Todd Klein's Blog, page 126

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN #6

Image © DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison, art by Liam Sharp,
colors by Steve Oliff, letters by Steve Wands

Despite the cover image, Hal Jordan is on Rann not as that world’s Green Lantern, but as Parallax, a new recruit of the Blackstars, as organized by Controller Mu of Maltus. Mu has kidnapped the child of Adam and Alanna, and Adam himself is a prisoner who Hal is supposed to kill to prove his loyalty to the Blackstars. Of course we also know that Hal has been sent by the Guardians of the Universe to infiltrate the Blackstars and neutralize their universe-destroying weapon, the Ultimate Bomb. As Mu and his Blackstars control Rann, how can Hal possibly achieve any of his goals without hurting his friends?

With great writing and art, this title is still making me happy. Recommended.

And Then I Read: TOLKIEN, MAKER OF MIDDLE EARTH by Catherine McIlwaine

A few weeks ago Ellen and I attended the fabulous Tolkien exhibition at the Morgan Library in New York City, and I bought this book about it. I’ve just finished reading and enjoying it. First off, if you can get to the exhibit yourself, do so! If you can’t, everything I saw in person is here as well as many other things of great interest to Tolkien fans.

One surprising exhibit was this letter written by Tolkien’s mother, and I learned that she sparked his interest in calligraphy. I can see why. I’ve never seen any style of writing quite like this, beautiful work. The book is full of personal letters by and to Tolkien, including some unexpected writers like Joni Mitchell, President Lyndon Johnson’s daughter and a very young Terry Pratchett. The correspondence relating to his work is equally interesting, like a letter to artist Pauline Baynes, who illustrated Tolkien’s “Farmer Giles of Ham.”

There’s lots of Tolkien’s own art here I’ve never seen like this line-drawing version of Hobbiton, just as interesting to me as the watercolor version he did for the book. Art intended for publication is only a small part of what’s here, many pieces were done for his own pleasure or to help him visualize a scene he was writing. Then there are pieces that are abstract or highly stylized, quite beautiful. I was amused to read that Tolkien thought his own art was quite poor, and though he did well with natural scenes, he could never draw people. I have the same problem!

Tolkien’s calligraphy is something I have loved and studied since first finding his work, and there’s lots of it here, often pieces that are a combination of English and his own unique languages, like this one about Treebeard, an early version of the character who was going to be on the side of Sauron!

Perhaps my favorite example of his calligraphy is this practice page for the inscription inside the One Ring, in red and black ink, using a wide range of styles for Tolkien’s own languages. It just makes me want to try some, as I did in my youth! And then there are the Tolkien maps, not only the finished ones, but lots of earlier versions I’d never seen. As he explained, Tolkien first created the languages of his imaginary world, then the maps and the stories. I love a book with a good map, and Tolkien’s are the best.

I could go on, but there’s nothing else I need to say other than, an amazing book about an exhibition I will always remember with pleasure. It get’s my highest recommendation.

And Then I Read: HEX WIVES #1

Image © Ben Blacker and DC Comics. Written by Ben Blacker, art by Mirka Andolfo, colors by Marissa Louise, letters by Josh Reed, cover by Joëlle Jones.

Through the last few hundred years a coven of witches has been under attack from a group of men called The Architects. We see them first in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692 during the famous witch trials, where the men are trying to kill the witches, who fight back with various amazing black magic powers, but are defeated and die. They keep being reborn in later decades into the 20th century, when one of the current Architects has a new idea. We then switch to a modern suburban development where the women we know are the witches are neighbors, but all seem unaware of their heritage and history. Instead, they act like dutiful wives obeying their husbands in every way, until arcane powers begin to manifest in one of them.

The issue is mostly setup, and I will see where it goes from here. The inspiration that might come to mind is the TV show “Bewitched,” but a closer model would be Fritz Leiber’s horror novel “Conjure Wife.” Look up a description of that to see what I mean. One thing that seems to be missing is a reason for the men to be so opposed to the witches. The Salem connection implies a religious reason, but that’s avoided. I will have to see what happens next to decide whether I want to keep on with the series. It has its moments.

Mildly recommended.

Rereading: LUCKY STARR BOOK 2 by Isaac Asimov

Cover art © Romas

My favorite science fiction novels for younger readers were the ones by Robert Heinlein, but his friend and fellow writer Isaac Asimov also wrote some that I thought were pretty good when I read them as a child. I didn’t know they were by Asimov until later, as he wrote them under the pen name Paul French. There were six short novels in all, this book has the middle two. I remembered some things from the Venus one, but nothing from the Mercury one, so I may never have read it before.

These are essentially mystery and action/adventure stories in the tradition of the science fiction pulp magazines. The mysteries are clever and the action is entertaining, but the characters are far from complex, more caricatures than anything. David “Lucky” Starr is the intrepid hero with a clever mind for solving mysteries, and his sidekick John Bigman Jones is there for comic relief, fight backup and to ask the Dr. Watson questions. The science they were based on was accurate for the time, but the Venus one in particular—of an ocean world—has been completely ruled out by later discoveries. There are less obvious science flaws in the Mercury story.

I enjoyed reading them, but they do not hold up all that well to my adult ideas about good writing. I may reread the others at some point, but it won’t be a high priority.

Mildly recommended.

THE DANNY CRESPI FILES Part 18

These and all other images © Marvel.

Continuing my look through a set of photocopied cover lettering and related material from the files of Marvel letterer Danny Crespi compiled by his friend, work-mate and fellow letterer Phil Felix. This time covering pages 69 to 72. Page 69, above has only two blurbs. I can’t find a source for the first one.

The second is on the cover of MARVEL FEATURE #5 cover-dated July 1976. Very effective display lettering from Danny.

Page 70, above has three blurbs, the center two are a single one.

The top blurb was used on the final page of AMAZING ADVENTURES #36 dated May 1976 as a next issue teaser.

The second blurb was a next issue teaser on the last page of OMEGA THE UNKNOWN #2 dated May 1976. Danny was not the letterer of the rest of these pages, so most likely the next issue teasers were not written yet when the rest of the pages were lettered, leaving them to be done by Danny in the Marvel production department.

The last blurb was on the cover of TOMB OF DRACULA #44 also dated May 1976.

Page 71 is all by Danny except “Blasted” which is by Gaspar Saladino, also a frequent cover-letterer at the time for both Marvel and DC.

The top blurb is on the cover of MAN-THING #18 dated June 1975. I really like the banner caption on this one.

The next blurb is from IRON MAN #122 dated May 1979. These very regular open block letters may have been pasted together from an alphabet of such letters made by Danny. If so, someone else in Marvel’s production department would have done that.

I haven’t found the exact lettering for the third blurb, but DEFENDERS #13 has the same text in a different shape. The one on the page above may be an earlier version that was redone to fit the space better.

Here’s the one by Gaspar on CAPTAIN AMERICA #258 dated June 1981, and the letters have an added black caption box behind them. Not sure why, but I don’t like the look of this as much as the original. Maybe it was felt it would be hard to read without it.

The blurb on AVENGERS #193 dated March 1980 could again be pasted together block letters previously done by Danny.

The last blurb ran at the top of the first page on many early issues of Marvel’s STAR WARS comic. It was probably lettered by Danny for issue #1, but the earliest image I can find is this page of original art from issue #7, Jan. 1978.

Page 72 of the Crespi Files has five by Danny Crespi, four by Gaspar Saladino and one I’m not sure of.

The first blurb by Danny is from THE MIGHTY MARVEL WESTERN #41 dated Sept. 1975. Nice coloring touch on “Sunset.”

I can’t find the second blurb by Danny, but this comic, MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #5 dated Sept. 1974, is the only one that seems to have the right combination of characters, so I’m guessing that blurb appeared as a next issue teaser on issue #4. I can’t find an image of that.

The blurb in the banner by Gaspar is from JUNGLE ACTION #20 dated March 1976. The black banner works better this time.

The word balloon by Danny is from AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #182 dated July 1978. That nearly rectangular balloon shape is reminiscent of early Marvel cover-letterer Artie Simek.

I’m not sure who lettered “To Tame a Titan!” but I think it might be by Jim Novak, and it’s on the cover of MARVEL TRIPLE ACTION #42 dated June 1978.

“Big Blazing Battle Ish” is by Gaspar and it’s on MARVEL CHILLERS #5 dated June 1976.

Gaspar also lettered this handsome caption for THOR #246 dated April 1976. Even the black caption box can’t kill that cool flaming lettering.

I can’t find “This City Afire!” by Danny on a cover, but I think it was created for this cover, MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #17 dated July 1976, as that’s the title of the story, and then replaced with a different caption. Or possibly it was a next issue teaser at the end of issue #16.

This blurb is by Gaspar on CONAN THE BARBARIAN #54 dated Sept. 1975. It loses impact as reverse lettering on black for the top line, but I think that allows it to fit in the space better.

FInally we have “Castle Frankenstein” in a nice torn paper caption box by Gaspar on FRANKENSTEIN #17 dated July 1975. Whew, a lot of them on page 72!

More of these when I have time.

And Then I Read: THE DREAMING #7

Image © DC Comics. Written by Simon Spurrier, art by Abigail Larson, colors by Quinton Winter, letters by Simon Bowland, cover by Jae Lee & June Chung

Quite a change of pace this issue with a new storyline, setting and mostly new or long-unseen characters. We first see Rose Walker (last appearance in the original series as far as I know) visiting her mother in the hospital where she’s dying and unconscious. In a nearby room is Lucien (I think) barely conscious, apparently brought to the hospital by Rose. Rose tells the story of her daughter Ivy’s romance with Dream (Daniel), an odd love story with an appearance by Desire. It’s an intriguing tale that gives us more information about what Dream has been up to and where.

The art by Abigail Larson is not so appealing to me, though it does have a romance/fashion model vibe that fits the storyline. I’m not sure if she is the new regular artist or not. The writing by Simon Spurrier is fine, though, and keeps me satisfied with the series.

I like the lettering by Simon Bowland in this series, but was a little disappointed in his font choice for Desire, as it’s so different from what did originally. I’m sure he had his reasons.

Recommended.

And Then I Read: DETECTIVE COMICS #1000

Image © DC Comics

To put this in perspective, the first issue of DETECTIVE I owned was #279, May 1960. When I started working at DC Comics, the first issue I saw in the production department was probably #472, Sept. 1977. The first one that had a story I lettered was #483, April-May 1979, “The Curse of Crime Alley” by Denny O’Neil, Don Newton and Dan Adkins.

This 96-pager has a wide variety of material and creators, eleven stories and several pinups. I was happy to be asked to letter the story by Kevin Smith, Jim Lee and Scott Williams. It was also great to see one written by Denny O’Neil with art by Steve Epting.

There’s no attempt to tie things together, it’s an anthology, though the final story by Peter Tomasi and Doug Mahnke will continue in the next issue, so I guess that one is in continuity. Looks cool, a new Gotham Knight that seems to be an actual knight.

The opening story by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo and Jonathan Glapion is a fun idea: Batman is led on a very long clue chase that ends at a sort of secret society for detectives. The Kevin Smith story focuses on the creation and special nature of Batman’s chest symbol. Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen’s funny entry is about the worst henchman in Gotham. Warren Ellis and Becky Cloonan tell a tale of a violent criminal. Denny O’Neil brings us back to Crime Alley one more time. Christopher Priest and Neal Adams’ story involves Ras’ Al Ghul. Bryan Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev relate a meeting between a very old Penguin and Bruce Wayne. Geoff Johns and Kelley Jones show us a deadly birthday party. James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez-Bueno and Raul Fernandez have Bruce and Alfred discussing whether to take Dick Grayson into the crime-fighting life (excellent art on this), and Tom King, Tony S. Daniel and Joëlle Jones present a meeting of the entire Bat family.

Fun stuff, and I enjoyed reading it. Recommended.

Incoming: KINGDOM COME new Trade Paperback

Image © DC Comics

I’ve just received copies of this new version of the 1996 award-winning series I lettered. It’s 392 pages, and seems to include all the extras from all the previous versions including the 20th Anniversary edition. Not bad for $19.99. I’m a little sad that they redid all the design work and eliminated nearly all the uses of the Kingdom Come font that Alex and I created for the original run, replacing it with the small bland one seen on the cover, but on the other hand, that does leave lots more room for art in some cases, so not such a bad thing. Amazon shows it on sale May 7, comics retailers may well have it sooner, but I can’t find a release date. Coming soon, anyway.

J.R.R. TOLKIEN and I

Dust jacket art by Tolkien.

I had a good friend in grade school, Mrs. Grady, the school librarian, who knew my interests. One day—I don’t recall the year, but around 1963—she handed me a copy of this book and said she thought I’d enjoy it. I not only enjoyed it, it was smitten! I loved everything about it, from the cover and endpaper maps with their fascinating calligraphy to the story, the characters, the illustrations, and above all, the entire complex world created by the author. Yes, there were some things I’d found in other fantasy works, but much of it was clearly new creation.

Of course I wanted to read more by Tolkien, and Mrs. Grady told me that a sequel of sorts, but a much longer book in three volumes, had come out in hardcover, but she had not read it or seen it yet.

One day in the spring of 1965, in a local bookshop, I found this, the first volume of The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien’s sequel to “The Hobbit.” I bought it eagerly and read it as fast as I could. I can remember going for a drive with my family when I should have been looking at the sights, but instead my attention was deep in the Mines of Moria as Gandalf made a stand against the Balrog. I was devastated by his fall, he was my favorite Tolkien character.

I desperately wanted to find out what happened next, but I had heard from Mrs. Grady that the Ace paperback edition I had bought the first part of was unauthorized and that Tolkien himself was upset by the publication. There was a new paperback edition in the works from Ballantine Books that would be authorized by him, and would have corrections and new material in it. Regretfully, I decided not to buy the other Ace volumes. In our local bookstore, though, I saw this: a hardcover edition of the second volume, the twelfth printing, but I didn’t care about that. I did love the fact that there was a large fold-out map in the back, I wanted it very badly! I asked my parents if they would buy the book for me as an eighth grade graduation present, and they agreed. I received it in June, 1965. On the first page, my mom wrote, “To Todd: May you get as many pleasures and rewards from life as you do from books. With love, Mother and Dad.”

I can’t tell you how grateful I was, and that inscription has stayed in my thoughts ever since. And I was so thrilled to learn the true fate of Gandalf in this volume, even though it was becoming a very dark story. A matching hardcover of the third volume—with another fold-out map AND information on the languages and letters Tolkien had created—was bought with my own money made from mowing lawns later that year, and I’ve read and reread “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” ever since, not to mention everything else by Tolkien I could find. I did eventually get the updated Ballantine paperbacks, but a larger-size trade paperback edition of the three books in a boxed set.

A few years later, maybe 1967, my friend Tim and his family spent the summer in England, including several weeks in Oxford. Tim and his sister Hilary were nearly as enthused about Tolkien’s books as I was, and they wrote him a letter from their temporary Oxford address. Tolkien replied with a brief but friendly note, and a second page with three autographs. One of those has been a prized possession of mine since they got back home at the end of the summer. I keep it in the plastic sleeve I have on the dust jacket of “The Hobbit.”

My own interest in calligraphy and lettering had begun with beautiful work of that kind my grandfather Rex Derr did, and Tolkien’s influence fanned the flames. Here’s a version of the ring poem by Tolkien that I did in high school, nothing much compared to the master’s own work, but I was happy with it at the time, and pinned it on my wall alongside the Pauline Baynes poster of Tolkien’s Middle Earth map.

In those ancient days of my youth, when forms of entertainment were much fewer, I would often read favorite books aloud to my brothers, a chapter at a time. Doug soon became as much a fan of Tolkien as I was, and we went through the entire Hobbit and LOTR that way. At the time I think he identified with hobbits a lot, and made himself a walking stick and cloak for hiking in the woods near our home.

Other short works of Tolkien were soon being published, and there were rumors of another epic that would fill in much of the previous history of Middle Earth. We were very sad to hear of Tolkien’s death in 1973, but very happy to buy and read that prequel, “The Silmarillion” when it was published in 1977. I bought the hardcover immediately, and was once again enthralled by the world-making, though I have to admit I didn’t like this more scholarly book as much as the previous epic. More of Tolkien’s own art gradually surfaced in places like the annual Tolkien calendars, including the color illustrations for “The Hobbit” that had been left out of my later edition.

When I was able to get to England myself, the first time in 1979, I made Oxford one of my destinations, and soaked up the atmosphere that Tolkien had enjoyed, including a visit to the pub where his group of literary friends, including C.S. Lewis, another favorite author, had some of their meetings.

Through the years, Tolkien’s son Christopher continued to add to the Tolkien canon, drawing from the many unfinished versions and works in his father’s papers, and I enjoyed them all, but my favorite thing has always been to reread the Hobbit and LOTR every few years. It’s a world I love to be in, even in its darkest moments. When the Peter Jackson films came out, I was at first skeptical, but came around to liking them very much. His version of “The Hobbit” did not work as well for me, as it became an action film that drifted far from the book.

Fast forward to earlier this year when I learned that a major exhibition of Tolkien’s art and other work was coming to New York City’s Morgan Library and Museum. The Morgan is a fine place, I had visited it often when I worked in the city, but hadn’t been there since the late 1980s. I knew I had to see this exhibit, and Ellen and I made plans for a day trip from our south Jersey home. My brother Doug and his friend Vito, another early Tolkien fan, would meet us there.

The way we get to New York from our house is to drive to the Park and Ride station in Tom’s River, NJ, already over an hour’s trip, and take the express bus in from there. It was a nice day, if a bit cool, and as we entered the Lincoln Tunnel to the city, I got this photo of the Manhattan skyline. We left home at 7:30 and arrived at the Port Authority bus station at about 10:30.

Just outside we stopped for a snack at the Carlo’s Bakery shop, which I hadn’t known was there. We’ve watched many episodes of the “Cake Boss” TV show about their bakery in Hoboken, NJ, so that was a fun place to visit.

We walked along 42nd Street, through a bit of Bryant Park where daffodils and pansies were blooming, stopping for a photo with one of my favorite lions outside the main branch of the New York Public Library.

Further along 42nd Street were great views of that largest and most perfect example of Art Deco architecture, the Chrysler Building. Before we reached it, we turned south on Madison Avenue.

At 37th Street we came to the Morgan Library and Museum, where banners like this made my heart glad! We walked around the outside of the place first, and noted major renovation work happening on the exteriorof the original building. A new addition on the west side since I was here last is now the entrance to the museum, and has doubled their exhibit space by filling in the area between the original Morgan Library and two other smaller buildings owned by the Morgans, which are also part of the museum now.

We met Doug and Vito, and spent over an hour in the exhibit, which was amazing and wonderful! My overwhelming impression of seeing the work in person is how small most of it is. Tolkien did much of his art not much larger than printed size, and we were amazed at the amount of tiny and beautiful detail work he managed to produce that way. No pictures allowed in the exhibit, of course, but the museum gift shop had the exhibit book, at lower right above, which I bought. It has everything in the show and more, and when I’ve had time to read it and enjoy it, I’ll write more about it. Maps, calligraphy, art from the books, and many things I’ve never seen, the show had it all.

It was a great experience, and one I will always remember, capped off by a fine lunch at a nearby Irish pub, and then the long trip home. I highly recommend this show to anyone who likes Tolkien, and how could you not, I say. It’s there until May 12th. We did not have to wait to get in, though I know it’s a popular show. I think going on a weekday was a good idea, and probably not waiting until the last days of the show was too. Go if you can!

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN #5

Image © DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison, art by Liam Sharp,
colors by Steve Oliff, letters by Tom Orzechowski

Hal Jordan has left the Green Lantern Corps and is trying to join the Blackstars. To do so, he must run a gauntlet, a perilous path through the slums of Vorr, where every vampiric inhabitant is eager to drink his blood. This test is at the command of the leader of the Darkstars, Countess Belzebeth, who has personal scores to settle with Hal, and does not seem to trust him. Jordan has been in some tight spots, but this is one of the tightest. Pulling back, Grant Morrison also gives us a wider view of what’s going on here later in the issue.

Recommended.