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For other persons named Dave Stevens, see Dave Stevens (disambiguation). Dave Stevens may refer to Dave Stevens (b 1955 American illustrator Dave Stevens (football player, football player
Dave Stevens

Dave Stevens at Inkpot Awards in 1982
(photo by Alan Light)
Born July 29, 1955(1955-07-29)
Lynwood, California
Died March 11, 2008 (aged 52)
Nationality American
Area(s) Penciller, Inker, Illustrator
Awards Russ Manning Award
Inkpot Award
Kirby Award

Dave Stevens (July 29, 1955 – March 11, 2008) was an American illustrator and comics artist. Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) Lynwood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Russ Manning Most Promising Newcomer Award is an award presented to a Comic book artist whose first professional work appeared within the previous two years The Inkpot Award, bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International, is given to professionals in Comic book, Comic strip, Animation, The Jack Kirby Award for achievement in Comic books was presented from 1985-1987 by Amazing Heroes magazine and managed by Dave Olbrich Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common For the vector -based drawing program by Adobe Systems, see Adobe Illustrator. Comics (via Latin from the Greek "" kōmikos, of or pertaining to "comedy" from kōmos "revel" He is most famous for creating The Rocketeer comic book and film character, and for his pin-up style "glamour art" illustrations, especially of model Bettie Page. A pin-up girl or pin-up model is a model whose mass-produced pictures see wide appeal as Pop culture. Bettie Mae Page (born Betty Mae Page April 22 1923 in Nashville Tennessee) is a former American model who became famous in the 1950s for He was the first to win Comic-Con International's Russ Manning Most Promising Newcomer Award in 1982, and received both an Inkpot Award and the Kirby Award for Best Graphic Album in 1986. Comic-Con International San Diego, commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, is an annual multigenre Fan convention founded as the Golden The Russ Manning Most Promising Newcomer Award is an award presented to a Comic book artist whose first professional work appeared within the previous two years The Inkpot Award, bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International, is given to professionals in Comic book, Comic strip, Animation, The Jack Kirby Award for achievement in Comic books was presented from 1985-1987 by Amazing Heroes magazine and managed by Dave Olbrich

Contents

Early life and career

Stevens was born July 29, 1955 in Lynwood, California, but grew up in Portland, Oregon. Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) Lynwood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Portland is a city located in the Northwestern United States, near the Confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers His family relocated to San Diego, where he attended San Diego City College for two years . [1], and attended the then-new annual San Diego Comic-Con (now Comic-Con International).

His first professional comic work was inking Russ Manning's pencils for the Tarzan newspaper comic strip and two European Tarzan graphic novels in 1975 (he later assisted Manning on the Star Wars newspaper strip). Russell Manning (born 1929 California, United States; died 1981 was an American Comic book Artist who created the series Magnus Tarzan is a Fictional character, an archetypal Feral child raised in the African jungle by Apes who later returns to civilization only to Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded [2]

He began doing occasional comic book work, including providing illustrations for fanzines (inking drawings by comic book veteran Jack Kirby among them) as well as creating the Aurora feature for Japan's Sanrio Publishing. Jack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg, August 28, 1917 &ndash February 6, 1994) was an American Comic book [3]

Starting in 1977, he drew storyboards for Hanna-Barbara animated TV shows, including Super Friends and The Godzilla Power Hour where he worked with comics and animation veteran, Doug Wildey. Super Friends is an American Animated television series about a team of Superheroes which ran from 1973 to 1986 on ABC as part The Godzilla Power Hour was a 60-minute Saturday morning animated series co-produced between Hanna-Barbera Productions and Toho in 1978 Doug Wildey ( May 2, 1922, Yonkers New York - October 5, 1994, Las Vegas Nevada) was a Cartoonist most famous [1] For the rest of the decade, he continued to work in animation and film, joining the art studio of illustrators William Stout and Richard Hescox in Los Angeles, working on projects such as storyboards for Raiders of the Lost Ark and pop singer Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Raiders of the Lost Ark (also known as Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark) is a 1981 Adventure film directed by Steven Michael Joseph Jackson (born August 29 1958 is an American musician entertainer and businessman Michael Jackson's Thriller is a 13-minute Music video for the song of the same name released on December 2 1983 and directed by John Landis [2]

The Rocketeer

Painted illustration of the Rocketeer
Painted illustration of the Rocketeer

The first comics featuring Stevens' signature character the Rocketeer was released in 1982. Those stories first appeared as a back-up in issues #2 and #3 of a Pacific Comics effort from Mike Grell called Starslayer. Pacific Comics (PC is best known as one of the independent Comic book publishers that flourished in the early 1980s but was also a chain of comics shops and a distributor Mike Grell (born 1947 is a Comic book Writer and Artist. Grell studied at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, the Chicago Academy of Starslayer was an American Comic book series created by Mike Grell. The feature later moved to the anthology title Pacific Presents and then in 1984 became the feature of its own eponymous series for five issues. [4]

The story was continued in the Rocketeer Adventure Magazine, two issues of which were published by Comico Comics in 1988 and 1989, and a third by Dark Horse Comics in 1995. Comico - The Comic Company was an American Comic book company headquartered in Norristown Pennsylvania. Dark Horse Comics is one of the largest independent American Comic book publishers behind dominant publishers Marvel Comics and DC Comics Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Stevens' extensive research and meticulous approach to drawing contributed to the long delays between issues. [1] The first story was collected in a single volume by Eclipse Comics (ISBN 1-56060-088-8). Eclipse Comics was an American Comic book Publisher, one of several influential independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s The second story was collected by Dark Horse as The Rocketeer: Cliff's New York Adventure (ISBN 1-56971-092-9).

The Rocketeer was an adventure story set in a pulp fiction-styled 1930s (with allusions to heroes like Doc Savage and the Shadow emphasizing the pulp tradition), about a down-on-his-luck pilot named Cliff Secord who finds a mysterious rocket pack. Doc Savage is a Fictional character, one of the Pulp heroes of the 1930s and 1940s Despite its erratic publishing history, Rocketeer proved to be one of the first successful features to emerge from the burgeoning independent comics movement. Influenced by Golden Age artists such as Will Eisner, Lou Fine, Reed Crandall, Maurice Whitman, Frank Frazetta and Wally Wood,[5] Stevens was widely recognized along with artists such as Steve Rude and Jaime Hernandez as one of the finest comic-book artists of his generation. The Golden Age of Comic Books was a period in the history of American comic books generally thought as lasting from the 1930s until late 1940s during which Comic books William Erwin Eisner ( March 6, 1917 – January 3, 2005) was an acclaimed American Comics Writer, Artist and Louis Kenneth Fine ( November 26, 1914 - July 24, 1971) was an American Comic book Artist known for his work Reed Crandall ( February 22, 1917 &ndash September 13, 1982) was an American Illustrator and Penciller of Frank Frazetta (born February 9, 1928) is an American fantasy and Science fiction Artist, noted for his Buck Rogers Wallace Allan Wood ( June 17, 1927, Menahga Minnesota – November 2, 1981, Los Angeles California) was an American Steve Rude (born December 31, 1956) is an American Comic book artist Jaime (sometimes spelled Xaime, pronounced /high-may/ Hernandez (born 1959 is the co-creator of the black & white independent comic Love and [4]

Stevens began developing a Rocketeer film proposal in 1985 and sold the rights to the Walt Disney Company, which produced the 1991 film The Rocketeer. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The film was directed by Joe Johnston, and starred Billy Campbell, Jennifer Connelly, Alan Arkin and Timothy Dalton. Joseph Eggleston " Joe " Johnston III (born May 13, 1950) is an American Film director, responsible for such This is about the American TV and film actor born in 1959 For similarly named people see William Campbell William Oliver "Billy" Campbell Jennifer Lynn Connelly (born December 12 1970 is an American film actress and former child model. Alan Wolf Arkin (born March 26 1934 is an American Actor and director. Timothy Peter Dalton (born March 21, 1946) is an English Stevens co-wrote the screenplay and was a hands-on co-producer of the film. [4] It received a mixture of highly positive and lukewarm reviews, and disappointing ticket sales.

Later life

Following The Rocketeer, Stevens worked primarily as an illustrator, doing a variety of ink and painted illustrations for book and comic book covers, posters, prints, portfolios, and private commissions, including a number of covers for Comico's Jonny Quest series. Comico - The Comic Company was an American Comic book company headquartered in Norristown Pennsylvania. Jonny Quest (often referred to as The Adventures of Jonny Quest) is a Science fiction / Adventure animated television series Much of his illustrations were in the "good girl art" genre. Good girl art ( GGA) is found in drawings or paintings which feature a strong emphasis on attractive women no matter what the subject or situation He also made a return to art college to study painting.

Following several years of struggles with leukemia, which caused a gradual reduction in his artistic output, Stevens died on March 11, 2008 in Turlock, California [6][7][8][9]

Personal life

Artist Laura Molina, with whom Stevens had a relationship in the mid 1970s,[10] used him as the subject of her Naked Dave series of paintings. Leukemia or leukaemia (Greek leukos λευκός, "white" aima αίμα, "blood" is a Cancer of the Blood Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Turlock is a city in Stanislaus County, California, United States. Laura Molina (born December 15, 1957) is an American artist musician and actress from Los Angeles California. Naked Dave ( The Naked Dave Project) refers to a series of paintings created by Laura Molina, inspired by her relationship with Illustrator and [11]

In 1980, Stevens married longtime girlfriend Charlene Brinkman, later known as Brinke Stevens, which ended in divorce six months later. Brinke Stevens (born September 20 1954) is an American Actress, model and Writer. She later modeled for her ex-husband. [12]

Several characters in his Rocketeer stories are based on personal acquaintances. The Peevy character being based on cartoonist Doug Wildey. Other mutual acquaintances who show up in the comics include real-life glamour and porn photographer Ken Marcus, as the sleazy "Marco of Hollywood". Ken Marcus (born October 2, 1946) is an American Photographer, known for his Glamour photography with ''Penthouse'' and [2]

Idealized image of Bettie Page from the October 1986 back cover of Glamour International
Idealized image of Bettie Page from the October 1986 back cover of Glamour International

Stevens was an admirer of 1950s pin-up model Bettie Page. Bettie Mae Page (born Betty Mae Page April 22 1923 in Nashville Tennessee) is a former American model who became famous in the 1950s for Bettie Mae Page (born Betty Mae Page April 22 1923 in Nashville Tennessee) is a former American model who became famous in the 1950s for He modeled the Rocketeer's girlfriend after her, and featured her in other illustrations, which contributed to a renewed public interest in her. After discovering that Page was still alive and lived nearby, Stevens became friends with her. He provided personal assistance to her and helped arrange financial compensation for the published use of her images. [3]

Legacy

At the time of his death, Stevens was working on a career retrospective collection of his work to be titled Brush with Passion – The Life and Art of Dave Stevens from Spectrum Publishing [13]

His work has had a significant influence on comic book and fantasy illustrators,[4] among them Adam Hughes. Adam Hughes (born May 5, 1967) is an American comic book artist known mostly for his voluptuous Pinup -style female characters and his cover work [14] .

Quotes

"Dave had more artistic integrity than anyone I've ever known. He always marched to his own drummer whether it benefited him financially or not. He turned down many lucrative job offers — including a monthly pin-up assignment for Playboy offered by Hugh Hefner as a replacement for their regular Alberto Vargas feature — when they didn't jibe with his own highly personal vision of what he should be doing. As a businessman, Dave often drove his close friends nuts. We'd watch in astonishment at the riches passing him by. " – William Stout [2]

"Dave was truly one of the nicest people I have ever met in my life. . . and was certainly among the most gifted. Our first encounter was at Jack Kirby's house around 1971 when he came to visit and show Jack some of his work. As I said, Kirby was very encouraging and he urged Dave not to try and draw like anyone else but to follow his own passions. This was advice Dave took to heart, which probably explains why he took so long with every drawing. They were rarely just jobs to Dave. Most of the time, what emerged from his drawing board or easel was a deeply personal effort. He was truly in love with every beautiful woman he drew, at least insofar as the paper versions were concerned. " – Mark Evanier [1]

"Well, I do expect a lot of myself. I'm a harsh critic because I know what I'm capable of. I have hit those occasional peaks amongst the valleys, but the peaks are so few-things like genuine flashes of virtuoso brush inking, like I've never executed before or since-I can count on one hand the number of jobs where I've been able to hit that mark. The same with penciling. Sometimes it just flows, but more often than not, it's pure physical and spiritual torment just to get something decent on paper. I often get very discouraged with the whole creative process. " – Dave Stevens[3]

Selected Works

References

  1. ^ a b c d [ "Dave Stevens R.I.P.", News from ME, Mark Evanier, 2008-03-11. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty Retrieved on 2008-03-14. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1489 - The Queen of Cyprus, Catherine Cornaro, sells her kingdom to Venice.  
  2. ^ a b c d The Worlds of William Stout - Journal
  3. ^ a b c Comic Book Artist Magazine #15 - Dave Stevens Interview - TwoMorrows Publishing
  4. ^ a b c d The Comics Reporter
  5. ^ About Dave Stevens - The Dave Stevens Web Site
  6. ^ "Dave Stevens 1955–2008", The Beat, Reed Elsevier, 2008-03-11. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty Retrieved on 2008-03-11. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 1425 BC - Thutmose III, Pharaoh of Egypt, dies (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty  
  7. ^ Comic artist Dave Stevens dies - Created The Rocketeer, Daily Variety - Posted: Wed. Variety is a weekly entertainment trade newspaper founded in New York in 1905 by Sime Silverman , Mar. 12, 2008, 2:57pm PT
  8. ^ Rocketeer creator Stevens dead at 52 - UPI - Published: March 31, 2008 at 9:52 PM
  9. ^ "Dave Stevens, 52, Artist Who Created the Rocketeer, Dies" by George Gene Gustines - New York Times, Published: March 30, 2008
  10. ^ Laura Molina: Not Just The World's Angriest Woman
  11. ^ Naked Dave
  12. ^ Brinke Stevens
  13. ^ Spectrum Fantastic Art - http://www.spectrumfantasticart.com
  14. ^ Cooke, John B. , "Adam Hughes bares all", Comic Book Artist #21 (Aug. Comic Book Artist was an American Magazine devoted to anecdotal histories of American comic books, with emphasis on comics published since the 2002), p. 22-A.

External links

Interviews

Obituaries

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