Out now from DC, a reprint of the balance of Kirby’s 1970s KAMANDI series. Some great stuff here. Here are some posts on specific issues:
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #23 [1974]
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #25 [1975]
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #26 [1975]
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #29 [1975]
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #32 [1975]
Kamandi, The Last Boy on Earth! #40 [1976]
Coming next summer from DC, IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB hardcover, Jack Kirby’s 1971 magazine for “Hampshire Distributors” Speak-Out Series.
Release Date: August 13, 2013
After leaving Marvel Comics at the end of the 1960s, Jack Kirby came to DC, where he soon created the series of super-hero comics known collectively as “The Fourth World.” One of his first projects for DC was the black and white magazine IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB, which featured on stories of organized crime in the 1930s in the style of the TV series “The Untouchables” and “The Godfather” movies.
Hardcover: 80 pages[*]
ISBN-10: 1401240798
ISBN-13: 978-1401240790
Note despite what you might think from that description, the comic book predated the release of the film THE GODFATHER, but does come after the Mario Puzo novel. And as Harry Mendryk demonstrated, Kirby’s work on such stories pre-dated both that novel and the UNTOUCHABLES TV show. Pick up THE SIMON & KIRBY LIBRARY: CRIME to read during the long wait for this reprint.
Presumably it’s in the same format as the SPIRIT WORLD book from earlier this year. The page count seems a bit light, compared to the 108 pages in the SPIRIT WORLD book, so I guess some of the intended contents for the unpublished second issue might be lost or never completed. I’d have to double check, but I think even the known contents for #2 should push it over 80 pages, especially when you allow for the usual introductory, biographical and indicia pages. Still, that’ll be the last major piece of published DC work by Kirby after the golden age to get a reprint. Now all we need is a book for the remaining unpublished stuff, TRUE DIVORCE CASES, SOUL LOVE, DINGBATS OF DANGER STREET and whatever else I’m forgetting.
[*] See the comments, the Amazon listing has been revised up to 108 pages, which should be enough for all the comic book content of the unpublished #2. So get ready for “The Ride”, “Ladies Of The Gang” and “A Room For Kid Twist”. And as usual, Amazon links kickback a percentage that goes to the Kirby Museum, so if you’re buying from there anyway, go there from here.
Oh, looks like we’re getting OMAC in softcover, too.
Harry Mendryk has a nice detailed look at Kirby’s double-page splash to BOYS’ RANCH #6, “Remember The Alamo”.
He also drops the news that a lot of material from Joe Simon’s collection will be available for auction from Heritage Auctions starting next month, including that page, other BOYS’ RANCH pages, STUNTMAN, THE FLY and more. The first few pages listed are over here. This will almost certainly be the best selection of pre-1960 Kirby artwork ever made public, and even if it’s outside your price range Heritage also always includes nice large scans to look at.
Sorry I haven’t updated much lately. There’s a Kirby reprint I missed when it was solicited out now, SHOWCASE PRESENTS TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED VOL. 1 TPB, which has six Kirby stories and a few covers from 1957. All those were reprinted in colour last year, of course, but if you like your Kirby reprints in black and white or like the other DC artists of the era (including Mort Meskin, Nick Cardy, Leonard Starr and Ruben Moreira) then it’s a great deal.
A few other recent Kirby reprints that I’ve updated over here, including the softcover Fourth World continuing, with the final volume due out by the end of the year.
Just a quick birthday to Jack Kirby. Every year his legend grows. See this post from Rand Hoppe on some of the goings-on around this Kirbyday, including a project from his grand-daughter Jillian to mark the event by helping out the Hero Initiative.
This is currently scheduled for March 2013 from DC:
Jack Kirby Omnibus Vol. 2 HC
Writers: Jack Kirby, Joe Simon, Dennis O’Neil, Michael Fleischer, Steve Sherman, Martin Pasko, Bob Rozakis, Joey Cavalieri and Paul Kupperberg
Artists: Jack Kirby, Joe Simon, Bruno Premiani, George Roussos, Mort Meskin, John Prentice, Bill Draut, Bob McCarty, Leonard Starr, Wally Wood, Mike Royer, D. Bruce Berry, Pablo Marcos, Alex Toth, Greg Theakston, Adrian Gonzales, Alan Kupperberg and Bill Wray
Collects: BLACK MAGIC #1-9, 1ST ISSUE SPECIAL #1, 5 and 6, RICHARD DRAGON: KUNG FU FIGHTER #3, THE SANDMAN #1-6, KOBRA #1, DC COMICS PRESENTS #84, SUPER POWERS #1-5 and SUPER POWERS VOL. 2 #1-6
$39.99 US, 624 pg
Contents subject to change, naturally. Catches many of the strays not already accounted for among other already released or scheduled books from Kirby’s post Golden Age work published by DC (still need a Manhunter and a lot more Boy Commandos and some Newsboy Legion there). I’ll update with a list of what’s missing in a bit. IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB, obviously, but that’ll probably get its own oversized book like SPIRIT WORLD. JUSTICE, INC. is probably out as it’s a licensed character. Lots of non-Kirby stuff in the BLACK MAGIC book, and it’s all 1950s reprints which would be better served in Titan’s S&K Library series, which would free up some pages in here to make sure stuff like the unpublished Dingbats stories, the story intended for SANDMAN #7 (printed in the digest THE BEST OF DC #22 [1982]) and all of Kirby’s non-Fourth World WHO’S WHO pages get included.
Out now from DC, a new hardcover of Kirby’s dozen issues of CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN from the 1950s (four Showcase tryouts and 1-8 of the ongoing series). Some great stuff in here.
More details on the next volume of Titan’s S&K Library, scheduled for October 2012. For comic shops, it’ll be in the next Diamond Previews with an order code JUL121228, for bookstores it can be ordered with ISBN-10: 1848569610 or ISBN-13: 978-1848569614
THE SIMON & KIRBY LIBRARY: SCIENCE-FICTION HC
Joe Simon, Jack Kirby
The Simon and Kirby Library: Science Fiction spans more than 20 years, beginning with the first stories Joe Simon and Jack Kirby ever produced together (beginning in June 1940)–their ten-issue run of Blue Bolt adventures. Then the Cold War years will be represented by Race For the Moon, featuring pencils by Kirby and inked artwork by comic book legends Reed Crandall, Angelo Torres, and Al Williamson.
“Joe was one of the industry’s greatest innovators–he commissioned stories from some of the greatest talents of the time,” series editor Steve Saffel notes. “Thanks to his efforts, we have exclusive access to more than 80 pages of original artwork from the 1950s. Stories by all four artists appear in all of their stunning detail. This was a book Joe wanted the world to see.”
Other rarities from both decades are included, and as a bonus for readers, the volume features stories illustrated by Crandall, Torres, and Williamson–without Kirby.
Including an introduction by Dave Gibbons, the award-winning co-creator and illustrator of Watchmen, this is an historic volume no comic book aficionado will be able to live without.
7×11, 320pgs, FC $49.95
On the occasion of some financial records related to Kirby creations, the Wall Street Journal has an interesting article, “Fighting to Rescue the Lost Avenger” by Bruce Bennett.
So, apparently this is in stores this week:
SPIRIT WORLD: Hardcover edition of Kirby’s early 1970s horror/fantasy work for DC, including SPIRIT WORLD #1 and some stories intended for #2 but later published elsewhere after that was cancelled. I’d be very curious to read a description of the book if anyone gets a copy right away, including the size of the book and if they attempt to replicate that sickly blue printing and ink wash of the the original comic.
Harry comes through with some scans here in his review. #1 is in the blue ink wash, but better looking than the original printing, the stories intended for #2 are in glorious black and white.