Making a Splash: "Our Pal" Sal Buscema's Captain America--Round Two

We're back with Round Two of Sal Buscema's far-out and fab Captain America splash pages, Groove-ophiles! The response to last week's Round One was huge--and Ol' Groove thinks things'll catch fire with this week's round! The following splashes represent a very important and much-loved Cap-era: the Cap-debut of author Steve Englehart, the secret of the 1950s Captain America and Bucky, the Serpent Squad, Cap's short-lived super-strength--and oh, yeah, Roy Thomas and Tony Isabella drop by to introduce the man who would become the second Baron Zemo. Enjoy!

Next: Moonstone! The X-Men! The Secret Empire! and Nomad!

Famous First Fridays: Rich Corben's Warren Debut

Richard Corben is one of comics' most enduring and influential artists. His nearly 3-dimensional style (enhanced by his superhumanly endowed male and female figures) have won him millions of fans the world over. That the brutal, he-man antics of his characters flow from the pen of such a self-admittedly shy person just goes to show how powerful and liberating comics can be both for creators and fans. Rich began drawing at an early age, knowing it would be his life's work. He stuck with it, going to art college and submitting work to various mainstream and underground publishers. Corben's craftsmanship was further honed by his work for an industrial film company as he struggled to break into the ranks of comicbook creators. Corben produced reams of work for the underground comics scene (often going by the pen-name "Gore"), becoming a cult-legend both in the U.S. and overseas. After years of producing spec-work for Warren, he finally got his break into mainstream comics with Creepy #36's (cover-dated November 1970) "Frozen Beauty".

From there, Corben became one of Warren's--and comics'--most popular artist/writers. Though he stayed quite busy with his Warren work, Corben never turned his back on the undergrounds that spawned him. Eventually, the whole world fell for Corben's art when they got their hands on Meatloaf's spectacular Bat Out of Hell album. Add that to his involvement in the ground-breaking comics magazine Heavy Metal, and Corben became a super-star. Naturally his most popular creation, Den, would make it into the legendary 1981 Heavy Metal flick.

Corben's first Warren cover!

If you were rockin' in the Groovy Age, you own this album!

Take a ride, ride, ride, ride, ride...

Corben is still going strong, producing comics for grown-ups...and is still much loved by fans who grew up with him. Do yourself a favor and get the whole Richard Corben experience by visiting his official website. You'll be thanking Ol' Groove for sending ya there!

Random Reads: House of Mystery #270

Just grab any issue of House of Mystery from the spinner rack of yesterday and you'll have a grand and gruesome time! Just take ish #270 (April 1979), f'rinstance. Beneath the bone-chilling Joe Orlando/Vinnie Colletta cover, the mag kicks off with a li'l gem that most all of us comicbook fiends can relate to by J.M. DeMatteis, Jim Sherman, and Joe Rubenstein. This one's for every shady dealer who ever ripped off a fan--"The Collector!"


That twisted tale is followed by a creepy costume chiller by Wyatt Gwynon and Jerry Bingham called "Black Mass"...


The ish is rounded out by a short-shocker by Scott Edelman and the amazing and underrated Tenny Henson who've concocted "A Model Murder"! Dig it, Groove-ophiles!

Black and White Wednesday: "Heartfelt Thanks" by Kathy and Ken Barr

Raise your hand if you only know uber-talented artist Ken Barr by his pulse-pounding painted cover art! You know, covers like these:

Don't feel bad--Barr is best known for his paperback and magazine covers (especially the Groovy Age ones he did for Marvel). He did, occasionally, dabble in sequential storytelling, with one such hidden gem being found in Sal Quartuccio's Hot Stuf' #8 (1978). Enjoy!

The Grooviest Covers of All Time: Golden Treasures

What it is, Groove-ophiles! It's a fact that Michael Golden was a genuine super-star artist during the last days of the Groovy Age (and continued to be one throughout the 80s and beyond). His blend of cartooniness and realism, eye for detail, slick line, and superb design sense is so awe-inspiring that his work is still influencing artists to this very day. In the 70s he was most associated with the Batman Family of mags over at DC and at Marvel, where he really rose to super-stardom, on the Micronauts. Now, Ol' Groove could not find one single Groovy Age Michael Golden cover on the DC end, and I have plans for a future post on Golden's Micronauts covers, so I thought I'd share some forgotten Golden genius applied to a handful of other Marvel comics. Some, like the ROM covers are the stuff of legend, the others might surprise you...

And of course, a special thanks to the folks at Grand Comics Database for the dyn-o-mite cover scans!