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DC Greytone Cover thread
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Started by bigfiver69,

661 posts in this topic

bigfiver69

bigfiver69

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WHAT AN INFORMATIVE POST !! I thought that I knew something about these and I now stand corrected.GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) thumbsup2.gif

 

Something about greytones... they're sort of weird and creep up on you!!

 

I love 'em... I have some DC western GTs somewheres.... I'l try and get them on.

 

Shep

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CentaurMan

CentaurMan

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Star Spangled War Stories #45 - According to Overstreet, the first DC greytone cover. Drawn by Jerry Grandenetti.

 

ssws45.jpg

 

Actually, I think this issue is DC's first greytone cover, unless I'm using the term incorrectly:

 

adventure42.jpg

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tth2

tth2

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Actually, I think this issue is DC's first greytone cover, unless I'm using the term incorrectly:

 

adventure42.jpg

I agree. Hey, if Overstreet gives it this designation, maybe this issue will get some legs! yeahok.gif27_laughing.gif

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thirdgreenham

thirdgreenham

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Star Spangled War Stories #45 - According to Overstreet, the first DC greytone cover. Drawn by Jerry Grandenetti.

 

ssws45.jpg

 

First greytone or not, a nice desirable comic. Mmmm mmm good! yay.gif

 

Andy

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bigfiver69

bigfiver69

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Here is a book you don't see everyday - a 50's greytone TOMAHAWK cover. I love this cover!

I always got confused about Tomahawk - was it primarily supposed to be a western or a war book?

Enjoy!

Bill

eb_TH_65.jpg

 

 

Great copy of a nice book... never seen that one before!!

 

Nice one!

Shep

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Monstro

Monstro

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Hi everyone,

 

Without getting into a detailed history of DC greytone covers, I thought it would be interesting to have a thread where we could get a full listing of DC greytone covers.

 

There are so many great titles that featured greytones - from Peter Panda to Strange Adventures to all the DC war titles.

 

If you've got greytones, post 'em!

 

Shep

 

i can see what the difference is in these "greytones", but what is the difference? hahaha how were they made? why are they called "greaytones"?

 

thanks

ken

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thirdgreenham

thirdgreenham

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i can see what the difference is in these "greytones", but what is the difference? hahaha how were they made? why are they called "greaytones"?

 

thanks

ken

 

I'll re-post a bit of what I quoted from Chris Pedrin's Big Five Information Guide:

 

"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!"

 

I did see another thread that went into the process a little deeper. Let me see if I can find it...

 

Andy

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thirdgreenham

thirdgreenham

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Here's some info from another thread:

 

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The definition from Overstreet (latest one, page 944) states: Grey-Tone Cover - "A cover art style in which pencil or charcoal underlies the normal line drawing, used to enhance the effects of light and shadows, thus producing a richer quality. These covers, prized by collectors, are sometimes referred to as Painted Covers but are not actually painted."

 

"Wash cover" is not listed in Overstreet.

 

And a question similar to yours:

 

Would you mind expounding on what exactly Greytone is?

 

I understand the effect, and results... but it is a wash of Grey under color?

 

Are there set rules to defining what a greytone is and what is not?

 

Or is it a matter of opinion?

 

 

Either way.. I too like them.. but plead ignorance as to what exactly constitutes a Greytone..

 

 

Ze-

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And here's what someone replied to that question:

 

OOH!! I know the answer!!

 

Greytone is created in the original art, consisting of the normal solid black ink work, as well as an "ink wash".

By Ink Wash, I mean the inker (or penciller) uses watered down ink to create shades on the original black-and-white artwork.

 

Traditional art is shot as a solid black/solid white, to which colors are applied.

Greytone has the original art shot as a "halftone", which keeps the subtle shades, and colors are applied to it just as they are with traditional art. But the grey shades give it more depth than simply adding solid colors inside of a black outlined area.

 

The difference is that traditional art uses the crisp linework as the outline portion of the art, and greytone gives that linework softer shades that resemble that of fully painted art.

It's a quick, cheap, and effective way of giving artwork a painted feel. It was started as a way to have painted covers, back in the day when a color separation for a painting was not economically possible for a 10 cent comic book.

 

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This was added to that reply:

 

nice Dice, you saved me the typing. I would add though that some do use charcoal/conte crayon shading, like Early Kuberts & Some Adams (I believe the Bats 232 is an example of that) instead of ink wash.

 

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I hope this helps....

 

Andy

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