Happy Birthday, Jack Kirby!

[Doc Beechler (mod-MD)]

http://bullyscomics.blogspot.com/

Bully is doing a post an hour for 24 hours today! I had no idea that Jack had a cameo as a police sketch artist on an episode of the Bill Bixby Hulk television show! See it at Bully's site!

[doc photo]

All comic book fans should have the day off in observance of the Kings birthday.

[John Dunbar]

I wish that I had possessed more of an appreciation for Kirby's work before he passed away. Today he is one of my favorites ... he truly he deserved the title of "King".

[Dandy Forsdyke]

Anyone know if Defenders #42's cover is by Kirby? There seems to be some doubt.

[Luke Blanchard]

There's an image of what the pencil art looked like here. The caption attributes the pencils to Kirby. I notice he drew Valkyrie wearing her second costume; the final cover has her back in her original one.

[Dandy Forsdyke]

Thank you. I knew someone here would know.

Luke Blanchard said:

There's an image of what the pencil art looked like here. The caption attributes the pencils to Kirby. I notice he drew Valkyrie wearing her second costume; the final cover has her back in her original one.

[Luke Blanchard]

I can't claim to have known; I found the image by accident looking for an image of Keith Giffen's Defenders art to compare the cover with. (My recollection is Giffen's Kirby-style art on Defenders had a more mannered look, but it's a long time since I read any of the issues.)

 

I thought the Hulk's face might have been altered by John Romita, as on The Eternals #15. The GCD credits him with alterations, and the Hulk's face did look different in the initial pencils. (My assumption is the pencils image is of a photocopy of the pencils, rather than of the original pencilled page. Presumably that was altered and inked.)

[Dandy Forsdyke]

I think Giffen's 'Kirby' art looks like Barry Smith's early attempts, and as you say 'mannered'. For me it looks rather stiff and forced. However I was puzzled by that Defenders cover, which isn't helped by the inking.

I think you may be right about that Eternals cover as well.