The Batman Artists
Sept 4, 2007 10:30:13 GMT -5
Post by Batman on Sept 4, 2007 10:30:13 GMT -5
Elsewhere I've suggested that, since there isn't sufficient interest to do a "Greatest Comic Book Artist" Showdown, we could limit the scope and do mini-Showdowns with subjects such as "Greatest Spider-Man Artist" or "Greatest Batman Artist." Since Batman was the winner of the Superhero showdown, it makes sense to me to do his first. So, leading up to that, I decided to start this thread to profile and discuss Batman artists. I'll start with the first:
Bob Kane
The phrase "created by Bob Kane" is on every single Batman comic book and movie. (. . . from 1968 on.) And it's true, kind of. After the success of Superman started the craze for them in the late 30s, Kane had the idea for a superhero named the Bat-Man. He would have a domino mask, and a black and red costume, and bat wings, and no gloves. He brought his concept to writer Bill Finger for suggestions. Finger is actually responsible for most of the elements of the character that we associate with him today.
You might think that before 1968, Kane received no credit at all, based on common knowledge about the treatment of artists back in the old days. Quite the contrary, before 1964, every single Batman story is signed by Bob Kane. But he actually only drew a tiny fraction of them.
You see, with Superman, the publisher was taking a big flyer on an unknown quantity that succeeded beyond anyone's expectation. Whereas with Batman, they were cashing in on a craze and they had every expectation that it would be a big success. So Kane was able to negotiate a much better deal than Siegel and Schuster had. His contract guaranteed that the publisher would buy a certain number of pages from him every month, and that all Batman stories, drawn by him or not, would be credited to him.
Most fans and scholars of the Golden Age of comic books agree that the ghosts that drew Batman as "Bob Kane" were better artists than Kane himself. Nonetheless, the covers and stories that the man drew himself include some of the most iconic images in the history of comic books.
For example:
I wouldn't call this one a classic, iconic image, but it is awesome!
Links: Bob Kane articles at Wiki, at SupermanArtists, and at lambiek
Bob Kane
The phrase "created by Bob Kane" is on every single Batman comic book and movie. (. . . from 1968 on.) And it's true, kind of. After the success of Superman started the craze for them in the late 30s, Kane had the idea for a superhero named the Bat-Man. He would have a domino mask, and a black and red costume, and bat wings, and no gloves. He brought his concept to writer Bill Finger for suggestions. Finger is actually responsible for most of the elements of the character that we associate with him today.
You might think that before 1968, Kane received no credit at all, based on common knowledge about the treatment of artists back in the old days. Quite the contrary, before 1964, every single Batman story is signed by Bob Kane. But he actually only drew a tiny fraction of them.
You see, with Superman, the publisher was taking a big flyer on an unknown quantity that succeeded beyond anyone's expectation. Whereas with Batman, they were cashing in on a craze and they had every expectation that it would be a big success. So Kane was able to negotiate a much better deal than Siegel and Schuster had. His contract guaranteed that the publisher would buy a certain number of pages from him every month, and that all Batman stories, drawn by him or not, would be credited to him.
Most fans and scholars of the Golden Age of comic books agree that the ghosts that drew Batman as "Bob Kane" were better artists than Kane himself. Nonetheless, the covers and stories that the man drew himself include some of the most iconic images in the history of comic books.
For example:
I wouldn't call this one a classic, iconic image, but it is awesome!
Links: Bob Kane articles at Wiki, at SupermanArtists, and at lambiek