Synopses & Reviews
Featuring over 80 full-color portraits of the pioneering legends of American comic books, including publishers, editors and artists from the industry's birth in the '30s, through the brilliant artists and writers of behind EC Comics in the '50s. All lovingly rendered and chosen by Drew Friedman, a cartooning legend in his own right. Featuring subjects popular and obscure, men and women, as well as several pioneering African-American artists. Each subject features a short essay by Friedman, who grew up knowing many of the subjects included (as the son of writer Bruce Jay Friedman), including Stan Lee, Harvey Kurtzman, Will Eisner, Mort Drucker, Al Jaffee, Jack Davis, Will Elder, and Bill Gaines. More names you might recognize: Barks, Crumb, Wood, Wolverton, Frazetta, Siegel & Shuster, Kirby, Cole, Ditko, Werthem... it's a Hall of Fame of comic book history from the man BoingBoing.com call "America's greatest living portrait artist!"
Review
"...Brilliant... it's pretty cool to be able to put a face on these names that you've seen in the history of comics, and with Friedman's exaggerated, friendly art, it works really well." Bob Leeper Nerdvana
Review
"...[T]his collection of 85 mostly unknown faces is as exciting to my eye as most comics are -- and the short biographies are nice to have, too. Friedman is known for adroitly capturing gesture, mood, and psychological nuance in vivid portraits somehow combining elements of caricature and realism. ... Each of his portraits feels so alive, it is like being welcomed into each artist's private world." The A.V. Club
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"... is an invaluable treasure trove of comic book history... packed full of incredible art and insight, and in addition to Drew's wonderful artwork, the brilliantly researched biographical information is also fascinating." R. Fiore The Comics Journal
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"What's remarkable about so many of the portraits is that Friedman manages to capture something essential about each artist or writer -- especially those who met grim fates." Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson The Beat
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" by Drew Friedman is one of the best books of the year! If you love comic books and the people who created them -- this is a must-have!" Nicky Wheeler-Nicholson The Beat
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"...[] is not merely a display of Friedman's particular prowess, but a significant work of comics history." Jerry Beck Cartoon Research
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"The portraits are a genuine insight and reflection of the person and their contribution. Special kudos to Drew for his careful research so that the bios are accurate and help to add to the ongoing study of how it all began in comics." HEEB
Review
"If you're a comic fan, is a nice Christmas gift." Marc Maron
Review
"Drew Friedman's is a singular book, hard to categorize and yet sure to appeal to many fans. ...... shows the medium's defining faces in new, sometimes touching, and sometimes grotesque lights." Tim O'Neil
Review
"Drew Friedman... has done it again, with his lovingly crafted collection of comic book creator portraits... Next to each portrait is a short lovingly written appreciation." Rob Clough The Comics Journal
Review
"While not technically a comic, this collection of illustrations of a wide variety of figures from the history of comics nonetheless shows how a single image can tell a story. Friedman presents figures both obscure and famous as working figures at their desks while providing historical info that is unsparing relating to exploitation. He manages to bring every image to life, be it beaten down or upbeat." Steven Heller The Atlantic
Synopsis
This collects Drew Friedman's portraits of famous and not-so-famous cartoonists: the men and women who created superheroes, magazine, and much more.
About the Author
Drew Friedman's work has appeared in Raw, Weirdo, SPY, The New York Times, MAD, The New Yorker, BLAB!, The New York Observer, Rolling Stone, Field & Stream, appears regularly in Entertainment Weekly and many other magazines. His collection of portraits Drew Friedman's Sideshow Freaks was published by Blast books in 2011. He resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and collaborator, Kathy Bidus and their two beagles.Born in Philadelphia, R. Crumb is the author of numerous comic works and one of the pioneers of underground comics. His books include Kafka, The Complete Crumb Comics (17 volumes), The R. Crumb Sketchbook (10 volumes), R. Crumb Draws the Blues, The Book of Mr. Natural, the #1 New York Times bestseller The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb, R. Crumb: The Complete Record Cover Collection, co-author of Drawn Together: The Collected Works of R. and A. Crumb, and many more. He lives in the south of France with his wife, the artist Aline Kominsky-Crumb.