Category Archives: Topic

Crime’s Better Half

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Posted in 2010/11, 5 Studio, Artists, Hillman, Kirby, Jack, Odds & Ends, Periods, Prize, Topic, z Archive and tagged


Headline #26 (September 1947), art by Jack Kirby

Simon and Kirby only worked in the crime genre during two periods. The first, and most extensive one, was from 1947 to about 1950 when the worked on Clue and Real Clue Comics for Hillman, as well as producing Headline and Justice Traps the Guilty for Prize. The second occasion was when they produced Police Trap for the own publishing company Mainline. Joe and Jack were always very creative and the crime genre gave them a wide range of subjects. They produced stories about gangsters, western outlaws, and other historical criminals. Another variation Simon and Kirby seemed fond of were women criminals. By no means were Joe and Jack the sole comic book creators that did work about crime by females (there even was a title Crimes By Women published by Fox). However like pretty much everything Simon and Kirby did, they created some very memorable work about women criminals.


Clue Comics volume 2, number 3 (May 1947) “The Battle For Packy Smith” page 11, pencils by Jack Kirby

The first of Simon and Kirby’s beautiful villains was Velvet. She appeared in the second story about Packy Smith, a gentlemen highly sought after for the element X contained in his body. Packy was much very taken with the charming Velvet Silver, only to end up betrayed by her for the bounty that a crime lord had placed on his head. But once she was paid for her efforts, Velvet then proceeded to betray in turn the crime lord and freed Packy. Velvet may have been larcenous but she also had a heart of gold. A villain you cannot help but love.


Real Clue Crime Stories volume 2 number 6 (August 1947) “Get Me the Golden Gun”, art by Jack Kirby

Packy never made a third appearance, but Velvet returned without Packy in “Get Me the Golden Gun”. It was the hero, Gunmaster, who now fell under her spell. While Packy had been a criminal himself, Gunmaster of course was not. So he found his attraction to Velvet to be very troublesome. While she was not quite so villainous as Velvet, Simon and Kirby developed a similar relationship between Riot O’Hara and Link Thorne in “The Flying Fool” (produced at the same time and for the same publisher Hillman).


Justice Traps the Guilty #4 (May 1948) “Queen of the Speed-Ball Mob”, art by Jack Kirby

Gunmaster and Velvet were clearly meant to be fictional however the work Simon and Kirby produced for Prize were meant to be considered as true stories (or at least initially). So similar mismatched romance between a hero and a criminal were not repeated in Headline or Justice Traps the Guilty. Still women criminals played an important part of the Simon and Kirby repertoire for Prize. Often when the lead character was a female, Simon and Kirby would present the story as if it was told by the woman. Generally in such cases, the story would start with what I describe as a confessional splash. A splash were the main character introduces the story with their speech balloon forming the feature’s title. This device was common in Simon and Kirby romance publications but only seems to be used by Joe and Jack for the crime genre when the protagonist was a woman. Most likely this was because male criminals generally had a very bad ending while the woman repent and paid her debt to society. Apparently Simon and Kirby preferred not to kill or execute even villainous women but had no qualms about providing the male criminals with such fates. In all honesty this form of sexual discrimination is still very much prevalent today.


Real Clue Comics volume 2 number 4 (June 1947) “Mother Of Crime”, art by Jack Kirby

The Simon and Kirby rule was all female villains where young and beautiful and would in the end repent their life in crime. But of course every rule has exceptions. I doubt many would call Ma Barker either young or beautiful. Not only does she come to a bad end, she does not sound very repentful either. It is a marvelous story that fortunately was included in “The Best of Simon and Kirby”. If you have not bought the book yet, what are you waiting for?


Headline #25 (July 1947), pencils by Jack Kirby, inks by Joe Simon

Interesting Dick Briefer Work

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Posted in 2010/10, Artists, Breifer, Dick, Odds & Ends, Topic, z Archive and tagged

I am rather busy and have little time for exploring the Internet, but there are some blogs that I try to periodically check out. Booksteve’s Library is one of them and there I recently found the post Rare Dick Briefer Non-Comics Art-1942. Booksteve inserts a You Tube video of Rumpelstiltskin as performed in the Playette Theatre. The Playette Theatre was the invention of Larry Wise and Dick Briefer. It is a little toy theater in which illustrations can be inserted. The illustrations were done by Briefer and they are just wonderful. They are narrated by Ben Wise (son of one creator and nephew of the other) and although it is not an Academy Award winning performance it makes for an enjoyable experience. Ben Wise has a You Tube page which includes five other Playette Theatre performances. It is so great that Ben Wise has saved these treasures and provided them as videos.

Jack Kirby’s Cityscapes

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Posted in 2010/10, Artists, Kirby, Jack, Odds & Ends, Topic, z Archive and tagged

I recently came across a curious claim being made by a couple of authors. I do not have these writings in front of me but they went something like: Jack Kirby’s always drew his buildings like the tenements from the lower East Side where he grew up, while artist XYZ drew modern buildings. This is not an unreasonable statement since the work of artists often reflects their life experiences. But just because a statement is reasonable does not make it true.


1942 photograph of tenement buildings (from Old New York in Color, Part III, Lower East Side 1942in Citynoise).

The above photograph was taken some years after Kirby lived in the Lower East Side but the buildings themselves did not change all that much. I have seen photographs from the turn of the century and they were not that different even then. Actually in many ways they still have not changed. Many former tenements have been renovated for modern living (I live in what used to be a cold water flat). These renovations were largely performed on the interiors leaving the external features relatively unaltered. Tenements were basically low buildings with no more than six floors. At some point a law was passed that required elevators for any building taller than six stories. Most tenements were built with bricks but some brown stone buildings became tenements when the neighborhood declined. Ornamentation was generally simple, often nothing more than cornices and raised brickwork. Since they were occupied by a number of families, fire escapes would appear on both front and back of the buildings.


In Love #3 (January 1955) “Search for Inspiration”, pencils by Jack Kirby, inks by Joe Simon

There is no question that Kirby could and did draw tenements. The buildings at the bottom of the In Love splash shown above are easily recognized as such. Note the limited number of floors and simple ornamentation. If the buildings were not enough observe the wash hanging out to dry on the top of one of the buildings. The structures visible at the top of the splash are not tenements. While Kirby provides them with little ornamentation, the architecture is much more interesting than the tenements. The presence of water towers indicate that these are tall buildings since the lower heights of tenements would not require water towers to provide proper pressure. The lack of fire escapes is surely nothing more than artistic license.


Street Code, Argosy vol. 3 #2 (1990) art by Jack Kirby

Jack’s use of tenements was not limited to the work he did in the 50’s. Kirby drew “Street Code” in 1983 but it was not published in Argosy until 1990. Despite the presence of some cars the scene really is not that different from the early photograph I provided earlier. Jack may have left the tenements many years before but the tenements never fully left him.


The Adventures of the Fly #1 (August 1959) “Come Into My Parlor” right half of splash, pencils by Jack Kirby

One of Joe and Jack’s final collaborations was the Fly for Archie Comics. Jack provided a multitude of buildings in the background for a double page splash in the first issue. These buildings look tall and have complex and imaginative architecture. Tenement buildings? Not by a long shot.


New York: 1933 (from Sharphy Historic Photo Archive)

If the buildings in the Fly splash were not tenements, what were they? While they are the product of Kirby’s ample imagination they draw heavily from buildings that could be seen in New York during Jack’s life and even today. I could provide further examples of later work by Kirby that seem to reflect a more modern architecture of buildings constructed of steel and glass. Actually examples of Kirby drawing tenements are much rarer. So while claims that Kirby always drew buildings that reflected the tenements that he inhabited as a youth may sound attractive, they just are not supported by Jack’s actually art.

Joe Simon’s New York Comic Con Appearance

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Posted in 2010/10, Artists, Odds & Ends, Simon, Joe, Topic, z Archive and tagged , ,

Joe Simon made an appearance at the New York Comic Con on Saturday (October 9) as I had previously announced. It was not a well publicized event, in fact my report was the only announcement on the web. I believe Titan wanted to keep the crowds to a minimum. Not that there were any lack of fans. Joe was kept busy for the duration of the stay during which he had a continual line of fans seeking his autograph or just to shake his hand. There was a short intermission so that everyone there could sing Happy Birthday to Joe and present him with a cake. Both Jerry Robinson and Joe Kubert stopped by to say hello to Joe. I believe it was the first time that Simon and Kubert had ever met. All in all a very enjoyable event, particularly for Joe. Unfortunately I did not have my camera but if I am able to track down some of the photos that others took I will post them later.

Also of interest, Comic Riffs has written about a birthday interview with Joe.

“Simon and Kirby Superheroes”, A Must Buy

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Posted in 2010/10, Publications, S&K Superheroes, Topic, z Archive and tagged

Well Titan’s “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” is finally out and people have begun to take notice:

Mike Gold on ComicMix:
Pound for pound, you’re unlikely to find a better superhero collection than Titan Books’ “The Simon and Kirby Superheroes”

Charles R. Rutledge on Singular Points:
The great thing about the book is the sheer amount of gorgeous Simon and Kirby art. Figures leap and stretch across the pages, often seeming to threaten to break free of the panel borders

Geeks.Co.UK:
Jack Kirby and Joe Simon rewrote the rules for comic book art with their explosive action and cinematic techniques

Los Angeles Times:
They stitched together stories of the fantastic that jumped off the pages of comic books in the golden age of the medium

Falcata Times:
Simon and Kirby, it has to be said were the first to amalgamate the worlds of serious storytelling with the action panels that brought the fans to the fold in the first place, setting themselves as the standard for others to follow becoming the archetype that has held sway ever since

This book contains all of Simon and Kirby’s superhero work outside of Marvel and DC, a then some. For those readers who want to know specifically what that means here is the table of contents:

  • Introduction by Neil Gaiman
  • The 1940s: War and Peace by Jim Simon
  • The Black Owl
        “The Whistler”
        “The Return of the Whistler”
        “The Menace of Madame Mystery”
  • Stuntman
      Cover Stuntman #1
      Cover Stuntman #2
        “Killer In The Bigtop” 
        “The Crime On Cauliflower Row” 
        “Stuntman Enters the House Of Madness” 
        “Curtain Call For Death” 
        “The Rescue Of Robin Hood”
      Cover Stuntman #3 (unpublished) 
        “Stuntman Smashes Rest Camp For Criminals” 
        “Stuntman Battles The Diamond Curse” 
        “Stuntman Battles A New Menace on Terror Island” (unpublished splash) 
        “Stuntman Brings to Justice the Evil Sons of M. LeBlanc” (unpublished splash) 
        “Stuntman Crowns a Jungle Lord” (unpublished) 
  • The Vagabond Prince
        “Trapped on Wax” (unpublished) 
        “The Madness Of Doctor Altu” 
        “Death-Trap De Luxe” 
  • The 1950s: Fighting Americans by Jim Simon
  • Captain 3-D
        “The Man From The World Of D” 
        “The Menace Of The Living Dolls” 
        “Iron Hat McGinty And His Destruction Gang” 
  • Fighting American
      Cover Fighting American #1
        “First Assignment: Break The Spy-Ring”
        “Second Assignment: Track Down The Baby Buzz Bombs”
        “Duel To The Finish Line”
      Cover Fighting American #2
        “Assignment: Expose The League Of The Handsome Devils”
        “Assignment: Find the King of the Crime Syndicate”
        “Assignment: Investigate the City of Ghouls”
      Cover Fighting American #3
        “The Man Who Sold Out Liberty” 
        “Stranger From Paradise” 
        “Poison Ivan” 
        “Z-Food” 
      Cover Fighting American #4
        “Tokyo Runaround”
        “Homecoming: Year 3000”
        “Operation Wolf”
      Cover Fighting American #5
        “Follow the Dangerous Trail of Jiseppi, The Jungle Boy” 
        “The Year Bender” 
        “Track Down Invisible Irving” 
      Cover Fighting American #6
        “Deadly Doolittle” 
        “Super Khakalovitch”
      Cover Fighting American #7
        “Sneak Of Araby”
        “Three Coins In The Pushcart”
        “Space-Face”
      Cover Fighting American [Vol. 2] #1
        “Round Robin” 
        “Roman Scoundrels” 
        “The Secret of Yafata’s Moustache” 
        “Beef Box” 
      Cover Fighting American [Vol. 2] #2 (unpublished)
        “The Mad Inker” (unpublished) 
  • Double Life of Private Strong
      Cover Double Life of Private Strong #1
        “Meet Lancelot Strong” 
        “The Double Life Of Private Strong” 
        “Spawn Of The X World” 
        “Private Strong Sneak Attack” 
        “Mystery Of The Vanished Wreckage” 
        “The Menace Of The Micro-Men”
        “Loveable Lou: The Toy Master 
        “The Ultra-Sonic Spies” 
  • The Adventures of the Fly
      Cover The Adventures of the Fly #1
        “The Strange New World Of The Fly” 
        “The Fly Strikes” 
        “The Fly Discovers His Buzz Gun” 
        “Come Into My Parlor” 
      Cover The Adventures of the Fly #2
        “Marco’s Eyes” 
        “The Fly: The Hide-Out”
        “Tim O’Casey’s Wrecking Crew!”
  • Bonus Gallery
        Cover Double Life of Private Strong #2
        Introduction to “The Duke of Broadway”
        Unused alternate cover to Stuntman #2
        Unused cover to Thrills of Tomorrow #22

This is a big volume with 475 pages of comic art all of it published in the same size that they were original printed (with the exception of the Bonus Gallery were there are four images on the single page). Some have noticed that not everything in this volume was drawn by Simon and Kirby. There were a number of reasons for this. Mainly it was decided that all of Fighting American should be presented. In a couple of cases a story was included because it was the one featured on a Simon and Kirby cover. But really there is not that much that was not done by other artists, “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” contains 448 pages of Simon and Kirby created art. That is a lot of Simon and Kirby.

On a side note, one reviewer wrote that Captain 3-D was drawn by Mort Meskin and Inked by Steve Ditko. I regret to say he was wrong, all the Captain 3-D presented was drawn by Jack Kirby with the inking done by an assembly of artists including Mort Meskin, Joe Simon, Steve Ditko, Jack Kirby himself and at least one unidentified individual (Captain 3D).

The table of contents shows a number of pieces as unpublished. Title cancellations often meant that there was artwork that was created but would go unused. Some, like the splash pages for “Terror Island” and “The Evils Sons of M. LeBlanc”) have been included in volumes such as Joe and Jim Simon’s “The Comic Book Makers”. But the Vagabond Prince origin story (“Trapped on Wax”) has never been published in its complete form. Not only was “Jungle Lord” never published in its entirety, its artwork was scattered to various private collections. Bringing it back together was quite an accomplishment (with much thanks to John Morrows). The splash page for “The Mad Inker” is missing but the rest of the story is complete and none of it has ever been published before.


Fighting American #1 (April 1954) “Break The Spy-Ring” page 8, pencils by Jack Kirby (un-restored scan)

Now is the time that I have to fess up and admit that this is not an unbiased review. I was the art restorer of “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” as I was for “The Best of Simon and Kirby”. This was a lot of art to restore for this book and the work done to a difficult schedule. But I am quite happy with the results and feel they are even superior to the work I did for “The Best of Simon and Kirby”. I discussed restoration philosophy and method previously in an interview for Newsarama (Re-Mastering the Masters) so I will not repeat myself here.


Fighting American #1 (April 1954) “Break The Spy-Ring” page 8, pencils by Jack Kirby (as restored for Titan)

When I worked on “The Best of Simon and Kirby” one of the pieces I was most happy with was the Captain America story. That was because I used flats, a proof made from the original art, that Joe Simon had saved. It meant extra work but the results were much superior to what could be done from scans of the comic book. Unfortunately the Cap story was also one of the last ones I worked on for that book. For “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” I was able in many cases to use either original art or flats for a number of stories:

  • The Vagabond Prince
        “Trapped on Wax” (unpublished) 
        “The Madness Of Doctor Altu” 
        “Death-Trap De Luxe” 
  • Double Life of Private Strong
        “The Double Life Of Private Strong” 
        “Spawn Of The X World” 
        “Private Strong Sneak Attack” 
        “Mystery Of The Vanished Wreckage” 
        “The Menace Of The Micro-Men”
  • The Adventures of the Fly
        “The Strange New World Of The Fly” 
        “The Fly Strikes” 
        “The Fly Discovers His Buzz Gun” 
        “Come Into My Parlor” 
        “Marco’s Eyes” 
        “The Fly: The Hide-Out”
        “Tim O’Casey’s Wrecking Crew!”


Fighting American #1 (April 1954) “Break The Spy-Ring” page 8, pencils by Jack Kirby (from the “Fighting American” reprint by Marvel)

Now I know there are some that are saying to themselves that they have the “Fighting American” book published by Marvel so perhaps they do not need “Simon and Kirby Superheroes”. Well they may have Marvel’s Fighting American but that does not mean they have Simon and Kirby’s Fighting American. Restoration technology and philosophy has changed greatly over the years. When Marvel did their book one of the techniques used was to place tracing paper over the comic book page and re-ink the art. The result was essentially re-created art whose accuracy depended on the talents of the inker. Compare the image I supply from the original or the Titan restoration and the reader will find them significantly different. The reader can use these links which will open a particular panel in another window which you should be able to maneuver near the other images to make the comparison easier (panel 1, panel 2, panel 3, panel 4, panel 5, panel 6, panel 7). While not every page in Marvel’s reprint was made using the tracing technique many were.

Comic book publishers have profited greatly, and are still profiting, from the work original done by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon. Titan’s books, “The Best of Simon and Kirby” and now “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” are the only books authorized by Joe Simon and the Jack Kirby Estate. Buy these books and not only do you get great comic book art but you also get a chance pay them back a little for all the wonderful work that they did.

“From Shadow to Light”, an Ode to Mort Meskin

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Posted in 2010/09, Artists, Meskin, Mort, Publications, Topic, z Archive and tagged , ,

I have previously posted an announcement for this book with a comment on how important a volume I believed it would be. Of course I had not yet seen the book at that time so now that I have the question now is did Steven Brower succeed in doing justice to a great artist like Mort Meskin? The answer is a resounding YES!

This is a large book, the paper size is 9 by 12 inches. In my opinion this is a perfect format for a project like this. Scans of printed comic books have been enlarged for better viewing and the size works nicely with the reproductions of original art. And there are a lot of both spanning Meskin’s entire career. It starts with some work that Mort did in high school. While not very exciting compared to what would follow, it still is great to see the initial efforts. I could detail all the reproductions that follow but I fear that such a list would prove too tedious while the actual art is certainly not that. But I cannot resist mentioning some of my personal favorites such as some great Vigilante splashes, amazing work for the Fighting Yank (working with Jerry Robinson), terrific Golden Lad covers and some truly beautiful romance covers for Prize Comics. While those are my favorites, what is presented is actually much fuller and thoroughly representative. It is not just isolated pages of art. While a marvelous artist, Mort Meskin was also a consummate graphic story teller. “From Shadow to Light” has a Golden Lad and a crime story; both complete and never before published.

Mort Meskin was an artist’s artist. Brower has brought together comments from some of the creators who acknowledge how important Meskin was to them personally. Artists such as Steve Ditko, Joe Kubert, Alex Toth and Mort’s sometime partner Jerry Robinson. These are not just your usual commentary, they provide discussions of Meskin’s actual working methods. I found these very revealing and they answered some questions that have been nagging me for years. Particularly the commentary by Robinson. Jerry was Mort’s collaborator on a lot of comic books. I have often wondered exactly how they worked with each other, what rolls each played. Well Robinson answers that directly. I have also wondered why so much of Meskin’s comic book art is still exists as un-inked pencils. Very surprising since at least some of it, such as a couple of pages from Treasure #12 that are reproduced in this book, had been published. Again Robinson provides the answer.

Anyone who has followed this blog should know I am a big Mort Meskin fan. He did a lot of work for Simon and Kirby and therefore appears frequently in my posts. I have even written about Mort’s prior career (Early Mort Meskin and Mort Meskin before Joining Simon and Kirby). But the Internet is not the best format for viewing Meskin’s art. You really need a book for that and Steven Brower’s “From Shadow to Light” is that book. You do not want to miss this book.

Happy Birthday Jack Kirby

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Posted in Artists, Kirby, Jack, Odds & Ends, Topic and tagged ,

It is time to celebrate Jack Kirby’s birthday again. I can think of no better way to honor Jack than to provide some examples of his art. This time using original art. Enjoy!


Champ #20 (July 1942)


Headline #25 (July 1947)


Police Trap #2 (November 1954)


In Love #3 (January 1955)


In Love #3 (January 1955)


Win A Prize #1 (February 1955)


Western Tales #31 (October 1955)


Warfront #28 (January 1956)


Western Tales #32 (March 1956)


True Bride To Be #19 (August 1956)


Black Cat Mystic #58 (September 1956)


First Love #70 (November 1956)


Alarming Tales #3 (March 1958) (unpublished version)


Sandman #1 (Winter 1974) (unpublished version)


Captain America #197 (May 1976)

“Simon and Kirby Superheroes” a Big Hit at San Diego

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Posted in Publications, S&K Superheroes, Topic and tagged

I talked to Joe last night and he told me that Titan’s sold all their advance copies of “Simon and Kirby Superheroes” at San Diego. Friday was the first day of the convention so it seems the book was well received. Sounds to me that the Superhero book will be an even bigger success than “The Best of Simon and Kirby“. I guess this also means that there is now a select group of fortunate individuals that will be able lord it over the rest who have to wait for the official release in a few months. I keep hearing that will be October 12 (groan).

“The Best of Simon and Kirby” Nominated for Harvey Awards

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Posted in 2010/07, Best of Simon & Kirby, Topic, z Archive and tagged , ,

Not long ago I posted that “The Best of Simon and Kirby” had been nominated for a Eisner award //kirbymuseum.org/blogs/simonandkirby/archives/2689. Now I am thrilled to be able to write that the book has now been nominated for two Harvey awards:

BEST DOMESTIC REPRINT PROJECT

  • “THE BEST OF SIMON AND KIRBY”, by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby; edited by Steve Saffel, Titan Books
  • “HUMBUG”, conceived and edited by Harvey Kurtzman and created by Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Davis, Will Elder, Al Jaffee and Arnold Roth; edited by Gary Groth, Fantagraphics Books
  • “RIP KIRBY”, by Alex Raymond; edited by Dean Mullaney, IDW
  • “THE ROCKETEER: THE COMPLETE ADVENTURES”, by Dave Stevens; edited by Scott Dunbier, IDW
  • “THE TOON TREASURY OF CLASSIC CHILDREN’S COMICS”, edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly, Abrams ComicsArt

BEST BIOGRAPHICAL, HISTORICAL OR JOURNALISTIC PRESENTATION

  • “ALTER-EGO”, edited by Roy Thomas, TwoMorrows
  • “ART OF HARVEY KURTZMAN: THE MAD GENIUS OF COMICS”, by Denis Kitchen and Paul Buhle, Abrams ComicArts
  • “THE BEST OF SIMON AND KIRBY”, by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby; edited by Steve Saffel, Titan Books
  • “THE COMICS JOURNAL”, edited by Gary Groth, Michael Dean and Kristy Valenti, Fantagraphics Books
  • “UNDERGROUND CLASSICS”, by James Danky and Denis Kitchen, Abrams ComicArts

You can see the complete list in Newsarama. As was the case with the Eisner nomination, the BoSK faces strong competition. “The Rocketeer” is just an amazing book. I am currently reading the second volume of IDW’s “Rip Kirby”. Although Alex Raymond is usually remembered for his Flash Gordon, I believe his Rip Kirby was much better and more important. Some of the other books I have not had the chance to examine closely but who could question the importance of Harvey Kurtzman? “Alter Ego” is the magazine to go for anyone interested in the silver and golden age comic book artists. So once again I am not holding to much hope of “The Best of Simon and Kirby” actually winning one of these awards. However I am quite pleased to have been part of a project that is has received the recognition that these nominations bring.

A Simon and Kirby Swipe

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Posted in 2010/07, 6 Mainline, Fighting American, Periods, Swiping, Topic, z Archive and tagged , ,


Fighting American #5 (December 1954) “Invisible Irving”

In a previous serial post on Fighting American (Fighting American, Chapter 3, Jumping the Shark) I discussed the story “Deadly Doolittle” (Fighting American #6, February 1955). That story was a rewrite of a Manhunter story from Adventure Comics #75 (June 1945). In the comments Ger Apeldoorn remarked that the “Invisible Irving” from the previous issue looked like it was reused art as well. Sometime later Lucas pointed out that “Invisible Irving” was based of the Starman story from Adventure Comics #77.

Adventure #77
Adventure #77 (August 1942) Starman, art by Jack Burnley

A quick check of the Jack Kirby Checklist showed this fact was reported there as well. It was, however, news to me so I thought a comparison of the two stories might be of interest. The first thing that can be noticed right from the splash pages is that the text “Invisible Irving” was not lifted from the Starman story. The text was re-written for the Simon and Kirby piece. While what was said by the characters may be very similar the actual words were by no means identical.

However the plots were pretty much the same. Both start with a prison break aided by the use of invisible paint. The escape villain starts up a criminal gang that uses use planted valuables that unsuspecting passersby find and keep. T “lost” valuables then hypnotize the victims into committing crimes for the gang. The gang attacks one lady who instead of keeping the “lost” object intends to take it to the police. Fortunately she is rescued by the hero who removes the effect of the invisible paint the gang was using. However the main villain escapes only to be pursued by the hero. The hero catches up to the criminal mastermind at a windmill. Initially the villain captures the hero only to have the table turned on him in the end. The only reason I have summarized the plot here is to show how similar the two stories are. This summary applies equally well to either story.

Fighting American #5
Fighting American #5 (December 1954) “Invisible Irving” page 4 panel 6

There are some small differences between the two stories. Many of the differences are due disparity between the lengths of the two pieces. Much had to be eliminated to bring the 11 page Starman story down to 6 page length for use in Fighting American. Other changes had to be made because while Starman could fly, that ability was not possessed by Fighting American. Starman also had a star-ray that could remove the effects of the invisibility solution while Fighting American had to rely on paint remover instead. Other differences have to do with the use of humor by Simon and Kirby. After the initial issues of Fighting American, Joe and Jack began to poke fun at their own creation. Scenes like the one above showing Fighting American being kicked in the seat of his pants are absent from the Starman story (or as far as I know of, from any other superhero comic book).

Adventure #77 Fighting American #5
Adventure #77 (August 1942) Starman page 2 panel 1, art by Jack Burnley
Fighting American #5 (December 1954) “Invisible Irving” page 2 panel 1

Could the writer have been responsible for swiping the plot from the Starman story? After all one of the writers that Simon and Kirby used was Jack Oleck and he was known to do that sort of thing. However some of the art is so similar between the two stories that there can be no doubt that the artist was swiping from the Starman story.

Adventure #77 Fighting American #5
Adventure #77 (August 1942) Starman page 3 panel 7, art by Jack Burnley
Fighting American #5 (December 1954) “Invisible Irving” page 3 panel 6

While the artist for Fighting American was clearly swiping from the Starman he was not drawing close copies. None of the figures would be mistaken for tracings. Poses were often adjusted and while the panels might portray the same events they are completely redrawn. It is the story that the artist is interested in, not help in drawing the figures.

Adventure #77 Fighting American #5
Adventure #77 (August 1942) Starman page 10 panels 3 and 4, art by Jack Burnley
Fighting American #5 (December 1954) “Invisible Irving” page 5 panels 4 and 5

Readers may have noted that I have not said who the artist was that provided the “Invisible Irving” story. I do not remember anyone that previously credited this story to an artist other than Jack Kirby. However prior experience indicates that once it has been shown that some Simon and Kirby piece was swiped it will then be attributed to Joe Simon (Jack Kirby, Fanboy). There are many who just do not like to admit that Jack Kirby would sometimes swipe, despite all the contrary evidence that have been unearthed. If the reader chooses to now attribute “Invisible Irving” to Joe Simon, he must also credit Joe for being extremely adept at mimicking Kirby. So good that he has fooled the experts. But then again, Simon and done that before.