Guys, thanks for the nice review. Glad you liked the book. Just to straighten out what Fantagraphics is doing, there are two lines of books. The Atlas Comics Library will appear approximately every 2 months. These books will reprint 8 issues of an ongoing title. We also will do “one and done” volumes, which can be as long as 12 issues. (“In the days of the Rockets” will reprints two entire space opera titles of 6 issues each). The Atlas Artist Editions will be an annual affair, a single oversized volume devoted to one particular artist. I started that line with Joe Maneely. There will be an announcement soon on what the next Artist Edition will be. If you have any questions about the publishing line, or about Joe Maneely in particular, I’d be happy to answer them. To your mention about Bob Powell, Maneely didn’t work with him at Street & Smith, although their work appeared often under the same covers. Maneely was more influenced by pulp artist Edd Cartier, who was moonlighting in the Street & Smith comics at the same time as Maneely’s work there in 1948. Maneelys ink line is very similar to Cartier’s in my eyes. And to the idea that Atlas was looking at EC and often aping their approach the answer is certainly “yes” they were.

One, of the many, great things about Maneely's art is that virtually every single character has a unique face. No "stock" images of talking heads, each face is different and expressive in their own way. Phenomenal! He has always been one of my favorites.

Marvel did put out a Masterworks edition with the complete Black Knight and Yellow Claw about 15 years ago. Apart from Maneely, the big guys at Atlas were Russ Heath, Bill Everett, John Severin and Dan De Carlo. I hope we'll get a book each of them in this format.

He only did the one Yellow Claw cover; you're probably remembering one of the Severin covers. He and Maneely were pals and I believe they'd been out together drinking earlier that last night of Maneely's life, both having recently been laid off by Stan.

@CartoonistKayfabe

5 ай бұрын

You’re so right! Thanks!

Not only Maneely but also Matt Baker at age 37. Which he work with Stan Lee at Atlas. Baker & Maneely on superheroes Marvel 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼

Love his style. Love that technique of black in the foreground, and only lines in the back. His stuff looks like it would have leveled up a ton over the next couple of decades and been super influential if he'd have lived.

A truly superb book from the new Atlas / Fantagraphics Line. Did a review of this myself as I loved this book so much. Enjoyed the first volume as well. So little about Joe Maneely so it is great to finally see this (other than the Alter Ego 28 and the odd references in Marvel books) Hopefully we will see Gene Colan, Bill Everett, Don Heck etc as part of this series of Atlas Artist editions. Also, hopefully some SF, Westerns, Humour, War, Teen, Romance etc - Atlas brought out so many comics, there must be zillions of stories to choose from

@teetoo3790

5 ай бұрын

Bill Everett is another favorite of mine.

I think Kirby would still have been hired when he was, but the second/thrid tier artists wouldn't get work as a result. The question is: Would Maneely would want to adopt the "Marvel Comics style (aka Kirby excitement style)"? He'd done a handful of lovely-rendered superheroes like the Sub-Mariner piece in the back.

I read that Maneely was practically blind without his glasses and fell between two train cars. I guess we'll never know the truth, but I find it odd that I've only ever seen that one pic of him. I'm sure his family had others, but it's always just him at the drawing table, lol. Anyway, definitely a great artist who could've gotten even better over time, just like Kirby did in my opinion.

I always thought Maneely’s death was sus af. 22:53 - I like that green a lot too, Ed. Batman’s sidekick, Robin had that green in the older comics and that emerald always stands out to me.

@KenLieck

5 ай бұрын

Someone needs to get Dave Sim to start investigating "The Strange Death of Joe Maneely"...

Loved Joe Maneely art on the Black Knight. He was Stan Lee's best buddy, so they our correct.

An alternate title for your video could be "This Man Could Have DESTROYED Marvel Comics". If Maneely had lived, and remained Stan Lee's go to guy, maybe Joe would have come up with a concept that was beautifully drawn, yet just didn't capture the imagination of the comic reading public. Lee still hires Kirby, because he'd be a fool not to, but still goes with a couple of failed concepts from Maneely, putting FF and the Hulk on the back burner. Meanwhile, Martin Goodman decides, as he almost did, this crap isn't selling so I'm getting out of the comic book game. And there is no Marvel Comics as we know it.

@davidaaronartist

5 ай бұрын

not way an alternate title ... is way to long🥲

@jeanettewu2537

16 күн бұрын

Maneely created a backup feature all on his own (that I'm aware of) for Black Knight's comics, called the Crusader. He was perfectly capable of injecting his own ideas into a story. If anything, I think he could have created a much moodier Fantastic Four, and, combined with Stan Lee's writing that was more thoughtful than most of what 60s writers churned out, brought Marvel into the Bronze Age early. Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko would've still been hired, and maybe actually have created more characters (quantity over quality) for Marvel, because truth be told, a lot of the characters we consider classics now, such as the X-men and the Avengers, were NOT Jack or Stan's first priority. The two biggest named and best sold comics of 60s Marvel were Fantastic Four and Spider-Man. If Maneely worked one one or both of those titles, more than likely, Kirby and Ditko would've gotten the Don Heck or John Severin treatment -- workhorses assigned to B-list titles and allowed to run a little wild. Of course, depending on what they got assigned, there's always the possibility that good art could produce a sleeper hit, like Kirby eventually did with Thor after warming up to the character and his concept.

Surprised by how good this work is. What a beautiful book.

I hope you guys are planning to cover that Bill Everett volume when it comes out…!

I get a Daniel Clowes vibe from some of these for some reason. Anyone else?

This video is amazing. I love Joe Maneely. I have the archive of Black Knight/Yellow Claw. I will never get rid of it.

Really nice art here. Kirby had really great pre-superhero art too. I’m not sure if he was just busy during the first year or so of Fantastic Four, it wasn’t on this level.

KING KAYFABERS!

I also hate the bright white paper and super black... when will they learn?

21:12 Satan or Ra's al Ghul? 🤔

What book are they showing at 3:34?

@russworks2882

5 ай бұрын

That's Les Daniel's "Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades" from the early 90's.

@kustomkool

5 ай бұрын

I have the same question and Google has been unhelpful.

@kustomkool

5 ай бұрын

SOLVED: Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics (1993)

I've heard this before. There are some similarities between Maneely's and Kirby's relationship with the leech editor Liar Lee. Lee depended upon the creativity, talent, and tolerance for being victimized by both men. But there the similarities end. McNeely was fast, yes. He had great skills and talent. He was creative, and a good writer. However: comparing Maneely to Kirby would be like comparing Earl Norem to N.C. Wyeth.

Kirby felt it was Stan Lee”s fault for working him so hard.

@michaelvassallo446

5 ай бұрын

That's an incorrect statement that unfortunately got promulgated through the years. At the time of his death, Atlas was one year past the Atlas Implosion, an event causing Joe to seek work elsewhere as no new work was commissioned by Stan Lee from April of 1957 to February of 1958. That 10 month period had the comic book line subsisting solely on inventory built up from late 1956 to the crash in the spring. Maneely went to DC, Charlton and helped launch Cracked. He also had the Birds' Eye Food account and the syndicated strip “Mrs. Lyons’ Cubs.” At the time of his death he had just come back to Lee and was working on the re-launched Two-Gun Kid. So no, if anything, the prolific and incredibly fast Maneely was still "underworked," rather than overworked.