— “The Making of Ragemoor” by Richard Corben —
Look Here: Two SF covers with arresting airbrushed artwork by… ?
I’m not a big fan of pure airbrushed artwork, but here are two airbrushed SF covers — from 1970 and 1979 respectively — that recently caught my eye as I was browsing through my very own library of paperback “classics,” looking for stuff to scan and share:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Please note that neither of the above paperbacks includes a formal credit for the cover artist. Yes, the artwork on Bill, the Galactic Hero is signed “McMACKEN,” or “McMALKEN,” but I have no idea who McMacken/McMalken is…
UPDATE (07 August 2013):
I can’t say for sure, but my best guess at this point is that the McMacken who produced the cover art for Bill, the Galactic Hero is Dave McMacken. Widely admired in his early career for his skill with an airbrush, McMacken is perhaps best known for his cover illustrations for albums such as Frank Zappa’s Over-Nite Sensation, The Commodores’ Natural High, AC/DC’s Ballbreaker, Cat Stevens’ Greatest Hits, Warrant’s Dog Eat Dog, The Bullet Boys’ Freak Show, Weather Report’s Black Market, The Beatles’ Reel Music, Steve Miller’s The Joker for Steve Miller, and Kansas’s Leftoverture. Some might also remember his poster for Steven’s Spielberg’s 1941.
Look Here: Five occult paperbacks by Peter Saxon, with cover art by Jeffrey Jones
I’ve posted some of these covers before, but I recently purchased some copies that, in a couple of instances, and for various reasons (like this, for example), are nicer than the books I scanned previously, so here I am to share with you:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Bon appétit!
Out of Context: “Fred rambled on while Vance and I spoke above his narration..!”
Look Here: Two “Venus” covers by Esteban Maroto
From the paperback collection of yours truly, here are two covers, freshly scanned:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Look Here: Five more sketches by John Buscema
This afternoon, for your viewing pleasure (as promised!), I’ve got scans of the second group of five sketches by John Buscema that currently reside in our collection of original art:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
I think my favourite out of the above group is the sketch of the swordfight; the little flicks of the pencil that define the contours of the forms are so confidently placed — amazing!
In case you missed it, the first group of five is right here.
Look Here: Five sketches by John Buscema
From our modest collection of original art by various hands, here are five small sketches by John Buscema for you to peruse; if you click the images displayed below so as to enlarge them, you will find that the uploaded images are actually large enough to repay close study:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
All five of the above sketches currently reside in a 12 x 12 inch, 3-ring scrapbook album in our living room. In case you’re wondering how they’re displayed, each sketch is attached to the centre of one side of an acid free sheet with acid free photo corners. Works for me.
Enjoy!
But please remember: don’t just take; link. (Yes, I’m talking to you, PNN.)
UPDATE (01 April 2012):
I just posted a second batch of five sketches by John Buscema. I hope you enjoy seeing them!
Heads Up: BIG JOHN BUSCEMA: COMICS & DRAWINGS
Coming in July from IDW:
Big John Buscema: Comics & Drawings [Hardcover]
N/A (Author), John Buscema (Artist)
- Hardcover: 328 pages
- Publisher: IDW Publishing (July 3 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1613771959
- ISBN-13: 978-1613771952
Product Description:
“John Buscema has been called one of the finest comic artists who ever put pen to paper. His work for Marvel Comics on The Avengers, Thor, The Fantastic Four, and Silver Surfer are all classics, highly regarded by fans from around the world. The same is true for his definitive rendition of Conan the Barbarian — Buscema breathed life into Robert E. Howard’s legendary creation in a manner that has rarely been rivaled. IDW is proud to announce the first American publication of John Buscema: Comics & Drawings, a special edition of the fine art catalog created for the most extensive exhibition of Buscema’s art ever staged. Weighing in at nearly 300-pages, this gorgeous hardcover book is a dream come true for fans of the visual mastery of John Buscema, an artist who’s ilk we are unlikely to see again.”
As excellent as his comics art was, especially when he inked his own work, John Buscema did not love to draw comics. He did, however, love to draw. Even after a full day’s work in the “Marvel Bullpen,” Busema’s idea of relaxation was to spend a few hours in the evening covering sketchbook sheets, copier paper, surplus comics boards, and even the backs of pages destined for reproduction, with sketches and studies that not only related to whatever work he had on his plate at the time but also served as an outlet for his personal obsessions — cowboys, horses, pirates, vikings, beautiful women, big cats, hand-to-hand combat, unusual character faces, etc., etc.
If you’re interested in Buscema’s sketches, three books have been published that, with varying degrees of success and failure, try to cover the territory: 1) The Art of John Buscema (1978), 2) John Buscema Sketchbook (Vanguard, 2001), and 3) John Buscema: A Life in Sketches (Pearl Press, 2008). I wish I could wholeheartedly endorse one of those books, but each has shortcomings in terms of design and/or reproduction that prevent me from doing so.
I suppose I might also mention that a four-page illustrated feature, “John Buscema: The Lost Drawings,” appeared in Heavy Metal Magazine in November 2011; by my count, the article includes reproductions — one large, the rest quite small — of a grand total of nineteen sketches.
No… in truth, the best place to view Buscema sketches is on the Web.
Speaking of which…
In our small collection of art by John Buscema, my wife and I have a couple of signed pages of pencilled and partially inked figure drawings on full sheets of sketchbook paper, ten signed sketches clipped by Buscema himself from larger sheets, an unusual signed graphite sketch on a sheet on copier paper, and a Conan page that the artist pencilled, inked, and shaded in what appears to be black grease pencil (a.k.a., china marker). So, obviously, somebody in our house is a bit of a Buscema fan!
For my next post, I plan to scan and share five of the small, signed sketches by Buscema in our collection, and I promise to follow that post up a bit later with another five.
Heads Up: A selection of new books coming soon from Fantagraphics!
Every once in a while, I like to use the Amazon “Advanced Search” to find out what I have to look forward to in the coming months from my favourite publishers. Sometimes the information published in the Amazon catalogue is not precisely accurate. Sometimes a book will be credited to the wrong publisher. Often the books are listed without descriptions or cover images. Often the publication date that is listed turns out to be wildly optimistic. I think you get the picture. Anyway, today I was looking for forthcoming books available for pre-order from venerable comics publisher, Fantagraphics, and I just thought I’d share with you some of the titles that caught my eye. I don’t know if I will be willing or able to purchase all of these books if and when they finally are released, but they are all titles that I, and perhaps you, will definitely want to consider. So, without further ado, here’s my very tentative shopping list:
[NO IMAGE — that’s not an error; that’s my way of letting you know that there’s no image yet in the Amazon catalogue.]
Problematic: Selected Sketchbook Drawings 2004-2011 [Hardcover]
Jim Woodring (Author)
- Hardcover: 300 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (October 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995944
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995945
[NO DESCRIPTION — but it doesn’t matter; for me, it’s a must have!]
[NO IMAGE]
The Love and Rockets Reader: From Hoppers to Palomar [Paperback]
Marc Sobel (Author), Los Bros Hernandez (Illustrator)
- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (October 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995928
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995921
[NO DESCRIPTION — I want to know what this is before I pre-order, but they’ve got my attention.]
[NO IMAGE]
The Love and Rockets Companion: 30 Years (and Counting)< [Paperback]
Neil Gaiman (Contributor), Marc Sobel (Editor), Kristy Valenti (Editor)
- Paperback: 240 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (September 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995790
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995792
[NO DESCRIPTION — again, I want to know what’s in this!]
DAL TOKYO [Hardcover]
Gary Panter (Author, Artist)
- Hardcover: 212 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books; 1 edition (Jun 12 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1560978864
- ISBN-13: 978-1560978862
Product Description
“Dal Tokyo was a monthly comic strip, drawn in Panter’s groundbreaking “ratty line,” about a future Mars that is terra-formed by Texan and Japanese workers. In 1983 the L.A. Reader published the first 63 strips. A few years later, the Japanese reggae magazine Riddim picked up the strip, and Panter continued the saga of Dal Tokyo in installments for over a decade.”
About the Author
“GARY PANTER (Brooklyn, New York) is the author of Jimbo in Purgatory and Jimbo’s Inferno.”
[There’s some of Panter’s work that I like and some that I don’t. Dal Tokyo, however, is one that I will definitely consider purchasing. I won’t pre-order, though.]
[NO IMAGE]
Love and Rockets: The Covers [Hardcover]
Los Bros Hernandez (Author)
- Hardcover: 200 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (November 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995987
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995983
[NO DESCRIPTION — but an easy decision: a must have!]
[NO IMAGE]
Weird Horrors & Daring Adventures [Hardcover]
Joe Kubert (Author), Bill Schelly (Editor)
- Hardcover: 240 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (September 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995812
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995815
[NO DESCRIPTION — but very tempting nonetheless!]
[NO IMAGE]
Messages in a Bottle: Comic Book Stories by B. Krigstein [Paperback]
B. (Bernard) Krigstein (Author), Greg Sadowski (Editor)
- Paperback: 272 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (March 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995804
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995808
[NO DESCRIPTION — doesn’t matter, I want it!]
[NO IMAGE]
Gahan Wilson Sunday Comics [Hardcover]
Gahan Wilson (Author)
- Hardcover: 184 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (February 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606996126
- ISBN-13: 978-1606996126
[NO DESCRIPTION — Do I need another collection of Wilson cartoons? Nope. Do I want another one? Yep. Will I be able to afford one? Time will tell.]
[NO IMAGE]
“‘Taint the Meat…It’s the Humanity!” and Other Stories [Hardcover]
Jack Davis (Author), Al Feldstein (Author), Gary Groth (Editor)
- Hardcover: 240 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (January 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995782
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995785
[NO DESCRIPTION — but probably part of Fantagraphics’ new EC Comics Library, and therefore a must have!]
“50 Girls 50” and Other Stories [Hardcover]
Frank Frazetta (Author), Al Williamson (Author), Gary Groth (Editor)
- Hardcover: 240 pages
- Publisher: Fantagraphics Books (January 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1606995774
- ISBN-13: 978-1606995778
[NO DESCRIPTION — again, if it’s part of the new EC Comics Library from Fantagraphics, it’s a must have!]
Notice that I haven’t linked to any of the books listed above at Amazon or any other bookseller. That’s deliberate on my part. I’m not trying to make money by enticing you to buy things via RCN. My sole interest is to promote the kind of books that I enjoy so that those books will sell more copies and (maybe) publishers will keep producing the kind of books that I enjoy.
Enter, Stage Right
Whew! Okay… at long last, I do believe that RCN is ready to rock! I have had to make a lot of changes behind the scenes, and some changes that everyone can see — “Suffusion” WordPress theme, get thee hence! — but everything I have done, I have done to ensure that RCN will remain on the Web for the long haul.
So now, on with the show…
Ragged Claws Network 
