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Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.1: Jack Kirby

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No.1: Jack Kirby

As practically all people following this list will have surmised, there can only be one candidate for the top spot, and that is The King himself, Jack Kirby. It’s almost redundant to recite what he brought to the medium, as he was and remains the designated lynchpin with fandom, his fellow professionals and mainstream culture in general (the dominance of the MCU in multiplexes for one). Kirby didn’t so much eat, sleep and breathe comics, he essentially was the motherlode, the artist who drew more, created more and above all elevated the industry at its most crucial point, ensuring its place in the mainstream along with its dedicated, long term fanbase. Without him comics would’ve been very different indeed, as he rewrote the language, storytelling and boundaries of the superhero genre, his imagination and evolving art style producing works that were bombastic, stately, and epic, but always underpinned by a stoic, idealistic humanity that was based on his own experience and tough upbringing…. Words: Andrew Colman

photo©Greg Preston

Kirby, born Jacob Kurtzberg, grew up on Manhattan’s then very rough Lower East Side in the 1920s and ‘30s. He was a street fighter (Ben Grimm is basically him), who experienced anti-Semitism at school, and was motivated by a need to escape, as well as being inspired by the pop culture that was burgeoning around him. Kirby wanted to be an artist on his own terms, eschewing formal training, preferring, as many did at the time, to learn as he went along. He was influenced primarily by the legendary cartoonists of the pre-Golden Age era – Milton Caniff, Hal Foster and Alex Raymond.

Finding work at the Eisner Iger Studio in 1939, Kirby was impressed with Eisner’s nous and maturity. Eisner for his part stated that Kirby was very serious about his profession, and arrived with an already formed, distinctive style. He also admired his dynamism and dedication to avoiding mediocrity, borne, as Kirby mentioned, of a fear of failure. Kirby then moved to Fox Features, creating his first effort in the super-hero market, Blue Beetle, and more importantly, meeting his creative partner for the next 15 years, Joe Simon. Their time at Fox was relatively brief however, and in what was to become a pattern in Kirby’s career, he moved to Timely (later Atlas, and then Marvel) with Simon, this time as art director and editor respectively.

The move to Timely meant creating another super-powered costumed fighter, and with patriotic heroes heavily in vogue after the arrival of MLJ’s The Shield, the duo created their most lasting and iconic character, Captain America. Joe Simon acknowledged later that this was when the pair became established as a going concern, barely a year or so after they met. The series was a massive hit, selling a million copies an issue, showcasing dynamic art, composition, and compulsive storytelling, especially for the time. After a mere ten issues of this celebrated book, the pair, unknowingly ceding ownership of their creation to publisher Martin Goodman, were on their way to a company that later would be Marvel’s only real competition twenty years later – National, later known as DC Comics. The movement back and forth between these two publishers, amongst others, would become a staple in Kirby’s career.

Simon and Kirby went on to have considerable success at National, mainly on The Manhunter and Sandman strips in Adventure Comics. Kirby’s career however was put on hiatus due to the war, and once he returned he left the publisher. With super-hero titles dramatically fading in the post-war years, it was very much a case of adaptability with the Simon and Kirby –  their breakthrough being Crestwood’s Young Romance, the first romance title in the industry, which proved to be a major success and progenitor of many imitators, many of whom were kept afloat for several more years by this emerging new genre. The duo also worked on western, crime and adventure series for other publishers. When the pre-code era, with its market leader E.C., arrived at the beginning of the 1950s, Simon and Kirby came up with two very oddball horror titles, Black Magic and Strange World of Your Dreams. Kirby’s 1950s art style was somewhat more baroque and stylised than earlier, exuding a heavily noirish and sinister feel for this genreAnd with war comics doing so well at chief rival Atlas, the duo also produced the highly emotive Foxhole, featuring some of Kirby’s best work of that period.

By the mid-1950s Joe Simon had had enough of the industry and left to work in advertising. The split was amicable, but it meant that Kirby was back to freelancing, in what were relative wilderness years for him. During this period Kirby worked for both DC and Atlas, his initial stint at the latter involving art duties on war books and esoteric minor series. At roughly the same time, he worked on Green Arrow for Adventure Comics and Challengers of the Unknown (a prototype for the Fantastic Four) before a contract dispute forced him back to Atlas, a year after it had seen its line drastically reduced by the 1958 Implosion. Despite his heavy workload at a company that looked to be on the verge of folding, Kirby had no option but to stay and try to build from the ground up once again.

Duin and Richardson’s Comics Between the Panels averred that the reuniting of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby at the publisher that was soon to be rebranded as Marvel Comics was the “teaming up of the has been with the never was” – Kirby had fallen out with Lee seventeen years earlier, and although their names would forever be entwined by history and fandom, there was always an enmity between them. Nevertheless, serendipity had brought them together and the constraints put in place by Atlas’s distribution company (i.e. DC Comics) meant that with only eight titles per month, Lee and Kirby could focus exclusively on content. Kirby took a year or two to adapt, but with the arrival of Fantastic Four 1 he not only attained a second act to his career, he would also become the most important artist in comic book history. Kirby, Lee, and the rest of the Marvel Bullpen were all on the same page, and matters rapidly clicked into gear.

 

Kirby’s artistic development in this decade was mercurial, developing concepts and characters, some new, some updates or reboots of old tropes and revered classics, that for the most part were hugely innovative and iconic, with a sense of scale and style that was radically different from his 1950s ersatz look. This purple patch, lasting for virtually the whole of the 1960s, saw him as the creative architect of a company that would storm into pop culture with a swaggering ferocity. The themes of hero as outsider (Spider-Man, X-Men, The Hulk) or the concept of hero as demigod (Thor, Silver Surfer, Him, The High Evolutionary) proved to be huge draws with older readers. This was inspirational for Kirby, who became more emboldened as a storyteller, reaching his artistic apogee between 1965 and 1968 – his stately yet kinetic, explosive art the template for the rest of the bullpen and the look of the publisher as a whole. Despite this his stylistic flourishes, such as “Kirby Krackle”, used to depict energy or the void of space, along with other trippy, psychedelic effects were uniquely his, were the apex of pop art, and more or less defined the era. Even name artists who would go on to have distinguished careers in other genres such as Jim Steranko and Barry Smith began by aping the Marvel House Style that was modelled on Kirby’s work.

Kirby revolutionised a stalling medium and provided its lingua franca for the next decade or more, while generating billions in merchandise and big screen adaptations for corporate interests to this day. According to Kirby himself it was all done without a detailed game plan or remit beyond regenerating a failing company and a genre that (in hindsight) he claimed would reignite in the new decade. Kirby was a machine that was producing high quality work on a regular basis, but by the end of the 1960s his interest in the Marvel stable of characters had faded. He was already earning a very good salary at Marvel, but DC, now under the auspices of artist turned publisher Carmine Infantino, were very much aware that their former employee, now remarkably over 50, had become very hot property, and were prepared to triple his wages and give him complete creative carte blanche.

Kirby’s return to National, where he edited, wrote and drew his own titles, was basically the last vestige of his golden period. His key work in the early 1970s, the Fourth World saga, which encompassed several books (New Gods, Forever PeopleJimmy Olsen) was far less grounded than his 60s work, with an enormous sweep that was cosmic, dream-like and endlessly inventive. In many ways it was quite unlike anything else at the time, and easily as beguiling in its otherness. If Kirby could do anything, it was usually epic. After this, Kirby returned to Marvel for three years, providing yet more lucrative properties for the company such as The Eternals, which although one of his last projects for the publisher was still a brilliant widescreen exercise in magnitude and bizarre alien spacescapes.

By the 1980s, Kirby’s comic career began to recede, his profile diminished as the industry moved on, his style not meshing with the darker tone that began to dominate by the middle of the decade. It took the advocacy of acolytes such as Frank Miller and Neal Adams to remind the industry of Kirby’s achievements and to ensure that his place in the field was permanently restored.

In summary, Jack Kirby was comics, more than anyone else in the medium’s history. The sheer volume of tremendous artwork, his co-creation of the Marvel Universe and his longevity speaks for itself. Despite being lauded by so many for his art, he lacked pretensions, his aspiration only to entertain and enthral, and to commit his febrile imagination to the four colour page. So there it is, Jack “King” Kirby, sitting at the summit of this list, and he certainly earned it.

Here’s the rest of our 101 Greatest Comic Artists list so far

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.2: Frank Frazetta

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.3: Neal Adams

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.4: Bernie Wrightson

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.5: John Buscema

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.6: Steve Ditko

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.7: Frank Miller

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.8: Will Eisner

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.9: Lou Fine

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.10: Alex Schomburg

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.11: Joe Kubert

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.12: Wally Wood

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.13: Jim Steranko

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.14: Alex Raymond

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.15: Harvey Kurtzman

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.16: Walter Simonson

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.17: Russ Heath

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.18: Bill Sienkiewicz

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.19: Jack Cole

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.20: Bernie Krigstein

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.21: Graham Ingels

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.22: Al Williamson

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.23: Barry Windsor-Smith

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.24: Alex Ross

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.25: John Byrne

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.26: Mike Mignola

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.27: Basil Wolverton

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.28: Howard Chaykin

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.29: Moebius

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.30: Dave Gibbons

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.31: Creig Flessel

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.32: Milt Caniff

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.34: Burne Hogarth

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.35: LB Cole

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.37: Bill Everett

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.38: Robert Crumb

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.39: Mac Raboy

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.41: Jim Starlin

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.42: Mike Zeck

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.43: Adam Hughes

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.44: Daniel Clowes

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.45: Gene Colan

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.46: George Perez

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.47: Michael William Kaluta

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.48: Cary Nord

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.49: Frank Quitely

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.50: Mike Ploog

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.51: Johnny Craig

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.52: Darwyn Cooke

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.53: Steve Dillon

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.54: Gil Kane

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.55: Michael Zulli

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.56: John Romita

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.57: Joe Maneely

 

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.58: Marshall Rogers

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.59: John Severin

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.60: Alex Toth

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.61: Brian Bolland

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.62: David Mazzuchelli

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.63 Reed Crandall

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.64 Harry Anderson

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.65 Nick Cardy

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.66 Matt Wagner

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.67 Bryan Hitch

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.68 Shawn Martinbrough

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.69 Al Feldstein

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.70 Nestor Redondo

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.71 Tarpe Mills

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.72 Eduardo Risso

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.73 JH Williams III

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.74 Irv Novick

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.75 Dan Zolnerowich

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.76 Gilbert Shelton

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.77 Tommy Lee Edwards

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.78: Sean Phillips

 

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.79: Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.80: Dan DeCarlo

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.81: Marie Severin

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.82: John Paul Leon

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.83: Jim Lee

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.84: Denys Cowan

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.85: Ross Andru

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.86: Paul Gustavson

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.87: George Evans

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.88: Michael Golden

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.89: Matt Baker

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.90: Todd McFarlane

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.91: Fiona Staples

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.92: Carl Barks

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.93: Carmine Infantino

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.94: Alan Davis

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.95: CC Beck

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.96: Syd Shores

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.97: Bob Fujitani

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.98: Tim Sale

Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.99: Jim Aparo

https://tripwiremagazine.co.uk/headlines/tripwires-101-greatest-comic-artists-of-all-time-no-100/

https://tripwiremagazine.co.uk/headlines/tripwires-101-greatest-comic-artists-of-all-time-no-101/

 

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