From the first time I saw Jim Aparo’s art in the pages of DCs “T
he Brave and the Bold” #100 he has remained one of my favourite comic book artists of all time. His style was both realistic and yet at the same time cartoony which only added to the appeal of his storytelling. For many comic book fans Aparo’s Batman is the definitive version of the character, although that accolade for myself rests with the equally legendary Neal Adams, Jim Aparo will always be the artist that defined both Aquaman and the Spectre for me. Below are a few of my favourite covers by the great man:
Jim Aparo began his artistic career working in advertising at a Connecticut ad agency, but his true passion as a lifelong comic book fan was to become a comic book artist. In his pursuit of that goal he gained his first professional work with Charlton comics where he worked with the companies then editor Dick Giordano, providing art on (among other strips) “Nightshade” a female super-hero back-up feature that appeared in Captain Atom, and most notably on Charlton comics version of Lee Falk’s “The Phantom”.
When Dick Giordano moved to DC Comics, he took Jim Aparo with him where he worked on Aquaman and the Phantom Stranger. After seeing his excellent art on the Phantom Stranger, editor Murray Boltinoff asked Aparo to work on a Batman/Phantom Stranger team-up for “The Brave and the Bold” #98 - The rest is the stuff off comic book legend and Jim Aparo stayed on this title for almost every issue until the final 200th issue.
The mystery skier in the above cover was "Two Face"
I have shown Jim Aparo's covers for his excellent run on the Spectre when it appeared in "
Adventure comics" . I couldn't leave out showing an Aparo Spectre cover and recenlty came across this issue of "Ghosts" #97 which features a great Aparo Spectre cover (sadly he didn't draw the actual strip).
Jim Aparo passed away in 2005 at the age of 72. His final work for DC during his life, was the cover of the trade edition of “Batman in the Eighties” published in 2004. To this day everytime I see one of his great covers, it always makes me smile.
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...
72 isn't old, really, so he was taken much too soon. A good, solid visual storyteller. His work sometimes reminded me of Don Heck, especially faces, though it was more dynamic. Some nice covers there, McS.
ReplyDeleteYour right, 72 isn't young but it's certainly not old. I always thought Aparos art had a touch of Neal Adams to it, perhaps that's why I gravitated towards it.
DeleteJim Aparo is one of my all-time favorite artists. I first ran across his work on the Nightshade series which was in the back of Captain Atom. Later more of his work on great ghost stories and of course the Phantom. Then he went to DC and became one of the definitive Bat-Artists of his era. His Batman was sleek and athletic. My favorite Aparo DC work is the Spectre, those stories are creepy as can be. I loved that Aparo most often did his own lettering and early on his own inking. He served up a complete experience, not unlike his Charlton colleague Pat Boyette. Great artist who was rock-solid reliable.
ReplyDeleteI have only recently seen his work on Nightshade and for its time It was of a pretty high standard. I was always surprised Marvel didn't tempt Jim to work for them. Although I was never a fan of the Phantom Charltons version of the character was pretty good with Aparo and Don Newton having exceptional runs on the comic.I think Aparo worked at DC and on the Phantom at the same time for a few years before moving to exclusively work at DC.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for doing these Top 10 covers, Paul. It really motivates me to re-read those comics, or at least find digital copies. Aparo was sublime when inking his own pencils, as in the early days of his time on Brave & Bold. I really like that B&B 106 with Green Lantern and Two Face. Aparo was really channeling Neal Adams’ depiction of both Batman & Two Face as seen in Batman #234 (Half An Evil), and B&B 106 particularly felt like a sequel to that earlier story. I have always felt that Aparo’s art was later diminished when someone else inked his work. Did Dick Giordano ever ink him on Batman? I don’t believe so. If he did, I think it might have risen to the heights of a Neal Adams/Giordano collaboration.
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