Let's talk Gil Kane...

[Blue Meanie]

Why isn't Gil Kane mentioned in the same breath with the likes of Kirby, Romita, and Ditko when it comes to great artists?? Especially when it comes to the fact that it's always Romita and Kirby that are mentioned as THE Marvel artists that shaped Marvel Comics. I've been buying some original art here and there and I have one Kane pre-lim for a Conan Cover...but I've been noticing more and more that during the 70's Gil was THE GUY at Marvel when it came to laying out and doing pre-lims for covers. Almost seems like he was the art director at Marvel during the 70's. I was thinking, maybe he's not regarded in Marvel as much because he had been working for DC years before working for Marvel. I mean Kirby and Romita literally grew up with Marvel. Romita doing the later 1st Cap series and Kirby doing literally every kind of genre for Marvel during the 40's - 60's. I wish I would have had the pleasure to have met Gil when he was alive. Here's the pre-lim I was hoping to win:

and here's the finished cover

[The Toyroom]

Interesting point....Gil Kane did tons of great dynamic covers for Marvel back in the 70s but you're right, he gets nary a mention next to the likes of Kirby, Romita, Buscema. I think it IS because he was associated with DC heroes for so long like Green Lantern and the Atom. At Marvel, there wasn't one character (besides Spider-Man and that was often in collaboration with Romita, no?) that Kane is really associated with. And let's not forget that iconic cover he gave us to Giant-Size X-Men #1 (with Dave Cockrum).

[palitoy]

Love the man, consider him a master but you're right, I really think of him as a DC great.

[The Toyroom]

Although at Marvel he did have that cool nickname..."Sugarlips"

[The Toyroom]

Looking over a list of some of his Marvel work, I guess you could say he was most associated with Conan and similar sword and sorcery titles. Besides Spider-Man, that seems to be where he clocked in most of his time as an interior penciller.

[LadyZod]

When I think of Gil Kane, I think nostrils. Nostrils and Green Lantern.

That's not necessarily a bad thing. Love his work.

[Blue Meanie]

And let's not forget that iconic cover he gave us to Giant-Size X-Men #1 (with Dave Cockrum).

Our very own Clemso had the pre-lim to that cover. I wish he could find that shot he had of it. If I remember correctly from the last time I saw the pic, Nightcrawler had a different outfit than was on the finished cover....now that was a thing of beauty. C'mon Clem...find that scan/pic of that cover.

Yeah, I think because of his association with DC and let's not forget he was also associated with Tower Comics (Thunder Agents) that may be the thing that maybe makes him one step below the lifers at Marvel...but again, it looks like to me that they basically gave him a cover from each book of the month to come up with layouts for.

I love the fact that you could tell a Kane cover or, art in general, from the noses on his characters. BTW, Sword of the Atom is one of my all-time favorite Mini-Series.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I'm a big fan of Kane. When I was a kid, I didn't care much for his contemporary work. I preferred his cleaner work in GL and Atom reprints (mostly due to the inking of Murphy Anderson, Joe Giella, and Sid Greene). But I still admired the dynamism of his newer stuff. He re-energized the Superman titles at the time. As an adult I really like his later stuff. The fact that his touch is all over the Ruby Spears Superman series is very cool.

Kane was to Marvel in the 70s what Neal Adams and Nick Cardy were at the time. THE cover artist. I'd say he drew more covers for Marvel in one decade than Kirby did before him. It's just a guess though.

Besides the up the nostril shot, I will say no one drew a better punch than Kane. Not even Kirby. Kane's figures seemed to literally knock their opponents out of the comic. Whenever I draw a fight scene, I think "what would Gil Kane do!"

Chris

[Blue Meanie]

What find very interesting is that John Buscema and Gil had similar styles on how to get to the finished "Product". At times it seems they went to the same school. Here's the Kane pre-lim that I have which I thought was Buscema when I first got my hands on it...I thought maybe the Ebay seller had gotten it wrong, but Gil's assistant Ken Landgraf said that it was in fact Gil's layout:

and here's the finished cover by Buscema

[aquatroy]

I LOVE Gil Kane! I don't think of him as a Marvel or DC artist. I just think of him as one of the great comics artists ever! His name should be spoken in the same breath as Kirby & Ditko. Star Hawks was the first time I went out of my way to read a daily comic strip.




Kane is just freaking iconic. I'm gushing.

[samurainoir]

To me, he's Sword of Atom and Green Lantern.

Sword of Atom's in trade!

[samurainoir]

[samurainoir]

[The Toyroom]

^ Love that splash from JLA #200....Classic Kane....Atom, GL and a power punch!

[saildog]

To me, he's Sword of Atom and Green Lantern.

Sword of Atom's in trade!
http://superfriendsofdorothy.com/wp-...doftheatom.jpg

I picked up that mini-series (4 parts) and two specials for a buck a piece just a couple of weeks before that costume was used in Blackest Night.