meant to him as a kid and how much my creation means to his own teenage son? His son and his friends went shopping at Comic-Con To appreciate and applaud the work of Dwayne McDuffie

The Heat is On

How about the highly decorated police officer who told

and Kyle Baker and Eddy Newell and Trevor Von Eeden

Black Lightning vs. the

me how Black Lightning and, to be fair, other comics heroes

and the Love Brothers and the many others I’ll soon be

Flash’s foe Heat Wave,

of his youth, made the difference between his being

kicking myself for not including in this roll call. To thank

another crime statistic and the man he is today, a man

all those, professionals and fans alike, who have champi-

who makes a positive difference in his community?

oned the cause of diversity in our beloved comic books.

International to complete their collection.

from The DC 1978 Calendar of Super-

How about the teachers? Three have told me that they

Jeff Pierce and I may never go adventuring together

Spectacular Disasters.

became teachers because of my Black Lightning stories. One

again, but we are pleased to be part of this issue and part

Art by Rich Buckler

of them chose to teach in an urban school district.

of the movement. The dream lives on!

and Vince Colletta.

Artists working in the comics industry today have told me that Lightning was their inspiration. Grown readers

– Tony Isabella

Courtesy of John Eury.

have told me that Lightning taught them about building families, both their own and extended ones. Whatever my personal disappointments, Jeff Pierce has achieved many of my hopes for him...though he didn’t want me to mention that. He is a man who inspires pride, not one who takes pleasure in being prideful. There is so much work to be done in promoting African-American and minority heroes in comics. There is so much work to be done in educating comics publishers on issues relating to African-American and minority characters, concerns, and creators. There is so much ignorance and unconscious—I sincerely hope—racism which must be overcome. Today, though, I put down my placard to instead celebrate all that has been accomplished thus far. To salute Black Lightning and John Stewart and Icon and Static and Blade and T’Challa and their too-few compatriots.

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Talent, like Suicide Slum Smackdown An unpublished version of Trevor Von Eeden’s cover to Black Lightning #4

interview

by Brian K. Morris

Conducted on June 26, 2004, transcribed by Brian K. Morris (copyedited by Trevor Von Eeden)

Courtesy of the artist.

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lightning Beginnings:

In 1977, boredom paid off for Trevor Von Eeden. Born in Guyana, South America, in

Black Lightning #1 (1977)

1959, Trevor and his family moved to America in 1970. An “A” student and voracious reader, he found himself bored by the teachers’ constant repetition for the slower students,

Milestones:

so Trevor began sketching in the borders of his books in the style of the comic books

Black Lightning / ”Dial ‘H’ For Hero ” in Adventure Comics / Green Arrow in World’s Finest Comics / Detective Comics / Power Man and Iron Fist / Batman / Batman Annual #8 / Gree n Arrow miniseries / Blue Ribbon Comics #2 / Thriller / Black Canary limited series / Batman and the Outsiders / Elseworlds 80-Page Giant #1 / Lege nds of the Dark Knight #16–20

he’d come to love. His best friend, fellow comics fan and harshest art critic Albert Simonson (no relation to Walt), convinced Trevor to submit art samples to their favorite company, DC Comics. Imagine the 16-year-old’s surprise when a form rejection letter contained a hand-written invitation: ”If you’re ever in the area, drop by and just say hello.” After a couple of tryout jobs, Trevor left his medical studies at Columbia University to draw a new title, Black Lightning, created by Tony Isabella. This was the first DC

Works in Progress:

Satan, the Hero (Cochran Publishin g) / Black Lightning and Thriller proposals

title with a black lead character, drawn by the first black artist hired by the company, also one of the youngest. Trevor remained on the title throughout its entire 11-issue run before moving to other DC titles, most notably Batman Annual #8, the “Venom”

Photo courtesy of Trevor Von Eeden .

storyline in Legends of the Dark Knight (which indirectly spun off the character of Bane), and the cult favorite, Thriller. As his career progressed, Trevor concentrated more on his work than “selling” himself to fandom at large, having attended very few comic conventions, either as a guest or a fan. Just as the repetitive nature of early American schooling bored Trevor, a lack of originality in the medium diverted his attention from mainstream comics until a friend showed him Outsiders #10 (2003) and he saw the current incarnation of Black Lightning. Trevor is a man who loves to learn, who sees the value in the English language, in education, in pride, and self-improvement. When he’s not drawing, Trevor attends classes at Columbia University with the goal of sharpening his writing skills. Now, with almost 30 years of comics experience behind him, he’s knocking on the door again. —Brian K. Morris BRIAN K. MORRIS: How’d you get your start in comics? TREVOR VON EEDEN: I went up [to the DC offices] and met Jack C. Harris who became my first editor up there. He showed me around, then took me to meet Joe Orlando. Now, the thing you’ve got to remember that I was 16 years old and I was from another country, an entirely different culture. All I knew about American culture was what I saw in the movies, television, or learned in school. Where I’d come from in South America, it’s very country, very rural. All low buildings and all that kind of stuff. No skyscrapers, no television, nothing. So anyhow, this whole culture was like a big adventure for me at the time. Of course, with DC Comics having me come in and see the place, and meet them in person, I felt like Alice in Wonderland. MORRIS: I’ll bet.

Family Matters

VON EEDEN: They met me and realized that I was black, which they couldn’t from my

The artist (center), flanked by his older sister,

drawings. Coincidentally, they were thinking about starting Black Lightning, so the timing was perfect. They hired me to design the costume and I was going to draw the first appear-

Mrs. Lorraine Von Eeden Williams (left), a nurse

ance of the character. That’s when I was officially introduced to Jack C. Harris. I wanted to

practitioner, and his mother, Mrs. Baban Von

mention him because in my entire career, I’ve only had three editors that actually had any

Eeden, also a registered nurse and, in the words

kind of effect on me because most editors, especially after I became famous, just took what I gave them and that’s it. I wanted to learn, so I had to teach myself. But Jack C. Harris, he was one of the nicest, most supportive people that I’d ever met. It was because of him that

of her loving son, “an all-around great person.” Photo courtesy of Trevor Von Eeden.

I felt comfortable working at DC from the start.

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So [Joe] said, “We have a black book we want

who has black appeal, rather than a black super-hero, per

you to do.” I didn’t know a thing about racism,

se. I don’t honestly recall any particular issue that Tony and I

I didn’t know a thing about black people in

did from a sociological point of view. I think they interspersed

America. All I knew is what I was taught in

a couple of characters who were students and had an impact

school so I had no idea what he was talking

on Jefferson’s [Pierce, Black Lightning’s alter ego] life, but I

about. I gave him a blank look and he went on,

don’t think they ever directed a message to black people.

“You’ll be creating this black super-hero and

There was the one issue with Superman where Black Lightning

we’d like you to draw the book.” I had no idea

sort of lectures Superman at the end about the slums and

that this was their first black super-hero. I had

not taking care of the blacks, but that wasn’t the main

no idea it meant anything. It’s just that I heard

thrust of the series. I believe at the time, we were just focusing

I was going to be drawing a comic book at 16

on selling a super-hero with a couple of neat adventures

years old and I was standing there, almost

and a cool costume. That he was black just happened to be

fainting. [laughs] He asked me if I’d do it and

a footnote in history, but we never really stressed on that

I said, “Sure, I’d be happy to.” He said, “We’re

a lot as far as exploiting it.

going to give you $22,” and I thought he meant

They treated me pretty well, overall. My only real criticism

for the whole book [instead of per page]. I was

was that I wish I’d had more critiques from them as an

Black Lightning Strikes!

so ecstatic. To me, that was an unheard-of sum. That was I was their youngest artist, and I was happy to have the

Adams. He was always very nice, very understanding. Just

DC Comics touted

job, the opportunity, so Jack kind of guided me through

being around the guy, watching him work, he just sat there

this hot new series

the rough spots and answered all my questions. I also met

in the middle of his studio, with people all around, and he’d

in the January 1977

Tony Isabella, who created the character. He was a short

turn out these beautiful masterpieces, one after the other.

like manna from Heaven.

edition of its Coming Attractions newsletter.

artist, from an editorial and commercial point of view. The most significant thing at that time was I met Neal

Italian, very, very nice guy.

And he was always willing to listen. He’d listen to you while

MORRIS: And would you say that Tony had captured the

he was working. He’d talk, give advice. He’s like this wonder-

“Black Experience” in the ’70s?

ful father figure once you didn’t come to him with ulterior

Courtesy of Trevor

VON EEDEN: Back when Tony was writing the first series,

motives, which is part of what he liked about me.

Von Eeden.

I believed they were just going for more of a super-hero

Anyhow, that was significant in my career because about the same time I was drawing Black Lightning, I started

working for [Neal], doing advertising work. He asked me to come in and while I was at his studio, I discovered Alex Toth’s work, discovered this whole new way of thinking in abstract black-and-white forms. So my first years were spent between Black Lightning, working for Neal, and then just meeting all the different people. But before I forget, the other editor who had an effect on my career was Dick Giordano. MORRIS: You worked with him on Thriller. VON EEDEN: Right. It was because of Dick that I was able to do the Batman Annual, which got me some notice. Neal’s studio sat next to where I met Dick. He’s completely generous with his time, his information and his knowledge. He was just very, very nice to me. [chuckles] Anyway, I had that inspiration to do my best—Neal Adams and Dick Giordano. I remember Neal once correcting me on the pronunciation of Dick last name; “Gee as in ‘G-Force,’ not “Gi” as in the karate outfit. Andy Helfer, who’s the third editor I mentioned, had an

The Roots of Black Lightning

impact on me because he was the only other guy who actually sought to make it better or say something about the work that he appreciated, because he noticed. He and I

Pencil art to page 17

did the 5-part “Grimm” storyline in Legends of the Dark Knight

of issue #1, courtesy

#149–153. It was inked by [José Luis] García-López and

of Trevor Von Eeden.

featured Robin’s first kiss, with a young African-American girl.

were all very friendly to me, but they always taught me

Dick Giordano, Andy Helfer, and Jack C. Harris, they

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coming out in the work, but I’m sure I did. MORRIS: There are a lot of subtleties in expressions in your work, even from your early Swan-Buscema days. VON EEDEN: Yeah, that was one of the things I was pretty happy with. [laughs] You know, about the Vinnie [Colletta] inks, he lost a lot of what I actually did pride myself on, the subtleties of expression and gesture. MORRIS: Throughout DC’s history, the editorial offices made sure there wasn’t much variance from the

“My Curt Swan Period”

standard image of Superman. Did you encounter any of that?

Trevor Von Eeden

VON EEDEN: No, I specifically tried from a professional point of view. They always gave me advice or they’d say something that would trigger off a realization in my head. They appreciated the situation I was in. I was so young and I was in this big pond swimming around, but I really didn’t have a sense of direction because I didn’t know where I was. In essence, they approached me from that point of view whereas other editors approached me from the point of view of this uppity young artist who’s in an enviable position and seemed like a nice guy, but “I don’t really have anything to tell him that I think would help him in his career.” That was mostly the attitude. MORRIS: Which doesn’t speak much for them as editors, really. VON EEDEN: Well, it doesn’t. [laughs] I got it from Dick and Andy and Jack, but I would have appreciated some kind of constructive criticism or reaction to the work, rather than this eternal condescending schmoozing that I got. But the main focus for me was the work, having the script and having the responsibility of doing it the way I

my best to draw a Curt Swan Superman. I don’t know if I knew

was influenced

that was going to happen or because I liked Curt Swan, but

by the classic

no, they didn’t change anything.

Superman artist.

MORRIS: Frank Springer inked the first couple issues, then Colletta. At the time, what did you think about having some-

one else ink you? VON EEDEN: Oh, I hated it. Actually, I have Xeroxes of my pencils and if you have copies of the book, you can see what

Lightning-Paced Layouts

Vinnie can do. I really didn’t like Vinnie’s inking on my work and I really didn’t like Frank Springer’s inks, but I wasn’t an inker. That’s why I tried to learn to ink my own work. Again, that was

Compare Trevor’s

the downside of my adventure in Happyland, to have to put

panel breakdowns to

up with that. [laughs] I mean, I really hate to dump on the guy,

his finished (lettered)

but I hated his work, to tell the truth.

pencils on pages 2 and

MORRIS: Who would you rather have ink you, aside from almost anybody?

3 of Black Lightning #4.

VON EEDEN: [laughs] I didn’t have that sense of power at

Courtesy of the artist.

that time to pick and choose who would ink me. It’s like,

thought was the right way. So all the negative stuff was muffled by the noise of the fanfare, so to speak. [chuckles] MORRIS: While re-reading your Black Lightnings, I noticed a little bit of Neal Adams in some of your faces. VON EEDEN: Oh, that was nice of Neal Adams to help me through my Curt Swan period. [laughs] Curt Swan is one of my all-time favorite pencilers. MORRIS: I see that in your early work. The lines are so clean. VON EEDEN: Yeah, that’s what I loved about his work. Everything was so clearly delineated, everything is just so well-drawn and had a nice balance. MORRIS: And every muscle is in place, every fold of fabric. VON EEDEN: I’m interested that you saw Neal in some of my early Black Lightning stuff because I can look back and see the Curt Swan for sure, and a little bit of John Buscema who I was enamored of at the time—well, I still am. I’d known Neal’s work, but since I was working actually with him while doing Black Lightning, I wasn’t really aware of it

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“Hey, I’m glad you gave

I moved out of my mother’s home in the Bronx, I got a small

me the strip and then you

studio in Queens, and I devoted myself wholeheartedly to

give me money. Do what

developing my work to the point where it would be so

you want.” [laughs] I didn’t

good, it wouldn’t matter that I was black or red or yellow

have the nerve to say, “I

or whatever. Out of that came Batman Annual #8 in 1982.

prefer this guy or that

So the whole idea of the blackness of the character, or my

guy.” You know what

status, or being black in the situation I was in was actually

happened, Brian?

an impetus for me to develop myself to the point where I

MORRIS: What?

felt I deserved what I had.

VON EEDEN: One time,

Another factor was I didn’t go to any conventions. This

Joe Orlando called me into

is kind of significant because throughout the early years of

his office and told me that

my career, I never really had a relationship with the fans.

somebody had told Vinnie

I’d never met them in person. I was always dealing with

that I didn’t like his work

the editors and the professionals in their offices.

and Vinnie was really upset.

MORRIS: Was this deliberate?

So Joe took me into Vinnie’s

VON EEDEN: No, I led a sheltered existence. At the time I

office and had me tell Vinnie

started to work at DC in ’76, I didn’t know much about the

that I didn’t say that. And

comics field from a consumer point of view. I was a comics fan

the thing is I didn’t. It was

and everything I did was to satisfy me, but I had no idea of the

a rumor, somehow, that

business world of comics. I was operating in a happy vacuum

somebody said. But the fact

where it was me and DC and work and the strip, and that was

is that I didn’t tell him I

it. At the beginning of my career, I really had no connection

liked his work either. He

to the fans and in a way, that kind of helped to develop the

seemed like a nice guy, but

specific point of view in my artwork. But at the same time, it

I was really crushed when

hurt as far as a lot of opportunities or business deals I could

I saw what he did on my

have made when I was younger. So that was the downside of

Black Lightnings. I shouldn’t

that kind of overnight success.

Black Lightning #5

have said anything. [chuckles] I think Bob Smith and Larry Mahlstedt inked me pretty well on a couple of the “Green

Von Eeden’s cover

gone to some conventions in recent years and gotten feedback

Arrows” I did for World’s Finest. But the actual level of

from the fans.

pencil art to the

encouragement I’ve gotten in the business has been pretty low, to tell you the truth.

second part of the

MORRIS: What, as far as being your own inker?

Superman crossover,

VON EEDEN: No, as far as my feeling that they appreciated

courtesy of the artist.

what I was trying to do. I felt that if you were going to give me this kind of inking, then you really didn’t care too much

for my work. [chuckles] Mostly, I was always treated with a certain patronizing condescension, kind of like I was a novelty act. That also spurred me to say, “I’ve got to become a real artist.” I felt I was doing something good and I was happy that they accepted it. They published it, but I didn’t get a lot of pats on the back along the way. After Black Lightning, after Jack C. and I parted ways, it was a pretty solitary time. Back then, I’d never seen myself as being one of them, like a professional comic-book artist, because of how easily

Them’s Fightin’ Words

I’d gotten the position. In my early career, the whole thing was just to kind of justify my having a job. And then about

BL faces a super

five years into it, when I was about 22 or so, I finally realized

mad-on in Trevor Von

what the racial element was. That came in very slowly, as

Eeden’s lettered

far as the significance of the character, the history of comics, being the first DC black-American super-hero, and I started

pencils from issue #5.

to feel that maybe I got the job because I was black, rather than because my work was good.

What I did was I said, “I’ve really got to take this seriously.”

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MORRIS: That’s a shame, because you mentioned that you’ve

VON EEDEN: I wish I had gone to conventions back then

they thought I repre-

because the fans are wonderful, wonderful people, at least

sented. “I’ll be nice to

the ones I’ve met. But back then, the one convention I

this guy, he’s the first

remember distinctly going to as a professional was one

black artist. He’s got

where they touted Thriller. I sat on a table in front of an

c o n n e c t i o n s . H e ’s

audience, answered a couple of questions, and I remember

important.” But it was

feeling very self-conscious, but that was about it. I don’t

never enmity, it was

recall interacting with too many people. I just walked around

never hostility, it was a

and checked out the different exhibits.

very peculiar diffi-

MORRIS: What was your relationship with Tony Isabella

dence—or deference.

on Black Lightning? Did you get a lot of feedback from him?

MORRIS: Was there

VON EEDEN: Tony actually provided me with the pages

any pressure from DC

with the panels drawn in, laid out for me. His intention

to make Black Lightning

was to write the script and show me how he envisioned it

more “street”?

being laid out. We didn’t spend a lot of time together in

VON EEDEN: No, I

person that I can recall, but we spoke over the phone and

think they deliberately

his scripts were pretty comprehensive.

didn’t, as a reaction to

MORRIS: Did you feel that if you thought of a different way

Cage, to not make him

to tell the story, you could?

Luke Cage-ish at all. But

VON EEDEN: Of course, that was always a given. The way I

no one ever came to me

saw my job was to tell the story, make it good, and then

or said anything directly

make it better. Plus, I always had to have a reason for what

what to do or what not

I did. I didn’t just make arbitrary changes because “Oh, it

to do. I just always got

looks pretty to me.” That was the essence of my approach

a script, did my best

to my art, and this is why I was discouraged by either the

and Jack would help me

silence or the lack of commentary about my work, rather

smooth it out. There

than questions like “Why did you do that?” Because every time

was no political aware-

that I turned something in that I felt was a bit new, I would

ness on my part, or any

expect them to have me explain why I did that, and they

kind of political instructions from editorial. I got a chance

didn’t. So I figured, “Oh, good. They understood.” But they

to draw comic books and they paid me for it.

didn’t, really.

MORRIS: In #10, you and Tony are working together—

MORRIS: This attitude you kept encountering, do you think it

VON EEDEN: I remember specifically them telling me to draw (#10) like Carmine Infantino, but I don’t think they notified the fans. It looked like I was doing something weird. [laughs] They specifically asked me to do their idea of an homage, but I never knew why. I don’t recall who it was that told me. I guess it must have been Jack, who was the editor. I remember that really bothered me.

was due to editorial nonchalance, your age or what? VON EEDEN: I think in retrospect, because retrospect and hindsight are a wonderful thing [laughs], I think it had to do with editorial ennui, but I personally think a lot of it had to do with my appearance. MORRIS: You think so? VON EEDEN: Yeah, I think so because my name and my work preceded me and people always think I’m six feet tall and blue-eyed and Aryan with a name like “Von Eeden.” [laughs] But, God, I’m like five-foot-six and I’m dark-skinned and I’m from South America. The thing is I got the job at such a young age. Every editor I met would have this look, like they were stunned that this little kid was actually a comic-book artist working for them. I don’t think it was outright hostility, which I’ve never encountered. I don’t think it was any kind of overt racism

MORRIS: Really? Why’s that? VON EEDEN: They didn’t give any reason for it and they didn’t tell the fans that it was a tribute. It was like very strange Trevor Von Eeden artwork. MORRIS: —then in #11, the final issue, Denny O’Neil is scripting.

The Young Artist

VON EEDEN: I don’t think I did a good job on that one, as I recall, because I did that story much too quickly. But I remember I was pretty miffed after the Carmine thing, so maybe it was like an old tantrum.

have something to say, it was more in the nature of . . . I can’t

MORRIS: [laughs] Is that why this was your last issue of Black Lightning?

say it was criticism because it wasn’t really constructive

VON EEDEN: No, I believe it was due to lack of sales.

toward my artwork. I’d get this stunned incredulity where I guess they liked what I did. I think—and again, this is hind-

MORRIS: Were there any editors that you would have liked to work with to get feedback?

sight—it was also partly, maybe deference towards what

VON EEDEN: Yeah, Denny O’Neil, Roy Thomas. Julie

because I personally wouldn’t tolerate that. When they did

Not a Perfect Match

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Trevor Von Eeden in December 1983. Photo courtesy of the artist.

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Schwartz, he was always so nice

is the first guy I would call if I had the opportunity to work

worked with him.

with a writer, or even Tony himself. From a marketing point of

MORRIS: There are people who

view, that would be terrific; me and Tony back again.

choose to be positive role models

MORRIS: That would rock.

—and I’ll steer it back to the comics

VON EEDEN: What I would really like to do is to work with

again—like Jefferson Pierce.

someone who could relate to the idea of Black Lightning being

VON EEDEN: [laughs] Yeah, the whole

this symbolic leader of black people in America; symbolic like

idea of Jefferson Pierce being a teacher,

Wonder Woman will always represent women, period, because

I’m biased towards teachers because

that’s her character. Black Lightning has always been DC’s first

they’ve been good to me. [laughs]

black character and he has that kind of responsibility socially.

MORRIS: Both of my parents were

[DC] brought the character back in, like, ’93, and they

teachers and I married one, so

gave him a new costume, he lived in Brick City, and he

I understand.

fought drug dealers. It’s like stereotype after stereotype. You

VON EEDEN: That’s amazing. I’m

know, the art was good. Eddy Newell did some beautiful

speechless. [laughs]

stuff, especially the all-pencil issue (#5), but here’s Black

MORRIS: Sorry, I didn’t mean to do

Lightning being a street thug. At the time, they’d given me

that to you. [laughs] Another reason I

Black Canary to do and once I found out Black Lightning

liked Black Lightning was, he’s a

was back, I tried to get that book, but they were already

teacher who’s giving the kids of

like in the middle of it.

Suicide Slum knowledge, hope, and a

Then about three or four months ago, I picked up a copy

way out. However, nobody’s going to

of The Outsiders and I saw that Black Lightning is back. He’s

pay to see somebody draw on a blackboard. That’s why we

in the costume I designed and he’s now the Secretary of

need the costume and the lightning bolts. [laughs]

Education. I’m actually in the process of doing some samples

VON EEDEN: That’s the problem, to create characters that

to try to get at least one issue of that book because it’s my

the public identify with, that’ll hold their interest while

costume, I get to do one issue. [laughs] I think the way to

they go through whatever they have to, to get your point

appeal to a mass audience in a positive way as a black

across. Also, finding a writer. To my knowledge, there

super-hero is not to go to stereotype, but to stress the whole

aren’t many black writers in the business and the powers

idea of education, saying, “Okay, slavery—that’s the past.

that be at DC, unless they’ve changed a lot, are so kind of

Here we are in the present, let’s work together to build a

tight-assed when it comes to a black character.

future. Let’s show some positive examples. Let’s show the

MORRIS: Why would you say that?

importance and effects of a good education.”

VON EEDEN: Oh, really because they haven’t had the experience. I mean there’s a reason why [I’m] so feted as the first black artist, because there aren’t many of us. [chuckles] It’s not something they’re really in touch with as much because the standard demographics represent a white cultural bias in comics that has been going on for years and years and years. But it’s becoming more color conscious, and more colorblind, and more colorful. [laughs] They’re integrating all these new points of view in their strengths, so DC is now more open to going in a whole new direction as far as what it means to be a black character in comics. It’s like they’re sold on Black Lightning, but I don’t know who would write it effectively because I don’t know who’s in touch with, basically, the homeboy on the streets as well as the corporate execs and the high-tech. The whole point is to have someone that can understand the point of view from which we try to communicate. That shouldn’t be too hard nowadays. Alex Simmons is really good. MORRIS: There’s also Christopher Priest. VON EEDEN: I’m kind of jumping the gun on Black Lightning. He doesn’t even have his own solo series anymore, but I’m thinking as far as what direction I would take

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the character, given the opportunity. I know Alex Simmons

to me. I always wished I could have

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MORRIS: I always thought Jefferson Pierce was planting the seeds of goodness, if you will, in his students, but Black Lightning was for problems that needed an immediate answer, and often violent ones. VON EEDEN: But that shouldn’t be the focus of the book. My point is to me, Black Lightning, as a hero who is a teacher with a secret identity, has such an incredibly singular opportunity because they can use both facets, the teacher and the crime fighter. They can mesh those elements and have a significant impact on young kids in the culture. MORRIS: And right now, comics are desperately lacking in any role models. VON EEDEN: Tell me about it. [laughs] I have no intention of alienating whatever audience I may have. I’d like to entertain them. I don’t want to compromise what I have to say, but I’d like to say it in a way that attracts people and then causes them to think. You can’t assault them, or play on their guilt, or you’re just perpetuating hatred. The problem is to find someone who can really write these things. MORRIS: Well, that’s what you’re going back to school for, right? VON EEDEN: [chuckles] I’ll get some ideas together and see what I can do. But I like to talk about Black Lightning because the timing is so great. For the first time in three years, I open up a comic and there he is, he’s back. And when I decide to try to get him again, you want to interview me. That’s a pretty good omen. Hopefully, I’ll be working on a Black Lightning story when this comes out.

MORRIS: You’re working on a BL proposal, maybe a Thriller proposal, and your schoolwork, right? I should say the summer break opportunity, to try and jump

Dynamic Improvement

back into the comic-book world.

Recent pencils

VON EEDEN: Yeah, taking the spring break opportunity, or

MORRIS: And how soon will you be done with school?

from Trevor

VON EEDEN: Probably another three years. I’ll be drawing

Von Eeden.

comic books to help pay for this tuition. [laughs] It’s really

Wow!

so neat. I was really apprehensive about going back to school this late in my life. Who wants to be around young kids? The

thing is, it’s so cool. It’s just such a nice change of perspective. MORRIS: Do they know that you are the Artist, Trevor Von Eeden? VON EEDEN: The first couple of classes, we had to talk about ourselves and I mentioned that and oh, what a big deal and everything, but I don’t think I’ll mention it again. [laughs] MORRIS: They weren’t impressed? VON EEDEN: Oh, no, they were. In fact, in my writing class, my teacher got a little pissed because the students kind of deferred to me more than they did to her. [laughs] The comic-book thing, it kind of impresses them, but I really like the learning experience and oh, jeez, the girls are so cute. Some beauties to look at and you get to learn something—so it’s working out just fine.

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The Perfect

Peter Sanderson

When Giant-Size X-Men #1 came out in 1975, people referred to the international roster of mutant super-heroes it introduced as the “new” X-Men. But here we are in the early 21st century, and the new X-Men are now 30 years old. Several of these veterans, like Nightcrawler and Colossus, became mainstays of the Marvel Universe; Wolverine turned into a star nearly as popular among comics readers as Spider-Man himself. Yet perhaps the most innovative character among the new X-Men was Ororo Munroe, better known as Storm, who has the mutant ability winds that carry her aloft in flight, discharge

Storm by John Romita, Sr.

lightning bolts, and, as her name suggests, create

From The Uncanny

actual storms. She was one of the first of a new

Dave Cockrum Benefit

wave of super-heroines who were shown to be the

Book (see ad in this

to manipulate the weather. She can conjure up

equals of their male colleagues in courage, skill, and

issue). Courtesy of

power. Like Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Black Panther, she was one of the first super-heroes with an African

John Romita, Sr.,

cultural heritage. Storm was also the first significant

Clifford Meth, and

African-American super-heroine, and today remains

Heritage Comics.

THE GATHERING STORM How was Storm created? “Boy, this is a complicated one,” says her co-creator Len Wein. It is indeed. Nor only were several people involved in the initial creation of Storm, but the original writer’s concept for the character was almost immediately radically revised by his successor. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created the original X-Men series in 1963, but, strange as this may seem to today’s X-Men fans, the book was eventually canceled due to low sales. In the mid-1970s, it was decided to attempt to revive the series, revamping it to feature a cast of new X-Men from various countries. The team assigned to the project consisted of one of Marvel’s leading writers, Len Wein, and artist Dave Cockrum, a fan favorite thanks to his

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memorable work on DC’s [Superboy starring the] Legion

company. “I know that he created Nightcrawler to be

of Super-Heroes.

a member of the Legion of Substitute Heroes,” Byrne

The story starts with artist Dave Cockrum and his

states, “and DC said no, he’s just too weird. [laughs]

astonishing creativity. “Dave, of course,” comments John

What does this tell us?” (Maybe that DC had changed

Byrne, “is one of those guys who was designing, creating

since it published the aggressively weird Doom Patrol

characters all the time.” Byrne says that Cockrum has

in the 1960s, a series that Byrne himself has since revived.)

“Tons and tons of sketchbooks full of drawings of all these

“Somewhere along the way,” Wein continues, “she

really cool characters,” but adds that “only a few of them

got the name Storm.” Though Wein and Cockrum had

ever see the light of day.” Agreeing that Cockrum’s prolific

dropped the character’s cat motif, they kept her cat-like

creativity is Kirbyesque, Byrne says that Cockrum “could

eyes. “Even though they no longer fit the character, we

hand some little publisher a sketchbook and say, ‘Here’s

liked them too much to drop them.”

a universe.’”

As for her “real” name, “I came up with the name

“Storm sort of started as a sketch in Dave’s book,”

‘Ororo’ on my own, going to the local library to do

recalls Wein, “but as a character called the Black Cat.”

research on the new character,” Wein says. “‘Ororo,’ as

Wein adds, “It’s why she had those cat’s eyes, by the way.”

I recall, means ‘beautiful’ in Swahili.”

(Cockrum’s Black Cat had the same name as a celebrated

Ah, but some of you are thinking, Storm’s full name

Golden Age super-heroine. Of course, that Black Cat was

is Ororo Munroe. But Len Wein didn’t come up with

white; there weren’t black super-heroes in mainstream

“Munroe,” a name that is decidedly not African. That

comics back then. Cockrum’s Black Cat also preceded her

would not fit with his original concept of the character.

namesake in the Spider-Man series, who debuted in 1979

JUNGLE GODDESS

and is also white.) Cockrum’s Black Cat didn’t have Storm’s familiar

When Professor Charles Xavier invites Storm to join

weather powers, but another of his sketchbook creations

the new X-Men in the landmark Giant-Size X-Men #1,

did. “There was also a male character who controlled the

she lives on the Serengeti plains of Kenya, close to

weather whom we called Tempest,” Wein reveals. “Trouble is, neither character was jelling properly. While we liked the Black Cat visual, her powers were unnecessary. While we liked Tempest’s powers, his personality wasn’t working out.” So now another important figure in Marvel history enters the tale. I’ve been writing about X-Men history for over 20 years, and I had never known before writing this article that Roy Thomas played a key role in the creation of Storm. Thomas had taken over from Stan Lee as writer of the original X-Men series in the 1960s, and in the 1970s Thomas succeeded Lee as Marvel’s editor in chief. It was Thomas’s idea to revive the X-Men as an international team. “It was Roy Thomas who suggested taking the Tempest powers and giving them to the Black Cat character, thus

The Black Cat

solving the problem,” Wein reveals. “We did so. David

Artist Dave Cockrum’s

did a redesign to the Black Cat costume, adding the

original interpretation

headpiece and the glider cape, among other things.” “Dave showed me his sketchbook years ago,” John

of the character

Byrne says, and he not only saw Cockrum’s Storm

who would become

sketch but also his original drawing of Nightcrawler.

Storm. Courtesy of

“The original version of Nightcrawler had red and yellow

Dave Cockrum and

stripes on his boots and gloves, but other than that was exactly the same.”

Roy Thomas.

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know as Nightcrawler for a different series at a different

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Mount Kilimanjaro. She is virtually naked, clad only in

So one could think of the

a sort of loincloth; her long hair flows across her breasts,

Serengeti as Storm’s Smallville, the

satisfying the requirements of the Comics Code. Like

relatively remote place where she

Eve before the Fall, Ororo has no sense of shame about

grew up and learned to master her

nudity; this fact in itself reveals that she is not part of

emerging superhuman abilities.

Western society. She has an innocence about her, linked to her connection with the world of nature. As readers see in Giant-Size X-Men #1, Ororo is

NEW AUTHOR, NEW ORIGIN

regarded by an African tribe as a goddess, and she uses

Having co-created the new X-

her powers over the weather for their benefit.

Men, Wein left the series almost

Nonetheless, Ororo accepts Xavier’s invitation and ends

immediately. He wrote Giant-Size

up in his Westchester County mansion, where he gives

X-Men #1, but only plotted the

her the code name Storm. “It was my idea to make her a goddess,” Wein states.

first two issues of the regular series, #94 and 95. (In those more

“I just liked the idea of the ‘fish out of water’ concept.”

commercially innocent times,

In his conception, when Storm joined the X-Men, “Ororo

the new X-Men continued the

went from someone whose every word was law to

numbering from the original

someone who suddenly found herself an equal among

series, rather than debuting as

equals. That was something that took a bit of getting

issue number one.) Wein turned

used to.” It would seem, then, that had Wein remained

the scripting of those issues over

as X-Men writer, Storm would have interacted with

to newcomer Chris Claremont,

Xavier and her teammates in a very different manner.

who took over full writing chores

“By making her someone who suddenly had to learn

with issue #96; Dave Cockrum

how to interrelate with others as an equal, it gave us

remained on board as artist and

potential story areas,” Wein points out.

collaborator.

John Byrne has a somewhat different take on the

Claremont took characters

effect being a “goddess” had on Ororo. “If we go back to

that Wein had co-created for the

Giant-Size #1, she clearly grew up largely alone. If you

new X-Men in directions sharply

look at the introductory scene, she wasn’t hanging out

different than what Wein intend-

with the villagers; the villagers went to her. So she was

ed. As stated in BACK ISSUE #4’s

clearly holding herself apart from the commoners.”

“Greatest Stories Never Told” column, Wein intended

Byrne agrees that the villagers themselves may have

Wolverine to be a teenager and for his claws to be part

thought it was inappropriate for them to associate with

of his costume. Wein thought Nightcrawler would be a

a “goddess.”

morose, brooding figure, and saw Colossus as the central

So does this mean that Ororo was actually deeply

Goddess by Grell Mike Grell may not be known as an X-Men artist, but he’s been woefully absent from these pages (but not for long) and we couldn’t resist sharing his gorgeous rendition of Storm with you. Courtesy of Ted Latner (www.comicsfun.com).

figure of the team.

lonely, and that hence belonging to the X-Men gave

Storm was no exception to the rule. Wein intended

her a sense of family and community that she had

that Ororo’s background was just what Giant-Size X-Men

been missing? “I would suspect that that’s right,” Chris

#1 implied it had been: that she was a mutant who was

Claremont agrees.

born into an African tribe and had lived her entire life

Claremont also points out that Storm’s sojourn in

on the Serengeti plains. “All the evidence we really had

the Serengeti was important for her self-education in

to go on in the first issue was there: that she was African,

utilizing her powers over the weather. “It’s been alluded

that she was revered as a goddess,” says Claremont,

to more than once that in her learning curve she

adding, “backstory was nonexistent.” Not having had

unwittingly created some ecological disasters while

the time or space to show Ororo’s past on panel, Wein

trying to help her people. Unlike Thor, whose hammer

had left Claremont an opening to construct a backstory

magically makes weather appear, for Storm to bring

for her in issue #102 that surely took both Wein and

rain to her drought-stricken corner of the continent,

the readers by surprise.

someone else lost water. And part of her experience

First, Ororo had not been born in Kenya, but in

during those years in Kenya was a learning curve on

Harlem! She was the daughter of an American named

how to wield her powers in concert, in balance with

David Munroe and his African wife N’Dare. The family

the biosphere. She could not just whistle up a macrostorm

moved to Cairo, Egypt, where catastrophe struck during

and not have to pay for it somewhere else.”

the Suez crisis of the 1950s. A French plane crashed

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into the building where the Munroes lived, killing

This coincides with the fact that her powers are on the

Ororo’s parents outright. Ororo was buried alive amid

verge of catalyzing, and in a sense her relationship with

the rubble. Though she dug her way out, this traumatic

the natural balance of the Earth makes her simpatico with

experience left her with her lifelong Achilles’ heel: severe

it, and in effect she’s being drawn back to the land of

claustrophobia, an intense, nearly paralyzing fear of

her birth.” According to Claremont’s original telling in issue

enclosed spaces.

Ladies Night

The orphaned Ororo found a protector and mentor

#102, as Ororo grew older, she felt an instinctual

in the master thief Achmed el-Gibar, who taught her his

compulsion to travel south. So she undertook a long

craft. This is the period when she became a master

journey by foot across the Sahara desert into equatorial

lockpick, gaining a talent she continues to utilize as an

Africa. Finally, on the Serengeti plains she met the tribe

adult, notably in Uncanny X-Men #113. Claremont and

with whom Xavier found her. Her mutant powers over

Byrne gave the child Ororo a surprise cameo in issue

the weather had emerged, and she became the tribe’s

#117’s flashback to Charles Xavier’s first encounter with

living goddess.

Amahl Farouk, the Shadow King, in Cairo: Ororo picks

Storm has “girl

However intriguing this more complex backstory may be, what was Claremont’s motive in diverging so

Xavier’s pocket and runs off.

time”—late ’70s style

Eventually, Ororo decided to leave Cairo. In later

radically from the simplicity of Wein’s origin concept?

—with Phoenix, Ms.

years Claremont elaborated on the reasons why. “What

“I think the deriving rationale was to make her that

Marvel, Invisible Girl,

happened was her situation in Cairo became untenable,”

much more accessible to our core audience,” Claremont

and Black Widow,

Claremont explains. “She was the object of the Shadow

responds, “to give her some point of contact, of anchorage,

King’s desire from childhood. At some point her mentor,

whatever, with the United States. In Kurt [Nightcrawler]

Achmed el-Gibar, is put in a metaphorical box: Someone

we had a totally foreign character [from Germany].

wants Storm, presumably the Shadow King, and will

Banshee is Irish. Wolverine is Canadian, for whatever

not take no for an answer. She has to get out of town.

that’s worth. For me, anyway, I thought it would be some

more positive change or direction to give her a bridge to the New World, so to speak.” Claremont also saw thematic significance in giving Ororo both an African and African-American background. “It was also partly a metaphor for the whole mutant question: that she’s a product of two worlds.” Wein contends that he accurately depicted the African milieu in which he set Storm. “I did do some research into African tribes and their customs as I researched all of the international backgrounds of the various new characters,” he asserts. Yet another of Claremont’s motives in re-conceptualizing Storm’s background was his uneasiness with “the idea of African tribes, even a remote African tribe, in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s, worshipping someone like her as a goddess.” The Giant-Size Storm seems reminiscent of the old-fashioned popular fiction tradition of the “jungle goddess.” Even Byrne, who prefers Wein’s origin concept for Storm to Claremont’s, likens the Giant-Size X-Men #1 version of Ororo to Audrey Hepburn’s role in the movie Green Mansions (1959). “Do you want to start with the whole Rima the Jungle Girl hypothesis that she popped into being out of whole cloth,” Claremont asks, “or try for something that had a measure of contemporary relevance?” “The aspects of Tarzan that made it remotely plausible in 1910 were fraying at the edges by the time you got to the ’30s,” Claremont asserts, “and if you advance it to the ’50s or ’60s [or ’70s], the growth or the intrusion

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of modern technology and society into even the hinterlands of Africa made that kind of fantasy less plausible.” How isolated are the Serengeti plains or Mount Kilimanjaro, anyway? They’re major tourist attractions! “It’s also the world is coming in,” Claremont explains, noting that by the middle ’70s, “they were having Commonwealth games in Nairobi. We’re not talking the back end of creation here. “It is First or Second World hubris, I think, to presume that just because she comes from Africa the area where she lives is dumber than Appalachia is supposed to be. It’s like saying that because Sam [Guthrie, alias Cannonball, whom Claremont co-created for The New Mutants] is from Appalachia that he’s a dolt, a country bumpkin. The point was always to find the essence of the character in an origin that transcended stereotype.” In other words, Claremont finds it hard to believe that Serengeti tribespeople of the late 20th century would be so unsophisticated as to think that a mortal woman like Storm, however powerful, was a goddess. “So,” Claremont asserts, “I would suspect if one were to go back and revisit those years, it would not be as absolute a relationship as those two or three panels imply. There would be more to it than ‘Miracle Girl’ shows up, tribes bow down, everybody worships her.”

INNOCENCE REGAINED What about Ororo’s innocence of the ways of civilization beyond the Serengeti? Not only would she have childhood memories of her life with her parents, but she spent years

as all the other X-Men had it happen in a time and

as a thief in Cairo!

place that forced them to become more aware of the

Here Claremont has an intriguing thesis: “The inno-

world and its vicissitudes.” For example, Nightcrawler

cence can be something that she grew into.” As a child

was persecuted and nearly murdered because he was a

Ororo suffered the dual traumas of her parents’ deaths

mutant. Ororo instead found a society where she was

and being buried alive, and then she became a criminal.

honored for her mutant abilities.

She lost her innocence of the world’s evils at a very early age. One could even say that she had no real

STORM’S ROOTS

childhood after her parents’ deaths.

Though Claremont gave Storm an American father, he

However, Claremont says, “Whatever her earliest

has paradoxically extended Wein’s concept of her African

childhood, her middle years and adolescence were in

roots far beyond what Wein had imagined. In New Mutants

an environment and a circumstance that allowed her

#32 (1985), Claremont introduced Ashake, an ancestor of

to grow into her innocence. That instead if being born

Storm who lived in the time of ancient Egypt, and

into a state of primal nature, she grew into it.”

established that Ororo was descended through her

By traveling to the plains of Kenya, leaving modern

This, unexpectedly, ties in with an old controversy

of this Serengeti tribe, and beginning a new life in this

about Storm. Just how “black” does she look? Storm

world of nature, Ororo regained this childhood innocence

has been criticized for having Caucasian features.

that her actual childhood lacked.

Certainly she has white, or as Claremont says, silver

Claremont says that it was “Almost like being born

Steve Fastner and Rich Larson did some astounding Marvel covers a while back—here’s their take on Storm and the X-Men’s extreme fitness center, the Danger Room. Courtesy of Aaron Sultan.

mother N’Dare from a line of African sorceresses.

civilizations to become part of the traditional culture

again. In a sense, [gaining] mutant powers is a rebirth.

You in Danger, Girl!

hair, and it’s naturally straight. And then there are those large blue eyes.

In her case it occurred in a time and a place that

John Byrne has no patience with this argument: “I

allowed her to embrace her primal innocence, where-

think it’s kind of racist to say that she’s white-looking

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when you consider the range of features that black people and white people and everybody else have. She doesn’t look as if she’s from sub-Saharan Africa, but according to Chris and Dave she’s not. So why should she? She was born in Harlem, for crying out loud.” On the other hand, Claremont agrees that Storm has Caucasian features, but he’s devised a inspired rationale for them. He explains that the idea for making Storm the descendant of African sorceresses “grew out of my reading, in the early ’80s, I think, [paleontologist] Richard Leakey’s Eve hypothesis, the idea that based on examination of mitochondrial DNA that it looks like the entire human species per se is descended from a single female protohominid. And the joke I had with myself is that if I ever went back and showed this,” the proto-hominid would look like Storm! an amalgam of all the racial phenotypes on the globe,” Claremont explains. He then admits, “Her actual features are generally portrayed as more Caucasian than African.” But he continues, “the blue eyes, the silver hair, are

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O’Donnell, who has chronicled her adventures in both comic strips and novels, Modesty Blaise is the prototype for today’s female action heroes. So it should be no surprise that Modesty Blaise was an important influence on Claremont’s own depictions of independent, capable heroines. (Claremont even named a regular supporting character in the Wolverine series after O’Donnell.) Len Wein is not happy at all about the Modesty Blaise influence on Storm’s revamped origin. “While I was a fan of much of what Chris Claremont did with the X-Men, there was never anything I hated more than his blatantly and pasting it onto Storm,” Wein thunders. “It was just wrong in every possible way.” John Byrne also disapproves of the Blaise factor in Storm’s origin, but less vehemently. In a rather philosophical tone, he avers that in Claremont’s body of work, “Sooner or later at least one character per book turns

generations in her bloodline. If you went back, you might

into Modesty Blaise.”

find that the original Eve had silver hair and blue eyes.

Claremont jokingly admits O’Donnell’s influence

As I said, if you went down her family tree you would find

on Storm’s involvement with Achmed el-Gibar: “If you’re

a female every five generations or so would manifest

going to swipe, swipe from the best.” But, more seriously,

these characteristics. One might be a sorceress, another

Claremont contends that Storm’s backstory is by no

might be what might be partially considered a mutant.”

means an exact copy of Modesty’s. “If you go back and

Claremont asserts that this is “no more or less plausible

read Peter O’Donnell’s origin, she was sort of adopted

in that sense than being the descendant of a whole line

and then was mentored by a professor in the internment

of Slayers.” (Years after Claremont revealed Storm’s

camp where they were interned. He taught her; he

ancestry, Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon

educated her; he kept them alive. You could argue that

likewise established that the line of Slayers derives

the relationship was actually an echo of [that of] Kim and his holy man in Rudyard Kipling’s Kim. [It’s] Much the

There was also another reason why Claremont made

same sort of situation, except that in Modesty’s case he

Storm the descendant of sorceresses. “Part of it was to

dies and she takes off on her own and hooks up with

create a mythic rationale for why she was considered a

the sheik of some totally fictional but otherwise plausibly

goddess. Rather than just like here are these poor

sounding Middle Eastern nation that just happens to

benighted savages, and here’s this creature of power

be sitting on a whole lot of oil.”

and they go, ‘Ooooo,’ let’s give it a rationale consistent

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backstory of Modesty Blaise. Created by England’s Peter

unique characteristics that come up once every five

from Africa.)

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As for Ororo’s literary ancestry, her life as a child thief with an older, male protector is clearly inspired by the

stealing the origin of Modesty Blaise almost verbatim

“The way Dave designed her, to me in a sense she’s

ORORO AND MODESTY

So, Claremont argues, O’Donnell may have been

with the belief structures of that part of the world.”

borrowing from Kipling. In devising the relationship

Hence, the Kenyan natives recognized Storm as the lat-

between Ororo and Achmed el-Gibar, Claremont says,

est in this ancient line of powerful, silver-haired

“It’s borrowing a tad from O’Donnell, a tad from

African women.

Dickens.” The obvious Dickensian analogue would be

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the relationship of the child thieves to Fagin in Oliver

appear; as near as I can tell it comes down to

Twist. Claremont points out that Achmed is based on

Nightcrawler or Storm as the one who can appear with

“Not just Fagin, but Magwitch,” the criminal who is

the least damage, or no damage at all to what we know.

Pip’s secret benefactor in Dickens’ Great Expectations.”

Which do you guys think? And of course there were a

As an adult Modesty Blaise headed a criminal

whole bunch who said, ‘Don’t do it at all because it’s a

organization called the Network before retiring at a young

stupid idea.’ But of the ones who were actually reasonable

age and beginning her new career as an adventurer. In

about it, the general agreement was Storm. And I was kind

contrast, Ororo went to live amid an African tribe. So,

of leaning that way anyway. I thought Storm is probably

Claremont contends, Storm’s backstory “is not a wholly

the one who can be involved with the original X-Men

gratuitous swipe. They diverge fairly quickly.”

without it doing any damage to what we already know.”

Yet Claremont speculates that “had the Shadow

This gave Byrne the opportunity to do Storm the

King not been trying to acquire Storm for his very own,

way she had originally been portrayed, as the jungle

had Achmed kept her around, who knows, in ten years

goddess who had seemingly never seen the outside

she could have grown up to be Modesty and running

world. “That was the sort of point, to play her exactly

crimes throughout the eastern Mediterranean. And the

as she had been in Giant-Size #1,” Byrne confirms.

relationship between her and Charley [Xavier] would have

“Funny thing too was I had to draw her with much

been much more like Modesty and Sir Gerald Tarrant,”

more hair. The editorial folks at Marvel,” Byrne explains,

her contact in the British government. “That would have

“freaked out when I sent in the cover, which I drew

been too wholly gratuitous a swipe, even for me. But

first. And I drew her as Dave

that’s the ‘what if.’”

had drawn her in Giant-Size

Len Wein reveals, “I have a particular story I’d like to

#1. And I guess the moral

do with Storm as a miniseries at Marvel, weirdly enough

timbre of the times had

evolving out of her time as a thief in Cairo. . . .” So

changed. They said, no, no,

even if he considers adding it was a mistake, Wein finds

no, she’s got to be much

interest in the backstory Claremont devised for Storm.

more covered up. So I had to retouch the cover, and on

BACK TO THE BASICS

the interior pages draw her

John Byrne believes something valuable was lost when

with about twice as much

Claremont and Cockrum so thoroughly revised Storm’s

hair over her front as Dave

origin. When he read Storm’s early appearances, “I

had drawn.

in Giant-Size X-Men #1 really didn’t last very long: the

THE WALLS CLOSING IN

kind of ageless, timeless, mysterious character.” Byrne

Storm’s horrific experience

feels this lasted until Claremont and Cockrum revealed

of being buried alive by

their backstory for Storm. “I felt that that was a

rubble when she was a

I had was the character that Len and Dave introduced

diminishing of the character. I liked her as the sort of

child left her with a lasting

strange, distant, mysterious [character]. As a reader I

psychological wound. Ever

was disappointed when they started to normalize her

since then she has suffered

in some respects. ”

from intense claustrophobia.

thought she was a neat character. The biggest problem

In fact, Byrne even brought back the “original” Storm

“Never quite understood

when he was writing and drawing his underappreciated

it,” admits John Byrne. But it

late-1990s series X-Men: The Hidden Years. This series

provides an interesting irony:

constituted a continuity “implant,” taking place in the

Storm, who lived on the open

gap between the adventures recorded at the end of the

plains of sub-Saharan Africa, and who can fly through

original X-Men comics of the 1960s and the first new

the air, carried aloft by the winds she summons, dreads

X-Men story in 1975’s Giant-Size X-Men #1.

being trapped within an enclosed space.

“I wanted to have one of the new X-Men appear in

Claremont points to how Ororo nearly died

Hidden Years as soon as possible, as soon as the story

beneath that rubble as a child. “That’s why she could

lent itself,” Byrne says. “I actually posted on the X-Men

never live in an apartment,” he says. “She’d have to

message board on AOL back them, and I said, here’s a

have space, because in her back brain is the fear that

spoiler, I’m planning on having one of the new X-Men

the world would come crashing down on her again.

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her parents’ house in the Suez incident of 1956,” notes

She’d be buried alive.”

Moreover, Ororo lost her parents in the disaster, and

Even in 1976, John Byrne had trouble with this

with survivor guilt. “Especially when you’re, like, four,

scenario. “Of course I remember when Chris did the

five, when it happened.”

Suez thing. My first response was, ‘Well, this makes her

But why make the authorial decision to give her

older than Cyclops. Cyclops is aging in Marvel-Time

claustrophobia? “Again the idea was to find the human

[laughs].’” So much for anyone who thought Storm was

dimension of the super-hero,” Claremont explains, “the

a teenager; the Suez connection meant that Storm was

element, those aspects which make her more accessible

in her late twenties.

to the reader, but also give her a plausible and inherent

As with most “topical references” in Marvel continuity,

vulnerability.” Claremont contends that this is a weakness

the circumstances of Storm’s parents’ deaths should

that readers can identify with more easily than

be updated as real time marches on. “If you move it up

Superman’s Achilles’ heel. “Kryptonite, it’s like a magic

to 1968 you can say the Israelis did it, or 1973 the

bullet, but claustrophobia is something that we can all

Israelis did it [during war with Egypt],” postulates

relate to.”

Claremont. “Post-’73, if you want to keep up with the

Then Claremont adds, “It was a way of putting her

actual literal events you could say it was a hijacked

on the same challenge track as Logan.” In other words,

aircraft” that crashed into the building where Ororo

Storm and Wolverine’s weaknesses aren’t external

and her parents lived.

like Kryptonite but internal. Claremont explains that

Of course, in the aftermath of September 11, 2001,

they are “psychological in the sense that it’s beyond

the idea of a plane crashing into a building, killing the people inside, takes on new emotional significance.

their control.”

Storm in Storyboards

Claremont.

Claremont agrees that her claustrophobia is connected

“Yes,” Claremont concurs, “the terrorist aspect does sadly

SUEZ AND 9/11

A sample of animator

take on increasing relevance.”

As we know, characters in the Marvel Universe age

(and DNAgents artist)

very slowly if at all; we readers head into middle age

ORORO AND IMMODESTY

Will Meugniot’s story-

while Spider-Man, aging in Marvel-Time, remains young.

So, if Storm had become the goddess of her adopted

boards for the 1992

So, tying a character’s origin to a specific historical

tribe, why would she accept Xavier’s invitation to

animated X-Men film

event is bound to lead to continuity problems as the

leave this natural paradise and join the X-Men? Was

decades pass. (Shouldn’t the Punisher, a Vietnam vet,

she unhappy about life on the Serengeti? “It was time

Pryde of the X-Men.

be as old as John McCain by now?)

Courtesy of

But this is exactly what Claremont and Cockrum

Will Meugniot.

did in Uncanny X-Men #102, published back in 1976, in

for the young bird to leave the nest,” Claremont says simply. “That’s not dissatisfaction. There is a greater world out there.”

describing how Storm’s parents were killed. “The original

Had Ororo spent her entire life up until then living

incident was a French fighter bomber crashing into

on the plains of Kenya, surely she would have suffered a severe case of culture shock on arriving in New York State’s Westchester County, home of the X-Men. Yet Storm seemed to adjust to Western culture with amazing ease and rapidity. The most memorable exception would be when she inadvertently shocked Xavier and the rest by innocently skinny dipping in the estate’s swimming pool.(This incident was mentioned in dialogue in Uncanny X-Men in the late ’70s, and later discretely portrayed on panel in the Classic X-Men series.) John Byrne worried at the time that “there was a danger of getting into what I call a Beverly Hillbillies mode, where you have somebody who’s a stranger in a strange land and it stays that way.” Byrne explains, “You start to wonder how is it that these people lived in Beverly Hills for seven years and never figured out what a doorbell was, y’know?” Byrne says that Storm “was too bright to not learn what was going on. But I always felt that she worked

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best when she was not entirely at home. Always a bit of an outsider. Of course that’s kind of what the X-Men are in general, really, isn’t it, is outsiders?” By giving Ororo a childhood in New York City and Cairo, Claremont and Cockrum’s origin tale makes Storm’s rapid assimilation into Western culture even more credible. “She’s not a complete naif because otherwise how could she walk into Xavier’s mansion and the Danger Room and all of their technology and not sort of [go], ‘Oh, my God!,’” Claremont says. “There has to be a certain measure of familiarity. She could not fly around East Africa and do what she did growing up without running into airplanes, tanks, all the accoutrements of modern civilization.”

STORM GOES PUNK In the 1970s, after Len Wein left the X-Men, Chris Claremont portrayed her as not only an innocent, but sweet, open, and friendly. Though she was formidable in combat, she was repulsed by killing, as readers saw in a celebrated scene in the Savage Land (in Uncanny X-Men #116): Storm turns away, as if sickened, as Wolverine impales a guard with his claws. “Yeah, she was kind of this earth child, this New Age kind of thing before anyone was using that term,” John Byrne says. But in the 1980s, Storm underwent a considerable change, both inwardly and outwardly. Her personality took on a harder edge, and she radically altered her outer appearance to reflect her change in attitude. She exchanged her skin-tight super-hero costume for a black leather punk look. What most startled readers was that she cut off her long, flowing hair, which gave her the “soft” look of traditional femininity, leaving a Mohawk on an otherwise shaved head. Claremont admits this was a radical change, but regards it as the logical result of his development of Storm’s character. “I think for me it was a consistent, ongoing evolution.” Claremont recalls that he got the idea for cutting Storm’s hair from an incident in the lives of his editor, Louise Simonson, and her husband, artist Walter Simonson. “Walt and Weezie came home from

one really great one where she [has] really short hair in

vacation, and Weezie had cut her hair and Walter had

a sort of Roman kind of cut,” Claremont remembers.

shaved his beard. And they walked in the house, and

“But then there was the Mohawk, and Weezie and I

their daughter Julie took one look at them and burst

both looked at each other with a sort of devilish grin

Arthur Adams, drawn

into tears. Because they changed one of the funda-

as we were wont to do back then, and said if we get

early in the artist’s

mental realities of her life, i.e., how your parents look.

lynched, we might as well deserve it. We went for the

career. Courtesy of

And I thought, ‘God, that would be so cool to do to

Mohawk, because no one would ever expect it.

Heritage Comics.

Kitty [Pryde],’” who regarded Storm as a maternal figure.

“If we’re going to make that severe a shift in Storm’s

Paul Smith, who was the current X-Men artist, worked

attitude, her psychological structure, an evolution in

up sketches suggesting new looks for Storm. “There was

her character, the iconography has to reflect that. If

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Girl Gone Wild A Storm illo by

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Bad Hair Phase Barry Windsor-Smith’s rendition of the mohawked Storm, courtesy of David Hamilton.

she’s going to be wilder, if she’s going to be more outra-

By this same principle, Storm’s Mohawk and punk

geous, if she’s going to kick ass, she should look like that.

leather outfit did not last forever, either. Storm again has

“And also by then there was also a sense that the

her full head of long hair, and wears super-hero-style

costume that worked in the ’70s was perhaps a little

uniforms, though she has never resumed her original

less effective in the ’80s in terms of visual presentation.

costume or worn as skimpy a uniform. But the feistiness

A not inconsiderable part of it was the ongoing idea at

she developed in the 1980s has remained a permanent

the time that the X-Men should change, should evolve.

part of her personality.

If you leave the book for 50 issues, then come back,

After Cyclops left the X-Men following the “Dark

things will be different. If you leave for a hundred issues

Phoenix Saga” (Uncanny X-Men #138), Storm became the

and come back, things will be way different. The dream

team’s new leader (in #139). “She was leader when I was

was that if you bought the book with #94 and came

doing it, but we never really played much to it,” John

back in #194, you’d find a different team. If you came

Byrne points out.

back in #294, you’d find a way different team. Wolverine

But the tougher, more aggressive version of Storm

in #194 would be recognizable but also an evolution of

who appeared in the Chris Claremont-Paul Smith issues

what you saw a hundred issues earlier and so on. The

of the 1980s was more credible as the X-Men’s leader

same would apply across the board.”

in combat. In fact, in issue #201, she competed in battle

This, indeed, is how Claremont and his collaborators

with Cyclops for the role of the X-Men’s leader, and

kept X-Men vital during his lengthy original run as the

she won. It was Storm who headed the spin-off team,

book’s writer, from the 1970s into the 1990s: rather than

the X-Treme X-Men, in Claremont’s recent series of

settling into a fixed status quo, everything, including

that name.

the characters, was in a continual state of flux.

Ironically, though Claremont so sharply diverged from Wein’s original concept for Storm, by evolving her into the formidable leader of today, Claremont put Storm back on the track that Wein had intended. Commenting on how Storm became a commanding figure in the 1980s, Wein says, “For the most part, I agreed with it (though I was never a big fan of the Mohawk). I think someone who was used to being in charge as a ‘Goddess’ would naturally gravitate towards leadership of the team. She has an innate confidence that makes others want to follow her.”

THE SINGLE LIFE It has been 30 years since Storm’s debut in comics. Yet in that time, how many romantic relationships has she had? Surprisingly few, and none have endured. This isn’t true of the X-Men’s other leading heroines. There is, most famously, Jean Grey’s long romance with Cyclops. Despite having a super-power than seems to preclude sexual contact, Rogue has found happiness with Gambit. Kitty Pryde found first love with Colossus. But Storm has usually been alone. Why should this be? “I would not even begin to guess,” laughs John Byrne. But, when pressed, he tries: “Maybe it’s that whole New Age thing. Maybe it’s the Earth Child thing; she’s very innocent. Sort of like Wonder Woman.” But, the interviewer points out, in the pre-Crisis continuity, Wonder Woman had Steve Trevor, and Byrne laughs again. More seriously, Byrne says, “I don’t recall Chris and I ever even discussed it. I don’t recall that we ever sat down and said, ‘Gosh, we should find a boyfriend for

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Storm.’ I don’t remember that ever coming up.” Byrne and Claremont did collaborate on a story in Marvel Team-Up #100 that revealed that, on her trek from Egypt to Kenya, Ororo encountered the young T’Challa, who would become the super-hero known as the Black Panther. This story suggests a possible romantic liaison between them, but it didn’t last, and she proceeded on her way to the Serengeti. Claremont suggests that Storm really has few close relationships, period. “She sort of adopts Kitty [Pryde] as her protégé, maybe. Sort of vaguely adopts Rogue in the same manner,” he notes. (Could she have been trying to recreate her relationship with Achmed, this time playing the role of the mentor herself?) “There’s a sense of camaraderie plus, I’m playing off of now with Nightcrawler and with Wolverine . . . She’s sort of gone out on a date with T’Challa [in Marvel TeamUp #100], and she tried her hand at seducing a surfer boy with Davis in X-Treme [X-Men] but the fans rose up in frumious horror at that pairing. ” So that leaves only one important romantic relationship in her life. “Forge was it. That was where she took a chance, she took a flyer. ” But she first met Forge under unfortunate circumstances. Claremont introduced Forge in Uncanny X-Men #184 as a mutant who had a superhuman facility for devising new technology, and who was employed by the government for just that purpose. Forge created a gun that could neutralize a mutant’s superhuman abilities. When National Security Council operative Henry Peter Gyrich tried to use the gun on Rogue, Storm took the

seems like she and Forge are getting together again.

blast for her protégé instead. She revived in Forge’s Dallas

She decides, I’m going to tell Forge I want to be his

home, minus her superhuman abilities, in issue #186’s

honey. And he dumps her—for Mystique. So factoring

Mutant with Mousse

story, “LifeDeath.” In this memorable collaboration by

that as well in the mix, the one relationship where she

A convention illo

Claremont and artist Barry Windsor-Smith, Ororo and

took a big chance blew up in her face.”

of Storm with

for romance collapsed when Ororo discovered that it was

A ROAD NOT TAKEN

really, really big hair

Forge who was ultimately responsible for depriving her

In the past Chris Claremont has considered the notion

of her mutant powers. (Eventually, of course, Storm

of having Storm get romantically involved with her

Jim Lee. Courtesy

fellow X-Man Bishop.

of Jerry Boyd.

Forge began falling in love with each other. But their hopes

regained her powers.) “In a way he’s as damaged goods as she is,” Claremont

“I will confess one of the reasons I resisted pairing

observes. “The idea was he would lead her to that

her off with Bishop was that when you’ve only got two

moment in her life when she could sort of be romantic.”

black characters in the X-Men, it seems obvious they

Years later, Ororo and Forge were reunited. “But look what

should be paired off. Therefore, not wanting to do the

happened. First she stabbed him. And then they sort of

obvious, you keep them at arm’s length. If it were a case

get their act together on another planet, an alternate

where you had three or four or five black characters

Earth, and maybe something happened and maybe

scattered through the team, then you could make, if

something didn’t. But at the end of the relationship it

you so choose, a romantic pairing based on character-

has actually run its course, at least in my telling of it.

ization rather than phenotype. The problem is if she

It came to its natural end.”

dates Bishop, that makes a statement one way; if she

After Claremont left X-Men in the early 1990s, a

doesn’t date Bishop, that makes a statement another

subsequent writer “threw in a sort of coda where it

way. It’s sort of irksome. That’s unfortunately the dynamic

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of the roster. There should be more characters

[unclear] she’s scared. She’s scared it’ll screw up; she’s scared

of color just to give the book that much more

she’ll be hurt; she’s scared that the guy’ll betray her.”

variety or possibility in terms of where we can go and what we can do.”

THE ADULT ORPHAN But perhaps the greater reason for Storm’s dearth of

STORM WARNINGS

stable relationships lies in the same traumatic event

Ironically, according to Claremont, it was the

that made her both a claustrophobe and an orphan.

very fact that Storm lost her powers that made

Chris Claremont declares that in “the fundamental

a romance between her and Forge a possibility.

relationship of her life, her parents were torn away

“The idea was once she lost her powers she

from her at an age when she could not put what has

had nothing to be afraid of. She had nothing

happened out of her mind. At an age when the damage

to lose but her heart, and she was willing to

was permanent.” Can we see an analogy here with Batman, another

take that risk.”

More than Friends?

Storm’s powers make romance a risk. “They

hero whose parents were killed when he was quite

could prove dangerous,” Claremont asserts,

young, and who famously has never had a lasting

“if she ever got angry. Her powers reflect her

romantic relationship?

emotional state. The seesaw that defines Storm,

“I think they’re both damaged goods,” ventures

the sort of paradigm I’ve always used for it,

Claremont. “The difference is that in Batman’s case he

is she can either be this nice gentle spring shower, or

channels his rage into a lifelong crusade against the

Ororo and T’Challa’s

what’s just been dumping on the city for the last 20

criminal element. In Storm’s case, who’s she to fight?

relationship was hinted

minutes.” (This interview, appropriately enough, was

Nameless, faceless terror. Well, that’s what the X-Men

at in Marvel Team-Up

conducted during a torrential, record-breaking thunder-

do for a living. For her to step away, at this point, to step

#100 (1980). Courtesy

storm in New York City.) “That was one hell of a storm.

away from this team, to find a significant other, to settle

For 15 minutes it was like boom boom boom boom

down, to raise a family, would be to make herself

boom and water coming out like a monsoon. In Storm

vulnerable to the very forces that orphaned her in the

is the capacity to be this loving, gentle, nurturing

first place. If she has something to lose, somebody can

mother goddess, but at the other end of the spectrum

take it away from her.”

is the storm that Roland Emmerich uses to destroy the world in The Day After Tomorrow. She can come

SINGLING STORM OUT

up with that if she gets pissed off enough.”

On the other hand, the fact that Storm had no significant

Readers first saw this established in the “Dark Storm” storyline that Claremont wrote soon after Byrne left

groundbreaking. John Byrne points out “That was her

Uncanny X-Men and Dave Cockrum returned as its pencil-

main, her prime difference. She wasn’t created to be

er (Uncanny X-Men #145–147). What might have seemed

anyone’s significant other. Most of the female characters

just a recycling of the famous “Dark Phoenix” storyline

that we see were created to be somebody’s girlfriend.”

was intended to make a point about how Storm’s powers

Consider the heroines in super-hero teams created

connect to her emotions. “And how she has to be careful,”

at Marvel before the new X-Men. Susan Storm in the 1960s

adds Claremont. “She feels she has to maintain a certain

and 1970s played a less active role in the Fantastic Four

measure of equilibrium.”

than the three men. “Sue was just being mom all the

Storm’s potential for creating destructive storms sig-

“she was a hostage.” Early on, the Wasp was portrayed

another reason why, in the 1980s, Claremont and artist

as a rather flighty character in both senses of the word.

Paul Smith radically reconceived Storm’s look, putting

“She was played for laughs and for giggles,” remarks Byrne.

her in a “punk” black leather outfit and Mohawk.

Nor was she particularly powerful compared to the men

start getting more and more intense,” Claremont states.

Indeed, Sue was intended to be Reed Richards’

the violence in herself, or of the capacity for violence.

girlfriend, and Jean Grey, of course, was meant to be

“Then she lost her powers, and she had to learn to

Scott Summers’ romantic interest in the original X-Men.

in love, but it didn’t work out. “And she really hasn’t done anything since because

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on the team. “She was there to be the girlfriend,” Byrne states. “A lot of these characters were.”

“The Mohawk was a way to reflect that sort of embrace of

get by without them, and she found a guy and she fell

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time,” says Byrne, who comments that in the early days,

nifies her own psyche’s potential for violence. This is yet

“The whole point of the Smitty arc is I wanted her to

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other in the early years of the new X-Men was actually

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When the original Avengers left and were replaced by “Cap’s Kooky Quartet” [second-stringers Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver, working under Captain

America], the Scarlet Witch had no boyfriend, but instead was closely linked with her brother Quicksilver. Byrne

to draw, Byrne says, “The return to Harlem [#122] was a

observes that “Even there we don’t have a boyfriend

lot of fun to draw.” Those of you who have seen that

but we have somebody who occupies a very boyfriend-

story will recall the incredible amount of graffiti that

like role, in this case an overbearing brother.”

Ororo found in the building where her family once

If we consider the new X-Men of 1975 as a new team,

lived, consisting of the names of comics professionals

then Storm was the first female founding member of

of that day. It wasn’t John Byrne who undertook that

a Marvel super-hero team who was not created to be

monumental task, but inker Terry Austin. “That issue

another teammate’s girlfriend. Moreover, rather than

was breakdowns, so I just sort of drew the walls, and

being less powerful than the men, Storm was arguably

Terry in his infinite madness did all that graffiti in

the most powerful member of the team. “She wasn’t

every panel in perspective. [laughs] Which amazes me

created to be the female character in what was the

even to this day. ”

traditional sense in those days. In that sense she’s a

Byrne says of Storm, “In some respects she had the

very kind of liberating character in that she exists in

same problem artistically that Hawkman and Angel have:

her own right, not to be a shadow of a male character.”

that big spread of cape. When she’s in action it kind of

Chris Claremont agrees with Byrne’s point about

means she has to stand in the back a lot. Otherwise she’s

Storm. “And it’s been the defining aspect of her ever

in front of everybody and blocking everybody. Same

since [laughs]! ‘Don’t touch me, I’m the boss.’”

problem as Hawkman and Angel’s wings.”

(Surprisingly, DC had a better record in portraying

“Generally speaking, she was a fun character to do,”

female members of super-hero teams who did not operate

says Byrne. “They all were, actually. All the X-Men were

in the shadow of boyfriends or brothers. Wonder Woman

kind of fun to draw.”

was an independent figure in both the Justice Society

Storm Fronts

Asked to name one of his favorite Storm sequences

Here’s a peek at everyone’s favorite mutant weather girl, tracking her various styles from seasons past.

There’s only one other artist’s version of Storm that

and Justice League; of course, she came from her own

Byrne likes, but that was because of the way she evolved

series, in which she already had a boyfriend, Steve Trevor.

as a personality after Byrne left the book. “I like Dave’s,

The Golden Age Black Canary likewise had her own

and that was it. I liked the one that was before me, but

series, in which she had her own love interest, and so

I was never too terribly impressed with any that came

could stand on her own in the Justice Society. But at

after. Probably because it wasn’t long after that she turned

the end of the Silver Age, when Black Canary joined

into a totally different character. I’d look at the Johnny

the Justice League, she was quickly paired with Green

Romita [Jr.] version, for example and think, ‘Huh! That’s

Arrow. Rita Farr, alias Elasti-Girl of the Doom Patrol,

not the character that I drew.’ So I had no way to connect

was not romantically linked with any of her team-

to it.”

mates, and eventually married outside the group. Perhaps

Chris Claremont finds it impossible to choose his

that’s because Robotman and Negative Man seemed

favorite visual depiction of Storm. “The consistent element

more like her surrogate siblings, and the Chief like a

of art on the X-Men over the years is the quality of the

father figure. The Legion of Super Heroes is also a good

artists. When you’re talking about talents as varied but

model: There were some romantic liaisons among

as extraordinary as Dave [Cockrum] and John Byrne

members, but the men and women of the team were

and JR [John Romita, Jr.] and [Marc] Silvestri and Jim

portrayed as independent equals.)

Lee and Art Adams and Alan Davis and John Bolton and Barry [Windsor-Smith] and Salvador [Larrocca], each

THE ART OF STORM

of them brings a uniqueness to their presentation of the

When John Byrne succeeded Dave Cockrum as X-Men

character, each of them finds a facet of their own of her

penciller with issue #108, he became only the second

visually and characterizationally for me to play off of.

artist to draw Storm on a regular basis.

I don’t know if any one artist is head and shoulders above

“I remember I had trouble getting the hair,” reports

the rest in terms of a special or unique interpretation

Byrne. “I would look at it like every issue and somehow

or an absolutely essential interpretation. Other than Dave,

she would end up with this sort of Dairy Queen whip

simply because she’s his.”

on the top instead of what Dave had done. It really

Asked to name his favorite Storm stories,

wasn’t until very near the end that I sort of went, ‘Oh,

Claremont responds, “The two “LifeDeaths,” both

it’s this,’ and suddenly she looked like herself again.

collaborations with Barry Windsor-Smith. (Claremont

Everything else I think was pretty much the same. My

hoped to do “LifeDeath 3,” but it never happened.) “The

version of the costume may have been a tad skimpier,

splash page of “LifeDeath” [Uncanny X-Men #186] to me

but not much in those days.”

is heartbreaking: her lying on that bed. And yet Walter

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perfect for the part. Unfortunately, when they were casting the first X-Men movie, Iman was also pregnant by her husband David Bowie and thus unavailable. “I just don’t think Halle brought anywhere near what I was looking for to the role of Storm, unlike Hugh Jackman as Wolverine and Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, who captured their characters perfectly. Overall, of all my characters in the X-Men films (including Colossus), I think Storm was the one least successfully served.” Chris Claremont contends that that wasn’t her fault. “With regard to Halle Berry, you look at Die Another Day, the Bond film, and you know she can do the action,” he says. “Look at Monster’s Ball, you know she can do the character. You look at Bulworth or B.A.P.s, you know she can do the comedy. So you have to sit back and think, whatever they ask of her, she can do; therefore the challenge becomes, what are we going to ask of her?” Byrne and Claremont agree that the makers of the X-Men movies didn’t ask that much of her. “They didn’t give her much to do,” says Byrne. “That’s the big problem. She was mostly decorative. And then they would have her do things occasionally that I didn’t think were terribly appropriate. [Like] exploding a church from within [laughs], y’know, in order to lure Nightcrawler out into the open.”

Legion of Mutants

[Simonson]’s splash page of her challenging Morlocks

Steve Lightle— another stellar illustrator we’ve yet to spotlight in BACK ISSUE (but we will!)—renders Storm and the early 1990s-era X-Men in this image sent to us by Jerry Boyd.

evocative. And yet Marc [Silvestri]’s splash page of her

[Uncanny X-Men #171] is just as powerful, just as on the Rocky Mountains in Indian buckskins nails it in Marc’s way. Each of them found something essential in the character to call their own. Each of them added to the mosaic. I don’t know if any one of them can be considered superior to all the rest because the talents involved are too varied and too extraordinary.”

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The problem is that, give them all the attention I think they deserve, you’d have a super-hero movie the length of Lord of the Rings. All three of them.”

STORM TODAY When Chris Claremont was writing Storm in the 1970s, she rose to become one of the X-Men’s leaders. Several

•

X-Men after roughly a decade’s hiatus, he took Storm’s

And what about Halle Berry? To my mind, her portrayal

role as authority figure still further. Even as a leader of

of Storm in the X-Men movies lays to rest the accusation

the X-Men, Storm was still working for Professor Charles

that Storm doesn’t look “black” enough. Messrs. Byrne

Xavier, in an organization that he had founded. In co-

and Claremont and I are in agreement: Halle Berry looks

founding a spinoff team, the X-Treme X-Men, Storm and

like Storm, and Storm looks like Halle Berry. “She looks

other fellow X-Men were creating a group of their own.

like her. She was the only one [in the cast], I thought,

“The whole point of X-Treme was, as I said in the first

who actually looked like the character [that he or she

issue, the time has come to leave the nest again,” Chris

portrayed], the character that I drew.”

Claremont explains. “The whole point was to break away

Surprisingly, Storm’s co-creator disagrees. “While I’m

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is that she, like all the rest of the cast, had more to do.

years ago, when Claremont returned to writing the

STORM GOES HOLLYWOOD

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On the subject of Halle Berry’s performance as Storm, Chris Claremont says, “She’s fine. Again, my only wish

from the mansion and the [mutant] ghetto.”

generally a fan of Halle Berry,” Len Wein says (adding

Claremont continues, “The fact that they’re back”

in an aside, “I thought she did a terrific job in the much-

in the X-Men is due to “forces beyond her control. And

panned Catwoman”), “she was never who I had in mind

mine, for that matter.” What he means is that the Powers

to portray Storm. I had always envisioned the supermodel

That Be decreed that the X-Treme X-Men series come

and actress Iman as Storm. She’s tall, exotic, regal, virtually

to an end and that its members be reincorporated into

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the main X-Men organization. Nonetheless, Storm retains her goal of creating something of her own in life. In the final issue of X-Treme X-Men, Storm revealed that she had contacted the gov-

X-Treme Beauties

ernments of the leading nations of the world. As a result,

Cover girls Rogue,

she and other X-Men have been empowered to serve as “marshals” to combat criminal mutants on behalf of those governments. Storm’s fellow X-Man Bishop comes from an alternate future, in which he was a member of the XSE, Xavier’s Security Enforcers, who fulfilled that very func-

tion. Now Storm has created the XSE in the present. Claremont says that the Storm of today, the leader working with governments, has come very far from the Storm he wrote in the 1970s. Now, he says, she is “ready to take some risks. She’s trusting people outside of herself. “The idea of her creating the XSE,” Claremont asserts, “is to give her a legacy separate from Charley [Xavier], that is relevant to the mutant cause but not necessarily to the school, [that] is something that is of her. Succeed or fail, it’s on her shoulders.” What may happen in the future necessarily remains unclear. “The only real problem,” Claremont says, “is having no idea at this point what global plot developments are in store from editorial, from on high, it

says. “She was a hero and an equal member of the team; race never entered into the equation.” John Byrne says, “I remember a fan I met in a comic shop in Calgary, a young woman, must have been late teens, early 20s, who said she was surprised at something she saw in the latest issue [of X-Men] that made a reference to Storm being black, because she had

Thoroughly Modern Mutant

not realized that Storm was black. She just thought that the brown skin color was kind of a logical choice given the white hair [chuckles].”

becomes difficult if not impossible to project any sort

Speaking of Storm, Byrne maintains that “even with all

of lasting character arcs, simply because you don’t

the changes that have been made to her, she’s never been

know whether the status quo that you’re predicating

played as a black icon.” He claims that “Storm is like

these stories or evolutions on will remain consistent.”

Denzel Washington in Crimson Tide, not Denzel

Wa s h i n g t o n i n M a l c o l m X , ”

STORM AND RACE In the 1960s, Marvel was a pioneer in introducing black characters in major roles into comics, including Gabe Jones in Sgt. Fury, Joe Robertson in Amazing Spider-Man, the Black Panther, and the Falcon. By the time the new X-Men were created in 1975, making one of them a black woman did not seem controversial at all.

explaining that in the former film, “the character could just have easily have been white; the race had no major impact on who the character was.” Chris Claremont has a very practical take on this question. He says that “at this juncture” he

“I don’t think it’s possible for this to be more of a non-

writes Storm “more as an individ-

issue,” Len Wein states. “We wanted an international

ual without respect to race, simply

group to cover as many of the world’s native ethnicities

because for better or worse I couldn’t

as possible: African, Asian, Native American, etc. It’s as

write effective urban argot if I tried,

simple as that.” Throughout Storm’s three-decade history, all of her major writers and artists have been white men. Does

at this stage. Rather than look like a complete idiot, it made more sense to me to mainstream her. ”

this matter in terms of the way she has been depicted in

John Byrne agrees that Storm was

the comics? As far as our three interviewees are concerned,

the first black super-heroine of any

they are much less interested in Storm’s race than in

importance. Asked how she com-

portraying her as an individual.

pares to other black super-heroes,

“What may have made Storm different from her

Byrne notes that “she was less heav-

black predecessors in the super-hero game was the fact

ily clichéd than Luke Cage,” who

that we made no big point of her being black,” Len Wein

was inspired by the blaxploitation

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movies of the 1970s. “Probably the one that she most

become the most popular super-hero comic series of

favorably compares to would be the Black Panther. She

the last 30 years. Along with her fellow X-Men, Storm

has that regal quality that he has, when people remember

has moved into prose novels, animated television series,

who he is.”

and ultimately two live-action feature films. And, apart

Chris Claremont points out that even today, there

from the often missing Jean Grey (due to her repeated

are relatively few leading black super-heroes. “How many

demises in comics and on film), Storm is probably the

of them are there, even today? Black Goliath’s off the

most well known female character in what is now the

board. Cage sort of shows up every now and then. The

world’s most popular super-hero team. She may not have

Panther got cancelled.”

been created to be an iconic figure, but that is what

Hence, as Claremont says, “She’s one of a handful of

she has become.

black characters, one of a smaller handful of black leading characters, and as near as I can tell, just about the only black leading female character, for better or worse.”

Peter Sanderson is a comics critic and historian whose work includes the book Marvel Universe (Harry N. Abrams).

In 1975, Storm was a groundbreaking character in

In the fall of 2004, he began teaching “Comics as Literature”

super-hero comics. Today, three decades later, she still

at New York University (and tentatively plans to include

stands alone as the only leading black super-heroine in

Party Time

“The Dark Phoenix Saga” in the spring semester). He

American comics. Yet over those 30 years Storm’s fame

currently reviews graphic novels for Publishers Weekly

An X-APA anniversary

has grown tremendously. In 1975, she was a new character

and writes the weekly online column, “Comics in Context,”

cover by Terry Austin

in a cult favorite comics series. But X-Men has since

at filmforce.ign.com/comics.html.

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From Mainstream to Milestone:

Dwayne McDuffie

Jive-Talkin’ Juggernaut Did Luke Cage

The first black super-hero I ever saw was

speak to black

Marvel’s Luke Cage, Hero for Hire (aka

comics readers of the

Power Man). My grandparents bought

1970s? This splash

some comic books for my cousin and me

from Hero for Hire #8

at a 7-11 in Virginia, and one of the books

(1973) is from the

was an issue of Hero for Hire. As black kids growing up in the 1970s, surrounded

original art collection

by big Afros and bellbottoms, my cousin

of Richard Howell

and me were transfixed by this strange

and Carol Kalish.

super-hero who had the same skin color as we did, but had a really strange way of

interview

by David Walker

Conducted on September 8, 2004, transcribed by Brian K. Morris

talking. We read the dialog from that issue out loud, over and over again, laughing louder each time. But despite the silly nature of Luke Cage—his sense of fashion was poor, he had trouble articulating himself, and his villains were the most stupid in comics—he represented to us the fact that there was a place for black superheroes in the universe. The first black comic-book creator I ever met was the legendary Ron Wilson, who at the time had just done his graphic novel Super Boxers. This meeting came at a time when I wanted to make a living as a comic-book creator, and served as a profound inspiration because up until that moment, in my mind, the world of comics was something exclusively meant for white guys. Ron offered me a few words of encouragement, which at the time seemed like the most sage-like of wisdom, and sent me on my way. Nearly 30 years after first discovering Luke Cage, and almost 20 years after meeting Ron Wilson, my career path had steered me away from comics. At the same time, I had kept the medium near my heart and the industry within my sight, and as I contemplated a serious, headfirst leap into comics, I reached out to Dwayne McDuffie. Towering at over six feet tall, the Detroit-born Dwayne McDuffie was someone that I had been aware of for years. His most notable accomplishment was as one of the co-founders and editor in chief of Milestone Media, which during the 1990s turned out such seminal comic-book series as Icon, Static, Hardware, and Blood Syndicate. Milestone stopped producing comic books after four years, but would remain in the public eye when one of its stable of characters, Static, would make the move to Saturday morning cartoons with Static Shock. Quick with a joke, Dwayne also possesses a pragmatic sensibility about black characters in comic books, and black creators in the medium. For me, he’s always been easy to talk to, encouraging me when I’ve needed it, without ever blowing smoke up my butt. Although he would probably never admit it, he has become a role model for many black comic creators. Through the accomplishments of his award-winning career, Dwayne McDuffie has served as an inspirational reminder that there is a place in the industry for creators of color, and that there can be black characters in the medium that are more than token sidekicks or jive-talking caricatures. — David Walker

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Luke Cage. But I wanted to like him and I didn’t under-

Luke Cage’s Second Appearance

DAVID WALKER: What got you into comics as a kid? What were the super-heroes that first pulled you in?

DWAYNE McDUFFIE: Okay, my first memory of actually

seriously got me into comics, it was about half Steve

(Below) From Hero for

picking some comics, I’ve been able to figure out I must

Gerber on Howard the Duck and half Jungle Action, the Black

Hire #2 (1972), written

have been four years old, and I bought Adventure Comics,

Panther, which I was just fascinated with. And it wasn’t until

by Archie Goodwin,

I think, with the Legion of Super-Heroes, because it had a

years later that I really understood what was going on there

penciled by George Tuska, and inked

stand why at the time. What I did like, and what really

whole bunch of super-heroes on it, and I thought that

because all of a sudden, there was a world where it was

was a good value and I was really interested. There was

possibility. Black people could be anything. They could be

like this fat guy who could bounce and I had to know

the king, they could be the street sweeper, they could be

by Billy Graham.

about him. And I also bought Sugar and Spike. And that

the good guy, they could be the bad guy. You know, they

Courtesy of Tom Field.

may still be the best Wednesday I ever had, you know?

were human beings and it really appealed to me.

[chuckles]

WALKER: Yeah.

WALKER: I still have a beat-up copy of the first comic my

McDUFFIE: And I still think of that “Panther’s Rage” run as

mom ever got me. It was an issue of Batman. Nothing was

one of the great comic-book runs, adventure comic-book runs

the same after that.

ever, black character or not. Where’s that trade paperback?

McDUFFIE: I was always into it. My dad always had comics

WALKER: [chuckles] Well, it’s interesting because the first

around so I read a lot of the early Marvel stuff. They used

black super-hero I remember seeing was Luke Cage as

to have these Marvel Collector’s Item Classics and I forget

well. And if you gave me an hour to look at all the covers

what the other one was, where they’d have four of the

of all the issues from the 1970s, I could pick out the first

old stories reprinted in them. And I loved those because

issue of Power Man I ever bought. Me and my cousin bought

those were like Dad’s books, so I got a good education on

it and we both read it and tried to figure out exactly who

early Marvel and that stuff. So I always read them, me and

talked like this.

my pal Alan Tumpkin, when we were both like ten or 11

McDUFFIE: I know which one mine was. They used to have

years old. We’d trade our comics and argue about whether

these illegal ones, three for 19 cents. Now I just told every-

the Hulk would beat Thor. [laughs] Obviously, Hulk would

body how old I was [laughs] because comic books were

win. [chuckles] Alan’s not here to defend himself. [chuckles]

20 cents and what people would do is that the newsstands

And so comics were

had to return the logos at the time to get their money

always around.

back, to claim they were destroyed. Then they would take

WALKER: I still re-

the books with the logos cut off and sell them to guys who’d

Beginnings:

member the first

put them in plastic bags, and they’d sell them three for

Damage Control #1 (1989)

black super-hero that

19 cents at the—we called them “party stores” when I

I saw. What was the

Milestones: Co-founder and creator of Milestone Media / Story Editor on WB’s Static Shock / 2003 Humanitas Prize winner for “Jimmy” Static Shock script / Damage Control / Deathlok II / Icon / Static / Xombi / Hardware / Legends of the Dark Knight / Spider-Man / X-O Manowar / (The Artist Formerly Known as) Prince / Captain Marvel / What’s New, Scooby-Doo?

first black super-hero that you saw? McDUFFIE: Okay, the first one I saw, I didn’t like. The first one I saw was Hero for Hire, which I desperately

Works in Progress:

wanted to like. I

Producer and Story Editor on Cartoon Network’s Justice League Unlimited / The Road to Hell

remember I bought

Cyberspace:

wanting to like it. I

www.dwaynemcduffie

just didn’t get it. I

it for a long time,

didn’t understand him, I didn’t know any black people who acted like that, I certainly didn’t know any who talked like that. Spider-Man seemed more like me than

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was a kid—they’re actually liquor stores that had a lot of

like Thor, too.

candy, right? And that was it for me.

McDUFFIE: And he’s like this blond guy

I’d go in and you could see the front one, you could

who talks funny and I never got it until I

see the back one, you couldn’t quite tell what was in the

realized that that whole book is about

middle. You hoped it wasn’t Archie, but it probably was.

father issues. [laughs]

[David laughs] And I remember getting, I believe it was

WALKER: Okay, interesting.

Luke Cage #4 as he fought this guy with a big mace for his

McDUFFIE: But it has a really strong cul-

hand, and I actually thought that one was pretty cool.

tural thing going on there, at least back

And I couldn’t figure out why he talked weird. [chuckles]

in those days. I don’t know what Thor’s

WALKER: Yeah, it was a very interesting dynamic, because

about these days.

you get older and you can look at Luke Cage for the camp

WALKER: Now why do you think black

value. But even still, then, it was like there was something

people are always into Sub-Mariner? What’s

intrinsically wrong about him. And then right shortly after

your theory on that one?

that, I discovered the Falcon and he just seemed like Captain

McDUFFIE: Oh, he was an outsider. He was

America’s whipping boy. Like if Captain America’s in a bad

really militant. First of all, all of his people

mood, he took it out on Falcon. Half the time you were

were blue and he was like the one guy who

expecting Cap to call him “boy.”

wasn’t blue, and he was mad. And he was

McDUFFIE: Well, I remember being really irritated with

the most radical super-hero. He hated

the Falcon because he was a falcon which, first of all, was

whitey. [chuckles] He’d just come up, “I

a girl bird. [David laughs] A falcon is a female hunting hawk,

hate whitey. I’m bringing fish up and we’re going to kill

Fascinating Fighter

which I thought was weird, but okay. And the other thing

New York. Screw y’all.” You know, he was just angry. He was

The Black Panther

that was weird was he couldn’t fly. [David laughs] I remember

Malcolm, you know? [chuckles] He was Malcolm before

the issue where he got the ability to fly. The Black Panther

Malcolm saw the light. [laughs] And so I think it is sort of

hooked him up, you know? [laughs] And I was so happy

interesting that thematically, Sub-Mariner and the Black

because I’m like, he’s the Falcon, he’s swinging around,

as rendered by Billy Graham and Klaus

Panther stuff at that time were pretty similar, although the

Janson, from Jungle

he should at least be able to fly. Black super-heroes could

Black Panther’s stuff was a lot more sophisticated. But the

Action #10 (1974).

never fly.

issues are the same, so that stuff was kind of fun. But I’m

WALKER: It was a very interesting dynamic, because as I get

Courtesy of Tom Field.

looking now and we really don’t have a lot of black super-

older, I appreciate Black Panther more. But as a kid, it was

heroes with their own book who are human beings first.

like he wasn’t even from America, so it was always difficult

WALKER: A lot of the characters that you and your friends

to get into him.

related to were the same characters that me and my friends

McDUFFIE: Yeah, yeah, that’s true.

related to. But the one character that every black kid I knew

WALKER: And then, of course, Black Goliath came along

growing up just loved was the Thing.

and that was back in the ’70s, when Marvel would put out

McDUFFIE: The Thing? That’s so funny, because the Thing is my favorite comic-book character.

McDUFFIE: I think that went like four. [chuckles]

WALKER: The Thing was just plain bad—because he

WALKER: There wasn’t a lot. And then I think he joined

didn’t fit in.

the Champions, or something like that.

McDUFFIE: He didn’t fit in, he was very strong, but he

McDUFFIE: That sounds right.

was gentle. Like he had a heart, you know what I

WALKER: But it was interesting, you said earlier that you

mean? He was really direct, he was emotionally open

related to Spider-Man more than you related to—

in a way that was really cool, and you knew you could

McDUFFIE: I related to his humanity. I mean, Spider-Man

count on him.

was a nerdy kid who was good at science and people didn’t

WALKER: It’s frustrating to me that as we’re talking

like him and secretly, he was very, very cool. And I had all of

about this stuff, we can’t say the same stuff, necessarily,

that except for the secretly being cool part. [David laughs]

about Luke Cage or Falcon.

So I understood Spider-Man. But Luke Cage, he could have

McDUFFIE: No, I mean what you’ll find, black readers, is

been a Martian. And what I found interesting is that a lot

you will find a black reader who loves every one of those

of black comic-book readers I know, my age, they love the

characters. But you will find one who despises him equally

Sub-Mariner. As far as we were concerned, he was black.

on the other side. [laughs] For every black guy you can

[laughs] And the one that was interesting that I never got

find who says, “Hey, Luke Cage was the sh*t. I don’t care,”

until many years later was a lot of black people loved Thor.

you’ll find another one who says, “Aw, I can’t stand him.

WALKER: That’s strange, because a lot of black guys I know

Why’s he walking around with a chain around his waist?”

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7 9

Crouching Panther

[laughs] And that’s good because all characters can’t be

we hired when DC and Marvel don’t have to defend

all things to all people. I mean, the premise of Milestone was

themselves in terms of who they hire.

that we couldn’t do one black guy and have him represent

WALKER: Exactly.

black because that’s insane. It’s too big. There have to be a

McDUFFIE: But [sighs] you’re talking about people’s fantasies.

range of characters that appeal to people for different reasons

I talk about this all the time, how people who are outsiders

and we’re not there. We’re still nowhere near there.

—minorities, gay people, fat kids, unpopular kids—are

WALKER: Why do you think we’re not there yet? I have my

used to identifying with the other. Black guys have no

theories, and I don’t want to run around and say it all has

problem saying, “Man, James Bond is cool. I want to be James

to do with racism. I think it’s a combination of the retailers

Bond.” We’re used to like pretending we’re James Bond

and the distributors and the publishers refusing to accept the

or pretending we’re Spider-Man or pretending we’re Batman

fact that you can show black characters as human beings.

and identifying with someone who doesn’t have our outside,

McDUFFIE: I think what happens a lot, and it still happens

our superficial relation—there’s a word there and I can’t pull

when people are creating the characters, because getting

it up, so we’re going to move on. But we’re used to it. White

stuff to the fans, I’ve never been able to solve that. I thought

people aren’t used to it and the vast majority of the reader-

pencils by Denys

we took a really good shot at it, but to this day, I have

ship are white guys. And they’ve never had to. You know, this

Cowan, from Black

retailers come up—or former retailers in many cases,

is when you get into these sort of insane arguments where

Panther miniseries

thankfully—who will come up to me and proudly tell

people tell you that the Justice League is integrated because

me they never carried Milestone because we were a

they’ve got somebody from Krypton and a Greek woman.

bunch of racists.

You know, I can’t even take it seriously, but you have to

Incredibly energetic

WALKER: Seriously? [laughs]

because they’re thinking that.

McDUFFIE: And I’m like, “Well, that’s . . . great. Thank

WALKER: Well, there’s also a level of the reader out there,

you. I appreciate you telling me that.” [laughs]

they’re not necessarily dealing in reality anyway. There are

WALKER: And you’re like, “Why were we racists?”

these people who get upset when you kill off a character and they’re acting like you killed off their mother or their father. McDUFFIE: Yeah, but you know what? That’s just like being a little bit too much into the fan-ness of it. And if it weren’t for guys like that, I’d have to have a real job, so I can’t get too mad at them. [David laughs] I can’t get too mad at the guys who go, [angry]—“Where’s Hal Jordan?” [laughs] It’s like, “Okay, you really care. We get it.” But it’s a much more emotional visceral—it’s really hard for people who aren’t used to it to hook into that. It’s kind of like a white kid who likes basketball in the ’70s, like looking for that guy who could be “them.” [chuckles] You know, when you’re playing basketball and, “I’m Dr. J.” “Oh, okay, I’m Larry Bird. I’d like to go inside so I don’t . . . [chuckles] I don’t know what to do.” [laughs] WALKER: How did you get into the industry? The thing I always found interesting about the comics industry was it wasn’t until I met one person in particular, which was Ron Wilson, that I even knew there were black people making comic books. So, Ron Wilson was the first black guy that I met who did comics, and subsequently he became a real influence Was there anyone like that for you? McDUFFIE: I didn’t know there were any black people who did comics when I got in. I mean I don’t think Marvel knew I was black for a long time. You know, I have made several sales—what happened was—and this is a terrible story because this is like pure luck. I went to college with

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McDUFFIE: Because we only hired black people [chuckles]—

a guy who was an assistant editor at Marvel, a guy named

because they knew that was true. I’m like, “Dude, the first

Greg Wright, a really good friend of mine, who wanted to

book we put out, Jimmy Palmiotti worked on. I’m not

write. And he was, in fact, good enough to write. But at

sure [laughs] why I have to defend myself in terms of who

that point in his life, he didn’t feel secure so he wanted to

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Slumber Party From page 11 of writer/penciler Jack Kirby’s Captain America and the Falcon #194 (1976), from the original art collection of Richard Howell and Carol Kalish. © 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc.

write with somebody. And he says, “Hey, will you help me

McDUFFIE: I think that’s self-fulfilling now because that’s

out?” He knew I wrote. So I’m like, “Oh, sure. Comics are

all you get offered.

cool, yeah. You still going to give me some of your bundle

WALKER: Well, it’s such a frustrating thing because it’s like

[free comics distributed to staff]?” [laughs] I mean, that was

we should because there’s been a lot of white guys who’ve

the level I was dealing at, right? So we did a couple of short

written Luke Cage over the years. [laughs]

stories and he would bring them into work, and I got paid,

McDUFFIE: Yeah. As far as I know, there’s only been one black

and I was like, “Ooh, Alan Davis drew a story I wrote. That’s

guy who ever wrote for Luke Cage: I think [Christopher]

cool.” And that was pretty much the limit of it. And then I

Priest—he was Jim Owsley back then—but I think he’s the

got an idea for a series and because I didn’t know anything

only one who ever wrote it. So I don’t know if you can

about the business, because it was, frankly, impossible what

blame that on the many black people insisting on writing

I did—I still don’t understand how it happened—I made

black characters.

up a series, wrote up a little three-page pitch, asked Greg

WALKER: But my point is that as a writer, I don’t only want

to take it in, he took it in, they bought it. That’s how I got in.

to write a Falcon story, or a Luke Cage story—it would be

Now, that said, Greg and I worked together for a long

nice—but if I’ve got a great Spider-Man story, why can’t I

time. Greg got many, many opportunities to be the solo

do the great Spider-Man story?

writer on a book, I never got one. I didn’t get to write a

McDUFFIE: Sure, and there’s no reason why you can’t. It’s

book by myself that I didn’t publish until I got the last few

just that you’re a lot less likely to get a shot, frankly.

issues of X-O Manowar at Valiant. And to this day, that’s my career in comics. Either I made something up and did it myself or I didn’t work. I can’t get work in comics today, not in mainstream.

WALKER: Looking at the current state of comics, it seems to me not much has changed since the time black characters were first introduced into comics, which was roughly the same time we both started reading them. Other than

WALKER: I hear the same story from a lot of guys, over

during the Milestone era, the ’70s was the best there was

and over again.

for black characters.

McDUFFIE: Well, the young guys gonna have to find their

McDUFFIE: I have to say that the thing about the ’70s that

own way because they’ve pretty much fought us off,

I find superior to now is here’s a bunch of white guys, but

like the older guard. [laughs] You know, Kyle’s in there,

it was a bunch of white guys who thought, “You know what?

Kyle’s a genius. Kyle [Baker] is a genius and deserves to be

We’ve got a lot of black readers. We ought to have some

working. There are a lot of guys working who are not

black characters.” And maybe they didn’t all know how to

geniuses, you know?

do it, but they were trying.

WALKER: Yes. [laughs]

WALKER: When you go back and read, there’s definitely a

McDUFFIE: So there ought to be room for some guys who

feeling of the finger being more on the pulse of society then

are slightly less talented than one of the four or five most

than there is now. I mean, I think the specialty market has

talented people in the industry. [chuckles]

changed things more. When you and I were kids buying

WALKER: What’s also interesting to me too is that I think

comics, we were buying them off at the newsstands. . .

that there’s this misconception that black creators only

McDUFFIE: Well, that’s the thing. It’s like the Royal Family.

want to do black characters or black stories.

What we’ve done is we’ve bred a purer and purer [laughs]

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Dwayne McDuffie’s First Published Work. . . . . .was 1989’s

model and we talk about it all the time. We all sit around

myself among them, but basically, we’re a bunch of guys

and talk about different ways of doing it. We haven’t come

with no chins and hemophilia [laughs] because it’s so inbred

up with a business model that we think has a high enough

that people from the outside can’t get into it. And it’s not

chance of success to do it. I mean we’re in a position where

about the medium. The success of manga should tell us that

we couldn’t convince DC to do a Static comic for five years

if you do a story people want to read in comic-book form,

while the TV show was on. [laughs] It’s like, “Aw, jeez. Static,

they will read it in numbers. But if you keep doing the 15th

I don’t know. Maybe Firestorm.” [laughs]

variation on Spider-Man’s origin, but this time he curses,

WALKER: We’ve talked about this a bit in the past, but

you’re not talking to anybody you’re not already talking to.

frankly I was amazed at the lack of merchandising behind

WALKER: Well, it’s like there’s this finite number of people

Static Shock—no comics, no toys, nothing.

who buy and read comics and the industry only seems to

McDUFFIE: Yeah, which is frankly why we’re off the air now.

be interested in catering to that finite number. So we’ll say

It’s not the ratings. We’re still winning the ratings. Our last

a hundred people read comics, there doesn’t seem to be

week on the air, we won the week. [laughs] It’s because car-

much emphasis on attracting a hundred more readers. It’s

toons make their money off of licensing and we haven’t been

just “we’re going to try to sell these hundred people the

able to get licensing.

same things over and over again.”

WALKER: It’s just absolutely ridiculous to me because I know

McDUFFIE: And a lot of that is our distribution system,

all my friends with kids, both white kids and black kids and

which is another thing that makes it a lot tougher to do

every other shade in between, they all watch the show.

anything that’s different because if you said, “Well, I’m

They all would love to have their Static action figures because

going to do a bunch of black comics and we’re going to

they’ve got their 18 different Spider-Mans. . .

try different stuff, and we’re going to sell at places where

McDUFFIE: Yeah, they’ve got their Batmans and they’ve got

there are a lot of black people.” Great! There aren’t a lot of

their Flashes and they want them to meet and hit each

black people in comic stores. It’s a subset of whatever that

other, like I would have, you know? [chuckles] But that is not

hundred people are. We can argue about whether it’s 12

to be.

guys or 20 guys out of the hundred, but the fact is if you

WALKER: You were saying that you guys have been trying

hit all 20 of them, that’s not enough. So there’s no strong

to come up with a business model that works? Do you think

economic reason for the Big Two to push stuff into that,

you can do that? You have this great universe of characters

to really push it, unless they can convince the other 80 to buy

that’s sort of—

it. And the other 80, they’d rather see Hawkman again.

McDUFFIE: See, I’m not even sure the answer is super-heroes,

WALKER: Then it’s a question of figuring out, well, where

although a lot of my partners still think that it’s super-

are the alternative places? How do we reach that audience

heroes. And I certainly wouldn’t mind doing—like just

that doesn’t know?

taking Icon and doing it in another form and having a dif-

McDUFFIE: Well, you’re talking about spending a lot of

ferent distribution system. But I wonder if we need to be

money and you’re talking about doing a lot of things that

making comics about something entirely different.

many certain comic companies are not set

WALKER: Well, that’s where you draw from

up to do, and in fact, they’re very strongly

the model that manga has set up, which is

set up not to do. So I’m not really sure

they’ve got everything.

what the answer to that is. We did Static

McDUFFIE: Yeah, but again, that’s harder

in the comic stores. It was our worst-selling

yet because if we did this, people would

comic, it was Milestone’s worst-selling book.

know it wasn’t manga ’cause the lips don’t

And we took exactly the same thing and

cover their nose. [laughs] So who is it for?

Damage Control

put it on TV and it’s the second-highest

Who’s going to see it? How are they going

for Marvel, a

rated show on Saturday morning. It has

to know about it? What’s the right genre?

been for four years. Now what that means

What’s the right package? How do we pay

8 2

—you know. It’s like comic-book fans now, and I include

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is there’s an audience out there and it’s not

for it? The other biggest advantage of

entirely a black audience. In fact, it’s proba-

manga is reprints are a lot cheaper than

bly 80% white, still. But those guys aren’t

new stuff. [laughs] You know, if I could get

in comics stores.

that stuff for ten, 20 bucks a page and reprint

WALKER: If you were in a position to do

it over here, and still charge 30 bucks for

a Milestone-type venture right now, today,

a trade, life is real good. [chuckles]

would you do it again?

WALKER: Yeah, it’s a very complex equation that you have

McDUFFIE: In the direct market, the way we did it before,

to look at and that’s the thing. I don’t know where the

no. It would have to be a completely different business

answer is.

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McDUFFIE: I’m hoping somebody’s reading this and like

McDUFFIE: I’m still on Justice League [Unlimited]. I’m working

they’re sitting there and they’re going, “Jesus, these guys

on the fourth season of Justice League right now and likely

are so stupid.” [laughs] And next year, they come in with the

there’ll be more. The ratings are really, really high. I’m work-

model and we all go, “Sh’yeah, of course!”

ing on development for a couple other shows. We’ll see if any

WALKER: “Why didn’t I think of that?”

of that gets on.

McDUFFIE: And then I think, “No, they’re not going to

WALKER: You’ve got something that you’re self-publishing,

follow them in.” [laughs] That’s why it was

or is that just a rumor?

always my argument when there was all

McDUFFIE: I’m self-publishing a comic

the “you have to do it mainstream, you

called The Road to Hell, which is a romantic

have to do it independent, you have to do

comedy about a scientist who builds a ship

it Afro-centric, it has to be for all audi-

to go to Hell and falls in love with Satan, and

ences,” all those arguments seem ridiculous

her boyfriend’s mad.

to me because it seemed to me like if you

WALKER: And is there an ETA on that?

had fifteen people trying fifteen different

McDUFFIE: You know, I thought we would

ways, it’s a lot more chance of unlocking

be real close right now. I co-wrote that with

that door than fifteen guys with the same

Matt Wayne, who was one of the editors

key. [chuckles] I don’t know if it’s magazines.

on Milestone with me and who also wrote

I really kind of believe in trades, but I haven’t

a really excellent fourth season episode of

figured out, financially, how to pay for a

Static Shock. And it’s being drawn by Rick

trade and have 20-25,000 dollars’ worth

Parker, who people probably know best

of art and editorial in the drawer before I

from his cartoons on the Marvel Bullpen Page. And he used to do Beavis and

big investment.

Butthead. So we’re just waiting for him to finish it up and

WALKER: There’s only two Milestone trades out there, right?

as soon as he finishes, I will never stop talking about this.

There’s Icon and—

It’s a comic that originally we did in England for a magazine

McDUFFIE: Well, those guys drive me crazy. I can’t get them

called Toxic 15 years ago and I’ve been trying to figure out

to do trades of the Milestone stuff, including Static.

how to get it back out ever since and I just decided, “You

WALKER: There’s the one Static trade that came out.

know what? Static’s been pretty good to me, why don’t I just

McDUFFIE: Yeah, came out right when the show started

like publish this thing myself and lose my shirt?” And that’s

five years ago. That’s not in print any more and neither is Icon.

okay because I really want to get that book out there.

And they’re both terrific trades and there’s no excuse for us

WALKER: Well, you don’t necessarily have to lose your shirt.

not having reprinted all of Static while the show was on.

McDUFFIE: Well, just one of the sleeves. But that’s okay.

WALKER: Why did the plug get pulled on Static Shock? That

And immediately after that, as soon as we sort of have that

was my mom’s favorite show—she’s mad.

under control, I’m just going to try to think of something

McDUFFIE: We did 52 episodes, which is kind of the magic

else to do that I specifically want to do. Me and Michael Davis,

number. After this point, every new episode you make, you’re

one of the other original Milestone partners, came up with

just losing more money. I’m really proud. We have four Emmy

a genius idea, like a Watchmen-level idea. I’m not kidding.

nominations, we won one Emmy, we won one Humanitas

A history of black super-heroes in a super-hero universe that

Award. The last two seasons, Denys Cowan, the co-creator

we pitched to DC and DC didn’t want to do it, and we

of Static, was the producer and did a brilliant job of just

pitched to Marvel and Marvel didn’t want to do it. So what

making the show look like it cost ten times what it cost.

I’m thinking is maybe we should just sit down and do that

We’re really, really proud of it.

ourselves, although Michael might be surprised to read this.

WALKER: Is Static gone for good, or will there be a return

[laughs]

in some other format?

WALKER: I’ve got a black super-hero project that I don’t

McDUFFIE: There’s some talk about doing like an original

think it’s quite at Watchmen level yet, but it’s pretty epic. I’ve

direct-to-video movie and I don’t know if that’s going to

been working on this thing for two years, and one thing

happen, but we’re talking about that. There’s the perennial

that keeps running through my head is, well, who’s going to

talk about doing a live-action movie and Hollywood, who

publish this thing?

knows? But they seem pretty serious about it. But we want

McDUFFIE: Well, that’s the problem. I mean I thought that

to keep the character alive and we may try a new series

this was—one of the nice things about the idea that Michael

at some point in the future, but you’ve got to let it rest a

and I worked on is that it would have instantly created a

little bit.

rich history of characters of color for either of those universes

WALKER: Now that Static is done, what have you got going?

in a way that didn’t insult what they had done before and

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didn’t undercut their main guys. I kind of thought it was

some stuff that they’re not going to write about because

a no-brainer, but they are really threatened by the idea.

they don’t know about it.

That’s very sad, but they are and it may be why even when

one of three really good white writers to do it. [chuckles] And

WALKER: What’s the most insulting thing isn’t so much that they’re going to get a white writer to revamp some classic black character, it’s the fact that they’re not necessarily going to hype it the same way if they got a black writer to do it.

white people, of course, can write black people, but there’s

McDUFFIE: Well, certainly not. And when you’ve got guys

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So Why the Revision?

like Kyle Baker around and John Ridley and, you know, there are guys there who can do the job. WALKER: Yeah. I mean they make a big production out of

From the “Needless

one, like when Kevin Smith came on board to do Daredevil or Green Arrow.

Cover Rejections File”

McDUFFIE: Well, we may have a chance to test this, this

comes M.D. Bright

particular theory because there’s a couple of black directors

and Jerry Acerno’s

who are going to be doing some mainstream comics.

original cover for

WALKER: I don’t think we’re supposed to talk about it.

Power Man and

McDUFFIE: It hasn’t been announced yet.

Iron Fist #123 (left),

WALKER: But we know. [laughs] McDUFFIE: Let’s see. We know and we’re thrilled. [chuckles]

courtesy of Ted Latner,

I can’t wait. But let’s see if they get the same kind of push. And

and Kevin Maguire

you know what? To me, at one level, I don’t even mind that

and Joe Rubinstein’s

they’re not going to get the push because I know these guys

near-exact replication

are going to do some great comics I want to read, so the world will be better for having it happen. It’s the same way

stuff, they occasionally mentioned us because—[laughs]

(right), the version

I sort of feel about Milestone. We did 300 comics and like 250

because we do have these Invisible Man moments. I love

actually published

of them were really good. And if we hadn’t been there,

reading these five-six-hundred page histories of comics with no mention of anyone black. [laughs]

in 1986.

that would have been 250 less good ones.

WALKER: At the end of the day, it exists. You can’t take that away and at the very least, you can say, “Hey, we tried and we did our best.” McDUFFIE: Although it would be nice if when they write histories of the companies and people in comics and

David Walker is the editor and publisher of BadAzz MoFo and SOLID!, the English language version writer of Tokyo Tribes, and a semi-accomplished filmmaker. He is a Sagittarius.

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Unlock the FINAL secrets of the JUSTICE SOCIETY of AMERICA (& friends) !

THE

• Amazing new info on the Golden Age JSA—including every JUNIOR JUSTICE SOCIETY message ever—and an incredible index of the solo stories of the original JSAers, from 1939 to 1951! • Sensational new JSA and INFINITY, INC. cover by JERRY ORDWAY, drawn especially for this volume! • The OTHER 1940s Hero Groups Examined in Depth! THE SEVEN SOLDIERS OF VICTORY—THE MARVEL FAMILY—THE ALL WINNERS SQUAD— & M.C. Gaines’ own INTERNATIONAL CRIME PATROL! • Issue-by-issue 1980s spotlight on INFINITY, INC. & SECRET ORIGINS! • Rare, often unpublished art & artifacts by: ALEX ROSS * TODD McFARLANE JOE KUBERT * CARMINE INFANTINO ALEX TOTH * GIL KANE MURPHY ANDERSON * IRWIN HASEN WAYNE BORING * SHELDON MOLDOFF MORT MESKIN * GENE COLAN MART NODELL * HARRY LAMPERT DON NEWTON * GEORGE TUSKA PAUL REINMAN * JOE GALLAGHER CHESTER KOZLAK * LEE ELIAS E.E. HIBBARD * ARTHUR PEDDY JIM VALENTINO * ALAN KUPPERBERG MICHAEL T. GILBERT * RICK HOBERG MIKE SEKOWSKY * JACK BURNLEY MIKE MACHLAN * FRANK HARRY DICK DILLIN * BERNARD KRIGSTEIN H.G. PETER * MICHAEL BAIR —& many others! VOLUM E FOUR

Companion

Edited by

ROY THOMAS $

2795

In The US

256 Big Pages ISBN 978-1-60549-004-5

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TwoMorrows. Celebrating The Art & History Of Comics. TwoMorrows • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

THE

BATCAVE C O M P A N I O N NOW SHIPPING! Batman. Is he the campy Caped Crusader? Or the grim Gotham Guardian? Both, as The Batcave Companion reveals. On the brink of cancellation in 1963, Batman was rescued by DC Comics editor Julius Schwartz, who, abetted by several talented writers and artists, gave the hero a much-needed “New Look” which soon catapulted Batman to multimedia stardom. In the next decade, when Batman required another fresh start, Schwartz once again led a team of creators that returned the hero to his “creature of the night” roots. Writers Michael Eury (The Krypton Companion, The Justice League Companion) and Michael Kronenberg (Spies, Vixens, and Masters of Kung Fu: The Art of Paul Gulacy) unearth the stories behind the stories of both Batman’s “New Look” and Bronze Age (1970s) comic-book eras through incisive essays, invaluable issue-by-issue indexes, and insightful commentary from many of the visionaries responsible for and inspired by Batman’s 1960s and 1970s adventures: Neal Adams, Michael Allred, Terry Austin, Mike W. Barr, Steve Englehart, Mike Friedrich, Mike Grell, Carmine Infantino, Joe Giella, Adam Hughes, Sheldon Moldoff, Will Murray, Dennis O’Neil, Bob Rozakis, Mark Waid, Len Wein, and Bernie Wrightson. Featuring 240 art- and info-packed pages, The Batcave Companion is a must-have examination of two of the most influential periods in Batman’s 70-year history.

Written by Back Issue’s

MICHAEL EURY & MICHAEL KRONENBERG ISBN 978-1-893905-78-8 $26.95 in the U.S. plus shipping Batman, Robin, and all related characters and indicia are TM & © DC Comics. All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Send your comments to: Email: euryman@msn.com (subject: BACK ISSUE) No attachments, please!

Postal mail: Michael Eury, Editor • BACK ISSUE 5060A Foothills Drive • Lake Oswego, OR 97034

I just wanted to respond to Roy Thomas’s “Off My Chest” guest editorial in BACK ISSUE #6, “Drac’s Back—and Dick and I Are Ready to Sink Our Teeth in Him!” Roy discussed the long, complex history of his and Dick Giordano’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula, which they had begun for Marvel back in the 1970s, and which they finally got the chance to complete [in 2004], in a new collection published by Marvel. To Roy’s credit, he mentioned that this will not be Marvel’s first attempt to publish the complete Thomas/ Giordano adaptation. As Roy writes, “Once, in the 1990s, (Dick and I) even spoke with a couple of top guys at Marvel about the company . . . publishing the whole thing, and an editor whose name I forget seemed very enthusiastic about that possibility. But it never jelled.” For the record, I was that very enthusiastic Marvel editor—and with my oversized ego, and my great enthusiasm for the project, you can imagine how heartbroken I was to discover that Roy had forgotten my name! I should mention that it was Shirrell Rhodes, Marvel’s publisher at the time, who met with Roy, Dick, and me about finishing the project at Marvel. This was in 1998. I’d gotten as far as gathering all the film for the chapters that had already been published, and Dick and I had talked about trying to track down some or all of the original artwork, so that we could shoot from the actual pages and thus ensure that the reproduction quality would be as good as possible. (Some of the film had deteriorated over the years, and based on what it looked like, it seemed like the inkwash effects that Dick used in the original art would not have reproduced faithfully.) By late 1998, Shirrell and I had both left Marvel, and all the film remained in a drawer in my office—it may still be there, at Marvel’s old address, for all I know! At any rate, my understanding is that this film was not used for the current incarnation of the project, which is probably for the best. It looks like editor Mark Beazley was able to get around the production obstacles I faced when I worked on the project—good for him, and good for Roy and Dick! – Glenn Greenberg Roy Thomas adds, “I should mention that I was in definite error about something in my editorial, due to not checking early info (or having any need to, except for writing that editorial for BACK ISSUE). Namely, although I believe Mark Beazley at first had some doubts as to whether the film on the 1974–75 Dracula adaptation would be reproducible in adequate quality, and was asking if Dick still had the original art, I take it it was eventually decided that the film was usable, after all. Actually, if that hadn’t happened, there is probably no way that the first issue of Stoker’s Dracula could have come out in October 2004!” And Roy notes, “Also, the date of Bram Stoker’s Dracula is 1897, not 1890 as I wrote. Guess I confused it with Lovecraft’s birthyear. Sorry.” As Roy—editor of the wonderful magazine Alter Ego—knows, chronicling comics history is often a multi-layered endeavor, so thanks, Glenn and Roy, for helping us set the record straight. One more Drac-fact correction: Tom Field, author of the Tomb of Dracula article in BI #6, writes, “The TOD #65 cover rough you ascribe to Gene Colan is probably by Dave Cockrum. Gene never drew a rough anything—he only drew finished pieces—but Cockrum was drawing a lot of Marvel’s cover designs at that point. That sketch looks like one of his.” We appreciate the info, Tom. And a quick heads up: Glenn Greenberg has penned a fascinating history of Marvel’s Star Wars comics, which will appear in our very next issue! – M.E.

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The things you read. . . I’ve just finished my first run through the latest issue of BACK ISSUE. Great to see Gene “the Dean” Colan’s work in glorious black and white. What caught my eye was the letter from Andy Patterson. Do let him know that Ross Andru and Mike Esposito aren’t forgotten by a long stroke. I recently had the chance to conduct an extensive interview with Mike (the results of which are up on my site) and I’m now in the process of working on a book about Andru/Esposito. The book should see print sometime in 2005. Ross and Mike were, and still are, woefully underrated as both artists and trailblazers in the comics world. They were amongst the first artists who started their own company (foreshadowing Image by nearly 40 years!), and Ross was both a genius and a visionary in the art field. Hopefully the book will go a long way to addressing their legacy and ensuring that people don’t forget these two giants in the industry. In the meantime, let Andy know that he can get the lowdown on Mike at my site (www.adelaidecomicsandbooks.com), or at Mike’s site (www.mightymikeespo.net/index.asp). Great magazine! – Daniel Best Adelelaide Comics and Books Glenside, South Austrailia Thanks, Daniel! Good luck with the book—and how many of you ’70s-era readers remember Andru and Esposito’s satirical comics mag, Up Your Nose (and Out Your Ear)? – M.E.

Once you get past all your planned issues, how about a Julius Schwartz Superman issue with interviews of Cary Bates, Marty Pasko, Marv Wolfman, and maybe some pencil art from José Luis GarcíaLópez and Nick Cardy? – Jim Van Dore While I won’t promise an entire Superman issue, Jim, BACK ISSUE will definitely cover this important phase of the Man of Steel’s history as soon as possible. And on that topic: Anyone out there have copies of pencil art by García-López, Cardy, Curt Swan, and other Super-artists of the day? If so, please email me at euryman@msn.com with details! And thanks to Scotty Galloway, Guy Vollen, J.A. Dalton, Abel Padilla, Paul Green, Ricky Butler, Jr., Martin Gray, and the other readers who commented on issue #6. I wish we had more room to print letters. Join us in 60 days for our “Cosmic Issue,” featuring Nexus, Star Wars, Thanos, Cosmic Odyssey, Time Warp, Grimjack, First Comics, a Gil Kane “Rough Stuff,” a “Greatest Stories Never Told” on DC’s Crisis of the Soul, the return of our “Back in Print” column, and more! Your friendly neighborhood Euryman,

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Questions? Comments? Exaltations? Send 'em to euryman@msn.com. Thanks for helping make BACK ISSUE the ultimate comics experience!

ON S U B M I S SEI S GUIDELIN BACK ISSUE is on the lookout for the following comics-related material from the 1970s and 1980s:

Unpublished artwork Original artwork Penciled artwork Character designs, model sheets, etc. Original scripts

Photos Original sketches and/or convention sketches Rare fanzine material Other rarities

Creators and collectors of 1970s and 1980s comics artwork are invited to share your goodies with other fans! Contributors will be acknowledged in print and receive complimentary copies (and the editor’s gratitude). Submit artwork as (listed in order of preference):

Scanned images: 300dpi TIF (preferred) or JPEG (e-mailed or on CD, or to our FTP site; please inquire) Clear color or black-and-white photocopies BACK ISSUE is also open to pitches from writers for article ideas appropriate for our recurring and/or rotating departments. Request a copy of the BACK ISSUE Writers’ Bible by e-mailing euryman@msn.com or by sending a SASE to the address below. Artwork submissions and SASEs for writers’ guidelines should be sent to: Michael Eury, Editor BACK ISSUE 5060A Foothills Dr. Lake Oswego, OR 97034

Advertise In BACK ISSUE! FULL-PAGE: 7.5" Wide x 10" Tall • $300 HALF-PAGE: 7.5" Wide x 4.875" Tall • $175 QUARTER-PAGE: 3.75" Wide x 4.875" Tall • $100 Prepay for two ads in Alter Ego, DRAW!, Write Now!, Back Issue, or any combination and save: TWO FULL-PAGE ADS: $500 ($100 savings) TWO HALF-PAGE ADS: $300 ($50 savings) TWO QUARTER-PAGE ADS: $175 ($25 savings) These rates are for black-&-white ads, supplied on-disk (TIF, EPS, or Quark Xpress files acceptable) or as cameraready art. Typesetting service available at 20% mark-up. Due to our already low ad rates, no agency discounts apply. Sorry, display ads not available for the Jack Kirby Collector. Send ad copy and check/money order (US funds), Visa, or Mastercard to: TwoMorrows Publishing 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 Phone: 919/449-0344 • FAX 919/449-0327 E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com S u p e r - H e r o e s

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BOOKS by BACK ISSUE’s editor MICHAEL EURY

KRYPTON COMPANION Unlocks the secrets of Superman’s Silver and Bronze Ages, when kryptonite came in multiple colors and super-pets scampered across the skies! Writer/editor MICHAEL EURY explores the legacy of classic editors MORT WEISINGER and JULIUS SCHWARTZ through all-new interviews with NEAL ADAMS, MURPHY ANDERSON, CARY BATES, NICK CARDY, JOSÉ LUIS GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, KEITH GIFFEN, ELLIOT S! MAGGIN, JIM MOONEY, DENNIS O’NEIL, BOB OKSNER, MARTIN PASKO, BOB ROZAKIS, JIM SHOOTER, LEN WEIN, MARV WOLFMAN, and other fan favorites! Plus: Super-artist CURT SWAN’s 1987 essay “Drawing Superman,” JERRY SIEGEL’s “lost” imaginary story “The Death of Clark Kent,” MARK WAID’s tribute to Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, and rare and previously unpublished artwork by WAYNE BORING, ALAN DAVIS, ADAM HUGHES, PAUL SMITH, BRUCE TIMM, and other Super-stars. Bonus: A roundtable discussion with modern-day creators examining Superman’s influential past! Cover by DAVE GIBBONS!

JUSTICE LEAGUE COMPANION A comprehensive examination of the Silver Age JLA written by MICHAEL EURY (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-by-issue 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!

BATCAVE COMPANION The writer/editor of the critically acclaimed KRYPTON COMPANION and the designer of the eye-popping SPIES, VIXENS, AND MASTERS OF KUNG FU: THE ART OF PAUL GULACY team up to explore the Silver and Bronze Ages of Batman comic books in THE BATCAVE COMPANION! Two distinct sections of this book examine the Dark Knight’s progression from his campy “New Look” of the mid-1960s to his “creature of the night” reinvention of the 1970s. Features include issue-by-issue indexes, interviews with CARMINE INFANTINO, JOE GIELLA, DENNIS O’NEIL, and NEAL ADAMS, and guest essays by MIKE W. BARR and WILL MURRAY. Contributors include SHELDON MOLDOFF, LEN WEIN, STEVE ENGLEHART, and TERRY AUSTIN, with a special tribute to the late MARSHALL ROGERS. With its incisive introduction by DENNIS O’NEIL and its iconic cover painting by NEAL ADAMS, THE BATCAVE COMPANION is a musthave for every comics fan! By MICHAEL EURY and MICHAEL KRONENBERG. (240-page trade paperback) $26.95 US • ISBN: 9781893905788 • Diamond Order Code: NOV068368

(224-page trade paperback) $24.95 ISBN: 9781893905481 Diamond Order Code: MAY053052

(240-page trade paperback) $24.95 ISBN: 9781893905610 Diamond Order Code: MAY063443

COMICS GONE APE!

DICK GIORDANO: CHANGING COMICS, ONE DAY AT A TIME

The missing link to primates in comics, spotlighting a barrel of simian superstars like Beppo, BrainiApe, the Gibbon, Gleek, Gorilla Man, Grease Monkey, King Kong, Konga, Mojo Jojo, Sky Ape, and Titano! It’s loaded with rare and classic artwork, cover galleries, and interviews with artists & writers including ARTHUR ADAMS (Monkeyman and O’Brien), FRANK CHO, CARMINE INFANTINO (Detective Chimp, Grodd), JOE KUBERT (Tor, Tarzan), TONY MILLIONAIRE (Sock Monkey), DOUG MOENCH (Planet of the Apes), and BOB OKSNER (Angel and the Ape)! All-new cover by ARTHUR ADAMS, and written by MICHAEL EURY.

MICHAEL EURY’s biography of comics’ most prominent and affable personality! Covers his career as illustrator, inker, and editor, peppered with DICK’S PERSONAL REFLECTIONS on his career milestones! Lavishly illustrated with RARE AND NEVER SEEN comics, merchandising, and advertising art (includes a color section)! Also includes an extensive index of his published work, comments and tributes by NEAL ADAMS, DENNIS O’NEIL, TERRY AUSTIN, PAUL LEVITZ, MARV WOLFMAN, JULIUS SCHWARTZ, JIM APARO and others, plus a Foreword by NEAL ADAMS and Afterword by PAUL LEVITZ!

(128-page trade paperback) $14.95 ISBN: 9781893905627 Diamond Order Code: FEB073814

(176-pg. Paperback with COLOR) $19.95 ISBN: 9781893905276 Diamond Order Code: STAR20439

CAPTAIN ACTION: THE ORIGINAL SUPER-HERO ACTION FIGURE (Hardcover 2nd Edition)

CAPTAIN ACTION was introduced in 1966 in the wake of the Batman TV show craze, and later received his own DC comic book with art by WALLY WOOD and GIL KANE. Able to assume the identities of 13 famous super-heroes, his initial career was short-lived, but continuing interest in the hero has led to two different returns to toy-store shelves. Lavishly illustrated with over 200 toy photos, this FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER SECOND EDITION chronicles the history of this quick-changing champion, including photos of virtually EVERY CAPTAIN ACTION PRODUCT ever released, spotlights on his allies ACTION BOY and the SUPER QUEENS and his arch enemy DR. EVIL, an examination of his comic-book appearances, and “Action facts” that even the most diehard Captain Action fan won’t know! The original softcover edition has been sold out for years, but this revised, full-color hardcover second edition includes behind-the-scenes coverage of CAPTAIN ACTION’S TRIUMPHANT 2008 RETURN to comics shelves in his new series from Moonstone Books, and spotlights the new wave of Captain Action collectibles. Written by MICHAEL EURY. (176-page COLOR HARDCOVER) $39.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490175 • Diamond Code: APR091003

TwoMorrows Publishing 2009 Update WINTER/SPRING

Supplement to the 2008 TwoMorrows Preview Catalog

ORDER AT: www.twomorrows.com

SAVE

BATCAVE COMPANION

IT’S FINALLY HERE! The writer/editor of the critically acclaimed KRYPTON COMPANION and the designer of the eye-popping SPIES, VIXENS, AND MASTERS OF KUNG FU: THE ART OF PAUL GULACY team up to explore the Silver and Bronze Ages of Batman comic books in THE BATCAVE COMPANION! Two distinct sections of this book examine the Dark Knight’s progression from his campy “New Look” of the mid-1960s to his “creature of the night” reinvention of the 1970s. Features include issue-byissue indexes, interviews with CARMINE INFANTINO, JOE GIELLA, DENNIS O’NEIL, and NEAL ADAMS, and guest essays by MIKE W. BARR and WILL MURRAY. Contributors include SHELDON MOLDOFF, LEN WEIN, STEVE ENGLEHART, and TERRY AUSTIN, with a special tribute to the late MARSHALL ROGERS. With its incisive introduction by DENNIS O’NEIL and its iconic cover painting by NEAL ADAMS, THE BATCAVE COMPANION is a must-have for every comics fan! By MICHAEL EURY and MICHAEL KRONENBERG.

WHE % N YO ORD U ONL ER INE!

(224-page trade paperback) $26.95 US • ISBN: 9781893905788 • Diamond Order Code: NOV068368 • Ships April 2009

COMIC BOOK PODCAST COMPANION Comic book podcasts have taken the Internet by storm, and now TwoMorrows offers you the chance to go behind the scenes of ten of today's top comic book podcasts via all-new interviews with the casts of AROUND COMICS, WORD BALLOON, QUIET! PANELOLOGISTS AT WORK, COMIC BOOK QUEERS, iFANBOY, THE CRANKCAST, THE COLLECTED COMICS LIBRARY, THE PIPELINE PODCAST, COMIC GEEK SPEAK, and TwoMorrows’ own TUNE-IN PODCAST! Also featured are new interviews about podcasting and comics on the Internet with creators MATT FRACTION, TIM SEELEY, and GENE COLAN. You'll also find a handy guide of what you’ll need to start your own podcast, an index of more than thirty great comic book podcasts, numerous photos of your favorite podcasters, and original art from COLAN, SEELEY, DC's MIKE NORTON, and many more! By ERIC HOUSTON, with a spectacular new cover by MIKE MANLEY. (128-page trade paperback) $15.95 • ISBN: 9781605490182 • Ships May 2009

ALL-STAR COMPANION Volume 4 The epic series of ALL-STAR COMPANIONS goes out with a bang, featuring: Colossal coverage of the Golden Age ALL-STAR COMICS! Sensational secrets of the JUNIOR JUSTICE SOCIETY! An index of the complete solo adventures of all 18 original JSAers in their own features, from 1940 to 1951! The JSA's earliest imitators (Seven Soldiers of Victory, All Winners Squad, Marvel Family, and International Crime Patrol)! INFINITY, INC. on Earth-Two and after! And the 1980s SECRET ORIGINS series! With rare art by ALEX ROSS, TODD McFARLANE, JERRY ORDWAY, CARMINE INFANTINO, JOE KUBERT, ALEX TOTH, GIL KANE, MURPHY ANDERSON, IRWIN HASEN, MORT MESKIN, GENE COLAN, WAYNE BORING, GEORGE TUSKA, MICHAEL T. GILBERT, GEORGE FREEMAN, DON NEWTON, JACK BURNLEY, MIKE MACHLAN, HOWARD CHAYKIN, DICK DILLIN, and others. Edited by ROY THOMAS.

CAPTAIN ACTION: THE ORIGINAL SUPERHERO ACTION FIGURE

(240-page trade paperback) $27.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490045 Ships June 2009

(Hardcover 2nd Edition)

CAPTAIN ACTION was introduced in 1966 in the wake of the Batman TV show craze, and later received his own DC comic book with art by WALLY WOOD and GIL KANE. Able to assume the identities of 13 famous super-heroes, his initial career was short-lived, but continuing interest in the hero has led to two different returns to toy-store shelves. Lavishly illustrated with over 200 toy photos, this FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER SECOND EDITION chronicles the history of this quick-changing champion, including photos of virtually EVERY CAPTAIN ACTION PRODUCT ever released, spotlights on his allies ACTION BOY and the SUPER QUEENS and his arch enemy DR. EVIL, an examination of his comic-book appearances, and “Action facts” that even the most diehard Captain Action fan won’t know! The original softcover edition has been sold out for years, but this revised, full-color hardcover second edition includes behind-the-scenes coverage of CAPTAIN ACTION’S TRIUMPHANT 2008 RETURN to comics shelves in his new series from Moonstone Books, and spotlights the new wave of Captain Action collectibles. Written by MICHAEL EURY. (176-page FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER) $39.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490175 • Ships July 2009

MARVEL COMICS IN THE 1960s: An Issue-By-Issue Field Guide

The comic book industry experienced an unexpected flowering in the early 1960s, compliments of Marvel Comics, and this book presents a step-by-step look at how a company that had the reputation of being one of the least creative in a generally moribund industry, emerged as one of the most dynamic, slightly irreverent and downright original contributions to an era when pop-culture emerged as the dominant force in the artistic life of America. In scores of handy, easy to reference entries, MARVEL COMICS IN THE 1960s takes the reader from the legendary company’s first fumbling beginnings as helmed by savvy editor/writer STAN LEE (aided by such artists as JACK KIRBY and STEVE DITKO), to the full maturity of its wild, colorful, offbeat grandiosity. With the history of Marvel Comics in the 1960s divided into four distinct phases, author PIERRE COMTOIS explains just how Lee, Kirby, Ditko, and others created a line of comic books that, while grounded in the traditional elements of panel-to-panel storytelling, broke through the juvenile mindset of a low brow industry and provided a tapestry of full blown pop culture icons. (224-page trade paperback) $27.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490168 • Ships July 2009

GRAILPAGES:

Original Comic Book Art And The Collectors GRAILPAGES brings to light the burgeoning hobby of collecting the original, hand-drawn art that is used to create comic books! Beginning more as a novelty, the hobby of collecting original comic art has expanded to a point where some of the seminal pages commonly run more than $10,000 each. Author STEVEN ALAN PAYNE lets you meet collectors from around the globe and hear their passion in their own words, as they detail collections ranging from a few key pages, to broad, encompassing collections of literally hundreds of pages of original comic art by such artists as JACK KIRBY, JOHN ROMITA SR., and others! Balancing out the narratives are incisive interviews with industry pros, including writers GERRY CONWAY, STEVE ENGLEHART, and ROY THOMAS, and exclusive perspectives from Silver Age artists DICK GIORDANO, BOB McLEOD, ERNIE CHAN, TONY DeZUNIGA, and the unparalleled great, GENE COLAN! Completing the book is a diverse sampling of breathtakingly beautiful original comic art, some lavishly presented in full-page spreads, including pages not seen publicly for decades. Fans of comic art, comic books, and pop culture will find in GRAILPAGES an appreciation for a uniquely American form of art! (128-page trade paperback) $15.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490151 Diamond Order Code: JAN094470 • Ships March 2009

MAGAZINES

DIEDGITIIOTANSL BL AVAILA

BRICKJOURNAL magazine is the ultimate resource for LEGO enthusiasts of all ages, spotlighting the LEGO Community with contributions and how-to articles by top builders worldwide, new product intros, and more. Edited by JOE MENO. ALTER EGO focuses on Golden and Silver Age comics and creators with articles, interviews and unseen art, plus FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), Mr. Monster & more. Edited by ROY THOMAS.

BRICKJOURNAL #3

BRICKJOURNAL #4

BRICKJOURNAL #5

BRICKJOURNAL #6

Event Reports from BRICKWORLD, FIRST LEGO LEAGUE WORLD FESTIVAL and PIECE OF PEACE (Japan), spotlight on our cover model builder BRYCE McGLONE, and interviews with ARTHUR GUGICK and STEVEN CANVIN of LEGO MINDSTORMS to see where LEGO ROBOTICS is going! There’s also STEP-BY-STEP BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS, TECHNIQUES, & more!

Interviews with LEGO BUILDERS including BREANN SLEDGE (BIONICLE BUILDER), Event Reports from BRICKFAIR and BRICKCON, plus reports on new MINDSTORMS PROJECTS, STEP-BY-STEP BUILDING INSTRUCTIONS and TECHNIQUES for all skill levels, NEW SET REVIEWS, and a report on constructing the Chinese Olympic Village in LEGO!

Features event reports from around the world, and the MINDSTORMS 10TH ANNIVERSARY at LEGO HEADQUARTERS! Plus an interview with the head of the LEGO GROUP’S 3D DEPARTMENT, a glimpse at the LEGO Group's past with the DIRECTOR OF LEGO'S IDEA HOUSE, instructions and spotlights on builders, and an idea section for Pirate builders!

Spotlight on CLASSIC SPACE SETS and a look at new ones with LEGO SET DESIGNERS, BRANDON GRIFFITH shows his STAR TREK MODELS, plus take a tour of the DUTCH MOONBASE with MIKE VAN LEEUWEN and MARCO BAAS. There's also coverage of BRICKFEST 2009 and FIRST LEGO LEAGUE'S WORLD FESTIVAL and photos from TOY FAIR NEW YORK!

(80-page COLOR magazine) $8.95 US Diamond Order Code: JUN084415

(80-page COLOR magazine) $8.95 US Diamond Order Code: SEP084428

(80-page COLOR magazine) $8.95 US Diamond Order Code: DEC084408 Ships March 2009

(80-page COLOR magazine) $8.95 US Ships June 2009

THE RETRO COMICS EXPERIENCE!

BACK ISSUE celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through a variety of recurring (and rotating) departments, plus rare and unpublished art. Edited by MICHAEL EURY. DRAW! is the professional “How-To” magazine on cartooning and animation, featuring in-depth interviews and step-bystep demonstrations from top comics professionals. Edited by MIKE MANLEY. ROUGH STUFF features never-seen pencil pages, sketches, layouts, roughs, and unused inked pages from throughout comics history, plus columns, critiques, and more! Edited by BOB McLEOD. WRITE NOW! features writing tips from pros on both sides of the desk, interviews, sample scripts, reviews, exclusive Nuts & Bolts tutorials, and more! Edited by DANNY FINGEROTH.

ALTER EGO #81

ALTER EGO #82

ALTER EGO #83

ALTER EGO #84

New FRANK BRUNNER Man-Thing cover, a look at the late-’60s horror comic WEB OF HORROR with early work by BRUNNER, WRIGHTSON, WINDSOR-SMITH, SIMONSON, & CHAYKIN, interview with comics & fine artist EVERETT RAYMOND KINTSLER, ROY THOMAS’ 1971 origin synopsis for the FIRST MAN-THING STORY, plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

MLJ ISSUE! Golden Age MLJ index illustrated with vintage images of The Shield, Hangman, Mr. Justice, Black Hood, by IRV NOVICK, JACK COLE, CHARLES BIRO, MORT MESKIN, GIL KANE, & others—behind a marvelous MLJ-heroes cover by BOB McLEOD! Plus interviews with IRV NOVICK and JOE EDWARDS, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

SWORD & SORCERY PART 2! Cover by ARTHUR SUYDAM, in-depth art-filled look at Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian, DC’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, Dagar the Invincible, Ironjaw & Wulf, and Arak, Son of Thunder, plus the never-seen Valda the Iron Maiden by TODD McFARLANE! Plus JOE EDWARDS (Part 2), FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

Unseen JIM APARO cover, STEVE SKEATES discusses his early comics work, art & artifacts by ADKINS, APARO, ARAGONÉS, BOYETTE, DITKO, GIORDANO, KANE, KELLER, MORISI, ORLANDO, SEKOWSKY, STONE, THOMAS, WOOD, and the great WARREN SAVIN! Plus writer CHARLES SINCLAIR on his partnership with Batman co-creator BILL FINGER, FCA, and more!

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C o l l e c t o r

The JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR magazine celebrates his life and career through INTERVIEWS WITH KIRBY and his contemporaries, FEATURE ARTICLES, RARE AND UNSEEN KIRBY ART, and more. Edited by JOHN MORROW.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PRINT EDITION, AND GET THE DIGITAL EDITION FREE, BEFORE THE PRINT ISSUE HITS STORES!

BACK ISSUE #29

BACK ISSUE #30

BACK ISSUE #31

BACK ISSUE #32

“Mutants” issue! CLAREMONT, BYRNE, SMITH, and ROMITA, JR.’s X-Men work, NOCENTI and ARTHUR ADAMS’ Longshot, McLEOD and SIENKIEWICZ’s New Mutants, the UK’s CAPTAIN BRITAIN series, lost Angel stories, Beast’s tenure with the Avengers, the return of the original X-Men in X-Factor, the revelation of Nightcrawler’s “original” father, a history of DC’s mutant, Captain Comet, and more! Cover by DAVE COCKRUM!

“Saturday Morning Heroes!” Interviews with TV Captain Marvels JACKSON BOSTWICK and JOHN DAVEY, MAGGIN and SAVIUK’s lost Superman/”Captain Thunder” sequel, Space Ghost interviews with GARY OWENS and STEVE RUDE, MARV WOLFMAN guest editorial, Super Friends, unproduced fourth wave Super Powers action figures, Astro Boy, ADAM HUGHES tribute to DAVE STEVENS, and a new cover by ALEX ROSS!

“STEVE GERBER Salute!” In-depth look at his Howard the Duck, Man-Thing, Omega the Unknown, Defenders, Metal Men, Mister Miracle, Thundarr the Barbarian, and more! Plus: Creators pay tribute to Steve Gerber, featuring art by and commentary from BRUNNER, BUCKLER, COLAN, GOLDEN, STAN LEE, LEVITZ, MAYERIK, MOONEY, PLOOG, SIMONSON, and others. Cover painting by FRANK BRUNNER!

“Tech, Data, and Hardware!” The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, WEIN, WOLFMAN, and GREENBERGER on DC’s Who’s Who, SAVIUK, STATON, and VAN SCIVER on Drawing Green Lantern, ED HANNIGAN Art Gallery, history of Rom: Spaceknight, story of BILL MANTLO, Dial H for Hero, Richie Rich’s Inventions, and a Spider-Mobile schematic cover by ELIOT BROWN and DUSTY ABELL!

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DRAW! #17

DRAW! #18

ROUGH STUFF #10

ROUGH STUFF #11

ROUGH STUFF #12

Interview with Scott Pilgrim’s creator and artist BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY on how he creates the acclaimed series, plus learn how B.P.R.D.’s GUY DAVIS works on his series. Also, more Comic Art Bootcamp: Learning from The Great Cartoonists by BRET BLEVINS and MIKE MANLEY, reviews, and more!

Features an in-depth interview and demo by R.M. GUERA (the artist of Vertigo’s Scalped), behind-the-scenes in the Batcave with Cartoon Network’s JAMES TUCKER on the new hit show “Batman: The Brave and the Bold,” plus product reviews by JAMAR NICHOLAS, and Comic Book Boot Camp’s “Anatomy: Part 2” by BRET BLEVINS and MIKE MANLEY!

Interview with RON GARNEY, with copious examples of sketchwork and comments. Also features on ANDY SMITH, MICHAEL JASON PAZ, and MATT HALEY, showing how their work evolves, excerpts from a new book on ALEX RAYMOND, secrets of teaching comic art by pro inker BOB McLEOD, new cover by GARNEY and McLEOD, newcomer critique, and more!

New cover by GREG HORN, plus interviews with HORN and TOM YEATES on how they produce their stellar work. Also features on GENE HA, JIMMY CHEUNG, and MIKE PERKINS, showing their sketchwork and commentary, tips on collecting sketches and commissions from artists, a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work, and more!

Interview and cover by comic painter CHRIS MOELLER, features on New Zealand comic artist COLIN WILSON, G.I. Joe artist JEREMY DALE, and fan favorite TERRY DODSON, plus "GOOD GIRL ART" (a new article about everyone's favorite collectible art) by ROBERT PLUNKETT, a "Rough Critique" of an aspiring artist's work, and more!

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ALTER EGO #85

ALTER EGO #86

ALTER EGO #87

ALTER EGO #88

WRITE NOW! #20

Captain Marvel and Superman’s battles explored (in cosmic space, candy stories, and in court, with art by WALLY WOOD, CURT SWAN, and GIL KANE), an in-depth interview with Golden Age great LILY RENÉE, overview of CENTAUR COMICS (home of BILL EVERETT’s Amazing-Man and others), FCA, MR. MONSTER, new RICH BUCKLER cover, and more!

Spotlighting the Frantic Four-Color MAD WANNABES of 1953-55 that copied HARVEY KURTZMAN’S EC smash (see Captain Marble, Mighty Moose, Drag-ula, Prince Scallion, and more) with art by SIMON & KIRBY, KUBERT & MAURER, ANDRU & ESPOSITO, EVERETT, COLAN, and many others, plus Part 1 of a talk with Golden/ Silver Age artist FRANK BOLLE, and more!

The sensational 1954-1963 saga of Great Britain’s MARVELMAN (decades before he metamorphosed into Miracleman), plus an interview with writer/artist/co-creator MICK ANGLO, and rare Marvelman/ Miracleman work by ALAN DAVIS, ALAN MOORE, a new RICK VEITCH cover, plus FRANK BOLLE, Part 2, FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

First-ever in-depth look at National/DC’s founder MAJOR MALCOLM WHEELERNICHOLSON, and early editors WHITNEY ELLSWORTH, VIN SULLIVAN, and MORT WEISINGER, with rare art and artifacts by SIEGEL & SHUSTER, BOB KANE, CREIG FLESSEL, FRED GUARDINEER, GARDNER FOX, SHELDON MOLDOFF, and others, plus FCA, MR. MONSTER, and more!

Focus on THE SPIRIT movie, showing how FRANK MILLER transformed WILL EISNER’s comics into the smash-hit film, with interviews with key players behind the making of the movie, a look at what made Eisner’s comics so special, and more. Plus: an interview with COLLEEN DORAN, writer ALEX GRECIAN on how to get a pitch green lighted, script and art examples, and more!

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BACK ISSUE #33

BACK ISSUE #34

BACK ISSUE #35

KIRBY COLLECTOR #52

KIRBY COLLECTOR #53

“Teen Heroes!” Teen Titans in the 1970s & 1980s, with CARDY, GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, PÉREZ, TUSKA, and WOLFMAN, BARON and GUICE on the Flash, interviews with TV Billy Batson MICHAEL GRAY and writer STEVE SKEATES, NICIEZA and BAGLEY’s New Warriors, Legion of Super-Heroes 1970s art gallery, James Bond Jr., and… the Archies! New Teen Titans cover by GEORGE PÉREZ and colored by GENE HA!

“New World Order!” Adam Warlock examined with JIM STARLIN and ROY THOMAS, the history of Miracleman with ALAN DAVIS & GARRY LEACH, JIM SHOOTER interview, roundtable with Marvel’s post-STAN LEE editors-in-chief on the New Universe, Logan’s Run, Star Hunters, BOB WIACEK on Star Wars and Star-Lord, DICK GIORDANO revisits Crisis on Infinite Earths and “The Post-Crisis DC Universe You Didn’t See,” and a new cover by JIM STARLIN!

“Villains!” MIKE ZECK and J.M. DeMATTEIS discuss “Kraven’s Last Hunt” in a “Pro2Pro” interview, the history of the Hobgoblin is exposed, the Joker’s short-lived series, looks back at Secret Society of Super-Villains and Kobra, a Magneto biography, Luthor and Brainiac’s malevolent makeovers, interview with Secret Society artist MIKE VOSBURG, plus contributions from BYRNE, CONWAY, FRENZ, NOVICK, ROMITA JR., STERN, WOLFMAN, and a cover by MIKE ZECK!

Spotlights Kirby’s most obscure work, like an UNUSED THOR STORY, his BRUCE LEE comic, animation work, stage play, and see original unaltered versions of pages from KAMANDI, DEMON, DESTROYER DUCK, and more, including a feature examining the last page of his final issue of various series BEFORE EDITORIAL TAMPERING (with lots of surprises)! Color Kirby covers inked by DON HECK and PAUL SMITH!

Spotlights THE MAGIC OF STAN & JACK! There’s a new interview with STAN LEE, a walking tour of New York showing where Lee & Kirby lived and worked, a re-evaluation of the “Lost” FF #108 story (including a missing page that just surfaced), “What If Jack Hadn’t Left Marvel In 1970?”, plus MARK EVANIER’s regular column, a Kirby pencil art gallery, a complete Golden Age Kirby story, and more, behind a color Kirby cover inked by GEORGE PÉREZ!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 US Ships May 2009

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(84-page tabloid magazine) $9.95 US Ships May 2009

NEW MODERN MASTERS VOLUMES Each book contains RARE AND UNSEEN ARTWORK direct from the artist’s files, a COMPREHENSIVE INTERVIEW, DELUXE SKETCHBOOK SECTIONS, and more!

Volume 19: MIKE PLOOG

Volume 20: KYLE BAKER

Volume 21: CHRIS SPROUSE

Volume 22: MARK BUCKINGHAM

Volume 23: DARWYN COOKE

by Eric Nolen-Weathington & Roger Ash (120-page TPB with COLOR) $14.95 ISBN: 9781605490076 Diamond Order Code: SEP084304 Now shipping

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by Eric Nolen-Weathington & Todd DeZago (128-page trade paperback) $14.95 ISBN: 97801605490137 Diamond Order Code: NOV084298 Ships March 2008

by Eric Nolen-Weathington (128-page trade paperback) $14.95 ISBN: 9781605490144 Diamond Order Code: JUL088519 Ships May 2008

by Eric Nolen-Weathington (120-page TPB with COLOR) $15.95 ISBN: 9781605490205 Ships June 2008

AGE OF TV HEROES Examines the history of the live-action television adventures of everyone’s favorite comic book heroes! FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER features the in-depth stories of the actors and behind-thescene players that made the classic super-hero television programs we all grew up with. Included are new and exclusive interviews and commentary from ADAM WEST (Batman), LYNDA CARTER (Wonder Woman), PATRICK WARBURTON (The Tick), NICHOLAS HAMMOND (Spider-Man), WILLIAM KATT (The Greatest American Hero), JACK LARSON (The Adventures of Superman), JOHN WESLEY SHIPP (The Flash), JACKSON BOSTWICK (Shazam!), and many more! Written by JASON HOFIUS and GEORGE KHOURY, with a new cover by superstar painter ALEX ROSS! (192-page FULL-COLOR HARDCOVER) $39.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490106 Diamond Order Code: SEP084302 Rescheduled for July 2009

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EXTRAORDINARY WORKS KIRBY FIVE-OH! OF ALAN MOORE: LIMITED HARDCOVER Indispensable Edition Limited to 500 copies, KIRBY FIVE-OH! The definitive biography of the co-creator of WATCHMEN and V FOR VENDETTA finally returns to print in a NEW EXPANDED AND UPDATED VERSION! Features an extensive series of interviews with MOORE about his entire career, including a new interview covering his work since the sold-out 2003 edition of this book was published. Includes RARE STRIPS, SCRIPTS, ART, and private PHOTOS of the author, plus a series of tribute comic strips by many of Moore’s closest collaborators, a COLOR SECTION featuring a RARE MOORE STORY (remastered, and starring MR. MONSTER), and more! Edited by GEORGE KHOURY, with a cover by DAVE McKEAN! (240-page trade paperback) $29.95 US ISBN: 9781605490090 Diamond Order Code: OCT084400 Limited Hardcover Signed by Alan Moore (100 hardcover copies) $49.95 US Only available from TwoMorrows!

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ALTER EGO (12 issues) Six-issue subs are half-price!

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BRICKJOURNAL (4 issues)

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LIMITED HARDCOVER EDITION covers the best of everything from Jack Kirby’s 50-year career in comics, including his 50 BEST STORIES, BEST COVERS, BEST EXAMPLES OF UNUSED KIRBY ART, BEST CHARACTER DESIGNS, and profiles of, and commentary by, 50 PEOPLE INFLUENCED BY KIRBY’S WORK! Plus there’s a 50-PAGE GALLERY of Kirby’s PENCIL ART, a DELUXE COLOR SECTION, a previously unseen Kirby Superman cover inked by DARWYN COOKE, and an introduction by MARK EVANIER! Includes a full-color wrapped hardcover, and an individuallynumbered extra Kirby pencil art plate not included in the softcover edition! It’s ONLY AVAILABLE FROM TWOMORROWS, and is not sold in stores! Edited by JOHN MORROW.

Reprints JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR #27-30, with looks at Jack’s 1970s and ‘80s work, plus a two-part focus on how widespread Kirby’s influence is! Features rare interviews with KIRBY himself, plus Watchmen’s ALAN MOORE and DAVE GIBBONS, NEIL GAIMAN, Bone’s JEFF SMITH, MARK HAMILL, and others! See page after page of rare Kirby art, including a NEW SPECIAL SECTION with over 30 PIECES OF KIRBY ART NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED, and more! (288-page trade paperback) $29.95 US ISBN: 9781605490120 Diamond Order Code: DEC084286 Ships February 2009

(168-page Limited Edition Hardcover) (500 hardcover copies) $34.95 US Only available from TwoMorrows!

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Subscriptions will start with the next available issue, but CURRENT AND OLDER ISSUES MUST BE PURCHASED AT THE BACK ISSUE PRICE (new issues ship in bulk, and we pass the savings on in our subscription rates). In the US, we generally ship back issues and books by MEDIA MAIL.

COLLECTED JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR Volume 7

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TwoMorrows. Celebrating The Art & History Of Comics. (& LEGO! ) TwoMorrows • 10407 Bedfordtown Drive • Raleigh, NC 27614 USA • 919-449-0344 • FAX: 919-449-0327 • E-mail: twomorrow@aol.com • www.twomorrows.com

“HOW-TO” MAGAZINES Spinning off from the pages of BACK ISSUE! magazine comes ROUGH STUFF, celebrating the ART of creating comics! Edited by famed inker BOB McLEOD, each issue spotlights NEVER-BEFORE PUBLISHED penciled pages, preliminary sketches, detailed layouts, and even unused inked versions from artists throughout comics history. Included is commentary on the art, discussing what went right and wrong with it, and background information to put it all into historical perspective. Plus, before-and-after comparisons let you see firsthand how an image changes from initial concept to published version. So don’t miss this amazing magazine, featuring galleries of NEVER-BEFORE SEEN art, from some of your favorite series of all time, and the top pros in the industry!

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ROUGH STUFF #1 Our debut issue features galleries of UNSEEN ART by a who’s who of Modern Masters including: ALAN DAVIS, GEORGE PÉREZ, BRUCE TIMM, KEVIN NOWLAN, JOSÉ LUIS GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, ARTHUR ADAMS, JOHN BYRNE, and WALTER SIMONSON, plus a KEVIN NOWLAN interview, art critiques, and a new BRUCE TIMM COVER!

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The follow-up to our smash first issue features more galleries of UNSEEN ART by top industry professionals, including: BRIAN APTHORP, FRANK BRUNNER, PAUL GULACY, JERRY ORDWAY, ALEX TOTH, and MATT WAGNER, plus a PAUL GULACY interview, a look at art of the pros BEFORE they were pros, and a new GULACY “HEX” COVER!

Still more galleries of UNPUBLISHED ART by MIKE ALLRED, JOHN BUSCEMA, YANICK PAQUETTE, JOHN ROMITA JR., P. CRAIG RUSSELL, and LEE WEEKS, plus a JOHN ROMITA JR. interview, looks at the process of creating a cover (with BILL SIENKIEWICZ and JOHN ROMITA JR.), and a new ROMITA JR. COVER, plus a FREE DRAW #13 PREVIEW!

More NEVER-PUBLISHED galleries (with detailed artist commentaries) by MICHAEL KALUTA, ANDREW “Starman” ROBINSON, GENE COLAN, HOWARD CHAYKIN, and STEVE BISSETTE, plus interview and art by JOHN TOTLEBEN, a look at the Wonder Woman Day charity auction (with rare art), art critiques, before-&-after art comparisons, and a FREE WRITE NOW #15 PREVIEW!

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NEVER-BEFORE-PUBLISHED galleries (complete with extensive commentaries by the artists) by PAUL SMITH, GIL KANE, CULLY HAMNER, DALE KEOWN, and ASHLEY WOOD, plus a feature interview and art by STEVE RUDE, an examination of JOHN ALBANO and TONY DeZUNIGA’s work on Jonah Hex, new STEVE RUDE COVER, plus a FREE BACK ISSUE #23 PREVIEW!

Features a new interview and cover by BRIAN STELFREEZE, interview with BUTCH GUICE, extensive art galleries/commentary by IAN CHURCHILL, DAVE COCKRUM, and COLLEEN DORAN, MIKE GAGNON looks at independent comics, with art and comments by ANDREW BARR, BRANDON GRAHAM, and ASAF HANUKA! Includes a FREE ALTER EGO #73 PREVIEW!

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Features an in-depth interview and cover by TIM TOWNSEND, CRAIG HAMILTON, DAN JURGENS, and HOWARD PORTER offer preliminary art and commentaries, MARIE SEVERIN career retrospective, graphic novels feature with art and comments by DAWN BROWN, TOMER HANUKA, BEN TEMPLESMITH, and LANCE TOOKS, and more! (100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: NOV073966

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ROUGH STUFF #8 Features an in-depth interview and cover painting by the extraordinary MIKE MAYHEW, preliminary and unpublished art by ALEX HORLEY, TONY DeZUNIGA, NICK CARDY, and RAFAEL KAYANAN (including commentary by each artist), a look at the great Belgian comic book artists, a “Rough Critique” of MIKE MURDOCK’s work, and more! (100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: FEB084188

Editor and pro inker BOB McLEOD features four interviews this issue: ROB HAYNES (interviewed by fellow professional TIM TOWNSEND), JOE JUSKO, MEL RUBI, and SCOTT WILLIAMS, with a new painted cover by JUSKO, and an article by McLEOD examining "Inkers: Who needs ’em?" along with other features, including a Rough Critique of RUDY VASQUEZ! (100-page magazine) $6.95 Diamond Order Code: MAY084263

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THE RETRO COMICS EXPERIENCE!

Edited by MICHAEL EURY, BACK ISSUE magazine celebrates comic books of the 1970s, 1980s, and today through recurring (and rotating) departments like “Pro2Pro” (dialogue between professionals), “BackStage Pass” (behind-the-scenes of comicsbased media), “Greatest Stories Never Told” (spotlighting unrealized comics series or stories), and more!

Go online for an ULTIMATE BUNDLE, with all the issues at HALF-PRICE! 6-ISSUE SUBS: $44 US Postpaid by Media Mail ($60 First Class, $70 Canada, $105 1st Class Intl., $115 Priority Intl.).

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“PRO2PRO” interview between GEORGE PÉREZ & MARV WOLFMAN (with UNSEEN PÉREZ ART), “ROUGH STUFF” featuring JACK KIRBY’s PENCIL ART, “GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD” on the first JLA/AVENGERS, “BEYOND CAPES” on DC and Marvel’s TARZAN (with KUBERT and BUSCEMA ART), “OFF MY CHEST” editorial by INFANTINO, and more! PÉREZ cover!

“PRO2PRO” between ADAM HUGHES and MIKE W. BARR (with UNSEEN HUGHES ART) and MATT WAGNER and DIANA SCHUTZ, “ROUGH STUFF” HUGHES PENCIL ART, STEVE RUDE’s unseen SPACE GHOST/HERCULOIDS team-up, Bruce Jones’ ALIEN WORLDS and TWISTED TALES, “OFF MY CHEST” by MIKE W. BARR on the DC IMPLOSION, and more! HUGHES cover!

“PRO2PRO” between KEITH GIFFEN, J.M. DeMATTEIS and KEVIN MAGUIRE on their JLA WORK, “ROUGH STUFF” PENCIL ART by ARAGONÉS, HERNANDEZ BROS., MIGNOLA, BYRNE, KIRBY, HUGHES, details on two unknown PLASTIC MAN movies, Joker’s history with O’NEIL, ADAMS, ENGLEHART, ROGERS and BOLLAND, editorial by MARK EVANIER, and more! BOLLAND cover!

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“PRO2PRO” between JOHN BYRNE and CHRIS CLAREMONT on their X-MEN WORK and WALT SIMONSON and JOE CASEY on Walter’s THOR, WOLVERINE PENCIL ART by BUSCEMA, LEE, COCKRUM, BYRNE, and GIL KANE, LEN WEIN’S TEEN WOLVERINE, PUNISHER’S 30TH and SECRET WARS’ 20TH ANNIVERSARIES (with UNSEEN ZECK ART), and more! BYRNE cover!

Wonder Woman TV series in-depth, LYNDA CARTER INTERVIEW, WONDER WOMAN TV ART GALLERY, Marvel’s TV Hulk, SpiderMan, Captain America, and Dr. Strange, LOU FERRIGNO INTERVIEW, super-hero cartoons you didn’t see, pencil gallery by JERRY ORDWAY, STAR TREK in comics, and ROMITA SR. editorial on Marvel’s movies! Covers by ALEX ROSS and ADAM HUGHES!

TOMB OF DRACULA revealed with GENE COLAN and MARV WOLFMAN, LEN WEIN & BERNIE WRIGHTSON on Swamp Thing’s roots, STEVE BISSETTE & RICK VEITCH on their Swamp work, pencil art by BRUNNER, PLOOG, BISSETTE, COLAN, WRIGHTSON, and SMITH, editorial by ROY THOMAS, PREZ, GODZILLA comics (with TRIMPE art), CHARLTON horror, & more! COLAN cover!

History of BRAVE AND BOLD, JIM APARO interview, tribute to BOB HANEY, FANTASTIC FOUR ROUNDTABLE with STAN LEE, MARK WAID, and others, EVANIER and MEUGNIOT on DNAgents, pencil art by ROSS, TOTH, COCKRUM, HECK, ROBBINS, NEWTON, and BYRNE, DENNY O’NEIL editorial, a tour of METROPOLIS, IL, and more! SWAN/ANDERSON cover!

DENNY O’NEIL and Justice League Unlimited voice actor PHIL LaMARR discuss GL JOHN STEWART, NEW X-MEN pencil art by NEAL ADAMS, ARTHUR ADAMS, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, ALAN DAVIS, JIM LEE, ADAM HUGHES, STORM’s 30-year history, animated TV’s black heroes (with TOTH art), ISABELLA and TREVOR VON EEDEN on BLACK LIGHTNING, and more! KYLE BAKER cover!

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BACK ISSUE #13

MIKE BARON and STEVE RUDE on NEXUS past and present, a colossal GIL KANE pencil art gallery, a look at Marvel’s STAR WARS comics, secrets of DC’s unseen CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS SEQUEL, TIM TRUMAN on his GRIMJACK SERIES, MIKE GOLD editorial, THANOS history, TIME WARP revisited, and more! All-new STEVE RUDE COVER!

NEAL ADAMS and DENNY O’NEIL on RA’S AL GHUL’s history (with Adams art), O’Neil and MICHAEL KALUTA on THE SHADOW, MIKE GRELL on JON SABLE FREELANCE, HOWIE CHAYKIN interview, DOC SAVAGE in comics, BATMAN ART GALLERY by PAUL SMITH, SIENKIEWICZ, SIMONSON, BOLLAND, HANNIGAN, MAZZUCCHELLI, and others! New cover by ADAMS!

ROY THOMAS, KURT BUSIEK, and JOE JUSKO on CONAN (with art by JOHN BUSCEMA, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH, NEAL ADAMS, JUSKO, and others), SERGIO ARAGONÉS and MARK EVANIER on GROO, DC’s never-published KING ARTHUR, pencil art gallery by KIRBY, PÉREZ, MOEBIUS, GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, BOLLAND, and others, and a new BUSCEMA/JUSKO Conan cover!

‘70s and ‘80s character revamps with DAVE GIBBONS, ROY THOMAS and KURT BUSIEK, TOM DeFALCO and RON FRENZ on Spider-Man’s 1980s “black” costume change, DENNY O’NEIL on Superman’s 1970 revamp, JOHN BYRNE’s aborted SHAZAM! series detailed, pencil art gallery with FRANK MILLER, LEE WEEKS, DAVID MAZZUCCHELLI, CHARLES VESS, and more!

CARDY interview, ENGLEHART and MOENCH on kung-fu comics, “Pro2Pro” with STATON and CUTI on Charlton’s E-Man, pencil art gallery featuring MILLER, KUBERT, GIORDANO, SWAN, GIL KANE, COLAN, COCKRUM, and others, EISNER’s A Contract with God; “The Death of Romance (Comics)” (with art by ROMITA, SR. and TOTH), and more!

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DAVE COCKRUM and MIKE GRELL go “Pro2Pro” on the Legion, pencil art gallery by BUSCEMA, BYRNE, MILLER, STARLIN, McFARLANE, ROMITA JR., SIENKIEWICZ, looks at Hercules Unbound, Hex, Killraven, Kamandi, MARS, Planet of the Apes, art and interviews with GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, KIRBY, WILLIAMSON, and more! New MIKE GRELL/BOB McLEOD cover!

“Weird Heroes” of the 1970s and ‘80s! MIKE PLOOG discusses Ghost Rider, MATT WAGNER revisits The Demon, JOE KUBERT dusts off Ragman, GENE COLAN “Rough Stuff” pencil gallery, GARCÍALÓPEZ recalls Deadman, DC’s unpublished Gorilla Grodd series, PERLIN, CONWAY, and MOENCH on Werewolf by Night, and more! New ARTHUR ADAMS cover!

“Toy Stories!” Behind the Scenes of Marvel’s G.I. JOE™ and TRANSFORMERS with PAUL LEVITZ and GEORGE TUSKA, “Rough Stuff” MIKE ZECK pencil gallery, ARTHUR ADAMS on Gumby, HE-MAN, ROM, MICRONAUTS, SUPER POWERS, SUPER-HERO CARS, art by HAMA, SAL BUSCEMA, GUICE, GOLDEN, KIRBY, TRIMPE, and new ZECK sketch cover!

“Super Girls!” Supergirl retrospective with art by STELFREEZE, HAMNER, SpiderWoman, Flare, Tigra, DC’s unused Double Comics with unseen BARRETTO and INFANTINO art, WOLFMAN and JIMENEZ on Donna Troy, female comics pros, art by SEKOWSKY, OKSNER, PÉREZ, HUGHES, GIORDANO, plus a COLOR GALLERY and COVER by BRUCE TIMM!

“Big, Green Issue!” Tour of NEAL ADAMS’ studio (with interview and art gallery), DAVE GIBBONS “Rough Stuff” pencil art spotlight, interviews with MIKE GRELL (on Green Arrow), PETER DAVID (on Incredible Hulk), a “Pro2Pro” chat between GERRY CONWAY and JOHN ROMITA, SR. (on the Green Goblin), and more. New cover by NEAL ADAMS!

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“Unsung Heroes!” DON NEWTON spotlight, STEVE GERBER and GENE COLAN on Howard the Duck, MIKE CARLIN and DANNY FINGEROTH on Marvel’s Assistant Editors’ Month, the unrealized Unlimited Powers TV show, TONY ISABELLA’s aborted plans for The Champions, MARK GRUENWALD tribute, art by SAL BUSCEMA, JOHN BYRNE, and more! NEWTON/ RUBINSTEIN cover!

“Secret Identities!” Histories of characters with unusual alter egos: Firestorm, Moon Knight, the Question, and the “real-life” Human Fly! STEVE ENGLEHART and SAL BUSCEMA on Captain America, JERRY ORDWAY interview and cover, Superman roundtable with SIENKIEWICZ, NOWLAN, MOENCH, COWAN, MAGGIN, O’NEIL, MILGROM, CONWAY, ROBBINS, SWAN, plus FREE ALTER EGO #64 PREVIEW!

“The Devil You Say!” issue! A look at Daredevil in the 1980s and 1990s with interviews and art by KLAUS JANSON, JOHN ROMITA JR., and FRANK MILLER, MIKE MIGNOLA Hellboy interview, DAN MISHKIN and GARY COHN on Blue Devil, COLLEEN DORAN’s unpublished X-Men spin-off “Fallen Angels”, Son of Satan, Stig’s Inferno, DC’s Plop!, JACK KIRBY’s Devil Dinosaur, and cover by MIKE ZECK!

“Dynamic Duos!’ “Pro2Pro” interviews with Batman’s ALAN GRANT and NORM BREYFOGLE and the Legion’s PAUL LEVITZ and KEITH GIFFEN, a “Backstage Pass” to Dark Horse Comics, Robin’s history, EASTMAN and LAIRD’s Ninja Turtles, histories of duos Robin and Batgirl, Captain America and the Falcon, and Blue Beetle and Booster Gold, “Zot!” interview with SCOTT McCLOUD, and a new BREYFOGLE cover!

“Comics Go Hollywood!” Spider-Man roundtable with STAN LEE, JOHN ROMITA, SR., JIM SHOOTER, ERIK LARSEN, and others, STAR TREK comics writers’ roundtable Part 1, Gladstone’s Disney comics line, behindthe-scenes at TV’s ISIS and THE FLASH (plus an interview with Flash’s JOHN WESLEY SHIPP), TV tie-in comics, bonus 8-page color ADAM HUGHES ART GALLERY and cover, plus a FREE WRITE NOW #16 PREVIEW!

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“Magic” issue! MICHAEL GOLDEN interview, GENE COLAN, PAUL SMITH, and FRANK BRUNNER on drawing Dr. Strange, Mystic Art Gallery with CARL POTTS & KEVIN NOWLAN, BILL WILLINGHAM’s Elementals, Zatanna history, Dr. Fate’s revival, a “Greatest Stories Never Told” look at Peter Pan, tribute to the late MARSHALL ROGERS, a new GOLDEN cover, plus a FREE ROUGH STUFF #6 PREVIEW!

“Men of Steel!’ BOB LAYTON and DAVID MICHELINIE on Iron Man, RICH BUCKLER on Deathlok, MIKE GRELL on Warlord, JOHN BYRNE on ROG 2000, Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, Machine Man, the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes comic strip, DC’s Steel, art by KIRBY, HECK, WINDSOR-SMITH, TUSKA, LAYTON cover, and bonus “Men of Steel” art gallery! Includes a FREE DRAW! #15 PREVIEW!

“Spies and Tough Guys!’ PAUL GULACY and DOUG MOENCH in an art-packed “Pro2Pro” on Master of Kung Fu and their unrealized Shang-Chi/Nick Fury crossover, Suicide Squad spotlight, Ms. Tree, CHUCK DIXON and TIM TRUMAN’s Airboy, James Bond and Mr. T in comic books, Sgt. Rock’s oddball super-hero team-ups, Nathaniel Dusk, JOE KUBERT’s unpublished The Redeemer, and a new GULACY cover!

“Comic Book Royalty!” The ’70s/’80s careers of Aquaman and the Sub-Mariner explored, BARR and BOLLAND discuss CAMELOT 3000, comics pros tell “Why JACK KIRBY Was King,” “Dr. Doom: Monarch or Menace?” DON McGREGOR’s Black Panther; an exclusive ALAN WEISS art gallery; spotlights on ARION, LORD OF ATLANTIS; NIGHT FORCE; and more! New cover by NICK CARDY!

“Heroes Behaving Badly!” Hulk vs. Thing tirades with RON WILSON, HERB TRIMPE, and JIM SHOOTER; CARY BATES and CARMINE INFANTINO on “Trial of the Flash”; JOHN BYRNE’s heroes who cross the line; Teen Titan Terra, Kid Miracleman, Mark Shaw Manhunter, and others who went bad, featuring LAYTON, MICHELINIE, WOLFMAN, and PÉREZ, and more! New cover by DARWYN COOKE!

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NEW STUFF FROM TWOMORROWS!

ALTER EGO #85

WRITE NOW! #20

ROUGH STUFF #12

DRAW! #17

BRICKJOURNAL #5

Go behind the pages of the hit series of graphic novels starring Scott Pilgrim with his creator and artist, BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY, to see how he creates the acclaimed series! Then, learn how B.P.R.D.’s GUY DAVIS works on the series, plus more Comic Art Bootcamp: Learning from The Great Cartoonists by BRET BLEVINS and MIKE MANLEY, reviews, and more!

(100-page magazine) $6.95 US (Digital Edition) $2.95 Diamond Order Code: MAR094514 Now shipping!

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(80-page magazine with COLOR) $6.95 US • (Digital Edition) $2.95 Diamond Order Code: DEC084377 Now shipping!

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KIRBY COLLECTOR #52

EXTRAORDINARY WORKS OF ALAN MOORE:

BATCAVE COMPANION

Spotlights Kirby’s most obscure work, like an UNUSED THOR STORY, BRUCE LEE comic, animation work, stage play, unaltered versions of pages from KAMANDI, DEMON, & DESTROYER DUCK, a feature examining the last page of his final issue of various series BEFORE EDITORIAL TAMPERING, unseen Kirby covers & more! (84-page tabloid magazine) $9.95 US Diamond Order Code: DEC084397 (Digital Edition) $3.95 • Now shipping!

COLLECTED KIRBY COLLECTOR VOL. 7 Reprints KIRBY COLLECTOR #27-30 plus over 30 pieces of Kirby art never published! (288-page trade paperback) $29.95 ISBN: 9781605490120 Now shipping!

GRAILPAGES

The definitive autobiographical book on ALAN MOORE in a NEW EXPANDED AND UPDATED VERSION! Includes new interviews covering his work since the original 2003 edition of the book. From SWAMP THING, V FOR VENDETTA, WATCHMEN, and LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN and beyond – all are discussed by Alan. Plus, there’s RARE STRIPS, SCRIPTS, ARTWORK, and PHOTOGRAPHS, tribute comic strips by NEIL GAIMAN and other of Moore’s closest collaborators, a COLOR SECTION featuring the RARE MOORE STORY “The Riddle of the Recalcitrant Refuse” (newly remastered, and starring MR. MONSTER), and more! Edited by GEORGE KHOURY, with a cover by DAVE McKEAN!

Explore the Silver and Bronze Ages of Batman comic books in THE BATCAVE COMPANION! Two distinct sections of this book examine the Dark Knight’s progression from his campy “New Look” of the mid-1960s to his “creature of the night” reinvention of the 1970s. Features include issue-by-issue indexes, interviews with CARMINE INFANTINO, JOE GIELLA, DENNIS O’NEIL, and NEAL ADAMS, and guest essays by MIKE W. BARR and WILL MURRAY. Contributors include SHELDON MOLDOFF, LEN WEIN, STEVE ENGLEHART, and TERRY AUSTIN, with a special tribute to the late MARSHALL ROGERS. With its incisive introduction by DENNIS O’NEIL and its iconic cover painting by NEAL ADAMS, THE BATCAVE COMPANION is a must-have for every comics fan! By MICHAEL EURY and MICHAEL KRONENBERG.

(240-page trade paperback) $29.95 US ISBN: 9781605490090 Diamond Order Code: JAN088702 Now shipping!

(224-page trade paperback) $26.95 US ISBN: 9781893905788 Diamond Order Code: NOV068368 Now shipping!

Indispensable Edition

Go to www.twomorrows.com for FULL-COLOR downloadable PDF versions of our magazines for only $2.95! Subscribers to the print edition get the digital edition FREE, weeks before it hits stores!

2009 SUBSCRIPTION RATES:

Media Mail

Original Comic Book Art & The Collectors Examines the hobby of collecting original comic book art, letting you meet collectors from around the globe as they detail collections ranging from a few key pages, to hundreds of pages of original comic art by JACK KIRBY, JOHN ROMITA SR., and others! Features interviews with industry pros, including writers GERRY CONWAY, STEVE ENGLEHART, and ROY THOMAS, and exclusive perspectives from Silver Age artists DICK GIORDANO, BOB McLEOD, ERNIE CHAN, TONY DeZUNIGA, and the unparalleled great, GENE COLAN! Completing the book is a diverse sampling of breathtakingly beautiful original comic art, some lavishly presented in full-page spreads, including pages not seen publicly for decades. Written by STEVEN ALAN PAYNE. (128-page trade paperback) $15.95 US ISBN: 9781605490151 Diamond Order Code: JAN094470 Now shipping!

VOLUME 20: KYLE BAKER

(120-page trade paperback with COLOR) $14.95 US • ISBN: 9781605490083 Now shipping!

VOLUME 21: CHRIS SPROUSE

(128-page trade paperback) $14.95 US • ISBN: 97801605490137 Ships May 2009 Each features an extensive, career-spanning interview lavishly illustrated with rare art from the artist’s files, plus huge sketchbook section, including unseen and unused art!

1st Class Canada 1st Class Priority US Intl. Intl.

JACK KIRBY COLLECTOR (4 issues)

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ALTER EGO (12 issues) Six-issue subs are half-price!

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BRICKJOURNAL (4 issues)

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