Snorky Cameo

Alan Kupperberg, who used to write and sometimes do layouts or pencils for Wood's SALLY FORTH, managed to sneak in a cameo by Sally's alien pal Snorky when he was the artist on the ANNIE newspaper strip! Today he posted it on Facebook!

700th Post! Wally Wood-Strange Worlds

From out of deepest space and via time warp from the far-flung fifties comes STRANGE WORLDS, the ultimate collection of Wallace Wood’s early, non-EC science fiction and fantasy stories.

This is not a book to introduce one’s self to Wood, arguably the greatest sci-fi illustrator of the 20^th Century. No, STRANGE WORLDS is a book for Wood fans who want the big picture. What we have here is the chance to watch the artist’s astonishingly rapid development from almost crude beginnings to his fabled mastery of storytelling, composition and shadows, all in just the few short years featured herein. Between black and white reprints and online scans, the true connoisseur has seen most of this work before but oh, to have it now in such a nice chronological presentation with lovingly restored color from the original issues of SPACE DETECTIVE, CAPTAIN SCIENCE, AMAZING ADVENTURES and other long-forgotten four-color treasures! Words fail.

To be honest, the stories themselves aren’t much, many being clichéd space opera of the most antiquated sort. But this isn’t a book about stories. It’s a book about art. Wood’s early collaborations with Joe Orlando are present as well as work done with Al Williamson, Frank Frazetta and even Jack Kirby. And every one is a revelation to Wood fans, showing off his enthusiasm for outer space stories and his experimentations as he became the genius he would so quickly become.

So exactly what is in STRANGE WORLDS? To start with, there’s THE FLYING SAUCERS, a fairly serious full-length tale exploiting UFO’s when they were in the news almost daily. Then there’s AN EARTHMAN ON VENUS, inexplicably appearing in black and white. There are a number of series entries with characters including  the aforementioned Captain Science and Space Detective as well as Kenton of the Star Patrol and Rocky X of the Rocketeers. Dotted around these are one-off stories from various publishers with the book finishing up with a post-EC tale from Atlas and some beautifully colored continuity from the SKY MASTERS OF THE SPACE FORCE  newspaper strip in which Wood inked Jack Kirby in what many have called the best work of either artist! In between many of the stories are original art panels and pages from some of the artist’s best-known EC classics which can be used to compare his development.

All of this is wrapped up in David Spurlock’s beautiful packaging. The front cover of the regular edition is a “new” piece of Wally Wood art produced by the great designer and artist, Jim Steranko, utilizing bits and pieces from various Wood illustrations. In this manner, Jim has created Woodwork that highlights Wood’s trademark spaceman, a sexy woman and a sleek rocket all amidst a screen-laden planetscape.

In case anyone hasn’t been paying attention, let me say it plainly—This is a gorgeous volume!

The limited slipcase edition flops the new cover to the back and spotlights on its front the amazing Wood/Adkins cover for a 1964 record album of H.G. Wells’ WAR OF THE WORLDS. It also offers an additional portfolio of the little-seen inside front cover art that Wood did for many of the Avon titles on which he worked in the 1950’s.

   

Wallace Wood took his own life in 1981, more than 30 years ago now. And yet 2012 looks to be Wood’s best year ever with forthcoming Wood projects from Fantagraphics and IDW (and a couple more rumored but as yet officially unannounced!). It all starts, just like Woody did, with Vanguard’s STRANGE WORLDS. You should start there, too!

Click the book's cover on the upper right of this page to order from Vanguard Publishing.

DD Breakdowns

http://themarvelageofcomics.tumblr.com/post/16306599801/heres-wally-woods-initial-page-breakdown-for

Wizard King II Original Page

Valor Original Art Page

Hawkman and the Flash

From 1975, here's the All-Star team of Woody inking Ric Estrada but on a team-up of the Earth 1 Flash and Hawkman.
http://diversionsofthegroovykind.blogspot.com/2012/01/tuesday-team-up-gorilla-my-dreams-by.html

The Heck With Wood!

Don Heck, that is. Here he is from their AVENGERS collaboration in 1965, Heck pencils with Wood inks.

EC History

Here's a chance to read Bill Parente's classic 1967 fannish essay on EC COMICS that ran in thick, dense text as THE ROCKET'S BLAST SPECIAL # 7.
http://waffyjon.blogspot.com/2012/01/fandom-library-rbcc-special-7-screen.html#more

Paul Kirchner's The Bus--New Edition!

Former Woodworker Paul Kirchner's wonderfully surreal strip, THE BUS, is on its way back into print!


"We are Tanibis editions, a french publishing house which exists since 2000 and I thought you would be interested to know that we will publish in february 2012 "the bus", a re-collection of the surrealistic strips from former Wally Wood's assistant Paul Kirchner. 
Here are a presentation and some extracts : http://www.tanibis.net/#/le-bus/

Our new edition will include some previously unpublished strips and illustrations, a postscript by Paul Kirchner and a new cover. 

As the 1987 american edition is not available anymore, we are going to do a limited edition in english language (in addition to the french edition). It will also be available in february."

 
69, cours Gambetta
69003 Lyon - France
tél : +33 (0)9 50 63 73 17
editions@tanibis.net
http://www.tanibis.net / http://news.tanibis.net

Marvel at Wood at Marvel

Two of Woody's best pieces from his last period at Marvel.

http://diversionsofthegroovykind.blogspot.com/2012/01/two-fer-tuesday-flight-into-fear-and.html

Moonchild Ad-Nick Cuti-1972

Here we have an ad promoting former Woodworker Nick Cuti's MOONCHILD. MOONCHILD in the WEIRD FANTASIES one-shot was the first time I had ever seen or heard of Cuti and his work. I don't know about STARFLAKE AND THE SPACE PIRATES (Did that ever come out?) but MOONCHILD was definitely NOT for kids!

Woody's Classic Covers # 50

Heroes, Inc. Ad

For those who don't recognize the layout, this ad is from Steranko's MEDIASCENE.

Stilt Man Prelim

Hard to discern any truly distinguishing points that definitely signal this as Woodwork but it's said to be his preliminary sketch for the classic Stiltman cover of DAREDEVIL.

3-D eBay EC Pencil Art

WALLY WOOD PAGE 7 ARTWORK FOR THE UNPUBLISHED EC 3-D STORY "THE SPAWN OF VENUS"

Happy New Year