Larry Lieber

Weird Wonder Tales 6, 1974 “The Man Who Owned a Ghost?”

Posted on by billyd75

As the 1970s progressed, Marvel went full on crazy with the reprints. Some were of recent material (Spider-Man, The Avengers, the Fantastic Four, etc.), and others were from as far back as the Atom Age (post Golden Age but pre-Silver Age). Flooding the market was nothing new for them, but it is still astonishing to look back on. Not that you can blame them, after all they were under the constraints of the publisher that was their rival for many years. Once they got out from under those shackles, they went hog-wild, and who could blame them.

The book is all reprints, but don’t discount it on that accord. The first story alone is worth its weight in gold, as Bill Everett is the mastermind behind “The Man Who Owned a Ghost!” Some artists have their work deteriorate as they age, but Everett’s work got stronger, just look! The second story, “Was He Just Seeing Things?,” has art by Manny Stallman, and this is a creator that I’m not very familiar with to be honest (here’s a link to Mark Evanier’s blog from 1997, talking a bit about him). Neat little sci-fi story including dinosaurs! “Homicide” follows and brings an axe murderer! Nothing here you didn’t already see from a publisher like EC comics, but still pretty jarring. The art in that one is by Harry Anderson. Again, a relative unknown today, but I found some info here. The last installment in the book is called “The Man in the Crazy Maze.” A treat for sure, as this has art by Jack Kirby (pencils) and Dick Ayers (inks)! It’s always a treat to see some Kirby! The cover is by Larry Lieber (probably pencils/layouts) and Mike Esposito (inks).

 

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Marvel Comics Giant-Size Chillers!

Posted on by billyd75

And now, with Halloween right around the corner, let the horror comics binge begin! A few months back, I spotlighted issue one of this series, and recently completed the (extremely short) series. These over-stuffed comics have so much to offer. You get new material plus reprints of Silver Age horror stories as well (in the first and second issues anyway, and the third having all reprints but from other Bronze Age books). The fantastic covers were also a treat, as they showcased some of the tremendous talent of the Bronze Age.

The new material is a bit more graphic than the reprints, due to the fact that the reprints are from the comics code era. But don’t fret, they are definitely worth reading, especially when coupled with the new material. The stories range from Lovecraftian beasts, cryptids, fortune tellers, gargoyles, etc.

The list of creators that had a hand in these three issues is astounding. A long list it may be, but each person is going to be listed starting with the first issue and ending with the third. Seek these issues out at the first opportunity, as they will certainly become more and more scarce!

Issue #1 – cover by Larry Lieber (Romita alterations) and Mike Esposito; interior work by Tony Isabella, Gene Colan, Tom Palmer, Jean Izzo, Carl Wessler, Alfredo Alcala, Larry Lieber, Miguel Ripoll Guadayol, Dave Hunt, Doug Moench, Win Mortimer, Charlotte Jetter, Ralph Alphonso, Adolfo Buylla, Paul Reinman, Dave Gibbons, Dick Ayers, Mike Lombo, Stan Lee, and George Roussos.

Issue #2 – cover by Gil Kane and John Romita; interior work by Linda Fite, Ron Wilson, Jack Abel, Janice Cohen, June Braverman, Carl Pfeufer, Tom Orzechowski, Don McGregor, Paul Reinman, Ed Winarski, Stan Lee, Al Eadeh, Bill Everett, Don Heck, Artie Simek, Manny Stallman, John Forte , and Carl Burgos.

Issue #3 – cover by Ed Hannigan and Bernie Wrightson (letters by Danny Crespi) interior work by Alfredo Alcala, Len Wein, Marie Severin, Dan Adkins, Gaspar Saladino, Bernie Wrightson, Roy Thomas, Artie Simek, Stan Lee, Gerry Conway, Barry Windsor-Smith, Sam Rosen, Allyn Brodsky, Jack Katz, Gene Colan, Mike Esposito, Marie Severin, Jean Simek, Jack Kirby, John Verpoorten, Denny O’Neil, Tom Sutton, and Marv Wolfman.

 

 

 

 

Atlas/Seaboard Comics!

Posted on by billyd75

One might get a bit confused when they see the name “Atlas Comics.” For most, it means Marvel Comics between the Timely comics era (1930s-early 1950s) and the most notable Marvel Comics era (1961-present). But after leaving Marvel Comics in 1972, Martin Goodman soon after started a rival company called Atlas Comics in NYC. He would pay better, return artwork, and in doing so, attract some of the industry’s top talent to this upstart company. A few problems arose quickly though: first, the industry was beginning to sag and the big two were having sales problems, so imagine being the new kid on the block, trying to compete with two giants. Secondly, the staff was ill-equipped to handle the assignments in front of them (Goodman made some bad decisions that put his top two employees Larry Lieber and Jeff Rovin in a tough spot- per The Comic Book Journal and Comic Book Artists mags).

Atlas may have only been in business for a couple of years, but they did produce some interesting books. I’ve got a few horror titles they released but they also had crime, military, superheroes, etc. Wonderful work by people like Neal Adams, Russ Heath, Rich Buckler, Howard Chaykin, Steve Mitchell, Steve Ditko, Gary Friedrich, Frank Thorne, and Wally Wood! Take a look!