Following up to earlier this week's post, "Thor Pencil Photocopies," I've added additional photocopy Thor and Journey Into Mystery pages I've acquired.
Unlike the other pages I've posted, these include larger size, twice-up art. One would think that such pages would be photocopied onto larger size paper, however these pages were provided from Marvel to Jack Kirby on small photostat paper. Unlike photocopies that are made on photocopy machines, photostats are made on large camera machines that takes a picture by exposing a large piece of photographic paper. The paper is then run through chemicals to "develop" the image. Like any camera, it can zoom in or out so the Journey Into Mystery and Thor 147 pages are photostats. They are about 6x9 in size and on photographic paper that is heavier in weight than a photocopy. Photostats' image quality is far better than photocopies with greater detail and grayscale range.
These pages are rare glimpses into the power of Kirby's pencils before inking. The pages from issue 152 with Thor fighting Ulik could just as easily be from the pages of The New Gods issue 8's Orion and Kalibak battle. Just beautiful pencils with incredible power, even after almost 50 years!
This is heaven
What treasures! Thanks again!
A treasure indeed!
Another wonderful find posted in this site, thanks! These penciled pages are priceless, specially when they were inked by Vince.
$$$ and sense
It would be great if the copies had a great deal of value, and if people were aware of their value. This is particularly true of the early Marvel stats which are so sharp and clear having been photographed with a stat camera. I'm not sure how many sets of copies were made for each issue but evidence suggests it was three or four. It is said Kirby disposed of many of his stats when he moved from Long Island to California. Stats have emerged from other sources though. Dick Ayers had stats for an early Thor story which was inked by Chic Stone. Marie Severin had stats to a complete issue of Steve Ditko's Spider-Man. Marie Severin is not in the best of health and can't be expected to go digging through stacks of old paper, but I would hope that her papers are looked through with care before anything is disposed of. The same would hold for Ayers and Sinnott. It may well be those men may not even be aware of the interest in the old copies. I have concerns that existing copies might end up being thrown out by people who do not recognize their value.
Aside from the artwork and seeing Kirby's pencils, the stats are almost always the best examples of the stories as Kirby intended. The original art is almost always trimmed.
A Kirby Treasure Trove...
A Kirby Treasure Trove... well scanned, beautifully displayed pages. Tip of the hat and thanks for sharing.
True Value!
In a way these pencil photo-stats should be worth more than the actual originals (especially the crappy Colleta inked ones)! They are examples of Kirby's unaltered art, and probably exist in far fewer numbers than the actual original pages.
A Man Among Boys
All those other people who worked over Kirby pages after he was finished never had a chance. Saying anyone at Marvel "collaborated" with Kirby is like saying BP collaborated with the Gulf of Mexico.
Love Odin looking like Mr. Am on page 13.
http://media.ideaanddesignworks.com/library_ameri_comics/covers/lil_orph...