Doug Wildey – Greg Goldstein's Comic Art Gallery

Steve Rude — What Is That Thing?

July 22, 2021 Greg Goldstein Original Art and The Artists

Nexus #26, November 1986

Recipe for a Steve “The Dude” Rude artist dish:

Start with a full-size portion of Russ Manning, then add a very generous helping of Jack Kirby.

Mix in in a cup of Alex Toth, a shot of Doug Wildey, and a pinch of Joe Schuster, and… voila, you have yourself a full Steve Rude gourmet meal.

Unfortunately, it’s a one-of-a-kind meal, near impossible to replicate.

Clean and distinctive, Rude is among my favorites of the “modern” artists working in graphic storytelling. (In other words: Old guys who, like me, are not that old.)

Nexus, created by Rude and writer Mike Baron, celebrates its 40^th anniversary this year. Pages from early issues featuring the titular character rarely become available, and this great one isn’t going anywhere soon.

We continue with our month long celebration of the “Independents” — Independent creators and projects that continue to impact the comic book medium. We’re back on Tuesday (7/27) with… Jim Lee. Have a great weekend.

Doug Wildey — Reverence

November 19, 2020 Greg Goldstein Original Art and The Artists

Wyatt Earp #28, April 1960

Here’s a dramatic title page by the legendary Doug Wildey from 1960.

My reaction to the page, however, pales in comparison to the one from the story’s co-creator, Stan Lee.

Back in about 2010, we visited Stan in his Beverly Hills office to get some signature plates signed for the first John Romita Spider-Man Artists Edition. Stan’s “people” were kind enough to let us bring some personal items to get signed as well, so I brought a few pages of original art with me.

Stan, who was telling stories and singing while he was signing (Yes, singing, not a typo for signing. Story for another day.) stopped dead in his tracks when he saw this page of art.

He stared at it quietly for a few moments — given the speedy pace of our morning, it seemed like an eternity — and you could see pleasant memories wash over his face. And then the big Stan Lee smile:

“Doug Wildey. Wow. He was great. So terrific. I loved his stuff. I wish we had a chance to do more together.”

He handed the page back to me, still beaming, still examining it up and down as he slowly passed it back. I had seen Stan sign thousands of items; many of them with fond remembrances, but nothing quite like this.

A great page, certainly. But perhaps an even greater memorable moment — for the two of us.