RKMBs Forums .::Robegories::. Comic Books Comics hero portraits

Something I've noted on quite a few comics covers and pin-ups, is where they appear to be posing for a professional portrait or photograph, in a very elegant , or fun, composition.


One example is this cover of Sub-mariner from the cover of MARVEL FANFARE 43:

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Another is this Metal Men pin-up, from THE ART OF WALTER SIMONSON trade collection (1989), the last page of the book, and the last of a portfolio of previously unpublished Simonson pin-ups.

https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/The-Art-of-Walter-Simonson/TPB?id=161414#106

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Mignola did a similar thing on the 4 covers for the "Death of Robin" story in BATMAN 426-429, also from 1989 :

Another favorite of mine from AVENGERS 181 in 1980, by George Perez/Terry Austin.



Although this one is more of an action pose, with Iron Man in an outburst lunging at agent Gyrich, and being restrained by the others. But mostly a group of heroes crowded together just sitting around, as if waiting for a photo.

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And this one from AVENGERS 200, also by Perez:

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MARVEL FANFARE 45, an all-pin-up issue.



the complete issue at :
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Marvel-Fanfare-1982/Issue-45?id=73375

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From BEST OF DC digest 51, Aug 1984, back cover :

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/90xUW3r5c...RF5wTJIYeGDfJ2HmdVgCh2zPOIyo_cugX4RlQ=s0

The pre-1964 Jack Schiff-edited Batman family of characters. This must be reprinted from elsewhere, but either way, here's the image for your enjoyment.





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EDIT: I looked it up, it originally ran as the back cover of BATMAN ANNUAL 2, Winter 1961.
With art by Sheldon Moldoff (ghost artist, signed as Bob Kane)
https://onemillioncomics.com/batman-v1-annual-002/

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Another one, a 2-page poster of all the JLA and JSA characters by George Perez, in JLA 195,

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NmGNrlER...wPoCeVnxTslj86OtMgCCo/s0-Ic42/RCO018.jpg


And here's the full issue. The first part of a 3-part story.
https://viewcomiconline.com/justice-league-of-america-1960-issue-195/

This full run by Conway and Perez/Beatty is an underrated and very enjoyable series, in 184-186, and 192-197 and 200. Plus most of the covers from 201-220.

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Another of my favorites, from BATMAN 200, March 1968, by Neal Adams.
I used to have this issue but sold it. I wish I'd kept it, just for the cover.
https://viewcomiconline.com/batman-v1-200/

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The wraparound cover for DC 100-PAGE SUPER SPECTACULAR 6, from 1971. Adams himself said that managing editor Carmine Infantino was thrilled with this cover, almost orgasmic in his praise of it.
You can read the full contents at:
https://viewcomiconline.com/dc-100-page-super-spectacular-issue-6/


Likewise Adams' wraparound cover for 100-PAGE SUPER SPECTACULAR 13 (a k a, SUPERMAN 252), from June 1972.



https://viewcomiconline.com/dc-100-page-super-spectacular-issue-13/

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And this wraparound cover by Adams for DC 100-PAGE SUPER SPECTACULAR 8 (also numbered as BATMAN 238), Jan 1972.



https://onemillioncomics.com/dc-100-page-super-spectacular-issue-8/

On another site, without ReadComicOnline's now-dangerous malware and pop-up ads, now destroying that once-great site. Here are safer links to the same material :

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/XB82z8igY...40qhvY9740l8N6Nbb0bwC0_FNnb9E_uEf_nXg=s0

https://viewcomiconline.com/the-art-of-walter-simonson-tpb/

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Wrightson's oval portrait of Uncle Creepy, from CREEPY 62, May 1974.
This version actually better than the printed version, since it is without word balloon captions.
Wrightson said it was drawn with magic markers.

https://viewcomiconline.com/creepy-1964-issue-62/

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Another of my favorites, Wrightson drawing the Old Witch, the Crypt Keeper, and the Vault Keeper, the three EC Comics host characters for TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE HAUNT OF FEAR, and THE VAULT OF HORROR.
And while distinctly Wrightson, nicely capturing the styles of the main artists of those characters, Graham Ingels, Jack Davis, and Johnny Craig.

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What appears to be a commision piece by John Byrne. A nice portrait of the X-MEN.
Although clearly not from the 1977-1981 period he was drawing the series, but done in a much more recent Byrne style.

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A cleaner image of Simonson's portrait of the Metal Men, from THE ART OF WALTER SIMONSON book.
It's quite wall-worthy.

The JLA/JSA two-page poster again, from JLA 195 by Perez.

I posted a link before above, but here is an image of it you can see here.



You can click on it to see a larger version.

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The above Byrne comission page may have been inspired by this Cockrum house ad for X-MEN, that ran during the early Byrne issues of the series.



This ad ran in 1978, promoting X-MEN as newly "On sale monthly!"
The last bi-monthly X-MEN was issue 111 (June 1978) and the first monthly was 112 (August 1978), and though Cockrum's last issue on interior stories was 107 (Oct 1977). It might be considered odd that Cockrum was selected to do the house ad.

But Cockrum still continued doing most covers for the series for another 2 years, through issue 126 (Oct 1979). At which point Cockrum resigned from Marvel, and whose resignation letter to Marvel oddly turned up "accidentally" as butler Jarvis' resignation letter in IRON MAN 127 (also Oct 1979), after a clash with Tony Stark in the alcoholism storyline issues.

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From MACHINE MAN 6, Sept 1978, and other Marvel titles the same month.
Another ad by Cockrum for the X-MEN monthly series, re-cycling a page from X-MEN 107.


There's a third house ad by Cockrum in the same period, in MACHINE MAN 2 and 3, ETERNALS 18, AVENGERS 165 and IRON MAN 118.
And shown here in MARVEL TEAM-UP 79 (March 1979).
https://viewcomiconline.com/marvel-team-up-1972-issue-79/

I guess when you double the frequency from 6 issues to 12 issues a year, you want to make sure the thing's going to sell !

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Cockrum excelled at character and costume design.
As is demonstrated well in his updated design of MS MARVEL, in the same period, on the cover of issue 20 (Oct 1978).



Larger image of cover, and full issue at :
https://viewcomiconline.com/ms-marvel-1977-issue-20/

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A convention sketch of X-men, signed by Claremont and Cockrum.

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From late 1981, this nice wraparound cover of MARVEL COMICS INDEX 9-A by Brent Anderson.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=84761

At roughly the same time he drew X-MEN 144.
https://viewcomiconline.com/uncanny-x-men-1963-issue-144/

That, reflectting well on both Claremont and Anderson (on the issue directly following Byrne's departure after his classic 35-issue run), was a remarkably good issue, and not disappointing.

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Another page of MS MARVEL, a house ad for the new version by Cockrum. I actually like this ad as much or more than the actual cover.
Ad from MACHINE MAN 8, Nov 1978.

Wow. I just ran across this ad in MICRONAUTS 21, Sept 1980, and other Marvel issues the same month. The same month that X-MEN 137 was published.
That's really late into the Byrne run, and way after Dave Cockrum was pencilling the series, or even doing covers.

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https://viewcomiconline.com/uncanny-x-men-1963-issue-114/



The Byrne/Austin cover for X-MEN 114, Oct 1978. the first Byrne/Austin cover on the series, and only the second Byrne X-MEN cover (issue 113 was Byrne/Layton).

A quietly powerful cover, and in some ways the same composition as the Cockrum X-Men series house ad, and the much later Byrne sketch I posted above.

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Byrne's page drawn for Marvel's Bullpen Bulletins, that ran in all Marvel titles cover-dated Sept 1983. A very fun page.
Out the same month as Byrne's work in FANTASTIC FOUR 258, and ALPHA FLIGHT 2.

Byrne's jovial affection in the text on this page for Marvel and for Shooter, is really hard to reconcile with the John Byrne who had an outdoor cookout in his home less than 5 years later, and burned a life-size effigy of Jim Shooter there.

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This X-men sketch by Byrne I would guess is from 1980. With Wolverine in his original uniform, prior to X-MEN 139.

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Another Byrne X-Men sketch. Also circa 1980.

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This one clearly dated 1980, inked by Austin. Colored by Steve Oliff. And maybe signed by Claremont too ?

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A Byrne/Austin X-Men commission page, later used as the cover for COMICS JOURNAL 57, July 1980.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?tid=170111&pgi=51

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And by Arthur Adams, one of many inside-cover pin-ups Adams did for almost every early issue of the CLASSIC X-MEN reprint series.

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Another by Arthur Adams, from CLASSIC X-MEN.

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A humorous sketch by Byrne, an altered version of his famous Bullpen Bulletins page, with Rog 2000 replacing Byrne's self-portrait, and showing many other characters in the crowd he drew, not only for Marvel, but also for Charleton, DC and other publishers.

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Byrne's unfinished cover for X-MEN 138, before the X-MEN logo and background montage of series covers were added.
Somehow the empty space in this version adds to the emotions portrayed, of isolation and distance Cyclops feels leaving the group.

For comparison, here's the final cover, and complete interior story :
https://viewcomiconline.com/uncanny-x-men-1963-issue-138/

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Byrne/Austin's famous "Days Of Future Past" cover for X-MEN 141.
Even more impactful with all the clutter removed.

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Byrne's double-page spread, from THE ART OF JOHN BYRNE book in 1980.
At the absolute peak of Byrne's popularity and talent.

Larger version here.

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The Micronauts by Michael Golden, originally created to be the cover of MICRONAUTS 1 in Jan 1979, but presumably vetoed by the book's editor, and instead used as a pin-up and promotional ad.

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And a nice version of the same characters by Jackson Guice (in his early years, Butch Guice), in 1983.

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And suitable for framing, Michael Golden's cover for THE X-MEN COMPANION, in 1982.
Duplicated without logo or captions here as the back cover.

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This portrait on the cover of MARVEL AGE 7 (Oct 1983), promoting the then-upcoming X-MEN-MICRONAUTS miniseries 1-4, by Claremont, Mantlo and Guice, Jan-April 1984.

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A Michael Golden MICRONAUTS cover.
It looks like a cover, but I can't place where it was used. It's way too nice to not have appeared somewhere.

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Rog 2000, hanging out with some other Byrne-illustrated robots.

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And Byrne's playful cover for THE ART OF JOHN BYRNE.

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A modified version of Byrne's anniversary-issue cover for 236.
https://viewcomiconline.com/fantastic-four-1961-issue-236/

I love Stan Lee pictured in the background as part of the celebration.
Somehow Jack Kirby wasn't invited, despite being FF's co-creator.

In a poster Byrne did a year or so later (first as a black and white centerfold in the 1982 FANTASTIC FOUR CHRONICLES, then 2 years later released as this Marvel poster in color), Kirby is , if not visible, still given the co-credit he is due.
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-...QQ/6kndMaUpl_o/s1600/ffpostercolor-1.jpg

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A pin-up portrait in the exact flavor I had in mind when starting this topic, from FANTASTIC FOUR 250.
https://viewcomiconline.com/fantastic-four-1961-issue-250/



And just a year or so later...



...this similar pin-up page from COMICS FEATURE 27,(Feb 1984), introducing new FF costumes, in a pin-up with a similar style.

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Some Byrne portraiture of his Alpha Flight characters.

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Michael Golden pin-up of the Defenders, from 1980.

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An X-Men portrait by Byrne, as painted and airbrushed by Fastner/Larson, in 1980.
From the X-Men Portfolio.
https://www.popculturesafari.com/2016/10/comic-art-marvel-comics-portfolio-art.html?spref=pi

https://pictures.abebooks.com/inventory/22658677986.jpg

https://i.pinimg.com/474x/1f/48/83/1f48831e368d0441ac02b5dcd780eb8d.jpg

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Cover for MARVEL SUPER HEROES 6, July 1991, by Arthur Adams.