Tales from the past viewed through rose tinted glasses
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Top Tens: Earl Norem
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Bring on the Back ups: When John Buscema drew Batman......and Superman
A big fantasy of my early fanboy teen years (mid-late 1970s) was the thought of some of US comics greatest artists working for both Marvel...
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I was probably about seven years old when I walked into my local newsagents in Cambuslang (near Glasgow) with my pocket money firmly he... -
Following on from my last post featuring some of my favourite Marvel comic book covers from 1973, I thought I would show some of DC's ... -
Nearly a half-century on I still consider 1973 to be the year that cemented my destiny in becoming a lifetime comic book fan. It was a yea...
Thanks for bringing Earl Norem to my attention, McScotty, as I'd not really paid attention to his work in the past. Looking at those covers, he seems to have had a very similar style as Norm Saunders, who of course also painted many of those (very strange) Men's magazine covers in the late 50s and 60s. Looking back, Norem's work on the Planet of the Apes and Deadly Hands of Kung Fu covers was exemplary, but I think his Men's magazine style transferred so easily to the world of Conan. I wonder if any of the Conan covers were based on his own layouts of previous Men's magazines published by Martin Goodman?
ReplyDeleteNorm Saunders work on those wonderful 1960s Batman trading cards are burnt into my childhood memory, great stuff. Those Men's adventure magazine covers and internal art pieces that I have seen online are amazing and the photographic quality of the art is breathtaking at times. I wouldn't be surprised if Earl Norem used some of his (and others) men's mag covers from this time to influence his Conan work.
ReplyDeleteThat Man-God cover has always been a favorite of mine. One of the oddest assignments Earl Norem ever got was when he was asked to redo the Kirby cover to the last Stan Lee and Jack Kirby Silver Surfer project. I don't think his stuff was nearly as effective as the original but that wasn't his responsibility. It was to do the best he could in his style.
ReplyDeletehttps://ripjaggerdojo.blogspot.com/2017/05/galactus-hand-of-god.html
That Man God cover is indeed pretty impressive. I found the Kirby/Norem Silver Surfer cover you mentioned to be a very strange combo of a stylised artist in Kirby and a realistic painter in Norem, it didn't really work for me. The woman in particular looks "hard faced" I would have preferred the Kirby cover as it was, or for Norem to paint his own original cover. That was an interesting article on your blog about the Surfer book.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Tom Baker's Doctor ever said "by George" but I might be wrong.
ReplyDeleteI remember the Hulk cover from when it appeared on the cover of Rampage monthly dated November 1979. I can even recall the exact date I bought it - Saturday, October 20th 1979.
I have very little knowledge of Dr Who Colin so I will need to take your word for this. Probably an American shorthand way of stating Dr Who is a British character . I think I bought that issue of Rampage as well as I know I had that cover, but most likely not the US original. So why do you know the exact day you bought this issue of Rampage ?
ReplyDeleteWell, Dr Who is an alien, Paul, but I know what you mean! October 20th 1979 sticks in my memory for several reasons:
ReplyDelete1) It was the closing-down day of a women's hairdressers called "Mamselles" which my mother went to. My first ever Marvel comic was Planet Of The Apes No.5 which I remember reading in Mamselles as I waited for my mother.
2) As well as Rampage I also bought 'The Usborne Book Of The Future' which tried to take a serious look at future technology and society in the coming 100 years. The book didn't forsee the internet but it did predict that the 2020 Olympics would take place on the moon in a lunar colony!!
3) October 20th 1979 was also the first day of the school half-term holiday and it was the week that 'Video Killed The Radio Star' was at #1 (one of my favourite songs from that time).
Excellent memory Colin. I'm afraid my memory doesn't work like that, I only manage flashbacks and forget a lot of shop names I used to frequent as a kid, teenager. I do however very clearly remember my first UK Marvel comic, The Mighty World of Marvel issue 1, where I bought it, the weather, the date and the fact the free gift wasn't in my copy. I also bought that single by Buggles and I do remember the shop I purchased it in but that's all.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing just how many great covers Norem produced. I've always had a soft spot for his cover to Rampaging Hulk #9, with the pre-Avengers Avengers carrying the Hulk in a big block of what looks like ice but is actually amber.
ReplyDeleteI think I had that cover in a UK edition of the monthly Hulk magazine (the Dez Skinn era) but The reproduction wasn't great. The original version in the US Rampaging Hulk is certainly a cracking cover. At one point I picked up everything that had a Norem cover, sadly I gave most of these away over the years but the ones I have ( most shown here) are some of my favourites.
ReplyDelete