OK. I took the Ditko letter down

[mwd67]

Obviously some of you have it in your head that I was out to get Mr. Ditko. I'm 48 years old and this is only the second time I have ever sent a letter to a comic artist. My letter to him was sincere. I shared life experiences about my Dad and how at a very early age I got into comics. I just wanted Mr Ditko to know how important his work and the field he worked in helped to shape who I am.

 

I had someone send me an email saying how it is "public knowledge" that he wants to be left alone. Sorry but I never got that memo. I'm sure most comic readers didn't. I don't follow the life of the artists or writers. I didn't ask him personal questions about his private life. I only asked about his public work. I had no idea he hated talking about the history of his profession. Had I known I would have asked something entirely different. I didn't write that letter to him off.

 

Anyway, I don't feel it was a breach of privacy to show it. In my humble opinion if he were truly seeking privacy he would have just ignored my letter. But since it is very possible that I am wrong (it has happened before) I've decided to put the letter in a gallery only visible to me.

 

So Everyone disperse. Nothing to see here.

[mister_not_so_nice]

I'm not chewing you out, but you could have written this in your original thread

[Peter L]

I didn't see anything wrong with you posting it. I thought it was interesting. I can understand why some people would not like you posting it though, like people who forward other people an email I wrote.

 

I've read about Ditko in the past but nothing about "public knowledge" about not sending him fan letters.

 

The way I read his letter was just answering your questions that he doesn't remember and doesn't like to live his life looking back. I didn't take it as a rebuke of you.

 

The internet and message boards can be tough on people. I just read a story about how a father was in a Target in Australia and he took a photo of him and Darth Vader because his kids were fans. A bunch of kids gathered and he took pics of them. Then a woman saw this, assumed he was a child predator and pedophile and posted his picture without a warning about him. He started to get threats and it ruined his reputation falsely. The woman later deleted the post but the damage was done. Then she started getting death threats. Sadly it seems that this is the world we live in. As we adjust to online communication, there seems to be a gap we haven't figured out how to breach well. If we were at comic con and sitting in Starbucks and you showed me and a few others the letter, it probably wouldn't have had the same reaction.

[Solar]

So Everyone disperse. Nothing to see here.

 

Tells everyone to disperse.

 

Starts new thread.

 

 

[dhurley]

So Everyone disperse. Nothing to see here.

 

Tells everyone to disperse.

 

Starts new thread.

 

 

 

[Bronty]

So Everyone disperse. Nothing to see here.

 

Tells everyone to disperse.

 

Starts new thread.

 

 

this is true

[Bronty]

Obviously some of you have it in your head that I was out to get Mr. Ditko. I'm 48 years old and this is only the second time I have ever sent a letter to a comic artist. My letter to him was sincere. I shared life experiences about my Dad and how at a very early age I got into comics. I just wanted Mr Ditko to know how important his work and the field he worked in helped to shape who I am.

 

I had someone send me an email saying how it is "public knowledge" that he wants to be left alone. Sorry but I never got that memo. I'm sure most comic readers didn't. I don't follow the life of the artists or writers. I didn't ask him personal questions about his private life. I only asked about his public work. I had no idea he hated talking about the history of his profession. Had I known I would have asked something entirely different. I didn't write that letter to him off.

 

Anyway, I don't feel it was a breach of privacy to show it. In my humble opinion if he were truly seeking privacy he would have just ignored my letter. But since it is very possible that I am wrong (it has happened before) I've decided to put the letter in a gallery only visible to me.

 

So Everyone disperse. Nothing to see here.

 

I think you just have to get used to the boards. You'll get it dished out to you, and don't be scared to dish it back sometimes.

[chrisco37]

You know what I think is interesting? In the other thread there were many responses along the lines of "you shouldn't post something without the other persons permission....".

 

Does this only apply to handwritten letters (from artists)? People post PM's regarding bad buying/selling transactions all the time. And usually the only person with a problem with it is the a-hole that looks bad in the transaction.

 

I'm pretty sure I've seen others post Ditko letters (on the boards) in the past.

[malvin]

You know what I think is interesting? In the other thread there were many responses along the lines of "you shouldn't post something without the other persons permission....".

 

Does this only apply to handwritten letters (from artists)? People post PM's regarding bad buying/selling transactions all the time. And usually the only person with a problem with it is the a-hole that looks bad in the transaction.

 

I'm pretty sure I've seen others post Ditko letters (on the boards) in the past.

 

A search of Ditko letter on CAF has around 8 entries!

 

Malvin

[Mighty Hal]

mwd67, I enjoyed seeing the letter. It didn't make me feel badly toward Mr. Ditko or yourself. I thought it was interesting, thought you posted it because it was interesting and you wanted to share.

 

It doesn't make me want to write a letter to the artist, mind you, but I'd love to share a pot of coffee with the man.

[Unca Ben]

mwd67, I enjoyed seeing the letter. It didn't make me feel badly toward Mr. Ditko or yourself. I thought it was interesting, thought you posted it because it was interesting and you wanted to share.

 

It doesn't make me want to write a letter to the artist, mind you, but I'd love to share a pot of coffee with the man.

 

make sure it's decaf.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[comicwiz]

As someone who has received very similar response letters from Mr Ditko, I see absolutely nothing out of the ordinary or poor in form regarding sharing it publicly. In fact, there are past threads on these very boards here and here, and I'm sure there are others, but time has put a choke hold on Google today.

 

What I did find particularly interesting in your letter however was Ditko casting aspersions that any of his art floating around as possibly being stolen. Maybe that's sour grapes with the interior pages of AF 15 slipping through his hands and being spared from being used as a cutting board. Maybe there's some truth to it. But IF that letter really got anyone's panties in a knot, then maybe it's not such a bad thing to discuss what it is that bothers or makes people nervous about sharing the letter because if it's got anything to do with needing his blessing before any of his works are sold or donated, I'll get the popcorn machine going.

 

Seriously though, I thought the letter was cool, and him stepping-up his level of prickiness always makes it entertaining with each new letter that surfaces.

[vodou]

What I did find particularly interesting in your letter however was Ditko casting aspersions that any of his art floating around as possibly being stolen. Maybe that's sour grapes with the interior pages of AF 15 slipping through his hands and being spared from being used as a cutting board. Maybe there's some truth to it. But IF that letter really got anyone's panties in a knot, then maybe it's not such a bad thing to discuss what it is that bothers or makes people nervous about sharing the letter because if it's got anything to do with needing his blessing before any of his works are sold or donated, I'll get the popcorn machine going.

I'm going out on a limb here, after all this is the Internet , and guessing Ditko may mean "stolen from Marvel" (in the moral sense, not that the statute of limitations doesn't apply legally on matters unpursued by Marvel 35 years ago!) Unless he's changed his stance lately, always possible, his position historically was all work for hire, not his property, all Marvel's property. Anybody feel free to correct me if there is something recent written by him to contradict this..?

[kav]

If he believes that why doesn't he take his huge stack of OA and walk it down to Marvel offices?

[Bronty]

If he believes that why doesn't he take his huge stack of OA and walk it down to Marvel offices?

 

that's an excellent point actually

[comicwiz]

Everything I've ever read about his leanings/peculiarities, I'm sure he would rather they be destroyed than be in anyone else's possession.

 

And allow me the indulgence to ask this question, but seeing this position expressed in letter form, it made me wonder the other day about something.

 

I'm certain donors can place a loan time limit and/or conditions on works donated to museums, or in the case of the AF 15 OA, with the LOC.

 

Is it possible the donor used the donatation as a way to bide his time, get Ditko out of the way, relieving the LOC of it after his passing, and doing as s/he pleases with it then?

[Bronty]

I shouldn't think so? If that's the case, why not just wait for ditko to pass away? He's not, sadly, going to be with us much longer.

[comicwiz]

I shouldn't think so? If that's the case, why not just wait for ditko to pass away? He's not, sadly, going to be with us much longer.

 

You're probably right Dan. Reading his expressed sentiment in the letter left me scratching my head a bit and wondering about it.

[jeBailey]

When I visited the "Library of Congress" the curator informed us that both the person donating the pages and the library had offered the artwork back to Steve and he made it clear he wanted nothing to do with it.

 

Also, If you have never got to see the artwork it is well worth the trip. They have a fairly good selection of other comic art.

 

John B.

[vodou]

If he believes that why doesn't he take his huge stack of OA and walk it down to Marvel offices?

 

that's an excellent point actually

Again I'm not Ditko (duh!) but I think because..."they" gave it to him .

 

Can anybody show the quote where Ditko claims ownership over his original art for comics/etc that he didn't solely create? That's pretty much what I'm leaning on previously and now re: property rights, "stolen", etc when trying to walk in Steve's shoes.