Comics Great Neal Adams Dies At 80

Above, Neal Adams and yours truly at the 2012 Comikaze Expo in Los Angeles.

by Armand Vaquer

Very sad news!

It is the kind of news that forces one to shout, "Aw, f*ck!"

Comic book artist great Neal Adams has passed away at age 80. He was the man who created the definitive Bronze Age Batman for DC Comics.

Don Glut posted the following on Facebook:

I just heard the sad news that artist Neal Adams -- who  back in the 1960s changed the look of comics -- has died at 80.  Neal illustrated one of my earliest professional stories, "Goddess from the Sea," in VAMPIRELLA #1. What a thrill it was for novice me to open that magazine and find that Neal had done the art for one of  my stories - and made it so much better than it actually was. And I'm so glad that last year -- finally --  in his Crusty Bunkers comic book shop right here in Burbank, CA, he autographed my original copy of that issue.

He also posted:

FYI, I just received this email message from Jim Steranko: Yeah, I was the first that Chris Adams called with the bad news. No prolonged suffering; he died in his sleep about 2-3 in the morning. Don't believe I can accept it—just cannot imagine the Comix World without Neal. At last weekend's show, a couple fanboys mentioned stories about he and I being adversaries—completely fabricated for PR hacking. Even though we were both hard-headed, opinionated SOBs, we NEVER had a negative word between us. Never!!! And I attributed that mostly to Neal!"

I was privileged to meet Neal Adams at the 2012 Comikaze Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center.  

I heard he was in ill health in recent months, but this was totally unexpected, at least to me. This is a big loss for comic book fans.

My sincerest condolences to his family and friends. 

Happy 80th Birthday Neal Adams!

Above, Neal Adams and yours truly at the 2012 Comikaze Expo in Los Angeles.

by Armand Vaquer

Neal Adams, the comic book artist who many (including me) consider to be the definitive Batman artist, turned 80 today.

Adams recently was released from the hospital after a bout with sepsis. Thankfully, he overcame it and is enjoying his birthday.

It is hard to believe Neal Adams is 80. Then again, it is also hard to believe that I'm 67. But, there you go.

I became aware of Adams's work around 1967 when he started drawing covers for DC's Superman Family of comic books. Then, he started doing some Batman/Superman stories in World's Finest Comics.

Not long after that, he started illustrating stories in Batman and Detective Comics. And, around about that time, he took over the illustrating chores for the Green Lantern/Green Arrow series of stories in the Green Lantern comic book. Adams also illustrated Deadman stories, some included Batman. Those were great reads.

I got to meet Adams at the 2012 Comikaze Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I was there as a panelist on Godzilla.

Adams is still very much artistically active and appears at numerous comic book and science-fiction conventions around the country.

A big Happy Birthday to Neal Adams!

Legal Steps To Prevent Al Platino Superman-JFK Art Auction Initiated

by Armand Vaquer

Above, artist Al Plastino with the 'splash page' of the artwork in contention.  Photo: Facebook.

It was good news that Heritage Auctions pulled the Al Plastino original artwork of "Superman's Mission For President Kennedy" and will investigate how it ended up in private hands instead of being at the John F. Kennedy Library, where it was intended.

But this is just a temporary withdrawal. However, steps are being taken to keep the artwork from going on the auction block permanently.

According to the New York Post:

But advocates for comic book artists say that since the art was never given to the museum, Plastino remains the rightful owner. Comic book publishers, they claim, only buy the publishing rights to an artist’s work, not the work itself. Publishers generally dispute this, and it’s an issue that’s been debated for decades. 

“He never gave up ownership of the art because DC never purchased it from him or paid sales tax,” asserted Kris Adams Stone, daughter of comic book legend Neal Adams. She added that legal papers are being prepared to halt the auction for good.

To read the full story, go here.

Canadian Superman Stamps

by Armand Vaquer

The Canada Post is issuing a run of Superman postage stamps in commemoration of the Man of Steel's 75th anniversary. The stamps depict the evolution of Superman through the years.

 The reason Canada has gotten involved is that Superman co-creator Joseph Shuster was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His Superman artwork is represented in the stamps.

 

Other artists' work that are represented include Wayne Boring, Dick Giordano, Neal Adams, Kenneth Rocafort and Jim Lee.

I do have one gripe about these stamps. The work of definitive Silver Age Superman artist, Curt Swan is not represented in this collection. That, to me, is a major omission on the part of the Canadian post office.

At least Swan's work was represented in a stamp in the United States when the U.S. Postal Service issued some DC Comics super-hero stamps in 2006 (left).

To order Superman stamps from Canada Post, go here.

Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo 2013

by Armand Vaquer

A hair under a year from now, Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo will return to the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Next year's show will take place on November 1-3, 2013.

Above, comic book great Neal Adams and Armand at the 2012 show.

This year's show was a lot of fun and I highly recommend it.  It has everything: comics, anime, science-fiction, horror, fantasy, celebrities, writers, artists and more.

For more information on Comikaze Expo, go here.

Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo 2012 Report

by Armand Vaquer



Above, it was nice to see Wonder Woman (Kit Quinn) was able to attend Comikaze Expo.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.


Comikaze Expo was one big impressive show!  I mean, it was HUGE!

I just returned home from Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center where I participated in a panel on Japanese giant monsters and robots.  The panel also focused on Legendary Pictures' Pacific Rim (scheduled to hit theaters next July) and Godzilla (scheduled to hit theaters on May 16, 2014).

We had a full house in the room where the panel was held.

Above, Tom Franck, Jessica Tseang and Armand before the panel discussion started.



I thoroughly enjoyed the discussion.  It was probably one of the most enjoyable panels I've served on.  It was moderated by Jessica Tseang and, besides myself, included Tom Franck, who has the largest Japanese robot collection in the United States.



Above, the legendary Batman, Deadman and Green Lantern/Green Arrow artist Neal Adams and Armand.





Above, Adam "Batman" West.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.



The show itself had many celebrities including Adam West, Burt Ward and the best Catwoman of them all, Julie Newmar of the Batman television show of the 1960s.

There were comic book artists and writers galore in attendance.  I managed to get photographed with the man whose Batman artwork defined the Bronze Age Batman, Neal Adams.

I also managed to do some networking in relation to The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan (I also sold eight of them following the panel).  I met artist John Fasano and swapped a travel guide for one of his Godzilla prints.

It was a great show (the last day is tomorrow, so I recommend going) and many thanks to Jessica Tseang for making the panel a fun one!

Since a picture is "worth a thousand words," here's a few more of Stan Lee's Comikaze Expo:




Above, Comikaze Expo had lots of comic books for sale.





Above, the booth where official Comikaze Expo goods can be purchased. 





Above, the main hall.





Above, as the banners say, super-hero stuff can be bought.