Friday, January 27, 2017

Making a Splash: Happy 81st Birthday (Plus a Day) to Our Pal Sal

Yep, yesterday was Our Pal Sal's birthday, but Ol' Groove waited 'til today so I could tie my Sal tribute into our semi-regular Friday feature, Making a Splash. Sal Buscema was Young Groove's first favorite Marvel artist. His Avengers hooked me for life, his Captain America pulled me into the Marvel-ous depths, his Defenders bowled me over, and his Hulk kept me hanging on well into the 1980s. So-called "super-star" artists came and went (and still come and go), but Sal was a rock--and did he ever rock! His style WAS Marvel to me during the Groovy Age. Still is. Of course, you know Ol' Groove's gonna back all'a this up with several stunning and sensational splashes...










 Sal was so fast and prolific, you never knew where his awesome artistry would pop up...








Happy Birthday, Sal! Groove City loves ya, baby!
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5 comments:

  1. Rip JaggerJanuary 27, 2017 at 4:45 AM

    Loved the work of Sal Buscema, a talent who delivered quality comics day in and day out on time. Relegated to "hack" status by some nabobs who dote on prima donnas who produced comics at their leisure, the likes of a reliable tradesman like Sal is lost. He was the spine of Marvel, the very matter of the company. As much as we celebrate the writers like Roy, and Steve, and Gerry, it's the images of Sal which dances in our memories. Kirby and Ditko are the fathers of the MU, Big John is likely the finest draftsman, and Jazzy Johnny might be the most popular, but "Our Pal" Sal is the essence for Bronze Agers.

    Great to see him get some love.

    Rip Off

    ReplyDelete
  2. BentonGreyJanuary 27, 2017 at 9:58 AM

    Wonderful artist and wonderful sample pages. Well said!

    ReplyDelete
  3. keythd23January 27, 2017 at 6:26 PM

    Our Pal Sal Buscema. How much pleasure this man has brought into my life in the last 45 years. Never flashy, but imbued with solid storytelling talents he dependably turned out classic after classic in the Groovy Age. Because he was fast and made his deadlines, his art populated huge swaths of the Marvel Universe from the 60s to the 80s. I'm thankful John brought his younger brother into comics with Avengers # 68. We've all been richer for it. Happy belated birthday, Sal and thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  4. WilliamJanuary 27, 2017 at 6:36 PM

    Love love love me some Sal B. Especially his run on Captain America in the 70's. Sal is definitely one of the Top 5 artists that absolutely defines the Bronze Age. Or as I call it "The great old days!" When comics was comics.

    ReplyDelete
  5. MarcusJanuary 27, 2017 at 7:47 PM

    Rip Off is correct. Sal is a major influence on my own artwork.

    ReplyDelete

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