The Jack Adler Collection Of Comic Art!

This Auction Includes:
BATMAN #341 Original COVER COLOR GUIDE, The Hand Colored Artwork For The Front Cover along with the actual PUBLISHER'S APPROVAL COVER PROOF! 
Pencils/Inks Courtesy Of The Respected Talent: Jim Aparo.  Look at the amazing color variations and attention to detail, all simply breathtaking paint work, possibly by Tatjana Wood.   CLASSIC COVER PRODUCTION ART BY ONE OF THE MOST RENOWNED COVER ARTISTS OF THE ERA!   It's a masterpiece:  Superhero Meets Supernatural Cover from the original long-running series.  ONE OF THE AWESOME COVERS OF THE BRONZE-AGE, THE DARK KNIGHT WHIRLS AROUND TO FACE THE VIEWER -- AND THE GHOST OF WAYNE MANOR!  (Good luck finding similar color guides to the old Batman covers, as there were all too few present in the Adler hoard.)  Note, They ended up going with a different color background, a more appropriate blue instead of the combination of pink and orange, so THIS may well be the only place you'll see this unique version with a much brighter combination of colors.   The Actual Hand Painted Piece Was Used By D.C. Comics In 1981, And It Was Retained In The DC Archives All These Years With The Resulting Approval Cover.  Very few of these Matched Pairs were kept by Mr. Adler, it seemed he only retained them, for a tiny fraction, mainly for his very favorite covers according to his heirs. The included painting became the front cover to a well-known issue of the popular title, and the Approval Cover is in great shape too. This is a must-have pair if you're a fan of the series!   One of the memorable "Bronze Horror" covers of the day, it's a jaw-dropper, with a ghastly apparition facing Batman in Wayne Manor.  Extremely bright colors after all these decades. Truly incredible Eye-appeal: high-quality heavy paper was used. Any admirer of the timeless lines of the skilled Aparo, who did the pencils and inks on this cool issue, would happily add this showpiece to his or her comic art collection. This lot is a must-have piece of DC history for any fan of vintage hero comic-books and/or unique horror ephemera, or of original production art to Bronze DC comics, or just the serious art fan who likes having true rarities instead of the mass-produced 'collectibles' of the modern era.   Buy It Now!   Many of you have read about this significant find in C.B.M. and C.B.G. and Alter Ego
(Comic Book Marketplace #85 and Comics Buyer's Guide #'s 1399, 1402, 1414, etc.)
We are secure packagers and prompt shippers so expect to be pleased.   PROVENANCE:  Jack Adler worked through all the major periods of the comics: Golden-Age, Silver-Age, and Bronze-Age.  He even colored the plates for the very first golden-age comic, the landmark introduction of Superman, in Action Comics #1, when he was but a youth in 1938!  He graduated from high school at the age of fifteen, and quickly earned his degree in Fine Art.  He continued his freelance work, including work for the comics and the fashion industry, and eventually became DC Comics' premiere colorist, on staff from the early '50's through the mid '80's, and was head of the art department for much of his tenure.  He became proficient at sculpting, penciling, inking, painting, and photography. He pioneered the washtone/graytone effect which became so popular on the DC "Big Five" war titles. Plus, he inked many '50's, '60's, and '70's comic covers as well. Moreover, he also developed the "3-D" process used on the Batman 3-D and Superman 3-D comics in 1953; --so we're talking about a top contributor to DC history.  During the summer of 2004, the living legend himself, Jack Adler, (thought by some to have passed away years ago), at the urgings of his kind family, made his very first and only public appearance, at the San Diego Comic-Con.  He was honored Thursday afternoon at the massive annual convention with the Inkpot Award For Excellence for Outstanding Achievement In Comic Art, and a rousing standing ovation from the many onlookers at the panel of Golden-Age and Silver-Age Greats, hosted by Mark Evanier (of course!)  Besides just Mr. Adler, other noteworthy members on the entertaining and informative panel were Tom Gill (RIP), Sid Jacobson, Gene Colan, Frank Springer, Harry Harrison, and Frank Bolle.  On Friday at the Comic Con, there was a one-on-one panel, with just Mark Evanier and Jack Adler, titled "Spotlight On Jack Adler", and many questions were answered for the crowd of audience members, who were kept entertained by the charismatic and respected legend.  It is amazing how many great names were hired on or got their start in the industry by him.  He also explained how he invented the 3-D image technology popularly used in Viewmasters, but was unable to get the deserved patent, as the film itself had been patented, (but not in a similar 3D format, so he got burned, as viewmaster was able to capitalize on his invention freely!)  Plus, the method that made integrating photo cover and line-drawn cover art easily into a single cover image was also pioneered by this influential innovator.  (The technology was supposed to be kept a secret, but was leaked immediately by a DC exec!)   Julius Shwartz had told him "don't tell me about it, just do it", and when it worked, it worked, and was immediately utilized, as the articulate and charming Adler related.  As an accomplished photographer, he created covers using photographs he had taken of his own grandchildren, producing his own copies of Shazam #2 and #6, which were displayed on an overhead projector to the glee of many enthralled listeners.  The picture of Captain Marvel, sitting reading to the innocent youths, was actually of Jack Adler reading to his grandkids.  (These same grandkids were present at the panel, and turned out to be pleasant, gracious, and kind adults.)  Moreover, he highly touted the art skills of good friends Neal Adams and Joe Kubert, (relating entertaining stories, of course!)  He helped Kubert set up his now legendary School Of Comic Book Art. Once the school was set up, he was supposed to head the school, but had to back out, as he couldn't bring himself to move to New Jersey.  You could write a book on the contributions Mr. Adler made to the medium many of us know and love.  He passed away at the age of 93 in the summer of 2011.   Back in the "good ole days", DC normally burned or discarded such production art once the comic went to print. Fortunately, during the period of 1967 to 1974, this award-winning artist pulled aside many prime examples, representing each step of the comic-making process.  He also ended up with a rather small amount of stuff from earlier, and later.  Nevertheless, there's an extremely small amount of these that were saved, considering the volume that was produced in those days. It is estimated that out of 840,000 pieces created for the production process over that time period, only about 4,000 or so survived, thanks to Jack Adler; ~A miniscule percentage of less than one half of one percent.    This Matched Pair includes the actual Original Cover Color Guide Art for the cult-classic comic AND the resulting Approval Cover (a proof piece, blank on reverse, used to proof the front cover image and text.)  They are taller than a comic, at a full foot tall, and also slightly wider. Up close, one can actually admire the varying hues, which never made it to the blander printed version that is beloved by fans for decades.  The editorial and creative staff reviewed it and apparently decided it was just too bright, and went with a pale blue background before the actual book hit the press.    Back in the late eighties, in Texas, Mr. Adler's grandson sold his entire collection from the DC archives in one fell swoop. Then, years later, it changed hands again, with the vast bulk of the load still untouched... Eventually, after lengthy negotiations, longtime friend and colleague Randy Tusha and myself were able to acquire the whole load, except for the horror, from the Southern California art collector who possessed the landmark find since 1997. The horror genre was obtained after an additional three and a half years of wrangling, and they too are now finding their way into the hands of the true fans who will preserve and cherish them the right way.  For additional information regarding this popular pedigree, check out the lengthy color article on the Adler Collection in the September 2001 issue of Comic Book Marketplace (which is still available in our ebay store) as well as Alter Ego #56 (with a feature interview with Adler, as well as with a few of the great talents he influenced, Joe Kubert, Neal Adams, and Howard Stern.)  Additional cover art can now be found by checking the Key Comics ebay store (User ID: keycomics). Buy aggressively, as such items are one-of-a-kind, and vintage DC production pieces as a whole are notoriously rare.   A signed & embossed cardstock Certificate Of Authenticity is included with each piece, forever guaranteeing the provenance from this major historic discovery.  They are slightly larger than comic size; since they were part of the editorial process they can include tack-holes, white-out, indentations from a paper clip, staple-holes, chips, pencil notations, tape, and/or edge wear.  These are great looking showpieces, which would be especially impressive framed.  All colors are rich and uniform, and extremely bold throughout! The rare Approval Cover is in terrific shape and it has great colors and a heavier gloss than usual, with excellent eye appeal.   As Usual: LOW ASKING PRICE AND NO RESERVE!  
KEY COMICS is a long-term top rated eBay Seller and CBM Market Report Contributor and CGC Member Dealer that has specialized in Mail-Order Comics and Art for over three decades;
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