I don't know exactly when I became a Jerry Grandenetti fan, but it might 've been when I got a gander at these delightful covers he produced for DC's reprint Black Magic comic book fromt he early 70's. Grandenetti was partnering regularly with Joe Simon at the time, working on such projects as Prez and The Green Team. So when it was time to give the Simon and Jack Kirby classics from the old Prize Comics series, it was Grandenetti who generated seven new covers for the nine issue run. (For the record, Joe Simon drew another and a classic Simon and Kirby original was used for another.) Here are they are in all their glorious weirdness.
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| (Joe Simon) |
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| (Joe Simon and Jack Kirby Original) |
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Grandenetti is an interesting figure. I think I first saw his work in the Warren magazines, where he seemed very influenced by German Expressionist films. He'd spent quite a few years working for Kanigher's war books and did a very Ditkoesque version of the Spectre. He goes all the way back to the earliest days of comics, when he drew the Spirit for Eisner. He had quite an artistic range. It's hard to believe that the same guy who drew these Black Magic covers also created those beautiful grey tone war covers.
ReplyDeleteHe was among the many talented folks who were on the earliest Atlas-Seaboard books, the horror stuff in fact. That stuff made a huge impression.
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I have these 9 issues myself - even did a cover gallery a while back. I remember buying #1, and even recall the shop where I bought it, way back in the '70s.
ReplyDeleteGreat covers seem to imprint themselves on the mind.
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