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DC Greytone Cover thread
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Started by bigfiver69,

661 posts in this topic

adamstrange

adamstrange

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The Sea Devil book is a 10 center a

 

Thanks for the info

 

March 1965 -- it's a 12 cent comic.

 

Grand Comics Database

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shiverbones

shiverbones

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My access to my covers is down, but I have to mention the incredible Jeff Jones Wonder Woman 199 & all the great Gothic Romance covers. Secrets of Sinister House has some Sparling Grey Tones, HOM #205 which is one of the alltime greats, as is HOM 195. Wish My scans were still available frustrated.gif

 

INCREDIBLE war covers, I may be hooked....

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CatskillMike

CatskillMike

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Nice Our Fighting Forces cover! Those guys look like they are ready to [embarrassing lack of self control] their pants.

 

Here's mine, just picked it up as part of an older lot a couple weeks ago. First Space Ranger cover. unexpected43.jpg

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bigfiver69

bigfiver69

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Nice Our Fighting Forces cover! Those guys look like they are ready to [embarrassing lack of self control] their pants.

 

Here's mine, just picked it up as part of an older lot a couple weeks ago. First Space Ranger cover. unexpected43.jpg

 

Great Unexpected cover! Very tough book to find in any grade.

 

Shep

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tth2

tth2

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So he's pushing on the depth charge while someone is apparently shooting and hitting it???

 

Can you say....BOOM!

27_laughing.gif Also, the submarine is already on the surface. All the depth charge is going to do is blow up a bunch of fish down in the ocean!

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thirdgreenham

thirdgreenham

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Okay, just to talk about the term "washtones" and the term "greytones", they are describing the same thing. I'm going to quote Chris Pedrin's Big Five Information Guide for the history of washtone comic covers.

 

 

THE "ADLER" WASHTONES- A Big Five exclusive

 

" In the last few years, one element of comic book collecting has received an incredible amount of attention. Greytones! Those beautiful wash covers found on a few DC comic books. Well you can thank the war collectors for this interest. And you can think the various publications for the inaccurate term "greytones".

Lately, collectors have been scurrying all over the country to acquire these issues. Even collectors who have little or no interest in BIG FIVE books actively search out these gems. For not only were these covers seen on the war titles, they were also found on such titles as-- SHOWCASE, SEA DEVILS and MYSTERY IN SPACE just to name a few! I have heard and read countless times about the "Great Kubert and Heath Greytones" and about the "Fantastic Grandenetti Greytones". Well, Fandom, You are all WRONG! You collectors are WRONG! And ALL the publications are DEAD WRONG!

To begin with, the proper term for these covers is WASHTONES. W-A-S-H-T-O-N-E-S. The term was given by the man who invented the process to achieve the effect that the covers give. Calling these covers "greytones" is the mark of an uninformed collector. Well, now you are informed. The man responsible for all the great DC "WASHTONE" covers, and also the inventor of the process (now used the world over!) is... JACK ADLER. Jack Adler was the senior colorist in the production department at DC.

The colorist seldom signs his name to his work. This was the case with Jack. He signed only one cover (a SHAZAM issue-- also featuring his grandchildren!). He has been devising color separations since 1938! He did the color work on the Prince Valiant Sunday sections for five weeks. Once, while doing these sections, William R. Hearst (Newspaper Magnate) went to see him because he wanted to know who the genius was doing the color. Well, the genius is Jack Adler!

Jack Adler came up with the washtone process out of necessity. Jack and his good friend Sol (DC Production man, Sol Harrison-- whom Jack had known since junior high school!), had a problem getting separations done for the cover art. The separations were done by a Union shop, and they did not want to do them. Jack had always wanted to be a photo engraver, but his talents as a colorist went unnoticed by the Union because they locked him out. Jack devised ways around the union rules, one of which was the WASHTONE process, and proceeded, along with Sol to form their own Union! He experimented constantly to obtain the effect he wanted.

The process is quite complicated and to accomplish the "look", artistic talent would be required. Jack would receive a piece of cover art drawn in pencil only, on either Strathmore paper or coquille board. He would then "ink" over the penciled work by doing wash separations done as separate drawings, making a watercolor blank being extremely careful with the color bleeds. Visualizing each color while doing the wash in diluted black ink (hence the term WASHTONE). He had to imagine each color and the effect it would have when overlapped with another color! By doing the art in this way, he would be categorized as an inker and the Unions couldn't touch him! And that's only the simple explanation!

In talking to the master craftsman, comic great and true gentleman, I learned quite a few other things. Mr. Adler is also the man who laid out the ground work for the Joe Kubert School of Graphic Arts! He was the first person Joe thought of when his idea of a school began. The school has been a success for many years, and that success can be attributed, in part, by his efforts.

Besides the fact that he created and did the DC WASHTONES, there is one more startling fact that will be revealed here in the BIG FIVE! When Jack Adler began his stint at DC in 1938, he sat at the desk with Donnenfeld, his friend Sol, and a few other notables, the moment the Golden Age of Comics began! The artwork for Action Comics #1 was laid out in front of him and the others as the decision to put Superman on the cover had been decided leaving only one final decision before history would be made. History not only for comics, but also for all of humanity for years to come! Jack was asked-- "What color should we make Superman's uniform?". And then Jack did it. Jack Adler gave Superman's costume the colors he wears to this very day! Red, Blue and Yellow! Siegel and Shuster gave the world Superman in black and white, Adler gave him to us in color! It doesn't get much more exclusive than that.

And now you know a little more about the EX-most unsung hero in comics!

As the popularity for these Washtones covers grow, and they will, let it be known to all that the man responsible, is Jack Adler. I don't call them washtones...I call them "ADLER WASHTONES". "

 

 

So, that's exactly as Chris Pedrin described the greytones/washtones/Adlerwashtones. I personally, don't get upset when someone calls them greytones, but I do love these covers! I think that they are absolutely gorgeous and I'm very happy that Big Fiver created this post. I will post some more "Adler Washtones" in the next couple of days. Hopefully, we'll all have some more being posted shortly.

 

Thanks for listening... acclaim.gif

Andy

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