30 in 30 - Day 18: Neal Adams Photo Bomb

[Brandon Shepherd]

It's only a partial photo.

 

On Day 16 of my 30 in 30 journal run, I wrote about my favorite Batman villain, Two-Face, I also used the awesome cover of Batman Annual #14 (1990) for the journal image. The portrait of the men who are Two-Face for the Annual cover was done by none other than Neal Adams, a man who has done a few good deeds and appreciated a few fans in his time. Kaholo1256, also a Neal Adams fan, commented on the threads about getting Neal Adams signature at an upcoming con, this got me in a Neal Adams mood, so for Day 18, I'm going to show you my copy of Action Comics #419 (Dec. 1972).

 

Action #419 was not my first Adams cover but it was my first CGC Adams Action example. This is a unique cover, the background is a photo cover yet the image of Superman flying high - Adams drawing that is - is so commanding that this does not look like the other photo covers of the era. Some of the other photo covers of the time from DC featured real people next to drawn characters, an effect that made these covers really stand out yet clash. With Action #419, the photo is merely the distant city background, helping to emphases the flying effect of Superman. The CGC label may notate "partial photo cover" but this is also a full Neal Adams cover!

 

This issue is also the first appearance of the Human Target (Christopher Chance), who appeared in the backup feature in Action Comics for a while. Aside from having a great cover, there is also the irresistible teaser: WIPE THAT SMILE OFF YOUR FACE, SUPERMAN! YOU'VE JUST BECOME THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN ON EARTH! A Neal Adams cover, Superman being the most dangerous man on earth, the Human Target debuting -- how can you not want this issue?!

 

I like the DC 20-cent covers, not just 20-cent Actions, the whole collection of DC from the era, check out SW3D's latest score if you haven't seen it yet, you'll see what I mean. When I first got my Action #419, I only had a few Bronze Age examples from the title, this was (and still is) one of my more serious pieces, meaning it was special and less than cheap, but still obtainable. This particular cover has also been reproduced in several Superman/DC anthologies over the years.

This piece was originally an eBay 'Buy It Now' posting. The price kept dropping and I kept waiting. One day the item was no longer listed, I missed my chance. A few years later (2008) a 9.8 copy with white pages and a perfectly centered cover surfaced. It turned out to be the copy I missed out on from the eBay listing, and I got it for a lower price. I am so pleased to have gotten a second chance to add this piece to my collection; the case came in less than presentable condition, a few years later I sent it in for a new holder, allowing the book to display as it should. I also found a tee shirt at Wizard World Chicago in 2011 reproducing this cover, I couldn't resist!

 

Brandon

 

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[SW3D]

I wholeheartidly agree, the DC 20 cents covers are a thing of beauty. Their covers for the Bronze Age, in my opinon, are superior to Marvel's and any other publishers for that era.

 

And Neal Adams... well, what can be said that hasn't already? His Superman is probably the most iconic of all.

 

My absolute favorite Adam's Superman cover is from Action 485, where he's breaking Kryptonite chains. I remember this as a kid, and it always makes me think of the Superman movie with Christopher Reeve. Take a look: http://www.cgccomics.com/gallery/details.aspx?comic=1440

 

BTW: That is not mine... just borrowed the link.

 

Very Cool Tee Shirt! I always wanted to take selected covers from my CGC collection and print them on shirts.

 

Thanks for the nod.

 

SW3D

[Tnerb]

Can I use this picture on my Instagram feed? And why couldn't this book come out a few months earlier?

[Brandon Shepherd]

Can I use this picture on my Instagram feed? And why couldn't this book come out a few months earlier?

 

Sure, go for it!

[Brandon Shepherd]

I wholeheartidly agree, the DC 20 cents covers are a thing of beauty. Their covers for the Bronze Age, in my opinon, are superior to Marvel's and any other publishers for that era.

 

And Neal Adams... well, what can be said that hasn't already? His Superman is probably the most iconic of all.

 

My absolute favorite Adam's Superman cover is from Action 485, where he's breaking Kryptonite chains. I remember this as a kid, and it always makes me think of the Superman movie with Christopher Reeve. Take a look: http://www.cgccomics.com/gallery/details.aspx?comic=1440

 

BTW: That is not mine... just borrowed the link.

 

Very Cool Tee Shirt! I always wanted to take selected covers from my CGC collection and print them on shirts.

 

Thanks for the nod.

 

SW3D

 

Action #485 is a beauty, I've read an interview with Adams where he expresses his disappointment in the classic (and similar) cover to Superman #233, so I wonder if Action #485 is his way of making up for this.

 

I saw where your Swamp Thing #1 is dated a month prior to Action #419, I wonder if they were on the stands together? Imagine, picking the two books out at the stand, thinking something along the lines about how the Superman book might be worth more in the future and putting the Swamp Thing #1 back.

[SW3D]

I was wondering why Adams chose to re-work the cover. I think the major difference is the Point of View and perspective. In Superman 233, Superman is standing straight and rather flat from a horizontal POV, where as in AC 485, the POV has dropped well below the horizon line at "mouse level" making the image more dramatic and dynamic, creating the illusion Superman is like a giant as he fills up the cover. Adams totally knocks it out of the ballpark the second time around!

 

There have been plenty of times in my comic book collecting days, where I either overlooked, or completely dismissed a comic in favor of another, only to later regret it. But none of us have crystal balls, so how can we predict that one comic or series is going to be more important than another? Back when I was a child collector, I was attracted to covers. The cover artwork was what grabbed me. Being that Superman is an established and more popular character, and Adam's cover is a thing of sheer beauty, if I had two choose between the two, hands down I would have taken AC 419 over ST1. However, if by chance I would have picked up and leafed through ST1, the interior artwork by Bernie Wrightson would have intrigued me to a point where I would have eventually bought it before it sold out or was removed from the racks.

 

Of course, there are other reasons I may have overlooked or decided against a purchase, but in hindsight, I also had limited funds to buy everything in sight, so I needed to make very selective buying decisions. And that also meant, if I was neck-deep into a favorite title, even if said title was a dud to everyone else but I liked it, which seemed to be my collecting habit more often than not, I was going to buy that in favor of another. And I will admit this, back in 1979-1981, I could have bought all of the Dark Phoenix saga from 129 - 138, but for some reason I didn't. And that is strange to me because I loved John Bryne's covers and artwork. So I am thinking that I must have been faced with critical buying decisions due to limited funds, and chose my favorites over the X-Men. In hindsight: Stupid decision right! Oh well... That's life.

 

But today, I no longer "judge a book by its cover", but I can't help but be drawn to an amazing cover illustration. It's eye-candy... and how can we say no to eye-candy? But i learned my lesson, and leaf through a comic before buying, and if the story and it's structure grabs me... I buy it. So I have matured as a reader and collector.

 

Awesome discussions! I love it!

 

SW3D

[Brandon Shepherd]

I took a look at my copy of The Krypton Companion, a nice anthology edited by Michael Eury, and found the part of the Neal Adams interview where he talked a little about the cover to Superman #233. Adams stated that he did the cover in a hurry and didn't really put his heart into it, he also said that he was instructed to do a figure drawing of Superman just standing there, because that's what sold comic books.

 

I still like the cover to #233 and still think it deserves the classic status it has. Artist only see the flaws in their work sometimes while we the fan see something different.

 

I hear you on the limited funds, we can't get everything, maybe if you had the Dark Phoenix issues, perhaps you would have parted with or traded them like some of your other issues?

 

B