I still have to read your Avengers review (after I see it), but I guess that'll be the end for a while. Sorry to see you go!
Jack Kirby was the greatest storryteller and cartoonist ever in comics. My favorite was FF, followed by Thor. I could never stand the Fourth World stuff, especially after Mike Dest-Royer made them look so unappealling. A d no matter how great the stories and concepts were, I just could not get past the clumsy inelegant words, including the awkward bolding and Royers ugly display lettering.
I would LOVE someone to give Stan Lee pencil copies of 4th World stories and get him to dialogue them. Then give them to Rude or Ordway or ME to ink!
Great job, Robby! I'm not sure I learned anything I didn't already know but I enjoyed the ride tremendously.
And I can't think of anything Jack would have considered more disrespectful to his work than having it redialogued by someone else (Stan, especially) or reinked to remove the inker he chose.
Thanks Mark! But remember I didn't promise to TEACH you anything, just to SHOW you something new. And I'm pretty sure you never saw the "Zap Out" sequence before. Also I was thinking of you when I put those glasses on Johnny.
PS I don't agree with Odkin's comment either. I loved the stories as they were. They are very special to me.
Robby, while I'm sad to see this is the last issue, I am damn grateful and appreciative for the 600 Issues you've given us. Your work and efforts have not gone unappreciated, and it means a lot. Thank you for all of it! As for the guy who thinks he should be given Kirby work to ink, the less said the better!
That was a grand exit, Robby. Thanks for all 600 issues. I'm sure I'll revisit them often. Your story of meeting Jack Kirby was very similar to my own experience. We were lucky to meet him in days when artists at conventions were so much more approachable and accessible than they are today.
My tale of meeting Jack is exactly the same, except mine occurred n Atlanta, in 1999. Jack strolled along leisurely, as we "disciples," all 15 or so of us, hung on his every word.
Great article. I was also at that Manhattan convention in the 1970's. (I can't recall the hotel either, but it was in mid-town somewhere). I brush with Kirby came when I walked by an elevator bank and he was standing there alone. Fans were asking him to sign their comics - but they were any old comics they happened to have, just to get his autograph. I actually had just traded with a friend for a copy of Forever People # 2, and I shyly asked Jack to sign it. He smiled at finally being given one of his own comics to sign, and autographed the first page, right above the legal boilerplate and mailing info. I wish I still had that comic - lost when my Mom fulfilled her destiny, when I was distracted from comics in high school upon discovering girls (a discovery I'm not given enough credit for in the scientific literature, but that's for another time).
Anyway - I've greatly enjoyed your site over the years and have learned a great deal from you. I wish you success in whatever you devote yourself to.
Here's my story of meeting Jack Kirby. In the mid 1970s there was a comics convention held in Bal Harbour Florida. Jack and Neal Adams were the big guests. My friend and I thought Neal would be more approachable, so we took an ice cream cake to the hotel coffeeshop, and went to the housephone and called Neal's room. We invited him to come down for coffee and cake. "Sure," he said, "and do you mind if I bring Jack Kirby?"
I know it offends Kirby purists to propose re-dialoguing and re-inking the 4th World stories. But Kirby was so hell-bent on independence and control (after 10 years of Stan's overwhelming presence) that I think he caused his own work to suffer just to prove he could do it all. He was a genius penciller and storyteller. It takes NOTHING away from him to say that bad inking and bad dialoguing harmed his work. If Michaelangelo had decided to take up carpentry and frame his own paintings, but he was BAD at it, it would take nothing away from his REAL art to frame it properly and make it look as good as it should.
Some comments -- I made the corrections regarding Thor and spelling "privileges." That was a typo. I am not offended by people pointing out such things, and I am always happy to make factual corrections. I want everything to be totally accurate.
On Kirby -- I think we can all come up with any number of "preferred" penciler/inker combinations. But we can't make them happen. We have to accept the work as it is.
Stan did good dialog, but did not plot the stories. Kirby was the idea factory. Can anyone name a successful character Stan created after Jack left Marvel?
It's fitting that, for my last issue, someone commented, "Sometimes you attach a significance to things that just isn't there."
This was so funny to me! This blog is all about "attaching significance to things" that most people do not see.
Most people think comic books are the height of stupidity. I did 600 issues of a blog on a subject most people consider to be a waste of time.
But I had a ball doing it, and it gets about 2,000 visitors every day. It's a monument to "attaching significance," as I see it, and one I'm proud of.
Just a slight correction to Part 1 - In The Beginning. Leo Gorcey was not the leader of "The Dead End Kids" in the film "Dead End." Gorcey played Spit. The leader of the gang was Tommy Gordon, played by Billy Hallop. Billy Hallop did not go on to make the Bowery Boys films or the further incarnations of those gang films. Leo Gorcey became the leader of the gang in those films.
The last thing the Fourth World needed was to have Stan Lee contribute to any of the writing. Stan's overwritten and faux emotional drivel was nerve wracking. Kirby's writing was uneven, but often very very good. Kirby aside, the idea that SL is entitled to horn in on anyone's writing is offensive. The best fiction Stan ever wrote was the self promoting drivel he put out for so many years in the sixties.
Thanks Four The Fantastic ride in the Möbius chair with Jack! And for the many, many wonderful issues over the years. Someday I need to interrogate my nephew about his encounters with Jack. He grew up working for Jeffrey's Comics in Torrance, CA and has alluded many times to multiple long visits from Jack (and Roz too!) at the store over many years back in the 80's. Just hanging out discussing comics and the golden age! Anyway much thanks and well wishes from a long time reader, first time commenter.
I'm sorry to have to comment as a lousy Anonymous, but Robby Reed's work demands recognition! It goes without saying that this is among the finest blogs ever to see publication, but the Kirby history takes the cake! This is the kind of passion that represents the BEST in comic book fans-- whatever the depths of our criticisms, the world can take this as evidence that we have as much capacity for APPRECIATION!
Kirby was the greatest, and even those readers who don't know him are constantly bombarded by images inspired by his work. His contribution to comics is completely indelible.
Oh, and seeing Mr. Miracle zoom by actually did blow my mind! That's the kind of thing I'll be thinking of while we await future updates! Hey, I know you'll be back, Robbie. The greats never really disappear. ;)
Thanks, that was very nice, and I will be back. But probably not for a few years. Summer 2014 maybe. If we all live that long. Will my return blow your mind? All I can say for now is that it will involve a secret origin you just might find "amazing."
Maravilloso, fascinante! Gracias por haber permitido viajar en la Caja Madre. El primer comic que compré fue uno del Gran Jack Kirby y fue mágico, diferente algo dificil de transmitir porque tiene que ver con algo intransferible como la EMOCIÓN. Gracias por tantas emociones!!! Felicitaciones por los 600.
Wonderful, fascinating! Thank you for having allowed to travel in the mother box. The first comic I bought was one by the great Jack Kirby and it was magical, different something difficult to explain because it has to do with something non-transferable as emotion. Thank you for so many emotions! Congratulations on your 600th.
Attaching a significance that 'isn't there' isn't quite the same thing as attaching a significance that others 'do not see'. There's a fine but subtle distinction. You do tend to indulge in the former rather more than the latter.
Hey Robby Reed, I just found your site and love it. I was wondering how things are going for you lately. Your work is amazing. I hope this site exists for future generations to discover. I hope to one day have my kids ask me if I ever heard of dial b for blog.
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Hi, Robbie - great blog. Looking forward to it starting up again. On the subject of Kirby's "Fourth World" ... I always figured that people were talking about the Third World in the 1970s. The First World was NATO countries, the Second World was the Soviet Bloc and the Third World was the developing countries. So I figured that the term Fourth Word referred to the regions beyond the scope of Earth. Or then again, maybe some smart-alek production editor just stuck it on the covers because it sounded good ... Alan http://MarvelSilverAge.blogspot.co.uk/
Robby (K.K.), Thanks for creating one of the best comic book blogs in the history of the medium; I was never a fan of most of the King's DC work (his dialogue was just too melodramatic), but I liked Kamandi, probably because, as we were both young lads, I somewhat identified with him. My oldest brother sometimes brought home the occasional Fantastic Four Lee/Kirby reprints, and I thought (and still do) that they were terrific, so much so that I bought all of the Avengers, X-Men, and Fantastic Four (I prefer Marvel's super-groups to their solo heroes) early Essentials and still drag them out for an occasional re-reading, even though I'm primarily a Silver Age DC fan. Thanks again for your blog.
Robby, Is the archive of this blog up somewhere? I loved it all but the posts I really want to reread and be link to are your great history of Ira Schnapp. The blog had many other fun and memorable moments, that was just a standout . Hope all is well, Steven
36 comments:
I still have to read your Avengers review (after I see it), but I guess that'll be the end for a while. Sorry to see you go!
Jack Kirby was the greatest storryteller and cartoonist ever in comics. My favorite was FF, followed by Thor. I could never stand the Fourth World stuff, especially after Mike Dest-Royer made them look so unappealling. A d no matter how great the stories and concepts were, I just could not get past the clumsy inelegant words, including the awkward bolding and Royers ugly display lettering.
I would LOVE someone to give Stan Lee pencil copies of 4th World stories and get him to dialogue them. Then give them to Rude or Ordway or ME to ink!
Great job, Robby! I'm not sure I learned anything I didn't already know but I enjoyed the ride tremendously.
And I can't think of anything Jack would have considered more disrespectful to his work than having it redialogued by someone else (Stan, especially) or reinked to remove the inker he chose.
Thanks Mark! But remember I didn't promise to TEACH you anything, just to SHOW you something new. And I'm pretty sure you never saw the "Zap Out" sequence before. Also I was thinking of you when I put those glasses on Johnny.
PS I don't agree with Odkin's comment either. I loved the stories as they were. They are very special to me.
Robby, while I'm sad to see this is the last issue, I am damn grateful and appreciative for the 600 Issues you've given us. Your work and efforts have not gone unappreciated, and it means a lot. Thank you for all of it! As for the guy who thinks he should be given Kirby work to ink, the less said the better!
That was a grand exit, Robby. Thanks for all 600 issues. I'm sure I'll revisit them often.
Your story of meeting Jack Kirby was very similar to my own experience. We were lucky to meet him in days when artists at conventions were so much more approachable and accessible than they are today.
Beyond amazing.
My tale of meeting Jack is exactly the same, except mine occurred n Atlanta, in 1999. Jack strolled along leisurely, as we "disciples," all 15 or so of us, hung on his every word.
Thanks for all of your hard work!
Al Bigley
Great article. I was also at that Manhattan convention in the 1970's. (I can't recall the hotel either, but it was in mid-town somewhere). I brush with Kirby came when I walked by an elevator bank and he was standing there alone. Fans were asking him to sign their comics - but they were any old comics they happened to have, just to get his autograph. I actually had just traded with a friend for a copy of Forever People # 2, and I shyly asked Jack to sign it. He smiled at finally being given one of his own comics to sign, and autographed the first page, right above the legal boilerplate and mailing info. I wish I still had that comic - lost when my Mom fulfilled her destiny, when I was distracted from comics in high school upon discovering girls (a discovery I'm not given enough credit for in the scientific literature, but that's for another time).
Anyway - I've greatly enjoyed your site over the years and have learned a great deal from you. I wish you success in whatever you devote yourself to.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Physics Professor,
Jim Kakalios
Here's my story of meeting Jack Kirby. In the mid 1970s there was a comics convention held in Bal Harbour Florida. Jack and Neal Adams were the big guests. My friend and I thought Neal would be more approachable, so we took an ice cream cake to the hotel coffeeshop, and went to the housephone and called Neal's room. We invited him to come down for coffee and cake. "Sure," he said, "and do you mind if I bring Jack Kirby?"
that was consistently good Robby,thanks for all your work.
Unfortunately I never met jack Kirby but whenever I read of someone meeting him,I get a little emotional.
I have never been in awe of any celebrity or any person in my life,but Jack Kirby was such an influence in my world that I am in awe of him.
No one else in the history of comics will ever match the creativity or output or influence of such a massive talent.
I know it offends Kirby purists to propose re-dialoguing and re-inking the 4th World stories. But Kirby was so hell-bent on independence and control (after 10 years of Stan's overwhelming presence) that I think he caused his own work to suffer just to prove he could do it all. He was a genius penciller and storyteller. It takes NOTHING away from him to say that bad inking and bad dialoguing harmed his work. If Michaelangelo had decided to take up carpentry and frame his own paintings, but he was BAD at it, it would take nothing away from his REAL art to frame it properly and make it look as good as it should.
Thanks everyone!
Some comments -- I made the corrections regarding Thor and spelling "privileges." That was a typo. I am not offended by people pointing out such things, and I am always happy to make factual corrections. I want everything to be totally accurate.
On Kirby -- I think we can all come up with any number of "preferred" penciler/inker combinations. But we can't make them happen. We have to accept the work as it is.
Stan did good dialog, but did not plot the stories. Kirby was the idea factory. Can anyone name a successful character Stan created after Jack left Marvel?
It's fitting that, for my last issue, someone commented, "Sometimes you attach a significance to things that just isn't there."
This was so funny to me! This blog is all about "attaching significance to things" that most people do not see.
Most people think comic books are the height of stupidity. I did 600 issues of a blog on a subject most people consider to be a waste of time.
But I had a ball doing it, and it gets about 2,000 visitors every day. It's a monument to "attaching significance," as I see it, and one I'm proud of.
Just a slight correction to Part 1 - In The Beginning. Leo Gorcey was not the leader of "The Dead End Kids" in the film "Dead End." Gorcey played Spit. The leader of the gang was Tommy Gordon, played by Billy Hallop. Billy Hallop did not go on to make the Bowery Boys films or the further incarnations of those gang films. Leo Gorcey became the leader of the gang in those films.
Correction made! Thanks -- I was a fan of the latter series. I forgot they had different names.
The last thing the Fourth World needed was to have Stan Lee contribute to any of the writing.
Stan's overwritten and faux emotional drivel was nerve wracking. Kirby's writing was uneven, but often very very good.
Kirby aside, the idea that SL is entitled to horn in on anyone's writing is offensive. The best fiction Stan ever wrote was the self promoting drivel he put out for so many years in the sixties.
Wow Robby, this is great stuff. Thanks for this entertaining and heartfelt tribute to The King.
Thanks, and yes it was heartfelt. I love Kirby, and I tried to speak for those who feels the same.
What? Is this the last issue? But I just discovered this amazing site! :(
Thanks Four The Fantastic ride in the Möbius chair with Jack! And for the many, many wonderful issues over the years. Someday I need to interrogate my nephew about his encounters with Jack. He grew up working for Jeffrey's Comics in Torrance, CA and has alluded many times to multiple long visits from Jack (and Roz too!) at the store over many years back in the 80's. Just hanging out discussing comics and the golden age! Anyway much thanks and well wishes from a long time reader, first time commenter.
Thank you, and I'd love to hear your nephew's Jack stories one day.
I still dig Jack Kirby's comics! I got started with that in my childhood, and now I'm 48 years old... Can't wait to see what's next!
I'm sorry to have to comment as a lousy Anonymous, but Robby Reed's work demands recognition! It goes without saying that this is among the finest blogs ever to see publication, but the Kirby history takes the cake! This is the kind of passion that represents the BEST in comic book fans-- whatever the depths of our criticisms, the world can take this as evidence that we have as much capacity for APPRECIATION!
Kirby was the greatest, and even those readers who don't know him are constantly bombarded by images inspired by his work. His contribution to comics is completely indelible.
Oh, and seeing Mr. Miracle zoom by actually did blow my mind! That's the kind of thing I'll be thinking of while we await future updates! Hey, I know you'll be back, Robbie. The greats never really disappear. ;)
--Bombastic Ash
Thanks, that was very nice, and I will be back. But probably not for a few years. Summer 2014 maybe. If we all live that long. Will my return blow your mind? All I can say for now is that it will involve a secret origin you just might find "amazing."
Maravilloso, fascinante! Gracias por haber permitido viajar en la Caja Madre. El primer comic que compré fue uno del Gran Jack Kirby y fue mágico, diferente algo dificil de transmitir porque tiene que ver con algo intransferible como la EMOCIÓN. Gracias por tantas emociones!!! Felicitaciones por los 600.
Translation of the above:
Wonderful, fascinating! Thank you for having allowed to travel in the mother box. The first comic I bought was one by the great Jack Kirby and it was magical, different something difficult to explain because it has to do with something non-transferable as emotion. Thank you for so many emotions! Congratulations on your 600th.
I'm all choked up and I was never even a Kirby fan. What a great, moving tribute.
Thanks, I meant every word. Jack was truly THE KING.
lohstrohk@aol.com
Yeah Batman can beat spiderman!!
Attaching a significance that 'isn't there' isn't quite the same thing as attaching a significance that others 'do not see'. There's a fine but subtle distinction. You do tend to indulge in the former rather more than the latter.
Hey Robby Reed, I just found your site and love it. I was wondering how things are going for you lately. Your work is amazing. I hope this site exists for future generations to discover. I hope to one day have my kids ask me if I ever heard of dial b for blog.
DIAL B will return! Possibly in the summer of 2013, but maybe later. Don't know for sure yet.
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YEP, that’s right, there’s this little known website which shows you how to get to the top 10 of Google and other search engines guaranteed.
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Hi, Robbie - great blog. Looking forward to it starting up again.
On the subject of Kirby's "Fourth World" ... I always figured that people were talking about the Third World in the 1970s. The First World was NATO countries, the Second World was the Soviet Bloc and the Third World was the developing countries. So I figured that the term Fourth Word referred to the regions beyond the scope of Earth.
Or then again, maybe some smart-alek production editor just stuck it on the covers because it sounded good ...
Alan
http://MarvelSilverAge.blogspot.co.uk/
No, I wasn't talking about a significance that others don't see, I was referring to a significance that just isn't there. There's a difference.
Robby (K.K.), Thanks for creating one of the best comic book blogs in the history of the medium; I was never a fan of most of the King's DC work (his dialogue was just too melodramatic), but I liked Kamandi, probably because, as we were both young lads, I somewhat identified with him. My oldest brother sometimes brought home the occasional Fantastic Four Lee/Kirby reprints, and I thought (and still do) that they were terrific, so much so that I bought all of the Avengers, X-Men, and Fantastic Four (I prefer Marvel's super-groups to their solo heroes) early Essentials and still drag them out for an occasional re-reading, even though I'm primarily a Silver Age DC fan.
Thanks again for your blog.
Robby,
Is the archive of this blog up somewhere? I loved it all but the posts I really want to reread and be link to are your great history of Ira Schnapp. The blog had many other fun and memorable moments, that was just a standout .
Hope all is well,
Steven
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