The Russ Cochran Comic Art Auctions - a 30 years Retrospective 2 2

[furthur]

Nice to see that piece in a frame. I still have my Haunt of Fear cover that I traded for , but sadly had to sell the Mud story to finance the purchase of a new house a few years back-something I still regret, but life is full of those!! For me the essence of the trade was actually the Davis story, not the cover. I thought I had the better cover and he had the better story. Being a huge Davis fan I wanted the story and was willing to trade the cover and my story that was a weaker one to get it. So that is the essence of a good trade-we both got what we wanted!! I had that Mud story for 5 or 6 years and looked at it a ton-even had it in a comic art show at Savannah College of Art and Design a few years back. I still wish i had been able to hold back a page or two from it and it gives me a twinge every time I see the various pages from it on CAF in multiple collections.

[Terry Doyle]

I (obviously) thought that Craig's HOF # 6 cover was a good one, or else I wouldn't have bid on it at the time it came up for auction. Craig was always very good at presenting a horrific scenario (without being overly-explicit) and would let the viewer's imagination kick-in to work things out.

 

Still love the VOH # 33, Benno, and will always appreciate our trade, thanks. (thumbs u It's displayed next to my favorite Feldstein science-fiction cover, WF # 14.

 

Like you, I sold a lot of cherished art to help fund a house move. But as I still retain a core group of favorite pieces I'm happy.

 

Fewer pieces than what I once had, but the loving's more concentrated now, I guess!

[alxjhnsn]

Terry, don't forget that with less art it's easier to see and store! and think of all the people you made happy!

[Terry Doyle]

Terry, don't forget that with less art it's easier to see and store! and think of all the people you made happy!

 

(thumbs u

[Terry Doyle]

Time for another (slight) detour, I think . . .

 

Just to recap . . .back in 1982, my fascination for the old EC comic-books had prompted me into signing-up for a subscription to the Russ Cochran Comic Auctions, so I could buy some examples of OA for my (growing) EC collection.

 

I quickly became hooked on the EC art and, over a period of about eight years or so, ended-up buying several hundred pages’ worth! Most of that story art is now gone as, over the years, my interests would gradually shift towards collecting cover examples (and art got sold or traded along the way).

 

Although I was particularly enamoured of the EC stuff, my comic-book collecting days had dated back to the early 1960s. Being from the UK, where we’ve always had a strong comic-book industry of our own (going back a long, long time), my collecting interests were wide and varied.

 

In 1985, while visiting a book shop in Liverpool, I came across a copy of this book:

 

 

 

Although I remember the EAGLE comic-book from the 1960s (my era of nostalgia), up to the time of coming across the Hampson book, I’d never read any of the 1950s Dan Dare strips (EAGLE’s lead feature).

 

Leafing through this, I was really taken aback by the quality of Frank Hampson’s original art (many of the book’s interior pages had been reproduced directly from the OA). I duly bought a copy and, from that point on, became increasingly mesmerised by Hampson’s Dan Dare work.

 

Over a period of (pre-internet) years, I would track down as many Dan Dare original artworks as I could find ( I reckon I’ve had somewhere in the region of about 100 pages pass through my hands) . . . not an easy task when there was no such thing as e-mail contact, eBay or CAF. The leg work involved (leads had to be found and followed-up on) and the collectors I made contact with along the way, add depth, interest and lots of fond memories to my adventures in OA collecting.

 

In 1990, in the UK seaside town of Southport (where the EAGLE comic was created, back in 1950), a (then) 40 year celebration was staged in the town’s Atkinson Art Gallery. Over a period of months, the exhibition drew in record numbers of visitors.

 

It’s kind of hard describing the depth and quality of the Dan Dare strips to those readers unfamiliar with this stuff so, perhaps, a pictorial record might be best served to augment my words.

 

What follows is a selection of photographs I took from the Atkinson Gallery exhibition . . .

 

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

 

I currently own the original art at top right (check out my CAF for a scan).

 

The photo at bottom left is one of two huge murals commissioned for London's Science Museum at South Kensington.

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

[Terry Doyle]

 

In the photo at top left, Hampson's original model bust of Dan Dare is displayed in the cabinet.

 

At bottom left is the second of the two murals commissioned by London's Science Museum at South Kensington.

 

At bottom right is a Frank Bellamy Dan Dare page (Bellamy took over the strip for a year when Hampson quit). I owned this original for quite a long time but sold it in recent years.

[Terry Doyle]

 

I sold the original at top left a few years back, but still own the original at top right (on display in my CAF).

[Terry Doyle]

 

I sold the Bellamy original at top right but still own the Hampson page shown at bottom right (on display in my CAF).

[Terry Doyle]

 

The artwork at top right is another page I once owned but later sold.

 

Such is life . . .

[Terry Doyle]

A couple of years ago, Alastair Crompton updated his Frank Hampson biography, which a friend of mine (Paul Stephenson) published.

 

I visited Paul at his company's address, armed with a stack of original art, so the updated Hampson book would have lots of nice illustrations.

 

Here's the cover to the finished book:

 

 

To anyone interested in the aesthetic heights comic artwork can reach, this book is a must . . .

 

Full ordering details available at:

 

frankhampson-tomorrowrevisited.co.uk

 

[rsonenthal]

This topic is simply the best. Thanks for doing this Terry!!!!

 

Ron

[Terry Doyle]

This topic is simply the best. Thanks for doing this Terry!!!!

 

Ron

 

You're welcome, Ron.

 

It's a fun project.

[alxjhnsn]

Thought readers of this thread might be interested in this Kickstarter by Adam Talley and Mike Pascale. They are creating a comic that they hope will have the EC Horror feel.

 

[Terry Doyle]

 

Comic Art Auction # 41 (March 27 and 28, 1990),comprising of 16 pages.

 

Selected highlights as follows . . .

[Terry Doyle]