From my collection, here’s another paperback with cover art by Frank Frazetta that I doubt many people have seen or remember:
Covers like that one show that even Frazetta, mighty Frazetta, didn’t only hit home runs when he was at bat.
Tag: Frank Frazetta
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.
Connections: Hal Foster vs. Frank Frazetta
Yesterday over at Golden Age Comic Book Stories, the intrepid Mr. Door Tree posted a beautiful collection of Tarzan dailies by Hal Foster. As I browsed through the images, one panel in particular leaped out at me…
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Compare those Tarzan dailies with Idyl, and I think you’ll be amazed at how much Jeffrey Jones in the 1970s styled his work in pen/brush and ink after the early comic-strip work of Hal Foster.
See also: Connections: Frazetta vs. Ferri
Connections: Frank Frazetta vs. Franck Biancarelli
Louise Simonson on Frank Frazetta, Jeffrey Jones, and photo reference…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=25tkCaVablg
Below is a partial transcript of the above clip, with bold added for emphasis:
“Well, when Jeff did work for Warren, I wasn’t there [working for Warren] yet. I was, uhm, working in advertising promotion and, for another publisher, a magazine publisher in the city [New York]. Uhm, I think during this time Jeff may have discovered using reference? And it made a huge difference in his work. I remember at one point he, he, it suddenly occurred to him… okay, all right, back in the olden days there was a story that Frank Frazetta said that he never used reference and anybody who used reference was cheating. So a generation of young artists grew up thinking using reference is bad and cheating and this is, I don’t know, I don’t know why Frank did that because I know he used reference, I know he did. [Laughter.] Uhm, anyway, so I guess at one point Jeff just cracked and started using reference and his work got, it took a huge leap forward, so I do remember that, and I believe that was, maybe some of that might have been during the Warren period. Uhm, he just did a few things for Warren. He didn’t do that much.”
— Louise Simonson, Better Things Panel, San Diego Comic Con 2011
“My work looks the way it looks because I shoot reference.
I need that information, then I can play with it.” — Jeffrey Jones, in conversation with George Pratt
RELATED COMMENT:
BONUS SCAN:
From my very own library of brittle old paperbacks:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
To view all of the Zebra/Kensington editions of Robert E. Howard’s books with Jones covers that I’ve posted so far, click here.
Look Here, Read: “William Holden,” with art by Williamson and Frazetta
From Movie Love #8 (April 1951), here’s “William Holden,” with pencils by Al Williamson and inks by Frank Frazetta:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Look Here, Read: Two PSAs from FAMOUS FUNNIES, with art by Frank Frazetta
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Heads Up: THE FRAZETTA SKETCHBOOK (2012)
Coming in 2012 from Vanguard Productions, The Frazetta Sketchbook by Frank Frazetta and J. David Spurlock is an “all-new art collection” that was planned shortly before the Frazetta died on 10 May 2010. According to the publisher, the book “is brimming with rare and previously unpublished drawings and painting preliminaries of the subjects Frazetta is best remembered for including barbarians, wild beasts, Tarzan, buxom beauties, monsters and Conan.”
If all goes as planned, The Frazetta Sketchbook will be published in hardcover in August 2012 (ISBN-10: 1-934331-57-0, ISBN-13: 9781934331576), with a softcover edition scheduled for September 2012 (ISBN-10: 1-934331-56-2, ISBN-13: 9781934331569). Although the hardcover edition will have six more pages than the softcover (134 pages vs. 128 pages), both editions, says the publisher, will “feature big, 8.5″ x 11″ lavish illustrated, full-color pages with text.”
Click here for the official announcement.
Heads Up: FRAZETTA – FUNNY STUFF, edited and designed by Craig Yoe
Coming in March 2012 from IDW:
Here’s the publisher’s description of the book, as it appears in the Amazon catalogue:
Frank Frazetta! He’s been rightfully called “The Grand Master of Fantasy Art”! But, it’s little known that Frazetta also conquered other worlds in the Golden Age of Comics, as shown in his Donald Duck-ish funny animal and hilarious hillbilly comic book stories. Even those aware of this wonderful Frazetta art don’t know the extent – this book is a whopping 256, large-format pages! Did we mention ferocious, terrifying wolves and swampland creatures in the plethora of animal stories illustrations as only Frazetta could draw them? There’s also lions and tigers and bears – oh my! – before Frazetta’s famous paintings captured the same subjects. But wait, there’s more! You’ll see the roots of the Frazetta Girl in the sexy Kathy teenage girl adventures and the hot Daisy Mae-look-alike, Clarabelle, in the hillbilly hi-jinks stories of her beau, Looey Lazybones (Holy Li’l Abner!). The introduction is by famed cartoon director Ralph Bakshi, who closely worked with Frazetta when they co-produced the animated feature film, Fire and Ice. Bakshi shares rare insights, anecdotes, photos, and Frazetta drawings, and created a special painting of Frazetta and himself as funny animals for this beautiful hardcover, full-color coffee table book! Frazetta – Funny Stuff is edited and designed by Eisner award-winner Craig Yoe.
The last substantial collection of Frazetta’s “funny animal” work was published by Kitchen Sink two decades ago under the title Small Wonders: The Funny Animal Art of Frank Frazetta, with an introduction by William Stout. You can view selections from Small Wonders courtesy of Clarke Snyder’s Inspiration Grab-Bag, in a post titled Frank Frazetta (Fritz) Funny Animal Comics-1940’s. However, since Small Wonders is only 80 pages in length — apparently it was book one of a two volume set, the second volume of which was never published — while Frazetta – Funny Stuff is, according to the publisher, “a whopping 256, large-format pages,” I think I can say with some certainty that even Frazetta fans who already own Small Wonders are going to want to add Frazetta – Funny Stuff to their collections.
Small Wonders, btw, had a terrific, art-centric cover that I like much better than the cover of the new collection, which is okay but which I would characterize as more design-centric; need I add that, where comics reprints and art books are concerned, I prefer art-centric covers:
The only down side of that cover is that the artwork is not by Frazetta but rather is a tribute to Frazetta’s funny animal comics by William Stout.
“I’m just a straight, ordinary guy. I truly wish the world was full of sweetness, flowers and happiness. But it’s not, and I do reveal that dark side in some of my work. I am known for my violent stuff. But the funny stuff is the real me.” —Frank Frazetta
BONUS LINKS:
Cartoon SNAP > More Frank Frazetta Funny Animal Comics – Bruno the Bear 1949, Frank Frazetta Funny Animals: Daffy and Dilly in “All At Sea” – Sept 1949, Frazetta Funny Animal Comic Book Scans from 1948: Dodger the Squirrel – Coo Coo Comics – all in colour.
ComiCrazys > Barney Rooster > Frank Frazetta – in black and white.
Shane Glines’ Cartoon Retro > Frank Frazetta: Barney Rooster, Frank Frazetta: Bruno, Frank Frazetta: Dodger, Frank Frazetta: Hucky Duck – all in colour.
TOTALLY OFF-TOPIC BONUS LINK:
Shane Glines’ Cartoon Retro > Frazetta as Model – now that is a great find!
Look Here, Read: “Squeeze Play,” with art by Frank Frazetta
From a 1995 reprint of Shock SuspenStories #13, here’s “Squeeze Play,” with viciously vivacious art by the fabulous Frank Frazetta:
[CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE]
Ragged Claws Network 