The Life & Art of Dave Cockrum

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Futurians, Warhawk, Thunderbolt & Lightning, other characters art ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum. Photo by Anthony Taylor.

Creature from the Black Lagoon ™ and © Universal City Studios, LLC. Zorro ™ and © Zorro Productions, Inc.

PRINTED IN CHINA

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TwoMorrows Publishing

ISBN-13: 978-1-60549-113-4 ISBN-10: 1-60549-113-6

by G LEN CADIGAN

TwoMorrows Publishing Raleigh, North Carolina ISBN: 978-1-60549-113-4 $27.95 softcover

The Life & Art of DAVE COCKRUM

DAVE COCKRUM

From the letters pages of Silver Age comics to his 2021 induction into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame, the career of Dave Cockrum started at the bottom and then rose to the top of the comic book industry. Beginning with his childhood obsession with comics and continuing through his years in the Navy, The Life and Art of Dave Cockrum follows the rising star from fandom (where he was one of the “Big Three” fanzine artists) to pro-dom, where he helped revive two struggling comic book franchises: the Legion of Super-Heroes and the X-Men. His later work on his own property, The Futurians, as well as childhood favorite Blackhawk and T.H.U.N.D.E.R Agents, cemented his position as an industry giant. Featuring artwork from fanzines, unused character designs, and other rare material, this is the comprehensive biography of the legendary comic book artist, whose influence is still felt on the industry today!

The Life & Art of

by G LEN CADIGAN Introduction by Alex Ross

© Jack Kirby Estate

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John Carter of Mars ™ and © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

The Life & Art of Dave Cockrum Written and edited by Glen Cadigan Layout and design by Eric Nolen-Weathington Proofread by Kevin Sharp Front cover colors by Glenn Whitmore Back cover photo by Anthony Taylor Patron Saint and Guardian Angel: Paty Cockrum TwoMorrows Publishing 10407 Bedfordtown Drive Raleigh, NC 27614 www.twomorrows.com • e-mail: twomorrow@aol.com First Printing • June 2022 • Printed in China Softcover ISBN-13: 978-1-60549-113-4 Hardcover ISBN-13: 978-1-60549-114-1 Editorial package © 2022 Glen Cadigan and TwoMorrows Publishing.

Dedication To Paty Cockrum, for her blessing and for single-handedly providing many of the images that appear within.

Acknowledgements Jim Amash, Frank Anderson, Miki Annamanthadoo, Heritage Auctions, Al Bigley, Dave Braunstein, Eliot R. Brown, Dewey Cassell, Eddy Choi, Shaun Clancy, Jon B. Cooke, Scott Edelman, Ruben Espinosa, Michael Eury, Fred Hembeck, William Hild, Tom Hoffman, Richard Howell, Ankur Jetley, Andrea Kline, Ted Latner, Michael Lovitz, David Mandel, Manny Maris, Sam Maronie, David Edward Martin, Kevin McConnell, Doug McCratic, Jay McKiernan, Cliff Meth, Ken Meyer, Jr., Brian Philbin, Alex Ross, Peter Sanderson, Anthony Taylor, Jerry Thompson, Mercy Van Vlack, Steven Weill, Geoff Willmetts, Charles Yoakum, Dwight Jon Zimmerman Trademarks and Copyrights Armor Thug, Avatar, Belladonna, Blackmane, Bloodstar, Bloodknight, Dark Demon, Doctor Zeus, Dr. Fang, Exotic Lady, Futurians, Galactic Agent, Hammerhand and Miss (Ms.) Mercury, Intruder and Hellsprite, Long John Silverstein, Manta, Moonfang, Mosquito, Mysterians, Phaedra, Power Boy, Quetzal, Reflection, Scungili, Sidewinder, Silkie, Silver Shadow, Sunswift, Terrayne, T.H.U.G.S., Thunderbolt and Lightning, Trio, Typhoon, Un-Man, Vampyre, Warhawk, Webster, Werehawk, Zapcat ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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Batman, Blackhawk, Death, Doom Patrol, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Justice League of America, Legion of Super-Heroes, Robin, Shazam Heroes, Son of Vulcan, Superman, Teen Titans, Wonder Woman ™ and © DC Comics.

Angel, Ant-Man, Avengers, Banshee, Beast, Binary, Black Cat, Brood, Captain America, Captain Marvel, Colossus, Cyclops, Daredevil, Deathbird, Deathgrip, Defenders, Dreadknight, El Aguila, Giant-Man, Fantastic Four, Havok, Hulk, Ice Man, Imperial Guard, Inhumans, Iron Man, Lillandra, Magneto, Manphibian, Mantis, Ms. Marvel, Mystique, Nightcrawler, Phoenix, Polaris, Professor X, Quintronic Man, Silver Surfer, Skywolf, Starjammers, Storm, Swordsman, Thor, Thunderbird, Vanguard, Vision, X-Men, Wasp, Wolverine ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. Animan & Shattuck ™ and © Wallace Wood Properties, LLC. Comet ™ and © Archie Comic Publications, Inc. Creature from the Black Lagoon ™ and © Universal City Studios, LLC. The Day the Earth Stood Still ™ and © 20th Century Studios. Doc Savage ™ and © Conde Nast Entertainment. Elvira ™ and © Queen “B” Productions. John Carter of Mars ™ and © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. Soulsearchers and Company ™ and © Claypool Comics/Boffin Books, Second Age, Inc., and Richard Howell. Star Trek ™ and © ViacomCBS. This Island Earth © Universal City Studios, LLC. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents ™ and © Radiant Assets, Inc. Warren Publishing art © New Comic Company, LLC. Warriors of Plasm, Fatale ™ and © DreamWorks Classics. Zorro ™ and © Zorro Productions, Inc.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction by Alex Ross.....................................5 Chapter 1: 1943–1970 Part I: The Early Years........................................7 Part II: In the Navy.......................................... 11 Part III: Fandom’s Finest................................ 14 Chapter 2: 1970–1974 Part I: Breaking In........................................... 23 Part II: The Legion of Super-Heroes......... 26 Part III: Side Projects...................................... 33 Chapter 3: 1974–1977 Part I: Enter the X-Men................................. 43

Chapter 6: 1985–1995 Part I: Catskills Country..............................107 Part II: Odds ’N’ Ends....................................108 Part III: Brave New World...........................114 Chapter 7: 1995–2003 Part I: Claypool & Company......................127 Part II: The New Millennium.....................132 Part III: World Wide Web.............................136 Chapter 8: 2003–2006 Part I: Battle in the Bronx...........................143 Part II: The Last Years...................................148 Part III: The End..............................................155

Chapter 4: 1976–1982 Part I: Two’s Company................................... 67 Part II: An Artist of Mars............................... 70 Part III: On Staff................................................ 72 Part IV: The In-Between Years..................... 78 Part V: Return to Xavier’s.............................. 81 Chapter 5: 1982–1985 Part I: Tomorrow Is Now............................... 91 Part II: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Artist........................... 93 Part III: Nightcrawler...................................... 95 Part IV: Return of the Futurians................. 97

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Quetzal ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Painting by Alex Ross.

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Introduction

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by Alex Ross

ave Cockrum was the best of us.

What I mean by that is how he was the embodiment of the fan who aspired to make comics, improve upon what was there, and create something new. Dave did just that. His independent character concepts and designs were what fuels this business. When concepts he conceived while a young man serving in the U.S. Navy eventually wound up in the most successful comic series ever (whose legacy continues to this day), everyone benefits. I’m speaking of the character Nightcrawler being added to the legendary X-Men group that Dave redefined. His innovations of Storm, Colossus, Thunderbird, and many more concepts keep this book and multimillion-dollar property moving.

The very nature of Dave’s love of comics and superhero design would enhance the look of those he didn’t create as well. For me, as a reader who first felt his influence with the new costumes he gave to the Legion of Super-Heroes, he was a designer I would emulate heavily. What I really mean is that I would copy his characters and add them to my own “original” superheroes when I was a child. His redesigns of Shadow Lass and Star Boy would influence my designs of “Nightstar” and “Starman,” two heroes I would integrate into my growing collection of concepts, which would eventually be added to the DC Comics pantheon with my series Kingdom Come.

When I’ve loved certain heroes’ looks in history, I found that I was drawn time after time to Dave’s contribution, even when I didn’t know he was responsible. The look of the ’70s-era original team of the Guardians of the Galaxy was Dave’s handiwork. Vance Astro was my favorite. Great design is often a balance of elements. Key choices in cut of cloth and color are essential. Few people understood these qualities as well as Dave Cockrum did. An assembled look at all of the character work Dave did, original or re-imagined, would be an absolute inspiration to see how much of it defined the last fifty years of comics.

Dave Cockrum’s storytelling path was charted by doing what he was drawn to. Dave connected to the influences of his youth by getting to work with Captain Marvel Jr. and John Carter of Mars, and he brought his fan enthusiasm to every job he did. When he gave

the Legion a refreshing update, it was his idea to bring them into a new stylistic era of dynamic design with sex appeal. In many ways, Dave symbolizes those of us who love the material so much that the ambition to add to it and improve it is all that really matters.

Through that action, though, the individual efforts can go unrecognized, and the audience loses a personal connection it could have. It’s inspiring to know that one person did so much. For example, the forward-looking X-Men book and Dave’s original team, the Futurians, embodied the way his work would be the bridge from the Silver Age era of design (from artists like Kirby, Kane, and Infantino) to the Bronze Age, and arguably, one can say he informed the Modern Age of comics and film as well. Keep in mind how many of his designs and character inventions are in active use today, such as Phoenix, Mystique, Logan (the man behind the Wolverine mask), and many, many more.

The style of Dave’s draftsmanship is a distinct peak in the history of comics. There is a slick elegance to the many books and covers he did. An image or story that Dave both drew and inked is a particular delight.

As an artist who has revisited and re-created multiple pieces of Dave Cockrum’s, I have delighted in trying to emulate his physical renderings of specific people, apart from just the costume designs I love so much. I find the unique facial structures that would often define his archetypal leads, with their strikingly high cheekbones and broad eyebrows, a fun challenge to represent. As a fan of some of the same comics Dave liked, I found it fascinating to learn how he incorporated the original Fawcett Captain Marvel’s sash belt into two of Marvel Comics’ namesake heroines — Marvel Girl/Phoenix and Ms. Marvel (who also received a stylized lightning bolt in her redesign, in honor of the Captain).

Speaking as one of those readers who grew up shaped by this man’s work, we owe a great debt for his example. I know I still find inspiration in his creations and style. Given that Dave never got to fully experience the benefits that should have been his from what his creativity birthed, I think that his legacy should include both the impact he made and how he wasn’t properly rewarded. Dave Cockrum’s contributions to the arts deserve our recognition and respect, and there is still so much to learn from him.

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Captain Marvel was Cockrum’s first exposure to superheroes. Painting by a pre-pro Cockrum, courtesy of Heritage Auctions.

Shazam hero ™ & © DC Comics

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Chapter 1: 1943–1970

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I. The Early Years

n November 11, 1943, David Emmett Cockrum wrote in 1968. “They bought me a subscription to was born to Emmett Ernst and Fern Council Looney Tunes and Merry Melodies, which, at the time, Cockrum in Pendleton, Oregon. According to featured ‘Bugs Bunny,’ ‘Mary Jane and Sniffles,’ and a his brother, Doug, “Illinois was the family home. My pair of kid brothers that were some kind of rodents — dad was in the Army. He was commissioned into the pack rats or gophers or something. Previous to that, I’d Field Artillery in 1935, but he was in the reserves, and never seen a comic book before. so he wasn’t called to active duty until the beginning “That was the start of it all. Suddenly, I couldn’t get of World War II. Illinois was his home — his longenough of comic books! I was only about five years old time home — and also my mother’s longtime home. and we lived on a farm, so naturally I didn’t have much When he was called to active duty, chance to go looking for myself. I they were assigned to Pendleton, had to survive on the generosity of Oregon, for a while. They were also my parents. Their generosity only in Madison, Wisconsin, for a while. extended, alas, to an occasional Walt Anyhow, that’s how Dave came to Disney in addition to my subscripbe born in Pendleton, because of my tion, but I hoarded those comics, dad’s military assignment there.” stuffed them under my mattress and Later the family moved back in every nook and cranny, mainly to to Illinois, where, at an early age, keep my younger brother and sister Cockrum’s artistic leanings became away from them.”2 In 2001, the artist explained to apparent. “I think I first started Jay McKiernan, “My folks were both drawing when I discovered that one teachers and they got me reading end of a pencil makes a funny mark early... [They figured] it was a useful on paper,” he recalled years later. “I’d way to encourage my reading skills. guess the first things I tried to draw Little did they know what they were were Bugs Bunny, Gene Autry, and 1 starting.”3 monsters!!”

A young Dave Cockrum looks on.

“For as long as I can remember, Photo © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

In 1968, Cockrum also recalled, he sketched and drew,” Doug Cock“Then came my parents’ second big rum reflected, “and when he was young, my mom mistake. Even bigger than the first, perhaps. My dad, and dad thought that that was a good thing, and they who was teaching in a high school at the time, brought enjoyed watching him draw, but they had different home a comic he’d confiscated from a student called things in mind for him, in terms of making a living.

Boy Crime Fighter,4 a violent, crime-ridden mag about a kid who ran around knocking the crap out of adult I guess when we were very young, the grand plan was villains; his favorite punching bag was an evil-looking that Dave was supposed to go to West Point, and I was character with a saw-toothed, iron lower jaw whose supposed to be a doctor. And as things worked out, name was — you guessed it — Ironjaw. This opened Dave became a cartoonist and I went to the Air Force a whole new world! I had never imagined such things Academy. I became the professional military guy, and existed! Imagine — a comic book without sickeningDave pursued his own interests.” ly-cute little animals parading around getting into Comic books were a fixture in Cockrum’s life early petty troubles! Even at that tender age, you see, I was on. “Years ago, my parents made a great mistake,” he 7

Three of Cockrum’s earliest artistic influences (above): Wally Wood in the pages of various EC Comics, Blackhawk’s Dick Dillin, and Captain Marvel Jr.’s Mac Raboy. Weird Science ™ and © Willam M. Gaines Agent, Inc. Blackhawk and Shazam hero ™ & © DC Comics.

getting pretty sick of the cartoon animal.”5 From there, Cockrum was introduced to his first major superhero character, the Big Red Cheese himself. “Then I discovered Captain Marvel and I was on my way. I’d sneak off from my folks when we were in town and slap down my dime for a big 52-page issue of my hero, slip it into my shirt and smuggle it back into the house. I bet my folks still wonder why I always used to make crinkling noises when I bent over. I told ’em it was a rusty stomach.

“I hid Captain Marvels in drawers, in socks, on closet shelves, under bookcases, everywhere, like a pack rat gone crazy. This was treasure indeed!”6 The artist also didn’t limit his enjoyment of Captain Marvel to a passive role. “I played Captain Marvel with joyous abandon, tying a blanket around my neck and leaping off the porch shrieking, ‘Scissors!’

— I couldn’t pronounce ‘Shazam’ — and beating the daylights out of my brother, who looked suspiciously like Dr. Sivana to me.”7 In 1951, disaster struck. “We moved off the farm when I was about eight,” he later recalled. “In packing everything, my folks discovered the hoary morass of comic books stashed away around my room. Horrors, they demanded, where did all these violent, evil crime-fighter comics come from? What happened to all the nice ‘funny books’ we bought you? I’ll tell you, Mom; they went out the damn window, that’s where 8

they went.

“Anyway, you can guess what happened. My beloved Captain Marvels went up in smoke, and as it turned out it was his funeral pyre, because it was shortly thereafter that he went out of print. I only saw one or two more before the end, and my mom found and burned those, too.”8 The preceding pattern haunted Cockrum throughout his childhood. “Every time we moved my comics got it right in the old bazoo. Since my dad was a Reserve Air Force officer, now recalled to active duty, that meant a move every three years or so. I’d spend three years building up a new collection only to have it go up in smoke when we changed duty stations. As I got older and wiser, my hiding places grew more devious and complex, but my mom was always more devious and complex than my hiding places, and poof went the comics.”9 Cockrum’s tastes also matured over the years. In 2001, he told McKiernan, “I guess Wally Wood was one of my earliest influences, and his work remains some of my favorite to this very day. Dick Dillin’s work on Blackhawk stood out as well, kindling in me a lifelong love for the Black Knights. I caught the tail end of the Fawcett era, too, and loved C.C. Beck’s work on Captain Marvel (back when he was allowed to use his name as the title of his book) and Kurt Schaffenburger on Captain Marvel Jr. Much later, I searched out back

issues of Junior’s book by Mac Raboy, whose work inspired and thrilled me with its skillful and beautiful line work. Joe Maneely’s work on Atlas’ (later Marvel) Black Knight remains a vivid memory of my early comic reading. Later on, the Silver Age work of Joe Kubert, Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson, Carmine Infantino, and Jack Kirby gave me very strong and positive influences.”10 In 1959, the Cockrum family moved to Colorado when Lt. Col. Cockrum was assigned to Lowry Air Force Base in Denver. While there, the artist met high school friend, Jerry Thompson, who went on to work as a graphic designer.

“I met him in the band, actually,” Thompson recalled. “We both played trombone, and we became friends because we were sitting next to each other. Then I found out that he was also in the same ancient history class that I was, and we were talking about different things, and we started doing cartoons about history. The teacher would take the cartoons that we would make and hang them up on the wall. He would use them [as] illustrations of pieces of ancient history. It was fun.”

The two artists participated in what Thompson has labeled “cartoon wars.” “We both had a good, mutual friend. His name was George Young, and his dad worked on the base. So they lived right next to the base, and both Dave and I would go over to his house a lot, and just fool around. That’s kinda where we started having our cartoon wars. We’d sit down for hours, just sitting (clockwise from top) Cockrum’s parents during a 1961 Air Explorer there, drinking Coke, and he’d initiate some kind ceremony, his high school yearbook photo, and the Air Explorer patch of a cartoon, and then I would reply to that car- designed by the artist, courtesy of Tom Hoffman. toon, and we’d go back and forth. George was our Dave, sometimes Mike, and myself. Dave, George, and audience. The three of us would just hang out together. myself were the closest. Can you imagine the three of “What we’d do is we’d draw up a situation, usually us walking through downtown Denver, on the way to a putting one or the other in jeopardy, and then that terrible movie, singing Stan Freberg’s ‘United States of person would have to reply to that jeopardy. And it America?’ It boggles the mind.”11 would just develop one thing after another, and we’d While still in Colorado, Cockrum was also a member sometimes incorporate, let’s say, a superhero-type situof his father’s Air Explorer12 group. Fellow member ation, or something like that, but other times we would Tom Hoffman recalled, “He designed a patch for our just draw each other. They would get a little more uniforms, and it was of an osprey... he called it ‘Oscar absurd as we’d keep going, and some of the cartoons the Osprey.’ I think that his dad had it sent to China, toward the end, were really, really strange.” or Taiwan, or someplace, and had it all embroidered.

Thompson also remembered some of the extracurSo we had this beautiful color patch that we had on ricular activities in which the teenagers often engaged. our left shoulder of our uniform which was completely “We formed a little cadre of friends and every Friday unique. No other group around had anything like that, we would try to go to a movie, usually grade triple-Z, and Dave designed that.” and then to a Sambo’s (how un-PC) restaurant. We Hoffman also remembered, “I used to see his sketchwere a strange group. Dave, George, Jim, another pad. He’d show these fantastical drawings that he would 9

be doing, and I remember when he got ready to gradthe decade in publications ranging from Fantastic uate from high school, he was all distraught because Four, Avengers, and Marvel Super-Heroes at Marvel he was going to be leaving the love of his life. I don’t to Action Comics, Atom, Green Lantern, and Justhink that she reciprocated, but that’s what he thought, tice League of America at DC. In Fantastic Four #22 anyway. He was going to be going off, and I knew that (Sept. 1963), an issue which also contained a letter he went off to New York, but I don’t know at what age from Jackson, Mo.’s Roy Thomas, he wrote, “When he probably ever reached New York. I just knew that the tumult and the shouting have died, one fact will that was his end goal, was to go there and to illustrate.” remain: it has been a great season for comic fandom.”

Thompson also confirmed Cockrum’s career ambiIn The Atom #28 (Dec. ’66– Jan. ’67) he was more tions. “He always expressed a desire to be a comic book pensive when he wrote, “There’s been a lot of hassle in artist... and I thought he was crazy. And that continued yours and ‘The Opposition’s’ lettercols lately, includwhen we both graduated high school. Then he went ing petty name-calling and insults; I think it’s not only off to college, and then after about two years, he came ridiculous and distasteful, but sounds like a couple back from college, and then he went off to the Navy in of cats on the back fence spitting and hissing at each early ’64... We both liked comic books, but he always other. I think the name-calling should be left out of talked about being a comic book the lettercols and better left to the illustrator.” free-speech movements and peace Cockrum’s brother remembered, demonstrators. Whether you’re “He answered an ad — and I’m Brand Ecch, Brand I, or Brand thinking this was when he was in Yeh-heh-hey ptooey, everyone is high school — one of those ‘Draw entitled to a slice of the market if Me’ picture ads for an art school, and they’re good enough to grab and he won some sort of a prize through hold one — and if you feel you have [it], and I think that was the first antagonisms to get rid of, why not time that my parents really realized let off steam by just quietly improvthat, ‘Well, maybe he really does ing — it would be much apprecihave a future in art.’ And my dad ated, by me, at least.” sat him down and said, ‘Well, okay, Perhaps Cockrum’s most influbut commercial art is the only place ential letter was published in Doom where you can make a decent living.’

Patrol #90 (Sept. 1964), where he And so he was dead set that if Dave addressed an issue for which he was gonna go into art, he was gonna would later be well known as a pro. be a commercial artist, which, obviAssuming the “voice” of Rita Farr, ously, was not Dave’s interest. One a.k.a. Elasti-Girl, he wrote, “As one Doom Patrol ™ and © DC Comics. of the highest compliments that he of the four members of the Doom was ever paid, at least in his estimation, was when one Patrol, I feel I ought to have some say in what type of of his commercial art instructors told him, ‘Cockrum, uniform we wear. I know, everyone will say that the old one day you’ll make a fantastic comic book artist.’ And one is perfectly good, serving its purpose — and so it to him, that was high praise.” does. It has served us well from the beginning, through In 1961, Cockrum enrolled at Southern Illinois two harrowing encounters with General Immortus, University in Carbondale, and it was while he was a through the fantastic night when Negative Man went student there that he discovered Marvel Comics. “I berserk, through the immense peril of the nuclear started reading Marvel Comics with FF #4, Spider-Man creatures from far below Earth’s surface, and through #1, Avengers #1, X-Men #1, Daredevil #1, early issues of two near disastrous encounters with ‘The Brotherhood 13 ‘Thor,’ ‘Iron Man,’ etc. etc.” he once posted online. In of Evil.’ It could serve us well for far more adventures.

1999, he told Comic Book Artist’s Jon B. Cooke, “When Why change it?

Marvel first came on the scene, there was a time when “This is the question I hear from them, for instance, I wrote a letter to every Marvel book, every month. my fellow-teammates, Larry Trainor and Cliff Steele.

Then I realized that it was too much work and I would I find it almost impossible to tell them what is wrong, write one letter that would address all of the books.”14 because Larry’s knowledge about fashions is nil, and Letters from Cockrum were published throughout Cliff as Robotman doesn’t give a darn because he 10

doesn’t wear anything but those absurd shorts, anyway.

The present uniform is fine, for them!

“But I’m a female! ...If you remember, I was a glamorous Hollywood actress before the fantastic accident that made me Elasti-Girl, and I prided myself in keeping up with current fashions; you see, I love beautiful clothes. Look in my closet in Doom Patrol headquarters, if you don’t believe it — scores of latest creations from Dior to Cassini. When I was in pictures, I was called one of Hollywood’s greatest beauties, and often was chosen as a ‘Best Dressed Woman’ by various groups and fan magazines.

“So now you see my problem. I like fashionable clothes, yet most of my working hours are spent in that horrible drab-green uniform with the brown boots.

Why, oh, why won’t you let us have a new uniform, one that is bright and colorful? ...I know there are many readers who agree; only today, I spoke to Dave Cockrum, who is being good enough to forward this note to you, and he showed me his designs which I thought were simply divine. Many other readers have good ideas, so why not hold a contest for a new uniform, and then I’ll convince Larry that his old one should be replaced. Now you’ve heard my side, and I hope you’ll do something about it.”

In response to the letter, editor Murray Boltinoff replied, “Yes, we certainly did do something about it!...

As for a contest, pu-lease! Our office is still swamped with mail from the recent Favorite Character contest!

But we’re anxious to know what you fans think of their new uniforms!”

It wasn’t the only time the future artist took issue with a character’s design. The following year, the cover of Son of Vulcan #49 (Nov. 1965), published by Charlton Comics, featured a new costume for the title character, submitted by Cockrum himself. He was even credited on the cover in a note that read, “Special thanks to Dave Cockrum for costume ideas.” It was his most prominent credit to date.

Whether the costumes of the Doom Patrol were changed because of Cockrum is debatable, as other readers had also voiced their displeasure with the Patrol’s original green-and-brown ensemble (and, according to Boltinoff, the Doom Patrol’s new outfits were “the result of a huddle composed of Bruno Premiani, scripter Arnold Drake, two members of the Color Dept., and the editor.”). The letter does show his interest in costume design, as well as the ability to get himself noticed by the very people (and, in this particular instance, the very man) who would hire him years later.

Cockrum gets cover credited for his Son of Vulcan costume idea.

Son of Vulcan ™ and © DC Comics.

II. In the Navy In 1963, Cockrum left college in Illinois and returned to Colorado. “My folks decided I should move to a school closer to home,” he wrote in 1968.15 After attending Colorado State University for a year, he enlisted in the Navy. According to Thompson, “He and his father didn’t quite get along, during that time. And his father, being in the Air Force, wanted his son to follow him into the Air Force, and I don’t think Dave wanted to do that. So I think him joining the Navy was rebellion against his father.”

Instead of the usual tour of duty, Cockrum enlisted for six years. “Because of his [three] years of college, they offered him an advanced rate if he would enlist for six years instead of four,” explained Doug Cockrum. “So he only served one enlistment, but it was a long enlistment.”

His new occupation was even noted in the letters page of Fantastic Four #36 (Mar. 1964). In response to his new address, editor Stan Lee wrote, “How about 11

that! We see that Dave Cockrum, one of our most loyal fans, is in the Navy now! Tell you what, Davey boy! As soon as you’re assigned to a permanent ship or base, take a poll among all your fellow gobs as to which is their favorite Marvel title, and the guys in the bullpen will send you a complimentary subscription to that mag! (And it better not be Millie the Model, sailor!)”

In 1965, Cockrum was reacquainted with an old friend while still in the Armed Forces. “It was about mid-’65 when I got stationed at Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego,” recalled Jerry Thompson, “and I knew that Dave was already stationed there, so when I first [got] there, the first thing I did was I tried to find him. I found out what squadron he was with, and what barracks he was in, so I went to his cubicle, and he wasn’t there. I found out from his friends which one was his locker, so I wrote a note on it, and I said, ‘Dave Cockrum is full of sh*t! Your friend, Jerry.’ And I pasted it on there.

Then I saw him the next day, and he said he’d almost tore apart the whole base trying to find me! So it was really great.”

The two picked up where they had left off. “I remember one time, I just came back from a tour over in Vietnam, and he asked me if we wanted to go down to the

Cockrum and high school friend (turned Navy buddy) Jerry Thompson team up to create Galactic Agent. © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

12

beach, and go to a movie later on. So we went down to Laguna, and both of us fell asleep on the beach, and we burnt like toast. I mean, it was awful, so awful that neither one of us could go to the movie that night. It was bad. And then we’d just hang out. There were a few beer bars that we would frequent down in San Diego, and sometimes we’d double-date, or something like that. But mostly just hanging around.”

The pair also continued to draw together. “Sometimes what I’d do is, I’d go up to his office, at the squadron office that he had. I think he was doing books for the squadron, and what I would do is I would just go up there and we would sit at his desk during his free time.

We both collaborated on this one cartoon, or comic book illustration, called, ‘Galactic Agent.’ We dreamt up a Galactic Agent. We would sit there, and we would dream up different kinds of superhero characters, and one of them was Galactic Agent, like James Bond, except he would go into outer space and solve crimes.

It was kinda cool, because we did a cover together, and I’ve still got it. I [mentioned] it to Dave, and at first he said that he didn’t remember it, but then I emailed it to him, and then he remembered it.”

1965 was also the year that Cockrum discovered Wally Wood’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents. “My favorite series from the ’60s was T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents,” he once wrote online, “and that was because there was a lot of fun in their stories.”16 About Wood himself, he wrote, “Wally Wood was a major influence on me...

When I was a kid, not only was his work some of the best and most exciting stuff around, but he signed it so I knew who I was admiring... To this day he remains one of my heroes, and I still read all his stuff with delight and enjoyment.”17 During this period, Cockrum also made his first substantial artistic contributions to the field. He had taken to submitting cover illustrations to DC editor Julie Schwartz in the hopes of selling him story ideas, and two were actually used as springboards for comic books. The first was Green Lantern #40 (Oct. ’65), which featured both the Golden and Silver Age Green Lanterns in conflict on the cover. It followed the trail blazed by Flash #123’s “Flash of Two Worlds!” (Sept. ’61), about which Cockrum had told editor Schwartz in a personal letter, “…was the best Flash story you’ve ever put out.”18 Obviously inspired by the match-up, the artist made the logical extrapolation of telling a similar story with the two Green Lanterns, and the story based upon the cover, “The Secret Origin of the Guardians!” played an important role in the plotting of Crisis on Infinite Earths almost twenty years later.

The other cover based upon a Cockrum sketch was Hawkman #11 (Dec. ’65 – Jan. ’66), as noted by the artist himself in the letters page of Hawkman #13. He wrote, “I must admit, however, that another reason for my liking the Shrike is the sneaking suspicion that I was in part responsible for the creation of the character. Some months ago I sent you a sketch of a proposed Hawkman foe called the Black Shrike. Perhaps I’m wrong, but it’s fun anyway, seeing that one’s efforts inspire outstanding work like, ‘The Shrike Strikes at Night!’”

In response to the letter, Schwartz replied, “As you surmised, the Shrike was inspired by your sketch — and in appreciation, we have sent you Murphy Anderson’s original cover! The same deal applies for any other accepted cover ideas or characters contributed by our readers.” In actuality, Cockrum received the original art to both covers inspired by his illustrations.

Years later, when asked about the episode, Anderson recalled, “He liked Hawkman, and he sent in a cover — what he thought might make a nice cover for Hawkman.

I don’t know what his motivation was other than to make a sample, and he decided to let Julie see it. So Julie said he couldn’t use it, but the idea was a nice idea, and he and I would often work up covers, sitting and talking about some idea, and we’d work on it together. He’d add to it, I would add to it, and we’d come up with a cover. That was just another piece of information that could be used as a cover.

Julie never thought of using the idea that Dave sent exactly as it was. That was never his purpose.

He used it as a springboard, and ™ and © DC Comics. we worked up a cover somewhat around that picture, or that idea.”

It was at this point in Cockrum’s life that another seed planted via the U.S. Mail took shape. In 1968,

in an article written for The Yancy Street Gazette, he recalled, “It was shortly after I joined the Navy and had reported to Fighter Squadron 124 at Miramar, California, that I received my first of many letters from a girl, a perfect stranger called Andrea Kline, who’d read a letter of mine in FF #36; she suggested we become pen pals. We wrote for over two years.

She had an interest in comics too, and we seemed to have a lot else in common.”19 As to why she felt compelled to write him in the first place, in 2007 Kline speculated, “It was something he wrote in the letter that I guess I didn’t agree with, and I wrote to him [about it]... And part of it, I think, was just because I’m going, “Oh, look at that! He’s in the Navy, and he’s a guy, and maybe I’ll just write to him!”

“We first met on the first of December 1966, after a comedy of errors worthy of Laurel and Hardy,” Cockrum later told Gary Groth.20 “She came in on Continental Trailways, and I was waiting for her in the Greyhound Terminal. Fortunately, when she called my squadron, some of my friends were on duty there, and they’d figured I’d done what I did, so they sent her over to the Greyhound station to look for me. I almost didn’t recognize her from her pictures, because she streaked her hair with some silvery gunk — something to do during the bus ride — and my first thought was, ‘That little old lady looks familiar.’

Anyway, about ten days later, we eloped to Vegas.”21 Kline later confirmed, “It’s a little embarrassing. We got married, like, ten days later,” she laughed. “I was very, very young when David and I got married... We got married at Las Vegas at midnight with just the two of us. It was not like we had a wedding.”

As to the contents of the letter published in Fantastic Four that set the matrimonial sequence of events in 13

After two years of writing back and forth, the two penpals finally met face to face. Ten days later they were married, and about a year later they were joined by new son, Ivan.

motion, Cockrum later recalled, “...I thought it was about time Reed Richards and (then) Sue Storm got married. Andrea saw the letter and something about it tickled her curiosity.”22 Specifically, Cockrum had written, “As for Sue and Reed getting married, I cast my vote ‘yes’! Odd attitude for a bachelor, but I appreciate that venerable, old institution.”

Life for the newlyweds continued to revolve around that which had brought them together. In 1968, Cockrum wrote, “Life with Andrea is a ball, but I’ve often wondered how my poor, beloved, long-suffering wife can put up with my antics. I stay up until midnight, one o’clock or later either drawing or reading the latest batch of comics, while she lays in bed mumbling vile epithets at me.”23 Kline recalled, “David was in the Navy back then, and he knew already that he wanted to do comic books. That was his goal. He used to sit in the house and draw.”

It was also about this time that Cockrum discovered another love of his life: Star Trek. Recalled Thompson, “I remember I came back from one tour [in Vietnam], and all of a sudden I find out that he was married, and 14

he was living off-base then. So he’d get a date for me, and we’d go double-dating. He’d bring his wife, I’d bring a date, and we’d go out, and go down to the beach, or something like that.

One of the things was that Star Trek [had] just started to come out, and we’d sit in his apartment and watch Star Trek all the time. He really loved Star Trek. He thought Star Trek was the greatest, and I remember that when I first saw Star Trek, I just couldn’t see what all the hubbub was all about. Now, of course, I’m a great Star Trek fan. I love Star Trek. I guess he was, let’s say, just before his time.”

“When we first saw Star Trek... to us, that was a religious experience,” Kline remembered.

While he enjoyed the new television series, Cockrum remained faithful to his four-color love. “Many’s the time I’ve dragged [Andrea] off to some dingy, ill-lighted bookstore that smells of mold and rotting paper, to sit patiently — if perhaps with a little disgust — while I rummage and dig through stacks of crusty, grimy, moth-eaten comics of ancient origin, sometimes for hours at a stretch. I never realize how slow time passes for her, since I could do that until doomsday and not even stop to eat. She just sits there quietly, though, staring daggers at me.”24 “We used to make treks to buy comic books,” Kline remembered, “and as a matter of fact,” she laughed, “when I had Ivan, he was out buying comic books. He took me to the hospital, [and] back then, they wouldn’t let you stay with the [mother in the delivery room], so when I was trying to get a hold of him after the baby was born, he was out buying comic books.”

On December 19, 1967, Ivan Cockrum was born in San Diego at the Balboa Naval Hospital. Despite the added responsibilities that came with being a new parent, Cockrum didn’t waver in his pursuit of his dream. “He always knew he wanted to do comics. That was his goal from the get-go,” Kline recalled. The artist’s friend Thompson also remembered, “[While in the Navy,] the wish that he had for drawing, or doing comic books, was even stronger.”

III. Fandom’s Finest According to Doug Cockrum, “[Dave] actually first started drawing, I guess you would say professionally, while he was in the Navy, through a base newspaper in San Diego, and then later again in Guam. His artwork in the base newspaper was noticed, apparently, by some folks in the art world, and they made some

tentative contacts with him, and that’s kinda where it all started.”

The artist himself remembered events differently. “The first time I ever saw a fanzine, I think was nearly ten years ago,” he told Groth in 1969. “I got a complimentary copy of some ’zine (I can’t even recall after all this time what the name was, even) because I had a letter printed in a comic mag.

The ’zine was in ditto and the art was at best mediocre, but still it caught my imagination. Suddenly I realized that there was an outlet for amateur artists to put their work into print for other people to read and see, and I wanted to join up. Unfortunately, the ’zine disappeared before I could write to the editor.

“After that, I heard nothing more about fanzines for several years and it wasn’t until about three years ago that another opportunity came along for me to affiliate with one... I had a [letter] printed in Fantastic Four and something in it sparked Steve Ziegler of the late YSG to send me a complimentary copy. I sent in a sub and a batch of art, and asked if YSG could use my stuff.

That was sometime in 1967, I think... I worked almost exclusively for YSG right up until it folded.”25

™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

“I’m not sure how he first found the fanzines,” Kline remembered, “but as soon as he [did], he was interested in doing [them] because... he just loved comics, and he would do anything that would bring him that one step closer.”

It was in the fanzines of the late 1960s that Dave Cockrum first began to make a name for himself. “I first ‘met’ Dave when I was a teenager,” wrote comics pro Tony Isabella in 2004’s The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute. “He was in the Navy; I was in high school. What we had in common was that we were both frequent contributors to the second wave of fanzines which followed in the wake of Alter Ego and others. Many of these ’zines focused on the Marvel superheroes which had come into their own and which were giving Superman and his DC brethren a run for their, or rather, our money. Sometimes it seemed every Marvel ’zine had amazing drawings by Dave, sometimes on the same page as a less-amazing-but-equallyearnest article by me.”26 In the same volume, comics historian Mark Evanier wrote, “I remember when we were both skulking about the same fanzines in the late ’60s. Dave did covers, pin-ups, and spot illustrations, all of which prompted folks to say, ‘Hey, this guy should be working for DC or Marvel.’ Before long, to the surprise of absolutely no one, he was.”27 The artist continued to contribute to fanzines throughout the remainder of his Naval career, even after he was transferred to Guam in the spring of 1968.

While there, he served as a Captain’s secretary, and also designed emblems for fighter planes in his spare time, of which there was little. In his 1969 interview with Groth, he confessed, “...the Navy naturally takes up most of my time. I have to scratch for time to do my artwork even in off-duty hours.”28 15

(left) Un-Man from Star-Studded Comics #18 (Summer 1972). (right) An unpublished cover by Cockrum, circa ’65. Hammerhand and Miss Mercury eventually appeared in Star-Studded #15 (May 1969), and then The Futurians series. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Despite obstacles, Cockrum continued to draw, and his work continued to appear in fanzines in America.

“My base of operations, so to speak, is Ron Kraus’s Enterprise Monthly. Though a fairly new ’zine, it’s one of my favorites,” he told Groth. “Besides YSG and FF, I’ve contributed to Comicology, had a sort of portfolio (not my best work) in Star-Studded Comics [#15, May 1969], and am preparing a strip for Star-Studded that may or may not be finished in the near future.”29 That strip would be the seven-page “Un-Man” which appeared in Star-Studded’s last issue, #18 [Summer 1972]. Also worth noting is that two characters, Hammerhand and Miss Mercury, who originally appeared in the portfolio that was published in SSC #15, would debut years later in the pages of The Futurians.

Despite his distance from the comic book hub of New York, Cockrum still found ways to get his artwork seen by industry pros. “I ended up going back to New York,” remembered Kline, “and I already had some of his work. I remember I went to one big comic convention that was held in New York and showed his work around. I was trying to peddle it to Jim Steranko back then. I showed it to Jim Steranko, and I showed it to 16

a bunch of people in the industry, and told them that he was very interested [in comics], and this was what he wanted to do.” She also recalled, “I think even my mother had dragged his art around town.”

Back in Guam, Cockrum later wrote about the episode, “[Andrea] attended the comicon known as SCARP — the Society for Comic Art Research and Preservation — to let me know what it was all about, and had the unmitigated gall to meet Jim Steranko and have him take her to a luncheon of comic artists and editors! If I went to something like that, I not only wouldn’t get to meet anyone — especially anyone like Steranko — I probably wouldn’t even get in the door! I turned positively green. I always miss out.”30 While in New York, Kline also supported her husband’s comic collecting ways. “Now that I’m on Guam and she’s in New York, she’s even contributing to the habit,” he wrote in ’68. “Just a few weeks ago she sent me an old 1947 issue of Whiz Comics, featuring good ol’ Captain Marvel, and a 1950 edition of Daredevil.

She won’t tell me what she paid for them.”31 Cockrum also lamented about the availability of new comic books on the Pacific island. He wrote,

“They arrive here at least a month later than they hit the stands ‘back in the world.’ Andrea has been sending me mags for almost a month, and I’m still finding even older ones here that I never saw before, so I’m going nuts with great rapidity; I’m so far behind now, I’d have to be three months ahead to be a month behind. Does that make any sense?”32 About his fanzine work that appeared in The Yancy Street Gazette during the period, he later told Groth, “At the time, I thought it was good... but I don’t any longer. I try to keep my work constantly improving, because I can sit down and show you half-a-dozen weak points in any piece of art I turn out. I want to get rid of these weak spots. One thing I lack is polish. I just don’t think my stuff looks professional. Maybe that’s because I know who did it, though I’m a lot better than I was in the YSG days, but still have much room for improvement.”33 On top of his fanzine efforts, Cockrum was also published closer to home. “I do a monthly comic strip for the ship’s newspaper,” he told Groth. “It’s called ‘Bubblehead.’ [It’s] a typical ‘Beetle Baileyish’ strip about life aboard a submarine tender. ‘Bubblehead’ is a Navy term for sailors aboard Polaris submarines (Bubble-Machines).” He was more reflective when he commented, “I suppose every guy with an artistic ability who was ever in the service has to put up with the same thing. Funny, though — nobody wants to pay for it. They all think it comes under your Navy duties.”34 One advantage of serving at a station which dealt with “Bubble-Machines” was not immediately apparent to the artist when he was first transferred to Guam. “Somehow through the mail, [Gary] ran into a guy named Dave Cockrum,” recalled Howard Groth, Gary’s father, in the 2009 book Comics As Art: We Told You So. “Dave Cockrum was an artist.

Gary used a Dave Cockrum drawing as a cover for one of his publications. Dave Cockrum was

a sailor in the Navy, stationed out in Guam on a Polaris submarine tender. I was working for the Polaris program. I went to Guam and handed the issue to Dave Cockrum aboard that ship. He was quite thrilled with that. No one else was getting hand-delivered Fantastic Fanzines.”35 It was also while located in the Pacific that Cockrum created the character that he later dubbed his alter ego. “Back in 1968, I was in the Navy, and stationed on the Pacific island of Guam,” he wrote in 2002. “My first wife, Andrea, and young son, Ivan were with me.

Since base housing wasn’t yet available to us, we rented a rickety, tumbledown, rat-infested shack in the jungle.

‘The Boonie House,’ as we called it.

“We had a lot of typhoons out there. It was seasonal, the way hurricanes are here. During one terrible storm, we rode it out in the Boonie House, with lightning, thunder, and 120 mile-an-hour winds shrieking overhead. Debris whirled through the night skies, and some of it crashed onto our corrugated tin roof.

“To put it bluntly, we were scared sh*tless. Pardon my French.

“Trying to keep our minds off the storm raging overhead, we occupied our time making up comic book characters. Frankly, I don’t remember most of them. Probably they weren’t too terrific. But there was one pair of characters I remember well: the Intruder, and his demon sidekick, Nightcrawler.

“The Intruder was a character like Batman or the Punisher, who relied on strength, intelligence, and weaponry to combat crime. Nightcrawler was a demon — yeah, a real one — who had screwed up on a mission from Hell, and rather than go back and face punishment, he stayed on the mortal plane and hung around with the Intruder.

“This Nightcrawler wasn’t a nice guy. He was nasty, vicious, and animalistic. He ran up and down the sides of buildings, and bayed at the moon like the Hound of the Baskervilles.

Shazam heroes ™ and © DC Comics.

17

Cockrum at his drawing board in Guam. On the left are the Intruder and his demon sidekick, Nightcrawler (also seen below in a ’70s pre-X-Men pre-X-Men model sheet). Scan from Fantastic Fanzine Special #1 by Manny Maris.

Black Knight, Nightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

He came and went in bursts of flame and brimstone — I kept that part, later on — and he had a prehensile tail. He was a very frightening character.”36 Kline recalled, “...I was really getting into it. I’m like, ‘Oh, and he should look demonic, and he should this and he should that... and he should have a tail...’. It was kind of ironic, because I have a Jewish background, and when I was on Guam, I actually had a guy ask me if he could see my tail, because he had been taught by the missionaries that Jews had tails. So I was like, ‘Yeah, let’s put this into Nightcrawler.’”

She continued, “But obviously, David was the creative talent, and he kept just drawing these sketches, and we just got more and more into it, and... that was how he looked from the beginning.”

Cockrum continued, “Sometime [later], the late and legendary Jack Kirby came up with a character called simply, ‘The Demon.’ His demon was named Etrigan, [and] was tied into the Merlin legend.

Well, my idea was no longer unique, so I dropped the demon aspect.”37 While still in Guam, Cockrum hadn’t forgotten about his family back home. According to his brother, “I was at the Air Force Academy while he was in the Navy, and still at the Academy when he got out.

As a matter of fact, just as a sidelight, when I accepted my appointment to the Air Force Academy, I was also offered an appointment to the Naval Academy, and when Dave found out about it, he called me from Guam and said, ‘For Chrissakes, whatever you do, don’t go in the Navy!’ ...[But] my boyhood dream had been to go to the Air 18

Force, so that’s where I went.”

Allen’s Barsoomian. Paul has a huge collection of my Also back in America, Cockrum’s work continued to ERB work but so far none of it’s been printed due to the appear in fanzines, primarily in Groth’s Fantastic Fanlength of time between issues.”39 Unfortunately for the artist, outside of the covers of zine. His migration from the pages of The Yancy Street reprinted issues from the 1950s, Allen discontinued Gazette to FF originally came about when, accordthe Barsoomian before his artwork could see print. In ing to Groth, “...I paid seventy dollars for a bunch of an open letter to subscribers, Allen wrote, “My only Dave’s artwork from a fanzine editor, Steve Ziegler... regret in killing the Bar at this time is that I still have Now, Dave gave all this artwork to Ziegler, free to print a large quantity of very high articles and artwork on in this guy’s fanzine, and when this ’zine folded, and hand... enough to fill at least another three issues of Ziegler had all this art left over, he sold most of it to the Bar. All of this material will be returned to the me. And at the time, I needed good artwork just to get authors and artists with a list of Burroughs fan magastarted — just to publish a good ’zine, so Ziegler had zines they may wish to contact.” Allen only listed two me over a barrel, so to speak. And when Dave heard artists by name as examples of what went unpublished: about it, he was pretty angry.”38 Cockrum continued to contribute to FF under his own accord, illustrating page headers and column logos in addition to spot illos and pin-ups. His art was featured on the cover of the very last issue (Fantastic Fanzine Special #2, Feb. 1972), a wraparound picture that showed the Silver Surfer in space pursued by the Vision.

In the issue’s “Editorial Memos,” Groth wrote, “This issue’s cover is the Wraparound cover art for Fantastic Fanzine Special #2 (Feb. 1972). Silver Surfer, Vision ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. long-awaited Dave Roy Krenkel and Dave Cockrum. The latter’s artwork Cockrum wrap-around piece that has been squeezed graced the covers of ERB-Dom #37 (Aug. 1970) and off the cover spot twice already! ...Incidentally, this #61 (Aug. 1972), as well as the cover of the Paul Kupcover was drawn two years ago, but still ranks as one perberg and Paul Levitz-edited Etcetera #1 (Jan. 1972). of my favorite pieces of Dave’s work. Thanks for putAccording to Kupperberg, “It was one of the pieces he ting up with the delays, Dave.” Years later, inventoried had done to audition for the ERB Pellucidar when DC Cockrum art also appeared on the covers of two early had the license.” issues of Groth’s newly-acquired Nostalgia Journal: #29 In 1969, Cockrum still had his eye on the prize. “I (featuring the George Reeves Superman) and #31 (feahope to go pro when I get out of the Navy,” he told turing a topless Big Barda).

Groth. “That’ll be in September of 1970!! I enjoy drawCockrum’s interests in fandom also extended beyond ing comics more than almost anything else I can think the comic book medium, and in ’69 he told Groth, “I of, and if I can break into the field I’m definitely going also contribute to a lot of ’zines dedicated to heroic fanpro. My work can still be improved but I have more tasy — specifically Edgar Rice Burroughs and Robert than a year to go and I’m constantly working on it.”40 E. Howard fiction — and of those my favorite is Paul 19

Endnotes 1 Gary Groth, “An Interview With Dave Cockrum!” Fantastic Fan-

zine #10 (1969), pg. 6.

2 Dave Cockrum, “The Trials and Tribulations of Being a Comi-

collector,” Yancy Street Gazette #21, (Sept. 1968), pg. 12.

3 Jay McKiernan, “Dave Cockrum Interview,”

(http://x-worldcomics.com/x/column/cockrum.html, 2001).

4 This title was actually called Boy Comics, and featured a teenaged

character called Crime Buster. It was published by Lev Gleason Publications from 1942–56, and featured the work of Charles Biro.

5 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 12.

6 ibid., pg. 13.

7 ibid., pg. 13.

Artwork © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

8 ibid., pg. 13.

9 ibid., pg. 13.

10 McKiernan, op. cit.

11 GalacticAgent, “Dave Cockrum has passed away,” Cockrum Corner, (www.NightScrawlers.com, Nov. 27, 2006), pg. 2.

12 Air Explorers are an advanced group of the Boy Scouts.

13 Dark Bamf, “Jack Kirby’s influence in your art?” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Dec. 5, 2005), pg. 1.

14 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum, Comic Book Artist Collection Vol. 2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg. 158.

15 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 14.

16 Dark Bamf, “Fun Comics,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 26, 2006), pg. 1.

17 Dave Cockrum, “Joe Quesada says ‘No Cockrum’” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 28, 2003), pg. 5.

18 Dave Cockrum, The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute, (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 80.

19 Cockrum, “The Trials and Tribulations of Being a Comicollec-

tor,” op. cit., pg. 14–15.

20 Groth, op. cit., pg. 9.

21 ibid pg. 9.

22 ibid pg. 9.

Artwork © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

23 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 15.

24 ibid., pg. 15.

25 Groth, op. cit., pg. 5.

26 Tony Isabella, “None But the Dave,” The Uncanny Dave Cock-

rum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 50.

27 Mark Evanier, “Who Discovered Dave, Anyway?” The Uncanny

Dave Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 27.

20

The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents from Fantastic Fanzine #11. (right and opposite page) Edgar Rice Burroughs-inspired artwork by Cockrum on the covers of various fanzines. Scans on both pages provided by Manny Maris. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents ™ and © Radiant Assets, LLC. 28 Groth, op. cit., pg. 9.

29 ibid., pg. 6.

30 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 15.

31 ibid., pg. 15.

32 ibid., pg. 15.

33 Groth, op. cit., pg. 6.

34 ibid., pg. 9.

35 Tom Spurgeon & Jacob Covey, “It’s What We Knew Best,”

Comics As Art: We Told You So (Fantagraphics Publishing, 2009), pg. 22.

36 Dark Bamf, “How Did Nightcrawler Come to Be Created?”

Artwork © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Oct. 9, 2002), pg.

1.

37 ibid., pg. 1.

38 Gary Groth, “An Interview with the Artist… Jim Steranko,”

Fantastic Fanzine #11 (1970), pg. 23.

39 Gary Groth, “An Interview With Dave Cockrum!” op. cit.,

pg. 6.

40 ibid., pg. 7.

21

An unpublished cover featuring the Manphibian. The character eventually appeared in Legion of Monsters #1 (1975).

Manphibian ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

22

Chapter 2: 1970–1974

I

I. Breaking In

n June 1970, twenty-six year old Dave Cockrum Warren that I said to give you work.’ And in those days, moved to New York City to pursue his dream of if Jim Warren heard Neal’s name, he’d go, ‘Salaam!’ So I becoming a professional comic book artist. As part would get these jobs, and I would bring ’em in to Neal of military cutbacks that year, he received notification first and show him, and he’d say, ‘Well, fix this, and fix of his “Early Out” in the spring, and it enabled him to this, and fix this,’ and I’d fix ’em and take ’em over to 1 arrive Stateside months earlier than expected.

Warren. [He] would say, ‘Neal Adams is telling you “I got out [of the Navy] in 1970 and came straight to what to fix, isn’t he?’ and I’d say, ‘What? I don’t know New York, just in time for Phil Seuling’s convention in what you’re talking about.’”5 Cockrum’s first work for the publisher was the sixJuly,” he told Comic Book Artist’s Jon B. Cooke in 1999. page story, “Prisoner in the Pool!” which appeared in “I met all kinds of professionals there and then went Vampirella #11 (May 1971). Coinup to DC first, but their attitude was cidentally, the story was written by that I was close to professional qualBuddy Saunders, one of the original ity, but just on the wrong side of it.”2 While at the DC offices, he met publishers of Star-Studded Comics, with editor Julie Schwartz, to whom to which Cockrum had been a conhe had written for years. “I used to tributor just one year before. His send him sketches of characters next story appeared in Creepy #39 when I was just a fan,” Cockrum (May 1971 — “C.O.D. — Collect recalled in 2003. “When he hired me on Death”), followed by “Swamp years later, he pulled a stack of those Demon” in Creepy #40 (Sept. 1971 drawings from his desk and showed — a story which he both wrote and them to me. Gawd, they were awful! illustrated on spec while still in After that, every time I’d visit, he’d Guam),6 and “A Change of Identity” in Creepy #42 (Nov. 1971). Cockrum take them out again, or threaten to. rounded out his Warren career with He was always kidding around.”3 When work was not forthcomtwo stories in Eerie: “Oh, Brother!” ing from the publisher, Schwartz Cockrum at the 1970 Comic Art Conven- in #36 (Nov. 1971), and “Yesterday walked Cockrum around the offices tion (seen in Fantastic Fanzine #13). is the Day Before Tomorrow” in #39 and introduced him to Neal Adams.

(April 1972). All stories ranged from Adams, then the industry’s biggest star, was aware of six to eight pages in length, and Cockrum inked all of Cockrum’s work from fanzines, and upon being introhis own artwork. duced, said, “Oh! It’s the famous artist from Fantastic About his time at Warren, he later said, “It would Fanzine.” have probably benefited me if I had stayed on and done “I knew he was being sarcastic as hell, but it was more stuff... because I was learning black-&-white nice to hear that he knew who I was,” Cockrum later techniques that I later quit using.”7 At the time, the artist wrote in Eerie #33 (May 1971), “Thanks to lots recalled. “And Marvel wasn’t ready for me yet, so Neal of help and goodwill from Neal Adams and trial script Adams sent me over to Warren. So that was where my 4 from Jim Warren, I seem to be making that first tentafirst professional stuff appeared.”

In 2002, the artist told Glen Cadigan, “Neal got me tive step up the ladder. With all the helpful people I’ve those [jobs] by telling me, ‘Okay, go over and tell Jim met in the business, I may just make it.”

23

(left) The splash page from Eerie #36’s “Oh, Brother!” (above) An unpublished splash panel for a “World of Krypton” story. (right) Cockrum and Bernie Wrightson at the 1970 Metro Comic Con.

Warren art © New Comic Company, LLC. Unpublished art © Estate of Dave Cockrum. Photo

by Bill Cantey.

While illustrating stories for Warren Publishing, Cockrum also received his first opportunity to draw a color story for a major publisher. “I got my first work at DC because I was just there one day,” he recalled in 2002. “Julie Schwartz was looking for somebody to draw this god-awful story [for] ‘Tales of Krypton’ (“All in the Mind!” Superman #248, Feb. 1972). Marv Wolfman wrote it, and it was about mutant Kryptonian kids with big heads and no thumbs, and the Kryptonians abandoned them in the wilderness. These kids survived the atomic war which wiped out everybody else, and they became the source of the later-on existing Kryptonian civilization.

“Julie stuck his head out the door and said, ‘Hey! Who’s here?’ and I said, ‘I’m here!’ He said, ‘You’re here. Yeah. Uh-huh.’ He said, ‘All right! Come here!’

So I went in, and he said, ‘I’m going to give you your chance. Here’s the story.’ Neither Marv nor I was very proud of the end result, but it was my first color job at DC.”8 The story also landed the artist in a minor bit of trouble. “My very first story for DC ran afoul of the CCA [Comics Code Authority],” he wrote in 2002. “I did a backup story in a Superman book (don’t remember 24

which one now) about a historical event on Krypton which involved mutant teenagers (they had big heads and no thumbs). I drew cleavage on the girls. The Code sent it back and demanded the cleavage be removed.

Apparently the Code was trying to foster the illusion that there was one single large bump on a woman’s chest, and not two individual breasts.”9 He later elaborated about the circumstances surrounding being hired for his first color story. “But that was the great thing about those days. Both companies had places you could come in and hang around. You could compare notes, you could talk to the pros, you could get advice... When I came in, I was [part of] the first incoming class of wannabe artists who were fans of the books. The guys previous to us, they just found it as a job. That’s what it was to them. There was a whole gang of guys that I call the Class of ’70. Bernie Wrightson kind of preceded us by a little bit, and then so did Marv Wolfman and Len Wein, but Mike Kaluta, Bruce Jones, and even Vaughn Bodē was part of that group. It was a whole gang of guys. We came in, [and] we actually sort of hung out together for a while, but we were the first fans who became pros. We got work, a lot of us, because in those days you could go up to the com-

pany and hang around. They actually had places where freelancers, or prospective freelancers, could come in and hang around... That sort of thing just isn’t possible anymore. The companies are big business. You can’t do that sort of thing.”10 About that period in the artist’s life, his first wife, Andrea Kline remembered, “It was a very, very exciting time for him. I mean, he was really living his dream.”

Cockrum also worked regularly during the period as an assistant to various artists.

“I started doing background inking, first for Tony DeZuniga (who was doing a lot of Cockrum’s pencils with Jack Abel’s inks for an installment of “Shattuck” for Overseas Weekly.

House of Mystery and stuff Shattuck ™ and © Wallace Wood Properties, LLC. like that). They weren’t runAbout working conditions there, the artist told Jon ning a stable yet, at that point. He was okay to work for, B. Cooke in 2005, “...I usually took my work home. but his wife, Mary, was something else. She looked at [Wood] would lay it out the way he wanted the panels my stuff and said, ‘Ehhh! Ten years, maybe, you might to be and also letter in the copy, pretty much leaving make it.’”11 About the experience, he later commented, all the rest to me.”16 He later said about the experience, “I don’t recall how I got the work with Tony DeZuniga, “Woody wrote the stuff and Jack Abel inked over my it’s been a long time. Probably, somebody at DC recpencils. It was fun.”17 ommended me.”12 Cockrum’s admiration for Wood continued throughIn 1971, Cockrum was also afforded the opportuout his entire career. He once wrote online, “Woody was nity to work with one of his boyhood idols. “When I absolutely terrific at anything he did. He did a lot of the was just breaking into the business I landed a job for sci-fi stuff from EC. His ‘silver bullet’ rocket ships epita while, penciling a western newspaper strip called omized the spirit of ’50s sci-fi. But I think for me, the ‘Shattuck,’ for Wally Wood. He was packaging three high point was his work on T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents for strips for Overseas Weekly, a paper for sailors and solTower Comics. That remains one of my favorite series diers overseas.”13 About the experience, he later wrote from the ’60s. He also did some of the early issues of online, “He himself drew ‘Cannon,’ a spy/international Daredevil, and in fact created the red costume.”18 intrigue strip, and ‘Sally Forth’ (he had the name first, On a discussion about inking, the artist once said, guys), a silly adventure strip whose star couldn’t keep “My one dream inker would be Wally Wood, who, of her clothes on. course, isn’t with us any more. He did once browbeat “‘Shattuck,’ named for the hero, [was] a wandering me into penciling one daily for ‘Cannon,’ an advengood-for-nothing who drew slow but could hit anyture/intrigue strip he did for Overseas Weekly. I didn’t thing he aimed at. He wound up being sheriff of a care for the strip and didn’t do all that well with it, but small town (much against his will) where the object [of when he finished inking it you’d never know it was the strip] was to get the women out of their clothes as anything but pure Wood.”19 quickly as possible.”14 Earlier, he told Jay McKiernan, While working for Wood, Cockrum had also begun “As I recall, I think it was Howie Chaykin who tipped to assist another veteran artist, one whose work he me to the work with Wally Wood; he was giving up had long admired. “Murphy Anderson needed a backpenciling the ‘Shattuck’ strip and suggested I should ground inker for the work he was doing on Curt Swan’s call Woody about taking over.”15 Superman and Bob Brown’s Superboy,”20 he told Cooke 25

in ’99. “When I went to work for Murphy full-time, II. The Legion of Super-Heroes that was probably when I left the ‘Shattuck’ strip.”21 “I met [Dave] up at DC Comics,” Anderson rememIt was while working as Anderson’s assistant that bered in 2006. “He corresponded with Julie while Cockrum’s first major opportunity arose. “That’s when he was in the Navy. Dave and I had something of a the Big Break came along,” he recalled in 2000. “The common background. We were both in the Navy...

‘Legion of Super-Heroes’ had been dying a slow death Not that we worked on anything having to do with the the previous couple of years, floundering as an occaNavy, but it’s just a common background, and somesional backup feature in the Superboy book. It had thing he could reminisce and talk about.” reached the point where the editorial staff couldn’t In 2002, Cockrum recalled, “I spent a year working even find an artist who wanted it.”24 as background inker for Murphy Anderson and got a Created in 1958, the Legion of Super-Heroes was lot of excellent training from him. Murphy was a whiz a superhero team that lived one thousand years in with a brush. I never got as good as he the future, and whose membership was, but my line cleaned up and my consisted of teenagers from different stuff looked a lot more professional.”22 planets with different powers. In their About the newcomer’s artwork, original story, the founders of the Anderson said, “I just liked that he was team traveled back in time to invite trying to draw well. Many of the artists Superboy to join their organization, of that period were very [influenced only to trick him in the future as a test by] Jack Kirby. And Jack Kirby was a of his sportsmanship. The Boy of Steel marvelous artist and a super draftsbecame an honorary member, and man, but his draftsmanship was covcontinued to have adventures with the ered by the way he exaggerated things. team for years.

It wasn’t that obvious. When he wanted The Legion’s publishing history, to draw something realistically, he however, was somewhat sketchy by could draw it as well as anyone, but he 1971. After a long run in Adventure drew his figures and constructs [with] Comics, the feature had moved to the a foreshortening that couldn’t be done back of Action Comics before it found without distorting [the] drawing, and itself in the pages of Superboy as a perithat was a thing that attracted so many odic backup feature. With the retirefans. I don’t think that they stopped to ment of the Legion’s original editor think that he was a master draftsman and co-creator, Mort Weisinger, from before he started to do these crazy DC Comics in 1970, the strip had been things with the drawing. And David, inherited by longtime employee (and like almost everybody else, loved Jack former Doom Patrol editor) Murray Kirby’s work, and they wanted to Boltinoff, who felt it more logically draw like that, but many of the people belonged in Superboy. With inventrying to draw like Kirby never realtory scripts stockpiled by Weisinger ized that they had to build on a good, Cockrum’s new design for Lightning in his final months to ease the transifirm basis, a knowledge of drawing. So Lad. Lightning Lad ™ and © DC Comics. tion, given its infrequent appearances when Dave showed up and learned to under Boltinoff, it looked as if the Legion was doomed draw well, and made that [the] primary thing, that’s to fade into obscurity. when I liked what he was wanting to do. I could see “Murphy let it slip to me that it was available,” Cockthat he was on the right path.” rum remembered. “I was outta there so fast I left skidIn his introduction to Legion of Super-Heroes marks on the linoleum. The Flash himself couldn’t have Archives Volume 10, Cockrum wrote, “For the first gotten to editor Murray Boltinoff ’s office any faster. I couple of jobs I was terrified of ruining irreplaceable arrived drooling on his desktop and he made me back artwork because I really had no idea what I was doing, off and count to one hundred before he’d even talk to but Murphy was patient and good-humored and slowly me.”25 23 I began to learn the trade.”

Cockrum wasn’t unprepared for the day when his big break would come along. “I actually had done three 26

sample pages of Legion stuff,” he recalled in 2002. “...three pages was all there ever was. I was simply doing samples in hopes of landing a job — any job. I had also done three pages of a Captain Marvel Jr. story, two pages of a Haunted Tank story, and a whole chapter of an Adam Strange story. I still have the Cap. Jr. and Haunted Tank pages; I sold the Legion pages some time ago, and I have no idea whatever became of the Adam Strange stuff.”26 Despite his enthusiasm and a lack of viable options, it wasn’t a given that Boltinoff would entrust the feature to the eager young artist. “Boltinoff was a pretty good editor in all ways, save for the discovery of Fresh Talent,” writer Mark Evanier wrote in 2004. “He went through the motions of looking at and critiquing submissions, and he never actually said, ‘Sorry, I never hire a kid when there’s a veteran around who needs work.’ Still, that’s how it worked out. Murray was simply more comfortable dealing with experienced writers and artists, and he also felt the company had a moral obligation to keep the old-timers employed before giving work to new-timers. This is not an ignoble philosophy, but he may have taken it a step too far.”27 “As I was a rank newcomer, Murray wasn’t entirely convinced I was up to the job,” Cockrum recalled.28 He later told Glen Cadigan, “I got it on the premise that since I worked for Murphy, he would oversee it and make sure that I didn’t do A sample page drawn by Cockrum as an aspiring artist which helped him land any crummy work. So Murphy was kinda the “Legion” assignment. Legion of Super-Heroes ™ and © DC Comics. like quality control for the strip.”29 In 2002, Cockrum recalled, “When I landed the In 2006, Anderson remembered, “On ‘The Legion ‘Legion’ assignment, I ran around like an idiot gushof Super-Heroes,’ some of the pages, he laid them out, ing to all my friends about getting a superhero strip [and] very roughly indicated where the figures should and some of them — Bernie Wrightson, for instance go, and the action they should be taking and so forth, — took a sort of ‘Yeah? So?’ attitude, superheroes not but not actually articulating them to the point where being Bernie’s area of interest. Looking back, I’m a little he could ink them. And we’d go over the work, the embarrassed for myself.”30 layouts like that, and I would make suggestions. Then That same year, the artist also remembered, “The maybe he’d go ahead and tighten them up and I’d tell ‘Legion’ was my very first series assignment. I was him, ‘Well, let’s fix this, and let’s fix that,’ and so forth, young and enthusiastic and I put as much of myself but that’s about the extent of it. In other words, the into the strip as I possibly could. I loved creating editor expected me to turn in my usual job. He wasn’t worlds with rich detail, I loved drawing exotic people, expecting me to experiment and come in with newer hardware and spaceships, and I had a ball with the and different things.”

‘Legion.’”31 Earlier, he had told Jay McKiernan, “I saw 27

the ‘Legion’ as a chance to show off what I could do, he said, ‘You’re on your own!’ There was a lot of Snowand have a hell of a lot of fun doing it. I was heavily Pake on that art from correcting mistakes, but I got into science-fiction, and of course, superheroes. The through it. It looked pretty slick and people said that it ‘Legion’ was the perfect strip for me.”32 wasn’t bad, so after that it was my book.”36 The response of Legion readers to the change was Due to the Legion’s irregular schedule, “...it took a favorable. “Dave is, to be sure, an excellent artist,” wrote while to start building a volume of work and get some Jay Zilber in The Legion Outpost. “[He] is incredibly feedback from the fans,” Cockrum wrote. “I think adept at drawing futuristic scenery, machines, outer those early strips were probably regarded as compespace, and special effects, such as hypno-flashers in tent but not very exciting. The best thing I had going action.”33 for me in those days was an enthuA future collaborator of Cocksiasm for the job, and science-fictirum’s was also impressed with the ony design sense that started early series’ facelift. “He took the Legion and thoroughly permeated the strip to a whole new level of design, with by the time I left. It’s evident in the a flair and excitement that I hadn’t costuming, the sculpted consoles, seen in a futurist series since the the weird machinery, and the Star work of Russ Manning,” wrote Chris Trek-influenced spaceships, includClaremont in 1995. “The costumes ing the big Legion cruisers, which I looked less like uniforms and more loved to draw.”37 Out of all of the changes which the like expressions of the nature of the artist brought to the series, he is best characters, and the characters themremembered today for his upgradselves were presented with far more ing of the Legion’s costumes. “Let’s individual flair and distinction. The face it: the guys’ costumes were all scope of the stories expanded into a bad imitations of Superboy’s cosgalaxy that increasingly looked like a tume, except for Matter-Eater Lad’s, ferociously interesting place to visit. which was like out of a comic opera There was imagination in the conor something,” he said in 2002. “The cepts and a growing power and skill fact is, I kind of liked Matter-Eater in execution that couldn’t help but Lad’s. So, yeah, I wanted to do somestrike a responsive chord in the audithing with them. Make them more ence. In a word, he made the Legion interesting. I also wanted to change ‘cool.’ As a reader, I loved it.”34 One point of confusion regarding the names of some of them; get rid the early work of Cockrum on the of the ‘Lads’ and ‘Boys’ and that stuff, strip is centered around the credits. and no chance on that.”38 Cockrum’s enthusiasm for the “Oddly enough, Murray Boltinoff series was tempered by his editor’s had listed Murphy first in the credits, reticence to change the feature subbecause he feared Murphy might take stantially. “Murray approved every offense at being listed second to such costume I presented him,” the artist a young upstart,” Cockrum wrote in Legion color guide art, from the wrote in 2003. “What he did do, how2000. “Murphy was too much a pro- collection of Steven Weill. ever, was tell me to stop introducing fessional and too much a gentleman Matter-Eater Lad ™ and © DC Comics. new ones because he felt that too much tampering with to have been that petty. Consequently, to this day there the strip would jinx it. I still had several others I wanted are people who believe that Murphy penciled that first 35 to introduce, including Lightning Lad’s — which was story and I inked it.” With subsequent installments of “The Legion of Super-Heroes,” the credits simply read, my favorite male costume — so I snuck around him “Art by Dave Cockrum and Murphy Anderson,” until by drawing in the new costumes and seeing that the Anderson left the series. colorist had the proper color reference. If he noticed, “By the fourth ‘Legion’ strip I did, Murphy was he never mentioned it.”39 In The Legion Outpost #3, Cockrum wrote, “I don’t embroiled in ‘John Carter’ and Superman, and he just want you to think these are changes just for the sake of couldn’t help anymore,” Cockrum recalled in 1999. “So 28

change; I really believe they’ll enhance the strip. Not that to Mark Hanerfeld, and he said, ‘Wildfirf? What’s all the Legionnaires will get new costumes, though Wildfirf?’ I said, ‘What?!’ I grabbed it and looked at it, probably most of them will. I’ve decided it’s best not to and sure enough, W-I-L-D-F-I-R-F. I changed it real change a costume until a particular character is a main fast. I’ve always wondered how far it would’ve gone if character in a story (I didn’t adhere to that in the first he hadn’t spotted it.”42 Two other long-standing Legion characters designed story, ‘War Between the Nights and the Days,’ [Superby Cockrum during this period were Infectious Lass boy #193, Feb. 1973] but will from now on), to avoid and Porcupine Pete of the Legion of Substitute Heroes. confusion. As you can see, it could take as much as a Although both owed their names to suggestions mailed year to complete the changeover. By that time I’ll be in by readers, it was Cockrum who created their costarred and feathered thrice-over, no doubt.”40 Cockrum didn’t limit his creativity to existing chartumes. In addition, he also designed the villains Tyr acters, either. “You’ll also get a peek at a ‘new’ Legion(#197), Orion the Hunter (#199), and the Molecular naire in an up-and-coming story, ‘The One-Shot Hero,’ Master (#201) during his time on the series.

[Superboy #195, June 1973],” he told the Outpost in The artist also saw the Legion as an opportunity to 1972. “The reason for the quotes around ‘new’ is that introduce a character he had been carrying around with he’ll have to be voted in posthumously, darn it. When him for years. “It’s common knowledge, of course, that I brought the character in, I called him Starfire and Nightcrawler was a proposed Legionnaire,”43 he wrote online in 2003. “When I was doing ‘The Legion of intended for him to be a permanent addition to the Super-Heroes’ for DC, Legion. The finished I offered him as a proproduct had him called spective Legionnaire, ERG-1 (for Energy an alien coming from Release Generator — a savage, other dimenStarfire has been used sion. But Legion editor on two other DC charMurray Boltinoff was acters), and apparently so conservative that he killed him off in the was afraid Nightcrawler end. I’m demanding would offend the reada rematch. Cary Bates ers.”44 He had earlier and I have figured out elaborated, “His name how to bring him back; was Balshazaar. He was the problem is convincfrom an alien dimening Murray Boltinoff. If sion whose denizens he returns, it’ll be with a spawned the legends of better name, like Thundemons and vampires derbolt, Spitfire, Nova, and such. Although or some other equally he was working with destructive-sounding the Legion, he wasn’t a name (you’ll have to very nice guy... He had read the story to find a nasty sense of humor, out why).”41 While the character and found pain funny, did make his reappearas long as it wasn’t his.”45 In fact, Nightcrawler ance in the final panel of was planned by CockSuperboy #200, it wasn’t rum to be part of a until issue #202 that group of adventur“Wildfire” was born. ers called the Outsid“I had him writing his ers, which he hoped name backwards in fire to have appear in the on that splash page,” “Legion” series. “I had Cockrum recalled. “I Wildfire almost misspells his name in SLSH #202, from the the name ‘Outsiders’ showed the pencils of collection of Miki Annamanthadoo. Legion of Super-Heroes ™ & © DC Comics.

29

30

(previous page) Cockrum’s original designs for Legion heroes and villains, plus his Legion letterhead from the era.

Legion of Super-Heroes ™ and © DC Comics.

(this page) The original “Starfire” designs and bio, plus color guide samples of Princess Projectra and Saturn Girl showing front and rear views. Note the coloring error on Saturn Girl which led to a permanent change. Thanks to Steven Weill for the latter.

Legion of Super-Heroes ™ and © DC Comics

31

A pre-X-Men Nightcrawler, with and without the Outsiders.

Nightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. Reflecto ™ and © DC Comics. Typhoon, Trio, Quetzal, Power Boy ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

long before DC used it,” he recalled in 2003. “[They were] meant to be a group of supporting characters, and included Reflecto and Power Boy, both of whom were to become Legionnaires at some point.”46 Also included in the group were Trio, Typhoon, and Quetzal, characters Cockrum created himself. In 2002, he elaborated, “I saw them as a supporting group more than anything else. Either irritants to the Legion, or people who wanted to help the Legion, or needed to help the Legion, or something. But I never had specific plans on any of them.”47 Similar to the Outsiders, Cockrum also designed a second group of characters to be introduced in the “Legion” series, although for a different purpose. “I’m also working on a new group of supervillains, with five or six members,” he wrote in 1972. “They’ll be led by a delightful lady named either Belladonna or Foxglove (both are poisonous flowers). I haven’t decided yet whether the lady in question is a vampire, but she certainly looks like one. A couple of her cohorts are named Sidewinder and Manta; I haven’t worked out the rest yet. The name of the group is still under consideration, but I’m leaning in the direction of Devastators or Annihilators.”48 In 2002, he said about the group, “I never really had a chance to think about them. It was pie in the sky.

32

I showed them to Murray and Cary, and they weren’t willing to take the whole group. They only just took the one character [Tyr], and that was a disappointment.

But I think it would have gotten real interesting, especially the brother-sister dynamic between Wolverine and Belladonna.”49 In 2002, he wrote, “And before anybody asks, my Wolverine predates Marvel’s by nearly a year.”50 He later elaborated, “Manta was sort of a humanoid manta with a biological jet engine. He could fly. And that would have been interesting to work with. Sidewinder was a reptile, so it was a real mixed group. I think it would’ve been fun to work with, but I didn’t have any real plans worked out yet.”51 Between the Outsiders and the Devastators/Annihilators, only two of the characters originated by Cockrum ever saw publication in a comic book: the villain Tyr, and an updated version of Nightcrawler. The characters Quetzal and Typhoon later loaned elements to his work on X-Men, but they were never printed in a comic book story themselves. As late as 2003, the artist had not given up on using the characters in a potential Elseworlds story. “If I get to do one, that’s what I want to do. Aside from trying to borrow Nightcrawler. If I couldn’t [do that], I would come up with a character similar to Nightcrawler.”52

Unfortunately for the artist, his plans were defeated by DC editorial.

“I emailed the Legion editor [Stephen Wacker]... and asked him about it, and he said, ‘Sorry, we’re not doing many Elseworlds stories anymore, and I’m full up on other stuff.’ Meanwhile, I’ve got two or three threads on the [Legion message] boards of fans who are demanding that I be returned to the Legion.”53 Regarding the potential mini-series, Cockrum elaborated, “I wanted to use the other Legionnaires that didn’t make it in [Quetzal, Typhoon, and Trio], and pit them against the [Devastators]. I think that would’ve been a real hoot.”54 When a member of the Legion World message board commented, “I would love to see this book!”55 the artist’s answer was succinct: “Me, too.” 56

III. Side Projects While working on “The Legion of Super-Heroes” for DC, Cockrum also provided illustrations for the science fiction magazines Amazing Stories and Fantastic Stories, published by Ultimate Publishing. According to editor Ted White, “I would have artists that I knew well enough that I could assign a story to them and I wouldn’t see the artwork until it was actually published in the magazine, ’cause they’d turn it directly into the publisher. But they were consistent enough and good enough that I didn’t have to worry The team called Devastators/Annihilators/Strangers, from the collection of Ted about that, and Dave was in that Latner. All characters ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum, except Tyr ™ and © DC Comics. group.”

Cockrum also first got involved with designing He liked my work and we started talking, and after a model kits during this period, notably for Aurora while he asked if I would be interested in designing Plastics. In a 1995 interview with Anthony Taylor, model kits. I was, as I had built models all my life. He he remembered, “A friend of mine [Mark Hanerfeld] invited me to come out to Long Island and meet with was a good friend of Andy Yanchus who was a project the people at Aurora.”57 manager at Aurora. The three of us all turned up at one From there, Cockrum was quick to impress the of Phil Seuling’s big comic cons in New York in 1972 company brass. “They had just decided to add a Tyranwhen I was penciling ‘The Legion of Super-Heroes’ nosaurus Rex to their ‘Prehistoric Scenes,’ so I went for DC. Andy had a table selling old Aurora kits (for home and did a three-view drawing of a T-Rex. They scandalously low prices) and my friend introduced us. looked at it; they bought it.”58 33

(clockwise) Cockrum’s Creature from the Black Lagoon model design, the Kar-a-a-ate Men toy designed by the artist, and half of the original Starjammers.

Creature ™ and © Universal City Studios, LLC. Kar-a-a-ate Men ™ and © American Plastic Equipment, Inc. Bloodstar, Phaedra ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

The artist also designed Rodan, Ghidrah, the Frankenstein Monster, and (a personal favorite of Cockrum’s) the Creature from the Black Lagoon for Aurora, but, according to Yanchus, “Unfortunately, too many of the new kits Dave designed never got produced. Gort, the Metaluna Mutant… the Phantom of the Opera, the Mummy, King Kong, Godzilla, and a Stegosaurus were some of a painfully long list of cancelled projects — killed by a management that decided to invest more money into new toys and games and reduce model kits to reissues.”59 One toy project that was designed by Cockrum and made by Aurora was Kar-a-a-ate Men, a martial arts version of Rock ’Em, Sock ’Em Robots. It did see production, and was even featured in an episode of All in the Family.

In 1972, while “The Legion of Super-Heroes” was still a backup series in Superboy, Cockrum inked three consecutive issues of Avengers, beginning with #106 (December 1972). In 2003, about the run, he remembered, “[They] had an old George Tuska ‘Captain 34

America’ segment that they just spliced in.”60 It was his first published work at Marvel.

Also in 1972, Cockrum first conceived of a group of characters that would not debut until 1977 in the pages of X-Men. As originally intended, the Starjammers consisted of Bloodstar, Phaedra, Ch’od, and Raza, and were a resistance group which had formed to combat the evil Dark Empire. He wrote in his original plans for the team, “Phaedra is a warrior princess of the planetary republic of Shandilarr; she is also a Genjaak Sorceress and member of the Bright Council of Llangobar. Driven from her homeworld when it was destroyed by the Dark Empire, Phaedra, with her

chief warlord Bloodstar, formed a resistance group to combat the Dark Empire. They called themselves the Starjammers...”. 61 About the group, he wrote in 1994, “When I finally got to make use of the Jammers at Marvel Comics I dropped Phaedra in favor of Hepzibah and Bloodstar for Corsair, who we turned into the father of Cyclops, leader of the X-Men.”62 In 2002, he elaborated, “Originally Corsair was to be named Bloodstar, and he had nothing at all to do with Scott and Alex, or any others of the X-Men.”63 In addition to the name change, Bloodstar’s costume was slightly altered, and the character itself was redesigned to make it look more like Errol Flynn. Phaedra was replaced by Hepzibah because she “...was a much more interesting visual,”64 and “Ch’od and Raza, who had been part of my original group, made it all the way into the final version.”65 In 1981, the artist lamented, “I wish I had retained the characters until later and maybe maintained some ownership on them.”66 As for the Dark Empire itself, “The enemy became the Shi’ar empire.”67 In 1973, Cockrum illustrated his first full art assignment for Marvel, a “Gulliver Jones” story which was

published in Monsters Unleashed #4 (Feb. 1974). He was introduced to the Marvel readers in a text feature in the magazine as “...a name that may not be familiar to you. We’ll give you a hint: he draws a series over at our Distinguished Competition in which you can’t tell the 25-plus heroes apart without a scorecard, especially while Dave’s in the process of redesigning all the characters.” It was also stated on the page that, “Dave figures [Gulliver Jones is] the closest thing to John Carter that he’ll ever get to draw.”

In 2003, the artist told interviewer Jim Amash about the assignment, “I remember John Romita making me fix a lot of stuff on that story. I wasn’t acclimated with the Marvel style yet... you know, all their characters had these big bodies and little heads, and I was drawing figures with natural proportions.”68 Also in 1973, the artist was able to fulfill a lifelong dream and illustrate an adventure of Captain Marvel, Jr. “When Captain Marvel first appeared at National, I thought, ‘Gee, I’d like to draw Captain Marvel!’” he told Martin Greim in Comic Crusader #15. “But then I thought about it and realized that only C.C. Beck should draw that. After a little more thought, I decided

(left) The other half of the Starjammers, Raza and Ch’od. (above) A Cap Jr. illo for Comic Crusader #15.

Ch’od, Raza, Starjammers ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. Shazam hero ™ and © DC Comics.

35

The wedding scene which led to Cockrum’s departure from DC Comics. Colored by Brian Philbin, from the collection of Steven Weill.

Legion of Super-Heroes ™ and © DC Comics.

Jr. would be the sort of thing I’d be better at. I did three pages of sample material to show Julie Schwartz, in hopes he’d let me draw it. I guess a lot of people asked to do the strip, but none of them cared enough to do any samples; so I got the job.”

About his approach to the feature, he said, “I’d like to make it look as much like Raboy as I can; but not being Raboy, or as polished as he was, it will take quite some time to work up to that grade of art. The Raboy image is what National wants and they’ve given me statted pages of his work for reference, plus I have a few comics with Raboy’s work myself.”69 The feature was supposed to appear “...about every three issues,”70 but Cockrum only had the opportunity to illustrate a single episode before he had a falling out with DC over the original artwork to the wedding scene between Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel in Superboy #200. Years later, he recalled, “At the time, DC was not giving art back. Marvel was. I asked for the wedding scene back. I never asked for any of the rest of it back, just the wedding scene. When I came in — I don’t know how much truth there is to this — Murray Boltinoff said, ‘I was gonna give it to you. I had it laying on my desk, and Carmine [Infantino] came in and said, ‘What’s this?’ and I told him, and he said, 36

‘You can’t give him that back.’ And that was the end of it. I said, ‘If I can’t have it back, I’m quitting.’ And that’s the way it went.”71 In 2002, he confessed, “I wish I hadn’t left it when I did. A dispute with editorial caused me to give it up. It’s possible I might still be on it today, in which case there would be no X-Men — at least, not As We Know It.”72 In 1974, news of Cockrum’s departure from the series was not immediate. In a letter to The Legion Outpost, the artist wrote, “A word about my current status.

Yes, it’s true that I’ve quit National. There were a lot of factors involved, and I regret having to drop the Legion — which I’m very fond of — but I think the switch will turn out for the best. At Marvel I’m doing The Avengers and ‘Manphibian’. I see the confused look on your face — well, it’s like this. I came up with Manphibian independently of my National work; I showed it to Cary and more-or-less jokingly said something about putting it into the Legion. Without checking with me, Cary wrote up a Manphibian-Legion script; Murray loved it. Meanwhile, I was busy developing a Manphibian series idea and presenting it to Marvel. When I got the script I immediately changed the name throughout to ‘Devil-Fish’ and Murray ok’d it — so in the Legion #202 the story title is ‘Wraith of the Devil-Fish.’ Visuals

were changed, too, of course; if there is any similarity of appearance it’s because both creatures owe their existence to the Creature from the Black Lagoon.”73 In 2002, about the incident, he remembered, “I had tried selling Manphibian at both companies, and I had sold it to Marvel, finally. Marv Wolfman and I were working on a ‘Manphibian’ strip, so I was really kind of horrified to get my next Legion plot and discover that Manphibian was in that, too. I scrambled over to DC and got with Cary and told him, ‘Listen, you can’t use that! I just sold it to Marvel!’ So we changed the name and I changed the visual, and Devil-Fish made out better. I mean, he got a sequel, which Manphibian never did.”74 In reality, the Manphibian returned in 2006 as part of an all-monster Howling Commandoes led by Nick Fury and written by Keith Giffen.

Unfortunately for the character, Marvel cancelled all of its black-&-white monster magazines before the story could see print. It was eventually published as part of a purge of inventory material in The Legion of Monsters #1 (Sept. 1975) before that title was also cancelled after its only issue. In 2002, the artist reflected, “I saw it as a series. We set it up as a series, but nobody showed any interest in doing any more of it, and I think maybe that even included me.”75 The biggest causality of Cockrum’s departure from DC, as seen from the artist’s point of view, was the loss of the “Captain Marvel, Jr.” assignment. In 1999, he told Jon B. Cooke, “...I openly agitated to do Captain Marvel, Jr. because I loved [Mac] Raboy’s art... Had I stayed [at DC], I think that I would have been the regular artist for Junior... I then went over to Marvel and got some work, and asked Julie [Schwartz] and Roy Thomas, ‘Do you guys mind if I keep doing Captain Marvel, Jr.? Because I really tried hard to get that.’ Both of them said fine, but Carmine said, ‘No, he can’t.’ So I made a clean cut with DC.”76 Before leaving his regular job on The Legion of Super-Heroes, Cockrum had begun a short stint as inker on The Avengers. “At Marvel, they just wanted me to ink but I wanted to pencil. I clamored about it and finally they just let me go ahead and pencil.”77 The lobbying on the part of the artist led to the assignment of two Giant-Size issues of The Avengers (#2–3) as its penciler. About his time on the series, he said in 2002, “I was... fortunate enough to ink a John Buscema job between two issues of my Legion run, and the change in my art was dramatic, to say the least. John Buscema was a master, and I began to see a little of how he worked.”78 In 2003, Cockrum told Jim Amash, “I penciled two issues of Giant-Size Avengers and inked six issues of

the regular Avengers comic, in groups of three. I think there were five pencilers on those six issues... [George Tuska,] Don Heck, Rich Buckler, Bob Brown, and [John Buscema]... I might as well have been classified as penciler, because they told me to ‘make them all look alike.’ In order to make George Tuska’s work look like the others, I had to do a lot of re-penciling. Everything was there; it was just that it was straightforward Tuska

Avengers art by Cockrum, originally published in FOOM magazine, thanks to Paty Cockrum and Manny Maris.

The Avengers, Captain America, Mantis, The Swordsman, and Vision ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

37

art, and they wanted a uniform look to that issue. Basically, I used Dick Giordano’s style over Neal Adams to make the artists all look alike.”79 About the “Celestial Madonna,” storyline itself, which introduced the character of Mantis, the artist wrote online, “I never liked Mantis. Most of the Marvel staff at the time hated Mantis’s guts. I think it was mostly that ‘this one’ crap. The one thing I did like about her was the ‘skirt’ of her costume. In the GiantSize Avengers I drew her leaping about, and occasionally showed just a glimpse of her ass, which, by the bye, is not in [Hawkgirl’s] class. Mantis, however, didn’t wear underwear.”80 1974 was also the year when Cockrum merged two of

his longtime loves: model kits and comic books. “Some friends and I had formed a company called Graphic Features, and we were producing all the art for the [Aurora] Comic Scenes kits,” he told Anthony Taylor in 1995. “[It] turned out to be all re-issues, although I had concepted several new figures. I did a Phantom kit... and Dick Giordano designed a Flash Gordon and Ming kit... I did the box art for the Superboy model, and instructions for five or six of the kits. In a way, I was involved in all of the kits.”81 At the 2007 Dave Cockrum Tribute Panel held at that year’s New York Comic Con, then DC Comics President and Publisher Paul Levitz said, “Some of you may remember that in the ’70s, Aurora reissued the model kits of classical superheroes, with some beautiful, special comics in them, and that’s one project that Dave enjoyed working on very much. He was sort of serving as Art Director. I remember him being very fond of the whole world of model making.”

Marv Wolfman, one of Cockrum’s partners in the venture, wrote in 2004, “When Len Wein, the late Mark Hanerfeld, and I began a company to produce custom comics for companies, we called in Dave to be our designer. Our first and major client was Aurora Models. We designed and produced comics for their superhero kits, working on Superman, Batman, Tarzan and others.”82 Cockrum also recalled, “We hired Dick Giordano, Neal Adams, Gil Kane, and others to illustrate the boxes and instructions. Unfortunately, we couldn’t agree on projects and the company folded.”83 Before the demise of the venture, a lasting impression was made upon at least one model recipient. “I remember a Christmas present that he gave me one year,” Ivan Cockrum told Glen Cadigan in 2007. “I would’ve been five or six, I suppose. He used to design model kits for the Aurora model company, and he did a Superboy kit, and for Christmas one year he gave me one that he had built already and painted... [He] just left [it] unwrapped under the Christmas tree. I still think of that fondly.”

Lord Dinosaur, the man with the T-Rex brain! A failed attempt to produce an original character for the Aurora model line. Lord Dinosaur ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum

38

Endnotes 1 Paul Allen, “One of the Most Celebrated Comicbook Artists of our Time,”

Alter Ego, Vol. 3, #163 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2018), pg. 36.

2 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum,” Comic Book Artist Collection Vol.

2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg. 158.

3 Clifford Meth, “Remembering Julius Schwartz,” Past Masters (www.

silverbulletcomicbooks.com, Feb. 10, 2004).

4 Meth, op. cit.

5 Glen Cadigan, “Dave Cockrum,” The Legion Companion (TwoMorrows Pub-

lishing, 2003), pg. 78.

6 Allen, op. cit, pg. 31.

7 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 158.

8 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 77–78.

9 Dave Cockrum, “Question for Dave re: the Comics Code,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 27, 2002), pg. 1.

10 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 77–78.

11 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 158.

12 Jay McKiernan, “Dave Cockrum Interview,” (http://x-worldcomics.com/x/

column/cockrum.html, 2001).

13 Dave Cockrum, (www.comicsfun.com/comicart/cockrum/

CockrumShattuck).

14 Dark Bamf, “Favorite Comic Book Artist???” Non-NC Comics & ComicRelated Stuff (www.NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 5, 2005), pg. 1.

15 McKiernan, op. cit..

16 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave Cockrum,” The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents Companion (Two-

Morrows Publishing, 2005), pg. 126.

17 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

18 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

19 Dave Cockrum, “Dave’s Question Thread,” Classically Cockrum (www.

comiXfan.com, Aug. 14, 2002), pg. 1.

20 Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum,” op. cit. (TwoMorrows Publishing,

2002), pg. 158.

21 Cooke, “Dave Cockrum,” op. cit. (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2005), pg. 126.

22 Dave Cockrum, “Artistic Development?” The Workshop (www.

comiXfan.com, June 25, 2002), pg. 1.

23 Dave Cockrum, “Introduction,” Legion of Super-Heroes Archives, Vol. 10 (DC

Comics, 2000), pg. 5.

24 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 5.

25 ibid, pg. 5.

26 Dave Cockrum, “Hello Dave,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July

17, 2002), pg. 1.

A family portrait and holiday card by Cockrum.

Thanks to Andrea Kline. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

39

27 Mark Evanier, “Who Discovered Dave, Anyway?” The Uncanny Dave

Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 27.

28 Cockrum, “Introduction,” op. cit., pg. 5.

29 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 69.

30 Cockrum, “Hello Dave,” op. cit., pg. 1.

31 Dave Cockrum, “LSH,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July

27, 2002), pg. 1.

32 McKiernan, op. cit.

33 Jay Zilber, “Update…” The Legion Outpost #4 (Harry C. Broertjes,

Summer 1974), pg. 19, 21.

34 Chris Claremont, “Dave Cockrum: An Appreciation,” Dave Cockrum

Treasury (Aardwolf Publishing, 1996), pg. 1.

35 Cockrum, “Introduction,” op. cit., pg. 5.

36 Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum,” op. cit., pg. 159.

37 Cockrum, “Introduction,” op. cit., pg. 5–6.

38 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 70.

39 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to Legion,”

DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, Jan. 13, 2003), pg. 7.

40 Dave Cockrum, “Ack! How Dare You Tamper with the Legion?” The

Legion Outpost #3 (The Legion of Super-Heroes Fan Club, Jan.–Feb.1973), pg. 8.

41 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 8.

42 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 71.

43 Dark Bamf, “Hey Dark Bamf — I Think You’ll Like X-Men 2,” DCMB:

The Legion (www.dccomics.com, May 7, 2003), pg. 1.

44 Dark Bamf, “Assistance Needed with an Old Dave Picture,” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, May 4, 2006), pg. 1.

45 Dark Bamf, “(Classic Legion) What If… Nightcrawler…” DCMB: The

Legion (www.dccomics.com, Apr. 20, 2003), pg. 1.

46 Dark Bamf, “The Outsiders 30th Century Style!” Visionaries of Tomor-

row (www.legionworld.net, Oct. 7, 2003), pg. 1.

47 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 73.

48 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 8.

49 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 72.

50 Cockrum, “Hello Dave,” op. cit., pg. 1.

51 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 72.

(top tier) Illustations for James Tiptree, Jr.’s “The Man Who Walked Home” and “On the Last Afternoon”, both in Amazing Science Fiction. (bottom tier) Illustrations for Juanita Coulson’s “Wizard of Death” in Fantastic Stories, and G.R.R. “Game of Thrones” Martin’s “Night Shift” in Amazing Science Fiction.

Courtesy of David Edward Martin. © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

40

52 ibid, pg. 72.

53 ibid, pg. 75.

54 ibid, pg. 72.

55 Icefire, “The Outsiders 30th Century Style!” Visionaries of Tomorrow

(www.legionworld.net, Oct. 7, 2003), pg. 1.

56 Dark Bamf, op. cit., Oct. 8, 2003, pg. 1.

57 Anthony Taylor, “Building a Better Monster: Dave Cockrum’s Model Kit Designs,” Comic Book Resources (www. comicbookresources.com, Jan. 15, 2007).

58 Taylor, op. cit.

59 Andy Yanchus, “Dave Cockrum — A Model Artist,” Alter Ego,

Vol. 3, #163 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2018), pg. 12.

60 Jim Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a Lot!” Alter

Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003), pg. 34.

61 Dave Cockrum, “Phaedra of Shandilarr,” Statement of Authentic-

ity (Action Hobbies, 1994).

62 Cockrum, op. cit.

63 Dark Bamf, “LSH vs. Imperial Guard,” DCMB: The Legion (www.

dccomics.com, Dec. 28, 2002), pg. 3.

64 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 3.

65 Cockrum, op. cit..

66 Peter Sanderson, “Interview with Dave Cockrum,” The X-Men Companion (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., 1982), pg. 79.

67 Cockrum, op. cit.

68 Amash, op. cit., pg. 34.

69 Martin Griem, “Capt. Marvel Jr. Flies Again!”, Comic Crusader

#15 (Martin Griem, 1973), pg. 17.

70 Griem, op. cit., pg. 17.

71 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 74–75.

72 Dave Cockrum, “LSH,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.

com, July 27, 2002), pg. 1.

73 Dave Cockrum, “Correspondence…” The Legion Outpost #6

(Harry C. Broertjes, Winter, 1974), pg. 27.

74 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 71.

75 ibid, pg. 71.

76 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 159.

77 ibid, pg. 158.

78 Dave Cockrum, “Artistic Development?” op. cit., pg. 1.

79 Amash, op. cit., pg. 34.

80 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to Legion,”

op. cit., Jan. 15, 2003, pg. 7.

81 Taylor, op. cit.

82 Marv Wolfman, “My Buddy Dave,” The Uncanny Dave Cockrum…

A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 42.

83 Taylor, op. cit.

(top) A self-rejected “Gullivar Jones” page. Thanks to Ted Latner. (above) Unused Aurora model art, via Heritage.

This Island Earth © Universal City Studios, LLC.

41

The cover to a paperback reprinting of Giant-Size X-Men #1, from the collection of David Mandel.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

42

Chapter 3: 1974–1977

I

I. Enter The X-Men

n 1974, an event occurred at the offices of Marvel prise, surprise — when he wasn’t doing anything and Comics in New York City that proved to have a we started to kick around the idea of the X-Men, and long-lasting impact on both the career of Dave he had said that he had always wanted to start a new Cockrum and the industry as a whole. It was during group and sort of treat them like mutant Blackhawks, a meeting attended by Marvel Editor-in-Chief Roy an international group.” Cockrum continued, “I told Thomas, Publisher Stan Lee, and President Al Landau, Roy I’d be interested in doing something like that, and who represented Cadence Industries, the then-owner so he said, ‘All right, I’ll consider you.’ Then he couldn’t of the company, that the idea to bring back the team write it himself, so he first asked Mike Friedrich.”4 In 2003, Friedrich told Alter Ego magazine, “What I of mutant superheroes known as the X-Men began. recall most clearly is one lunch that was held near the According to Thomas, “...Landau mentioned that it Marvel offices with... Roy Thomas, would be a good idea to have an freelance artist Dave Cockrum, and international team of some sort. You myself... What I remember now is see, he had his own company called that Roy had conveyed to me the Trans World, which at the time was idea of an international group of reselling Marvel’s work overseas by characters... and I remember him the page. And he knew that if we... saying, as shorthand, ‘kinda like the had big markets in three or four Blackhawks,’ which, of course, was countries and we had a team that a similar international group, then had three or four characters in it, one out of print.”5 from each country, we’d have a terAccording to Thomas, “I don’t rific hit on our hands overseas. So the think it was acted on right away, new X-Men was actually born to tap although I got a lot of encourageour foreign market.”1 Thomas continued, “[Landau] ment[.]”6 In 1981, Cockrum remembered, mentioned this general, vague idea “[It] was a long time before this got just in passing, without pressing for off the ground, I think actually about it; I countered that I thought it was Cockrum at the 1976 Marvel Con, taken a year, maybe — eight months, ten an excellent idea and I thought we by Sam Maronie. months, or a year. But Roy couldn’t should do it with the X-Men.”2 At that point in the publication’s history, The X-Men devote any attention to it and the whole thing kinda had been converted into a reprint book after having got shelved, but I had drawn up a whole bunch of charbeen cancelled some years before. According to acters.”7 In 1994, Cockrum remembered, “One day, [Roy] Thomas, “...Martin Goodman, the publisher at that walked into the area that I worked in, and he literally time, was on an economy kick. He wanted to bring the told me to go home and come back with some X-Men. book back, but he didn’t want to spend the money [for 3 I was really excited about this, because I liked the team. new material], so he just did reprints for a while.”

From there, Cockrum became involved with the But with the exception of Cyclops, I never considered project. According to the artist, “I was hanging around the original characters [to be] all that strong. So I was Marvel in those days looking for something to do, and happy for the chance to reshape things. I practically one day I had a few minutes alone with Roy — surstarted from scratch.”8 43

Promotional artwork introducing the new X-Men, courtesy of David Mandel. (below) The initial instigators who worked with Cockrum on the revival. (top to bottom) Roy Thomas, Mike Friedrich, and Len Wein, all circa 1975, scanned by Manny Maris.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

According to Friedrich, “I’m pretty sure Roy did not get approval to go forward right away, which he communicated to me during my occasional follow-ups. During this period, I moved back to my native California, which meant I wasn’t talking to Roy as often[.]”9 Cockrum recalled, “Time passed and Roy decided that now was the time to do something with this. He approached me again.

Mike Friedrich was no longer available, so Roy asked Len [Wein] if he wanted to handle it.”10 Remembered Wein, “At one point, Mike Friedrich was supposed to be the writer, but he’d left Marvel by the time the series was actually greenlighted, and I got the job, though I don’t exactly remember the reasons why. I was glad to take it.”11 In 2004, Wein elaborated, “All these long years later, I no longer really recall how Dave and I came to be assigned to the title, but when it came time to put the team together, we were already well ahead of the game. I knew exactly what sort of mix of powers and personalities I was looking for to create a well-rounded group with an inner dynamic that could generate stories for years to come. And Dave had that blessed sketchbook.”12 The sketchbook to which Wein referred was 44

one of many which Cockrum had used throughout the years with characters of his own creation. In 1999, the artist told Jon B. Cooke, “I had a huge stable of my own characters. It’s a story that Len Wein loves to tell about the creation of the New X-Men; I had this huge sketchbook filled with characters I had come up with. Len keeps remembering that I took the X-Men drawings out of that book but that’s not actually true. I made them up separately, but I did have that book of characters. That’s one of the things I loved to do: invent characters.”13 With the creative team in place, the next step was for the pair to select the individual members of the group. While originally the idea was for the X-Men to consist entirely of new characters, Cockrum and Wein decided to keep Cyclops, the original group’s leader, in order to establish a sense of continuity between the two teams. In 1981, Wein told Peter Sanderson, “Cyclops was the only great character among the old X-Men because of the eyeblasts, and the sense of tragedy about the character. And Dave had this new visor in mind he wanted to use, and I really liked it, and that was almost why we kept him: the new visor, because it looked so good.”14 In 2003, Cockrum told Jim Amash, “I don’t

remember if it was Roy or Len who suggested that I modify his costume. The feeling was, if he’s going to be the leader, that he needed to be more dynamic-looking.

So I redesigned his visor and his boots. You remember the movie, The Day the Earth Stood Still? I loved Gort, the robot character, who wore a visor. It’d open up and you’d see a little light dancing in there. That’s the sort of effect I wanted to use on Cyclops. I gave him a bigger visor so I could achieve that effect.”15 While the exact order in which most of the new X-Men team was chosen is unknown, Cockrum did tell J.R. Riley in 1982, “Cyclops was the first choice, then Wolverine was number two.”16 In 1974, Editor-in-Chief Thomas had decided that due to Marvel’s strong sales in Canada, the company should create a Canadian superhero for their Canadian readers. In 1981, he told Peter Sanderson, “...I suggested that since we had a Canadian market and I felt guilty about not having more Canadian characters in the comics, [we] should have a character that I suggested be called the Wolverine because that animal inhabits Canada as well as the northern United States and would be familiar to both.” 17

In 2003, Wein recalled, “Roy suggested the name and wanted a Canadian in that role. He also wanted to see how I’d write a Canadian accent, because I’d been doing Jamaican accents in ‘Brother Voodoo,’ and Roy always said he couldn’t write accents to save his life. So he said, ‘Okay, you’re doing good accents in ‘Brother Voodoo,’ so give Wolverine a Canadian accent.’”18 As the artist of the new X-Men series, Cockrum, “...resented [Wolverine’s] existence for a long time because I had come up with a Wolverine and shown it to Roy before this Wolverine[.]”19 In 2003, the artist recalled online, “Len Wein created Wolvie at Roy’s suggestion. Roy freely admits he had the idea for a Canadian character named Wolverine after seeing my group of proposed Legion villains, the [Devastators], which included a brother and sister team, Wolverine and Belladonna.”20 About the unused character, Cockrum told Peter Sanderson in 1981, “He was a vulpine type; animalistic, bestial, feral, whom I called Wolverine... he didn’t have claws. But he had fangs and he was a nasty son of a bitch. He had almost the same haircut that Wolverine has now.”21 In fact, Wolverine’s haircut also borrowed

A Cyclops/Wolverine sketch courtesy of Heritage Auctions (left), and Cockrum’s design drawings for an unproduced model kit of Gort from The Day the Earth Stood Still. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. The Day the Earth Stood Still ™ and © 20th Century Studios.

45

(left to right) Cockrum’s unused Devastators character, Wolverine.

John Romita’s design for Marvel’s Wolverine. Herb Trimpe’s introduction of Wolverine in Hulk #180, which sticks closely to Romita’s design. (below) Romita in 1975.

Scanned by Manny Maris.

Wolverine ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

from that of the Legionnaire Timber Wolf, whom Cockrum had overhauled in 1973. About Marvel’s Wolverine, he added, “I was kind of miffed about the whole thing, but it seemed kind of pointless to carry it on.”22 In 2004’s The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute, Thomas wrote about the matter, “I accept the fact that he probably once showed me a design for a character called Wolverine — and he takes my word for it that I have no conscious memory of that, and that in any event it was a virtual toss-up in 1974 as to whether that new Canadian guy who was going to battle the Hulk would be called Wolverine or Badger.”23 As originally conceived, Wolverine was a very different character from what eventually appeared in the pages of The X-Men. Since the original team had all been teenagers, and since Wein knew that an X-Men revival was in the works, it was his intention that the character be both a mutant and a teenager when it debuted in the Hulk #180–182 (Oct.– Dec. 1974). In 2003, he told Jim Amash, “Since he had to be a Canadian and there were discussions about bringing back the X-Men, I made him a mutant so he’d fit in with the new group. I figured whoever wound up writing the new X-Men book would have a new Canadian character if they wanted to use him. I certainly didn’t realize it’d be me writing the book.”24 From there, the character was designed by senior Marvel artist, John Romita, with Wein, “...looking over 46

his shoulder. John and I were creating costumes about once a week, in his office. I can’t remember all the characters we designed that way.”25 While it was Romita who designed Wolverine’s costume, it wasn’t until after Cockrum became the character’s regular artist that the Canadian unmasked for the first time. In 2003, Cockrum wrote online, “I was... the first one to take Wolvie’s mask off and give him his face and trademark haircut.”26 About the hero’s look, which was unveiled in The X-Men after Wein had left the series, the author told Sanderson in 1986, “...with those sideburns and the cigar, I went, ‘You just put thirty years on that guy!’”27 Another manner in which the character changed from conception to execution centered upon his trademark claws. “The adamantium claws were in the gloves when I first created the character,” Wein told Sanderson in 1986. “And the claws were retractable. They were telescoping, and they would fit back in the casing in the gloves. When they stick out, because it’s comic books, the sections for the claws neatly fit together so you can’t see the little seams in the claws.”28 According to Chris Claremont, Wein’s successor on The X-Men, “Dave and I talked about it.

Dave said Len thought the claws were in the gloves, and he and I both agreed, why? If they’re in the gloves, then anybody could wear the gloves.”29 In June 2000, at a convention in White Plains, NY, Cockrum recalled, “[Up] until... [X-Men] #98[,] every-

(left to right) Wolverine’s first time unmasked, by Cockrum. Gil Kane elongated the mask. Chris Claremont requested the urban cowboy attire. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

body assumed the claws were in the gloves. But all of a rum also tinkered with Wolverine’s mask itself. “Boy, did Dave hate that original mask,” Len Wein wrote in sudden, he pops the claws out of his hands and slashes free. And everybody’s going... ‘What the —?’ We were 2004.34 “Actually, Gil Kane drew him first with the ‘Batman-ish’ mask,” the artist wrote online in 2003. “We all just looking for something to startle people. And I figliked it, and kept it.”35 Unfortunately for Cockrum, the ured, ‘God, that has to hurt.’”30 The decision to make the claws a part of Wolverchange in costume design meant altering every single ine’s body led to discussions as to the exact nature of appearance of Wolverine in Giant-Size X-Men #1 after his mutant abilities. “We needed something that made it had already been illustrated. “...I had to redraw the him a mutant, something that made him unique,” Clamask throughout the entire issue,” he confessed to remont told Sanderson in 2004. “The claws were obviWizard magazine in 2004.36 In addition to originating Wolverine’s ously artificial, and if the claws were part of facial features, Cockrum was also the first the glove, what made him a mutant? The artist to portray the character in civilian reductium of the equation was what makes clothes, and thus was the original illustrahim a mutant is the healing factor. But if he tor of his “cowboy” look. In 2002, he wrote has a healing factor, what about the claws? online, “[As] for Wolvie’s appearance — Well, let us enable him to survive with the granted, I gave him his features and hairclaws. Dave and I thought, this is cool, we’ll 31 cut, but Chris [Claremont] requested the run with it.”

According to Wein, “What made him a cowboy hat/jeans jacket look. It was totally mutant was that he was very ferocious, very appropriate, but I might not have done it on strong for his size, and very fast.” He told Claremont in 1975. my own.”37 Originally, Cockrum’s dislike for the Sanderson in 1986, “They were the powers character extended beyond its publishing origins. “As of a real wolverine, but they were superhuman powers far as I was concerned, in the early days, Wolverine was in him.”32 Perhaps the strangest aspect of the character was the just a psycho and I didn’t like him very much,” he told origin which Cockrum and Wein considered giving Jim Amash in 2003. “I did a lot with giving him nasty the Canadian in the early days of the X-Men revival. facial expressions, sneering at people and looking feroThe pair toyed with the idea that Wolverine was an cious as much as possible. When we finally took his actual wolverine that had been evolved by the High mask off and gave him a face, I tried to give him a look Evolutionary, but the concept was quickly discarded. of insanity on his face. I don’t know if I succeeded, but In 2000, Cockrum told the audience in White Plains, that was what I was after.”38 The artist went on to say, “It wasn’t until Chris and [John] Byrne worked on him “We were toying with that, yes. Not human, but a that they really gave him some character. I came to like mutated wolverine.”33 The artist’s contributions to the character didn’t him, then.”39 Another member of the X-Men who went through end with his trademark design of his alter ego: Cock47

EVOLUTION: Storm

multiple variations before seeing print was the African weather “goddess,” Storm. Cockrum had originally intended for the character to be a shape-shifter called the Black Cat, who “...could transform into a humanoid cat, a cougar or similar large cat, or a tabby housecat,”40 and who had “...dark hair which was sort of like Wolverine’s, tufted on top with the ear effect.”41 Her real name was Tabetha, but she was nicknamed “Tabey,” and wore a collar around her neck which was adorned with a small bell.

As luck would have it, during the period in which the X-Men revival was put on hold, “...two or three other female ‘cat’ characters popped up...”42 and a change in strategy was necessary. “It seemed kind of stupid to go on and do another cat character what with all the other ones running around, and so we dropped the whole shtick,” Cockrum told Sanderson in 1981.43 Despite the situation, both writer and artist were reluctant to abandon the character altogether. They had already agreed to include Typhoon, from Cock48

rum’s proposed Outsiders team from his “Legion” period, in the X-Men, and another unused character from the same group, Quetzal, had already played a role in the design of the Black Cat. “Storm’s face came from Quetzal,” Cockrum told Jim Amash in 2004. “I modeled Quetzal on my cat Sheba. I wound up using that face on the Black Cat, and so it naturally turned up on Storm.”44 When it came time to determine what the character’s new powers would be, an off-hand comment

by Editor-in-Chief Thomas led to Storm’s creation. “[We] couldn’t figure out what to do with [her],” Cockrum told Sanderson in 1981. “We really liked her, we wanted to use her, and Roy just threw out, ‘Why don’t you make her Typhoon?’ And everybody’s mouths were hanging open.”45 In 1981, Wein recalled, “I had another character in the group, a male called either Tempest or Typhoon... who was going to be a member of the group, and we decided that rather than have all these members, we

Start with the face of Quetzal to get to Black Cat. Change the powers to those of Typhoon, tweak the costume with some elements from Trio, and voilà!

You now have Storm!

Quetzal, Trio, Typhoon ™ and © and Black Cat art © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Storm ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

would simply combine the essential visual of the Black Cat — because the face was essentially the same, with that kind of cat’s eyes — with the powers of Typhoon, and we created Storm.”46 “I ran out of the room and drew her with long white hair and a cape on, and came back in and that was it,” Cockrum remembered. “Everybody said, ‘Yeah! Yeah!’ and her working name was Typhoon for a while.”47 Wein confirmed, “She was called Typhoon originally, and none of us liked it. It didn’t sound feminine enough... and we talked to Roy about it as he was going out the door: ‘Well, she’s a mistress of the storm, she’s got all these powers, what do we call her?’ And he said, ‘Why don’t you simply call her ‘Storm’?’”48 Cockrum recalled the situation differently. When asked about Thomas’ role in the naming of the character, he told Sanderson, “Not the name. He suggested Typhoon should be the black girl rather than the guy.”49 Initially, there was some concern that there might be confusion with another Marvel character with a

similar name. “We all went, ‘Jesus, Johnny Storm...’”

Wein recalled, “and [Roy] went, ‘So what?’ and we said, ‘Okay, you’re the boss,’ and we called her Storm.”50 As for why the artist changed the color and style of the character’s hair, he told Amash, “I gave Storm the white hair so she’d look exotic. I wanted her to be very powerful, beautiful, and exotic.”51 This led to concern on the part of Wein that she might be perceived as being too old for the group. In 2000, Cockrum remembered, “...Len’s going, ‘Aren’t they going to think she’s somebody’s grandmother?’ ‘Trust me, Len, She’s not going to look like somebody’s grandmother.’”52 As to later revisions to her origin which stated that she was actually born in America, Cockrum told Sanderson, “I didn’t put up any fuss, but I didn’t really agree with it. I really didn’t want to see an origin for Storm, quite frankly. I really wanted everybody to not know who she is, [or] where she came from.” He went on to say, “There was a piece of copy in the first story that Len wrote, ‘Her eyes are blue and older than time,’ and 49

(top) A 1975 picture of Nightcrawler was used as the cover of The Comic Reader in 1982. Scanned by Manny Maris. (bottom) Wally Wood’s Animan partly influenced Cockrum’s original take on Nightcrawler. Nightcrawler ™ & © Marvel Characters, Inc.; Animan ™ & © Wallace Wood Properties, LLC.

50

I liked that. I thought we should never elaborate beyond that.”53 Yet another character that underwent a transformation in order to be included in the X-Men was one that Cockrum had created back in his days in the Navy in Guam. After two previous false starts, Nightcrawler finally debuted as the German teleporter Kurt Wagner in GiantSize X-Men #1. About his favorite character, Cockrum wrote in 2006, “When I got the opportunity to work on X-Men, I brought Nightcrawler with me. Writer Len Wein gave him the German persona, and there you have it.”54 Originally, it was Wein’s intention to portray Nightcrawler as a brooding figure, but Cockrum disagreed with the decision. “I said, ‘Len! Marvel’s up to its earlobes in bitter monsters. We don’t need another one.’”55 In 2003, Wein told Jim Amash, “It seemed appropriate for the character. But Dave and Chris changed him into a more lighthearted character, accepting of who he was, and I think that was a fine idea.”56 In an interview with The Comic Informer in 1982, Cockrum told Michael Wolff, “Nightcrawler is a well-adjusted weirdo, as opposed to being a bitter monster, which is what Len Wein wanted to do with him. Nightcrawler is my alterego, and there’s no way he’s going to be a bitter monster. He’s weird, but he’s well-adjusted weird. Blue is beautiful as far as he’s concerned.”57 In 2003, the artist confessed, “I just thought the character up with very little background, except for what he could do. He could climb up and down walls and ceilings like Spider-Man, he could teleport himself in a fiery blast of brimstone, and he could disappear into shadows. He was very athletic.”58 One idea which Cockrum had concerned Nightcrawler’s parentage. “...I wanted to establish that Nightmare — from Dr. Strange — was his father. They wouldn’t let me go with that... They said, ‘No, he wouldn’t be a mutant then.’ I said, ‘So what?’”59 He then elaborated, “I was on a panel with [Roy Thomas] at a convention a couple of years ago and the subject came up. I told the audience what I had wanted to do and Roy said, ‘That’s neat. Why didn’t you do that?’ I said, ‘Because you said we couldn’t.’ That got a terrific laugh from the audience.”60 Another source of inspiration for the German mutant came from one of Cockrum’s own personal comic book heroes, Wally Wood. In 2003, he wrote, “In fact, Nightcrawler owes a bit of his conception to Woody’s character Animan.

Animan ran in a short lived strip in Woody’s own magazine, Witzend. He was a frightening, uncivilized and powerful humanoid, a product of parallel evolution from something not of the hominid line, and he stayed with me long after the rest of the contents of those two issues had been forgotten.

Some of him turned up in Nightcrawler.”61

More so than with any other character, the artist put elements of himself into the German mutant. As he wrote in 2003, “Nightcrawler represented my dashing, gallant romantic side.”62 Earlier he had commented, “He fancied himself an adventurer and a romancer and he definitely loved the ladies. This also echoes other attitudes of mine.”63 In 2002, the artist got straight to the point when he said, “Nightcrawler represented me in the X-Men, and that was the direction I wanted him to go to. I was living the X-Men’s adventures vicariously through Nightcrawler. I like to think that if I was blue and athletic as hell, I’d have acted as Nightcrawler did.”64 That same year, he was more reflective when he said, “If there had been any way of introducing him without giving up ownership, you can bet I would’ve taken it.”65 Another X-Man who dated back to Cockrum’s pre-professional days was the Russian mutant Colossus. “Colossus was loosely based on a character I had come up with in college, named ‘Mr. Steel,’’66 he wrote in 2003. As for why the character was chosen to be Russian, he told Peter Sanderson in 1981, “Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Everybody was into detente and it was supposed to be an international group and the way I drew it, he looked like a Russian, so why the hell not? That was really all there was to it.”67 In 2002, he added, “Len Wein chose Peter’s name. I imagine he used Rasputin because... it’s a recognizable Russian name.”68 In 1981, Wein revealed, “...Colossus ...was meant to be the star of the book. That’s why he was the big figure in the first half-dozen covers; he was going to be their Thing, their Hulk, their permanent member. That’s why his costume is red, yellow, and blue. Primary colors.”69 One point of contention between the two creators had to do with the Russian’s costume. “The character’s armor just kind of fell into place,” Cockrum told Cliff Meth in 1994. “He was accepted pretty much as is, except that I had given him bare legs, because it seemed only logical that if we’re going to show him armored up, the legs should be bare like the arms. But Len Wein didn’t like male characters with bare legs. So we decided that his costume would be blue when he wasn’t armored up, and that we’d see his legs when he was [armored], because of the unstable molecules of his costume.”70 Back in 1981, Cockrum told Sanderson, “Everybody thought this armored guy was great. We had a hassle with the name at first because... It, the Living Colossus... was still being published... but fortunately the book got cancelled.” He added, “I think we did

Glynis Wein’s (now Oliver’s) color guide to Giant-Size X-Men #1. Note Colossus in the front, leading the charge. Courtesy of Heritage Auctions. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

less thinking about who he was than anybody else and that’s why he’s never had much of a personality.”71 In 2002, the artist confessed, “I think we just tended to think ‘Strong Guy.’ And that’s what he was. I started wanting to know more about him when I did a backup story in one of the endless reprints of GSX #1 — Kitty and Illyana were taking a tour of the X-Mansion and its grounds, and Kitty was showing everybody’s rooms.

“When it came to Peter’s, I suddenly realized I didn’t know enough about him to furnish his room.

I thought about it for a long while. The weights were a natural, of course — ‘Strong Guy’ again. But then it hit me how incongruously appropriate it might be if Peter had the soul of an artist and poet. And I added the easel with an unfinished painting, and the art supplies and all. After that I think Chris did begin to see more in Peter than just ‘Strong Guy,’ and he did do more development.”72 The character of Thunderbird also dated back to 51

The two images on the left were done before Cockrum turned pro, while the one on the right is the sleeker modified version drawn in 1975, which was rejected by Marvel. The completely overhauled final design is shown below.

Artwork ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum. Thunderbird ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Cockrum’s pre-pro days. In 2002, the artist rediscovered a sketchbook with two fully colored pictures of the X-Man, although he stated, “This isn’t John Proudstar, but the costume is pretty close to the one Marvel rejected.”73 One picture showed “...a panel from a hypothetical story. As a fan I never drew stories, just sample pages or panels of them.” He explained, “This version of T-Bird seems to’ve had Storm’s weather powers, and he’s created a terrible storm in the valley below him, where the villains are.” Ever the perfectionist, the artist provided the following disclaimer about his artwork: “Please forgive the bad lettering and lousy dialogue too. I was still learning my craft.”74 In 1975, with the X-Men revival underway, Cockrum returned to the Thunderbird design which he had drawn almost a decade earlier.

In 1981, he told Peter Sanderson, “[Thunderbird] was one of the original batch of characters that I had done [for the X-Men revival], and when we got down to looking at him, nobody really much liked the costume and so I did another one, and that’s the one we used.”75 In 2002, he wrote, “The first Thunderbird design went for a sort of Kirbyesque look, but the editorial 52

people felt that the metal helmet I had him wearing was too ‘Steve Canyon.’ I redesigned him to the version we used.”76 That same year, he wrote online, “I loved the [new] costume. Indian heroes always seemed to be dressed in buckskins, browns and grays (like Red Wolf). I wanted something more colorful that still reflected his heritage.”77 Unfortunately for the character, his fate was sealed with the plot of the first new X-Men story. “The original plot for GSX #1 was that the menace was to be an entrance exam, to see who was good enough to be a new X-Man,” Cockrum recalled in 2002. “Banshee and Sunfire were picked up because we felt there should be a couple of flunkers. Thunderbird was created because we felt there should be a ‘new’ flunker, too.

But then we dropped the entrance exam bit, and we decided we liked Banshee and Thunderbird, and we kept ’em. Unfortunately, we didn’t like Thunderbird enough, and we offed him.”78 In 1981, Wein remembered, “…I didn’t want [the book] to become predictable.

It’s why I killed Thunderbird[.]”79 In 2002, he elaborated, “The significance was to give you a book where you didn’t know

what’s going to happen next... Our theory was that this become a strong character, though I doubt he’d have told the audience, ‘Don’t get too complacent. In this ever had the appeal of Wolverine. Wolvie’s potential for 80 book, anything can happen.’” unleashed mayhem definitely was a draw to the disenAccording to Cockrum, the decision to kill the charfranchised youth of the world.”87 As previously mentioned, both Sunfire and Banshee acter came, “…kind of at the last minute.”81 Once the entrance exam plot was discarded and the decision were not originally intended to join the new team. In was made to keep Thunderbird as a member of the 2006, Cockrum wrote, “Regarding Sunfire — we never team because “...we all liked Thunderbird,” the artist meant to keep him in the X-Men. He was included in remembered, “...we didn’t know what to do with [him] the original ‘New’ X-Men for color and interest, but as because we never thought him out. It was easier to kill we saw that first adventure as an ‘entrance exam,’ we 82 him off than to think him out.” Years later, he always intended to have a couple candidates ‘flunk out.’ wrote, “I do agree it was a bad move to kill ...Sunfire was simply too arrogant and abrasive Thunderbird off — he was a great-lookto keep.”88 As far as Banshee was concerned, ing character with a lot of potential if Cockrum told Sanderson in 1981, “I only we’d researched his Amerlike Banshee, I always have. We ind origins. We simply took talked about getting rid of him the easy way out and once before when I was on the killed him for the shock 83 book... [and] I suddenly realvalue.”

The major reason ized I was doing a panel here given for writing Thunand the only normal face in derbird out of the series was the whole group was Banthat his powers duplicated shee, and it was such a relief those of others on the team. to have a normal face to draw According to Cockrum, that, on the basis of that, I “Almost everybody in suggested we keep him and the group did something not get rid of him after all. he did, and he seemed I’ve always liked him. He’s 84 kind of superfluous.” a comfortable character.”89 Wein’s reasons for keepIn addition, his “tough ing the character around guy” attitude too closely were similarly self-motimirrored that of Wolvervated. “I only put him in ine. In 2006, the artist wrote there because I happen online, “We wound up deciding to love writing an Irish to eliminate Thunderbird in #95 accent, so it was as simple because he, too, was arrogant as that.”90 and abrasive, and we couldn’t As both conceived and think of an easy way to deal 85 executed, the All-new, with him.” About the conflict between the character All-different X-Men did and Wolverine, Cockrum achieve its original purpose later said, “Nonetheless, if One big happy family—the final cast of the New X-Men. of being an international Courtesy of Dewey Cassell. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. I had it to do over, I’d have team, but from a marnot killed him, and I’d have found some way to make keting point of view, it fell short of its intended goal. him work. The conflict would’ve made good plot for “We worked up an international group, all right, but awhile, and then we could’ve resolved it — sort of like with no thought of reaching an international market,” the original animosity between Captain America and Cockrum recalled in 2002. “I mean, nobody seriously Hawkeye. Ultimately it [was] resolved and Hawkeye thought the Soviet Union would be importing Marvel 86 practically became a Cap groupie.”

Comics any time soon, and Kenya seemed unlikely, Cockrum did concede that, “If we had bothered to too (and besides, Ororo was really a displaced Amerdevelop him further, I believe Thunderbird would’ve ican citizen). Germany [Nightcrawler,] and Ireland 53

(Banshee) might have bought the book — and maybe Japan, if we hadn’t sent Sunfire packing — but on the whole the international export idea was a total bust. It’s just as well, don’t you think?””91 Initially, the book was not a best-seller in America, either, although its sales were promising enough that Giant-Size X-Men #2 was cancelled, and, in its place, the standard-sized X-Men title was revived on a bi-monthly basis featuring all new adventures.

The story originally scheduled to appear in GSX #2 was broken into two parts and run in X-Men #94–95 instead, with additional pages drawn in order to create

a natural gap between the two issues.

Concurrent with the decision, Len Wein, who had been promoted to Marvel’s Editor-in-Chief before GSX #1 had finished production, stepped down from the series due to an overwhelming workload. In 1981, he told Sanderson, “I was the Editor-in-Chief of Marvel and I was putting in 25-hour days. I will personally testify to the fact that the last twelve pages of the first Giant-Size were written at my desk in my office as an all-nighter, and that’s crazy. I couldn’t put in those kind of hours. My brain was falling out.”92 Because of the manner in which Marvel comics were written, where an artist worked from a plot and then dialogue and captions were provided by the writer after the art was finished, Wein had plotted what was to have been GiantSize X-Men #2 (featuring the death of Thunderbird), but was unable to script the actual issues of The X-Men series which published the story instead.

Enter Chris Claremont, who had sat in on previous plotting sessions of the book, and had even suggested the manner in which the villain of GSX #1, Krakoa, the Living Island, was defeated.

In 2004, Wein told Back Issue!’s Michael Eury, “Chris Claremont, who had been my assistant, was outside of my office, lobbying, ‘If you ever give up X-Men, I’d love to write it!’ So I went, ‘Here. Here’s your shot. Go, my son.’”93 Claremont remained as author of the series for the next 17 years, during which time it became not only the best-selling comic book in North America, but also the entire western hemisphere.94 According to Claremont, “Dave had penciled about a third of [GSX #2], up to the moment they arrived at the mountain, and what he and I did was sit down and break it down and mesh it all in. But yeah, it was pretty much Len’s plot.”95 About their early days on the series, Claremont once wrote, “It was a trip.

With Dave, I had an artist who could One of two unpenciled pages intended for Giant-Size X-Men #2 which had to be basically do anything asked of him... redone when the book was split into two normal issues. Courtesy of David Mandel.

He had the knack... of grounding the X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. 54

(above and right) Preliminary designs for Jean Grey, before she received her new Phoenix costume.

(above) Cockrum’s original Phoenix character, circa 1966.

Artwork © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Jean Grey ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

most fantastic of events in a world wholly recognizable as our own... Those first issues set the tone that would sustain The X-Men throughout the entirety of my seventeen year run on the book[.]”96 It was shortly after Claremont became author of The X-Men that another original member of the group joined the team. According to Len Wein, “[Jean Grey] was meant to come back in just a few months.”97 The author told Peter Sanderson in 1981, “We were going to revamp her not quite into what Phoenix became, but make her a different character, because we all thought she was a wimp, that she wasn’t worth it.”98 Cockrum concurred with Wein’s assessment of the character. “We felt that she had to be beefed up one way or another,” he told Sanderson in 1981. “[Then] once we figured out the color [of her costume] we agonized over what the hell she did.”99 Cockrum’s initial plans for Phoenix actually predated Wein’s involvement with the book. When the artist first began to compose designs for the new X-Men team, one of the characters he considered for inclusion in the group was Marvel Girl, and he even went so far as to write, “How ’bout a new name?” on a model sheet for the character.

In 1981, the artist explained to Sanderson, “The [Phoenix] design was one of the first one or two things

I came up with in the beginning... I did five different variations on a theme, so to speak. They all had the sash and they all had the neck, and I think they all had the gloves and the boots, [but] I’m not sure.”100 “I drew up several costume designs for Phoenix,” Cockrum told Jim Amash in 2003, “and the one I liked best was white with gold boots and gloves[.]”101 When he tried to get the costume approved by editorial, “...Archie Goodwin [who] was Editor-in-Chief... absolutely flat vetoed that costume. He said, ‘You’ll be able to read the back side of the page through her costume.’ With the lousy newsprint we used in those days, he was probably right. I finally came up with a green version — her colors, anyway — and he okayed that.”102 In 2002, Cockrum commented that his new design for Phoenix was, “...one of my very favorite X-costumes.”103 That same year, the artist told Jim Amash, “Once we decided on her becoming the Phoenix, Chris got the idea of killing Marvel Girl off and reviving herself [sic] as the Phoenix.”104 Previously, Cockrum had told Sanderson, “When we introduced Phoenix I don’t think we intended for her to keep super cosmic powers, because the rest of the group becomes superfluous then. We had intended for her to either lose a sizeable portion of it or limit herself one way or another. So yeah, she was 55

a powerful female but she would not make the rest of the group unnecessary.”105 Regarding the name change, Cockrum had actually used the title years before on a character of his own creation. “I have an old sketchbook of characters and there’s a male Phoenix in there,” he told Amash in 2002.106 The artist speculated that the illustration dated back to “...1966 or thereabouts,” and commented, “Nothing like the Phoenix that wound up in the X-Men, hey?”107 Another female character who received a new costume from the artist during his first run on the series was Lorna Dane, a.k.a. Polaris. When she and fellow ex-X-Man, Havok, returned in X-Men #97, it was with a high-heeled, high-collared new outfit.

Cockrum continued to create new characters for the book, either in the form of allies or adversaries for the X-Men to face. Having drawn the “Legion of SuperHeroes” prior to becoming The X-Men artist, he was struck with the idea of including the Legion in the pages of The X-Men. With that in mind, he created the Imperial Guard, a group that, to a member, contained counterparts for the then-current roster of the Legion of Super-Heroes. The artist designed a doppelganger for each active Legionnaire, which included the ones he had already redesigned as a former “Legion” artist. The end result was the creation of over two dozen unique costumes and characters on top of his regular workload. When asked in 2002 if he did it because he still had Legion impulses to get out of his system, Cockrum

responded, “I don’t know if I was getting it out of my system so much as I was having fun with, ‘Let’s do the Legion in The X-Men.’ That’s exactly what I did.”108 Although the decision to place Legion counterparts in The X-Men originated with the artist, “Chris went right along with it. He thought it was great fun.”109 The appearance of the galactic heroes was also supposed to inspire a similar treatment of the X-Men in the pages of Legion of Super-Heroes. According to Cockrum, “When I did the Imperial Guard, I had shown the character designs to [Legion writer] Paul Levitz, and he said, ‘Hey! Maybe we can do something reciprocal in the Legion,’ and I said, ‘Yeah!

That’d be great!’ But then they didn’t. I suppose there was just no time, or I don’t know what.”110 As far as copyright infringement was concerned, the artist recalled, “I showed the designs to Paul Levitz, and he didn’t say, ‘You can’t do that.’ If anything, he said, ‘Geez, these costumes are better than the ones the Legionnaires are wearing,’” the artist laughed. “No, I don’t think we ever once thought that we were going to get in trouble over it.”111 Due to the origin of the group, many (top) Polaris in her new costume. (above) Impulse of the Imperial Guard, an readers have speculated on what would obvious stand-in for the Legion’s Wildfire. The color scheme was changed for happen should the Imperial Guard and publication. Polaris, Impulse ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

56

the Legion meet face-to-face. Cockrum himself weighed in on the debate when he wrote, “In my opinion, the only reason the X-Men beat the Imperial Guard in X-Men #107 was because (a) they were the stars of the book and (b) Chris and I wanted them to win. The IG has an overwhelming amount of power on their side, especially with Phoenix sitting the fight out. And I don’t really think the Starjammers would have made the difference.”112 He went on to say, “As for IG vs. Legion; it would be a close call, but personally, I think the IG would win. The fact that they’re adults, and that[,] believe me, they’re a lot more savage than the Legion, would make the difference in spite of the Legion’s Big Three [Superboy, Mon-El, and Ultra Boy].”113 As mentioned by the artist, the Starjammers also saw print in 1977 with the storyline published in X-Men #107. A concept which dated all the way back to 1972, the Jammers were included in the X-Men, “...because it was an idea I had for a series, and I could never interest the powers-that-be into letting me have a couple of issues of [Marvel] Spotlight or [Marvel] Premiere to do the thing in,” he told Sanderson in 1981, “so I asked Chris if we could work it into The X-Men, and we did.”114 True to their original concept, the Starjammers were resistance fighters in the Shi’ar Empire, and continued to be at odds with the establishment once its rightful leader was restored to power. As Cockrum told Sanderson, “They’ve crossed the paths of the Empire enough times to aggravate the Empire regardless of the fact that mostly they’re do-gooders.”115 He went on to say, “If I was entirely convinced I was leaving the book I wouldn’t have brought them in, I think.”116 As it happened, the entire Shi’ar Empire storyline began with a single drawing, that of Lillandra, the deposed Empress of the Empire. “I did this character drawing,” Cockrum told Sanderson, “and whenever I do a character drawing, most of the time I have no idea what I’m going to use it for. I just do neat characters, and whenever Chris sees them, invariably his response is, ‘That’s great, let’s use it in the book!’ That’s what happened.”117 As it turned out, #107 of the series was also the last

Cockrum’s original drawing of Lillandra, Empress of the Shi’ar Empire, colored by the artist himself.

Lillandra ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

issue of the artist’s first run on the title. According to Cockrum, “I couldn’t take it anymore. I was running later and later, and every issue seemed to have more and more people. There’s 54 individual characters in #107, I believe. It was my own fault. I’d thought: ‘Gee, wouldn’t it be great to do the Legion of Super-Heroes [in The X-Men]?’ But it wasn’t fun, it was work. I needed a rest bad by the time that was finished. I don’t think I could’ve managed to put out another issue.”118 Before he left the series, Cockrum was not through with character designs. A scene in X-Men #107 featured Wolverine’s costume destroyed in a fight with the Imperial Guard, which forced the X-Man to improvise. After an encounter with Fang, who was the Guard’s equivalent of Timber Wolf from the Legion of Super-Heroes (whose own feral features were the 57

Cockrum’s original Imperial Guard designs. This page (clockwise): Titan (Colossal Boy), Electron (Cosmic Boy), Hobgoblin (Chameleon Boy), Mentor (Brainiac 5), Gladiator (Superboy/Mon-El). Next page: Nightshade (Shadow Lass), Astra (Phantom Girl), Starbolt (Sun Boy).

Imperial Guard ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

58

59

Wolverine’s Fang costume, plus alternates. (below) A Cockrum redrawn panel from Iron Fist #15.

Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Colossus ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

prototype for Wolverine’s face), the Canadian X-Man removed Fang’s costume and appropriated it for his own use. It was the artist’s intention for it to remain as Wolverine’s new outfit, as he had gone through multiple costume designs in an attempt to update the mutant’s appearance. In 1999, he told Comic Book Artist’s Jon B. Cooke, “I don’t remember who I was arguing with on that, but we were trying to design a new costume when he was wearing the yellow and blue one... I kept doing costumes and the response was always, ‘No, no, no, no!’ At one point, I turned in a drawing of him nude but hairy, but they said, ‘No! Get out of here!’”119 Wolverine’s new costume lasted for a total of four issues, from X-Men #107– 109, as well as an outing in Iron Fist #15.

Of those appearances, only two featured the new design for more than a few pages. When the X-Men returned from outer space in #109, new artist John Byrne replaced the costume with his original yellow and blue ensemble. Had Cockrum remained as artist on the series, the Fang outfit would have been Wolverine’s new costume, but Byrne “...hated it so much that as soon as he took over the book, he got him out of it again.”120 Ironically, Byrne, who was also the artist on Iron Fist #15, was unaware of the costume change when he drew that issue. In 2008, he wrote online, “I drew Wolverine in his usual duds, and editorial had them redrawn as the Fang outfit.”121 It was Dave Cockrum who actu60

ally redrew the character throughout the issue, and he didn’t stop there. Byrne went on to write, “Lot of redrawing on that issue. Virtually none of the X-faces are mine. Since it was my ‘audition’ for Uncanny, it seemed very odd to allow Dave such liberties. At the time, I asked if he was going to redraw all the faces in the regular title once I came aboard.”122 Byrne clarified for a fan that the decision to alter his artwork, “…would have started at the editorial level. Dave probably decided for himself where he was going to stop.”123 Another interesting fact about the Fang costume is that, due to shipping schedules, Iron Fist #15 actually went on sale before X-Men #107, so readers’ first look at the new costume was apparently

by John Byrne, while actually it was by Cockrum redrawing over Byrne’s pencils. Eventually, Byrne himself changed Wolverine’s appearance, and he stated to Wizard magazine in 2004, “I didn’t like his original costume... So I decided to switch to the brown costume.”124 When Cockrum made the decision to depart The X-Men, he did not completely leave the series. Following his last issue, he continued to be the cover artist for the book until #126. While it was not uncommon for an artist who was associated with a series to stay on to draw the covers in order to ensure a smooth transition between different creative teams, in 2003 Cockrum told Jim Amash, “By that time, I’d gone into the cover design job at Marvel, and maybe I shouldn’t say

this in print, but I did them just to annoy John Byrne...

John was the heir apparent to that book and he was panting to take it over. But every time he came to the Marvel offices, he pissed everybody off. I stayed on a little longer just to aggravate him.”125 An interesting side note to Cockrum’s first run as artist of The X-Men is that not all of the characters originally considered for inclusion in the group made it into the series. In addition to the Black Cat and the “go-go” Marvel Girl, one character in particular, Vampyre (pronounced vam-PEER), was among the batch of candidates that Cockrum designed when he was first assigned to the series. According to the artist, “As for Vampyre (with a ‘Y’), I thought it would be interesting to include a bat-winged character. I never addressed the question of whether he was actually a vampire or not, but I’d imagine that either he wasn’t or that Prof. X had come up with some sort of serum which allowed him to control blood-urges.”126 Cockrum continued, “But the others involved in restarting the new X-Men — Roy Thomas, Len Wein, Chris Claremont and a couple of others of editorial staff who were kibitzing — felt that Vampyre and Nightcrawler were visually similar types and if it came to a crunch, personally I preferred Nightcrawler. Thus are characters left ‘on the cutting room floor.’”127 The artist put it more directly when he said, “The reason we didn’t use Vampyre is that it was felt that he and Nightcrawler looked too much alike and one of them had to go. It was left up to me, and I preferred Nightcrawler.”128 Another character originally considered to appear in the group was created by fan Michael A. Barreiro of Penn Hills, Pennsylvania, and was called Humus Sapiens. Originally conceived as a villain, Sapiens was the winning entry in a character creation contest run by the Marvel fan magazine FOOM, and, as such, was supposed to appear as a guest-star in a future Marvel comic. A later change in plans announced that the character would instead be a charter member of the new X-Men team that was to be launched in GSX #1.

Years later, when asked about the incident, Cockrum said, “Oh, I think I remember that. Len Wein and I both resisted having a character forced on us by management, and we simply refused to use him.”129 According to the fan website The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe, Humus Sapiens was, “...created whole and spewed out of a volcano. He had lava for blood and a thin layer of gold skin over an interior of which he controls the density. He could be soft as loamy earth or as hard as granite. He was crowned

Cockrum having fun with his replacement on The X-Men. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

with vegetation and had the memory of the tortured Earth.”130 In 1998, Thunderbolts writer Kurt Busiek and his editor, Tom Brevoort, held a similar contest in conjunction with Wizard magazine, which spurred their decision to locate Barreiro and finally publish the character. Retitled and retooled, Humus Sapien appeared in Thunderbolts (Vol. 1) #33 and continued to appear in the title until he was written out of continuity in #55.

In the issue of The X-Men which followed Cockrum’s departure from the series, a dedication appeared on the book’s final page which read, “This book dedicated with respect and admiration to Dave Cockrum — who helped make the dream a reality.” Beneath it, in smaller print, was another message: “I’m not dead — Dave Cockrum.” In reality, the artist was far from finished with the characters that he had helped to bring into existence, and in addition to remaining on as cover artist of the book for another two years, he returned to chronicle their adventures — after a detour of over three years — in 1981.

61

Endnotes 1 Peter Sanderson, “Interview with Roy Thomas,” The X-Men

Companion (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., 1982), pg. 32.

2 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 32.

3 ibid, pg. 32.

4 Sanderson, “Interview with Dave Cockrum,” The X-Men

Companion (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., 1982), pg. 53.

5 Mike Friedrich, “The Topic of Conversation Was the Revival

of the X-Men!” Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 30.

6 Sanderson, “An Interview with Roy Thomas,” op. cit., pg. 32.

7 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

53.

11 Jim Amash, “Alienation Was What the X-Men Were All

About!” Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 31.

12 Len Wein, “Dave’s Magic Sketchbook,” The Uncanny Dave

Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 32.

13 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum,” Comic Book

Artist Collection Vol. 2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg.

158.

14 Peter Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” The X-Men

Companion (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., 1982), pg. 47.

15 Jim Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a Lot!”

Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 36.

16 J.R. Riley, Keith Wilson, Michael Wolff, “Things That Go

8 Clifford Meth, “Ex-X-Man,” Wizard: The Guide to Comics #33

(Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., May 1994), pgs. 34–35.

Bamf in the Night,” Comic Informer (Comic Informer Enterprises, June–July 1982), pg. 21.

9 Friedrich, op. cit., pg. 30.

17 Sanderson, “An Interview with Roy Thomas,” op. cit., pg. 33.

10 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

18 Amash, “Alienation Was What the X-Men Were All About!”

53.

op. cit., pg. 32.

19 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cock-

rum,” op. cit., pg. 56.

20 Dark Bamf, “Hey Dark Bamf — I Think You’ll Like X-Men 2,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, May 7, 2003), pg. 1.

21 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 56.

22 ibid, pg. 56.

23 Roy Thomas, “Tempest in a Tea Pot,” The Uncanny Dave Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 22.

24 Amash, op. cit., pg. 32.

25 ibid, pg. 32.

26 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

27 Peter Sanderson, “Wolverine: The Evolu-

tion of a Character,” The Incredible Hulk and Wolverine (Marvel Comics Group, Oct. 1986), pg. 45.

28 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 45.

29 Peter Sanderson, “Claremont and Byrne:

Wolverine at 30,” Back Issue! #3 (TwoMorrows Publishing, June 2004), pg. 4.

30 Craig Shutt, Brian K. Morris, “The X-Men:

A Cool Concept!” Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 21.

The new X-Men first appeared on the cover of FOOM #10, before GSX #1.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

62

31 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 4.

32 Sanderson, “Wolverine: The Evolution of a Character,” op.

cit., pg. 45.

Sketch courtesy of Heritage Auctions.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

33 Shutt, Morris, op. cit., pg. 21.

34 Wein, op. cit., pg. 32.

35 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

36 Brian Warmoth, Sean T. Collins, “Claws of Attraction,”

Wizard #157 (Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., Nov. 2004), pg.

28.

37 Dave Cockrum, Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com,

2002).

38 Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a Lot!” op.

cit., pg. 39.

39 ibid., pg. 39.

40 Dave Cockrum, “Where Are…” Classically Cockrum (www.

comiXfan.com, Aug. 28, 2002), pg. 1.

41 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

54.

42 Dark Bamf, “Hey Dave, the Cat Is out of the Bag…” Cock-

rum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, 5/20/2006), pg. 1.

43 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 54–55.

44 Amash, op. cit., pg. 36.

45 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 55.

46 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 50.

47 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

55.

48 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 50.

49 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

55.

50 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 50.

60 Amash, op. cit., pg 39.

61 Dave Cockrum, “Joe Quesada Says ‘No Cockrum’,” Classi-

cally Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 28, 2003), pg. 5.

62 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to

the Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, Mar. 2, 2003), pg. 10.

63 Dark Bamf, “Dark Bamf Is the Master Creator?” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Nov. 30, 2005), pg. 1.

64 Amash, op. cit., pg. 39.

65 Dave Cockrum, “Sorry About That, Jim,” Krueger X (www.

comiXfan.com, June 10, 2002), pg. 1.

66 Bamf, “Hey Dark Bamf — I Think You’ll Like X-Men 2,” op.

cit., pg. 1.

67 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

51 Amash, op. cit., pg. 36.

58.

52 Shutt, Morris, op. cit., pg. 27.

68 Dave Cockrum, “Dave, Did You Know?” Classically Cock-

53 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 62.

54 Dark Bamf, “Assistance Needed with an Old Dave Picture,”

rum (www.comiXfan.com, Nov. 1, 2002), pg. 1.

69 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 49.

Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, May 4, 2006), pg.

1.

70 Meth, op cit. pg. 36.

55 Amash, op. cit., pg. 39.

58.

56 Amash, “Alienation Was What the X-Men Were All About!”

72 Dave Cockrum, “Colossus Memorial,” Classically Cockrum

57 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg. 20.

73 Dave Cockrum, “I’m Back from the Hospital (Again),” Clas-

op. cit., pg. 32.

58 Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a Lot!” op.

71 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

(www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 5, 2002), pg. 1.

sically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 20, 2002), pg. 2.

cit., pg. 38.

74 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 2.

59 Amash, op. cit., pg. 38.

75 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 59.

63

Starjammers Waldo, Corsair (with a cape), and Hepzibah.

Thanks to Ted Latner.

Starjammers ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

76 Dave Cockrum, “Where Are…” op. cit., pg. 1.

84 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 59.

77 Dave Cockrum, “Some Musings on Jon,” Classically Cock-

rum (www.comiXfan.com, July 8, 2002), pg. 1.

85 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 7, 2006), pg. 4.

78 Dave Cockrum, “Dave, How Many New X-Men Were There

86 Cockrum, “Some Musings on Jon,” op. cit., July 19, 2002, pg.

in All?” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 15, 2002), pg. 1.

1.

79 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 51.

1.

80 Amash, “Alienation Was What the X-Men Were All About!”

88 Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” op. cit., pg. 4.

op. cit., pg. 32.

81 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg. 59.

82 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 59.

83 Dark Bamf, “Thunderbird & Wolverine,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Feb. 21, 2006), pg. 1.

64

87 Bamf, “Thunderbird & Wolverine,” op. cit., Mar. 9, 2006, pg.

89 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 59.

90 Sanderson, “An Interview with Len Wein,” op. cit., pg. 49.

91 Dave Cockrum, “Why Relaunch the X-Men?” Classically

Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 26, 2002), pg. 1.

92 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 51.

93 Michael Eury, “I Was a Teenage Wolverine!”

Back Issue! #3 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2004), pg.

30.

94 George Lucas & Chris Claremont, Shadow Moon

(Bantam Books, 1995), pg. 453.

95 Peter Sanderson, “An Interview with Chris

Claremont,” The X-Men Companion (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., 1982), pg. 95.

96 Chris Claremont, “Dave Cockrum: An Appreci-

ation,” Dave Cockrum Treasury (Aardwolf Publishing, 1996), pg. 1.

97 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,”

op. cit., pg. 47.

98 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 48.

99 Sanderson, “An Interview with Dave Cockrum,”

op. cit., pg. 66–67.

100 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 66–67.

101 Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a

Lot!” op. cit., pg. 38.

102 Amash, op. cit., pg. 38.

103 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

104 Amash, op. cit., pg. 38.

105 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 66.

106 Amash, op. cit., pg. 38.

107 Cockrum, “I’m Back from the Hospital

Vampyre was almost an X-Man, but didn’t quite make the cut.

Vampyre © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

(Again)” op. cit., pg. 3.

108 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 74.

109 ibid, pg. 74.

110 ibid, pg. 73.

111 ibid, pg. 74.

112 Dark Bamf, “LSH vs Imperial Guard,” DCMB: The Legion

121 John Byrne, “Easy Update to Wolverine’s Costume” The

John Byrne Forum (www.byrnerobotics.com/forum, July 4, 2008), pg. 4.

122 Byrne, op. cit., pg. 4.

123 ibid, pg. 4.

(www.dccomics.com, Dec. 9, 2002), pg. 1.

124 Warmoth, Collins, op. cit, pg. 23.

113 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

125 Amash, op. cit., pg. 45.

114 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 79.

126 Cockrum, “Dave, How Many New X-Men Were There in

115 ibid, pg. 81.

116 ibid, pg. 82.

117 ibid, pg. 82.

All?” op. cit., pg. 1.

127 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

128 Bamf, “Assistance Needed with an Old Dave Picture,” op.

cit., pg. 1.

118 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg. 21.

129 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

119 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 161.

130 Jeff Christiansen, “Humus Sapien,” The Appendix to the

120 ibid, pg. 161.

Handbook of the Marvel Universe (www.marvunapp.com/ Appendix/, Nov. 15, 2005).

65

One of three painted covers Cockrum did for the Marvel Novel Series. Captain America (#4) and The Avengers (#10) were the other two. Avengers, Captain America, Daredevil, Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

66

Chapter 4: 1976–1982

I

I. Two’s Company

t was while working as the artist on The X-Men tions all morning, and all of a sudden I look up and revival at Marvel that Cockrum’s marriage of nine I see this person [next to the Xerox machine]. Duffy years fell apart. “My folks divorced when I was about Vohland was right next to me doing some inking at the eight,” the artist’s son, Ivan, recalled in 2007. In order board next to mine, and I nudged him. I said, ‘Duffy! to pay the rent, he took on a roommate in the form of Who’s that?’ and he said, ‘Oh! That’s Dave Cockrum. fellow comics industry professional Jim Shooter.

He’s working on the new X-Men project,’ and I said, In 2002, Cockrum recalled, “My first wife and I ‘Oh! I’ve seen his work. He’s pretty good.’” broke up, and I had this nice, three-bedroom apart“So I gathered up the stuff I had to take back to ediment in Queens. Shooter was looking for an aparttorial, and I did a long trek around the office... and I ment, and I said, ‘Well, I’ve came up behind Dave. He’s got one.’ And he wound up standing there, Xeroxing 1 moving in.” As to how the pages. I walked by him with two met, the artist laughed, the pages in my arms, and as “Probably because someI walked by, I patted him on body told me he was lookthe tail and said, ‘Nice ass,’ ing for an apartment. I don’t and kept going. And Dave’s remember.”2 In 1994, he like, ‘What? What? Who also laughed when he told was that?’ looking around.”

Cliff Meth, “Shooter credShe continued, “By that its me as the guy who saved time, I was out the door and him from having to live at gone. Duffy told me later, 3 the YMCA.” ‘I nearly fell off the chair Shooter informed Dia- Cockrum at his desk at Marvel. Photo by Eliot R. Brown. laughing. I [was] rolling mond’s Scoop newsletter in 2006, “When I first moved around on the floor,’ and Duffy looked like Volstagg. to New York City in 1976, as it happened, Dave had I mean, literally, he looked like Volstagg. He said, a room to rent and I needed a place to live. We didn’t ‘I’m rolling around the floor. When I could catch my know each other at all, but it worked out fine for the breath, I said, ‘Oh, that’s Paty. Don’t worry about her. eight months or so I stayed there. Dave was good-naShe’s harmless.’ So that’s how I met Dave.” tured, easygoing, and easy to get along with — also, The two started dating in October of ’76. Accord4 totally honest and honorable. The place was great.” ing to the future Mrs. Cockrum, “Marv Wolfman It was also in 1976 that Cockrum met another indiwas throwing a Halloween party, and everybody was vidual who would play a significant role in his future. invited. We were all gonna sit around and watch Sat“[I met Dave] in the summer of ’76,” Paty Cockrum urday Night Live and have a good time, but you had to recalled in 2007. “I knew [his] work before I ever met come in costume. I was going in a Scarlet Witch-type him, from fanzines and things like that, and when I costume — not exactly the one that was in the books, first saw [it], I said, ‘Aw, that kid’s going somewhere!’” but I thought that the one that was in the books was Their first encounter occurred in the Marvel bullpen, kinda dull, so I sort of jazzed [it] up — [and] Dave where the then-Paty Greer was working. “[I was] doing wanted to go as Zorro... art corrections and some of the merchandising art at “He had black boots and he had black jeans, and he the time,” she remembered. “I had been doing correchad this black pull-over sweatshirt — actually, I think 67

it was a turtleneck — but he didn’t have a cape. I do Finally, at one time I bearded the lion in his den and believe he had a hat that he could use, and he had said, ‘Now, wait a minute. I’ve got to bring out some swords galore, because he loved fencing... So he had things for you from editorial, and there’s no reason foils and rapiers and all kinds of stuff... but he didn’t why you have to come in to the office. I can bring them have a cape. He [also] only had one of these little black out. Where do you live?’ ‘You can’t come to my house.’ domino masks that you buy in the ten cent store, so ‘Why can’t I come to your house? Do you have a wife he’s telling me, ‘You’d think I’d be okay? I have gloves,’ and 17 idiot children there?’ I couldn’t figure out why he says, ‘but I need a cape.’ I said, ‘Well, I have a cape in the world he didn’t want me to come to his apartat home,’ and he says, ‘You do? Can I borrow it?’ and I ment. said, ‘Y-e-a-h, if you give it back in good condition. It’s “And he said, ‘Well... umm... umm,’ and I said, black satin with a red satin interior,’ and he was like, ‘C’mon! ’Fess up, Godammit, or I’m not going to have ‘Oh, my God! Oh, boy!’ He goes, ‘I will! I will! I will!’ I anything more to do with you.’ And he was like, ‘Well... said, ‘Are you going to be in the offices tomorrow? I’ll ahhh... umm... ahhh... I have... umm... mmm... ahhh... bring it in.’ He says, ‘I’ll make a trip.’ lizards.’ And I said, ‘Lizards?’ and he says, ‘Yeah. Liz“So I went home that night, and on the way home I ards.’ I said, ‘Cool! What kind?’ ‘You like lizards?’ I said, stopped at the local five and ten ‘Yeah! Do you have any snakes?’ cent store, picked up some fabric, And he goes, ‘No, Andrea and actually made him a blousy wouldn’t let me have snakes,’ and Zorro shirt. I picked up a mask I said, ‘No, Richard wouldn’t let — a proper Zorro mask — and I me have any, either.’ He says, ‘You picked up some red [fabric], and like snakes? You like lizards?’

I made him a red cummerbund And I said, ‘Yeah!’ You could see to go with it. I brought that in the the light bulb going on over his next day, and gave it to him to wear head, and I said, ‘What was the to the thing, and he said, ‘Why are problem?’ and he said, ‘Well, you doing this?’ I said, ‘Because every time I took a girl to my Zorro’s one of my favorite charachouse and she saw my lizards, I ters, and you’ve gotta look right. I never saw her again!’ I went, ‘Oh! don’t know what we’re going to do I want to see your lizards,’ and he with the beard.’ He says, ‘I’m not told me about some of the lizards shaving it off.’ ‘Okay.’ he had, and it was really cool.”

“So anyway, he went as Zorro, Cockrum’s love of exotic pets and I went as the Scarlet Witch, went all the way back to childand we all had a wonderful time. hood. According to childhood He brought his former wife, friend, Tom Hoffman, “[Dave] Andrea, and when the party was Paty Greer in 1975. Scan courtesy of Manny Maris. and I would go out and catch just about over, he took Andrea snakes and lizards and stuff [in] home, came back, got me, and went home with me. the surrounding prairie around Aurora, and south of He had already told Andrea, ‘Yeah, I’ll take you to the Denver. We’d go out and look for snakes, and we’d catch party,’ [so] he took her home, and then came back and ’em and bring ’em home and keep ’em in cases, and we got me, and spent the night at my house. That’s sort had about every kind of snake that was alive and runof how we got started, and then later on he asked me ning around in Colorado, and lizards and such. It was out on a real date-date, and we just bummed around quite an interesting hobby.” the city. [We] went out to La Crepe, and we may have Cockrum’s first wife, Andrea, recalled, “When we taken in a movie, but I don’t remember. I think we just were living on Guam, we used to do what he used to went for a walk in the park, and rode the carousel, and call, ‘boonie stomping,’ ’cause back then, it was very, that sort of thing.” very undeveloped there. His goal was to catch a big From there, romance blossomed. “He kept coming monitor lizard, which we ended up doing. [It was] four back and forth to my apartment, which was in upper feet long, and we caught it in a big sheet, and we took Manhattan... and I kept saying, ‘Why can’t I come out to it home, and it was David’s pet. He used to walk this your place?’ ‘No, you can’t come out to my apartment.’ thing on a leash, and he named it Slick Ned, after some 68

[comic] strip. Everyone used to think he was whacked, walking this monitor on a little cat leash. Then when we left the island, we released it back into the jungle.”

In 1973, Cockrum told Martin Griem, “I have 16 lizards, three newts and a turtle in my studio, and I like to watch them while I’m working. I have to feed ’em and change their water and all that, too.”5 About her former husband’s menagerie, Kline said, “To be honest, I put up with it. It used to drive me crazy. I was afraid of snakes, so I wouldn’t ever have snakes in the house. I know he and Paty had a lot of snakes, but we always had a lot of lizards, and the thing that used to be so creepy was that you’d have to buy all these crickets to feed them, and at the beginning of the month, you’d be listening to crickets all night, but then as time went on, there’d be fewer and fewer of them.”

Cockrum maintained a multitude of pets throughout his life, including Macaws, cats, and dogs. About man’s best friend, he wrote online in 2004, “I never had much use for flat-faced dogs before we got Ringo, our original peke. I grew up with collies, which are about as pointy-nosed as a dog gets, and I considered them the most beautiful of dogs, excepting, maybe, salukis, afghans, and greyhounds.” He elaborated, “I’m not sure I’d call the smoosh-face beautiful... but pekes sure can be adorable as hell. And Ringo was my favorite of all the dogs I’ve ever had. And I’ve had some damn good dogs.”6 With common interests in both comic books and pets, Greer and her future husband grew closer together. “We would go back and forth from my place to his place. Finally we said, ‘You know, this doesn’t work. We really should live together, because we’re really compatible. We both like the same things, and I’m a good cook.’”

The next step was inevitable. “I moved in with Dave in January of ’77, and I was there for a while.

Shooter was in the other bedroom with his girlfriend, and finally I told Shooter, ‘Shooter, get out!’ and he said, ‘I saw this coming,’” laughed Paty. “It was Dave’s apartment — Shooter was just rooming — so Shooter moved out. He had already scoped out an apartment for himself, so he saw it was coming.”

While Cockrum and Shooter were rooming together, as fate would have it, the latter was writing the very feature for DC which the artist had walked away from in 1973. “Dave was drawing the Uncanny X-Men back then, [and] I was... writing the Legion of Super-Heroes,” Shooter told Scoop in 2006. “Anyway, Dave loved kibitzing on my Legion stories. He always had good suggestions and insightful comments. Both of us loved the

Legion.”7 One story in particular almost enticed Cockrum back to the series. “When he came up with the Charma and Grimbor story [Superboy starring the Legion of Super-Heroes #221], we were still rooming together and I very much wanted to draw it,” the artist wrote online in 2002.8 “I had very strong images on what I thought Charma, especially, should look like.” That same year, he told Glen Cadigan, “The fans were agitating for me to do the artwork on it, and I really wanted to, because I had a visual in mind for Charma. I wanted to use the face of an actress from the ’30s named Helen Mack, and I thought, ‘Oh boy! I can see some great stuff with

While not Charma, this “Exotic Lady” is an example of the same type of character often found in Cockrum’s sketchbooks. © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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her.’ My X-Men schedule just wound up not allowing me to do that. But it would’ve been fun.”9 The artist even went so far as to put his ideas down on paper. “I had a drawing of Charma somewhere,” he told Cadigan, “[but] I don’t think I did a drawing of Grimbor.”10 According to Shooter, “Dave had his drawing table set up in what otherwise would have been the dining room, just off the kitchen. I did most of my ‘homework’ and writing sitting on the living room couch, in sight of his workspace. We’d talk. Not the best thing to do while I was trying to write, but we had some really great conversations about work, life, the world and what could be done about all of the above.”11 The two continued to associate professionally in subsequent years, mainly due to Shooter’s promotion to Editor-in-Chief of Marvel in 1978. In 2006, the former E-I-C said, “Through thick and thin and thinner and thinner, Dave and I always remained friends. Even when being a friend of mine wasn’t fashionable.”12 About their time together, in 2002 Cockrum recalled, “We lived together for a year, and actually got along pretty good together, most of the time.”13

John Carter of Mars ™ and © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

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II. An Artist of Mars While still illustrating The X-Men, Cockrum had his first opportunity to work on a character whose adventures he had thrilled to as a boy. In the letters page of X-Men #106 (Aug. 1977), Chris Claremont offered the following explanation as to why that issue was a fill-in by artist Bob Brown: “For reasons too diverse to mention — including, among them, a certain artist’s mad determination to work on the first Marvel issue of a certain sword-wielding Southerner transplanted to very foreign climes (Mars, to be specific...) combined with the scheduling of that book so that it was due mere days before X-Men 106... I think you get the picture.”

The title in question was John Carter, Warlord of Mars, a series to which Marvel had only recently acquired the rights from Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. Cockrum provided inks over Gil Kane’s pencils on the first issue, about which he later wrote, “My inking over Gil Kane was a major undertaking. Gil never put down more than the bare bones, leaving the inker to do the larger portion of the work. As a former assistant to Murphy Anderson, who, in my opinion, was Gil’s best inker, I learned a lot about filling out unfinished art.”14 The artist went on to say, “My inking job over Gil... included adding all the statuary, masonry art, costuming and jewelry. Gil did none of that. I was originally scheduled to continue as inker on the book, but since I was doing so much extra work, I requested a raise in page rate. Marvel refused, because Gil was getting considerably more than his breakdowns (let’s face it, that’s what they were) were worth, and the budget wouldn’t allow it. I reluctantly went on to something else.”15 Years earlier, Cockrum had come close to working on the adventures of the character while assisting Murphy Anderson at his Manhattan studio. “[He had] the ‘John Carter of Mars’ strip, which I desperately wanted to help out with, being a John Carter fan all of my life,” the artist told Jon B. Cooke in 1999, “but Murphy wouldn’t let me touch that. He’d say, ‘This is mine! Go away!’”16 In 2006, Cockrum wrote online, “It was a dream of mine to do Burroughs’ Martian books as comics, ever since I spent my childhood roaming the dead sea bottoms of Barsoom. My dad had a huge collection of old Grosset & Dunlap hardcover Burroughs books — Tarzan, Earth’s Core, Barsoom, Carson of Venus, and a lot of odd single books. I found them in old boxes in the basement and read them all, but I always loved the Barsoom books best.”17 About the artist’s work on the initial Marvel issue of

John Carter, Claremont wrote, “...having seen the end results on that book, I can’t say as I blame Dave; it was a labor of love, and it looks it[.]”18 As to how he ended up on the title, Cockrum told Jay McKiernan, “The John Carter thing just happened along... I got involved because Marv Wolfman and I had done some preliminary work on a John Carter book for Burroughs Inc.. I had designed characters and actually had penciled three pages of the first issue before they told us to stop, because they’d licensed the property to Marvel.”19 About the venture, Marv Wolfman wrote in 1977, “[In] the spring of 1976 … Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. decided to take their characters back [from DC] and publish them by themselves in Europe. As editor, they hired a good friend, Mark Evanier… Anyhow, Mark, knowing I would slay anyone to handle the new Carter series, immediately asked me to write it. Dave Cockrum was the artist. Dave had completed three pages before the news went out that Burroughs decided to work with Marvel on Tarzan and Carter, instead.”20 In 2004, Wolfman recalled, “…long after Dave made his name on the Legion of Super-Heroes, I worked with [him] quite a bit at Marvel. John Carter, Warlord of Mars, the character created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, was one of our many shared interests. I would have loved to have Dave draw the entire book, but [he] was never fast enough as a penciler to do a Marvel monthly, so he inked the first issue over Gil Kane’s pencils, while I plotted a special issue for Dave to take his time and pencil at his leisure.”21 That issue was #11’s, “The Story of Dejah Thoris,” (Apr. 1978), about which, Wolfman wrote, “It was a great issue; the art was just gorgeous. But then, Dave’s art is always gorgeous.”22 Cockrum’s inker on the issue was Rudy Nebres, whom he once referred to as “…one of the finest artists in the business[.]” In fact, in 2006 he wrote online, “My favorite inkers on me — period — are Rudy Nebres and Ricardo Villagran.”24 Ironically, Cockrum and Nebres later worked together on another fantasy project, one which involved production artwork for a feature film. In the late 1970s, a movie producer approached Marvel Comics about creating illustrations to go with a pitch for a swordand-sorcery motion picture, and Cockrum was given the assignment. His appreciation for the work of Edgar Rice Burroughs was evident throughout the pages, and today, the exact identity of the producer, as well as what the movie might have been called had it been made, are unknown.

Murphy Anderson assists on this 1972 John Carter piece.

John Carter of Mars ™ and © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

In another instance, the artist’s love of all things Carter also nearly manifested itself outside of the comic book industry. In an interview with Anthony Taylor about his work for Aurora Plastics in the mid-seventies, Cockrum remembered, “They tried to get the rights to Burroughs’ ‘John Carter of Mars’ and had me drawing up Martian people in costumes and Martian animals.”25 Even earlier, while still working on Legion of Super-Heroes for DC, Cockrum drew Tars Tarkas in the background of the wedding scene of Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel in Superboy #200 as an Easter egg for Burroughs fans.

In 2006, Mark Evanier recalled, “He and I were going to do a John Carter of Mars graphic novel once but the deal fell through. I don’t think you missed anything by not getting my story but he was so excited about doing it that I know it would have been a very nice book.”26 Homages to Carter also appeared in Cockrum’s Nightcrawler mini-series in 1985. As late as 2001, he told Jay McKiernan, “I loved Burroughs’ storytelling, and there’s still a lot of it in my own.” He added, “There 71

Cockrum in his Marvel office (above), consulting with John Romita (top left), and his rough for the unpublished Ms. Marvel #24. Photos by Eliot R. Brown; rough, thanks to Geoff Willmetts.

Ms. Marvel ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

was a time when you could read me a quote from one of the Barsoomian books and I could tell you which one it came from.”27 Unfortunately for the artist, his only opportunities to illustrate the character came during his days at Marvel. After his death, his cover to John Carter, Warlord of Mars #11 was repurposed as the cover to the Penguin Classics edition of A Princess of Mars, the first novel in the Edgar Rice Burroughs series.

III. On Staff After Cockrum left The X-Men in 1977, he accepted a staff position at Marvel where he did art corrections and designed covers for other artists, as well as for himself, to illustrate. In 2003, about the experience, he wrote online, “I had an untitled job which was probably assistant AD level, but my job was to design the covers for Marvel’s books. Editors would come to me with art from issues in progress and I’d do a rough cover sketch. Once the editor had OK’d it, I’d send it out to the chosen artist to be finished up.”28 Although Cockrum had illustrated a number of covers for the publisher while serving as the regular artist on The X-Men, they had all been on a freelance basis, and were not considered part of his job. In his newfound staff position, it became his responsibility to design the “face” of each book, and thus the “face” of 72

the entire company.

In addition to the roughs which he made for other artists to follow, covers by Cockrum himself appeared on such titles as Marvel Team-Up, Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, Master of Kung Fu, and Spectacular Spider-Man, among others. In reference to his cover designs from that era, in 2004 he told Jim Amash, “There’s a whole period when I can look at a cover and not be sure if I penciled it or not.”29 About his time as Marvel’s cover designer, he wrote online in 2002, “…I was fortunate to be able to go to John Romita Sr. when I had art problems. I’d sometimes struggle over a design for a couple of hours, and finally give up and go to John. Two or three sweeps of the pencil, and he solved the problem! So, having someone knowledgeable around when you have a

problem is always helpful. Sometimes it makes a huge difference.”30 As noted earlier, the artist was also responsible for doing occasional art corrections, and one such job involved an old friend of his. “They had me repair Howie Chaykin’s work on the first Star Wars issue,” he told Amash. “Later, when I ran into Howie, I said, ‘Oh, God, Howie, I’m sorry! They’re making me do this.’ He thought that was funny as hell.”31 In addition to his duties as cover designer, Cockrum also developed a reputation as a go-to guy for quick, but memorable, costume designs.

As far back as 1974, the same year that preliminary talks began about reviving the X-Men franchise, the artist was credited with redesigning the characters Vance Astro and Yondu of the Guardians of the Galaxy in Marvel Two-in-One #6 (Sept. 1974), as well as the Guardians’ ship, the Captain America.32 In 2004’s The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute, Len Wein remembered, “…while I was writing the… Incredible Hulk, I came up with what I then thought of as a throwaway villain to be used in the first few pages of a particular issue, just to give Hulk something to smash. It was a giant robot called the Quintronic Man, so named because the robot was so large and complex, it took five men to control it… Trouble was, I was having a hard time getting anyone to understand exactly what I was looking for in the character visually.

“Enter Dave Cockrum… I stopped Dave in the hall, asked him if he’d be willing to do a quick sketch for me to give the regular Hulk artist to follow. Dave, ever obliging, said sure.

“When Dave handed me that sketch a few minutes later, what I saw looked so amazing that I knew I couldn’t just throw the character away.

Instead, the Quintronic Man became the full-fledged threat for that issue, even though the not-so-Jolly Green Giant ultimately dismantled him[.]”33 Marv Wolfman recalled a similar story when he wrote, “[Dave] is responsible for the look of the Black Cat. I originally created her to be in Spider-Woman, but before I could use her, I left that title and moved her over to Spider-Man instead. That necessitated a complete change in look and concept. There was nobody better to do that than Dave.

Within minutes, he came bounding into my office with a great design that, to this day, is still used.”

Wolfman added, “I knew we had a hit when I started seeing Black Cat costumes pop up at conventions even though she was at that point a little seen and used character. But then, Dave designs characters whose costumes make sense in reality as well as in drawings.”34 Even Cockrum’s collaborator on The X-Men availed of the artist’s talents when needed. While still on the book, he was asked by Chris Claremont to design a villainess for Ms. Marvel to face, as Claremont was also the author of that character’s solo title. In 2003, about the episode, Cockrum wrote online, “Here’s how Deathbird came about: John Byrne brought in a very lame design for a winged villainess which he called ‘Lark.’ Chris Claremont brought it to me and asked me what I could do with it. I retained the color scheme, but the rest of it’s pretty much my design. Chris made her Shi’ar later on. But it worked out pretty well, didn’t it?”35

Cockrum’s design for the Quintronic Man (top), with a little dig at John Byrne’s Rog2000, and a design sketch of Black Cat. Quintronic Man, Black Cat ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Images courtesy of Ted Latner, Geoff Willmetts, and Heritage Auctions. All characters ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Another female character of Cockrum’s used by Claremont was the shape-shifting mutant, Mystique.

About the character, the artist recalled in 2003, “I’d drawn and colored this unnamed woman and hung it on my wall at Marvel. Chris came in one day and said ‘I’ve got to have her!’ I didn’t have any objections, and she became Raven Darkholme, alias Mystique.”36 In 1981, Cockrum explained to Michael Wolf, “I just decided, ‘Hey, let’s do a villainous-looking blue lady with really big jugs.’ I don’t set out deliberately to design ladies with big jugs, so I decided to do one…

She was going to be Ms. Marvel’s Doctor Doom. That’s the entire genesis of the villainess.”37 The artist also redesigned Ms. Marvel herself, giving her a sexier costume. “I was one of the group of Marvel staffers who pressured editorial into closing the bare belly in the original Ms. Marvel costume,” he wrote online in 2006. “Granted I had some bare midriff showing on Storm, but personally, I think it’s an elegant costume.”38 (left) The first drawing of Mystique, before she was even named. (right) Cockrum’s new costume for Ms. Marvel.

Mystique & Ms. Marvel ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Creating a new costume for Ms. Marvel proved to be more complicated than the artist had originally planned. “…I must have gone through fifty designs!” he told Jon B. Cooke in 1999, “…and Stan [Lee] would go, ‘No, no, no, no! Get that out of here!’ Finally I did the one with the lightning bolt and sash, and I took it to Stan, who said, ‘That’s what you should have done from the start! That’s what I like: Shiny leather and tits and ass!’”39 Cockrum and Lee also clashed over the creation of Herbie the Robot. In 2004, the artist told Amash, “Marvel had licensed the Fantastic Four as a television cartoon series. The Human Torch had already been licensed out for a possible movie deal, so they couldn’t use him as one of the group. Somebody came up with the brilliant idea of replacing him with a robot and Stan asked me to design it.

“I thought the whole thing was really stupid, so the ideas I came up with were stupid, too. One was a lampshade on wheels, another was a trash can with a ‘4’ on it… after a dozen or so designs, Stan said, ‘You know, you’re really hard to work with,’ so he called up Jack Kirby, and had him design the robot.”40

Yet another hero created by Cockrum during his time on staff at Marvel was El Aguila, who first appeared in Power Man and Iron Fist #58 (Aug. 1979). According to the artist, “I drew the character because I’m a big Zorro fan. But beyond coming up with the idea that he could channel a sort of plasma-energy while in contact with metal (mostly his sword), I hadn’t given it much thought. Jo Duffy asked if she could use him in Power/ Fist and I said yes. His backstory was created by her.”41 About creating superheroes, the artist once wrote, “I want a superhero to be (if possible) imaginative, powerful, entertaining, (again, if possible) unique, wear a dashing, colorful, and well-designed costume (unless his mission parameters don’t allow it), and be strong of spirit and perhaps even noble — once again, unless he (or she) is deliberately designed to have character flaws to enrich his personality.”42 He later added, “I forgot to mention honor, dignity (well, not always), and a sense of outrage at injustice no matter toward who. And that all-necessary sense of humor. Humor is always welcome, even from villains.”43 He applied the same standards to heroines as he did to their male counterparts. “As far as female characters go, I want them to be strong and beautiful. The requirement for a well-designed and colorful costume is the same. I can point to any of my own female characters — Storm, Phoenix, Lilandra, Ms. Marvel, Sunswift, Mosquito, Silkie — as examples. I look for unique and interesting powers and try to avoid the sort of ‘housewife heroine’ image Stan Lee was so good at inventing back in the ’60s.”44 Cockrum’s first wife, Andrea Kline, confirmed, “He was very big on the female characters — Storm, and Lilandra, and some of those. He just developed that kind of look. He really liked that strong, female [character].” Other characters designed by the artist while he was on staff at Marvel include the villains Dreadknight and Vanguard from Iron Man, and Deathgrip, who appeared in Captain Marvel.

About his time at the publisher in the ’70s, Cockrum once said, “It started out as the greatest fun that a kid could have. It was a lunatic asylum, filled with all these nuts who could draw! It was wonderful in the early days… It was inspired chaos.”45 In 2002, he summed up his feelings about his time there when he said, “Marvel was great when it was number two.”

The artist’s son Ivan also has fond memories of the period in which his father worked directly for the publisher. “When he was on staff at Marvel, I visited a number of times,” the younger Cockrum said in 2007.

“Sometimes when I was going to stay a weekend with

Model sheet for El Aguila, from the collection of Ted Latner.

El Aguila ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

him, I would meet him in the city at the Marvel office.

The Marvel offices were pretty exciting. As a kid, I got that. There was a lot of energy in the area, a lot of creativity. All the artists had their pages on the walls, and they had all of the standy racks, and all of the cardboard cut-outs... all the sales, marketing materials everywhere. It was like Disneyland for a little kid, and as adults go, comic book artists tend to be fairly peculiar, so that was always fun. I enjoyed that.”

From a financial standpoint, Cockrum revealed to Jim Amash in 2004, “It was probably the most solvent I’d been in my entire career.” He added, “[It] represented getting a regular paycheck every two weeks. I liked most of the people there and it was fun, until Jim Shooter took over as Editor-in-Chief.”46 In 2002, about his former roommate, the artist wrote online, “As a friend, away from work, he and I got along very well. However, he was something of a tyrant at the office and though that never really affected me directly, he came down hard on a lot of my friends — and often unfairly, in my opinion. He did give me an employee 77

(below) Cockrum with Andy Yanchus at Marvel, courtesy of Eliott R. Brown. (right) Mr. and Mrs. Cockrum, circa 1980.

evaluation when I was on staff that called me ‘cynical and outspoken’, because I’d object in public to what I considered unfair practices by Marvel.”47 Eventually, the artist had enough. He resigned from Marvel, and in his letter of resignation, he wrote, “I am leaving because this is no longer the team-spirited ‘one big happy family’ I once loved working for. Over the past year or so I have watched morale disintegrate to the point that, rather than being a team or a family, it is now a large collection of unhappy individuals simmering in their own personal stew of repressed anger, resentment, and frustration. I have seen a lot of my friends silently enduring unfair, malicious or vindictive treatment.

“My personal grievances are relatively slight by comparison to some, but I don’t intend to silently endure.

I’ve become firmly convinced that this was done with the idea of ‘showing the hired help who’s Boss.’ I don’t intend to wait around to see what’s next.”

In a bizarre turn of events, Cockrum’s letter was actually printed in Iron Man #127 (Oct. 1979) as a note to Tony Stark from his butler, Jarvis. In the letters page of Iron Man #130 (Jan. 1980), IM author David Michelinie wrote, “If you read Iron Man #127, specifically the letter of resignation on page 30, some of you were undoubtedly confused. You had a right to be. That document was intended to explain that Jarvis was resigning due to the heated confrontation he had had earlier with an inebriated Tony Stark, and it was supposed to be the key element in Tony’s realization that the problems he had been blaming on others were, in reality, his own causing.

“Unfortunately, however, during the production process at Marvel another resignation was statted in by mistake, one that had nothing at all to do with the Iron Man story. I didn’t like it, either. But things like that happen, I’m told, and we’ll all do our best to see that 78

it doesn’t happen again.” The individual who switched the letters has never been identified, nor has his (or her) motivation for the act ever been revealed.

In 2004, about that entire period of his career, Cockrum told Amash, “I finally left the staff job because I’d gotten the itch to be a freelancer again. Plus, I’d gotten tired of Shooter’s oppressive management style, which was more the reason than anything… I just got tired of it and bugged out.”48

IV. The In-Between Years It was while he was on staff at the publisher that Cockrum’s personal life underwent a significant change.

“Dave and I lived together for about a year and half until my Grandmother died in the Spring of ’78,” recalled Paty Cockrum, “leaving me enough money to consider buying a house out on Long Island.

“We went out about halfway out to Commack and found a nice little house. [We] put down the down payment, but the thing is, back in that day and age, it was much, much easier for you to buy a house if you were married, so we got married. We went and we got all the paperwork done, and then one day at Marvel, we looked at each other and said, ‘You want to do it today?’

‘Okay.’ So we invited Andy Yanchus and Jo Duffy, two friends from Marvel, to go and stand up with us, and said, ‘Okay, if anybody else wants to come, we’re gonna

go get married today,’ and we took the subway out to the character. About the hero, he once wrote, “I was a Kew Gardens in Queens, [because] that’s where the Green Lantern fan (Hal Jordan) from day one. It’s high courthouse for the borough of Queens was. So we went on my short list of DC books I wish I could’ve drawn.”52 In 2000, he lamented to Patrick Walsh, “All my life I’ve out to the courthouse and had the justice of the peace wanted to draw Hawkman, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan, marry us, and that happened on April 28, 1978.” not that idiot with the metal plate on his face), and Before leaving the employ of Marvel Comics, Cockrum had also been involved in an attempt to bring a favorite character of his to newsprint. “At one time, I was involved in a project to syndicate a Doc Savage newspaper strip, to be written by Mark Hanerfeld,” he wrote in 1995.49 In 2006, he added, “We did two weeks’ worth, including one Sunday strip. Due to time demands from Bantam Publications — for whom we did the strip, with permission of Conde Nast, the original owner of Doc Savage — the second week was only penciled. Bantam shopped the strip around to newspaper syndicates, and although we had a couple nib- Title panel from one of Hanerfeld and Cockrum’s Doc Savage newspaper sample strips, a Green Lantern sketch, and the opening page of Marvel Super-Special #15. bles, there were no takers. Personally, Doc Savage ™ and © Conde Nast Entertainment. Green Lantern ™ and © DC Comics. Star Trek ™ and © ViacomCBS. I think we might have gotten better results if Mark and I had done the shopping around.

At least we’d have been more passionate about it.”50 In 1979, Cockrum was given the opportunity to illustrate another longtime love in the form of Star Trek. Having first been introduced to the series when it debuted on television in 1967, he continued to be a fan of the franchise in the intervening years, and, in 2006, he wrote online, “I had the assignment to draw the Marvel adaptation of Star Trek: the Motion Picture — the first Trek movie. Marv Wolfman had the writing chores. Marvel sent Marv and I [sic] and Len Wein out to Hollywood to Paramount Studios to (hopefully) see the rough cut of the film. Unfortunately, director Robert Wise wouldn’t allow anyone to see the rough cut. We did get a tour of Paramount’s sets and saw some really neat stuff at Industrial Light & Magic, and at Doug Trumbull’s workshops. I fell in love with the movie version of Enterprise (a 14-foot model) when we saw her parked in Spacedock, hanging over our heads in the dark.”51 That same year, the artist returned to his former employer at DC Comics to illustrate a twelve-page Green Lantern story that appeared in Green Lantern #128 (May 1980). Originally intended for the “Dollar Comic” version of Adventure Comics, it was rescheduled for the Emerald Gladiator’s own series the following year, and was the only time that Cockrum illustrated 79

Flash. I got to do one Green Lantern story, but that’s it.”53 In 2003, he repeated, “...I’ve always been a huge fan of both GL and GK [Gil Kane, Green Lantern’s original artist].”54 In fact, the artist even had a Green Lantern shrine in his house, complete with working power battery.55 1979 was also the year that Cockrum painted the covers of three Marvel Novels: The Man Who Stole Tomorrow (featuring the Avengers), Holocaust for Hire (featuring Captain America), and The Marvel Super-Heroes (featuring the Hulk, Daredevil, the Avengers, and the X-Men). About another Captain America cover (Sentinel of Liberty’s reprint collection of significant comic book stories), he told J.R. Riley in 1982, “I had done a photorealistic flag with all the crinkles and creases in it... That was the original design, which they had liked. But Stan said he thought Cap disappeared because of the flag, so they had that one taken out and they had a droopy flag fall off the page at the bottom. I don’t like it as well.”56

Cockrum’s childhood favorite characters, the Blackhawks.

Blackhawk ™ and © DC Comics

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While freelancing, the artist also took note of an event that occurred in his former title that was the focus of much attention throughout the entire industry. In X-Men #137, after a two-year storyline in which the character of Phoenix had undergone a transformation into a villain and back into a hero again, she was killed by the book’s creative staff as the result of editorial intervention. In 2006, about the matter, Cockrum wrote, “No, I did not agree with Jean’s death, I was LIVID. For my reaction, [I did] a piece titled ‘Up From the Ashes: PHOENIX REBORN!’ I had no particular thought about her future, except that no matter how many times you kill off a Phoenix — she comes back. That’s what they do... come back.”57 In addition to ultimately being proven right on the matter, Cockrum’s response served to prove the degree to which he remained attached to his creations.

In 1980, the artist worked on a project unknown to many of his fans. He wrote and drew a month’s worth of material for a potential daily newspaper strip called Dr. Fang. The titular character was an evil scientist with designs on world domination, accompanied by his assistant, Sigafoos. It is unknown how seriously he pursued the venture.

When Marvel Comics launched an ongoing Star Trek series in 1980 set in the period following the first film, the first three issues reprinted Cockrum’s movie adaptation from Marvel Super Special #15 (Dec. 1979) before it continued on with him as the regular artist.

About the experience, he told J.R. Riley in 1982, “I’d asked for it and I was expecting to stay on it for years and years... but they’d put Klaus Janson on the inking...

I like Klaus’ inking on some people, but on me it just doesn’t work… When they finally did give me other inkers, they were less competent than Klaus and it was like a downhill ride. And I just gave up after the ninth issue.”58 Also in 1980, the artist fulfilled another lifelong dream when he got the opportunity to draw the Blackhawks in The Brave and the Bold #167 (Oct. 1980).

About the assignment, he wrote in 2002, “When I did the Batman/Blackhawks crossover… I requested that [Wally Wood] ink it. Unfortunately, he was suffering from ill health and had already returned a Wonder Woman book unfinished. Editorial gave it to Dan Adkins, who had been Woody’s assistant at one point... but it wasn’t the same.”59 Cockrum’s love of the characters went all the way back to childhood, when he was first introduced to their series while living in Illinois. He listed Blackhawk co-creator Reed Crandall as an influence, and about his

Two samples of the Dr. Fang newspaper strip, and a gag based on Cockrum’s design of the character.

Dr. Fang ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

work, he once said, “If I could be condemned as being too Reed Crandall, I’d die happy!”60 In 1982, when DC Comics revived the Blackhawk series because Steven Spielberg had optioned the property for film (based upon his affection for the 1947 Blackhawk movie serial), Cockrum was offered the assignment but turned it down due to DC’s lower rates. “...Marvel was paying me $30 a page more than DC was willing to pay,” he recalled years later, “and it simply wasn’t economically feasible.”61 He did illustrate several covers for the series, as well as two “Detached Service Diary” stories for the revival. In 2000, in an interview with Patrick Walsh, he referred to Blackhawk as “…my best beloved book of all time[.]”62 Throughout Cockrum’s time on Star Trek and his contributions to Blackhawk, he also illustrated comic book covers for both Marvel and DC on books as diverse as Wonder Woman, Justice League of America, Avengers, and Spider-Woman. It was also during this period that he returned to do a cover of Legion of Super-Heroes (#275, May 1981), a series that he had not worked on since he left DC years earlier. The artist also took the opportunity to redesign Phantom Girl’s costume on the cover so as to eliminate the trademark bell bottoms which he had given her in 1972. Interior artists did not take note of the costume change, however, and the Legionnaire remained fashionably out of style until 1988.

Another passion of the artist’s which he tended to during this period was modeling. According to longtime friend Andy Yanchus, “We were both member of the Brooklyn Plastic Modelers’ Society (BPMS), as was Dave’s wife, Paty! Dave and Paty spent hours driving to

the meetings each month, and Dave usually had some new model to display.” Yancus went on to say, “I edited the club newsletter, and Dave contributed a mountain of original art to the publication. He did illustrations for product reviews, caricatures for regular column headings, space filling spots and cartoons.”63 The artist’s generosity extended beyond the newsletter. In 1995, Cockrum recalled, “In 1980, my former hobby club, the Brooklyn Plastic Modellers Society, planned to put on a regional modeling convention...

Unfortunately, convention plans fell through and the art [which I had drawn for the cover of the convention booklet] was never used.”64 Yanchus also remembered, “We sponsored a few science fiction themed contests where Dave provided the first prize — an original piece of art of the winning model! That sure got some car, tank, and plane modelers building something completely different.”65

V. Return to Xavier’s In 1981, Cockrum returned to the title he had helped revamp in 1975. In 2003, he wrote online, “My coming back to X-Men was a serendipitous accident. I’d been asked to pencil ‘X-Men’ in Marvel Fanfare [#3, Jul. 1982] and it was so much fun I mentioned to Chris Claremont (on a Saturday) that if Byrne left the book, I’d like to have it back. The following Monday, Byrne quit the book, and I returned, after one fill-in by Brent Anderson.”66 Just prior to the assignment, the artist had returned to his favorite creation, Nightcrawler, for a story printed in Bizarre Adventures #27 (Jul. 1981). BA was 81

a black-&-white magazine published by Marvel, and, due to sagging sales, an X-Men themed issue was commissioned which featured solo stories of Phoenix, Iceman, and Nightcrawler. The latter was written

by Bob Layton and Jo Duffy, and featured a comedic take on the German X-Man. For his part, Cockrum was only too happy to play along. “Fun comics were always my favorites,” he wrote in 2006. “I always tried to put a sense of fun in my own comics.”67 About his first issue on the series after his three year absence, he told Peter Sanderson, “...it was like coming out of a tunnel into the daylight after the Star Trek crap and all that.”68 In 2006, he clarified matters when he wrote, “...I don’t want to say anything against Klaus Janson’s work,

because I admire him tremendously — but having said that, I agree that he’s not compatible with every penciler. He doesn’t work well with me, nor John Buscema, either. At the time, I asked for a different inker, but the editor couldn’t see that there was anything wrong and refused to change.”69 One new character that the artist had to deal with upon his return to the series was Kitty Pride, then known as Sprite. “When I first took over the book I called her ‘the brat,’” Cockrum told J.R. Riley in 1982. “Then I discovered she was fun to draw and fun to work with. She’s sheer, unabashed juvenile exuberance and she can go out and get away with doing a whole lot of things that the other characters can’t get away with.”70 A running gag during Cockrum’s second stint on the series was Pride’s constant redesign of her costume. In keeping with the character’s age, the artist concluded that she would likely experiment with different fashions, much to the chagrin of her teammates and mentor. In 1981, he told Sanderson, “...she’s wearing a roller-disco outfit that’s the most garish, horrible thing you’ve ever seen in your life,”71 and in 2003, he explained online, “I was trying to concoct a costume that a thirteen-year-old would think was kewl! You should have seen some of the mail we got. The most frequent question was ‘Has Cockrum lost his frigging mind?’”72 When asked by J.R. Riley how long the costume drama would continue, he responded, “As long as we can milk it for gags.”73 The artist’s second stint on the series also presented him with the opportunity to draw the Fantastic Four’s arch-nemesis, Dr. Doom.

About the character, Cockrum wrote online in 2006, “Personally, I’ve always considered Doc Doom to be Marvel’s greatest villain. He even has a twisted sort of nobility (that’s not to say it’s safe to turn your back on him)... I don’t know that Doom thinks of himself as ‘good.’

He just wants what he wants and woe to anybody who stands in his way. He’s amoral. But he allows himself the delusion that he’s justified in his actions. That’s what comes from living in a tin can.”74 Years earlier, he had written about the char(above) The painted cover to X-Men Chronicles #1. (top) Sprite in her new acter, “I think Doom walks a fine line between outfit, from Uncanny X-Men #149. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. 82

(above) Cockrum and Claremont at Eldorado Comics circa 1979. (left) A sketch of Magneto and Cyclops, both courtesy of Dave Braunstein.

Cyclops, Magneto ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

sanity and insanity, and he’s evil to the extent that nothing must stand in the way of whatever he wants.

I always used to say if it came to having Doom or the Red Skull ruling me, I’d go for Doom every time. At least he’s not viciously unpredictable. Of course, I’d pick Magneto over either of those guys.”75 Another character featured in the same storyline didn’t fare as well in the artist’s estimation. “I’ve got a grudge against Arcade myself,” he wrote online in 2002.

“Although I don’t know if I want him dead, I’d just like to see him pounded into jelly. In fact, I don’t know why Doctor Doom didn’t do it when the little pimple struck a match on Doom’s armor and called him ‘Vic.’”76 It was also during Cockrum’s second run on the book that the character Caliban made his first appearance. Originally conceived by John Byrne, it was up to Cockrum to design the character when the Canadian artist left the series. He later told Sanderson, “I don’t know what John’s [version of the character] looks like.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen it. Mine is a kind of ragman that lives in the sewers of New York City... Chris passed it along to me[.]” He later elaborated, “He’s definitely humanoid. He runs around looking like a bargain basement Lamont Cranston most of the time, in a raggedy cape and hat and stuff like that.”77 About working with his former collaborator again, Cockrum told Keith Wilson, “...I like to work with Chris. We’re friends from years gone by, and he’s easy to work with. He probably thinks I’m hard to work with because if he suggests something that I don’t like, I’ll put my foot down and say no. No negotiation.”78 In 2002, he wrote online about their collaboration, “Most of the time we worked from plots. My first tour on the

book, we’d get together for a plotting session and I’d take notes, then work from my own notes. Second time round we’d still do the plotting session, but then Chris would go home and type up a plot outline for me.”79 It was during Cockrum’s second tour on the book that the artist was given another opportunity to illustrate the X-Men’s traditional nemesis, Magneto. “I don’t consider Magneto evil,” he wrote in 2006. “Having gone through the Holocaust and seen most of his people murdered, he’s determined to prevent it from happening again to mutantkind, who he’s adopted as his new family/race. He is ruthless in his methods sometimes, I’ll say that for him.”80 When he compared the character to Dr. Doom, he wrote, “...I still prefer Magneto — because I no longer see him as a villain. An adversary, absolutely. But he has a point of view I can see and understand, and though I don’t agree with some of his methods, I do agree with most of his goals.”81 It was in the double-sized 150th issue of Uncanny X-Men that the Magneto storyline reached its climax, about which the artist told Riley, “When I took The X-Men back I had no idea I was going to be faced with a double-sized issue, and I told them I didn’t want to do it. They said, ‘All right, we’ll have someone else do it.’ It was a choice of either not doing #150, or doing #150 and having somebody else do some fill-ins, because #150 was going to put us behind. So I chose to do #150.”82 An interesting footnote to the issue is that it also included the then-friend of Cyclops, Lee Forrester, about whom Cockrum later wrote, “...Chris couldn’t make up his mind what her first name was, except that he wanted it to be a man’s name. He kept changing it 83

from page to page, when we first introduced her. I don’t remember what all he called her — I think ‘Sam’ was in there at one point. When he decided to name her ‘Aletys’ he couldn’t decide whether she was ‘Al’ or ‘Lee.’ So I got to where I’d refer to her by a different man’s name for each panel (I wrote liner notes with suggested dialog, etc): Bill, Pete, Charley, Morton, Adolph — I finally settled on ‘Fogarty,’ and that was the name I used for her for the rest of my run on the book.”83 Shortly after the anniversary issue, Cockrum was given the chance to inject more of his own tastes into the series in the form of “Kitty’s Fairy Tale,” (#153, Jan. 1982). In 2004, he wrote about the story, “I suggested the fairy tale, and co-plotted with Chris. I had just re-read my old T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents collection, which included a story called ‘Weed’s Fairy Tale,’ wherein the character Weed told his niece and nephew a fairy tale featuring the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. characters. It got me thinking, and I suggested to Chris that we should try a fairy tale. Originally, we wanted to do a double-sized issue, or a two-part story, but editorial wouldn’t let us.

Cockrum’s designs for Deathbird and one of her alien minions which later became the Brood.

Deathbrood, X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

84

They said there wasn’t enough time to advertise a double-sized issue, and they didn’t think the storyline warranted two issues.”84 Years later, when asked which of his father’s stories was his favorite, Ivan Cockrum responded, “I would say, probably ‘Kitty’s Fairy Tale,’ because he was allowed to have fun, and that was the thing that he really liked to do. My dad was basically a big kid at heart. He collaborated well, but he really wanted to do silly, old-time swashbuckler stories. He definitely had a sensibility that was rooted in serial film and old radio programs and Errol Flynn movies, and so it was fun when he was allowed to do that kind of thing unfettered.”

Returning to The X-Men also allowed the artist to revisit some characters that he hadn’t had the opportunity to draw since his first stay on the title over four years before. Left dormant almost as long as he had been away from the series, the Starjammers returned in #154 and remained throughout the end of his run. This time around, the artist added Sikorsky (an insectoid medic) to their ranks, and it was also his first opportunity to draw Waldo (the ship’s central control), which he had designed back in 1977. About the latter, he said in 2002, “Something else that never really came out in any of the storylines was that ‘Waldo’ (Corsair’s name for him — he was actually designated as a P.C. Ship Control Analog) had a human brain implanted in him.

I never decided how to go with it — a brain salvaged from someone killed in battle or an accident, or possibly an infant brain grown specially for the purpose.”85 Also during his second run on The X-Men, Cockrum was responsible for adding another long-lasting contribution to the team’s mythos in the form of the Brood. “The first Brood warrior was just thrown in as

one of Deathbird’s alien henchmen,” he recalled online in 2002. “But we liked it so much we started thinking in terms of a race of those horrors. I saw the Brood as a cross between Alien, a Chasmosaurus (one of the frilled dinosaurs, a relative of Triceratops) and a wasp. The wasp part was the scariest aspect, and governed where my designs went... I loved the double stingers.

I thought that was really frightening. I like to say I’m the proud papa of a race so evil that if Phoenix had eaten their world, she’d have been given a medal and the keys to the galaxy.”86 During this period, Claremont and Cockrum also breathed new life into a character who both creators had worked on before.

In the years between the artist’s two stays on the title, Carol Danvers had lost her powers and memories in an encounter with Rogue, then a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. After her memories were restored by Professor Xavier, she became an acquaintance of the X-Men, and while associated with the group, was transformed into the being known as Binary. The character’s real world origin was much simpler than its fictional counterpart: “...I was doodling another character and calling her ‘Binary,’” Cockrum remembered, “And he says, ‘Jean Grey?’... and I says, ‘Give me a break, Chris.’ He said, ‘Carol Danvers?’ And I said, ‘Wel-l-l-l.’ And he got her for that one, you know.”87 Binary would later join the Starjammers as a full-fledged member of the group.

In 1981, due to the success of The X-Men, Marvel Comics decided to launch a spin-off title from the main book called The New Mutants. Due to his working relationship with New Mutants author Claremont, Cockrum was aware of the team’s development, and in 2002, he remembered, “I confess, when Chris Claremont was first putting together the original format and mentioned that one of his kids was going to be a coal miner from West Virginia (Cannonball), I suggested with a snicker that he name the kid ‘Black Lung.’”88 Cockrum eventually drew an issue of the title himself, although it was not published until after his death.

Back in 1981, while still working on The X-Men, the artist was selected by Marvel to draw the 1982 crossover between DC and Marvel Comics. The decision was based upon the fact that Cockrum had drawn both the X-Men and the Legion of Super-Heroes, the two teams that were planned to meet in the upcoming

Early designs for Binary, who, at Claremont’s suggestion, became the new identity of Carol Danvers.

Binary ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

summer event. However, because of the rising popularity of Marv Wolfman and George Pérez’s New Teen Titans over at DC, Marvel’s competitor decided to make it an X-Men/Teen Titans crossover instead.

That year, Marvel’s then-Editor-in-Chief, Jim Shooter, told Harry Broertjes, “I think it’s a mistake.

I think they’d be much better off with the Legion. It’s a more established series and it has better characters — and more recognizable characters, like Superboy.

I think the Titans is sort of their hot book right now, but the Legion has really been [the] consistent winner that they ought to go with.” When asked by Broertjes if Cockrum was slated to draw the book, Shooter replied, “Well, that was the theory; I don’t know. I don’t know if Dave can or will, but that was the theory. If he doesn’t, I’ve got some alternatives.”89 In 2002, Cockrum recalled, “There was... originally going to be a Legion/X-Men crossover, and I was to draw it, and then they decided, ‘No, we’ll make it a Teen Titans/X-Men crossover,’ and that’s the one that Walt Simonson drew. They figured that the Teen Titans were more commercial.”90 With the absence of the Legion of Super-Heroes and his own busy schedule on the monthly X-Men title, the decision was ultimately made to have the crossover be 85

drawn by somebody else. In 2005, Simonson recalled about the project, “Actually, I was really second in line.

Dave Cockrum was the regular X-artist, so he would’ve been the first choice, but I believe what went on was that Dave was doing a regular book, [and] he couldn’t really do the regular monthly comic and a 64-page book for Marvel and DC for the crossover, so basically I fell into it that way.”91 Cockrum’s editor on The X-Men, Louise Simonson, verified the artist’s difficulty with deadlines when she told the Dave Cockrum Tribute Panel in 2007, “...as far as getting comic pages done, he wasn’t hugely fast[.]”

Cockrum himself told Jay McKiernan in 2001, “I’m not the fastest artist in the world; it was a real struggle for me to meet deadlines, and sometimes I didn’t.”92 In order to keep on schedule during his second run on The X-Men, the artist told his online fans in 2006, “I did loose pencils in blue. Editor [Louise Simonson] referred to them as ‘shakedowns.’ But everything was there.”93 Overall, about his art on his second X-Men run, he told an online poster in 2003, “...I think I drew better the second time around, although I may have been more enthused the first time.”94 In 1982, the artist was presented with a difficult choice while still the regular X-Men artist.

“Almost a year earlier, I had run a proposal past Jim Shooter for my Futurians graphic novel,” he told McKiernan. “It sat on his desk for that whole year. About the time the X-Men were trapped on the Brood homeworld, Shooter finally said, ‘Okay, you can do it if you want to.’ I didn’t know what to do; I wanted to do the Futurians, but I didn’t really want to leave X-Men, I was still having fun with it.

“At an X-Men plotting session, Chris and editor [Louise Simonson] asked me about the Futurians, and as I was describing the characters and storyline I started jumping up and down, waving my hands, making sound effects, and in general acting like a lunatic. They decided I was more interested in Futurians than in X-Men, and talked me into leaving the book. I sometimes wonder if it wasn’t a good way of getting me to leave so they could choose a faster and more malleable artist.”95 In 1999, in reference to his departure from the series, the artist told Jon B. Cooke, “That was probably the biggest mistake of my life! That was about the time they started paying the royalties and reprint money. It takes nine months after an issue goes on sale before you get a royalty check so I hadn’t received one yet by the time I quit The X-Men. When the first one came it was $2000 right out of the air! I thought, ‘Geez!’ And it got better...

If I had known about that kind of money coming in... you couldn’t have pried me off that book with a crowbar. The Futuri(above) The X-Men in action. (next page) Cockrum had plans for Moonfang at ans was never that successful.”96 Marvel, but lacked the time to follow through. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. 86

Endnotes 1 Glen Cadigan, “Dave Cockrum,” The Legion Companion

(TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003), pg. 73.

23 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

24 Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to the

2 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 73.

Legion,” op. cit., pg. 7.

3 Clifford Meth, “Ex-X-Man,” Wizard: The Guide to Comics #33

25 Anthony Taylor, “Building a Better Monster: Dave Cock-

(Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., May 1994), pg. 40.

4 B. Stacia, “In Memoriam: Dave Cockrum,” Scoop: The Main

Event (Gemstone Publishing, Inc., Dec. 1, 2006).

5 Martin Griem, “Capt. Marvel Jr. Flies Again!” Comic Cru-

rum’s Model Kit Designs,” Comic Book Resources (www. comicbookresources.com, Jan. 15, 2007).

26 Mark Evanier, “About Dave,” POV Online (www.

newsfromme.com, Nov. 26, 2006).

sader #15 (Martin Griem, 1973), pg. 17.

27 McKiernan, op. cit.

6 Dark Bamf, “Toostie Pinkletoes,” Cockrum Corner (www.

28 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 6.

NightScrawlers.com, May 4, 2004), pg. 1.

7 Stacia, op. cit.

29 Jim Amash, “We Kicked the Whole Thing Around a Lot!”

Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 45.

8 Dave Cockrum, “A Question for Dave,”

Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 7, 2002), pg. 1.

9 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 73.

10 ibid, pg. 73.

11 Stacia, op. cit.

12 ibid.

13 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 73.

14 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to the Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, Dec. 27, 2002), pg. 5.

15 Bamf, op. cit.

16 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cock-

rum,” Comic Book Artist Collection Vol. 2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg. 158.

17 Dark Bamf, “Soulsearchers,” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Mar. 19, 2006), pg. 1.

18 Chris Claremont, “X-Mail,” X-Men #106 (Marvel Comics Group, Aug. 1977), pg. 32.

19 Jay McKiernan, “Dave Cockrum Inter-

view,” (http://x-worldcomics.com/x/ column/cockrum.html, 2001).

20 Marv Wolfman, “Welcome Back, Carter,”

John Carter, Warlord of Mars #1 (Marvel Comics Group, June 1977), pg. 23.

21 Marv Wolfman, “My Buddy Dave,” The

Uncanny Dave Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 42.

22 Wolfman, op.cit. pg. 42.

Moonfang ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

87

Cockrum’s designs for (from left to right) Deathgrip, Dreadknight, and Vanguard. Thanks to Deathgrip co-creator Scott Edelman for keeping a copy! Deathgrip, Dreadknight, Vanguard ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. 30 Dave Cockrum, “Artistic Development?” The Workshop

(www.comiXfan.com, June 25, 2002), pg. 1

31 Amash, op. cit., pg. 45.

32 “The Ever-lovin’ Blue-Eyed Letters Page!” Marvel Two-in-

One #6 (Marvel Comics Group, Nov. 1974).

33 Len Wein, “Dave’s Magic Sketchbook,” The Uncanny Dave

Cockrum… A Tribute (Aardwolf Publishing, 2004), pg. 33.

34 Wolfman, op. cit., pg. 43.

35 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 6.

36 Dark Bamf, “Hey Dark Bamf — I Think You’ll Like X-Men

2,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, May 7, 2003), pg.

1.

37 J.R. Riley, Keith Wilson, Michael Wolff, “Things That Go

Bamf in the Night,” Comic Informer #5 (Comic Informer Enterprises, June–July, 1982), pg. 20.

38 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” Cockrum

45 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 161.

46 Amash, op. cit., pg. 45.

47 Dave Cockrum, “A Question for Dave,” Classically Cockrum

(www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 7, 2002), pg. 1.

48 Amash, op. cit., pg. 47.

49 Cockrum, “Contents,” op. cit., pg. 3.

50 Dark Bamf, “Dave Doc Savage Strip,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 14, 2006), pg. 1.

51 Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” op. cit., pg. 8.

52 Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to the

Legion,” op. cit., pg. 11.

53 Patrick Walsh, “A Candid Conversation with Dave Cock-

rum,” (www.comiXtreme.com, Dec. 22, 2000).

54 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 7.

55 Dave Cockrum, “Dave Is in the Hospital Again,” Classically

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, July 28, 2006), pg. 2.

Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 15, 2002), pg. 4.

39 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 161.

56 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg. 22.

40 Amash, op. cit., pg. 47.

57 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 8.

41 Dave Cockrum, “Ask Dave Cockrum,” Classically Cockrum

58 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg. 21–22.

(www.comiXfan.com, Apr. 28, 2003), pg. 1.

42 Dark Bamf, “What Do You Look for in a Super-Hero?”

Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 22, 2006), pg. 1.

43 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

44 ibid., pg. 1.

88

59 Dave Cockrum, “Dave’s Question Thread,” Classically Cock-

rum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 14, 2002), pg. 1.

60 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

61 Dave Cockrum, “Blackhawks on Justice League,” Classically

Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 22, 2000), pg. 1.

62 Walsh, op. cit.

63 Andy Yanchus, “Dave Cockrum — A Model Artist,” Alter

Ego Vol. 3 #163 (TwoMorrows Publishing, Mar. 2020) pg. 12.

64 Cockrum, “Contents,” op. cit.,

81 ibid, pg. 6.

82 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg. 23.

83 Dave Cockrum, “Cockrum,” Van-

pg. 3.

65 Yanchus, op. cit.

Sciver’s Vault (www.comiXfan.com, Jan. 3, 2003), pg. 1.

66 Dark Bamf, “Dave, What Do

84 Dark Bamf, “Kitty’s Fairy

Tale,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 22, 2004), pg. 1.

You Think of John Byrne’s Penciling of X-Men,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 22, 2003), pg. 1.

85 Dark Bamf, “LSH vs. Imperial

67 Dark Bamf, “Fun Comics,”

Guard,” DCMB: The Legion (www. dccomics.com, Dec. 28, 2002), pg. 3.

Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 26, 2006), pg. 1.

86 Dave Cockrum, “Violent, Insane,

and Passé Q & A,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 25, 2002), pg. 1.

68 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 78.

69 Dark Bamf, “Dave Cockrums Star Trek Art,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, May 24, 2006), pg. 1.

87 Craig Shutt, Brian K. Morris, “The X-Men: A Cool Concept!” Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May 2003), pg. 23.

70 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit.,

pg. 20.

88 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

71 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 56.

89 Harry Broertjes, “Jim Shooter Inter-

view,” X-Men Chronicles #1 (FantaCo Enterprises, Inc., July 1981), pg. 11.

72 Dave Cockrum, “Costume

Question,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Jan. 4, 2003), pg. 1.

90 Glen Cadigan, “Dave Cockrum,”

The Legion Companion (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003), pg. 73–74.

73 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit.,

pg. 23.

91 Glen Cadigan, “Walter Simon-

74 Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on

son,” The Titans Companion (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2005), pg. 131.

X-Men,” op. cit., pg. 6.

75 Dave Cockrum, “Questions:

Magneto, Doom, UXM #145–150,” Classically Cockrum (www. comiXfan.com, Oct. 13, 2002), pg.

1.

92 McKiernan, op. cit.

93 Dark Bamf, “Question for Dave

About Pencilling His Two X-Men Stints,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Apr. 25, 2006), pg. 1.

76 Dave Cockrum, “What Char-

acter Would You Most Like to See Assassinated?” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Jan. 4, 2003), pg. 1.

94 Dark Bamf, “Nosy Royalties

Question for Dark Bamf,” DCMB: Hawkman (www.dccomics.com, Apr. 26, 2003), pg. 1.

77 Sanderson, op. cit., pg. 85.

78 Riley, Wilson, Wolff, op. cit., pg.

95 McKiernan, op. cit.

23.

79 Dave Cockrum, “Hey, What The

—?!?/Testing Attachments,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 1, 2002), pg. 2.

96 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 161.

Cover roughs for actual books. Cockrum changed the titles to have a little fun. Courtesy of Ruben Espinosa and Heritage Auctions.

All characters ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

80 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

89

90

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Chapter 5: 1982–1985

A

I. Tomorrow Is Now

fter a year-and-a-half as the penciller of the The author continued, “The Inheritors abandoned monthly X-Men series, in 1982 Dave Cockrum their time in favor of a more primitive one (right, achieved a goal that he had not yet accomours, you guessed it) that perhaps they could conquer. plished in his entire career: to create a new team of The scientists were unable to physically follow, and superhero characters and retain all rights associated so they did the next best thing: they seeded the past with them. In 1985, he wrote, “The Futurians... is with tailored chromosome packages — genetic ‘time another major milestone for me. It’s the first time I’ve bombs’ — designed to create superior potential in cerset out to do a series with characters that I not only cretain human strains. Terminus then sent the mind of its ated, but that I own myself. This gives me the opportugreatest scientist into the past to occupy the body of a nity to introduce other characters, which means I can 20th Century man, and organize a defense against the finally use some of the hundreds of Inheritors. He arrived into a derecharacters I’ve come up with over lict wino in a back alley in Denver, the past thirty years. I’ve never in 1962.”3 Regarding the full team, the been prolific enough to use many of Futurians were, “...Avatar, a 7,000 them, and also, one becomes relucyear old perfect specimen with tant to give away characters to a enormous power of mind and company so they can get rich while body; Sunswift, a 3,000 year old you get a wart on your nose. WitEgyptian woman whose power ness the New X-Men.”1 Originally launched as Marvel caused her to become too hot to Graphic Novel #9 (1983), “The live on Earth — she now resides in Futurians dealt with the residents of the Sun; Terrayne, the Earthmover, Earth, some five million years in the a former football star turned into a future. Splintered into two warring huge shambling lump of stuff with groups called the Inheritors and the geo-manipulative powers; BlackScientists of Terminus, they strugmane, a very short comic book gled for domination of the Earth. artist transformed into a very tall Both sides having lost all knowland raunchy leonine being; Silkie, edge of space travel, their battles Dave Cockrum in 1984, in a photograph a marine biologist transformed into published in David Anthony Kraft’s Comics were limited to an already ravaged Interview #20 (Feb. 1985). a fish-lady; Mosquito, a world-class Earth. Ultimately, despairing of gymnast and all-around bug-pervictory, the Inheritors used a gigantic tractor-cannon son; Werehawk, a Dakota Indian who’s exactly what called the Sky-Gripper to pull the moon from orbit and the name says; and Silver Shadow, a former spy who drop it onto Terminus, nearly destroying Earth itself in travels through dimensional doorways in shadows. the process. Ordinarily this would’ve ended hostilities, These, then are The Futurians!”4 Out of all the characters, their creator put the most but — Terminus has this really terrific force field. Half thought into the team’s leader. “Avatar... has an incredthe world wrecked, and their city sat there snickering ibly long and complex backstory,” he wrote in 2003. at the Inheritors. This is no way to treat desperate vil“He’s an immortal of extremely long life, and has lains; you’re supposed to lay down and die, or at least 2 been many of history’s most influential men, includwet your pants.”

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ing Moses, Hammurabbi, King Arthur, Leonardo Da Vinci, and Doc Savage. He’s kind of my take on Superman and Magneto.”5 One Futurian in particular dated back to Cockrum’s days on staff at Marvel. After he had designed a new costume for Ms. Marvel, the artist drew a house ad for the solo series of the character that included a montage of the hero’s upcoming adversaries. In addition to Mystique and another unused character, Warhawk, there also appeared Mosquito, the future Futurian. About the ad, Cockrum wrote in 2002, “I had originally thought of using her as a villainess in Ms. Marvel’s book. I’m glad I didn’t.”6 The entire team was manipulated by Vandervecken, who was actually the consciousness of the Scientist General Callistrax from the far future inside the body of the aforementioned wino. Vandervecken “...spent the next twenty years building a technological empire called Future Dynamics as a power base, and then, just in time for the Inheritors’ arrival in the mid-1980s, organized a group of his genetically-enhanced humans.”7 The character kept the Futurians in line whenever necessary by the use of mental hypnosis, as each member of the group was “...the result of genetic manipulation, which includes a compulsion to use your powers for the benefit of mankind — whether you like it or not!”8 Only Avatar was immune to Vandervecken’s “...trick eyes...” as he had “...burned out your inbred compulsion ages ago.”9 About the graphic novel itself, Cockrum wrote, “[It] was a major milestone to me, as it was the first comics project I ever did more or less on my own, writing, penciling and inking. Of course, I had some first-rate help in those areas I didn’t feel competent at: Jim Novak on lettering, my wife Paty on coloring, and Al Milgrom acting — at my request — as editor. They all did a terrific job [and] I’m proud of the finished product; it’s a good book.”10 In 2001, about the graphic novel, he told Jay McKiernan, “...once the characters were firmly set in my mind, the rest of the story just kind of fell into place.

I sat down and typed out the plot over several days, and then drew out the entire story in thumbnails — 72 pages of them.”11 As far as his inspiration for the series, the artist told McKiernan, “I can see influences in Futurians from favorite old sci-fi novels, most notably Arthur C. Clarke’s The City and the Stars, a book I’ve loved since my early teens. In fact, I’m occasionally embarrassed at some of the unconscious pilferage from City: for instance, I have a character, a Scientist General named Callistrax. There’s a minor character in City named ‘Callitrax’. I first discovered that several years after 92

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Futurians was published, and let out with a very loud ‘OOPS!’ My apologies to Mr. Clarke, any similarities to his fine book were unintentional.”12 The artist’s comic book influences also factored into the volume. He dedicated the book to “...Stan, Jack, Steve, John, Bill, Julie, Murray, Gardner, Murphy, Joe, Gil, Carmine, Curt, Will, C.C., Mac, Jesse, Carl, Dick, Reed, Chuck, Al, and especially Wally — who, with a host of others, blazed the trail and made this work happen — and to Paty, whose magic palette breathed life into it.”13 The Futurians graphic novel “...did pretty well, went to three printings, and a series was called for.”14 However, after publication of the initial Futurians story, the artist was approached by David Singer, the publisher of a new comic book company called Deluxe Comics, to work on a revival of Wally Wood’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents. In 2005, Cockrum told Jon B. Cooke, “Then we got talking about my Futurians graphic novel, at a time when I was on the verge of making a deal with Marvel for a continuing Futurians series to appear as an Epic book. But David offered me a huge amount of money, more than Marvel would pay me, to do Futurians for him.”15 In 1984, prior to the launch of the ongoing Futurians

series, the artist told Dwight Jon Zimmerman, “The contract for The Futurians read that if I was made a better offer and Marvel wouldn’t match it, I would be free to go.

David made a substantially better offer. And, since Marvel has a lot of their own properties, they let me take The Futurians to him with their blessing. It was a very amicable arrangement.”16

II. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Artist Before Cockrum began work on his creator-owned series for Singer, however, he first contributed to the publisher’s relaunch of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents for its Deluxe Comics imprint. In 2006, he told his online fans, “My favorite series from the ’60s was T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents — as many of you must know by now, because I constantly mention them — and that was because there was a lot of fun in their stories.”17 The artist was first introduced to the characters while serving in the Navy in 1965, and could remember buying the first issue of the series “...right off the rack...” at a San Diego bus depot which he frequented due to its selection of comic books. Cockrum was immediately drawn to the world created by Wood, of whom he was already a fan. “I discovered comics when I was six or seven years old,” he told Patrick Walsh in 2000. “I think I was most attracted to Wally Wood — anything at all that he did[.]”18 In 2005, he confirmed, “Wally Wood was probably my main comic book influence, followed by Gil Kane, Promotional poster for Wally Wood’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.

Murphy Anderson, and a host of others.”19 T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents ™ and © Radiant Assets, Inc. Earlier still, he had commented about the speed, but at the cost of years of his life; and Raven, artist, “Woody was absolutely terrific at anything he who could fly with the help of an experimental jetpack did... But I think for me, the high point was his work and glider wings. Also associated with the group was on T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents for Tower Comics.”20 U.N.D.E.R.S.E.A. Agent, who, in addition to possessing The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents were a group of charmagnetic powers, functioned as an underwater James acters who used high-tech inventions to fight threats Bond. to world order. They were Dynamo, whose ThunderThe T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents operated under the ausbelt gave him thirty minutes of enhanced strength and pices of the United Nations, and were a combination durability; the android NoMan, whose invisibility cloak of secret agents and superheroes, two genres that were allowed him to remain undetected for up to ten minpopular at the time. T.H.U.N.D.E.R. stood for The utes, and whose body possessed the mind of its creator, Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves, Professor Anthony Dunn; Menthor, who wore a speand its primary enemy was S.P.I.D.E.R., which stood for cial helmet which gave him the powers of telepathy and the Secret People’s International Directorate for Extratelekinesis; Lightning, whose costume gave him superlegal Revenue. The Agents also fought such menaces as 93

Iron Maiden, the blind Andor, and a race of Subterraneans led by the Warlord, who was the Agents’ initial opponent.

Out of all the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. characters, Cockrum confessed to a preference for one over the others. In 2006, he said online, “One of my all time favorite characters is Dynamo, from the old Tower T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents series. He got his powers from a high-tech belt which gave him thirty minutes of super strength and invulnerability, with an additional five minutes of emergency power once the original thirty was up.

He had a great-looking costume — two shades of blue and a huge white lightning bolt down the front — and a strong, handsome face with a boyish lock of hair flipped down on his forehead. Personality-wise, he was a well-meaning boob with a tendency toward clumsiness, and it made for some very funny stories (like the time he got a vat of peanut butter dumped on him).

He was attractive to women, but he didn’t know how to deal with them, and that made for some great situations, too. He was a well-thought-out and well executed character.”21 Earlier, in 2003, the artist had confessed about one of his Legion costumes, “Colossal Boy’s

Cockrum and Murphy Anderson reunite on a “Lightning” story.

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents ™ and © Radiant Assets, Inc.

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belt was a direct swipe from Dynamo’s, yes. I’ve also always been a huge fan of WW and the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.”22 The artist didn’t limit his preferences to the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. heroes, either. He also admitted admiration for the ‘villain’ Andor, “...who was T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent Dynamo’s counterpart. There were several stories where he exhibited valor and courage of the highest order even though he was on the ‘other’ side. Even the villains can be worthy of respect.”23 Cockrum’s first work on the Agents was a commercially sold poster that featured all of the active members of the group. He also served as a writer on the series, and he scripted his contribution to issue two from Singer’s plot, after which he wrote issue three’s installment solo. In an interview conducted after the first issue had gone on sale, the artist told Zimmerman, “...Singer knows I was a big fan, and he’s aware that I have a lot of ideas. I’ve talked to him several times and suggested a number of story elements. I know he’s using some of them.” He elaborated, “I often do not come up with full story ideas — rather, they’re springboards and those Dave listens to pretty closely.”24 Cockrum’s chapter in T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 (Nov. 1984) was designed to reintroduce all of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent characters except for Raven, who had appeared earlier in the issue in a story drawn

by George Pérez. In the editorial page of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #2 (Jan. 1985), Singer wrote, “We would be remiss if we did not mention something special that Dave Cockrum did to save our necks in issue #1. You may have noticed that the credits for ‘The Raven’ read: George Pérez and Dave Cockrum — Artists. Many people have asked why we didn’t just list George as the penciller and Dave as the inker. The answer is, because that isn’t how they worked. George penciled the strip in layout format, planning to add the fine detail for which he is famous in the inking stage. In the middle of inking the strip, George and [his wife] Carol each became ill. As a result, George could not complete the inking. Dave volunteered; however, it was a lot more than just inking. On some pages, Dave was virtually the penciller! To prevent the artwork from looking like it was done by two artists, Dave subverted his own famous and beautiful art style and impersonated George’s! He even switched from his thick ink brush to George’s fine rapidiograph point pen. We defy anyone to tell us which panels were penciled and inked by George Pérez and which were penciled and inked by Dave Cockrum. Even we can’t!”

In addition to inking Pérez in the first issue, Cock-

rum also inked his own story in the book, but with the following issue he was reunited with his former mentor, Murphy Anderson. The veteran artist had begun a color separations business in the intervening years, and provided color separations for the publisher, as well as inks. Anderson also inked his former assistant’s story in number three, which proved to be the penciller’s last T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents assignment.

Due to legal issues, the third issue of Wally Wood’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents went on sale ten months after the second and a full year after the first. As it happened, Singer had not acquired proper permission from T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents owner, John Carbonaro, to publish the series, and so Carbonaro filled suit against the publisher and his distributors, which effectively blocked sales of the product. The story illustrated

by Cockrum which appeared in T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #3 (Nov. 1985) was actually a holdover from earlier in the year when the book had shipped on a bi-monthly schedule. In the interval, the artist had shifted his focus over toward launching his own Futurians series, as well as completing a Nightcrawler mini-series for Marvel.

In 1987, a judge found in favor of Carbonaro, and issued a verdict stating that he was the lawful owner of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and that Deluxe was in violation of Federal Copyright and Trademark laws.

About his part in the drama, Cockrum wrote online in 2003, “I’ll agree that Singer published the Deluxe Wally Wood’s T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents illegally — something I was unaware of at the time — but I enjoyed working on the book, and I think we put out some pretty good stories.” He added, “Of course, Singer pulled some fast ones on me with my Futurians, too.”25

III. Nightcrawler In 1984, prior to the launch of the ongoing Futurians series, Cockrum also began work on a four-issue mini-series for Marvel that featured his favorite creation, Nightcrawler. “Chris [Claremont] and I were going to do a Nightcrawler story together at one point a few years back,” the artist told Dwight Jon Zimmerman. “He came up with a plot I didn’t like, and I didn’t want to do it... Then one day Louise Simonson, when she was the editor of The X-Men, called me up and asked me if I’d like to do one myself. And I leaped at the chance.”26 The series featured Nightcrawler “...be-bopping around a number of different dimensions...” 27 and was built upon two previous Cockrum-illustrated episodes, namely “Show Me the Way to Go Home,” in Bizarre

Nightcrawler is promoted on the cover of Marvel Age #31.

Nightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Adventures #27 (July, 1981) and “Kitty’s Fairy Tale,” in Uncanny X-Men #153 (Jan. 1982). The series also featured a light-hearted take on the character, owing to Cockrum’s own humorous leanings. “I don’t think I could tell a story totally straight,” he told Marvel Age in 1985. “I’m too optimistic a person. I like a story with fun in it. This is not a limited series with slapstick, but I play the adventures for laughs when I can.”28 In the initial issue, Nightcrawler tells Kitty Pryde about his solo adventure in Bizarre Adventures, and his description of the events of the story inspires her to attempt to use the Danger Room’s computer to recreate the Well at the End of the World, which featured prominently in the story. When her efforts are successful, “...a tentacle pops out, wraps itself around Lockheed and pulls him into the Well. Kurt jumps to the rescue, but as soon as he’s inside, the Well collapses around him and vanishes.”29 From there, the story included “...sky pirates in sky ships with floating cities and a beautiful princess and a nasty wizard who looks like a shark and all kinds of stuff 95

Bamfs from the direct sales covers of Nightcrawler. Bamfs ™ and © Marvel

Characters, Inc.

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like that.”30 In 2003, the author told Scott Tipton, “I was a big fan of swashbuckler films and their stars — Errol Flynn, Stewart Granger, and the like — and also I’d... taken an adult course in fencing. I was really into it, and I transferred it to Nightcrawler.”31 When trying to describe the appeal of the character, Cockrum’s X-Men collaborator, Chris Claremont, told the audience at the 2007 Dave Cockrum Tribute Panel, “In Nightcrawler you have a perfectly normal German person who looked very odd. How do you take that a step further? How do you bind him to the reader?

How do you make him accessible to the reader? Make him love Errol Flynn. Why? Because it’s the most outrageous thing you could think of for a guy with two fingers, two toes, a tail, fangs, and oh, blue skin!

I mean, here’s a guy who was designed to look like a monster, yet he tells bad jokes and loves pirate movies. You get suddenly an accessibleness. The essence of the character becomes accessible to the reader, and therefore it makes it easier for the character as Kurt Wagner, as much as Nightcrawler, to become the reader’s friend, and that, I think was the essence of what Dave did, both for the Legion and with the X-Men. He made the characters friends, people that the readers wanted to come see every four weeks, whose lives they were interested in, whose fate they cared about, and who visually were accessible to the lives that we tended to live on the outside.”

As the mini-series progressed, the German mutant crossed paths with the characters from “Kitty’s Fairy Tale,” namely Pirate Kitty, the Wolverine counterpart Mean, and the ever present Bamfs.

About Mean, Claremont said, “...out of nowhere this little Wolverine comes in drinking beer, smoking a cigar, and being obnoxious. You look at this and you think, ‘What?’ Of course, then you have to stop laughing.”

The editor of the limited series, Ann Nocenti, had a similar problem while working on the book. “What makes this limited series special is Dave’s humor...

[It] is one of the few stories that I’ve read

where I was laughing out loud as I read the scripts.”32 Joe Rubinstein, the inker of the last issue of the series, called it “...a joy to do,” at the same 2007 panel. He went on to say, “Nightcrawler turned into Errol Flynn for a while. What the hell was that? But it was fun. It was fun.”

Eventually, the X-Man found his way home, but not before he experienced more hijinks along the way. “With Kitty and Illyana at the Danger Room’s controls, one time they manage to return Kurt’s costume to Earth, but leave Nightcrawler naked in the other dimension,” Cockrum told Marvel Age in 1985. After his wardrobe was recovered, the German mutant encountered Dark Bamf, an obvious parody of Dark Phoenix, who, at the time, was the most serious character that an X-Men reader could imagine. In later years, Cockrum even used the handle “dark bamf ” himself when communicating with fans on his own personal message board.

When he described the series to Zimmerman, the artist called it, “...a four-issue swashbuckler. High adventure and fun,” and added, “I’ve always enjoyed a good, fast-moving story with a lot of action, of course — and also a lot of humor. Not that I want to turn every story into a comedy, or anything like that, but a good adventure story usually has a lot of humor in it, as well.”33 The artist wrote, penciled, and inked all but one issue of the series, that being the final installment. While still illustrating Nightcrawler for Marvel Comics, Cockrum had begun work on The Futurians for David Singer, and so the artist ran into deadline problems. Earlier, while drawing Nightcrawler and the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents simultaneously, he told Zimmerman, “Marvel is annoyed about Singer and Singer is annoyed about Marvel. Trying to work on one makes the other one late.”

He went on to say, “One of the reasons I took on this heavy of a workload was in the hopes of being able to produce the work faster. Unfortunately, it hasn’t really worked.”34

About doing everything except the lettering and the coloring on the mini-series, the artist told Marvel Age, “It takes too long to finish. But other than that, I’m really happy with the result. I think everyone will enjoy what happens to Nightcrawler.”35 In 2000, when asked which comics from his career were his favorites, he put Nightcrawler at the top of the list along with “Kitty’s Fairy Tale” and The Futurians, the three books which he felt were most representative of his life’s work.36

IV. Return of the Futurians In 1985, two years after The Futurians graphic novel had gone on sale, an ongoing Futurians series was launched

by Lodestone Publishing. Although Marvel had first right of refusal on the book due to the publisher’s previous publication of the graphic novel, it did not actively pursue the series when the artist was approached by David Singer to work on T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents for Deluxe Comics, and according to Singer, “[We made Dave an offer] that we felt was better than any deal ever offered at Epic, because it would have to be better than Epic in order to beat it, and Marvel looked at it and said, ‘Best of luck, Dave!’ and it was very amicable.”37 Initially, Singer had plans of having the artist illustrate a Dynamo feature in a T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents spin-off series entitled Tales of T.H.U.N.D.E.R., but according to the publisher, “...the more we talked to retailers and fans... the first thing out of their mouths was, ‘That’s nice, but when is he gonna do Futurians?’ and eventually we went to Dave and said, ‘Hey, when are you gonna do Futurians?’”

In David Anthony Kraft’s Comics Interview #20 (Feb. 1985), the publisher told Dwight Jon Zimmerman, “We’ve got a running joke in the office that we’ve done everything we can to make our books sell... What more could we do to make them sell? We decided there were only two things we could do... One would be to put the name ‘Marvel’ on the cover, and second would be to put Marvel characters on the inside... so we did the next best thing: We went after Marvel characters that were available — Dave Cockrum’s Futurians. It was the most successful Marvel Graphic Novel they published.

And it is one of the hottest topics of conversation at conventions. All everybody keeps asking Dave at conventions is, ‘When are you going to do a Futurians series?’ Now we have the answer.”38 Between convincing Cockrum to leave Marvel with the property and the launch of the new title, Singer started a second company, Lodestone Publishing, in order to shield The Futurians, as well as any other

Terrayne and Blackmane shill for The Futurians ongoing series. Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

title produced by the publisher, from the lawsuit filed against his parent company, Singer Publishing, for its illegal publication of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.

Although Singer denied that there was a connection between the two companies (“Lodestone Publishing, Inc., is a New York State corporation with no legal, financial, or political connections to Singer Publishing Co., Inc.”39), it was apparent to all concerned that, for all intents and purposes, Lodestone and Deluxe were really the same company under different names.

The first issue of The Futurians was dated Oct. 1985, and resumed the narrative begun by the graphic novel.

Before work began on the series, Cockrum confessed to Zimmerman, “...I haven’t written the thing up yet, but I’ve been shaping the storyline in my head. Amongst other things, I’m going to have to deal with the repercussions of what’s happened after all those meteors dropped on the major cities of the world. This is something that didn’t occur to me, back when I produced the graphic novel.”40 The initial storyline of the ongoing series featured the world in the aftermath of the meteor strike, particularly Manhattan, where Mosquito’s family had lived.

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On a mission to ascertain whether or not they had sura light-hearted husband-and-wife team, à la Nick and vived, the Futurians discovered giant worm-like aliens Nora Charles, or Mr. and Mrs. North, or McMillian that had landed on Earth along with the meteor that and Wife, or Hart-to-Hart. I always loved that format. destroyed Manhattan. About the adventure, the author “The point is, I never really expected to see Hamwrote, “This first storyline might not appeal to everymerhand or Doc Zeus in a real comic book. Those of body, of course, replete as it is with slobbery disgusting you who bought and read Avengers #4 when it first monsters, icky spider-webby cocoons and other nascame out, with its wonderful revival of Captain Amerties. What the hell, I was a kid of the ’50s. I grew up on ica, may have some idea of the thrill I got as I penciled comic books and grade-B monster flicks. I loved ’em. I those two gentlemen into a real story. There’ll be lots ate ’em up with a spoon.” He went on to say, “But that’s of other characters turning up, but none as special to howcome the present storyline: I’m telling a good old me.”44 In fact, Hammerhand and Ms. Mercury, who also appeared in subsequent fashioned ’50s black-&-white issues of The Futurians, made (well, not really) monster flick, their first appearance in print with slobbery horrors from all the way back in the fanzine space come to eat us all in our Star-Studded Comics #15 (May beds, with a liberal sprinkling of 1969), in a portfolio that showsuperheroes for good measure. cased the artist’s work.

What could be more fun?”41 About the second issue in parThe Futurians ran for three ticular, Cockrum wrote, “I think issues before its publisher ceased #2 is a quantum leap beyond the operation due to monetary diffirst, and since The Futurians ficulties as a direct result of the seems to’ve reawakened some T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents lawvital juices in me, I think I can suit. Years later, the artist wrote promise that the book will get about the experience, “...I did better and better.”42 [The Futurians] for a short-lived The series also gave the artist company called, variously, Lodethe opportunity to introduce stone, Deluxe, and whatever two characters that he had carelse they wanted to call it from ried with him from his fan days. week to week. I went with them In the first issue’s editorial, entibecause they offered me pie-intled, “Once and Future Fishmufthe-sky Big Money, and Marvel TM fins ,” Cockrum wrote, “Now, was unwilling to match their every comics fan with an ounce offer.”45 In 2003, he referred to the decision to leave Marvel as a of imagination and any artistic Hammerhand and Ms. Mercury enter the “BIIIIIG mistake,”46 and in 2005, ability at all has created super- Cockrumverse. Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum. he told Jon B. Cooke, “[Singer] heroes of his own. It’s almost said that he had a print broker backing him, that was axiomatic. And if he/she/it creates superheroes of his where his money was coming from. He was having to own, then there are always one or two who are the crewait for the proceeds from a given issue to come in ator’s pet. They’ll do the bulk of their fan-generated art before they could afford to print the next one.”47 and stories with those characters. Hammerhand and In 2003, in response to rumors that the publisher Doctor Zeus were mine. I had dozens of characters as had actually used the money to pay off his own pera fan, and I’ve created dozens more as a pro, but I loved sonal debts, the artist told an online audience, “I don’t those two characters and did more fan art with them 43 know much about all the shenanigans you mention, than any others.”

He continued, “Doc Zeus is a unique enough charwith paying off school loans and all, but he couldn’t acter, I think, that he might rate a book of his own afford to pay royalties on an issue until the next one some day. Hammerhand is a pretty straight-forward had made money, and after two or three bounced superhero; his charm (to me) lay in the fact that he checks, I demanded payment on delivery of the artand his wife, called (don’t laugh) Ms. Mercury, shared work.”48 Cockrum confirmed to Cooke, “Financially, it was stressful. I didn’t get all the money I was promsimilar powers and went about doing super-deeds in 98

ised, and half the time I delivered work, if he gave me a check, it would bounce. I would have to go back in and demand cash. It finally got to the point where I would come in with a finished story, but I wouldn’t let him have it until he handed me cash.”49 Even after taking such precautions, Cockrum was still tricked by the publisher. “I wound up not getting all the money I was promised, he shut down the company before the fourth issue came out, and he absconded with some of my artwork,” the artist told Cooke. “Singer eventually sold that art to Eternity Comics to publish and fortunately they called me up and asked if it was all right. I said, ‘Hell, no!’ and made a deal with them.”50 Eternity Comics published The Futurians, Volume Two in 1987 as both a softcover and a limited edition hardcover. The book contained all four Futurians issues originally drawn for Lodestone, and in 2003, the artist wrote about the venture, “I only allowed them one printing, so the book is very hard to come by.”51 Years passed before The Futurians surfaced again.

In 1995, Aardwolf Publishing printed the fourth issue of the series as a #0 issue, and inside, Cockrum wrote, “The Futurians began as a graphic novel for Marvel (Marvel Graphic Novel #9), wherein I recounted the adventures of eight extraordinary humans with powers gained by way of genetic manipulation from the future.

The graphic novel did pretty well, went to three printings, and a series was called for.

“Unfortunately, I let myself be lured away from Marvel and did the series for an independent publisher who promised pie-in-the-sky money. If I’d stayed with Marvel, we might be publishing Futurians #250 or something by now. Instead, I went with the independent, occasionally called Lodestone Publications, and my run only lasted three issues. A fourth issue was finished; this book you hold in your hands. Due to the vagaries of publishing, however, it never saw print as an individual issue until now. It was collected together with the previous three issues into a limited-edition second graphic novel in 1987. That second graphic novel was short-printed and is next-to-impossible to find.”

He continued, “There has been a renewed interest in The Futurians in recent months, and my friends at Aardwolf and I decided to reprint the ‘lost’ fourth issue, now numbered 0 for this edition, to test the waters for a possible new series. If you bought the three Lodestone issues but never saw the second graphic novel (and I know there are lots of you out there), here’s your chance to finish the story.”52 About the book, he

The cover to Eternity’s nearly illegal Futurians collection.

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum

wrote online in 2003, “Fact is, Futurians #0 sold 15,000 copies, which is pretty damn respectable for a small independent.”53 In 2002, about The Futurians, Cockrum said, “...I created it myself, basically to amuse myself. I’ve had a pretty good track record pleasing the readers if I do work that pleases me.”54 When asked in 2005 by Cooke if the series suffered from the move to a different publisher and the two year delay between the publication of the graphic novel and the ongoing series, the artist responded, “Probably. I don’t know how well it sold for Lodestone, but I knew that they were having money problems from the get-go.”55 Despite the negative experiences associated with the series, the artist continued to hold the work that he did on The Futurians in high regard. In 2003, in response to an online query from one of his fans, he issued what may be regarded as his most definitive statement on the property when he said, “I’m prouder of The Futurians than of just about anything else I did professionally.”56 99

EVOLUTION: Hammerhand and Ms. Mercury

Out of all his college-era characters, Hammerhand and Ms. Mercury were Cockrum’s favorites. While Hammerhand remained mostly unchanged (except for new boots in ’77), his wife went from Miss to Níke to Ms., lost her hair band, and switched from blonde to brunette. Hammerhand, Ms.

Mercury ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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EVOLUTION: Doctor Zeus

Another favorite of Cockrum’s, Dr. Zeus is seen here fighting a character that foreshadows Wildfire. Originally adorned with a shield and quiver of lightning bolts, he lost his accessories and gained a plumed crest atop his helmet by his professional debut. Doctor Zeus, Hammerhand, Ms. Mercury ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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Model sheets for The Futurians, featuring (clockwise) Avatar, Blackmane, Silkie, and Sunswift.)

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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EVOLUTION: Terrayne From conception to publication, Terrayne was the Futurian who changed the most. Originally white college student Jack Fitzhughes, he became black former-pro football player Harry Robbins. In between, he sported a costume very reminiscent of the Metal Men. Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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Endnotes 1 Dave Cockrum, “Once and Future Fishmuffins,” The Futuri-

ans by Dave Cockrum (Lodestone Publishing, Inc., Oct. 1985), pg. 29.

2 Cockrum, op. cit.

3 ibid 4 ibid 5 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, June 4, 2006), pg. 1.

6 Dave Cockrum, “Hey, What Th—?!?/Testing Attachments,”

Classically Cockrum (www.comixfan.com), pg. 20.

7 Cockrum, “Once and Future Fishmuffins,” op. cit., pg. 29.

8 Dave Cockrum, Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians

(Marvel Comics Group, 1983), pg. 23.

9 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 59.

10 Cockrum, “Once and Future Fishmuffins,” op. cit., pg. 29.

11 Jay McKiernan, “Dave Cockrum Interview,” (http://x-worldcomics.com/x/column/cockrum.html, 2001).

12 McKiernan, op. cit.

13 Cockrum, Marvel Graphic Novel No. 9: The Futurians, op.

cit., pg. 2.

14 Dave Cockrum, Dave Cockrum’s The Futurians #0 (Aardwolf Publishing, Aug. 1995), pg. 2.

15 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave Cockrum,” The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents Companion (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2005), pg. 126.

16 Dwight Jon Zimmerman, “Dave Cockrum,”

David Anthony Kraft’s Comics Interview (Fictioneer Books, Ltd., Feb. 1985), pg. 26.

17 Dark Bamf, “Fun Comics,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 26, 2006), pg. 1.

18 Patrick Walsh, “A Candid Conversation with

Dave Cockrum,” (www.comiXtreme.com, Dec. 22, 2000).

19 Dark Bamf, “Jack Kirby’s Influence in Your

Art?” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, 12/5/05), pg. 1.

20 Dark Bamf, “Favorite Comic Book Artist???”

Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, 9/5/02), pg. 1.

21 Dark Bamf, “What Do You Look for in a Super-

Hero?” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers. com, Aug. 22, 2006), pg. 1.

22 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum

Returning to the Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, Jan. 22, 2003), pg. 7.

23 Bamf, “What Do You Look for in a Super-

Hero?” op. cit., pg. 1.

24 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 26.

25 Dark Bamf, “So Who Owns the Copyright

Now?” DCMB: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents (www. dccomics.com, Mar. 8, 2003), pg. 1.

26 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 27.

27 ibid, pg. 27.

Werehawk, Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

104

28 Dwight Jon Zimmerman, “The Mutant Report,”

Marvel Age #31 (Marvel Comics Group, Oct. 1985), pg. 20.

29 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 20.

30 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 27.

31 Scott Tipton, “Five Questions with Dave Cock-

rum” Comics 101 (www.comics101.com, June 6, 2003) 32 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 20.

33 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 27.

34 ibid, pg. 27.

35 Zimmerman, op. cit., pg. 20.

36 Walsh, op. cit.

37 Ken Hart, “Journey to the Center of Earth-Cock-

rum,” Amazing Heroes #74 (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., July 1, 1985), pg. 25.

38 Dwight Jon Zimmerman, “David Singer,” David Anthony Kraft’s Comics Interview (Fictioneer Books, Ltd., 1985), pg. 59.

39 Chris Irving, “T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Strikes Twice!”

Comic Book Artist (Vol. 1) #14 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2001), pg. 104.

40 Zimmerman, “Dave Cockrum,” op. cit., pg.

26–27.

41 Dave Cockrum, “Son of Fishmuffins,” The Futuri-

ans by Dave Cockrum (Lodestone Publishing, Inc., Dec. 1985), pg. 27.

42 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 27.

43 Cockrum, “Once and Future Fishmuffins,” op.

cit., pg. 29.

44 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 29.

45 Dave Cockrum, “Cockrum…” VanSciver’s Vault

(www.comiXfan.com, Jan. 4, 2003), pg. 2.

46 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

47 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 127.

48 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1 49 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 128.

50 ibid, pg. 126.

Silver Shadow, Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

51 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 2.

54 Slatari, “An Interview with Dave,” Cockrum Corner (www.

52 Cockrum, Dave Cockrum’s The Futurians #0, op. cit., pg. 2.

NightScrawlers.com, Nov. 27, 2006), pg. 1.

53 Dark Bamf, “Futurians #0,” Visionaries of Tomorrow (www.

55 Cooke, op. cit., pg. 127.

legionworld.com, Sept. 21, 2003), pg. 1.

56 Cockrum, “Cockrum…” op. cit., pg. 1.

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Splash page from Marvel Fanfare #16, originally intended for Marvel Premiere years earlier. Thanks to Ted Latner.

Skywolf ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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Chapter 6: 1985–1995

I

I. Catskills Country

n 1985, the same year that saw the publication He said, ‘No, you test out as being diabetic, and we’re of both Nightcrawler and The Futurians ongoing going to put you on oral medications and a very strict series, Cockrum was first diagnosed with the condidiet,’ which he gave to me, and [he] jumped up and tion that would eventually take his life. “He had an ear down and said, ‘You will do this!’ and I said, ‘Okay, infection, and he didn’t know he had diabetes,” recalled fine.’ And Dave was on that for years, and actually lost Paty Cockrum in 2007. “He knew it ran in his family, fifty pounds and was feeling fit and fine and everything but it was probably in about... I’d say Spring of ’85, or else, and then he fell off his diet wagon and started maybe the Fall of ’84 [that] he got an ear infection, eating again, and things went downhill from there. As and he went to the doctor down there for the doctor to they will, when you have diabetes. You can’t fall off the take a look at his ear. The doctor drew some blood and wagon and start eating chocolate, and peanut butter, took some tests, and came back and and all this good stuff again.” nearly had a fit of apolepsy because That same year, the artist and Dave’s sugar level in his blood that his wife made a decision to leave morning was something like 480, the metropolitan New York area where it should be around 100. So for upstate New York. “We lived on he called Dave in, and hauled both Long Island for eight years,” Paty him and me in and read Dave the remembered, “and Dave wanted to riot act. [He] jumped up and down, get off the island because it was too and nearly had a fit. I thought the hot and muggy. I mean, we had an poor man was gonna actually drop air-conditioning bill one summer dead in his office. He wanted to send that was $800 a month, and that Dave to a hospital, [but] Dave said, was in the ’70s [or] early ’80s. So we “No.” He said, ‘I want you to see an looked around.” enthroconologist,’ and the enthroShe continued, “He still wanted conologist he wanted [Dave] to see to be close to the city, so I started was booked up solid for months. looking around in my old area up Cockrum at a Brooklyn Plastic Modeler’s “Basically what she did was she Society. Photo by Frank Anderson. there because at that point I had called David and she said, ‘[Your quit Marvel and was doing freelance doctor] sent this over and said that your blood sugar, work, and so we didn’t have any real restrictions on us when he tested it, was 480.’ And Dave said, ‘Yeah, that’s except that we wanted to be within driving distance of what he said.’ She says, ‘What did you have for breakthe city for editorial conferences and things like that. fast that morning?’ and he proceeded to regale her with So I said, ‘You know, we could look up where I used the fact that he had had French toast with lots and lots to [live],’ and Dave went up with me at one point, and of syrup and butter, and bacon and eggs, and he had looked around and said, ‘Yeah, I like this mountain air. just come off of a week of eating cherry and apple pies It’s nice and dry. Yeah, I like this up here.’ that I had made, and chocolate chip cookies. She said, “So we looked around, and I found a house. [At this ‘Okay. This is the diet I want you on for two weeks, and point,] my former husband would put the boys on a then you go get tested again.’ bus and send them to the city, and I would pick them “So he did, and his blood sugar was right back up at Port Authority and then drive them back up down to normal, and [his doctor] wouldn’t believe it. sometime Sunday. I had a lot of friends up there, ’cause 107

Nightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

I lived up there for twelve and a half years with [him], so I looked around [and] I found this wonderful house.

[I] said, ‘David, I think I found the house. You wanna come look at it?’ It was in our price range, so we went up, we looked at it, and he walked into the house and looked around. [He] walked into the den and said, ‘My room!’ and I turned to the guy who was selling [it], whom I happened to know from when I lived up there before, and I said, ‘Duke, I think you’ve got yourself a sale.’ So we put a down payment on the thing, and all the paperwork took a couple of months, but we signed the contract up there December 19th, I believe it was, in ’85.”

In a foreshadowing of future events, the moving day itself was an experience. “[We] moved up after a blinding snowstorm in January of ’86,” she recalled.

“I had to have my former father-in-law come up and plow our driveway so that we could actually get the truck up the driveway. It was on a hill, and it was really rough, and my former mother-in-law said, ‘You know, you’ve been gone ten years, and the first thing you do is come back and bring snow with you.’ But we moved up to Cragsmoore in ’86, and we stayed there until we moved [to South Carolina] in ’04.”

II. Odds ‘N‘ Ends Back in the world of comics, the industry underwent a period during the mid-decade in which both major publishers (Marvel and DC) decided to publish maxi-series that contained comprehensive, encyclopedic entries on every character that each company owned. Cockrum made multiple artistic contributions to both The Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe and Who’s Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC

Shazam hero ™ and © DC Comics.

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Universe, mostly on characters related to The X-Men for Marvel and the Legion of Super-Heroes for DC. The artist also provided an illustration for the entry of Captain Marvel, Jr. in Who’s Who, an act that showed that he still possessed a fondness for the character whose adventures he had petitioned to draw years earlier.

While contributing the aforementioned entries, Cockrum also had the opportunity to take care of some unfinished business which dated back to 1975. In the period leading up to the X-Men revival, the artist and friend Marv Wolfman had collaborated on a feature called “Sky-Wolf,” which consisted of “...four twofisted hotshot pilots operating from a submarine slung underneath a rustbucket fishing trawler (YES!). They flew modified Chance Vought F5U-1 ‘Flying Flapjacks,’” which, the artist noted, “...[came] equipped... with jet engines, which the originals didn’t have.”1 The feature was “...a two-part tribute to an old favorite strip of ours, Blackhawk,” but only preliminary designs were completed before the project was set aside by the artist due to the restart of the X-Men revival.

In 2007, Wolfman remembered, “Dave and I were old friends from before he became professional... Anyway,

we were both huge Blackhawk fans (in fact, Blackhawk was my first sale to DC), and wanted to do an homage (outright theft) of the kind of Blackhawk story we both found great; the giant Commie super weapons which made absolutely no sense but were the best comics ever: the War Wheel, the Flying Tank, etc. So we put together ‘Sky-Wolf ’ and came up with nonsense like the Mountain That Walked and the Flying Führer, possibly the silliest thing I’ve ever come up with.”

Despite the fact that the characters were originally conceived in 1975, the first part of the two-part storyline was not illustrated by Cockrum until after he left The X-Men in 1977, and had actually been slated to appear in Marvel Premiere #41 (Apr. 1978), but “Seeker 3000” ran in its place instead. The second part of the feature was not drawn by Cockrum until the early 1980s, presumably after he finished illustrating The Futurians graphic novel in 1983. Both halves were later published in Marvel Fanfare #16 and 17 (Sept.–Nov. 1984).

About the delay in publication, Wolfman recalled, “I do remember it took a long time to do, but I honestly don’t recall if that was months or years. I also don’t remember why the project came out so late. Maybe the guys at Marvel hated it or Dave was just very late on it.

It could have been a back-burnered inventory job so he didn’t do it until much after we began it.”

In 1986, following the artist’s stints on T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, Nightcrawler, and Futurians, Cockrum returned to a group of characters he knew well from prior runs on the title. In the days before comic book reprints were widespread, the only way for fans of the X-Men to read his original run on the book was to pay exorbitant prices for back issues, and so in 1986 Marvel Comics launched Classic X-Men, a chronological reprinting of the adventures of the All-New, All-Different X-Men, beginning with their first appearance in Giant-Size X-Men #1. Due to the nature of the publication (32 pages without ads), it was necessary to supplement the reprints with additional material created especially for the series, and so artist John Bolton illustrated eightpage backup stories for the early issues, while Cockrum added additional pages to the original story itself.

About the new material, he wrote in 2005, “My take on it is that older readers, who’d bought the original issues, could be inveigled into buying the reprints to get the new cover [by Arthur Adams] and additional pages.”2 Although the artist only provided new artwork for #2–5 (Oct. ’86–Jan. ’87) and #11–12 (July– Aug. 1987), the very existence of the series put his work from over a decade earlier in the hands of many

From the collection of Ted Latner.

Skywolf ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

readers for the first time.

In 1987, Cockrum shifted over to DC Comics in a search for work, and his endeavors resulted in a short stint on Batman. In 2002, about his work on the title, he wrote, “My Batman issues were an unfortunate glitch in my career. I got the assignment because I asked Dick Giordano if he had anything I could do. At the time I was not a Batman fan (I am now), and, in my opinion, my art suffers because of it. Drawing Batman is sort of like drawing Spider-Man — you have to switch gears and approach it from a different angle. Batman’s not just another superhero, and I treated him like one.”3 By 1987, Batman was between Frank Miller’s Dark Knight mini-series (1986) and Tim Burton’s Batman film (1989). In addition, the series had recently returned to the character’s roots with “Batman: Year One” in 1986 by Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli, and only months before, the second Robin, Jason Todd, had his origin re-written to change the character from a circus performer who had lost his parents at the hands of a Batman villain to a street kid who was caught by Batman trying to steal the tires from the Batmobile. The following year, readers voted, via a 1-900 number, to kill the new Robin. It was a tumultuous time for the Batman franchise, and Cockrum was caught in the middle of the upheavals.

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In reference to his time on the character, the artist also said, “...I found some of Max Collins’ scripts to be inane and stupid. A comic book story about a mime villainess! Motion is what mimes do — depicting that in a motionless medium was dopey, to say the least. And in my very first Collins script, at one point he called for a scene where two bad guys were unconscious on the floor, with little birdies circling over their heads.

That sort of Roger Rabbit nonsense hasn’t been done in comics since the ’40s! I refused to draw the birds.”4 For his part, Collins was equally dissatisfied with the

(Batman #423, Sept. 1988) was published the following year, but it was written by then-current Batman writer, Jim Starlin. In 2002, Cockrum wrote online, “All in all, I consider my four issues of Batman to be a failure, and they probably are at least partly responsible for why DC doesn’t offer me work any more. Since then I’ve become a Batman fan, and I believe I could probably do a credible job if I ever landed another assignment, but that’s not likely.”6 After 1988, the artist attempted to interest the publisher with a Batman project of his own, one upon which he collaborated with his son. “We did work on a Batman story,” Ivan Cockrum confirmed. “He had done a couple of character designs that he was really fond of, and I liked quite a lot, so essentially, I wrote a story around his character designs so that we could find a place to use them. He had done a big, demonic creature, and he had done a Batman in an armored suit. I think this was post-Frank Miller, so we had already seen an armor suited Batman, but my dad had done an all armor design. So, essentially, the story was just an excuse to work with these characters.”

Presentation art for a Batman graphic novel pitch, which was, unfortunately, rejected.

Batman ™ and © DC Comics His father recalled in 2002, issues in question. “While I have nothing bad to say “My son, Ivan, and I did a presentation a number about Dave Cockrum — I’ve never met him and I’ve of years ago for a Batman graphic novel or mini-seseen his work over the years and it’s fine — I don’t feel ries. We plotted the whole thing and I did a number he’s suited to my writing style, specifically the fact that of nice pieces of art to back up the presentation. The I work full script,” the author told Kim Thompson in story involved a South American idol which released 1987. “Apparently he seems to feel much more at ease a demon in Gotham City. This demon was an Incan when he’s working so-called ‘Marvel style’ or plot-first avenger of injustice who just happened — if you saw and, in fact, that’s the one way I don’t want to work. The him silhouetted in a dark alley — to resemble Batman. only real condition I had when I was asked aboard was He was going around Gotham ripping criminals to that I would be able to write full script, and toward the shreds. Naturally, since what witnesses there were said end there Denny [O’Neil, Batman editor] was starting it looked like Batman, the Gotham cops had a ‘shoot to make noise about, ‘Well, if Cockrum’s going to be on on sight’ order for the Dark Knight.” the book, maybe you ought to start doing it plot-first,’ He continued, “DC liked the art I did, but said that 5 and that was when I began to feel uncomfortable.” demons had no place in Batman’s world. They turned With neither writer nor artist satisfied with the final us down flat. Six months later, a story arc turned up results, the team did not have a future together, and in the Bat books that featured a comic book about a both professionals left the series immediately following demonic Batman and the demon actually coming to their collaboration. An issue illustrated by Cockrum life and raiding Gotham. I felt a little [upset] about 110

that. Maybe it had nothing to do with Ivan’s and my story, but it was a little too close for comfort.”7 1988 saw another return to familiar territory for the artist with the addition of Who’s Who in the Legion of Super-Heroes to the DC line.

Like Who’s Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe before it, Who’s Who in the Legion was a maxi-series which provided readers with entries on every Legion character, both major and Cockrum’s only time drawing the Flash, from Secret Origins minor, that had appeared in Annual #3. Flash, Teen Titans ™ and © DC Comics. the series over the precedsode is only noteworthy in that it covered the period in ing thirty years. The book was published as part of the Titans history when the group reformed after its Silver 30th Anniversary celebrations of the 30th Century Age breakup, and, as such, it contained a guest appearsuperhero team, and Cockrum contributed illustraance by the Flash, a character that the artist had longed tions for Chameleon Boy, Colossal Boy, Duo Damsel, to draw since his fan days. In 2007, Paty Cockrum and Karate Kid for the series. He also drew a chaprecalled, “He had three favorite DC characters, which ter in the Legion’s 30th anniversary issue, #45 (April, he would have loved to have done their book: Flash, 1988), about which he later said, “...I wound up doing Green Lantern, and Hawkman. Those were his three.” It Lightning Lad versus Lightning Lord, and I wasn’t very was the only time Cockrum drew the character as part happy with the outcome of that. It was all hard, harsh of a story. stuff.”8 1989 was also the year when Cockrum’s first run on Years earlier, the artist had also returned for a chapX-Men was collected in a Marvel Masterworks volume. ter in another Legion anniversary issue, #300 (Jun. Before it was commonplace to reprint comics in hard1983), and when the cover was designed so that each cover books, Marvel launched its Masterworks line, character was drawn by a different artist, he landed the which reprinted stories from the early days of the comPhantom Girl assignment. He once referred to her as pany in expensive, dust jacketed volumes. Initially, the “...my top favorite, by a mile,”9 and in 1989, he publisher only reprinted tales from the Silver Age era illustrated her origin in Secret Origins #42 (Jul. 1989). of the company, but with the eleventh installment, the About his later work on the Legion, which also included line jumped forward to the 1975 revival of the X-Men. another Secret Origins assignment, the cover of #47 In fact, the volume was followed up the subsequent year (Feb. 1990), Cockrum said in 2002, “...I was never really with Marvel Masterworks #12, which also reprinted the happy with those stories. I guess the one I was happiest Cockrum-era X-Men. with was the Phantom Girl Secret Origin, but even that In 2002, the artist said about Marvel’s efforts to keep leaves me with looking at stuff and saying, ‘Oh, I wish I his previous work in print, “I can’t complain too much hadn’t done that.’”10 Mark Waid, the editor of the issue about the reprints — they make earlier work available in question, confirmed Cockrum’s comments when he to fans who could never afford to pay the collectible told Chris Companik, “Dave felt really stifled by the prices many of them command. I agree that some of sheer verbiage of it, but he was a pro about it.”11 them have mediocre production values, but there’s no Also in 1989, the artist contributed a chapter to a real reason for that; Marvel keeps film on all their books Teen Titans anniversary story in Secret Origins Annual and should be able to shoot fresh plates as needed. #3, a book also edited by Waid. It was the first time “As for the Masterworks... they generally do a beauCockrum had worked on a Titans adventure in seventiful job on presenting the material. I know on most teen years, dating back to a Lilith backup story he had of the original Marvel Masterworks, Andy Yanchus inked in Teen Titans (Vol. 1) #41 (Oct. 1972). The epipainstakingly re-colored every issue.”12 For over a 111

Cockrum’s pencils for the Starjammers mini-series, from the collection of Ted Latner. Starjammers, X-Men, Imperial Guard ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

decade, the Cockrum-era X-Men was the only nonSilver Age title reprinted by Marvel as part of their Masterworks line.

1989 also saw the artist’s first contributions to a series specifically designed to showcase the multitude of characters which existed within the Marvel universe.

Marvel Comics Presents was a bi-weekly book launched in 1988 that contained four eight-page stories per issue, each of which focused on a different character. The two lead stories were serials which continued from issue to issue, and the remaining tales were one-shots which varied in both characters and creative teams. Cockrum contributed pencils to #22, 23, 41, 73, 75, and 76, for a total of six issues that spanned over two years.

The stories focused on the characters Starfox, Falcon, Freedom Force, the Black Knight, Doctor Doom, and Woodgod, the latter of which was also colored by his wife, Paty. About the hero, Cockrum said in 2003, “Oh, Woodgoat, as I called him. One of the way dumber characters Marvel ever thought up.”13 Cockrum was also able to ink his own pencils on two of the aforementioned tales, specifically the Black Knight appearance (MCP #73, Mar. 1991) and that of Woodgod (MCP #76, Apr. 1991). In addition, he also wrote the Doctor Doom story (MCP #75, Apr. 1991) himself, a humorous tale which showed Doom defeat all of Earth’s heroes before it was revealed to be only be a dream. About the despot, he wrote online in 2006, “Personally, I think Doomsie needs to get laid.

Maybe we should introduce him to Iron Maiden from T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.”14 112

Cockrum also drew two covers for the series, #37 (Dec. 1989) and 58 (Sept. 1990), as well as an unpublished Sunspot story for the book. About the tale, which was later redrawn by John Byrne (MCP #79, Mar. 1991), the story’s author, Daryl Edelman wrote, “Dave drew my first plot. Terry [Kavanaugh, the book’s editor] then wanted me to rewrite the plot. John happened to be in the office at the time, and he agreed to draw my second plot of the story[.]” Edelman went on to say, “In other words, Dave’s art wasn’t used because Terry wanted a different plot drawn than the one Dave drew.”

According to original art collector Matthew Lyons, who owns the artwork for the Sunspot story, “...during Dave’s move south a couple years back, he came across these pages (which had been returned to him by Marvel as they decided after he finished penciling them that they preferred that John Byrne pencil this story). Dave was understandably insulted by this... When [he] found these pages he decided to sell them at the convention he attended that year, [which is where I bought them].”

There are currently no plans by Marvel to publish the original version of the story.

Another project involving the artist that was con­nected to Marvel Comics Presents was the twoissue X-Men Spotlight on... Starjammers mini-series, pub­ lished in 1990. According to its author, Terry Kavanagh, “Michael Higgins wanted a multipart Starjammers story for Dave Cockrum to draw. He accepted my proposal, and we began working on the story. By the time the first issue of MCP was going to print,

Michael had left staff, and I was the new editor of the title. Since editors at Marvel at the time were not allowed to write for the titles they edited, Mark Gruenwald suggested that he take over as editor and publish the story in a two-issue prestige format as befitted Dave Cockrum’s work. I would have liked to have worked much more closely with Dave—as I was a huge fan of his work—but most of our communication was through Michael.”15 About the two-parter, Cockrum wrote in 2002, “...for me, that Starjammers mini was a major disappointment, because I knew more about the characters than writer Terry Kavanaugh did, and he wouldn’t listen to me when I objected to his deviations from the characters’ backgrounds. For example: he based a major plot point on infecting Sikorsky with a computer virus, in spite of the fact that Sikorsky is an insect and I told him so repeatedly.”16 In 2003, Cockrum called the script, “ill-conceived,” and in reference to Binary’s appearance as a member of the team, he wrote, “...I take no responsibility for the fact.”17 The mini-series did give him the opportunity to briefly draw Nightcrawler again, as the second issue featured a guest-appearance by Excalibur, which was then led by the German X-Man. 1990 was also the year in which the artist’s second run on The X-Men was reprinted in what had by then been renamed X-Men Classic. By that point in the series, the only new material given to readers was a cover different from that of the original publication.

Initially, the new covers were provided by Steve Lightle, a former Legion of Super-Heroes artist who was also a fan of his predecessor’s work on both the Legion and The X-Men. In 2002, after the two artists met face to face at a Kansas City comic convention, Lightle said, “It’s great if you can meet the people that you admire, and find out that they are good people. It’s a rare thing, and encouraging.”18 For his part, Cockrum was equally complimentary about Lightle’s work, which he had seen online as part of a Legion of Super-Heroes mailing list. Reprints of the artist’s second run in X-Men Classic ran from #49 (July 1990) to #68 (Feb. 1992).

1991 saw the artist return to the X-Men again, this time for an eight-page flashback story which occurred just before the events of X-Men #98 (Apr. 1976).19 Set on Christmas Eve, the tale gave the artist an opportunity to draw what he commonly referred to as “his” X-Men, this time in conflict with a short-lived version of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants that featured Mastermind, Unus the Untouchable, the Blob, and the Toad. Both groups were drawn to Macy’s by the pres-

ence of a powerful mutant, alluded to in the story as Santa Claus, who erased the memories of all involved by the end of the episode. It was the last new X-Men story illustrated by the artist published by Marvel in his lifetime.

About the same time, Cockrum penciled two X-Men stories which eventually saw print following his death. The first was called, “Odd Men Out,” and featured Charles Xavier reminiscing with FBI agent Fred Duncan, who was a supporting character from the early days of the title, about all that had happened to the team in the time since. The story served as a condensed version of X-Men history, and was intended to bring new readers up to speed, as well as to refresh the memories of long-time buyers. About the episode, Cockrum told Alter Ego magazine in 2003, “I’ve always found a bit of irony about this story. It zips past my run on the book in one panel.”20 Originally commissioned as inventory, the story was eventually published as X-Men: Odd Men Out in 2008.

The other story drawn by Cockrum at that time

Splash page from Cockrum’s last X-Men story for Marvel.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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was actually an issue of the X-Men spin-off, The New ants came in the form of five different trading cards, Mutants. In 2002, in reference to the assignment, he one per copy, that were included with the first issue. wrote online, “[The ’90s era New Mutants were] the X-Force #1 sold almost 4 million copies.23 One month later, Marvel Comics launched a second version I did my unpublished story about... I forgot to X-Men title, based upon the success of the original mention Rusty and Skids in describing [it, but] they series. It also contained multiple covers, although in were in it, too. I didn’t quite like this version as well [as this instance, the covers were different images, with the the originals], because they were a bit harder edged. exception of one version that contained the images of I never knew quite what to make of Boom Boom, for 21 the other four combined as a gatefold cover. All five one thing. But they were still fun.” The issue in question was also published as part of the different editions of the first issue X-Men: Odd Men Out standalone sold a combined 7.5 million copies.24 From that point forward, the special in 2008. comic book industry entered what Other odd jobs illustrated by has commonly been referred to as the artist at that point in his career a boom period, with multiple cover included the Punisher graphic novel gimmicks and other special features Bloodlines (1991), written by Gerry (such as holograms, zero issues, and Conway (and originally intended to free trading cards) designed to entice be run as a serial in Marvel Comics readers to buy multiple copies of the Presents) and a Conan adventure that same issue. In addition, many new appeared in Savage Sword of Conan customers entered the field during #188 (Aug. 1991), from layouts by the era with the intent of buying Sandy Plunkett. He was also hired comics and reselling them years later to provide both covers and interior for a profit, which began a speculaillustrations for the Space Hawks tor craze that gripped the industry. series of Choose Your Own Adventure These customers also bought multinovels. ple copies of the same issues in order Cockrum’s last published sequento maximize their investment, and tial story for Marvel in the decade the tangible result upon the field was was the final issue of the Destroyer Choose Your Own Adventure ® Chooseco LLC. that sales were up, and that success mini-series (#4, Mar. 1992), which led to many imitators. was based upon the series of novels written by Warren As a result, the very landscape of comic book pubMurphy and Richard Sapir. In 1993, he landed the lishing changed almost overnight. Whereas previous assignment to draw the cover of Ravage 2099 #6 generations of artists attempted to emulate Jack Kirby (May 1993), a series that heralded Stan Lee’s return to and Neal Adams (and subsequent generations imitated comics, and that was it for the co-creator of the Allthe work of George Pérez and John Byrne), a new genNew, All-Different X-Men for years to come at Marvel. eration of comic book artists and editors attempted to By that point, a new era had dawned in comics, and mimic the success of X-Men artist Jim Lee, as well as industry veterans such as Dave Cockrum found it that of X-Force artist Rob Liefeld and Spider-Man illusharder and harder to secure new work. trator McFarlane. Before long, artistic clones flooded the field, and veteran artists such as Cockrum were III. Brave New World overlooked by editors who sought to replicate the success of Lee, Liefeld, and McFarlane in their own books.

In July 1990, due to the success of Todd McFarlane’s In 2007, Ivan Cockrum remembered, “...my dad’s run on Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel Comics launched stuff aged very quickly, and it did become very hard an all-new Spider-Man series for the artist to both for him to find work.” He elaborated, “The comic book write and draw, entitled simply Spider-Man. With mulindustry is so fickle artwise, and especially in the ’90s tiple covers, each one the same image only colored difwhen guys like Liefeld and Lee were coming around, ferently, the first issue sold over 2.5 million copies.22 and they were redefining the esthetics from the classic, In June 1991, the X-Men spin-off The New Mutants slender heroes to the big, bulky, frenetic, very detailed was retitled and restarted at number one, and also conpage styles... yeah, I was very aware of that.” tained multiple variants. This time, however, the vari114

Also in 1991, the Fox television network launched its “Fox Kids” lineup of children’s programming, and among the new shows that debuted on the broadcaster was an animated version of the X-Men. As a result, regular sales on each X-Men ongoing series exceeded half a million copies every month, an increase of over 48 percent from before the debut of the cartoon.25 Consequently, royalties paid out to the creative teams of both X-Men books increased substantially. In an interview conducted in 1999, Cockrum told Comic Book Artist’s Jon B. Cooke, “...from what I heard, people like Jim Lee were making $40,000 a month on royalties. That’s why they could afford to go off and start Image.”26 For his part, the only benefit which Cockrum experienced as a result of the television show was the assignment of a three-page X-Men story for Totally Fox Kids Magazine. According to Tom Brevoort, the story’s editor, “As I recall, I went to Scott Lobdell first, to write it, and it was Scott who asked for Dave to draw it... I never met Dave in person during the production of the story, but we spoke over the phone a couple of times.

During the same period, he provided me with a bunch of background information and visuals on the creation of the New X-Men for a feature we ran in the softcover All-New, All-Different X-Men Masterworks volume. I had been a big fan of Dave’s work, especially the stuff he did in the ’70s, his first X-Men run, the Legion, and Futurians. So it was definitely appealing to get him to do an X-Men story.”

In 1992, seven comic book artists previously employed by Marvel, a number that included Lee, Liefeld, and McFarlane, as well as Whilce Portacio, then the illustrator of the original X-Men series, left the publisher and joined forces to form Image Comics.

For their new company, the artists managed their own series and retained all rights to their creations. The decision by the artists to form their own company and thus retain all rights to their own properties was influenced by the history of the medium, specifically the stories of creators like Cockrum who had created characters for publishers over the years and then failed to see financial compensation for the success of their creations beyond their initial page rate.

In 1992, McFarlane told Wizard magazine, “I just figured at that point, too many guys had quit [comics] on their own, and it was time that we have to do something that would stay and help all of our careers.”27 In the following issue, Jim Lee told Rob Samsel, “Some people don’t mind what they’re doing, others may not mind now, but maybe later down the road they may...

Each person decides whether this is the kind of work-

ing relationship they want to be in. Some people want the support system in which to create characters without having to worry about the publishing aspects of the business... they would rather just sit around and create things and let Marvel take it from there.”28 When asked if he would consider returning to Marvel should the publisher revise its policies regarding character ownership, Lee responded, “Absolutely.”29 That same year, Dave Cockrum saw limited success in his quest for work over at Marvel’s competitor, DC Comics. Through informal channels, he had let it be known to his fellow professionals that he was looking for assignments, and writer/artist Dan Jurgens heard the call. “I had always been a big fan of Dave’s work, and when I heard he was looking for something to do, [and] wanted to get something thrown his way...”. Jurgens recommended him for that year’s Justice League America Annual, which was edited by Brian Augustyn.

“I was always glad to give work to greatly talented folks — especially if they also happened to be my favorites, as Dave was,” Augustyn remembered. “Dave drew stories for me on the Justice League books because I was a fan of his work and thought he’d be great on the

A panel from Cockrum’s Justice League America Annual.

Superman, Wonder Woman ™ and © DC Comics.

115

material. I may have heard that he was available, but I don’t remember his approaching me.”

Cockrum’s assignments included Justice League America Annual #6, which was part of that year’s Eclipso crossover event, and shorter stories in Justice League Quarterly #9 (Winter 1992) and 11 (Summer 1993). The artist also drew the cover to Justice League Quarterly #8 (Summer 1992), which was an homage to his cover for X-Men #100 (Aug. 1976). About the latter, Augustyn recalled, “The only assignment we gave Dave that I vividly remember was when we had him recreate his famous ‘heroes-villains-about-to-clash’ X-Men cover for JL Quarterly. We thought it was so-o-o-o-o cool. Dave was accommodating and very professional, but I’m sure he thought we were hopeless fanboys (and we were). I didn’t have a whole lot of actual contact with Dave, and I’m not sure we ever met except by phone, but he was always a gentleman and a pro — and met every deadline.”

1992 also brought an assignment for the artist from the Green Lantern office, although

Unused cover rough for Green Lantern Corps Quarterly #3.

Green Lantern Corps ™ and © DC Comics.

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it did not contain his favorite GL, Hal Jordan. Cockrum illustrated an 18-page story in Green Lantern Corps Quarterly #3 (Winter 1992) about an aquatic alien Green Lantern, called “Depth Charge,” and followed it up the following year with an inking assignment on Green Lantern (Vol. 3) #43 (Jul. 1993). About the issues, editor Kevin Dooley recalled, “As far as I can remember, it was John Ostrander, the writer of the GL Quarterly story, who recommended that Dave draw his story. I was honored to have Dave draw it! Dave was a gentleman and a professional, turning in his work on time and well delineated.” Dooley later added, “GL #43 was a mega-fill-in issue... that I needed done quickly to meet a deadline, and had many, many hands as we were getting ahead for the Trinity crossover,” which explained Cockrum’s presence as one of three inkers on the issue.

Dooley also recalled a conversation with the artist about the changing values of the industry. “I do seem to remember that he bluntly asked me why he wasn’t getting as many jobs as he used to, and I, being an editor who believed in being as open as possible to my freelancers, told him, frankly, that some considered his style to be a little dated for the times, that, perhaps sadly, there was a new style that was popular with the fans, heralded by the Image artists and their breed. As I recall, he was very appreciative of my honesty and did his best to give me his best, to prove he was still a viable action artist. I thought he was a darn good storyteller... Again, Dave was always polite and honest over the phone. I don’t think I ever met him in person.”

That same year, Cockrum was involved with a series that didn’t make it past the penciling stage. In 1990, DC Comics had decided to launch a line of comic books aimed at younger readers based upon the superheroes owned by Archie Comics. The plan was for kids to begin with the newly-christened Impact! line, and then graduate to the mainstream DC Universe.

The company licensed the characters from Archie, and then proceeded to launch six ongoing series, all of which saw print in 1991.

Unfortunately for the publisher, the line met with poor sales, and a decision was made to relaunch the titles aimed at an older audience.

This time, however, there would be only three series, and Cockrum was chosen to be the artist for one of them. About the experience, he later told Bradley S. Cobb, “Frankly, I don’t remember [who contacted me]. I got a call asking me if I was available. I imagine it was whoever was editing the line.”30 That person was Jim Owsley [who has since changed his name to Christopher Priest], who had previously worked as an editor at Marvel. Brian Augustyn, who was also involved with the Impact! relaunch, Unpublished panels from Wrath of the Comet #1. Comet ™ and © Archie Comic Publications, Inc. theorized, “Having edited for years

by Harris in 1984. Years later, the publisher revived at Marvel, I’m certain Jim worked with Dave a time or Creepy as a mini-series, and Cockrum illustrated a two over there, and we were glad to have Dave aboard story written by Kurt Busiek in its second issue. The for the attempt to take Impact! Comics out for another series was co-edited by Richard Howell, who later year... I didn’t have any direct contact [with him], but played an important role in Cockrum’s career. About his art was terrific on the story. Lots of fun.” the assignment, Howell said, “I don’t remember speIn the early 2000s, Cockrum wrote about the issue, cifically [hiring Dave for the job], although being the “Some years ago DC asked me to start a new series historian that I am, the fact that Dave’s first published called Wrath of the Comet based on their failed Impact breakthrough professional job was for the Warren line (which was, in turn, based on the old Archie/MLJ/ magazines might have had something to do with it.”

Red Circle lines). In this series, the Comet, who was a Meanwhile, the industry boom continued to gain failed superhero, has become a totally out of control, momentum. Late in 1992, another big event occurred rampaging villain. He blasted an entire city with radiawhen DC Comics “killed” Superman in Superman #75. tion, killing or driving out everybody, and took it over The issue sold over 2.5 million copies, and garnered as his home base. The authorities somehow domed massive mainstream media attention. In 1993, the over the city and enclosed him, but it didn’t do an boom peaked with over 700 different titles published awful lot of good[.]”31 in one month, and the number of stores that sold them Due to changed priorities at the publisher, the series had more than doubled to roughly 8,000 outlets.33 was halted before the first issue was finished. In 2003, That same year, Cockrum drew four sample story Cockrum told Cobb, “I turned in the pencils of #1, and pages in an attempt to secure work from editors. It was after some length of time when I didn’t hear anything the same tactic that had gotten him both the “Legion of else, I called DC and was informed that the project was Super-Heroes” and “Captain Marvel, Jr.” assignments cancelled. I never knew whether it was because they roughly two decades before. Originally published in 32 didn’t like my art, or if there were other reasons.”

The Unseen Art of Dave Cockrum (Sturdy Heart Publi1992 also saw Cockrum return to his professional cations, 1993), the artist wrote about them, “These are roots with an assignment for Harris Comics’ revival sample pages I did after an editor, a dear friend of many of Creepy. In 1983, Warren Publishing, the original years, told me my work was perceived as ‘stodgy.’ I publisher of Creepy, Eerie, and Vampirella, went banknever sent copies to anyone because suddenly I started rupt, and the assets of the company were purchased 117

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum

getting more work than I could handle.”34 Featured prominently in the demos were the Futurians, along with other characters created by Cockrum, including new creations such as Armor Thug, Webster, and Reflection. When asked about the pages years later in an email to the present author, Cockrum replied, “They never got me any [jobs]. I think part of the reason was that the copy... tended to be a little confrontational.

I was resentful that the industry seemed to have passed me by, and I’m afraid these pages reflected that resentment.”

118

1993 was also the year that the artist began work for the small press company, Aardwolf Publishing. According to Aardwolf consultant Cliff Meth, “I met him the first time at the first Marvel Con, in 1975 or ’76... there was Dave sitting next to George Pérez — I remember that — and they were sketching.

I’d never seen artists sketching at a convention before. And Dave drew a little Wolverine for me, a little tiny Wolverine, which I still have. That was 31 years ago. Giant-Size X-Men #1 had, I guess, just come out maybe six months earlier, so that was the time frame on that.”

Meth continued, “We never had any contact again until about ’91. There was a New York show, and at this point I owned a couple of comic book shops called Clobbering Time. I was at a convention, and there’s Dave Cockrum, sitting at a table, just getting absolutely no attention, sketching for people for five bucks a sketch, ten bucks a sketch. I went over, and we had a conversation. I was shocked that this pillar of the comic book industry — as far as I was concerned, anyway — was largely ignored at this point of his career. He wasn’t an old man.

He was in his [late] 40s, about the age I am now, certainly as capable as he ever was — maybe in some ways more so — and we got to talking. He told me he wasn’t getting a heck of a lot of work. He was getting a cover here, a cover there, a story here... He wasn’t getting a lot of work, and certainly nothing from Marvel. It was all from DC at that point, and I thought this was a shame.

“They were having a very hard time financially, Dave and Paty, and at that point, Jim Reaber and I were talking about starting Aardwolf. It was right in that time frame that we decided that we wanted to do something together, and Aardwolf, initially, was about

Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum

doing art portfolios, so we asked both Dave Cockrum and Gray Morrow, who was another friend of mine, to be consultants to Aardwolf. We hired them to do some work, and we launched Aardwolf in... I think it was 1993. Dave was involved in the very first projects that we did. We did all sorts of things together. We did prints, we did a couple of art portfolios... I basically started marketing Dave Cockrum. I mean, nobody was using him very much. There was a lot of opportunities, so I said, ‘Look, let’s make some money at it! Let’s do some stuff!’ He just didn’t know how to market himself.”

Among the projects that Cockrum produced for Aardwolf were a series of prints that featured various X-Men characters, including Havok, Colossus, and Magneto. He also provided illustrations for numerous Aardwolf books, many of which contained fiction written by Meth himself. “I was also an aspiring writer,” Meth recalled.

“I was a professional journalist.

I wrote for the L.A. Times Entertainment Newswire, and quite a few publications, including Billboard magazine. I wrote for the earliest issues of Wizard magazine. I’d really hung around comics, but I was aspiring to start publishing fiction. I had never really looked at fiction before, and Dave agreed to illustrate some of my stuff, and he really helped me get started. So our friendship was very multi-faceted.

That’s how we started out. And then we just became very close.”

Aardwolf was one of many new companies, large and small, to enter the industry at the time. In addition to the independent New Jersey publisher, larger corporations also decided to try their hand at comic books.

One of those businesses was Topps Comics, owned by the trading card company founded in 1938. In an article

written by Meth for Wizard #33 (1994), it was revealed that Jim Salicrup, a former Marvel editor who was then editor-in-chief of Topps Comics, offered Cockrum the newsstand covers of their Jurassic Park mini-series.

With the arrival of these (and other) new companies, doors opened up for artists such as Cockrum to find work.

“When it rains, it pours,” he told Meth in Wizard.

“Within weeks [of the Jurassic Park assignment], Valiant called with an exciting Harbinger project, and [Jim] Shooter offered me all sorts of work for his new 119

All characters ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum

company, Defiant.”35 Valiant Comics, which had launched back in 1989 with Cockrum’s former roommate, Jim Shooter, at the helm, had since parted ways with its founder due to internal politics. Shooter then started another company, Defiant Comics, in 1993. According to Meth, “[Dave’s] only real friend in the industry at that point of any import was Jim Shooter, who he went way back with. I guess Shooter was at Valiant at that point, and then Shooter went on to Defiant, and then Broadway.

And he always took Cockrum with him. He always 120

gave Dave work. He was damn good to Dave Cockrum. He recognized Dave’s talent, and he gave him work. What more can you ask for?”

“Dave and I worked together a good bit while we were both at Marvel, and a few times after that,” Shooter recalled in 2006.

“Through thick and thin and thinner and thinner, Dave and I always remained friends. Even when being a friend of mine wasn’t fashionable.”36 Cockrum illustrated the graphic novel Warriors of Plasm: Home for the Holidays for Defiant Comics.

It also reunited him with another former working partner, Len Wein, for the first time since the pair had relaunched the X-Men together in 1975. Although they had remained friends throughout the years, due to their respective career paths, they had not collaborated on a project together in 18 years.

The Plasm assignment made a particularly strong impression on one comic book creator, former Defiant and Valiant artist Charles Yoakum. “My second or third day in New York, and in the comics industry as a whole, I was working at the Defiant offices on West 36th St., when in comes Dave Cockrum,” remembered Yoakum. “[He proceeded] to sit at the drawing board next to mine and look over recently inked pages of his Defiant work, Home for the Holidays. Dave, wearing splints on both wrists for carpal tunnel, was clearly not in the very best of health, but was jovial, cordial, just plain fun to talk with.

“His one complaint on the Plasm pages: that they had taken the tail off of Nightcrawler in the background of a panel. ‘He’s my character, my trademark,’ Dave explained to Jim Shooter. ‘I always draw him into my work somewhere.’ The inker had taken the tail out, worried about copyright violation. Jim agreed with Dave, saying, ‘He won’t be colored exactly the same, I’m not worried about it.’ ‘Do we have to send this back to the inker?’ Dave asked. ‘There’s an inker sitting there

X-Men, Black Cat ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. Legion of Super-Heroes ™ and © DC Comics. Webster, Armor Thug, Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

with a brush in his hand,’ says Jim, looking at me. I quickly touch up the artwork and put the tail back in, and I’m thinking, “How Goddamn cool is this??”

Yoakum continued, “Dave was a huge Star Trek fan, and entertained everyone in the office with his fluent Klingon, and I got the chance to sit there and talk to him about Marvel and the different covers that he worked on that I remembered. He was a great guy, and I have a fond memory of that day, getting the chance to sit and work and talk with a guy that somehow never quite became the legend that he should have become for his body of work. It was day three of being a peer rather than chatting over the table at a convention. It still makes me smile.”37 Another person who met the artist at Defiant was David Miller, who remembered, “Bob Downs and I were up at Defiant Comics for some reason and he was there. He had done a Warriors of Plasm graphic novel for Shooter and was doing corrections on a page. I took that moment to really let him know how much I loved his work. He looked really, honestly, happy and flattered to hear my words.

He reached out and grabbed my hand and shook it.

And then we parted company. It was a great moment for me.”38 The Warriors of Plasm graphic novel led to a related assignment the following year: The Great Grimmax #0 was an eight-page giveaway comic bound inside Wizard competitor Hero Illustrated #15 (Aug. 1994).

“Grimmax is the Splatterball champion from Defiant’s Plasm universe,” Cockrum told Meth in 1994. “He has decided to come to Earth and take up superheroing.

I think we may have a real winner with this one.”39 Unfortunately, it was the only issue of the series.

In 1994, Valiant Comics, at that point the industry’s number four publisher, was bought by the video game manufacturer Acclaim for 65 million dollars. That same year, Cockrum secured two assignments from the company: the first Turok Yearbook, and Harbinger Files #1 (Aug. 1994). He told Meth in Wizard #33, “I like these Valiant characters a lot. They’re very different from the costumed superheroes that I grew used to.

It’s a real nice change of pace.”40 121

(top, left to right) Ron Wagner, Cliff Meth, and Cockrum in 1990. (above) Paty and Dave Cockrum at the Aardwolf launch in 1994. (right) A limited Warriors of Plasm print sold through Meth’s Clobbering Time store. Warriors of Plasm ™ and © DreamWorks Classics

Also in 1994, the artist illustrated part of a fill-in issue of Prime for Malibu Comics, about which the issue’s editor, Hank Kanalz, remembered, “As I recall, we were looking to keep the book on schedule, so we started thinking about the different versions of Prime we wanted to do, and the artists we’d like to handle each story. Dave Cockrum was a favorite for all of us, and we were lucky enough to catch him at the right time.” When asked why the artist didn’t draw the entire issue, Kanalz responded, “As I recall, he ran into some health issues, and since we couldn’t move this story off the schedule, we had to continue on without him.

I remember getting the first set of pages, though, and it was just like opening a present on Christmas morning!”

It was also during this time that Cockrum attempted to generate projects of his own which featured his most successful creations. “I once pitched to Bob Harras the idea of doing a series called Tales of the Classic X-Men (doing with my group, basically, what John Byrne [did] with the original X-Men). As with many other suggestions, he blew that one off, too. In fact, he looked at me like I’d lost my mind or something.”41 In 2003, 122

the artist elaborated, “I might get a more receptive response now, but I doubt that they’d let me draw it.”42 Cockrum also pitched a mini-series to Marvel that featured the Starjammers, but to no avail. “My son and I worked up a proposal for a graphic novel or mini-series involving the Starjammers and the Imperial Guard, exploring the relationships between Lilandra and Gladiator, and establishing that Raza was a member of the royal family, a cousin of Lil’s, who had been exiled for some reason I no longer remember,” he recalled in 2002. “I thought it was pretty good. We submitted it to Bob Harras, who was about the most useless editor the X-line ever had. He blew it off.”43 In 2007, Ivan Cockrum recalled, “I wrote a freakin’ Jack of Hearts story... Artists hated him, because he was so hard to draw. His suit was all spades and clubs and tiny little details, but there was something about him that captured my attention, and I did some kind of Jack of Hearts/Starjammers crossover, if I recall correctly. I think we pitched that. Never got anywhere with that, either. He was not thrilled with the idea of drawing Jack of Hearts, but he was amused enough by the story that he was willing to consider it.”

Years earlier, the artist had an encounter of his own creator-owned series at DC, Sovereign Seven. with the hard-to-draw hero. “Believe it or not, Keith As the ’90s neared its midpoint, the boom that had Giffen designed Jack of Hearts,” he told his online catapulted the industry throughout the early years of fans in 2003. “But everybody who used him drew him the decade turned into a bust. In 1994, Marvel Comics differently, and John Romita, Sr., who was then Art bought the distributor Heroes World and announced Director, asked me if I could do a definitive version an exclusive arrangement with the subsidiary conthat could be given out to the various artists. They folcerning its products: all comic book stores that wished lowed my character drawings for awhile, but then went to purchase Marvel comics from that point forward 44 back to doing him any way they damn well pleased.” were required to buy them from Heroes World. Due Cockrum’s low opinion of the editor who had to the nature of the business, in which store owners rejected both of his series proposals was apparent in a achieved certain discounts once they reached particlater discussion about the changular sales plateaus, the bottom ing roles of editors throughout line for many stores was that his career. In it, the artist stated, those plateaus could no longer “Editors at Marvel didn’t have be maintained with their regular [that much] power 20 years ago. distributor due to the absence With one or two notable excepof Marvel products from their tions, they were merely traffickusual orders. In addition, those ers in paper, and many of them plateaus could not be attained had been hired as gophers six with Heroes World, either, months before becoming ediand many stores began to lose tors. That’s how Bob Harras got money. To make matters worse, 45 his job.”

Heroes World was unprepared In 1994, the possibility existed for the sheer volume of business that The Futurians might return that suddenly became its responto print. Rob Liefeld’s branch sibility, and communications of Image Comics, Extreme Stubreakdowns led to furious store dios, pursued the characters owners and shortages of product for an all-new series. However, in many areas. when Cockrum saw pages that In response to Marvel’s showed what the artist had in maneuver, in 1995 DC Comics mind for his property, he killed announced an exclusive deal the deal. The Futurians creator with Diamond Distributors, and objected to a scene in particumany other publishers followed Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum lar which showed the character suit. Simultaneous with these Blackmane having “disemboweled” another characevents, many speculators who had purchased multiter, and saw the new take on his property as detriple copies of particular comic books for investment mental to its integrity. purposes realized that, in many cases, they could not On the positive side, the experience led to Cockrum even recover their initial costs, and the bubble burst. reviving the property on his own, and The Futurians Numerous stores and publishers went out of business, #0 was published in 1995 by Aardwolf Publishing. The and the boom was officially over. As a result, work issue contained the previously unpublished in single became even more difficult for freelancers to obtain. form Futurians #4 (1986), and also featured a new fiveIn the case of Cockrum, while he was still largely page backup story that starred the characters Terrayne unsuccessful in his efforts to secure assignments from and Blackmane, illustrated by Cockrum and written by Marvel and DC, his own uncertain future appeared Cliff Meth. Although sales were “pretty damn respectto be reversing course. Due to his work on the Creepy 46 able for a small independent,” the book was not folmini-series years earlier, a new job loomed on his horilowed by an ongoing series. Cockrum even approached zon, one that suited his own personal storytelling prefhis former X-Men co-plotter, Chris Claremont, about erences. While the industry held its collective breath, collaborating on a new Futurians title, but was turned for the artist, the future looked more stable than it had down as Claremont had already committed to his own in years.

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Endnotes 1 Dave Cockrum, eBay Listing, eBay (http://www.comicsfun.com/

comicart/cockrum/skywolf2).

2 Dark Bamf, “Classic X-Men,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.

com, Mar. 29, 2005), pg. 1.

3 Dave Cockrum, “Batman,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com,

July 29, 2002), pg. 1.

4 Cockrum, op. cit., pg. 1.

5 Kim Thompson, “Watching the Detectives: An Interview with Max

Allan Collins,” Amazing Heroes #119 (Fantagraphics Books, Inc., June 15, 1987), pg. 25.

6 Cockrum, op. cit. pg. 1.

7 ibid, pg. 1.

8 Glen Cadigan, “Dave Cockrum,” The Legion Companion (TwoMorrows

Publishing, 2003), pg. 76.

9 Dave Cockrum, “Hello Dave,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.

com, July 19, 2002), pg. 1.

10 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 76.

11 Chris Companik, “Mark Waid,” The Legion Companion (TwoMorrows

Publishing, 2003), pg. 211.

12 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

13 Tom Toner, “Before They Were Stars: Dave Cockrum,” (www.

uncannyxmen.net, Jan. 21, 2003).

14 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 21, 2006), pg. 6.

15 James Heath Lantz, “Starjammers: Jamming with the Stars,” Back Issue

#133 (TwoMorrows Publishing, Feb. 2022), pgs. 17-18.

16 Dave Cockrum, “Starjammers, Shi’ar, Imperial Guard,” Classically

Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 25, 2002), pg. 1.

17 Dark Bamf, “LSH vs. Imperial Guard,” DCMB: The Legion (www.

dccomics.com, Feb. 27, 2003), pg. 4.

18 Steve Lightle, “Steve Lightle Intro Piece,” LegionPics (groups.yahoo.

com/groups/LegionPics, Nov. 4, 2002).

19 “Miracle a Few Blocks Down from 34th Street,” Marvel Holiday Spe-

cial (Marvel, 1991).

20 Roy Thomas, Caption, Alter Ego #24 (TwoMorrows Publishing, May

2003), pg. 41.

21 Dave Cockrum, “Violent, Insane, and Passé Q & A,” Cockrum Corner

(www.comiXfan.com, July 25, 2002), pg. 1.

22 “Timeline,” Diamond Comics Distributors (http://www.

freecomicbookday.com/ch_timeline.asp, 2007). (this page and next) Some of the prints published by Aardwolf featuring various X-Men characters. X-Men, Colossus, Havok, Magneto, Wolverine ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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23 op. cit.

24 ibid.

25 Based upon “U.S. Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Man-

agement and Circulation: 10. (Extent and Nature of Circulation) C. (Total Paid Circulation): Single issue nearest to filing date,” in Uncanny X-Men #274 (Mar. 1991); 404,300 copies sold, and Uncanny X-Men #286 (Mar. 1992); 599,300 copies sold.

26 Jon B. Cooke, “Dave ‘Blackhawk’ Cockrum,” Comic Book Artist

Collection Vol. 2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg. 161.

27 Gareb Shamus, “Spawning a New Image,” Wizard: The Guide to

Comics #11 (Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., July 1992), pg. 13.

28 Rob Samsel, “Jim Lee: A Bowl of Granola,” Wizard: The Guide to

Comics #12 (Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., Aug. 1992), pg. 13.

29 Samsel, op. cit., pg. 11.

30 Bradley S. Cobb, “Dave Cockrum Interview,” The Mighty Crusad-

ers Network (www.mightycrusaders.net).

31 Dave Cockrum, “Wrath of the Comet,” Dave Cockrum Gallery

(www.NightScrawlers.com).

32 Cobb, op. cit.

33 “Timeline,” op. cit.

34 Dave Cockrum, The Unseen Art of Dave Cockrum (Sturdy Heart

Publications, 1993), pg 1.

35 Clifford Meth, “Ex-X-Man,” Wizard: The Guide to Comics #33

(Gareb Shamus Enterprises, Inc., May 1994), pg. 40.

36 Stacia Brown, “In Memoriam: Dave Cockrum,” Scoop: The Main

Event (Gemstone Publishing, Dec. 1, 2006).

37 Charles Yoakum, “R.I.P. Dave Cockrum,” Ink Destroyed My Brush

(inkdestroyedmybrush.blogspot.com, Dec. 1, 2006).

38 Michael Grabois, “More Cockrum Memories,” The Legion Omni-

com (adventure247.blogspot.com, Dec. 1, 2006).

39 Meth, op cit., pg. 40.

40 Meth, ibid.

41 Dave Cockrum, “Colossus…” Classically Cockrum (www.

comiXfan.com, July 25, 2002), pg. 1.

42 Dave Cockrum, “Hey Dave, for When a New X-Men Title Featur-

ing Only the Classics?” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 2, 2003), pg. 1.

43 Dave Cockrum, “Classic X-Men,” Classically Cockrum (www.

comiXfan.com, July 18, 2002), pg. 1.

44 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Cockrum Returning to Legion,”

DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, Jan. 11, 2003), pg. 6.

45 Dave Cockrum, “Dave, How Many New X-Men Were There in All?” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 16, 2002), pg. 1.

46 Dark Bamf, “Futurians #0,” Visionaries of Tomorrow (www.legionworld.net, Sept. 21, 2003), pg. 1.

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Cockrum penciled (and Marie Severin inked and colored) the cover to Whirlwind, a collection of his stories.

Art © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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Chapter 7: 1995–2003

B

I. Claypool & Company

ack in 1993, Cockrum received his first assignson (Elvira’s personal manager), and the ball got rollment from new publisher Claypool Comics ing right there and then.”2 Elvira, Mistress of the Dark #1 was cover dated May in the form of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark #7 1993, and the series had a Cockrum supporter in (Nov. 1993). Claypool had been founded the previous the form of writer Kurt Busiek. About his role in the year by Richard Howell and Ed Via when the latter recruitment of the artist for the title, Busiek recalled, approached Howell about forming a new black-&“My memory of it is pretty simple, really. I loved the white comic book company. In 1996, Howell recalled, Cockrum/Villagran combo on Futurians, and wanted “I was the editor/packager who reintroduced Vamto do some stuff they’d illustrate. pirella and Creepy into the 1990s, Since Richard at Claypool was and while I was [at Harris], Ed Via working with Ricardo Villagran approached me about what would already, and since he’d hired Dave eventually become the Claypool the only other time I’d had the line. We agreed that having some chance to work with him (a story in already-established character as Harris Comics’ Creepy #2 [1992]), it the lynchpin of our line would be a seemed like a good idea to say, ‘Hey, great way to begin, and Elvira was get Dave Cockrum for a story of definitely on the short list of appli1 mine and have Ricardo ink it!’ And cable properties.”

Elvira had begun her career as the results looked great!” a late night television hostess on For his part, Howell was also a station KHJ-TV in Los Angeles in fan of Cockrum’s work since “...long 1981. In reality she was actress Casbefore I met the guy.” In 2007, he sandra Peterson, and the character elaborated, “Dave and I weren’t that had its origin in the West Coast far apart in terms of age and influimprovisational comedy troupe the ence and what we thought our place Groundlings, of which Peterson was The artist photographed by Anthony in the business was. But yeah, defia member. When Fright Night host Taylor at Wonderfest in 1995. nitely, Dave was one of my modern Larry Vincent passed away, and day comic idols.” thus took his character Sinister Seymour with him, the The two had met years earlier while Cockrum was station experimented with the timeslot for years until still on staff at Marvel. “Back in the day, one of my jobs Peterson got the job of introducing horror movies on was co-editing a magazine called Comics Feature that the newly retitled Movie Macabre six years later. In the Shuster brothers published in the late ’70s/early time, Elvira grew in popularity, and the actress had a ’80s, and so consequently, I had to take regular trips marketable property on her hands. down to New York to do interviews and things at the With a strategy in mind to present a new Elvira Marvel offices with various professionals. Dave was on series as a comedic horror title, Howell and Via secured staff at the time, so I ran into him several times then.” the rights for the comic book with “...a little help on Howell recalled, “He was this big, blustery guy. He that score from some West Coast pals whose careers always seemed to be having a lot of fun with everybody involve comics and show business: Mark Evanier and and everything. I remember he was designing covers Paul Dini. They took that first meeting with Mark Pierat that point, and had a lot of funny sketches up on his 127

walls. I remember he had a cartoon of Devil Dinosaur in an Iron Fist mask, for some reason, and it was ‘Devil Fist.’ I got the feeling that he added a lot to the atmosphere in the office up there.”

With the artist’s propensity for humor, he seemed to be a perfect match for Elvira. In his first issue, editor Howell wrote, “Dave’s highly personable pencils work delightfully well with Kurt Busiek’s witty parable about the evils of the type of over-the-top over-merchandising that could (ahem!) only occur in the television industry. The expert inks of Deadbeats’ Ricardo Villagran complete the line-up for this effort (and reunite Cockrum and Villagran for the first time since The Futurians).”3 The artist’s most important assignment for the publisher came two years after his Elvira debut with his first issue of Soulsearchers and Company (#13, July 1995).

Soulsearchers was launched in 1993 by Howell, author Peter David, and artist Amanda Conner, and it featured

(left) Cockrum’s version of that Mistress of the Dark, Elvira. (above) Ad for Soulsearchers and Company based upon the splash page of his first issue.

Elvira ™ and © Queen “B” Productions. Soulsearchers ™ and © Claypool Comics/Boffin Books, Second Age, Inc., and Richard Howell.

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the adventures of a group of paranormal investigators in the town of Mystic Grove, Connecticut. The team was led by Bridget Lockridge, a former Olympic athlete who possessed a magic staff that could elongate at her command. Due to her rocky relationship with her mother, who had previously exploited her daughter’s fame for her own personal gain, Lockridge joined the Soulsearchers in an attempt to establish her own life.

The group’s other members were the Arabic demon Baraka, who possessed fire powers and an active libido; Kelly Hollister, a teenage witch-in-training; Peter P. Peterson, the team accountant, who owned a magic bag from which virtually anything could be produced; Janocz, a.k.a. Creature Feature, a gypsy who could turn into monsters; and Arnold Q. Stanley, the company’s owner, who had, at some point prior to the series, been transformed into a talking prairie dog. Together, the Soulsearchers fought amongst themselves as much as they investigated psychic occurrences, and were always on the verge of financial disaster.

Cockrum did not immediately land the Soulsearchers assignment. After missing #14 and 16 (but not #15), he became the regular penciler on the series with its 17th issue, cover dated Apr. 1996. Regarding the start/stop pattern of his early issues, Howell recalled, “I think we were each trying each other out. Dave wanted to know if he could work with the characters, and if he could respond to the stories.

I thought 13 was a very, very strong issue, and certainly made that much stronger by Dave’s excellent storytelling.

The way he caught on to the characters immediately was just invaluable.”

The artist stayed on the series for four years, until #44 (Sept. 2000). It was the longest period of time he ever spent on any comic book series. He later commented about the run, “Most of the time drawing SSAC was a lot of fun. And I loved the characters. I just wish it paid better — and color would’ve been nice, too.”4 Upon learning that the former X-Men co-creator was the new artist on the series, author Peter David

thought, “‘Holy sh*t, what’s wrong with this industry that Dave Cockrum’s doing this book?’ Which is not at all a knock against Soulsearchers — I loved doing Soulsearchers — but why the hell isn’t Dave Cockrum working for Marvel or DC?” Concurrent with his early work on the title, Cockrum also provided artwork for the first two installments of “Fatale” in Shadow State (#1–2, Dec. 1995–Jan. 1996) for his longtime acquaintance, Jim Shooter. In 2002, the artist wrote about the assignment, “I did a couple of ‘Fatale’ stories for him at Broadway Comics and he and his editorial committee sat on me so hard that I consider them to be the dullest, most unimaginative pieces of work I’ve ever done.”5 It was the last time that the former roommates ever worked together.

In 1995, the artist revisited a concept he had created while in the Navy. As originally conceived, the Intruder was the partner of Nightcrawler, but with the latter now owned by Marvel, Cockrum created a new sidekick for the vigilante: Hellsprite.

In 1996, Cockrum’s first full year on Soulsearchers, the artist moonlighted for DC on that year’s Wonder Woman Annual. Written by his artistic successor on The X-Men, John Byrne, the story was part of that year’s “Legends of the Dead Earth” theme, and showed the character AlyXa thousands of years in the future as she was inspired by the Wonder Woman legend. About the assignment, the title’s editor, Paul Kupperberg recalled, “I remember the story well, and I was happy to be able to work with Dave. I’d known him forever (my forever, that is). I met Dave at my first New York Seuling Comicon in 1971, but I’d been familiar with and a fan of his fanzine work and his early days in comics, and since I was always up at DC even before I started writing for them in 1975, I got to know him. And all the stories I wrote, all the time we overlapped there, I don’t think we ever got to work together, other than my using his illustrations in my fanzine in the early ’70s.”

Kupperberg went on to say, “John Byrne was the writer and artist on Wonder Woman at the time and he scripted the annual, a science fiction story, but didn’t want to or didn’t have time to draw it. So we discussed artists, and John said I should give it to Dave. I thought that was a great idea. Dave could still lay down a great story, tell it cleanly and concisely, and the work was everything I hoped it would be.”

About the issue, Cockrum kidded in 2005, “John [Byrne] actually requested me on the book. I suspect

(above) A panel from “Fatale” for Broadway Comics’ Shadow State. (left) Cockrum gives the Intruder a new sidekick: Hellsprite!

Fatale ™ and © DreamWorks Classics; Intruder and Hellsprite ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

he couldn’t find anybody else.”6 In 2006, Byrne confirmed the events when he wrote on his online message board, “Paul Kupperberg and I were able to get Dave on a Wonder Woman Annual when I was writing and drawing that title, despite resistance from higher up. Dave was always on my short list for artists, when I picked up an assignment that I was writing, not drawing. I’d suggested him for Spider-Woman, but when the pages started coming back to me, Bart Sears was drawing them. That was pretty much how it went.”7 Kupperberg elaborated, “I knew Dave had difficulty getting work by then. He had a few years on me in the business, but we’re more or less of the same vintage, so I know that after a while, you just kind of lose your place at the table. Tastes change, styles shift, new people come along who grew up on your stuff, and suddenly, you’re retro. I suppose it’s evolution. But I did try when I was editing at DC, whenever possible, to use some of my fellow ‘dinosaurs.’”

That same year, Cockrum also began a short stint as the artist of a series of five-page back-ups in Chris Claremont’s Sovereign Seven. The episodes ran from #19 (Feb. 1997) to #23 (June 1997), and featured solo stories about different members of the team. According to the book’s editor, Kevin Dooley, “I can’t remember who came up with the idea of Dave for the artist, but how great to join up Chris Claremont with Dave Cockrum, 129

the artist who helped re-empower the new X-Men with Len Wein way back when. It was a pleasure to call Dave and offer him more work. A courteous, professional gentleman in every sense of the term, he again turned in art that emphasized excellent storytelling, and I think it truly helped S7 last for as long as it did.”

Cockrum also provided illustrations for a short story collection of his own writing, published by Aardwolf Publishing, in 1997, called Whirlwind. The cover was inked and colored by Marie Severin, who, through a production error, was the only artist whose signature appeared on the cover. Unfortunately, the cover was also published in black-&-white instead of full color, which negated her efforts.

Back on Soulsearchers, Cockrum was in the position of being the artist of a comic book on a regular schedule for the first time since his second stint on X-Men in 1982. About his run on the series, Howell stated, “He was fairly consistent there for about a year, and then 26 was a fill-in, and 31 was a fill-in, and then [41] was a fill-in... As an editor, I thought it was much more sensible of me to assume that Dave would miss an issue a year, because he generally did, and the not-so-sensible pie-in-the-sky side of me was saying, ‘And then eventually we’ll catch up, and everything will be fine.’”

Howell elaborated, “Dave always had deadline prob-

Drawing this 4-seat bicycle was not among Cockrum’s favorite things. Soulsearchers

™ and © Claypool Comics/Boffin Books, Second Age, Inc., and Richard Howell.

lems, for some reason. [Maybe] he was doing work for other people, and was having trouble managing his time... but we had a period where he was doing both Soulsearchers regularly and an Elvira/Soulsearchers crossover, and it just got to be too much for him, so some of those Soulsearchers crossover issues were either laid out by Dave and finished by me, then inked by Jim Mooney, or they were laid out by Dave and then finished

by Jim Mooney.”

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He added, “[Dave’s] work was very meticulous, and very well thought through, [but] basically, Dave was not set up to turn out a lot of work. Even at the point when he was feeling more healthy, the amount of consideration that went into his work... it made the work much better, but it did slow it down.

“Everybody loved his work, and I think mostly he enjoyed working on the series, although... it was funny; he always wanted to do more, and I always kept telling him, ‘I’m not saying no, Dave, but let’s meet our deadlines, first. Let’s catch up on the book [first].’ At one point, Dave wanted to take on plotting the book entirely, without either me or Peter David, and I didn’t have a problem with it. I don’t think Peter did, either, but the fact that the book was always running late was just the deal breaker on that.”

The artist’s wish to plot the series was rooted in his growing dissatisfaction with the assignment, due to the direction of the series. In 2006, he wrote online, “I loved those characters, and I could’ve gone on forever doing the book if editor Richard Howell would’ve let me do some stories that fitted my own tastes, but he preferred soap opera stuff.”8 Cockrum did plot #43, his last full issue of the series, about which Howell said, “...it was a very good issue, too.”

The internal tension came to a head with the 44th issue, cover dated September 2000.

About the story in question, Howell recalled, “We had a situation. It was midway through issue 42. There was this parody song of something from The Sound of Music — ‘My Favorite Things,’ or something; I forget which song it was — and one of the shots called for four of the characters to be on one of those bicycles that has four seats on it in a row, and Dave just completely lost it. He said, ‘I can’t draw this! I’m not going to draw this! You can’t ask me to draw this!’

And... I don’t know. I never got a clear answer on that, and following that discussion — if you want to call it that — he just decided to move on.”

Paty Cockrum confirmed, “That was sort of a weird relationship there. Richard wanted to do soap opera comics, and Dave kept wanting to take the Soulsearchers on wild and fantastic adventures, and Richard wouldn’t have any of it. Which was unfortunate, because Dave was, above everything else, a fantastic storyteller.

“The plots were getting more and more soap opera-y and soap opera-y, and finally David mentioned to Richard that this particular one plot that he had just got

was so damn dull and stupid, that it was, ‘C’mon! Can’t you do something better than this?’ and Richard took offense, and said, ‘Well, if you don’t want to do it, don’t!’ And he said, ‘No, I don’t want to do it!’ and he left the book. He sent it back and said, ‘No, get someone else to do it. This is dull and boring and stupid, and I don’t want to do it.’

And so he just walked away from it[.]”

During Cockrum’s time on the series, the artist left his own mark on the title in the form of two new characters and one costume redesign. “I created a new costume for team leader Bridget Lockridge, and designed the looks of new characters Hot-2-Trot (an immortal centauress) and villain Haggard,”9 he wrote online in 2003. About his time on the series overall, he summed it up when he said, “For about three years I penciled Soulsearchers and Company, an obscure black-&-white book by an obscure independent named Claypool. The book was about a group of weirdos and misfits who kept encountering mystic and occult situations.

“In my opinion, some of my very best work was in this book. However, nobody knows it, because who reads black-&-white independents? Other than Cerebus, I mean. I’d guess we had a readership of about 4000, unfortunately. But I loved the characters, and my favorite was Kelly Hollister, who didn’t always get her spells correct.”10 For his part, Howell continued to offer the creator work. “I did keep in touch with him after he had left the Soulsearchers book, and kept offering him more Elvira stories, and I think at one point we had a discussion — I don’t remember how serious it was — about his taking the Soulsearchers book back on again, but that didn’t amount to anything. There just wasn’t enough assurance that Dave would be able to handle it.”

Howell recalled, “At one point, he even agreed to do an Elvira story, and I sent him the script, and he called me up and said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to be able to do this.’ I said, ‘Is it because it’s a 15-pager? I can send you an eight-page one,’ and he said, ‘No, I just don’t think I’m going to be able to.’ I said, ‘Okay. Should I keep asking you?’ and he said, ‘Yeah, go ahead.’

In 2002, the artist illustrated his last story for the publisher. That same year, he wrote online, “I have my first assignment in a couple of years: a four-page chap-

The introduction of Hot-2-Trot, a new character designed by Cockrum for Soulsearchers.

Soulsearchers ™ and © Claypool Comics/Boffin Books, Second Age, Inc., and Richard Howell.

ter in an Elvira anniversary book from Claypool. It features the Soulsearchers, the group I drew regularly for about three years.”11 Two years later, when asked to reflect about his experiences in the ’90s, he told interviewer Sébastien Dumesnil, “For me, the only jobs available were occasional fill-ins or annuals, until I finally landed Soulsearchers and Company, published

by Claypool, a small independent which had three black-&-white titles. I worked there for several years, at a page rate of less than half what I had been getting at Marvel and DC.”12 By the end of his run, Cockrum had illustrated 28 complete issues of the series, a total of two less than his combined output on The X-Men. About their time together, Howell said, “Working with Dave was always a joyride. It was always joyous, and sometimes it was quite a ride. He was mercurial at times, and always willing to tell me exactly what he thought of the latest plot.”

Howell went on to say, “Dave contributed quite a good deal to the way the Soulsearchers series wound up playing out. I think, obviously, he had a very strong foundation from Amanda [Conner, the book’s original artist], but Dave was happiest when he was working with characters that he liked, and he could have fun with these little comedy bits and characterization things. That’s one of the reasons why I think people respond to Dave’s work so positively, because they can tell he loves what he’s doing when he does, and I’m pretty sure he did on Soulsearchers. It’s like they’re not just drawings to him, they’re his friends.”

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He continued, “I am very glad that I got the chance to work with Dave while he was still around, and that I would fancy to say that it was a good thing that he was available, and it was a good thing that Soulsearchers was available for him. I think he did some excellent work on that series, and it wouldn’t have been the same book without him.”

II. The New Millennium In 2000, when Cockrum left his regular assignment as the artist on Soulsearchers and Company, the future looked bleak for the former X-Men artist. “For a while he was really happy, ’cause he felt so free,” remembered his wife Paty, “and I said, ‘Okay. Well, now what are we going to do for a roof over our heads and food in our mouths?’ and he said, ‘We’ll figure out something.’”

That “something” involved the sale of large portions of the artist’s personal comic book collection. In 2002, he wrote online, “A few years ago we were very hard up for money and I sold off my collection of Green Lantern, Flash, JLA (these were all nearly full runs from the beginning), FF, Thor, Spider-Man, and some others. I’ve regretted it ever since.”13 Cockrum was also forced to part with pages of original art from his collection, which included pieces of

Cover art for the 1997 Wonderfest convention booklet, courtesy of Ankur Jetley. All characters ™ and © their respective owners.

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his own work that he had held onto for years. Via eBay, and through his son Ivan, the artist sold pages from X-Men #103 (Feb. 1977), Nightcrawler #4, (Feb. 1986), and T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 (Nov. 1984), among others. He was even forced to sell the two covers which he had been awarded by Julie Schwarz over 30 years before, those of Green Lantern #40 by Gil Kane, and Hawkman #11 by Murphy Anderson. “[At] one point we were so hard up for money, he actually sold [them], which was unfortunate,” his wife remembered. “I told him not to, but he did, and then he wished he hadn’t.”

In addition to his financial worries, Cockrum’s health had also begun to decline. “His diabetes had progressed and he had gone to the local doctors,” Paty recalled. “He was still on oral medication, and diet control, when his father urged him to go to the V.A. and get some medical benefits, which he was entitled to, because he had spent six years in the Navy. He had extended his tour two years beyond the usual four-year tour. This was in the middle of the Vietnam War, [and] he was stationed in the South Pacific on Guam, so he was due for benefits. He went and got signed up, and actually, yes, they got him in and they took tests and things like that, and said, ‘Your diabetes is out of control, so we’re gonna put you on insulin,’ and they taught him how to do that. I want to say [it was] mid-’90s that he started on insulin.”

About the same time, Action Hobbies of Louisville, Kentucky came out with a model based upon one of Cockrum’s unused designs from his freelance period at Aurora Plastics. Twenty years after it was drawn, the artist’s Phantom model, which showed the character as he held back an attack dog, complete with pistol drawn, was available for purchase. In addition to the kit, the manufacturer also produced a kit based upon Cockrum’s unused Starjammer, Phaedra of Shandilarr.

Although the character was not originally intended to be a model, sculptor Jim Fawkes used the artist’s original concept design and created a three-dimensional figure based upon the drawing.

In 2002, Cockrum told his online fans, “Phaedra nearly became a member of the Starjammers, but then I got to doodling a lady with a skunk tail and decided I preferred her.”14 Throughout the remainder of the decade, as well as into the 21st Century, he attended modeling conventions all across the country, and met with people who knew him primarily as a model kit designer.

Another venture in the latter half of the decade was an attempt to sell humorous cartoons. Cockrum submitted several to Playboy (which were rejected)

and also drew a week’s worth of a daily strip called one thing or another every six months to a year or so.”

“Long John Silverstein,” which also went unpublished.

“I’m diabetic, and it’s left me with a lot of nasty comAccording to Paty Cockrum, “He started putting these plications,” the elder Cockrum wrote online in 2003. wonderful pieces of fun on paper to see if he could get “My life sometimes seems like an endless parade of syndicated as we encouraged him to do. But Dave was doctor’s appointments and hospital stays. But I’ll do never a business person, any more than I am.” my damnedest to stay out of hospital again.”16 One hospital trip was particularly memorable. “I got In 2001, the creator drew two new splash pages for [the nurses] to show their skills off a while back — two a French edition of The Futurians published by Semic. stays back, if I recall — when I came in delirious, with It reprinted the complete Futurians run in three prestige format volumes, but the uneven chapter breaks necessitated two new splash pages for the second and third issues.

In the meantime, being a diabetic led to other medical problems for the artist. “He had gotten an infection in his foot,” Paty recalled. “He had cut his foot because he couldn’t feel his feet. He was walking around the house and cut his foot, and it got infected, and he got osteomyelitis, which is a bone infection, and they had to go in and scrape bone.”

“I had two choice words Models and a sample strip for “Long John Silverstein”. Long John Silverstein ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum. for a certain doctor once,” a 104 fever, violent chills, and throwing up,” CockCockrum wrote online in 2002. “Well, three, actually. rum wrote in 2002. “After several hours of stalling and After surgery on my foot, he grinned and said that I (according to Paty and our friend Barb, who’s an LPN) should really opt for early amputation so I can start an incompetent doctor, they put me in a bed and then learning how to walk on prosthetics. I told him, ‘F**k 15 all walked out. Myself, delirious, suddenly needed to you, doctor.’”

Foot problems were the beginning of complications for pee. I got up (barefoot — they’d taken my shoes and the artist. “He had these two big ulcers on the bottom of sox), ran for the bathroom with pee running down my his feet, which were very inconvenient, number one, [but] front, slipped, and fell hard. I landed on my left butnot painful, because he couldn’t feel them,” Paty rememtocks (no big deal there) and my left arm, which tore bered. “They had the doctors treating them, and they some tendons in my left shoulder that still cause me actually didn’t close up until we moved down here [to pain. They all came running in and got me in a bed, South Carolina], and he got a real podiatrist to work with then stripped me naked with Paty, Barb, and another him, and she closed ’em up in ’05. That’s the Spring of ’05. friend, Marion, standing there watching. Not one of But he had those damn things on his feet for ten years.” my finer moments.”17 In addition to his health problems, Cockrum conRecurring hospital trips became commonplace for tinued to have difficulty securing work. On that front, the artist. “His health issues were ongoing for many, he was assisted by his son, Ivan. “I wound up giving many years,” Ivan Cockrum said in 2007. “He had been him freelance work at times when I could, ’cause I in and out of the hospital quite a number of times. I wound up in the computer industry, basically doing live on the other side of the country, so I wasn’t seeing internet development, and I would throw him illushim very much, but it seemed to me like a fairly regular tration work when I could find some,” Ivan recalled. cycle. You know, he would wind up in the hospital for 133

Pictures from “Hawklord,” part of the interactive CD-Rom Calliope.

Hawklord ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

“I actually had him do illustrations for multimedia on a few occasions. One time I did this kid’s game with a crazy scientist in a science lab setting, and my dad did the illustrations for that. I colored them and made them interactive. That was kind of fun.”

The father and son also collaborated on another multimedia project together. “Calliope is an interactive storytelling CD-ROM which I designed and produced with a team of 18 collaborators,” the younger Cockrum wrote on his website. “It features a variety of stories told in mixed media. Each story is told in a different visual style. The stories are tied together by an immense virtual environment, and are reached through portals in Calliope’s virtual world.”18 His father provided a story for the disc called “Hawklord,” about an Indiana Jones-esque character in search of a mystic artifact. About the experience, Cockrum wrote online that, due to his son’s “chauvinist” attitude towards PCs, the CD-ROM was only produced for Macintoshes, and thus limited its audience.

Outside the world of multimedia, the artist remained firmly entrenched in the two-dimensional field of comic books. “A number of guys I knew in the early days went to California and got work in movies, TV, and animation,” he wrote online in 2003. “With a wife 134

and baby, I didn’t have the guts to cut the ties and go. I would have loved doing production design for fantasy and science fiction films. It’s a bit late to start, now.”19 During the same period, Cockrum turned his sights on the developing marketplace for personally commissioned original comic book art. According to the artist’s friend Cliff Meth, “He wasn’t doing any cover recreations at the time, and I said, ‘This is a game you gotta get into.’ I mean, for God’s sake, he did Giant-Size X-Men #1. There’s a lot of people willing to pay for cover recreations of this thing. And it was, ‘I don’t know. What can I get? $200?’ And I’m like, ‘No, you can get $1,500! You can get $2,000 for cover recreations.’ He had no sense of the marketplace. He really didn’t. He just wasn’t a businessman.”

Meth continued, “[That’s] not a statement about his intelligence. It was just more of a statement about his naiveté. He was a sweet guy who loved comic books, loved drawing, and hung around the industry, but he never really thought about business too much. So he needed some better management[.]”

In 1999, production began on the first X-Men feature film, a motion picture that featured characters designed by Cockrum. Although there had been previous attempts to launch a franchise based upon the Marvel property, it was not until the end of the decade that circumstances prevailed and the first big screen mutant movie was released. Whereas previous attempts to bring Marvel characters to the silver screen had ended in failure, with a budget of $75 million dollars, X-Men grossed over $157 million dollars domestically, and its worldwide gross was almost $300 million dollars.20 The film was a bittersweet experience for Cockrum.

“When Dave saw the movie, he cried,” said Meth. “I mean, he just cried. He sat there and he wept. Dave didn’t tell me that he cried. Paty told me that he cried...

He was so excited, and delighted, to see his characters up on screen... it left him so touched that he choked up at it.” Despite the success of the motion picture, Cockrum did not receive any royalties for the use of characters co-created by himself and Len Wein in the film.

In 2000, the same year as the movie’s release, Cockrum told Patrick Walsh, “I saw the X-Men movie and liked it much better than I expected to. Once I got past resenting the black leather outfits, it was great (and the ‘yellow spandex’ line took a lot of the sting out of the missing comics costumes). I was a bit annoyed that neither Len Wein or I got any screen credit, when in

fact it was our version — not Stan and Jack’s — that the X-Men success is actually based on.”21 That same year, as part of the promotion for Chris Claremont’s return to The X-Men, Marvel commissioned several alternate covers for X-Men (Vol. 2) #100, and Cockrum was one of the artists asked to provide an illustration. In 2003, about the experience, he said, “Yeah, that X-Men #100 cover was the last thing I did there, and I’m surprised I got that. For whatever reason, they don’t wanna know from me at Marvel.”22 About the same time, the artist’s son gave his father a computer, and Cockrum went online. Shortly thereafter, www.davecockrum.com was launched, and through the official site, customers could purchase original art, prints, and even commission cover reproductions or character illustrations from the artist. The site also included a character gallery of Cockrum’s creations, some of which had never been seen before.

Of particular interest was the “Unseen Works” section of the site, which featured completed and partially completed projects that the artist had worked on over the course of his career. Among “Hawklord” and artwork from his unused “Batman: Dark Demon” pitch, Cockrum showcased pages from an unpublished comic book called T.H.U.G.S.. According to the copy which accompanied the artwork, “T.H.U.G.S. is an idea Dave came up with a couple of years ago, about a group of repossession men who’re actually mayhem-causin’ monsters, much to the dismay of their boss. Dave wrote and drew most of the first issue before the folks funding the project lost steam, so none of this has seen print.”

In a 2002 interview with Glen Cadigan, Cockrum said, “I have a strip that I’ve penciled the first issue of.

Actually, a lot of it’s inked, too, and some of it’s written.

It’s a real departure from superhero stuff, but a friend of mine... Cliff Meth, who owns [Aardwolf Publishing], we’ve been talking about possibly publishing this new series idea of mine — the first issue, at least. Actually, it’s got to be a three-issue story arc to introduce these guys, and I think I’d probably have to finish the other issues before we went to press with it, but that’s the trouble, though. I’m not being paid for it while I’m doing the work, and that’s kinda tough.23 “I call it T.H.U.G.S.. It stands for Tough Huge Ugly GoonS, and it’s about a repo agency that has monsters for repo men. They’ll wreck a house to bring back a rental TV. They’re loud, rude, and obnoxious, and their boss is this petite young blonde whose name is Lucrezia Louise Pillage, and don’t you dare call her Lulu!

She explodes every time she hears it. The agency is the

The original alternate cover for X-Men #100, before it was reinked for publication.

X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

Lootin Pillage Repo Agency — her father was Lootin Pillage — [and] the thing is, when she was growing up, these guys were like uncles — all these monsters.

The monsters are Thrasher, Basher, Slasher, Scungili, and Bruce. Scungili is sort of a squid, and Bruce is some kinda plant. But these guys were like her uncles.

She loves them, but they’re ruining her business and making her crazy, and she doesn’t know how to handle it. They’re not exactly scared to death of her, but the thought of letting her down just breaks their hearts.

They know that they do it all the time, and they don’t know what to do about it. Still, they’re big thugs, and they bust things, and they’re an insurance nightmare, and I see a lot of fun with this sort of thing.”

In an online post in 2003, Cockrum described Basher as “...loosely the leader of the group,”24 and about Bruce, he said, “Bruce is the tree. He’s sometimes accused of being an ent. He’s also sometimes accused of being a stalk of broccoli, or the tree-monster Tabonga, in the ’50s movie From Hell It Came.”25 Also according to the artist, “Slasher is madly in love with Lulu and writes her anonymous romantic poetry, and it’s bad, 135

and she hates it, and every time she gets one, she blows up, and, of course, he’s not gonna tell her who’s writing it.” About Thrasher, the artist wrote, “...he does look a lot like Blackmane [from The Futurians]. I’m tempted to have him make a remark, sometime, about being related.”26 Out of the entire cast of characters, Cockrum apparently put the most thought into Scungili, who “...lives down at the local aquarium. He’s got an apartment somewhere in the tanks.” In 2002, he said about the character, “His whole family works in Hollywood playing squids and octopus and things like that. They call him Octaman sometimes, and it makes him go ballistic because his cousin Louie played Octaman in that movie, and he says, ‘I hate that movie! And not only is my cousin Louie a lousy actor, he looks like a cheap rubber suit!’

Which, of course, it was.” The artist later commented, “...Louie’s dad played the rubber octopus that Bela Lugosi wrestled in that Ed Wood movie whose title I can never remember. Scungili’s grandfather played the giant squid that attacked the Nautilus in Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.”27 Regarding the entire T.H.U.G.S. franchise, Cockrum called it, “...a lot of loud

Model sheet for Scungili of T.H.U.GS. T.H.U.G.S. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

136

and obnoxious, socially unacceptable fun.”28 While describing the series, the artist also confessed, “I’ve got it already aimed for the toy market.

Their vehicle is a humungous great thing, like a HumVee on steroids. It’s called the Repo-Raptor. The front end is a sculpted dinosaur head, and it’s big enough to knock cars off the road as it goes down through the city.” He later added, “I have an agent, who’s actually thinking about trying to market [it] for a cartoon. It could be another Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, really.”

In response to a similar observation by an online fan, he wrote in 2003, “I’d love to get a Saturday morning cartoon going. And a toy line. And video and arcade games. And lunch boxes. Etc., etc.”29

III. World Wide Web In addition to his website, another way in which Cockrum maintained an online presence during the early years of the 21st Century was via Internet message boards. In 2002, the veteran X-Men artist was given his own forum at X-Fan entitled “Classically Cockrum,” where he engaged in all manner of conversation and inquiries. Later that same year, he was also invited to join the NightScrawlers message board, and was given his own forum, “Cockrum Corner.” In the midst of all this activity, he also learned about the Legion of Super-Heroes message board at the DC Comics website, and also corresponded with his many fans there.

About all of his online activity, the artist told Glen Cadigan in 2002, “I’m on a couple of forums. I hit the Legion forum on the DC boards once in a while, but my main hangout, I guess, if you want to say that, is called NightScrawlers. They’re all Nightcrawler fans, and I go there. I’m there more often than not. Most of them are college age; some of them are high school age, and there’s a few old fuds like me. But they’re enthusiastic, and they post a lot, and I’ve got an art gallery there that whenever I get a chance to tell somebody it’s there, I do. There’s stuff that’s never been seen anywhere there. It’s something I enjoy.”

According to Paty Cockrum, “NightScrawlers was devoted to Nightcrawler, who is Dave’s alter ego in the X-Men, and his character, per se. He had Nightcrawler before he ever came to Marvel... So he posted on NightScrawlers, and since it was a site devoted to Nightcrawler, they were happy to have him.” She went on to say, “Then I used to come in and make comments over his shoulder, and so when I finally ended up getting a computer, he got me on NightScrawlers, and I sort of post there, too[.]” When asked if the artist’s

online activity was beneficial to him during the final years of his life, his wife replied, “Yes. Absolutely.”

Throughout the early years of the century, Dave and Paty Cockrum continued to face hardships. “In ’99, I had a stroke to the optic nerves, and became legally blind,” she recalled in 2007. “I didn’t know a lot about what he was doing at the time, because I had just become blind and I was battling with blindness and depression and my mom dying in ’01, and the whole nine yards. It was bad times.”

In order to pay the bills, the artist continued to sell artwork from his personal collection. This time, instead of published comic book art, Cockrum sold concept designs and art pages from the very beginning of his professional career. Knowing of the market for Legion of Super-Heroes artwork, the artist sold the three-page tryout which had secured him the “Legion” strip almost thirty years before. In 2002, he put up for sale all of the original preliminary designs which he still possessed of his Outsiders characters, which included Quetzal, Trio, and Typhoon. Cockrum even sold his two Nightcrawler model sheets, which were the oldest drawings of his favorite character that he still possessed. When congratulated on the final bids for the auctions by the present author, the artist wrote, “Yeah, the eBay auctions will help a lot around here. I wish I had more of that stuff left!” That same year, in response to a question about his current activities, he said, “What I’m doing now is trying to find work and collecting a lot of ‘nos’ and unanswered phone messages. If it weren’t for commissions and eBay sales, I’d be up the proverbial creek.”30 Cockrum was also able to use his newfound platform of the Internet to express his frustration at being overlooked by the comic book industry. On his profile page at X-Fan, under the category of “Occupation,” he wrote, “Comic Book Artist (Hey editors! Remember me?)” and when asked about future projects, he told a fan, “No, I’ve not been asked to do anything by anybody. As for ‘going back to the drawing board’ — I’m not retired, you know. It’s just that no one seems interested in publishing my work any more.”31 In a response to a suggestion by a fan to contact editors in order to obtain future work, the artist wrote, “You don’t think I’ve called editors? When all I ever get are their machines, and they never return my calls, I begin to get the message.”32 He later expressed his determination to work when he said, “As I’ve said before, give me a good plot and a sympathetic editor, and I’ll show you who can sell comics.”33 In 2002, production began on X2: X-Men United,

Original art for a Nightcrawler print sold by the artist, courtesy of Michael Lovitz.

Nightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

the follow up to 2000’s X-Men. This time around, the sequel included Nightcrawler, in relation to whom Cockrum once called himself, “...Kurt’s creator and his soul[.]”34 Although he enjoyed the movie (“I’ve seen it twice already, and I thought it was a real hoot!”35), the artist objected to the film’s portrayal of his favorite creation as a devoutly religious person. “I thought the religious aspect was over-emphasized, and I didn’t like the tattoos,”36 he told an online audience shortly after the film’s release.

Ultimately, he gave his blessing to the movie when he said, “My reservations about their depiction of Nightcrawler kind of faded into the background after seeing him in action in the White House sequence.

That was amazing! The ‘bamf & bounce’ battle really blew me away. And religious aspect aside, I liked Alan Cummings’ portrayal very much.”37 Unfortunately for the creator, neither he nor fellow X-Men collaborator Len Wein received any credit or compensation for the use of their creations in the film.

In response to a question about royalties before the movie’s release, Cockrum told a fan, “...no, I won’t see a dime from the movie. Christine Valada, Len Wein’s wife — and a lawyer who specializes in media cases — 137

An X-Men illustration done for fun. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

says Len and I may be included in the credits.”38 Given the artist’s financial situation, the success of the X-Men film franchise was a sticking point with the team’s co-creator. With a budget of 110 million dollars ($35 million more than its predecessor), X2 eventually grossed more than 200 million dollars domestically, and over 400 million dollars worldwide.39 In a 2002 interview, Cockrum said, “...let’s face it: the X-Men have made Marvel millions and millions and millions of dollars, and I don’t get sh*t. I resent the hell out of that! I resent the hell out of the video games and the toys and the TV shows and the movies, and I suppose it makes me sound like sour grapes, but I feel like Marvel owes me something. Marvel would disagree.”40 Earlier in 2000, as part of an online interview published the same year that the original X-Men film debuted, when asked to comment about the group, he responded, “$$$$ NOT MINE $$$$”41 To compound the situation, in late 2002, Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada was asked by a fan at a comic book convention about the possibility of future work 138

for the veteran X-Men artist. Quesada reportedly said, “The honest answer is what no publisher will ever say out loud, we have to keep the X-books looking cutting edge and we have to consider the commercial appeal of the book. Dave [is] a brilliant artist, but he isn’t the guy I would put on X-Men right now unless we were doing an X-Men retro thing, which we stopped doing.”

Quesada went on to say, “Look, I know the truth is hard to hear. I always promised everyone here that I would not b.s. you guys about why we do things. Many other publishers would give you the politician answer, ‘Oh, Dave is great and we’ll certainly consider him for X-Men as soon as the time is right.’ However, that would be lying to you and unfair to Dave. [There’s] nothing worse than an editor who won’t give his talent the straight answer. Is Dave a great artist? Certainly. Is he someone I would use for X-Men today? Probably not.”42 Quesada’s comments were posted by Cockrum himself on “Classically Cockrum,” to which the latter responded, “I haven’t done any work of any significance for Marvel in more than 15 years. How the hell would Quesada know whether I’m suitable or not?” He later added, “I didn’t start this thread with the intention of flaming anyone. I was just expressing my anger that Quesada could write me off like that when I seriously doubt he’s seen anything I’ve done recently. Soulsearchers and Company contains some of my best work ever, but I’m willing to bet a sawbuck that Quesada has never seen it.”43 Despite the editor’s intentions to be helpful, his comments had the exact opposite effect. According to Paty Cockrum, “The one thing that did throw him into a big depression was just before we moved, he had called Marvel to see if he could do a special project or something like that, something that didn’t have a really heavy time schedule — like a one-shot or a mini-series — with his characters once again, ’cause Chris Claremont had just come back to Marvel, and he was told by Quesada’s office, basically, that his art was old hat, not commercially viable, and don’t bother them. And he went into a real depression, which I think contributed to his decline of health in the last year or so that we were up there.”

Cockrum continued to post online following the setback, although intermittent hospital trips resulted in periods where he was absent from various forums for extended periods of time. In 2003, in response to a query as to his whereabouts online, he wrote, “I’m still here... and still unemployed.”44 On top of his treatment by Marvel, the artist

objected to recent events in the lives of the X-Men. “I Legion #25 (Dec. 2003), an issue that featured contrihate what they do with a lot of the characters,” he said butions from multiple artists. “This anniversary issue in 2002. “I absolutely hate that they’ve killed Colossus, sees the return of legendary Legion artist Dave Cockfor instance. I still consider those guys my characters. I rum into the funnybooks,” then-Legion editor Stephen realize they’re not. Unfortunately, I couldn’t keep ownWacker was quoted as saying. “Dave is joined by Paul ership of them. That was the way the game was played Rivoche, Eric Wright, and regular cover artists Tony in those days. Nightcrawler, especially. He’s me. He Harris and Tom Feister. Each of those talents are workwas me in the X-Men. Seeing him becoming a priest ing on a different chapter of the story and [are] accomwith no possible time allowed to have gone to divinplishing different things.”49 In between his Legion work, Cockrum was ity school or anything like that, and all kinds of sh*t, approached by a new company, Mojo Pop Comics, I mean, I hate that.” He elaborated, “I think they just about publishing his issue of T.H.U.G.S. “I’m currently consider me an opinionated nobody, [like] I don’t have finishing up the first issue of a new book, a concept of any business saying that kind of stuff... I tell you, if I my own, called T.H.U.G.S.,” he wrote online in July of ever won the lottery, I’d buy Marvel, fire the lot of ’em 45 2003. “For the time being, it’s going to be a local giveand start it over.”

As 2003 progressed, Cockrum’s health continued away in New Mexico, but if things work out, I may be to take a downward spiral. In April able to get one of the major compaof that year, after a hospital stay, he nies to pick it up.”50 Unfortunately for Cockrum, wrote online, “Hi, everybody, I’m things did not go smoothly with the back out of the hospital — for the new publisher. “From what I undermoment, anyway. It seems I had a stand of that, the guy contacted him fungal infection in my esophagus, and said he wanted to do a giveaway which was causing me to throw up comic,” Paty Cockrum recalled. all my food. While there, they also “Dave had a property which he found a ‘dark mass’ on one of my wanted to establish the copyrights kidneys, and I have to go back in for for. It was called T.H.U.G.S.... And a CAT scan to find out more about they did publish the first issue, which it. The doctors said it’s most likely Dave had already penciled and inked a fatty cyst, but better safe than and written, and it was given out at sorry.”46 In May, he added, “I’m not gonna make it to Motor City [con[Free] Comic Day, or whatever out vention]. I’m undergoing a medical there.” She added, “ It was good stuff, procedure on the 15th (they’re gonna and he had plans for doing more of stick a needle into my left lung to them, actually. He had a whole batch remove fluid) and I don’t know how of villains that were just as silly and T.H.U.G.S. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum I’m gonna feel afterward.”47 funny as the goons themselves, and Despite obstacles, Cockrum continued to possess never got to do it. He did the one issue, and that was the desire to draw. In May 2003, in response to a fan’s fine, and never got to do the rest of it.” query, he wrote online, “Right now, I’m looking for Mojo Pop was founded by Carlton J. Donaghe, a work. Most of today’s editors think my work is old hat. young publisher who was backed by investors. In a disI am working on a couple of private projects, but I may cussion about T.H.U.G.S. on a Legion message board, wind up having to self-publish them in (unfortunately) Donaghe wrote, “You guys should ask Dave about the 48 black-&-white.” other new series he’s working on — the one where he’s That spring, the artist returned to characters he creating about a hundred new characters for...! He’s had illustrated years before his association with the kinda the ‘big daddy’ of the Mojo Comics group, but X-Men, namely the Legion of Super-Heroes. In 2003, it’s that new series of his that really takes the cake.

Cockrum drew the cover of The Legion Companion, a Imagine — Dave Cockrum, drawing a series that will 224-page book which contained interviews and artinot only take us on a cosmic adventure through time cles both with and about the various individuals who and space... but through the deepest recesses of the had worked on the feature since its inception. That human heart as well. T.H.U.G.S. and this ‘mysterious’ same year, he provided the pencils for five pages of The new project — hey man, Dave Cockrum is back!”51 139

The first page of the unfinished “Mysterians” serial.

Mysterians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

Earlier that year, Cockrum had mentioned the property himself when he wrote, “I’ll also be working on a new book called Mysterians for an indy called Mojo Pop Comics, again in New Mexico with, I believe, Joe Rubinstein slated to ink.”52 However, by the time of Donaghe’s comments above, the situation had changed. Cockrum responded to his publisher’s post with, “Actually, for the time being, I’m only doing six

pages an issue of the ‘mysterious’ new series ‘The Mysterians,’”53 which was a reference to an anthology book that Mojo Pop intended to publish. The anthology was to contain three other features, two of which were to be written by Donaghe himself.

“The Mysterians” ultimately proved to be as mysterious as its title. In 2007, Paty Cockrum said, “He never really talked to me about that one, although I found a batch of penciled pages the other day, and it had on it, ‘The Mysterians.’ I would assume that may have been part and parcel of what he was trying to do.” She went on to say, “I just found the pages and said, ‘What is this? Mysterians? I’ve never heard of this one.’ And they were very tight, nice comprehensive pencils[.]”

The name, “Mysterians” actually harkened back to the artist’s 1980s Futurians proposal. Originally considered as a title for the property, “...someone else was using it or something, and he had to figure out a different name,” Paty recalled. She added, “Futurians actually works for the group he did.” Only six pages of the feature were found, which corresponds to the number necessary for the first installment.

After T.H.U.G.S. was printed, Mojo Pop elected to not continue with the series. Ultimately, the free issue of T.H.U.G.S. was all that Mojo Pop produced, and the fledgling publisher ceased operations without publishing another title. What once appeared to be a new start for Cockrum ended up being another disappointing episode in the artist’s career.

As the year drew to a close, Cockrum had taken some small steps in his attempt to put his work back in front of an audience. However, unbeknownst to him, his personal situation would worsen in the days ahead.

With the arrival of the new year, reestablishing himself as a comic book artist would take a back seat to more pressing matters. As 2004 dawned, the artist’s health continued to be an issue, and not long thereafter, he found himself in a fight for his very life.

Endnotes 1 Buzz Lovko, “An Interview with Richard Howell,” Buzz’s

Elvira Site (http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Hills/5268/ index.html, Aug. 10, 1997).

2 Lovko, op. cit.

3 Richard Howell, “‘Yours Cruelly’ Letters to Elvira, Mistress

of the Dark,” Elvira, Mistress of the Dark #7 (Claypool Comics, Nov. 1993), pg. 17.

4 Dark Bamf, “Dave Cockrum Art Thread,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Sept. 16, 2002), pg. 6.

140

5 Dave Cockrum, “A Question for Dave,” Classically Cockrum,

(www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 7, 2002), pg. 1.

6 Dark Bamf, “Mr. Cockrum’s DC Work,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 30, 2005), pg. 1.

7 John Byrne, “RIP Dave Cockrum,” Byrne Robotics: The John

Byrne Forum (www.byrnerobotics.com, Nov. 28, 2006), pg. 7.

8 Dark Bamf, “Soul Searchers,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Mar. 19, 2006), pg. 1.

9 Dave Cockrum, “Costume Question,” Classically Cockrum

(www.comiXfan.com, Jan. 4, 2003), pg. 1.

10 Dave Cockrum, “Hey, What Th—?!?/Testing Attachments,”

Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 3, 2002), pg. 3.

11 Dave Cockrum, “Dave’s Question Thread,” Classically Cock-

29 ibid, pg. 1.

30 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 77.

31 Cockrum, “Dave’s Question Thread,” op. cit., pg. 1.

32 ibid, pg. 1.

rum (www.comiXfan.com, Aug. 11, 2002), pg. 1.

33 Cockrum, “Joe Quesada Says ‘No Cockrum’,” op. cit., pg. 3.

12 Sébastien Dumesnil, “Interview: Dave Cockrum,” Adven-

34 Dave Cockrum, “Kurt Wagner and Religion,” DannFic

tures into Digital Comics (www.toptwothreefilms.com, Sept. 16, 2004), pg. 1.

(groups.yahoo.com/groups/dannfic, Nov. 21, 2001).

35 Bamf, “Dave’s Back!” op. cit., pg.

13 Dark Bamf, “What’s Your Most

1.

Valuable Comic!!” Non-NC Comics & Comic-Related Stuff (www.

NightScrawlers.com, 9/5/02), pg. 2.

36 Dave Cockrum, “Ask Dave Cock-

rum,” Classically Cockrum (www. comiXfan.com, May 12, 2003), pg.

1.

14 Bamf, “Dave Cockrum Art

Thread,” op. cit., pg. 6.

37 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

15 Dave Cockrum, “I’m Back from

38 Dark Bamf, “Nosy Royalties Question for Dark Bamf,” DCMB: Hawkman (www.dccomics.com, Apr. 26, 2003), pg. 1.

the Hospital (Again),” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 19, 2002), pg. 1.

16 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Back!”

39 X2: X-Men United (2003), (www.

DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics. com, May 7, 2003), pg. 1.

boxofficemojo.com).

40 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 78–79.

17 Dave Cockrum, “Dave Is in the

Hospital Again,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, Sept. 15, 2002), pg. 1.

41 Walsh, op. cit.

42 Cockrum, “Joe Quesada Says ‘No

Cockrum’,” op. cit., pg. 1.

18 Ivan Cockrum, “Calliope,” (www.

cockrumville.com).

43 ibid, pg. 1.

19 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for

44 Bamf, “Support Thread for Cock-

Cockrum Returning to the Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics. com, Feb. 19, 2003), pg. 10.

20 X-Men (2000), (www.

rum Returning to the Legion,” op. cit., pg. 9.

An alternate cover for T.H.U.G.S., with redesigned characters. T.H.U.G.S. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

boxofficemojo.com).

21 Patrick Walsh, “A Candid Conversation with Dave Cock-

rum,” (www.comiXtreme.com, Dec. 22, 2000).

22 Dave Cockrum, “Joe Quesada Says ‘No Cockrum’,” Classi-

cally Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, June 17, 2003), pg. 4.

23 Glen Cadigan, “Dave Cockrum,” The Legion Companion

(TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pg. 77.

24 Dark Bamf, “T.H.U.G.S.” Visionaries of Tomorrow (www.

legionworld.net, Oct. 11, 2003), pg. 1.

45 Cadigan, op. cit., pg. 78.

46 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 11.

47 Bamf, “Nosy Royalties Question for Dark Bamf,” op. cit., pg.

1.

48 Dark Bamf, “T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Series Stillborn?” DCMB:

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents (www.dccomics.com, May 11, 2003), pg. 1.

49 Benjamin Ong, Legion Article (www.newsarama.com,

2003).

50 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Dark Bamf Returning to

25 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www.dccomics.com, July 22, 2003), pg. 3.

26 ibid, pg. 1.

51 Dog-Boy, “T.H.U.G.S.” Visionaries of Tomorrow (www.

27 ibid, pg. 1.

28 ibid, pg. 1.

legionworld.net, Oct. 21, 2003), pg. 1.

52 Bamf, op. cit, pg. 3.

53 Bamf, “T.H.U.G.S.” op. cit., pg. 1.

141

The original cover to T.H.U.G.S. #1, before it was changed to the published version. T.H.U.G.S. ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

142

Chapter 8: 2003–2006

A

I. Battle in the Bronx

fter the record snowfalls of the winter of 2003, body had actually built in some back-up that healthier Dave and Paty Cockrum decided to move to a people didn’t have. warmer climate. “My mom died [in ’01] and left “But virtually the day before we moved, we were me enough money to consider moving away from the packing madly. The truck was to come and pick up cold and the ice and the snow which was really dragging our belongings. It was December 31st, and the truck both of us down,” she recalled, “so I went looking for was supposed to come on January 2, and he was so bad possible places to move, and I was researching on the that I said, ‘Barbara, you’ve gotta take him over to the internet. My sis, Barb, and I went gallivanting around V.A.. I’ll keep packing,’ because she could drive and I Texas, and Illinois, where [Dave’s] father lived, and my couldn’t, because of my eyes... So she drove him over son, Philip — the older son — said, ‘Mom, if you’re to the hospital and came back, and said, ‘Well, they gonna move south, would you please move to a place admitted him, and he’s staying there,’ and I said, ‘Okay.’ like the Carolinas where I can actually drive down in “That night at four in the morning I got a call, and a day?’ ‘Well, okay, we’ll go look!’ And Barbara wanted I was like, ‘Oh my God, what?’ A call at four in the to move down to the Carolinas, so we came down here, morning is not a good thing when you just put your looked around, and we sort of settled on husband in the hospital. And it was the the Greenville [South Carolina] area.” hospital — it was the V.A. — and it was She continued, “In the meantime, a doctor there who was very good. She David’s health just seemed to go downhill. said, ‘We cannot treat him here. He needs He really was not doing well. He would treatment that we don’t have. He needs sleep all day, and what we found out was to be intubated, and with your permisthat he wasn’t getting enough oxygen. His sion, we will ship him to Vassar just up oxygen levels were about 75 instead of the road.’ I said, ‘Absolutely. Do it.’ I said, being 98, and Barbara, who’s the nurse, ‘We’ll come over tomorrow and do what was very concerned about this. It wasn’t we have to do,’ which is what we did. until we got down here and actually took “We stopped packing and went over for him to a real doctor that we found out that a couple of hours, and I don’t think he even the reason he was sleeping all the time A convention photo of Cock- knew us at that point. He was intubated, was his oxygen level was so low that he rum, taken by Dewey Cassell. [and] he was sedated to keep the intubawas actually operating on the same level tion down. He would blink at us, but that’s a person with emphysema was operating on. That’s about it. He doesn’t remember any of that... At one why he was sleeping all day, and not breathing right, point, he was on intubation for nine days, and they and the whole nine yards. [Then] just before we moved didn’t know whether he was going to live or die. I would down here, he went out one day and caught bacterial call every day and say, ‘How’s he doing?’ ‘No change.’ pneumonia. It was rampant in the Hudson Valley at They said, ‘The only way we know we’re doing somethe time. It was the same thing that killed Jim Henson.” thing right is he hasn’t died.’

She explained, “Bacterial pneumonia can incubate “So finally, he started coming around, and he was in three days. You could be dead before you know what their one success story. I mean, they were losing people you’ve got. People were dying all around the place. They right and left to bacterial pneumonia, and he was stayalmost declared an epidemic up there, and he survived ing alive for them. Vassar stabilized him and shipped it, possibly because he had been so sick before that his him back down to the big V.A. hospital in the Bronx.”

143

According to family friend Cliff Meth, who visited Cockrum in the hospital, “The Bronx V.A.... is a warehouse for the dying. It’s not a well-kept place. If anybody has any money, they’re not there. It’s skid row.

It’s Potter’s Field. He wasn’t getting great care there.

The first time I went in, it was just a horrifying experience. He was sharing a room with five other people.

He couldn’t speak. He was in a quasi-coma. I don’t know if they actually ever called it a coma, but he was in serious, if not critical, [condition]. I think he was on the critical list for a couple of days. He had tubes in every which way — in his nose, in his mouth, in his... you know — and he’d gone into a diabetic shock, so he wasn’t communicative at all. He couldn’t talk. I talked to his doctors, I talked to the nurses [to get] whatever information I could get... As the weeks went by, he got better. He was able to talk. He was on constant intravenous, so his energy was increasing, and they were dealing with the insulin issue, and whatever it is that you deal with when somebody’s in a diabetic coma.

“He didn’t know where he was at first. He wasn’t frightened, but he was just very confused. I told him what the situation was. I said, ‘This is where you are, and this is what’s going on,’ and he’d be on the phone every day with his wife, and she’d try to keep him [informed].

I don’t think he was depressed. I think he was confused by the whole thing. It reached a point where his wife said to him, ‘You almost died!’ And he had to take [a step back].”

In the meantime, Paty Cockrum had to follow through with the move to South Carolina. Said Meth, “These are not people who could just suddenly put a lawyer on it. You know, ‘Go take care of this for me.’

She had to get down there and close [the deal on the house], or they were going to lose their deposit on this home, which was a heckuva lot of money to them. So she put him in the hands of the hospital [because] she couldn’t sit there. She did the right thing. It wasn’t a cold thing. She did the right thing, because she really would’ve been in a helluva lot of trouble [if they lost their deposit]. They couldn’t afford to lose what they had.”

About the experience, Paty remembered, “[Dave was] up there while we sold the house, came down here, bought this house, retrieved our belongings, and set up the house so he’d have something to come home to.” As for herself during the period, she said, “I cope very well. I was a volunteer fireman for 16 years up in Cragsmoore. I was an EMT for eight of those years, and senior medical officer, so I cope very well.”

News of Cockrum’s condition soon spread throughout the comics community. Given the wealth generated by the X-Men, many felt that Marvel Comics was obligated to step in and offer financial assistance to the ailing creator. “I had already started the movement toward getting him money and getting him rights and getting him health benefits before he was even conscious,” recalled Meth. “As soon as Paty called me, I would say within 24 hours I already had a number of things in motion.”

He elaborated, “I asked for her to give me power of attorney so I could negotiate with Marvel. I contacted Neal Adams so we could get the benefit going, and I asked Neal to be my advisor on negotiating with Marvel, ’cause he had been so successful with the Siegel/Shuster thing earlier with DC. I stayed in constant touch with the people that I thought could advise me on how to best help Dave, but we kept Dave sheltered from a lot of what was going on.”

The benefit was a tribute book and subsequent art auction to raise funds to cover the Cockrum’s immediate financial needs.

Ninety-six industry professionals donated artwork and essays for the publication, with the art later auctioned off to raise money to assist the family. Creators such as Jim Lee, Will Eisner, Alan Davis, and Walter Simonson A 2000 commission, thanks to Dave Braunstein. Wolverine, Hulk ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. contributed artwork, while writers 144

Len Wein, Marv Wolfman, and Tony Isabella (among and Meth to convince the company to make that policy others) contributed essays about their friend and colretroactive in the case of the artist. league. Popular author Alan Moore, best known for his During negotiations with the publisher, Meth work on Watchmen and Swamp Thing, wrote a poem encountered resistance early on. In his online column, that linked the letters of Cockrum’s name with the he later wrote, “‘We’re not afraid of lawsuits,’ the chief qualities of the man himself. The Uncanny Dave Cocklitigator for Marvel told me when I first brought him rum... A Tribute even featured a cover from its primary news that we were seeking a settlement for Dave Cockbeneficiary in the form of an unpublished painting of rum... ‘Everyone who’s sued us has lost. Even Stan Lee Nightcrawler that dated back to 1976. All profits raised is suing us.’”2 As negotiations with Marvel continued, Cockrum’s by the book went to help the X-Men co-creator. health began to improve. He received daily sessions Meth also started an online column at www. with a physical therapist (nicknamed “physical tersilverbulletcomicbooks.com in order to increase rorist” by the artist), and moved awareness of the artist’s plight. In from the hospital’s medical center his second installment, he spoke to its extended care wing. Howwith Neal Adams, who had helped ever, due to his weak condition start Cockrum’s career in 1970 and prolonged bed rest, he had to when he sent him to Warren Pubrelearn certain tasks, such as how lishing with his recommendation. to walk, all over again. In addition, According to Adams, “Dave should his recovery was adversely affected not be going to Marvel for charity by his surroundings. According to at this time, because Dave has conlongtime friend Mercy Van Vlack, tributed a cornerstone to the buildwho visited him in the hospital, ing of the X-Men empire. That cor“There’s a man in Dave’s room nerstone should have his name on who’s blind and diabetic and he it, just like the other cornerstones screams out, “I want a snack!” All should have Jack Kirby’s name on — The — Time. Day and night. The them.” staff says if they give him a snack He went on to say, “Anyone who he’ll yell again in five minutes for knows Dave would describe him as more food. He has an eating disorkind and humble and courteous. der. He’s been there twenty years.

He is all those things that a good I don’t think all of the staff knows scout should be, so he hasn’t been he’s blind. I’m guessing it’s probpushy or demanding of his rights. ably because they refer to him as Because he is not the dog that barks, the screamer in Room 10, not the he’s been overlooked. The situation Cockrum working with his physical therablind patient in Room 10. Dave is is made worse by his health being pist. Photo from Wizard #152. not getting much sleep. A sick fella poor. I don’t believe that his poor needs his sleep to heal, and this 10A guy screams all health should be the turning point, though — it should night. What a lonely, angry man.”3 be the understanding that Dave Cockrum created a Van Vlack and partner Ken Gale were among the portion of the Marvel universe and he deserves some contingent of friends who visited Cockrum in the hosrecognition by the company. Dave should be receiving pital. After a subsequent visit, she wrote, “Dave said royalties for the characters he created. Other people they moved to South Carolina so they’d never have to from Marvel are collecting royalties. These other survive another Catskill Mountains winter in the bitter people created characters after a particular date chosen mountains north of New York, and here he is in the arbitrarily by Marvel Comics. Fans and professionals V.A. Horsepital in da Bronx!! I reminded him that he’s will find this very difficult to swallow.”1 What Adams was referring to was the fact that warm and dry inside and not stuck out there in a snowMarvel Comics did pay royalties for some of its crebank. Dave suggested to the nurse that maybe they ations, but only those created after 1979. Because the could lose Mr. 10A in the snow outside, and I added new X-Men were first published in 1975, Cockrum that the snow had mostly melted and there’s hardly was not eligible to receive any money from revenues enough left to bury him in. She laughed out loud as she generated by his characters. It was the goal of Adams went to bring him back in.”4 145

The artist also received multiple phone calls and assumed that the contract was predicated upon the charletters from well-wishers during his stay at the V.A. “I acter of Nightcrawler, whose creation preceded Cockwent out to the desk to see if I could get ice, and there rum’s freelance period at Marvel. At the 2007 New York was a package in the ‘in mail’ bin that said Cockrum Comic Con, Meth revealed, “When I was negotiating on it,” she wrote, “so I asked if I could give it to Dave, with Marvel and they were saying, ‘Well, you know, all and after 57 I-don’t-knows I just took it. It was a packthese characters were work-for-hire,’ I said, ‘You know, age of cards for Dave! There were all kinds of addresses it’s funny, because Dave designed Nightcrawler years on the letters, but they did get to him. ago, and... he offered it to the “Legion of Super-Heroes”...

“He really loved opening each letter, reading the so you really can’t claim that Nightcrawler was work-fornotes, and checking out the drawings of Nightcrawler. hire.” In fact, an image that contained Nightcrawler that There was a beautiful color photo shot of Dave’s drawdated back to the artist’s Legion days was even published ing of Shadow Lass from Legion comics, and Dave said

by Marvel years earlier in their softcover Marvel Masterhe designed the flight ring that DC used for years and works: Uncanny X-Men volume, which Meth presented made into the collectable ring Diamond distributed. to the lawyers. At the panel, he The Nurses are amazed at all remembered saying, “‘Here it is, the cards he gets; a lot of the Mr. Marvel attorney!’ And they guys there are forgotten and looked at it, and they sort of there are few visitors, so Dave paled. A cute little point.” really likes getting those letIn his column at www. ters, kids!”5 silverbulletcomicbooks.com, Simultaneous to Cockrum’s Meth later wrote, “When I first recovery, work continued on brought news of Dave CockThe Uncanny Dave Cockrum... rum’s illness here at SBC, I A Tribute. While still hospitalwas angry at Marvel — angry ized, Meth updated the artist because Cockrum had not on the book’s progress. “I sat received the same treatment at Dave’s bedside tonight and (read: royalties) as Chris Clashowed him some of the artremont and Michael Golden work that’s come in,” Meth and John Byrne and others wrote in February. “The gorwho had created characters geous Storm by John Romita. for the company. Cockrum’s Wolverine and Nightcrawler plight was a matter of timing.

by Neal Adams. ‘Read me The work he did pre-dated Harlan [Ellison]’s piece,’ said the expansion of the copyDave. ‘Do it in his voice.’ Dave right law and Marvel’s ‘new cters, Inc. laughs. He knows I do a worldcharacter agreement incenNightcrawler ™ and © Marvel Chara class imitation of Ellison. Maybe as good as Randy tive’ response. And now, here was Cockrum, Bowen’s. Maybe better.”6 in critical condition, flat broke and unable to pay medAlthough physical progress had been made during ical expenses, to say nothing of living expenses. the artist’s hospital stay, it was apparent that he would “So I came out swinging. I began my column here, need special assistance when he was discharged from contacted peers in the press, discussed the matter with the facility. Without a medical plan beyond the V.A., my pal Gary Dell’Abate at The Howard Stern Show, and the home care that was necessary for the artist to funcbegan plans for a news conference at the V.A. Hospital tion outside of the hospital was out of his reach. Money where Cockrum resided. I was prepared to do whatgenerated by the sale of the benefit book and subseever it took to bring attention to my friend’s plight. quent art auction was necessary to help pay for any And anyone who knows me will tell you: I can be a future medical care which he required upon his return serious pain in the ass.” home, barring any financial assistance from Marvel.

He continued, “Perhaps because of these efforts — For two months, negotiations continued with Marand perhaps in spite of them — the media blitz became vel’s legal representatives. Then, in March of 2004, Meth unnecessary. From the get-go, Marvel was cooperative. announced that a deal had been reached with the comJoe Quesada visited the V.A. Hospital with me as Marpany. Although the terms were not disclosed, it is widely vel’s ambassador of goodwill and he, Dave, and I dis146

Cockrum penciled, inked, and colored this commission (which he entitled, “Big Fight”) for collector Shaun Clancy.

X-Men, Imperial Guard ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

cussed the matter very candidly. Joe told us that day that Marvel wanted to help.

“From there on in, it was just a matter of coming to terms. Dave had serious needs. Marvel had needs, too; they didn’t want to hand something to Dave only to find themselves in court with us a year later. So we negotiated, and we did so in good faith. Eli Bard, Marvel’s senior litigation counselor, was candid and amiable. And, at the end of the day, when an agreement was reached, it was smiles all around.”7 In an official statement on the matter, attorneys for Marvel said, “Marvel has stepped in to help Dave Cockrum and it is clear that he and his family are satisfied with Marvel’s actions and appreciate its assistance in this matter. While the terms are confidential, we are pleased that we could help Dave and his family and wish him a speedy recovery and the very best.”

When asked about the deal later, Meth said, “It could’ve been better, but I’m satisfied. [People] have many times speculated on the amount of money that Dave got, or what he didn’t get, etc. They just make this sh*t up. I have never disclosed the amount of the settlement. Neither has Dave or Paty. We would be in viola-

tion of the contract if we did that.” An added benefit of the arrangement was that it covered not just Cockrum’s lifetime, but his wife’s, as well. “When we negotiated with Marvel, it was so terribly important to make sure that Paty was included in whatever it was that Dave was gonna get for life,” remembered Meth. “It wasn’t just gonna be for Dave’s lifetime, it was to be for Paty’s lifetime.”

As the artist’s representative at the negotiations, the job of breaking the news to him fell to Meth. “Twice I got to present good news,” the author told the panel at the New York Comic Con. “I would speak to him just about every other day while he was in the hospital, and when I told him about the settlement with Marvel, that was a lot of money, [and] he was happy. But when I told him that Will Eisner had contributed to the art tribute book, he was a lot happier. I mean, he was just absolutely thrilled. He never stopped being a fan.”

Meth elaborated, “It was never really about the money with Dave. I mean, it’s nice to have all the money, but he was always a huge, huge fan at heart. I think that had a lot to do with how he created. He created things that he wanted to look at, which was why 147

his work ethic was so high.”

In April 2004, after a four-month hospital stay, Cockrum left the Bronx V.A. and made the trip to his new home in South Carolina. Upon his arrival, he discovered a new addition to his family in the form of Tootsie Pinkletoes, a peke dog. “Dave always wanted another peke,” Paty recalled, “and when this little lady presented herself, I figured that something to come home to like her couldn’t hurt his incentive. When I told him of her, he was thrilled and wanted daily updates... and I think she has him entirely enthralled already!”8 After months spent in recovery, the artist finally found himself in a place that he could call home.

II. The Last Years Three months after his discharge from the Bronx V.A., The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute went on sale. About the book, Cockrum wrote, “I’m totally blown away. I’ve only seen one or two of the pieces to be included, but Cliff Meth has told me some of the people who’ve contributed. Some of the top names in the business, and even contributions from Italy, Japan — Holy sh*t! Neal Adams, Jim Lee (apparently he drew an absolutely smashing shot of my Futurians), Mike

A cover pitch found in Julie Schwartz’s desk after he passed away. Flash ™ and © DC Comics.

148

Kaluta, Alan Davis, Barry Windsor-Smith — and written tributes from Stan Lee, Neil Gaiman, Chris Claremont, and Harlan Ellison! and others. I repeat: Holy sh*t!”9 About one piece of artwork in particular, Cockrum commented, “Cliff Meth said he wasn’t going to put the Sergio Aragonés piece up for auction. He feels that it’s so personally relevant to me, that I should have that one. If I do get it, you can bet it gets framed and goes up on the wall. I practically fell out of my chair when I saw it!”10 After a period of display at New York’s Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art (MOCCA), on August 14, 2004, the auction to sell the artwork contained in the book was held at that year’s Wizard World: Chicago comic book convention. Administered by Heritage Auctions, the event raised $24,581.25, with Walter Simonson’s portrayal of members of both the Legion of Super-Heroes and the X-Men in battle with the Brood as the biggest moneymaker, taking in $2,999.11 Before the event, John Petty, Heritage’s Director of Auctions, said, “We’re thrilled to be involved with this effort.

Dave Cockrum has not only been an important voice in comics for many years, contributing characters and stories that many of us will never forget, he’s also one of the nicest guys on the planet. We’re deeply honored that Neal Adams and Clifford Meth invited us to be a part of this.”12 One piece of artwork that was published in the tribute book but was not available at the auction dated back to Cockrum’s fan days. In 2004, Meth wrote, “Paul Levitz phoned me last week. The good folks at DC were cleaning out Julie Schwartz’s desk when they came across one of the many fan letters that Dave Cockrum had written to Julie four decades ago. At the time, Dave was a sailor stationed in Guam; as usual, Dave included with his letter a fully rendered, full-color cover ‘suggestion’ that he hoped Julie would consider using. It was a mock-up for The Flash. And it was lousy. Just plain awful. I have it right here. If Dave ever screws with me, I’ll publish it.”13 About the same time, Cockrum wrote online, “Paul Levitz was recently cleaning out some of Julie Schwartz’s files and came across some of the art and letters Julie kept to embarrass me with, whenever I stopped by.

Cliff Meth wants permission to put some of it into the Dave Cockrum tribute book. I’m not sure if I want to leave myself open to that kind of public humiliation, so as yet I haven’t given him permission.”14 Ultimately, Meth won out, and the picture appeared, along with the letter that accompanied it.

In 2006, Meth said, “Dave was already back in South Carolina [when it was discovered], and I said, ‘If you ever give me a gift, that’s what I want.’ And he goes, ‘Really? You really want this?’ He goes, ‘It’s terrible!’

I said, ‘No, that’s what I want,’ and he said, ‘All right, you can have this!’ So he gave it to me, and then we included it in the book... He was like, ‘Oh, my God, I can’t believe you included it!’ I said, ‘C’mon, it’s fun!

It’s a fun piece!’ But I guess there was a bunch more of those, because Dave had told me about them, but I’ve never seen them.”

With his hospital stay over, Cockrum returned to the drawing board with a lot of encouragement from Meth. According to the author, “...he and I were talking very actively about bringing back the Futurians... I said, ‘Let’s do another Futurians book.’ He says, ‘Well, who’s gonna publish it?’ I said, ‘Don’t worry about that part. I’ll get you a publisher. There’s always a publisher.’

So I said, ‘Dave, do a Futurians.’ He says, ‘I can’t finish it.’ I mean, in the old days, Dave penciled, he inked, he wrote, he did everything. He says, ‘I can’t finish it, but I do have a story in mind that I’d like to do.’ I said, ‘Just do it.’”

The week before his benefit art auction, Cockrum confirmed events when he posted online, “Yes, I’m finally spending some time at the drawing board again.

I’m involved in a deal to bring the Futurians back to publication, and I’ve been doing some character designs — mostly villains — and am now breaking down my first story. As things stand right now, I’ll be doing the pencils and the inking will be done by a number of the guys who contributed to the tribute book, including Neal Adams. The cover for the first issue will be the piece Jim Lee did for the tribute book. We’re still working out some details, like the page count; the first story runs twenty pages, but I also would like to include a seven-page origin story for Zapkat, one of the two new Futurians (the other is Bloodknight, but I haven’t worked out an origin for him yet).”15 In 2006, Meth confirmed, “So he just about finished a twenty-page book. I have the pencils. I have this sitting right here. I’ve spoken to Bob McLeod, I’ve spoken to Bob Wiacek, everybody, everybody’s interested in inking this book.” In 2015, the book, entitled Futurians Return, was published via Kickstarter.

Cockrum and Meth also discussed the possibility of a Futurians motion picture. In late 2004, the artist posted online, “Oh, and BTW, speaking of the Futurians, they’re currently being developed by IDT Entertainment as a possible movie project.”16 According to Meth, “...I joined IDT Entertainment,

and the CEO said to me one day, ‘If you’ve got any property out there that’s not optioned up already — it’s not a Marvel or DC property. We know that we can’t get our hands on those — what would be nice?’

I said, ‘What about the Futurians? I’d love to have the Futurians. I think it would be a good little space opera.

I think it’s a good film. It needs a couple of other pieces in it. It needs a romance, it needs some death and some sex, but it’s a good story, great characters. It’s fun, and Dave could, as a consultant on the film, bring a lot to the party.’ So we optioned that, and we started moving that along, and I had the great joy of scripting that. I worked with Dave on that for about eight months[.]”

Meth later recalled, “So I sat down with Dave, and I said, ‘Okay, here’s my idea. Here’s what I want to do. I want to add a romance element to it, and I want to do this, and I want to do that,’ and we consulted on it, and I was hired by IDT at that point to do the script. And I wrote a full script. You know, the treatment, the script, the entire thing[.]”

Early in 2005, Cockrum officially announced the project on his message board when he said, “Hey, campers, sorry about the abortive note last week about my signing a contract with IDT Entertainment to option Futurians for a movie. I had indeed signed it, but IDT didn’t have the contracts in hand yet. Illogi-

Model sheet for a brand-new Futurian — Zapkat!

Zapcat ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

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Robin Riggs inks Cockrum pencils in The Futurians Return (2015).

From the collection of Ted Latner. Futurians ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum.

cally, my friend Cliff Meth got chewed out for my gaffe, and he asked me to delete the original thread.

“One of the IDT lawyers fussed at Cliff that, ‘We can’t have our writers going around giving out information without checking with us!’ Cliff pointed out that I don’t work for IDT, it’s my property which they just optioned, and the contract says nothing about me not talking about the project. ‘WHAAAT?!? said the lawyer, and grabbed the contract. After reading it, he tossed it down and, in a very disgusted voice, said ‘...

SH*T!’”17 The Futurians was not the only property created by Cockrum to see a return visit by the artist. In early 2005, Marvel Comics announced that the veteran X-Men creator was slated to draw an eight-page story in Giant Size X-Men #3. Cockrum wrote about the assignment himself in February when he said, “Nobody told me not to talk about it, so I’ll tell what I know about it: I’m doing an eight-page story, plus the cover. Or most of the cover, anyway. They’re having John Cassaday ink it, plus pencil in — in lieu of the original X-Men — 150

the Astonishing X-Men, as the looming heads. They’ve also asked me to do an Avengers cover.”18 As part of a story arc in the New Avengers series, Marvel recruited artists from previous generations to provide alternate covers for each issue. The issue featuring Cockrum’s cover was to contain the new character Sentry and his adversary, the General, on number six of the series. In February, the artist wrote online, “For the Avengers cover, I’m doing two guys I never saw before.”19 He later commented, “Re: the Avengers cover: It’s Sentry vs. the General. I was initially confused because they sent me two shots of Sentry and the scan of the General didn’t come through, so I thought the good guy and the bad guy were twins.” He added, “I’m delayed getting started on the cover, because I blew a vein in my left eye — my good eye — and until it clears up, I can’t see well enough to draw.”20 Health problems continued to plague the artist. In March, he wrote, “My health continues to take ups and downs; I just spent more time in hospital in February due to extreme shortness of breath (I’m now on oxygen 24/7) and in March to have an implant put into my chest for dialysis purposes (the shunt that was put into my wrist last year failed to mature, and they can’t use it). I’m now on dialysis four hours a day, three days a week for the rest of my life — unless I can arrange a kidney/pancreas transplant, which would cure me of both kidney disease and diabetes.”21 In 2006, Meth confirmed, “He was on a list for kidney transplants, but it was unlikely that somebody in his condition, somebody of his age, was gonna get one. I don’t know if you ever saw the episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm where Larry David’s [friend] is waiting for a kidney, and you’ve kinda got to jump through a lot of hoops trying to get yourself up to the top of the list. And you think, ‘Well, Mickey Mantle got one right away,’ and he goes, ‘Yeah, because he’s f*cking Mickey Mantle!’ So Dave Cockrum, at 62, or 61, or whatever it was that he was diagnosed that his kidney was crapped out... he wasn’t about to get a new kidney. He was gonna live with dialysis ’til he died, and we all knew that that was the case.”

Back at the drawing board, in reference to his X-Men assignment, the artist wrote, “Marvel has said it would be my team. I don’t know who specifically, but I’m hoping it’s at least Storm, Nightcrawler, Wolverine, Colossus, and Cyclops, though I’d prefer to have Phoenix along too.”22 In mid March, he posted online, “I’ve got the ‘General’ reference and the Joss [Whedon] script. And the eye appears to be clearing up at least enough that I can work with it, though I still see blood

clot residue in it, like little Rorschach blots and little broken snakes.”23 Unfortunately for the artist and his fans, he was unable to fulfill the assignment. At the end of the month, his wife, Paty, posted online, “Bad news, guys and gals... Dave’s bouts with dialysis are doing some good but leaving him too washed out to do the story for GS [X-Men] 3... Good news is that Neal Adams... is gonna do it in Dave’s stead. Or at least that’s what Cliff tells me. In any event it should be a good looking story, since Neal is one hell of an artist and actually helped Dave to get his first professional comics work.”

She added, “Dave is adjusting to the dialysis with a bit of snarling and growling but the alternative is six feet under... and as time goes on and they leech more of the toxins out of his system, he may perk up and be able to return to work. He thinks he can still do the Avengers cover, as it has plenty of time to go until its deadline.”24 Cockrum himself wrote, “I want to apologize to all you fans out there and the folks at Marvel, for letting my human frailties interfere with the GS X-Men #3 project. Various side effects of the dialysis have left me weak and very shaky, and drawing is very difficult. Presumably, once my body settles into the dialysis routine, I’ll be able to manage better. Oh, and BTW, the skin doctors also whacked off a chunk of my nose a couple weeks ago, to remove a basil cell carcinoma, with the result that Paty says I now look like a pekinese.”25 Cockrum did pencil his portion of the cover of Giant Size X-Men #3, which was inked by John Cassaday. It was his last work for the publisher, as he was unable to fulfill the Avengers assignment. In May, Paty Cockrum wrote online, “Dave went downhill rapidly about the time he was supposed to be working on the cover.

He began dialysis and was so weak that he turned it back to them with his apologies. He just couldn’t be sure of doing it on time for them.”26 Once again, Neal Adams stepped in to provide the artwork in the artist’s absence.

About the situation, Cliff Meth said, “His life was confined to three days a week of dialysis, which... it’s neither pleasant nor is it gonna leave you with a lot of energy afterwards. You get up in the morning, have to go to the hospital and then undergo, I think it was something like a... four-hour procedure. You add up all the waiting time and the commuting time, it’s your entire day. So three days a week of his life were lost to this, every single week for the last few years.”

Unable to draw, Cockrum continued to commiserate online with his fans. According to Paty, “That was

very important to him. He loved the fans. He always loved the fans. The fans were the reason he did things.

He drew to tell stories for the fans.”

She elaborated, “He loved to go to the conventions and schmooze with them, and by and large, the convention people loved having him because he was one of the few superstar artists, really, that was approached by the fandom, because he loved to talk to the fans, especially on a one to one basis. They’d come around, get his autograph, they’d ask him questions. He would talk to them, he’d tell them stories, I’d tell them stories... we’d have a grand old time.”

One episode in particular stood out in her mind.

“He would go to conventions and sit there and sign autographs. He never charged for an autograph except once. One guy came in with a whole collection of everything Dave had done at a comic convention. I mean, he literally brought a trolley of stuff in, and Dave said, ‘I limit my signatures to six books so that everyone can get a chance.’ He never charged for it. [It was], ‘Line up, get in line, and I’ll sign your books, and I’ll

John Cassady inks Cockrum’s pencils on GSX #3, courtesy of Heritage Auctions. X-Men ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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talk to you while I’m doing it.’ Or sometimes he would do drawings for people, and the guy said, ‘Well, I want you to sign all the things I’ve got. If I sit around, and you have a lull in the traffic, can I buy a half an hour of your time, as if you were going to do a sketch?’ and he said, ‘Okay.’

“So the guy bought a half an hour of his time, and Dave sat there and signed every single goddamn book, and that was the only time I think he ever charged for [an autograph, and] you can’t say charged for an autograph; he just charged for a half an hour of his time.”

In 2002, the artist wrote online, “Being a comics fan myself, as well as a creator, I’ve always enjoyed shooting the bull with other fans.”27 In 2003, he added, “I have never not had time for fans. I’ve done my best my whole career to be a good representative of my industry, even when I felt that industry was treating me shabbily.”28 Paty elaborated, “Sometimes he went to conventions when I didn’t, because they would fly him out hither and yon, [and] I don’t fly. I try not to. The broom and all, well, (right) Paty and Dave Cockrum at his last con appearance, holding the “fastball special” he drew for Doug McCratic.

Wolverine, Colossus ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc.

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yeah, but I don’t trust airplanes at all. They fall out of the air. But other than that... He loved the fans, and the fans loved him.”

With his ongoing health issues, the artist was unable to continue his many convention appearances. “Sorry, thanks to many problems — finance, the need to carry oxygen supplies, and the need for dialysis three times a week — I can’t travel to California. I can’t go to any show more than two or three hours drive from Belton.”29 Earlier, in reference to Atlanta’s DragonCon, he said, “We’ll be there on Sunday, but we won’t have a table. We’ll be wandering around like all the other geeks.”30 The last convention that Cockrum attended was a small, one-day event in nearby Greenville, S.C. While there, he acceded to a fan’s request for an illustration, and drew a picture of Wolverine and Colossus in the midst of delivering a “fastball special.” About the experience, he later said, “I attended a local show a couple weeks ago, and did a sketch for a guy. It took me most of the day and it was like pulling teeth. In the old days I’d’ve thrown it away, but the guy seemed happy enough with it.”31 It was the last sketch that he ever drew.

Throughout the last year of his life, Cockrum continued to express the desire to draw.

In late 2005, he said, “I’m busy trying to heal from the various ailments that have kept me from drawing,”32 and in 2006, in response to a wish from a fan to get better, he wrote, “Thanks, Samy. The concern expressed by fans like you has been a great help to me throughout my illness and recuperation.

Being permanently on kidney dialysis, I’ll never be fully in good health again, but even so I feel pretty good these days, and hope to return to work on a limited basis sometime in the near future.”33 The artist was supported in his endeavor by his friend Meth. “There was also an aspect of his life where he wanted to keep creating, and I very much encouraged him to do what he could,” recalled Meth. “Marvel contacted me shortly after Dave came home from the hospital and said, ‘We’d like to get

Art © Estate of Dave Cockrum

Dave on Giant-Size X-Men #3. We’d like him to do the cover and do an eight page back-up story.’ And I called him up and I said, ‘You’ve gotta do this. It’ll be great for you. It’ll be a lot of fun,’ and he’s like, ‘Well, you know, I don’t even know if I can do it.’ And I said, ‘You gotta do it. Just do it, man. Force yourself, just do it.’

“So he got the cover penciled, but that was about it.

He couldn’t complete the assignment. It was just too difficult for him. He was getting the shakes, he was having eye problems... It was a very, very sad thing to lose this kind of ability. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to work; he just didn’t have the ability to really do it anymore. So I tried to come up with some projects for him.

I would talk to his wife — I [was] very close with both Paty and Dave — and I said, ‘Paty, we’ve gotta keep him creating. We’ve gotta keep him doing something. Otherwise he’s just gonna sit in front of the TV, and that’s all he does! He watches television, and he goes to sleep.

That’s no way to live. It’s depressing! It’s depressing for him.’ And she agreed.

“So Aardwolf came up with a project... Jim Reiber owns Aardwolf these days, [and] I said, ‘Jim, you know that anything that Dave does is gonna sell. You’re not gonna lose any money with it.’ And he said, ‘No, of course not. I’d love to give Dave something to do.’ I had an idea. I said, ‘Why don’t we go back and take that book that came out some years ago — The Uncanny Dave Cockrum... A Tribute — and redo the book? Add twenty or thirty pages of Dave’s artwork to it — do another whole section — and let Dave do sketches that will be inserted into the book?” And Jim thought that was a wonderful idea, and Dave liked that idea.

Meth continued, “It allowed him to work. I mean, there’s a big difference between doing a convention sketch and having to actually do storytelling on the page. You can do it much more leisurely. If you wanted to do one or two a day, that would be fine. And Jim said, ‘Go ahead, Dave, do this project,’ and Dave actually did 220 drawings for this project. It took him over a year. It took him a year to deliver these 220 drawings, so was he averaging, I guess, one a day, if you count a five-day work week. But he did it, and it gave him something to do. He did some drawings on the side he didn’t like, [and] he’d throw ’em out, but he did some that he liked, and so that was one project. He did that.”

Another project to which the artist contributed for Aardwolf was The Three Tenors: Off-Key, a benefit book for William Messner-Loebs that featured short stories written by Cockrum, Meth, and Loebs. Similar to Cockrum, Loebs had fallen on hard financial times and Meth also spearheaded a movement to raise

money for the comics creator. “Bill Messner-Loebs is quite literally my oldest friend in comics,” Meth wrote online. “I’ve known him since he was William Francis Loebs, Jr., and I’ll still know him if he becomes William Windsor-Smith Loebs, though I’ll likely make fun of him.”34 Cockrum provided prose stories and art for the volume, for which he was paid outright. 75 percent of the book’s profits went directly to Loebs, with the remainder held by the publisher. In a promotional blurb for the book, Aardwolf said, “The Three Tenors is Aardwolf ’s three-part effort to get Bill Messner-Loebs writing again, get Dave Cockrum drawing again, and get Clifford Meth off our backs.” Next to his cover for Giant Size X-Men #3, it was his last published work during his lifetime.

During 2006, the artist’s health continued to affect his every day life. In June, he wrote, “Since going on dialysis I feel a lot better, but my hands have stiffened considerably. My left hand has become all but useless.

Fortunately, I’m right handed. I’ve done some limited sketching lately, but nothing very elaborate. My eyes are still giving me problems, and I have cataract sur153

gery coming up in my left eye in July. Hopefully, that’ll leave and come home, they were both sitting there in clear my vision to some degree.”35 wheelchairs, and Dave asked his father, ‘Dad, can you He later added, “[My] previous surgery was on the stand up?’ and his father says, ‘Well, yeah.’ And he said, left eye too. I’d had broken blood vessels in it and they ‘Okay, stand up.’ And Dave stood up and walked over, had left ‘floaters’ — floating debris — which interfered and hugged him. He and his father hugged, and basiwith my vision. After the surgery to clear out the floatcally, I think they both knew that one or the other or ers, my vision in that eye was blurred; it seems the surboth of them wouldn’t make it through the winter, and gery accelerated the growth of a cataract. My right eye this was their good-bye.” is mostly okay with a corrective lens, but the doctor tells She added, “So we came home, and it was a couple me there’s a cataract forming there too — which means of [months] later that we got the call from Doug, who sooner or later I’ll have to have surgery there, too.”36 In is Dave’s younger brother, who happened to live near August, he wrote online, “Paty’s eyesight may be more his father, and was keeping on top of everything there. limited than mine, but she has her CCTV to help her We got the call the morning of Dave’s birthday that his read. I have to settle for a bright light and a hand-held father had passed away that morning.” magnifying glass, and it ain’t fun, believe me. Except for The day after his father’s death, Cockrum said, “The keeping up with Strangers in Paradise, it’s been a couple only comforting thing is that it wasn’t a surprise. Dad years since I read a comic book.”37 had several life-threatening problems, and, realizing the Earlier that year, both Dave and Paty Cockrum end was approaching, he refused to take the meds and attended the annual Heroes Con in North Carolina. treatments that might have extended his life. He died About the experience, the artist quietly in his sleep in his own bed at wrote, “Heroes Con was great. home.”42 Lt. Col. Emmett E. Cockrum, USAF (Ret.), was 94 years old.

Everybody was friendly, Shelton Over a week later, the artist Drum and all his staff were helpful. wrote, “We took the trek out to We had a great time. We’ll certainly Illinois again for the funeral. Dad be back next year!”38 Another trip which the artist was put to rest at Jefferson Bartook in 2006 brought him back to racks, Missouri, where Mom was his former neighborhood in upstate buried some twenty-odd years New York. In June, he wrote online, ago. It was an especially moving “Paty’s oldest boy, Phil, is getting ceremony with honor guard and married (his first, at the ripe age of flag, and 21-gun salute. Personally, 39) and we’re returning to New York I wanted a ‘missing man formato witness this miracle. This requires tion’ of aircraft overhead, but Dad some tricky logistics; I have to have wasn’t a pilot, so maybe he didn’t Paty Cockrum at the 2005 Heroes Con. two dialysis sessions up there, and rate it. As my brother pointed out, Photo taken by Dewey Cassell. we have to arrange oxygen supplies it would have been expensive and 39 as well. Pain in the ass—.” Upon his return home, he complicated business getting the Air National Guard wrote, “On the whole, though, it was a great trip — and involved.

40 the first vacation Paty and I have had in about 20 years.”

“Anyway, except for the reason for the trip, it was a That September, Cockrum visited his father in Illigood trip. My brother and his son and stepdaughter nois. Later that year, he described him as “...a retired Lt. were there, and my late sister’s son and his wife, and Col. in the U.S. Air Force and former history teacher, Dad’s widow, Mary, and her daughter, and various and at times he seemed larger than life.” He added, “Life cousins and old friends. The funeral service even had with him and my late mom was sometimes turbulent, a representative from the Boy Scouts of America; Dad and there was a period of about fifteen years when I was a registered member for nearly 80 years.”43 On the day of his father’s death, which was also did not speak to them, but we finally reconciled our Cockrum’s 63rd birthday, the artist summed up his differences shortly before my mom’s passing and dad feelings for the man when he wrote online, “I loved my and I were on good terms the last twenty-odd years.”41 His wife, Paty, remembered, “We went to visit him father very much.”44 Upon his return from the funeral, in September, and basically Dave and his father said days before Thanksgiving, he said, “Anyway, we’re back their good-byes that day. When we were ready to home — and hope we don’t have to take any more trips 154

this year. Good luck, blessings and good holiday wishes to all of you.”45

III. The End On Sunday, November 26, 2006, Dave Cockrum passed away due to complications from diabetes. He was 63 years old. Initially, the news was posted online at the artist’s message board by Cliff Meth. Later that day, it broke at the Mid-Ohio Con, where it spread as rumor before it was confirmed as fact.

“I got up late that morning at ten o’clock, which, sometimes we do sleep in late on Saturdays or Sundays,” Paty explained, “and I went in and said, ‘Okay, come on, get up. It’s time to take your medicines,’ and he was gone. I said, ‘Oookayy. You’re doing this to me today, are you?’ Because I had been expecting that very scenario for the past five years. He had been that sick all along.”

She explained, “Sometimes I would go in in the morning and just look in and say, ‘Is he breathing?’ and he’d twitch or breathe, and I’d say, ‘Okay!’ Or sometimes he would[n’t] twitch or breath and I’d feel him and he’d be warm. ‘Okay, he’s still alive.’ This time he was dead cold, and I knew. I’ve been on enough scenes [as an EMT].

“So when I called 911, they sent the emergency people out, and the emergency lady, after taking all the vital facts and things like that, she looked at me and she said, ‘This is your husband?’ and I said, ‘Yes, Ma’am,’ and she says, ‘You’re dealing with this very well,’ and I told her. I said, ‘It’s a scene I’ve been expecting for five years. I was an EMT with my fire company for eight years, and I’m dealing with the scene right now. It happens to be my scene, but until you guys do your thing and take him away, then if I want to fall apart, or need to fall apart, I will.’ And she said, ‘Okay.’

“I said, ‘You’ll find that as an EMT, you’ll do this, too.

You do not fall apart on a scene.’ And after they had taken him out, and I was giving her the final things, she said, ‘Now, we’re going. Are you going to be okay?’ and I said, ‘I have people coming, ’cause I called them.’

And then she says, ‘Okay, we’re done here,’ and I said, ‘Okay,’ and that’s when I started crying. Then my friend Marion came in, and then Barbara came in — she was off with her boyfriend that morning for church — so I deal with things, and I’m that kind of person. I don’t fall apart. I deal with things, and that’s what I do.”

She added, “I think Dave actually, for the past several years, has been hanging on for his father. Daddy had already lost two of his four children, and he knew

David was very sick. We all did. Even David knew he was very sick, and Daddy was scared to death that Dave would die and he’d have to bury another one of his children. Dave’s biggest fear was that he would die first, and his father would have to bury another one of his children, and I think he held on and held on by the skin of his teeth until his father started failing about a couple of months before Dave died.”

According to Paty, “We got back [from his father’s funeral] on a Sunday, and I could feel him letting down that whole week. And I’m thinking, ‘C’mon, not yet.

Not yet.’ And the next Sunday, he was dead. He was gone.”

Reaction from the comic book community was immediate. Obituaries appeared on news sites and blogs, and notice of his death was also mentioned in the mainstream media. An Associated Press obituary was published in multiple newspapers, and the New York Times also ran a notice of his passing. According to Paty, “He would have been absolutely amazed at the

According to Paty Cockrum, her husband was a “huge” fan of Neil Gaiman’s Death character. Death ™ and © DC Comics.

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outpouring of love and respect that just flooded the fondly remembered and we’ll miss his gentle laugh.”47 Cockrum’s co-workers and collaborators also airwaves, the ‘net… the newspapers — everywhere! — expressed their regret at his passing. “He created new when he died. He would never have believed it.” characters. He created Nightcrawler and five differIn 2007, Ivan Cockrum said, “Something that hapent characters for the X-Men, and essentially made it pened after he died that was really wonderful to me live again,” Neal Adams told Wizard. “We know what was that I got to see all the outpouring of support from X-Men means to comic books today: it’s a big deal. You his fans. All his fans online, on all of these forums and can say all the guys that came along afterwards made bulletin boards, told stories about what a great artist a big contribution, but the contribution wouldn’t be he was, but not just what a great artist he was, but there to be made if it wasn’t for the early guys who how wonderful he was to them. How well he treated really turned it into something, and them, how friendly and respectful Dave is one of those guys.”48 he was, and it was really lovely to see “There are certain artists whom, all of these other people with their when you find out you’re going to positive images of him, and to be be working with them, you just able to see that myself through their want to pinch yourself because you experiences. So that’s something I’ve can’t believe it,” Peter David also thought about a lot since he passed.” told Wizard. “When Richard Howell Andrea Kline, the artist’s first wife, recruited Dave for Soulsearchers recalled, “I was really glad that there and Company, that was one of those was that much recognition. Of course, instances. Chris [Claremont] and it didn’t help him, but I felt like he got Dave’s X-Men is what brought me the recognition that he deserved so back into comics after I’d left them much.” behind for many years, and to have In the days that followed, simithe opportunity to see him illustratlar accolades came from Cockrum’s ing the adventures that Richard and I former publishers. Marvel Editor-inwere writing was quite simply a highChief Joe Quesada said, “The recent point of my career.”49 passing of Dave Cockrum marks a “I’ve known Dave for nearly 40 time of great sadness in the comics years,” Marv Wolfman wrote on his industry and for all of us here at blog. “Besides being a brilliant creMarvel. He was one of the true legator, Dave was probably the best cosends and a creator of icons. Let’s think tume designer I have ever known. His about that for a second: a creator of designs were not only clear, but pericons. Now, that is an achievement fectly thought out... His Nightcrawler, that very few people on this planet Storm, and others are examples of his can make claim to. It’s like the few Sketches of Ms. Mercury and Storm creativity and range. But more than men who walked on the moon: it’s a done for limited copies of The all of that, Dave was a wonderful guy very exclusive club, and Dave is right Uncanny Dave Cockrum... a Tribute.

Ms. Mercury ™ and © Estate of Dave Cockrum and though I hadn’t seen him much up there with the best of them.”

Storm ™ and © Marvel Characters, Inc. as we lived on opposite coasts, a good He added, “While Dave will be friend. He will be missed.”50 sorely missed, we can all take solace in the fact that Jim Shooter told Diamond’s Scoop newsletter, “His he will live on in immortality through all the wonwork and his creations changed comics dramatically, derful characters and stories he helped create and all irrevocably, forever. Let me emphasize that: he changed of us whom he has inspired and entertained over the 46 the paradigm. If you don’t know that, it’s because you years.”

“Dave was one of the most passionate artists of his don’t know enough about what went on to know that, generation, bringing to every project a willingness to and because you never worked with him. He doesn’t explore costuming, character design, technology, and get nearly enough credit.”51 “Without Dave’s influx of spirit and energy to revive every creative opportunity,” said Paul Levitz, DC’s the Legion in the early 1970s, I have no doubt that the President and Publisher. “Though his career path strip would simply have lingered in that crowded purand health made his work for DC infrequent, it’s very 156

gatory of non-commercial fan-favorite features instead ner is until he’s partnered with someone else, even if of growing to become a crucial and beloved part of the it’s himself, and is not there anymore. The frustration comics firmament,” Mark Waid wrote on Newsarama. on the inside is that there was nobody that seemed to “Dave — who I had the pleasure of working with both make the industry better so that we could just have as an editor and as a writer — was supremely talented him when we needed him, and it was just a tremenand professional and was a gentleman. The entire 30th dous frustration, and a regret.” century, and now the 31st, owes him immeasurably.”

“Dave has to be remembered for the fact that his “They say you’re never truly dead as long as there’s whole life was comics,” said Paty Cockrum. “The stoone person who remembers you,” Mike Grell, Cockrytelling, the fans, the fun of it. He thought that a lot rum’s successor on Legion of Super-Heroes, wrote on of the fun had been lost lately, and that saddened him, his website. “Somewhere, someday, a kid is going to because comics should be fun. Superheroes should crawl into the attic and find his grandfather’s stash of be fun! Dave was someone who just loved the fun of comics. When he opens his first Dave Cockrum book, comics.” he’s going to be astounded.”52 According to the artist’s son, Ivan, “Whether [people] At the Dave Cockrum Tribute Panel at the 2007 New think that he was a good artist or not, I think the thing York Comic Con, the artist’s primary colthat really impresses me and makes me laborator, Chris Claremont, said, “The happy is that they think that he was a thing with Dave was that there was a good guy. That he treated people well and sense that there was nothing you could with respect. I think that’s how I’d like not ask for that he could not give you to think of him as being remembered.” and make you just plotz with delight.

Ivan’s mother, Andrea, remembered him And whether it was romance, whether as “...somebody who was a true creative it was slapstick, whether it was action, spirit, and who did live his dream.” whether it was drama, whether it was sciRegarding the artist’s legacy, Cockence fiction, whether it was just a street rum himself told Patrick Walsh in 2000, in a city... you ask for outrageous villains, “Artistically, it gives me a great deal of and suddenly you have them. You ask for satisfaction to know that my imaginastarships that were fifty miles long, and he tion has left a lasting mark on the indusgives you one made out of a fish! And it Cockrum’s last appearance at try.”53 He later elaborated when he said, works! It was such a sense of confidence Heroes Con, photo by Eddy Choi. “My own childhood was made more livable and enjoyable by guys such as in the writer’s imagination because, ‘Oh, I Wally Wood, Joe Kubert, Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson, can come up with anything, because I know that he can Jack Kirby, and many others, and it gives me a thrill to draw and save my ass.’ And yet, when he did draw and know I’ve been able to do the same for younger generdid save your butt, you then felt, ‘Wow, if he’s going to do ations.”54 art this good, I have got to get my script, my words, my As per his wishes, Dave Cockrum was cremated ideas, up to that level. Ha! This’ll show him.’ And then, of while wearing his Green Lantern shirt, with his ashes course, he’d top you the next month, and then you’d have to be buried on his property in South Carolina. While to start all over again, and in the final analysis, there’s much ado may have been made over the fact that he nothing more delightful and exciting and rewarding as passed away while wearing his Superman pajamas, being part of a creative team.” covered by a Batman blanket, in 2002 he wrote online, Claremont went on to say, “Then there’s the ego in reference to his many hospital stays, “I wear superside of things where you sit back and you think, ‘Look hero shirts (Shazam, Superman, Spider-Man, Green at what I’ve inspired in him! Aren’t I just brilliant!’

Lantern, Flash) and my notorious Spidey and Supes And then there’s the other half of, ‘Oh, my God. I’ve pants. I refuse to be just another guy in green pajagot to be better, otherwise I’m going to look like an mas.”55 idiot,’ because you want to be on his level. Then he’d In 2007, when asked how she wanted her husband keep raising the bar, but it was so much fun, you didn’t to be remembered, Paty Cockrum summed up his life notice until it was gone, and you suddenly thought, best when she said, “He was about the fun and the ‘Oh.’ You’re envious of where he is and what he’s doing, adventure and the heroism of comics, and that’s how and yet there’s this hole on your page that will never he should be remembered, because that’s what he was.” be quite the same again. And it’s the old argument that you never realize how valuable, how wonderful a part157

Endnotes 1 Clifford Meth, “Neal Adams Will Fight,” Past Masters (www.

comicsbulletin.com, Feb. 5, 2004).

10 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 2.

11 Stacia Brown, “Heritage Auction Benefit for Dave Cockrum

2 Clifford Meth, “Marvel’s Famous Last Words,” Past Masters

(www.comicsbulletin.com, Jan. 21, 2005).

Benefits All,” Scoop: Auctions/Prices (Gemstone Publishing, Inc., Aug. 21, 2004).

3 Mercy Van Vlack, “Dave’s Diary — 02-07-04,” Weird Sex in

12 Press Release, “Heritage to Hold Auction to Benefit Dave

the 30th Century (Interlac #185, Feb. 2007), pg. 1–2.

Cockrum,” (www.cliffordmeth.com).

4 Van Vlack, op. cit., pg. 2.

13 Clifford Meth, “Jim Lee Salutes Dave Cockrum,” Past Mas-

ters (www.comicsbulletin.com, June 3, 2004).

5 ibid, pg. 3.

6 Clifford Meth, “Good News & Bad News,” Past Masters

(www.comicsbulletin.com, Feb. 19, 2004).

7 Clifford Meth, “Dave Cockrum’s Hollywood Ending,” Past

Masters (www.comicsbulletin.com, Apr. 8, 2004).

8 Paty, “Tootsie Pinkletoes,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Apr. 29, 2004), pg. 1.

9 Dark Bamf, “Uncanny Dave Cockrum Tribute,” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, May 5, 2004), pg. 1.

14 Dark Bamf, “New Cockrum Site,” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, May 29, 2004), pg. 1.

15 Dark Bamf, “Hey Dave!” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 7, 2004), pg. 1.

16 Dark Bamf, “One Whopper of a Dumb Question for Dave

(or Paty),” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Nov. 19, 2004), pg. 1.

17 Dark Bamf, “Futurians Contract is Signed!” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Jan. 21, 2005), pg. 1.

18 Dark Bamf, “Dave on the X-Men Again?”

Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Feb. 20, 2005), pg. 1.

19 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

20 ibid, pg. 2.

21 Dark Bamf, “Long Time Coming Home

(to Dave and Paty),” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, Mar. 29, 2005), pg. 1.

22 Bamf, “Dave on the X-Men Again?” op. cit., pg. 1.

23 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 2.

24 Paty, “Dave on the X-Men Again?” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Mar. 30,

2005), pg. 2.

25 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 2.

26 Paty, op. cit., pg. 3.

27 Dave Cockrum, “Violent, Insane, and Passé Q

& A,” Classically Cockrum (www.comiXfan.com, July 25, 2002), pg. 1.

28 Dark Bamf, “Support Thread for Dark Bamf

Returning to Legion,” DCMB: The Legion (www. dccomics.com, May 15, 2003), pg. 2.

29 Dark Bamf, “Dave Cockrum Original Art-

work,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers. com, Nov. 9, 2006), pg. 1.

30 Dark Bamf, “DragonCon,” Cockrum Corner

John Carter ™ and © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

158

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 31, 2004), pg. 1.

31 Bamf, “Dave Cockrum Original Artwork,” op. cit., pg. 1.

32 Dark Bamf, “Whatcha up to Now, Dave??” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Dec. 2, 2005), pg. 1.

33 Dark Bamf, “Just Keep Getting Better, OK!?” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, May 24, 2006), pg. 1.

34 Clifford Meth, “The Three Tenors… Off Key,” Past Masters

(www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com, Feb. 10, 2005).

35 Dark Bamf, “Heroes Con Sketches?” Cockrum Corner (www.

NightScrawlers.com, June 28, 2006), pg. 1.

Shazam hero ™ and © DC Comics. Creature ™ and © Universal City Studios, LLC

36 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

37 Dark Bamf, “Dave’s Perspectives on X-Men,” Cockrum Corner

(www.NightScrawlers.com, Aug. 3, 2006), pg. 3.

38 Dark Bamf, “Recovered from Heroes Con Yet?” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, July 4, 2006), pg. 1.

39 Dark Bamf, “Gone Away,” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawl-

ers.com, June 6, 2006), pg. 1.

40 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

41 Dark Bamf, “Passing of Lt. Col. Emmett E. Cockrum USAF

(Ret.),” Cockrum Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Nov. 11, 2006), pg. 1.

42 Bamf, op. cit., pg. 1.

43 ibid, pg. 1.

44 ibid, pg. 1.

45 ibid, pg. 1.

46 Jim Beard, “Dave Cockrum, 1943–2006,” Marvel.com News (www.marvel.com, Nov. 28, 2006).

47 Unknown, “Artist Dave Cockrum Dies at 63” (DC Weekly Newsletter, Nov. 2006).

48 Matt Powell, “Saying Goodbye to Dave Cockrum,” Wizard

Universe (www.wizarduniverse.com, Nov. 27, 2006).

49 Powell, op. cit.

50 Marv Wolfman, “Nov. 26,” Today’s Views (www.marvwolfman. com, Nov. 26, 2006).

Sun Boy ™ and © DC Comics, courtesy of Kevin McConnell.

51 Stacia Brown, “In Memoriam: Dave Cockrum,” Scoop: The

Main Event (Gemstone Publishing, Inc., Dec. 1, 2006).

52 Mike Grell, “Dave Cockrum R.I.P.,” (www.mikegrell.com, Nov.

26, 2006).

53 Patrick Walsh, “A Candid Conversation with Dave Cockrum,”

(www.comiXtreme.com, Dec. 22, 2000).

54 Dark Bamf, “Dave Cockrum Made My Childhood!” Cockrum

Corner (www.NightScrawlers.com, Feb. 9, 2005), pg. 1.

55 Dave Cockrum, “Dave Is in the Hospital Again,” Classically

Cockrum (www.comiXtreme.com, Sept. 15, 2002), pg. 4.

159

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