CRIVENS! COMICS & STUFF!: PART EIGHT OF NEAL ADAMS' BATMAN COVER GALLERY...

Sunday, 20 July 2014

PART EIGHT OF NEAL ADAMS' BATMAN COVER GALLERY...

Pencils & inks by NEAL ADAMS. Copyright DC COMICS

What can I tell you about comicbook artist NEAL ADAMS that you don't already know? Not much, so here are some great cover illustrations instead. Ah, but that's too easy, so let's have a stab at imparting some basic information. Neal Adams was born on June 6th 1941 on Governor's Island in Manhattan. He's a member of the WILL EISNER COMIC BOOK HALL Of FAME and the JACK KIRBY HALL Of FAME, having been inducted on the basis of many impressive contributions to various DC and MARVEL comicbooks down through the years. (I, of course, am a member of the NO-HOPERS HALL Of INFAMY - according to some.)

Along with JULIUS SCHWARTZ and DENNY O'NEIL, he helped restore The BATMAN to his dark, avenging, creature-of-the-night roots, for which fact alone he should be awarded a gold BLUE PETER badge and a big bag of Jelly Babies, in my famously humble opinion. And there's more - but you can look it up for yourselves as my typing finger is getting sore and it's past time for my milk and cookies and my afternoon nap. How will I ever get to sleep? I've only just woken up! Anyway, while a trio of heavenly handmaidens prepare my light repast and ready me for my subsequent slumber, here are some of Neal's covers to make you realise why you'll never be a comicbook artist - unless you're this good.

(I'm sure I'm not the only person crying into my milk right about now. Well, they'll be crying into their own, but you know what I mean.)

Pencils & inks by NEAL ADAMS

Pencils & inks by NEAL ADAMS

Pencils & inks by NEAL ADAMS

8 comments:

Unknown said...: I always wanted to get Detective Comics 413 and Brave and the Bold issue 99 as I remember seeing these as a kid being heavily advertised in DC books at the time and the looked amazing (still not been able to track them down for a reasonable price)- Adams is my all time favourite artist in comics (any medium) but I have to say although his covers are excellent he wasn't (imho) a patch of Nick Cardy - nice blog again more Adams is always welcome; 20 July 2014 at 13:24
Kid said...: And more Adams you shall have, McScotty. You should think about buying those three Adams Batman books - they're very nice, and may be available in less expensive softcover editions by now.; 20 July 2014 at 13:42
Gey Blabby said...: Well, you've kept us waiting, Kid, but finally … this is Adams at his very best. From now until the end of his run on the character, he was, as far as I'm concerned, untouchable. It's just a shame that you're only showing the covers, as #234 has a splash page that is a wonderful example of how Adams (and Giordano) returned Batman - sorry, The Batman - to his creature-of-the-night roots.

Daughter Of The Demon and Night Of The Reaper are big favourites, too, with the latter filling the role that Diamonds Are Forever has for me with the Bond films: it's all a bit silly and OTT (although deadly serious), but I read it at such an impressionable age that any criticism of it just washes over me.

The next bunch of covers that you post might be even better, I think, featuring *the greatest single image of Batman ever*, so I'm looking forward to it with bated breath.; 20 July 2014 at 15:29
Kid said...: You never know, GB - I might find a space to squeeze that splash page in somewhere.; 20 July 2014 at 15:54
TC said...: B&B #99 was reprinted in a "Showcase Presents" TPB in 2008. I think I had a very worn copy of Detective #413 at one time, but I don't remember anything about it, other than the cover.

I've actually heard commentators who should know better say that Frank Miller rescued Batman from the campy comedy image and returned the character to his grim Dark Knight roots in the 1980's. Anyone with any knowledge of the subject at all should be able to tell you that the camp fad was passing (in all media, including comics) by 1968, and that O'Neil and Adams were doing stories in the "creature of the night" style by 1970.; 20 July 2014 at 16:42
Kid said...: You're right, TC. In fact, The Secret of the Waiting Graves (generally regarded as the first 'return to darkness' issue), although dated January 1970, actually went on sale around October 1969.; 20 July 2014 at 17:29
Norman Boyd said...: Kid, ignore your detractors. I'm enjoying your posts.
The cover at the top (Batman #232) appears to have no details but have a look at Comics.org where the cover has the data. Is that your own copy you've scanned? You could finally make that money you mentioned if it's an undiscovered variant, as the youth call them?; 26 July 2014 at 17:32
Kid said...: Thanks, Norman. Although I have some of the Neal Adams issues, I've scanned this series from three books called Batman Illustrated by Neal Adams. The ones with no price, etc., usually mean that they were once reprinted as individual issues (like the Millennium Editions for example) and the price and date were removed so as to avoid confusing buyers. Glad you're enjoying these covers.; 26 July 2014 at 18:16

About the artist:

From 1985 to 2000 A.D. (little joke there), I contributed to a variety of high profile comics and magazines for various companies.

For IPC/FLEETWAY/EGMONT, I freelanced as a lettering and logo artist on various weekly comics and monthly magazines, and also as a resize comic artist and spot illustrator on pocket books, summer specials and annuals.

For MARVEL U.K., BLACK LIBRARY, REDAN and USBORNE BOOKS, I again freelanced as a lettering artist, also working as a restoration artist for MARVEL U.S., restoring and re-creating certain pages of JACK KIRBY art for their MARVEL MASTERWORKS editions.

I also lettered the MARVELMAN sample pages submitted to MARVEL U.S. when they were considering acquiring the character, which - as we all now know - they DID.

Supplied comic strips, cartoons and illustrated advertisements for local business campaigns and newspaper publication on a professional basis since the age of 16. Did my first paid art job for publication at 14 or 15 for Lanarkshire Education Board.

Have also made TV appearances as a collector of memorabilia.

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Just some of the titles I worked on are:

2000 A.D. * JUDGE DREDD MEGAZINE * DICEMAN * SONIC The COMIC * JUDGE DREDD, LAWMAN Of The FUTURE * CRISIS * REVOLVER * EAGLE * TIGER * BATTLE ACTION-FORCE * BUSTER * WHIZZER & CHIPS * WHOOPEE * NIPPER * SCHOOL FUN * ACE VENTURA, PET DETECTIVE * The REAL GHOSTBUSTERS * DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE * COUNT DUCKULA * RUGRATS * The TRANSFORMERS * DEATH'S HEAD * THUNDERCATS * GALAXY RANGERS * DRAGON'S CLAWS * SINDY * MARVEL MASTERWORKS * The TROLLS * LOADED * INFERNO * WARHAMMER * ROSE BLACK.

Copyright Notice:

Images remain the property of their respective copyright owners and are used here only for the purpose of review, promotion, and nostalgia.

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And while you can credit this blog if you like, it's not mandatory. Who has time to make notes of every casually visited site during an idle browse of the Internet?

In the case of anyone copying images of my own artwork and calligraphy, I affirm my right to be identified as the creator, and any such copying should not be for the purpose of monetary or material gain. (Unless it's mine.)

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