You're in for a treat in about a month. Not that there won't be good things happening in this space until then, of course. But a month from now we'll get a look at my first review featuring the work of Reed Crandall. Crandall's an artist with whose name I've long been familiar, but my lack of experience with comics from the 1950s-'60s that lay outside the Marvel and DC Universes hampered my full appreciation for the man and his work. That was all somewhat rectified back in July when I purchased a copy of Fantagraphics Books phenomenal reprint of the
Blazing Combat series. To say my eyes about bugged out of my head would be an understatement.
What it really did was spur me to dig a little deeper into Crandall's career. The guy was all over cool characters, from Flash Gordon to John Carter to Blackhawk. Mix in some work at EC and Warren Publishing, and the amount of content one could attempt to obtain seems like a mountain. Nice problem to have, and I hope the images I've chosen today truly celebrate the man's work. As always, my gratitude to the folks around the World Wide Web who retain ownership of these images, yet share them with the masses.
Ah Doug, an art lover can always count on you to treat us to some great visuals from some great illustrators. Reed Crandall today; and a treat indeed. Like you , my exposure to his work has been limited. But wow, such finesse! Such composition! Such beautiful pen work!
ReplyDeleteAnd a big bonus: Crandall's "Spirit" cover- so dramatic. Eisner would approve. Incidentally, that illustration (and others as well) bring to mind the work of Brian Bolland. Crandall was an influence, perhaps?
I love the comparison to Bolland on that piece, Red!
DeleteDoug
Crandall (along with Eisner, Lou Fine and a few others) was really one of the greatest artists from what we call the Golden Age. As Red noted, his composition was exemplary and the finished work always looked so elegant.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to see lots more of Crandall's work, I'd suggest visiting the Digital Comics Museum, and searching for the various titles to which Crandall contributed (Smash Comics, Police Comics, Military Comics, Doll Man, etc.). Some of the contributors also put together special collections of comics featuring specific characters or creators, so there's also a collection of Crandall's Firebrand stories from Police Comics. Great stuff - even if it's not black and white.
Thanks for sharing that information, and of course the links, Edo. That's a great companion to this post, perpetually.
DeleteDoug
Thanks much for sharing this Doug! Truly!
ReplyDeleteI started reading Marvel 50 years ago and stopped about 45 years ago, in part b/c the art seemed to be developing a sameness to it. (50 years ago: Steranko, Romita, Colan, Kirby, JBuscema...)
Enter Steranko's History of Comics Vol # 1 and #2 around 1975 when I was letting go of modern comics. Vol 2 introduced us to the Quality / Eisner Shop: Cole, Crandall, Fine, Eisner, et al. and another pool of genius artists. (There was no internet in the mid-70s... Steranko delivered the goods though to us hungry about the history of comics.)
I fell in love with Crandall's work and Blackhawk #47 is front and center on display in my household. And, the favorite part of my collection are the Quality Comics notably Crandall on Military, Modern, and Blackhawk.
I also picked up some of Crandall's works in Treasure Chest Comics which ran for a number of decades and are still reasonably priced.
In any case, Doug, I really do not know much about the man, or the other Quality artists. (I should say I have long forgotten what I read 40 years ago from Steranko.)
I truly look forward to the coming month and your observations. I'm excited! Thanks for that! I owe you a beverage of your choice at C2E2 March 2020! Cheers, Joe
And did anyone else always feel that Midnight was a mirror image of The Spirit? LOL!
ReplyDelete