Kirby Collage Jimmy Olsen 134 page 12 ZOOMWAY

Woohoo! In just the second published Fourth World issue, Jack unloads a non-stop psychedelic thrill ride on the unsuspecting readers of one of DC's squarest books. Habitat! The Outsiders! The Hairies! Zoomway! The Mountain of Judgement! On top of all this conceptual invention he was dropping aesthetic bombs as well, with knockout double page spreads and a contemporary take on Superman that DC couldn't abide--and a wild two page collage sequence, see additional image, of which this is the first.

It was reproduced in black and white due to technological limitations of the day, which had it's own freaky vibe, but Kirby clearly thought in color. I first saw this page in the collection of my friend Steve Roden, a brilliant artist and collector, now sadly gone. Both of us were obsessed with Kirby collages, but he actually had some! I think he would be happy to know this one ended up with me. Pouring one out for you buddy.

James Romberger discovered one of the main sources for the collage, a Jimi Hendrix spread in LIFE magazine, see additional image. His article on Kirby & psychedelia is here: https://www.thearteriesgroup.com/JackKirbyRomberger.html Other pieces, like the car and the tracks, have not been identified as far as I know.

A Kirby collage has been on my NEED list for a long time, so this is a big day for me, & the fact that it's a Fourth World page is gravy.