Let me start by confessing that when I first started looking at comic books, I honestly could not have known any less about DC comics, their characters, or especially their creators. I knew of Superman and Batman of course. But that was more from TV than from comics. While I was exposed early on to just about every publisher, title, and character (from my dad bringing home bags and bags of comics given by his shipmates during his Navy days), I eventually gravitated to Marvel and was pretty much a Marvel zombie from the jump. So when I started collecting OA, most of the artists and characters I liked were of course from Marvel.

If you had asked me 60 years ago who Ramona Fradon was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. If you had asked me who she was 40 years ago when I started collecting art, I still wouldn’t have been able to tell you. If you had asked me 30 years ago, I could have told you who she was but I probably wouldn’t have cared. And now, I have an actual drawing by her. Yes, it was a gift. And no, I probably would never have actively sought out a Fradon piece on my own. But it would be a mistake to underestimate my appreciation for this gift and this drawing. And it would also be a mistake to think that I wouldn’t be honored to have a true legend like Ramona Fradon represented in my collection/gallery.

While I knew almost nothing of Ms. Fradon for most of her long career in comics, I was stunned by what I have since learned. This amazing artist worked in comics longer than I have been alive (and I’m in my 60’s in case anyone doesn’t know). When I tell you that she worked almost right up until the end, that is not an exaggeration. She finally retired from comics in January of this year, and passed away only a month later. Now I don’t care what publisher, title, character, artist, era, or genre, you collect. You HAVE to respect the hell out of anyone who worked in the industry for almost 75 years. Some career highlights. She revamped the character of Aquaman for his first Silver Age appearance. Co-created the character of Aqualad. And probably most well known for co-creating the character Metamorpho. She is in both the Women Cartoonist Hall of Fame and the Eisner Award Hall of Fame. The fact that I have ignored someone of her stature, and prominence in comics history, is an embarrassment that I will probably never live down.

So I want to thank our resident King of Comments, Marcus. Not just for his generous and beautiful gift, but for furthering my education even near the end of my collecting career. Just goes to show that you are never too old and it is never too late to expand your horizon.

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