Beerbohm, Robert :: Beerbohm Memory Book

JACK KIRBY

Artist: Jack Kirby (All)

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Artwork Details

Title:	JACK KIRBY
Artist:	Jack Kirby (All)
Media Type:	Marker
Art Type:	Sketchbook
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	1,164
Likes on CAF:	0 1
Comments:	1
Added to Site:	12/18/2014
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Description

I First Met Jack Kirby in 1970 at the first San Diego Comicon.

Having first met Jack at the first San Diego Comicon in 1970, I had countless talk raps with Jack Kirby at comicons all over the country in the decades since, as many of us older timers were blessed with, but the most intense one was during a mid 70s El Cortez SDCC back when it was still known by many as “Golden State Comicon.”

I had a prearranged meeting of time with then-wife Susan to catch up next to the El Cortez pool at 6 PM.

Dealer room across the back street in that building the Cortez owners had put up closed then and out I come streaming across with a very proud possession I had won in heavy competition with others therein which was the then earliest known Simon & Kirby original art out on the market place, a page from Star Spangled Comics #19 1942 wherein S&K had Hitler’s Nazis conquer New York City changing Times Square in to Hitler Strasse on the page, a Nazi on a huge horse inside a church in another panel, powerful it remains, almost a thousand dollars it had just cost me in cash and trade, proud still I remain for once being its owner. I loved that page, still miss it very much.

As I came up to Susan I was gushing about this wondrous newest edition to my then burgeoning pile of comics “stuff” which had grown in to a way of life for so many of us back in the day. Having sold out from Comics & Comix in 1975, I had gone “solo” again Nov 1976 opening up first in the Haight Ashbury, San Francisco, right across the street from the historic Straight Theater. By May 1977 I re-occupied 2512 Telegraph Ave when my former partners moved their flag ship a block closer to the campus. A few years later we got Best of Two Worlds moved even closer on The Ave to UC-Berkeley campus, but again, I digress….

Almost oblivious to my fan boy enthusiasm, Susan went, “That’s nice, dear, I want to introduce you to my new friend Roz. We are waiting for her husband to show up. Then the four of us are going out to dinner.”

For a couple minutes there, lost in my own excitement of what I had just scored, I was oblivious to what Susan had just uttered re “Roz” right up until Jack Kirby, ever present entourage in tow, comes walking up. After exchanging pleasantries the four of us then got in to the Kirby car. Off we went for a memorable dinner and talk fest.

During the course of this dinner was when I first asked Jack, along with Roz, about Ditko’s afore-mentioned claim regarding ‘royalty’ concepts. That Ditko had tried to get Kirby to walk at the same time.

Jack corroborated Ditko’s “testimony” of initially agreeing to walk, then backing out at the last moment, So did Roz. The thought pattern as envisioned by the two which Ditko had presented to them was paralyzing Marvel so Goodman would finally listen.

Jack, and rightfully so, a product of the Great Depression of the 1930s, was ever fearful of not being able to provide for his kids month in, month out. He could not take the risk. He had earlier burned a bridge via DC via a scenario over Sky Master newspaper comic strip with Jack Schiff who was still working there. [His long time friend Carmine Infantino, though, was soon to become DC publisher.]

I learned a lot that night regarding Jack and Roz’s life in comics from which I followed up occasionally over the years with further queries to flesh out time lines in my head thinking one day I wanted to compose some sort of history book on the business of comic books in America.

My guess at the date of this conversation remains torn between either 1977 and 1978. I am leaning towards the latter based off what happened right after dinner before we headed back to the Comicon area of San Diego.

As a wondrous (to me) sidebar of sorts: Following dinner, once we got to the Kirby car, Jack and Roz led Susan and myself to the trunk. Opening it, they showed us 600 pages of Kirby original comic book art from Marvel and DC. They said to me they were seeking three comics ‘dealer’ persons they could trust to each buy 200 pages for $20 each and not try to flood the market so Jack’s “average” originals would maintain their market value then from $30 to $100 each for the most part. I was in that trunk “first” – joyously I picked out page after page from Captain America, Demon, Omac, Mister Miracle, New Gods, Mr Miracle, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen among other stuff. It was hard having to pass up so many other cool pages limited to I was to ‘only’ 200 of them.

Also that night at dinner Jack drew a bust of Captain America for Susan, signed to her,

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About the Owner

	Robert Beerbohm
Joined:	February 2010
Last Login:	July 2023
Country:	UNITED STATES
On CAF:	Robert's Want List Artworks Commented On Liked Art Site Activity on CAF

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Sean Rutan
Member Since 2012

Posted on 12/18/2014

Cool stuff right here!

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