Book Palace have just released their latest illustrators Special Editions, the stunning-looking The illustrated History of Warren Magazines.
The book comes in two editions – the regular square-bound paperback edition, and a very special hard-bound edition, limited to 100 copies only, with a signed print of” Uncle Creepy”, painted by Manuel Sanjulian, who painted dozens of covers for Creepy, Eerie and Vampirella.
Edited by Peter Richardson, this issue focuses on the history of James Warren’s mould-breaking line of comix magazines that showcased the work of some of the greatest fantasy artists and writers.
Featured in the issue are such greats as Neal Adams, Richard Corben, Reed Crandall, Steve Ditko, Frank Frazetta, Jerry Grandenetti, Carmine Infantino, John Severin, Kenneth Smith, Alex Toth, Vaughn Bodé, Wallace Wood, Bernie Wrightson and a host of others.
“A couple of years ago, I tentatively commenced work on a history of the legendary Warren magazines,” Peter says of the new title’s origins. “There had been a couple of earlier publications devoted to these iconic magazines which were so avidly read and collected by fans of monsters and monster comics.
Regarding the earlier publications – the excellent Warren Companion, which was compiled by David Roach and Jon B. Cooke went out of print many years ago, and Bill Schelly’s James Warren – Empire of Monsters went out of print shortly after it was published.” (Both books offered, it should be noted, at eyewatering prices on bookshop sites).
“Bearing this in mind and also the fact that both books had been published in black and white, we wanted to recreate the excitement of the magazines themselves, as well as presenting a linear history of the Warren House of Horror with the arrival of a pushy young ex-Marine at the studio of Wallace Allan Wood in the Spring of 1964 as our jumping off point.
“The book is our most ambitious work yet,” Peter enthuses, “and we have benefitted greatly from the assistance and enthusiasm of Jon B. Cooke, Roger Hill (a lifetime devotee of monster comics, writer, publisher, one of the founding editors of the legendary Squa Tront fanzine and all round nice-guy), Jim Stenstrum (author of ThrillKill – illustrated by Neal Adams at the top of his game and one of the most gut-wrenching stories to appear in Creepy) and Louise Simonson (who edited Creepy, Eerie and Vampirella during Warren’s second golden-age checked over the text, as did Diego Cordoba who worked at the Toutain Studios in the 1980s, when the Barcelona based studio was supplying Warren with a sizeable chunk of the art that appeared in the magazines).”
More like a book than a magazine, illustrators is the art quarterly devoted to the finest illustration art ever published. With its unique blend of art and insight, it guides you through the stories behind the artists and their art, with features written by some of the leading authorities on this important art form.
As well as building into an indispensable reference library, illustrators gives readers an insight into the creative process, from the initial idea to the image potentially seen by millions. Truly fabulous artwork abounds in every issue, much of the art taken from scans of the original work.
illustrators Special Editions – The illustrated History of Warren Magazines
A Book Palace Books publication
Author: Peter Richardson
Artists: Neal Adams, Richard Corben, Reed Crandall, Steve Ditko, Frank Frazetta, Jerry Grandenetti, Carmine Infantino, John Severin, Kenneth Smith, Alex Toth
Publisher: Book Palace Books, August 2022
Number of pages: 144
Format: Hard Cover; Full Colour illustrations
Size: 9″ x 11″ (220mm x 285mm)
ISBN: 9781913548292
Limited to 110 copies of which only 100 are available to the public direct from Book Palace to advance order while stocks last.
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
Categories: Comics, Creating Comics, downthetubes Comics News, US Comics
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