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Bob Kane painting in HA - original or work of ghost painter?

Started by benstone-migration,

10 posts in this topic

benstone-migration

benstone-migration

Posted
Posted

per http://www.newsfromme.com/archives/2007_03_15.html#013103

 

Does anyone know if the Kane painting is an original?

http://comics.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=7007&Lot_No=92123

 

"

 

Bob had gotten to the point where he never drew anything. Never drew anything on the Batman comics, anyway. [sheldon] Moldoff was ghosting them all and when he didn't, someone else did. The only thing I think Bob ever drew was when we'd be out somewhere, in a restaurant or someplace, and a pretty girl would come over to him and say, "Are you really the man who draws Batman?" Then he could whip out a little sketch for her, a big sketch if she was wearing something low-cut and would bend over to watch him draw.

 

One day I'm over at his house to discuss this newspaper strip idea we had and he's talking about who we might get to draw it. I was going to write it and we were going to get someone else to draw it. I'm not sure what he was going to do on it except sign his name. I said to him, "Bob, isn't it disappointing to you that you don't draw any more? You were once such a great artist." He wasn't but you had to talk to Bob that way.

 

He said, "Oh, no. Let me show you something." He took me into a little room in his house. It was his studio. I didn't even know he still had a studio. It was all set up with easels and things and there were paintings, paintings of clowns. You know the kind. Like the ones Red Skelton used to do. Just these insipid portraits of clowns, all signed very large, "Bob Kane." He was so proud of them. He said, "These are the paintings that are going to make me in the world of art. Batman was a big deal in one world and these paintings will soon be in every gallery in the world." He thought the Louvre was going to take down the Mona Lisa to put up his clown paintings. I didn't have the heart to tell him.

 

So a few months later, I'm up at DC and I ran into Eddie Herron. Eddie was another writer up there and we got to talking and Bob's name came up. Eddie said, "Did you hear? Bob's getting sued by one of his ghost artists."

 

I said, "How is that possible? Shelly Moldoff's suing Bob? But they had a clear deal. Shelly knew he wasn't going to get credit or anything..."

 

Eddie said, "No, not Shelly." Bob was being sued by the person who'd painted the clowns for him...

 

 

"

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comixcroz

comixcroz

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lol - that is a great story!!

 

no doubt he co-created Batman - so that's good enough for me...

 

fixed that for you...

You're right Bill Finger did his part in designing the look of Batman.

 

:hi: got any more mega keys for me?

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Solar

Solar

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yeah... I don't think there's a guy in the hobby that got more rewards from doing less work? pretty crazy.

 

That's why he's my hero. lol

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