APOCOLYTE'S WORLD OF COMICS: WAR

Showing posts with label WAR. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Russ Heath's 1st Comic Book Art - "HAMMERHEAD HAWLEY"!

Welcome, comic fan!

I am

THE

APOCOLYTE!

Russ Heath is certainly one of the most well respected and talented artists ever to draw comics.

Even the greatest artists have to start somewhere, and today we will look at the first comic book art ever created by Russ Heath!

The year is 1942, and Russ heath is only 16 years old, still in high school!

He manages to get a freelance job working for Holyoke Comics, drawing a character called "Hammerhead" Hawley. The feature appeared in CAPTAIN AERO COMICS #8, 9, 10,11, 13, and 14 between 1942 and 1944. According to russheath.com and wikipedia sometimes Heath would be inking over the pencils of artist Charles Quinlan, but at least 2 or 3 times Heath did the art chores entirely by himself. Those are the stories we will look at here today, from issues #8, 13, and 14. The artwork in the other "Hammerhead" Hawley stories is likely Heath on inks, and does not quite match up to these Heath solo ventures, especially the last two stories which are clearly signed by Heath.

The art in these stories give a glimpse of the future greatness that is to come.

Heath went into the Air Force at the end of high school and in 1947 began his career in earnest at Atlas/Marvel Comics, and would later become one of DC Comics highest esteemed war comics artists.

(Warning! These comics present racial stereotypes that may now be considered "politically incorrect")

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-click to enlarge-

From CAPTAIN AERO COMICS #8, 1942

The above story marked the initial appearance of "Hammerhead" Hawley, and according to wikipedia and the GCD (which may or may not be accurate) was entirely by Heath. There does appear to be the initials R.H. on the last page, and we can presume that Heath did ink the story at the very least. If not entirely representing the familiar Heath art style, there are certainly elements to suggest that his hand, however young and inexperienced, was involved.

The following two stories mark the final two appearances of "Hammerhead", and seem to be clearly identified on the splash page(s) as being illustrated by Heath alone. This same conclusion can also be drawn by the trained artistic eye, as the familiar Heath style is becoming more strongly evident. These last two stories do show a definite improvement in the young artists abilities beyond those shown the first story.

From CAPTAIN AERO COMICS # 13, 1944

From CAPTAIN AERO COMICS # 14, 1944

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Well?

What do you think?

Pretty darned good for a kid still in High School, huh?

If you'd like to see one of Russ Heath's most lavishly illustrated comic stories,

click here or on the image below.

This beautifully and realistically rendered tale from BLAZING COMBAT is being represented at

BLACK 'N' WHITE AND RED ALL OVER!

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Tuesday, April 6, 2010

WAR: KILL OR BE KILLED - Atlas' "FIRST BLOOD!" and EC's "ENEMY ASSAULT!"

Cover art by George Tuska

Today I'm comparing two stories that address the subject of killing during wartime. While the two comics featured were both published during the Korean War, I'm sure the psychology of killing remains the same no matter what the era or conflict.

I found it interesting to compare the way each writer/publisher handled the subject. I have already made it clear in earlier posts that I find EC Comics war titles, as edited by Harvey Kurtzman, to be superior to most every other war comics, past or present, so naturally one of the stories here is a solid representative of those Kurtzman war titles. The other story is taken from Stan Lee and company's Atlas Comics.

Up first is a short story entitled "FIRST BLOOD!" from Atlas' WAR COMBAT #2, 1952 (I know what you're going to say, and no, there is no one named Rambo in this one). It concerns a soldier new to life-or-death combat, and the mental agonies he faces over the prospect of taking another man's life.

The art is by Norman Steinberg. The story is

"FIRST BLOOD!"

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As we've explored here before, many war comic stories can range from a serious, thoughtful look at the philosophies and ramifacations of war, to the basic patriotic near-propaganda type story. This interesting tale seems to start as one and end as the other. By the end of the story, quite suddenly, our protaganist has dropped any apprehensions he held for the first 99% of the story and adopts the attitude that his Sergeant has been trying to sell him, and as if he were a robot who realizes that his emotions were clouding his judgement, he dismisses his enemies as human beings and transforms them into 'dirty rats'. All of a sudden he becomes a killing machine, eager to find more 'symbols of tyranny' to gut.

To my friends who have served in the military and have faced such threats, I'll say that I can only try to understand how it must be to face a situation like this. From the harrowing true combat stories I've been told, I can understand that facing a deadly enemy who is out to kill you rather necessitates such a simplified outlook. I'm only saying here that this story seems to ignore the larger issues of having to kill a man for the very first time and wraps up the subject into a neat package wrapped in a red, white and blue bow. There are no hints here that he will later have nightmares about this. Hey, I know it's just a comic book, and no one really expects to find a deeper psychological understanding in a comic. Still, the story started out with promise that it just might delve a bit deeper...

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...Which brings us to our second tale, and true to form, Kurtzman's writing and layouts do offer a much more complex view on the subject of the 'enemy'. From FRONTLINE COMBAT #1, 1951, we now look at a story drawn by the amazing Jack Davis. The story isn't focused on the soldiers first kill, but rather takes us to an uncomfortable place where we must face the fact that our enemy is a man, just as we.

Written by Harvey Kurtzman, art by Jack Davis.

"ENEMY ASSAULT!"

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To be honest, Kurtzman's story seems to end on the same type of patriotic note of duty over emotion. But it is far more complex than that, as we, through the American soldier's eyes, have learned a lesson that his companions were not aware of. As he turns once more to fire at the tiny figures as if they were no more than ducks in a shooting gallery arcade, we are profoundly aware of the incomprehensible emotional journey he has just made, the gut-wrenching burden that will likely haunt him for the rest of his life. This is an incredibly moving story, delving so much deeper into the subject than the Atlas story chose to explore. By comparison, our first story barely scratched the surface. The second story took us all the way into that dark pit and exposed us to a small glimpse into the true horror of war.

Remember,

The next time you meet one of our brave soldiers,

don't forget to give them the honor and respect that they deserve.

Frontline Combat #1 cover proof with signature by artist Harvey Kurtzman

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

HARVEY KURTZMAN - One Of Comics Greatest Geniuses

My ex-wife is missing out.

We all have self-imposed blind-spots, if you will.

Let me back up.

I'm using my ex-wife as an illustration, in order to point out an error we may all be committing in our daily lives.

She enjoys many different kinds of TV shows and movies, for example, she is a fan of C.S.I. (any of 'em) and cop shows in general. She has nothing against a shoot'em up action movie like Die Hard. One of her favorite actors is Clint Eastwood.

That said, she has imposed a rule in her mind that limits her enjoyment...she will not, ABSOLUTELY NOT, watch a movie featuring either of the following: War or Boxing. Period.

A few years ago I bought the DVD "Million Dollar Baby", starring Clint Eastwood, her biggest hero. She refused to watch it, to this very day. Why? Because it has boxing in it. It didn't do any good to inform her that Clint not only starred in it, he also directed it and it won several Oscars, one for direction, one for best picture, and co-stars Morgan Freeman and Hillary Swank each won Oscars for their performances. I could not change her mind.

Which is hugely tragic, in my opinion, because while she is trying to filter out whatever she finds unpleasant regarding these 'genres', she does not realize what she is missing. Most 'war' movies for example are not trying to condone or glorify killing or warfare, that is merely the setting of the story. The story is what is important, not the setting. The story isn't going to be about how wonderful killing is, but how we as people deal with events like war, tragedy and death, cowardice and courage. There are giant lessons to be learned, and by closing off that doorway she will never understand some of these things as well as she could.

That was a lot of rambling to finally bring us to my main point -

Don't let misconceptions prevent you from experiencing the lessons that life has to offer...in regards to comic books, don't be afraid of certain genres because they are unfamiliar to you. Guys, go look at an old Romance comic, you'll find something worth looking for. Ladies, don't fear War comics, there is real heroism and history, and much to learn about ourselves and the world around us.

There. All that was said is to preface my real point -- Harvey Kurtzman was a genius who contributed more to the comics we know and love than we can really understand.

Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, – February 21, 1993).

Harvey Kurtzman was an amazingly talented fellow who was responsible for creating MAD as well as the finest War comics ever produced. He was already writing and drawing his own type of comics by the time he joined the ranks of EC Comics in 1949. In 1950 he began writing, editing, and laying out every story for TWO-FISTED TALES, as well as drawing stories himself as well. In 1951, he added FRONTLINE COMBAT to the list, and in 1952 his unmistakable brand of humor emerged with the first issue of MAD. Comics have never been the same since, and thank God for it.

(Taken from Wikipedia - Writing for Time Magazine, Richard Corliss touted Kurtzman's influence:
"MAD was the first comic enterprise that got its effects almost entirely from parodying other kinds of popular entertainment… To say that this became an influential manner in American comedy is to understate the case. Almost all American satire today follows a formula that Harvey Kurtzman thought up.”)

Another huge Kurtzman fan, Ren & Stimpy creator John K. on his blog summed up some great truth about Kurtzman and his art. He says it better than I could...

"I personally like Kurtzman's work even more than the Mad artists he supervised. Kurtzman did the layouts for most of the Mad (and E.C) comics. In other words, he drew quick compositions in thumbnail form. The artists lost a lot of the larger design element inherent in Harvey's work. His organized crowds became chaotic hard to read jumbles in the hands of the more famous cartoonists - in my opinion. But one thing most fans are in agreement on: Wally Wood, Jack Davis, Will Elder and the bunch did their best work under Kurtzman's direction.

Kurtzman is a rare creature that sees the big picture. Most artists get buried in the details. The fact that Harvey drew each character "simpler" than most artists makes it easier to see the composition and big picture and we can learn from that. It also makes beginner artists tend to think he is "primitive". Harvey thinks like a good animation director or a good short story writer."

John K's summary of Kurtzman 'seeing the big picture' is certainly an accurate one. It took me a while to realize this myself over the years, as I initially brushed off his artwork as...amatuerish! Can you imagine? I was blinded by the glitzy tight finishes of the other EC stars, Wally Wood and Frank Frazetta and the like, and didn't realize how amazing and perfect Kurtzman's designs really were.

Kurtzman distilled every cover or panel down to it's most basic essentials, and never was there a figure or an object out of place. Everything was designed to get across his point. His figures are more like caricatures than real characters, but inevitably that is the basis of great comic book story-telling.

Here are a couple of wonderful examples of Kurtzman's brilliant ability to draw fluid. living, relatable humor stories (also taken from John K's blog).

Below is an example of early Kurtzman dramatic stories. BLACK VENUS, from CONTACT Comics # 6, 1945. (Scanned from a comic I used to own...alas, at this moment I can only find this one scan page)

STORIES OF CONSCIENCE

Now, how would someone like Harvey Kurtzman, with the supreme gift of humor, react to war?

Why, he would hate it with every fiber of his being, naturally.

That is why his war themed comics are so incredible, because for the most part, they are stories of conscience. He took his unique gifts for story-telling, and told stories that inevitably had the same moral:

"War is evil. No one wins. Why are we killing each other?"

Kurtzman's genius established TWO-FISTED TALES and FRONTLINE COMBAT as arguably the greatest war comics ever produced.

There were also the detailed and accurate historical recountings that Kurtzman supervised , but it was those fictional stories that most often revealed the tragedy and humanity that links us all together.

Here are two out of many brilliant Harvey Kurtzman war stories for your enjoyment. Take the time to look at each panel, and you can see how he laid each one out with apparent ease and genius to tell these unforgettably gripping stories.

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Kurtzman reveals the truth, that even if you get what you want in war, there are no winners.

Thou Shalt Not...

KILL!

From TWO-FISTED TALES #23, 1951

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One of his most moving anti-war stories, "RUBBLE", tells the story from the point of view of a family who have the misfortune of trying to live their lives as war rolls through their country. Kurtzman bravely chooses to show our 'enemy' as a caring, loving human being with no thoughts of hate or war. We don't even have to participate in the war to be utterly destroyed by it.