Greg Goldstein's Comic Art Gallery

Gil Kane / Rich Buckler — Spider-Problems, Big & Small

Original Art and The Artists

Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #10 and Web of Spider-Man Annual #6, 1990

Described (tongue in cheek, hopefully) as a “micro-crossover,” Spidey’s Totally Tiny Adventure is a three-part story from 1990, running in the summer annuals. (Amazing Spider-Man Annual #24, The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #10, The Web of Spider-Man Annual #6).

The story, as you might guess, features Spider-Man shrinking down to Ant-Man size and beyond. It’s definitely a bit light-hearted without devolving into straight camp. (Our friends at Pulp and Dagger have a full review here.)

Gil Kane drew chapters one and three, and Rich Buckler tackled chapter two. And a trivia note: Stan Lee scripted both chapters two and three, marking a rare return to the keyboard for the Spidey’s co-creator.

Alex Saviuk — Spider-Man’s Sinister Villains

Original Art and The Artists

Convention Illustration Program, 2013

Continuing our month-long celebration of Spider-Man’s upcoming 60th anniversary.

Alex Saviuk delivers a dynamic action scene of Spider-Man battling the super-villain team, The Sinister Six. (As much as I love Spidey, I’m pretty sure even he’ going to get creamed 10 seconds later.)

Here’s why good notes are important: My pal Alex drew this for a 2013 Comic Book Convention program. The only problem is, he can’t recall which convention.

If any sharp-eyed fans have seen the published piece, and can remember where it’s from, we’d love to hear from you.

Fun Fact: Our friends at Wikipedia have listed 16 numbered versions of the “Sinister Six,” along with additional lineups from alternate realities, etc. This version is close to the original team (except swap Kraven for the Lizard). Or version #10 (the “Superior Six”) from 2013. In that case, you only have to swap the minds of Spidey and Doc Ock.

Ah, comics.

Joe Jusko — Spider-Icon

Original Art and The Artists

Variant Cover, Art of Joe Jusko, 2013

A short history of a beautiful painting:

Joe Jusko originally created this homage to this classic and iconic John Romita Spider-Man cover (#50, 1967) for a project that ultimately didn’t reach fruition.

I was fortunate enough to see the original — and not mull, noodle, or otherwise hesitate before purchasing it — when it was first offered for sale back in 2007. 

As serendipity would have it, a few years later I was at IDW, and we landed Desperado Press as an imprint. Part of that deal included bringing Desperado’s Joe Jusko art book back into print.

Not wanting to miss potential opportunity for Joe or IDW, I asked Marvel if we could license the Spider-Man image for the cover of an exclusive limited edition version of the book. They said yes, told me the fee, and, after some smelling salts revived me, I said yes as well.

We (deliberately) only made 100 copies, and, on a per capita basis, it remains the most expensive licensing deal I have ever made.

But it’s a stunning piece that absolutely deserved to be a cover. (And, importantly, everyone would make a bit of money, so there’s that.)

And what did John Romita himself think about Joe’s painting?

“I had this piece on display at a Baltimore Con one year and who walks by my table and sees it, but John, “ says Jusko. 

“He studied it for a while and then told me how much he liked it. A lot of guys would say that just to be nice, but John never said what he didn’t mean. For the rest of the show I had people coming over to my table saying John sent them over, telling them they had to see the painting. I’ve seldom been more flattered!”

John Romita Jr. — Spider-Legacy

Original Art and The Artists

Amazing Spider-Man #26, February 2001

Marvel announced only last month that John Romita Jr. will celebrate Spider-Man’s 60th Anniversary with… a return to drawing Spider-Man.

To quote Matthew Jackson on SyFy Wire:

“Romita Jr. made a name for himself as a key Marvel artist thanks in large part to his work on Spider-Man. He first drew the character in 1977, as the rising star son of the legendary John Romita Sr., and went on to become one of the definitive pencillers to ever work on the character… Now, he’s back in full force at his original superhero home, and he’s teaming up with one of the 21st century great Spider-Man writers for a whole new era on the character.”

For an overview of some of Romita’s greatest Marvel work, see the article at Comicbook.com:https://comicbook.com/news/10-greatest-john-romita-jr-creative-runs/

 

Marc Hempel — Spidey’s Bad Night

Original Art and The Artists

Marvel Fanfare #27, July 1986

Marc Hempel showcases his witty sense of storytelling in an amusing short Spidey story from 1986. Hempel, best know for his work on Sandman, brings some welcome lightheartedness to the character without devolving into Not Brand Echh mode.

Stylistically, think Steve Ditko meets Los Hernandez Brothers.

I didn’t acquire a Ditko Spider-man original art page back when they were simply “very expensive,” and now that prices have soared into the stratosphere, it feels even more unlikely. Homages and tributes will have to do.

And that’s perfectly ok.

(Complete story presented below. As far as I can tell, It’s never been reprinted.)

Planet Money — The Spider-Man Problem

Original Art and The Artists

Podcast, January 28, 2022

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – JULY 02: South Koreans wear Spider-Man cloths during the ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ Seoul Premiere at Yeongdeunpo Times Square on July 2, 2017 in Seoul, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Kismet.

I’m prepping a series of posts to celebrate the Spider-Man’s upcoming 60th anniversary, and my favorite podcast series, Planet Money, airs an episode on the complex Spidey film partnership between Sony and Marvel.

It’s a great episode, and covers a ton of round in under a half an hour. If I noticed anything “missing,” it’s the drama that happened a few years ago when we heard posturing (bloviating, actually) about Sony and Disney not reaching a new agreement to keep Spidey in the MCU.

Really?

The last Sony Spider-Man film not in the MCU, Amazing Spider-Man 2, grossed about $700 million worldwide. Not shabby, but no where near expectations.

The current Spidey film, No Way Home, has grossed about $1.7 billion globally, and counting. That’s an extra BILLION dollars.

Think about that. It doesn’t matter how that negotiation ultimately played out, everyone made a TON of money. At least on the film side.

On the comic book side? That’s a tale for another day.

Tony Daniel — Spider-Man’s Amazing Feat

Original Art and The Artists

Commission (Based On Steve Ditko, Amazing Spider-Man #33, November 1965), 2013

Amazing. Spectacular. Sensational.

It doesn’t matter what adjective you put in front of Spider-Man’s name, his actual popularity dwarfs them all.

And he celebrates his 60th anniversary later this year.

So why not celebrate the world’s most famous web-slinger with a whole month of Spider-Man art.

Why not indeed?

First up — Tony Daniel’s terrific tribute to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s most iconic issue of the original series, Amazing Spider-Man #33.  

It’s not that Spider-Man wouldn’t be saved (Heck, even a little kid knows that.) But in that classic story, Ditko masterfully conveyed Spidey’s struggle and necessary force of will to find the strength to lift tons of machinery and save himself. 

No Iron Man or Thor to the rescue. This is all about Spider-Man’s personal will to survive — so that he himself can rescue Aunt May.

It’s likely the most powerful three-page comic book sequence of the era.

Harris is not the first creator to pay tribute to the scene, but he does it masterfully, creating an image that exists somewhere seconds before page three of Ditko’s original sequence.

Additionally, Harris uses a muted color palate, perfect for the art. I don’t typically pursue color art, but this piece grabbed me the moment I saw it.

Amazing indeed.

Ray Lago’s tribute from a “Marvel Portraits Comic”

Dave Stevens — Inking A Legend

Original Art and The Artists

Tarzan Weekly (UK) #3, June 25, 1977

The late Dave Stevens was among the many talented artists to work on the short-lived Tarzan Weekly (UK) in 1977.

Editor Russ Manning employed friends and current and former assistants alike in the execution of the ERB-themed stories. 

Other talented hands included Bill Stout, Mike Royer, Danny Bulandi, an Mike Ploog to name a few.

Sometimes the credits are a little murky, as I confirmed a few months ago With Bill Stout at SDCC.  Often, an artist would pick up whatever page was closet to deadline, and pencil, ink, or both and then switch. All depending on schedule, and who was in the studio. But this page has been confirmed as Stevens — and even though its very early professional work, you can see it.

The young Stevens (about 20 at the time) was already working with Manning when Russ started editing the Tarzan series. He had assisted on the Tarzan comic strip and would ultimately pitch in on Star Wars strip as well.

Fun Fact:

2022 is the 40th anniversary of the Rocketeer, Stevens best known work, and (rightly) a legend among comic art enthusiasts.

But you already knew that part.

Dave Stevens later jungle work evolves into a different focus.

Russ Manning — Tarzan, Revisited

Original Art and The Artists

“Tarzan In Savage Pellucidar,” Graphic Novel, 1975

This beautiful Russ Manning splash page has never been published in the US, or in English at all, for that matter.

A foreign publisher hired Manning and his team to create a series of graphic albums for the European markets in the mid 70s. Manning, having beautifully illustrated the Tarzan comic strips, as well as some of the Gold Key comics, was a perfect choice.

A few years back, Dark Horse reprinted two of those graphic albums, but I assume sales were not significant to continue. (Unless it simply fell through the cracks. Not a likely scenario, but it does happen occasionally.)

Another original art page from this story appeared in auction last year, and it too is a beauty.

I would really love to see the whole thing. I haven’t been able to find a foreign edition. But I will, eventually. Trust me on this.

Tarzan in Savage Pellucidar appeared in many languages — except, strangely, in English.
From the dept. of nearly naked women and trippy 70s posters: Neal Adams art for Warp precedes Russ Manning’s poster for Tarzan by a few years. Phantasmagorical indeed.