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Here's another of my favorite covers, this one from 1990, by Michael Linsner.

CRY FOR DAWN # 5 (second printing alternate cover)




I'm not a big fan of Linsner, I have many of the same complaints about his work that I do about Alex Ross.
But both have a few outstanding pages, and this one by Linsner is exceptional.


Here's a complete gallery of Linsner's available prints, at linsner.com



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Some pulp work very influential on comics, pages from a 1933 fanzine by Joe Shuster and Jerry Seigel. Their Superman creation, like many early comics, evolved from the pulps, and that influence is certainly evident here.





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Another Barry Windsor-Smith page from the late 1970's, that if I recall correctly was originally the cover sleeve for Smith's "Conan Tuppeny portfolio" (1974)

Sourced from Steranko's MEDIASCENE 33 (Sept-Oct 1978), a special all-poster issue where it was reproduced in its original 11" X 17" size.



I had the good sense to make a good copy of it on heavy stock paper in 1998, and it still sits matted and framed on my wall, where I've enjoyed it for many years.

TUPENNY PORTFOLIO (1974) b & w, as originally published
TUPPENNY PORTFOLIO (1974) hand-colored version

Smith's Gorblimey Press was one of the major developments that came out of Marvel's CONAN titles, that developed a more sophisticated fan market in the mid/late 1970's. Ads for Smith's various prints and portfolios were advertised in most issues of SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN of that era.
And in Steranko's MEDIASCENE and PREVUE issues.

From Steranko's opening editorial to MEDIASCENE 33, introducing his all-poster issue:

 Quote:

I'm pleased to have generated the original idea.
But I'm even more pleased to be one of the brotherhood who can create the kind of work represented in this issue --and to be in a position whereby the material can be packaged with skill and taste, and offered to a discriminating audience.


For which the rest of us are eternally grateful.
It must be satisfying indeed to be part of that brotherhood.





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 Originally Posted By: profh0011
A couple more S&S series come to mind.

DAX THE WARRIOR was in EERIE magazine. The stories are no great shakes, but the art was my introduction to the incredible ESTEBAN MAROTO, who drew the sexiest women I had ever seen at that tender young age. Maroto did a ton of work for Warren, but precious few VAMPI episodes (which I always thought was odd). Among his more recent work has been THE ATLANTIS CHRONICLES, ZATANNA: COME TOGETHER and the tragically unfinished LADY RAWHIDE: OTHER PEOPLE'S BLOOD, which has the sad distinction of being cancelled in mid-story-- TWICE!! (Why don't they just issue a complete graphic novel and be done with it???)




I love Estaban Maroto's art, but haven't seen these particular stories. A blog credits the Dax storyline as running in EERIE magazine issues 39-52 (April 1972- Nov 1973).





I loved a Maroto "Red Sonja" story that appeared in black-and-white in SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN magazine 1, and reprinted in color in MARVEL FEATURE 1, followed by Bruce Jones and Frank Thorne's new series in issues 2-7. Even inked by Neal Adams, that Maroto/Adams story in issue 1 remained distinctively Maroto.
And it would have been nice if Maroto had done a few Conan stories in SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN. His art would have blended well with that of the regular Buscema/Alcala team.

And a semi-pornographic version of Red Sonja (also by Thorne) later ran (1981-1983) in the Warren sci-fi magazine 1984/1994 (beginning in issue 7). (If Dr. Sigmund Freud were alive in modern times, I think Warren's 1984/1994 magazine would be his favorite series. Maybe along with HEAVY METAL, Richard Corben's DEN, and anything by Milo Manara or Bruce Jones.)

In Dave Sim's CEREBUS issue 19, he teamed apocryphal versions of Red Sonja and Ghita in a story together, where the two faced off against each other.


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Another artist whose work I really love from the Warren magazines is Gonzalo Mayo. I'd especially recommend EERIE 66 (an all-Mayo issue, of "El Cid" stories, recently reprinted by Dark Horse in hardcover.)









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Several beautiful poster images from the 1970's and early 80's, including this one I never knew was a poster:



Which was also the wraparound cover (by Kaluta) of Marvel's comic book size OFFICIAL HANDBOOK TO THE CONAN UNIVERSE one-shot.



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Kaluta has done some fantastic Conan work. In particular this KING CONAN cover, that I have the 22" X 32" promotional poster for, that has been on my wall since 1983, in a size where you can really appreciate it.




I often see the promo poster for sale on ebay, if you want one.


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One of my favorite Windsor-Smith pieces, "Lord of the Black Corsairs".



Also printed in 1975 as the back cover of Marvel Treasury Edition 4, June 1975. That first collected Thomas/Smith's "Red Nails" Howard adaptation.


Here it is with the original colors, as it appeared on the back cover of the treasury edition. I prefer the original colors.







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Actually, if you want to read Windsor-Smith's "Red Nails" adaptation, this edition, ROBERT E. HOWARD'S CONAN THE BARBARIAN #1 (and only) is a far nicer reprinting of it in 1983.
The previous 1975 treasury edition for some reason shaves off part of the bottom of every page, presumably to make it fit the page-size dimensions of the treasury edition format.

Dark Horse has also more recently reprinted these issues in trade and hardcover, but with awful re-coloring.

I also love this title page from the story:



In a time when comics were aspiring toward a standard of book illustration and fine art. As opposed to the fanboy wankery that comics have descended into.



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A nice, and very early, Paul Smith pin-up from KING CONAN 9, done in 1980.




Note the boobies in the original black-and-white, censored and covered in the printed color version. Regardless, it helped Paul Smith make an early sale that led to a worthy career in the comics field.


And here's the safe-for-the-kids printed version, in color.





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And another from KING CONAN 7, Sept 1981.


http://www.paulmartinsmith.com/content/conan-and-frost-giants-daughter-pin-0

These apparently helped Smith break into comics, after crossing paths with Roy Thomas.
And after the girls in his pin-ups grew bikini tops.



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This Windsor-Smith tribute page to Robert E. Howard (from the SAVAGE TALES "Red Nails" adaptation issues, and subsequent reprint editions) is another sophisticated manifestation of the literary aspirations of Thomas and Smith's work on the series.

Beautiful stuff. And pioneering breakthrough work that lit the way for others.





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Wow!




http://capnscomics.blogspot.com/2013/08/belit-queen-of-black-coast-by-barry.html

An unpublished Gorblimey Press print of Belit (a female pirate character romantically linked to Conan in CONAN THE BARBARIAN issues 58 (Jan 1976) - 100 (July 1979).
Hard to imagine why it wasn't published.


The other 5 pages are from Barry Smith's 1975 "Robert E. Howard portfolio", of Conan, Valeria, Solomon Kane, Thoth Amon, and Bran Mak Morn.




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A captionless version of Smith's cover for CONAN ANNUAL 1.









And the original cluttered over-captioned version.
I posted a black-and-white version that makes the clutter less noticeable.




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Two guys named Fastner and Larson back in the 1979-1981 period did a lot of portfolios for SQ Productions (Sal Quartuccio, out of New Jersey).
They are probably most famous for their Spiderman Portfolio, Hulk Portfolio and X-Men Portfolio releases in that period. Which were advertised in all the Marvel magazines and fan publications of the time

Here's a link to their site, with images and blog entries going back to early 2004:

http://www.fastnerandlarson.com/fandl_images/hotstufcvr_sm.jpg

With many images going back all the way to their first work (that I'm aware of) doing a cover for SQ's underground anthology HOT STUF' issue 6 (Winter 1977).







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I first saw a page of theirs in the Overstreet Price Guide No. 11 (1981), accompanying an ad for Graphitti. Only thanks to the magic of the internet do I finally now know the title of that "Heads Up" limited edition print, and its origins in Sept 1979.



The self-deprecating humor of their posts are fun to read.





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Over the last few days, I've read the only recently published Conan story that I thought was consistent with the 70's/80's Marvel material:


CONAN THE SLAYER (11 issues)
https://comiconlinefree.com/conan-the-slayer/issue-1


You could nit-pick, the artist isn't Windsor-Smith or Buscema or Starlin or Kayanan, but it's still a good story with nice art, on a par with Marvel's CONAN run.



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I've come to realize over the last 2 or 3 years what an enormous contribution to the comics field amateur fanzines injected into the field in the 1960's and 1970's. The sophisticated sci-fi/pulp style design of these fanzines, the articles, the character histories, and the beautiful covers and artist portfolios, were something that carried over into magazines like SAVAGE TALES and SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN.

The first and best for a long time was ROCKETS BLAST COMIC COLLECTOR
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?tid=448361&pgi=51

The covers alone are worth the price of admission. You can see them evolve from very amateur efforts in the first 50 issues, into an 8" X 11" magazine on cardstock paper, with covers that presented many fans that later turned pro, such as Don Newton, Richard Corben, Bill Black, Robert Kline, John Adkins Richardson, Mike Zeck, Kerry Gammill, Butch Guice, Ron Wilbur, science fiction illustrator Stephen Fabian, and others. Along with very talented amateurs like Jerry Fantuccio.

Along with occaasional offerings by old pros like Gil Kane, Wallace Wood (who also did the fanzine WITZEND), Tom Sutton, and CC Beck.



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I just stumbled on this Twitter blog page that shows a lot of great book illustrators, as well as artists like Berni Wrightson and Jim Steranko, that bridge the fields of comics illustation, book illustration, and fine art.

https://twitter.com/thetzvortex

I never cease to be awed by pages like these. With the benefit here of also presenting a window to authors and artists I've either never seen before, or works that I haven't seen in a long time, such as writer Algernon Blackwood.



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[Linked Image from 1.bp.blogspot.com]

Here are all the covers for THE MONSTER TIMES.
https://monstermagazinegalleries.blogspot.com/2010/03/monster-times.html
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=628621
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=22070625
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=22011629


A newspaper that ran from 1972-1976 for 48 issues (plus 3 special issues), a really fun competitor of FAMOUS MONSTERS, but also in some ways a competitor with Steranko's MEDIASCENE paper, in covering comics, as well as sci-fi and horror books, television and movies. Including STERANKO'S HISTORY OF COMICS, vols 1 and 2 !
With some dynamite covers and interior art by Gray Morrow, Neal Adams and others.

It's a great time capsule of sf, horror and comics of the period. With nice design, comparable to the 1970's Warren magazines.

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Jim Steranko's MEDIASCENE was both a comics fanzine, an advance preview of film and television releases, as well as an aesthetically pleasing and constantly evolving display of art and design, semi-regularly published from roughly 1972 to 1994.


[Linked Image from i0.wp.com]

The first 6 issues were COMIXSCENE from 1972-1973, in 11" X 17" newspaper format, in 2 sections, initially totalling 24 to 36 pages.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=19126902



[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

[Linked Image from 1.bp.blogspot.com]


[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

The title changed to MEDIASCENE for issues 7-40, from Dec 1973- Dec 1979, continuing in an 11 X 17" newspaper format, with a greater focus on mainstream media, but still covering comics. Many of the covers by Steranko, Corben, Adams and others, could double as movie posters.
With 2 great all-pin-up issues in 33 and 40.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=21056117



[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

With issues 41-47 the title changed to PREVUE, July 1980- May 1982, upgrading to a magazine format in a 9" X 12" size, and a further development in design. And increasingly focused on movies, actors and interviews.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=171941

From issue 48 untill the end of its run in issue 92, 1982-1994, it kept the same PREVUE title, but moved to a standard 8 X 11" format, with glossy paper and an increasing ratio of color material.
The last 2 issues' covers each have new logos, that make it look like yet another new magazine.



[Linked Image from 2.bp.blogspot.com]

Add to this his famous STERANKO'S HISTORY OF COMICS, volumes 1 and 2 (1970 and 1972). Which I've savored for over 40 years now.
HISTORY OF COMICS vol 1 focuses on the pulp magazines and newspaper strips such as by Hal Foster and Alex Raymond, from which the comics industry spawned, and the evolution from there to Superman, Batman and the Golden Age of comics from 1938-1945.
HISTORY OF COMICS vol 2 focuses more on the Golden Age superheroes and Fawcett and Quality comics titles. It was projected on the intro pages of both volumes that the series would eventually expand to 6 volumes, roughly covering pre-Code era, post-Code Silver Age 1950's , 1960's and 1970's eras. I wish if Steranko lost interest in concluding this HISTORY OF COMICS series, he'd at least subcontracted it to other writers and overseen its conclusion. But regardless, these two volumes are wonderful to have.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=482701

Steranko also did a SUPERGIRLS pin-up calendar, that I've gotten several pages of, but not the complete calendar. While nice, I just didn't feel it's worth spending what it sells for now:
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=45027032
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/fd/7a/80/fd7a80112e2ecf72e8991a2701ff4729.jpg

Here are the other publications from Steranko's company, Supergraphics:
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?pl=Supergraphics

I had some of these Supergraphics things for many years, such as the CARTOONISTS AND ARTISTS PORTFOLIO issues, the Steranko collector box, the TALON and STAR TREK posters, as well as the poster versions of Steranko's HISTORY OF COMICS, not realizing that these were published by Supergraphics.
The RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK painted posters by Steranko were later re-published in EPIC ILLUSTRATED 19, in 1983.
http://www.thedrawingsofsteranko.com/raiders.html


Another special Steranko issue not published by Supergraphics, I also love the comic-size TALES FROM THE EDGE # 11 (a k a, on the cover: STERANKO: GRAPHIC PRINCE OF DARKNESS) published in 1998, with an overview of Steranko's life and career, with a lot of work I hadn't previously seen. Edited and published by David Spurlock, but clearly with publication design by Steranko.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=156311

Another of my favorites is Steranko's work in THE ILLUSTRATED HARLAN ELLISON (1978), in tpb and hardcover editions, by Byron Preiss. With a 10-page illustrated version of Ellison's " 'Repent, Harlequin', said the Ticktockman" story.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?q=illustrated+harlan&pubid=&PubRng=
And also a signed/numbered black-and-white portfolio version, signed by both Steranko and Ellison.
https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=29617568

[Linked Image from 3.bp.blogspot.com]

http://www.thedrawingsofsteranko.com/REPENT/repent_article_.html

http://www.thedrawingsofsteranko.com/aghp.html

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Originally Posted by Wonder Boy
I first saw a page of theirs in the Overstreet Price Guide No. 11 (1981), accompanying an ad for Graphitti. Only thanks to the magic of the internet do I finally now know the title of that "Heads Up" limited edition print, and its origins in Sept 1979.

http://www.fastnerandlarson.com/fandl_images/heads_up_retouch_lg.jpg

The self-deprecating humor of their posts are fun to read.

They slightly altered their site, here's an updated link :

http://www.fastnerandlarson.com/news.html

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Originally Posted by Wonder Boy
I first saw a page of theirs in the Overstreet Price Guide No. 11 (1981), accompanying an ad for Graphitti. Only thanks to the magic of the internet do I finally now know the title of that "Heads Up" limited edition print, and its origins in Sept 1979.

[Linked Image from media.mutualart.com]

The self-deprecating humor of their posts are fun to read.

Updated with a working image link.
This was my introduction to Fastner and Larsen's work, from an ad in Overstreet Guide 11. I still like their 1977-1982 work the best.

Here's a larger version of the same image, where you can see the detail.

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[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

Another I like from Fastner/Larsen's X-MEN PORTFOLIO.

2 of the 4 prints in this set were Fastner/Larson painted art over Byrne layouts.
The other 2 are Fastner/Larson only.

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[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

The second with ( think pretty clearly) Byrne layout. The airbrushing and colors really bring both of these to perfection.



Here's a page that shows the X-MEN, SPIDERMAN, and later 1982 second X-MEN portfolios. The 4 images in the last one I didn't like as much as the first X-MEN portfolio.
https://www.popculturesafari.com/2016/10/comic-art-marvel-comics-portfolio-art.html?spref=pi

Here's the cover for the X-MEN portfolio :
https://pictures.abebooks.com/inventory/22658677986.jpg

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[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

A nice page from Fastner/Larson's HULK portfolio.

Here's the cover, showing all 4 plates in the portfolio.
https://cafans.b-cdn.net/images/Category_39381/subcat_112458/scan0025.jpg

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[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

A page from Fastner/Larson's SPIDER-MAN portfolio.

And here's the portfolio cover, showing all 4 plates :
https://marvel1980s.blogspot.com/2011/09/1980-spider-man-portfolio.html
and
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/21/95/72/21957259b68758821b8c26aea5c80e0c.jpg

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More Lela Dowling. I haven't seen work by her in comics or portfolios or prints since the early 1990's. But she was big and influential with her Unicorns and Dragons portfolios (both in black and white).
Followed by Dragons II and Unicorns II portfolios, in color. All gorgeous work, from about 1979-1983.
Part of the large new market of limited portfolios that evolved out of the SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN portfolio sections into (for a while) a prolific portfolio market from about 1974-1983, and Dowling's were some of the most popular of that era.

Here's a Dowling page from her Unicorns II portfolio :

[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]



And here's a separate black and white print she did, "Flights of Fancy", separate from the above portfolios, another I think is one of her nicer pages, that I'm glad to have in my collection.

[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

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[Linked Image from egorschamber.com]


[Linked Image from askart.com]

Here's another rising artist from the mid/late 1970's and 1980's, by the name of George Chastain. He did some really beautiful covers, and parodies of Classic Hollywood-era movie posters, pseudo-pulp magazine covers for the likes of THE SHADOW and DOC SAVAGE, and Frazetta hardcover dust jackets as if they were for actual Edgar Rice Burroughs or Robert E.Howard books.
With the twist that...
Chastain would replace the human faces in these images with funny animal characters, in a Disney or Tex Avery style. Ornately detailed airbrushed work, true to the Classic Hollywood / pulp era, but very fun and clever parody. The animated characters he morphed them into are also of the same Classic Hollywood era.

Some examples at :


[Linked Image from egorschamber.com]

I think my favorites are his "The Waddler" pulp cover (with a duck version of The Shadow)
And 2 covers of "Doc Sausage: The Hog of Bronze" (Substittuting a Porky-like pig for Doc Savage)
The film-noir poster version of "The Maltese Mallard" is one I have on the wall and get a frequent chuckle from.

Along with funny animal versions of other pop culure of the era, such as a Coca Cola ad, and movie stills of anthropomorh-ized actors, such as a movie still of Bela Lugosi on the soundstage of "Dracula" but re-envisioned as a duck actor. photographed on the set of "Drakula".

[Linked Image from furrycdn.org]




In Steranko's MEDIASCENE magazine, issue 25, Feb 1977, Chastain was cover-featured with a lengthy article and many images of his art.
Chastain was part of the era of limited edition prints from 1975-1983, many of them were advertised in that period.
I purchased quite a few, some of them from Chastain personally, and never cease to enjoy having them on my walls.

[Linked Image from milehighcomics.com]

Into the 1980's, Chastain did some covers for ALIEN ENCOUNTERS, and a HALLOWEEN HORROR issue for Eclipse.

He also did some story illustrations for TWILIGHT ZONE MAGAZINE issues in the 1981-1984 period, among art for other SF , horror and pulp magazines and fanzines. In recent years, he also does an increasing amount of photomalipulations for convention posters, pseudo-pulp magazine covers, and other tributes.

I was surprised to see on Chastain's site that he was also commissioned in 1980 to do about a dozen storyboard illustrations for a movie version of Stephen King's "The Mist".
https://egorschamber.com/fanfolio/monsterpieces/
The film was not actually made until 2007.

Over the last 30 years or so, Chastain still attends conventions and is active in fandom. As shown at the links, occasionally doing posters for various conventions.

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In a similar style during the 1976-1992 period is the airbrushed funny-animal work of Ken Macklin.
Who I mentioned earlier in the topic.
Ken Macklin's best known work is his "DR. Watchstop" series of strips, that were collected by Eclipse in the 64-page DR. WATCHSTOP graphic novel.
As well as a number of beauiful limited edition prints.

[Linked Image from milehighcomics.com]

https://readallcomics.com/dr-watchstop-adventures-in-time-and-space-full/


This was published by Eclipse as both a trade paperback graphic novel, and also as a signed/numbered hardcover.
And I like it so much, I couldn't resist getting it in both forms.
Macklin did a total of about 40 stories during his comics career, increasingly just doing covers toward the end of his time as a comics artist.
And the DR WATCHSTOP graphic novel collects about half of Macklin's total work.





Macklin's earliest work I saw was in the Star Reach funny animal title QUACK

https://readallcomics.com/quack-2/
https://readallcomics.com/quack-3/
https://readallcomics.com/quack-5/
https://readallcomics.com/quack-6/

https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Quack/Issue-2?id=174137
https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Quack/Issue-3?id=174138


In the late 1970's Ken Macklin was dating and then married portfolio artist and sometimes comics artist Lela Dowling.
I especially love her work in the DRAGONS I and II portfolios, UNICORNS I and II portfolios (1979-1983), and stories in PATHWAYS TO FANTASY, EPIC ILLUSTRATED, DRAGON's TEETH magazine, FUSION, and other titles.
https://readallcomics.com/epic-illustrated-24/
https://readallcomics.com/epic-illustrated-32/



Macklin and Dowling separated about 20 years ago, and Dowling is now married to another comics/portfolio artist Frank Cirocco, who all three came out of the same San Francisco art community and schools in the late 1970's, and whose work often appeared side by side in the same comics and magazines.

While I like Cirocco's portfolio work far better, Frank Cirocco is best known in comics for his ALIEN LEGION Marvel graphic novel, and ALIEN LEGION comic series from Epic.
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-graphic-novel-issue-25-the-alien-legion-a-grey-day-to-die/
https://readallcomics.com/alien-legion-v1-001/

Where George Chastain's work is focused more on 1930's/1940's pop culture, movies, and pulp adventure combined with Disney-like funny animals, Ken Macklin's work is more focused on science fiction, time-travel parodoxes, and other sword and sorcery/fantasy-genre material, in humorous stories involving funny animals. Macklin also cites a Disney influence on his work. And back in the day, Macklin, Dowling and Cirocco all created a number of decorative portfolios and prints.

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[Linked Image from 64.media.tumblr.com]


A fun painting by Frank Cirocco, of Frankenstein dancing a tango with the Bride.

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[Linked Image from m.media-amazon.com]


Here's another Frank Cirocco illustration, the cover for DRAGON'S TEETH magazine. Intended to be an ongoing anthology series, but ended up being only one issue.
It has interior stories by Cirocco, Macklin and Dowling, and also Tony Salmons, Alex Toth , Rick Geary, and a heavily illustrated Jim Steranko interview. Comparable in quality to ECLIPSE magazine, and EPIC ILLUSTRATED. Only one issue, but a least, a very good one.

Funded as an arts project by "Graphic Stories Guild", a k a University of California, Southern California, or UCSC.
And most or all is contributors are (or at least recently were) university students.

A previous university-funded annual comic that preceded it was titled ALL-SLUG COMICS. ............. https://www.comics.org/publisher/9143/
1 1972
2 1973
3 1974
4 1975
5 1976 .................................................................................................................................................. https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=39933491
6 spring 1977

Then the title changed to TESSARAE
7 Spring 1977 ........................................................................................................................................ https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?TID=665001

Then SLUG again
7 Summer 1978
8 Fall 1979

And then this issue, repackaged with nicer design and contents in a magazine size as DRAGON'S TEETH , in Summer 1983.

Among its contributors to multiple issues are Frank Cirocco, Ken Macklin, Brent Anderson, Tony Salmons, Steve Oliff, and Charlie Boatner.
And in TESSERAE, even had a pin-up page by Neal Adams.
Needless to say, many of these artists rose from these humble roots, to fame in comics with their later work.


Another nice offering in comic size is HEROINES SHOWCASE ART PORTFOLIO
( HEROINES SHOWCASE was a San Francisco area-based fanzine about women comics creators and women fantasy characters. And beyond their modest fanzine, they published these special porfolio issues in a much nicer format. )

Issue 2 (published in 1979, $1.50 cover price) is a portfolio of about 30 full-page Lela Dowling pages, at a time when she was just becoming known and selling prints of her work at conventions and by mail order.
The issue 2 reprint (in 1981, $3.00 cover price) looks from the cover to be the exact same book, but actually has 15 of the 1979 pages replaced by new Dowling pages.
Looking at the covers of both editions, the only way to tell these two different editions, with different contents, is the $1.50 and $3.00 cover prices.

My 1979 copy of issue 2 was slightly scraped on a corner of the cover, so I ebay-ordered what I thought was a better copy of the same issue.
But the new copy turned out to be the revised 1981 second printing with a lot of new Dowling pages. So I see that as win-win.


And issue 3 (in 1985) is even nicer in design, with photos of all 11 contributing artists, including Brent Anderson, Gary Winnick, Frank Cirocco, Lela Dowling, Joe Chiodo, Rudi Franke, Al Gordon, Steve Swentson, Lisa Free, Cora Lee Healy and Terry Austin.
Along with a paragraph of text introducing each of them, and one or more full page illustrations by each, with nice offset printing on heavy stock glossy paper. 44 pages of art, most of them nice.



The three HEROINES SHOWCASE ART PORTFOLIO issues evolved as an upgraded collection from a preceding HEROINES SHOWCASE fanzine from the 1976-1980 period.
HEROINES SHOWCASE was published in a smaller 6" X 8" size. Focused on female comics and fantasy fiction characters.

Likewise the fanzine PRINCESSIONS. The first 12 issues were likewise in a 6" X 8" smaller size (though mis-labelled by Mycomicshop at the link as in a larger size in issues 1-12) and mostly only had 200 copies per issue printed, usually around 20 pages per issue.
In the final issues, PRINCESSIONS evolved into a larger 8" X 11" size 36-page magazine on heavier white paper and very nice covers, with more pages and interviews, and increased its circulation to 3,000 copies per issue. Issue 13 is my favorite, with an interview and focus on artist Lela Dowling (with her then-boyfriend artist Ken Macklin also sitting in on the interview, and both talking about working professionally in comics and illusttration, and using conventions to promote themselves, where they often both appeared together).

Issue 14 has an interview of fantasy author Anne McCaffrey.
Like the HEROINES SHOWCASE fanzine, PRINCESSIONS is focused on female characters, writers and artists. PRINCESSIONS started out as a fanzine on Wonder Woman in the days of the Lynda Carter TV series days. But when the series was cancelled, they expanded the fanzine to include other female characters and creators, and I think was much better for it.

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brutally Kamphausened
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[Linked Image from farm6.static.flickr.com]
Cover for MEDIASCENE 13, May-June 1975



https://comixmediascene.com/mediascene-issue-33/

https://comixmediascene.com/mediascene-issue-40/



Here's a link that shows every page of Steranko's COMIXSCENE 1-6, and MEDIASCENE 7-40, all issues.

I put links above directly to issue 33 (an all-pin-up issue, and issue 40 is as well).
But in the right margin, you can click on and view any issue in its entirety, every page, including ads.

My only disappointment is that they are not full-screen, as comics and magazines are at www.onemillioncomics.com or at www.readcomiconline.com , not displayed in the same 11" X 17" size as the original issues.
But beyond that, it at least allows you to view all 40 of the early issues of the series.


[Linked Image from blogger.googleusercontent.com]
Double page spread poster, from MEDIASCENE 34, Nov-Dec 1978
https://comixmediascene.com/mediascene-issue-34/

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brutally Kamphausened
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From near the beginning of the portfolios era, HULK magazine had a number of nice articles and portfolios.
This one from HULK issue 16, August 1979, has a decorative 6-page Hulk portfolio by Rudy Nebres.


[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]




[Linked Image from i.pinimg.com]

http://marvel1980s.blogspot.com/2016/06/1979-incredible-hulk-by-rudy-nebres.html

https://readcomiconline.li/Comic/Hulk-1978/Issue-16?id=65690





Nebres also worked his magic either doing inking or full art for MARVEL SUPER SPECIAL 11-13 in 1979, with Doug Moench, John Buscema pencils, and Nebres painted finishes and colors.
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-super-special-11/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-super-special-12/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-comics-super-special-13/


"Weirdworld" also continues in EPIC ILLUSTRATED 9, and 11-13
https://readallcomics.com/epic-illustrated-09/ by Moench and John Buscema / Marie Severin

And by Moench and Ploog/Nino, in MARVEL PREMIERE 38.
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-premiere-038/

And also in MARVEL FANFARE 24-26.
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-024/ , by Moench and Ploog/Russell
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-025/ , by Moench and Broderick/Breeding
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-026/ , by Moench, and Broderick /Aikin & Garvey



And EPIC ILLUSTRATED 1, in its opening "Silver Surfer" story by Stan Lee, with John Buscema pencils, inked by Rudy Nebres and painted by Rick Veitch. I think the MARVEL SUPER SPECIAL issues are the reason Buscema and Nebres were selected to do this opening story, as a sendoff from the usual four-color Marvel superheroes, to fantasy/SF work that aspired to take comics to a new level.
https://readallcomics.com/epic-illustrated-01/



The HULK magazine began as a black and white title, RAMPAGING HULK in issues 1-9 , and issue 9 had a nice good-girl art portfolio by Tony DeZuniga of "Shanna the She-Devil", and right after in the same issue began a Shanna series.
https://readallcomics.com/rampaging-hulk-v1-9/

But the Shanna series was not continued and concluded until MARVEL FANFARE issues 56-59, and by different artists, Infantino (56), Blevins (57-58), and Dezuniga finally returning on the last issue (59).
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-056/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-057/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-058/
https://readallcomics.com/marvel-fanfare-1982-059/



For some reason when RAMPAGING HULK was re-branded and became HULK magazine for issues 10-27, with full color on better paper and with offset printing, people seem to not know how to title the later issues.
Sometimes (as with MycomicShop.com I linked here above) they just list all 27 issues together as RAMPAGING HULK.
Other sites split them up, and issues 10-27 can be difficutt to find, sometimes listed as HULK! ( with exclamation point), others list it as HULK (without), or as HULK magazine, and I can't find issues 10-27 under any of those on ReadAllComics, just the first 9 issues.
So I linked those issues above at the ReadComicOnline website , till if / when I can ever find what they've been listed under on ReadAllComics.
ReadComicOnline has issues 10-27 under HULK (1978)

Nebres also inked, or did full art, on a number of nice SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN issues. Starting initially as an inker with issues 20 (Solomon Kane), 37 (Conan), 53 (Conan), 88 (Conan), 93 (Conan), 96 (Conan), and 98 (Conan). Then doing full art on issue 107, that has both a story with Nebres full art, plus a pin-ups portfolio after.
Likewise full Nebres art on stories in issues 114 and 121.
https://readallcomics.com/savage-sword-of-conan-v1-107/

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