View Full Version : Remembering Dave Cockrum
Glen Cadigan
11-25-2007, 11:47 AM
It was this time last year that Dave Cockrum, co-creator of the New X-Men and designer of Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Thunderbird, Phoenix, and Logan (from the neck up) passed away. Dave was a great guy, and it took him almost dying to finally get the acknowledgements and accolades which he deserved. He revived the Legion of Super-Heroes before he did the exact same thing for the X-Men, and both franchaises were the better for it. In some ways, it's hard to believe that a year has passed, but in others, it has been a long time since he posted online in response to a query from one of his many fans.
On this sad aniversary, I thought that people might like to take a trip down memory lane and talk about how they first discovered his work, and the effect which it had on them. Myself, it was Uncanny X-Men # 145, the issue with Dr. Doom on the cover. I'll always remember being blown away by the FF's arch-nemesis crossing over into the X-Men's book, and it only got better from there.
Anyone else?
Y'all should really try to find Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (1st Carol Danvers) of the Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) storyline before the debut of Captain Marvel #1. Dave Cockrum's letter is printed in the letters page.
I miss Dave Cockrum. His primary talent came from his gifted costume design as well as his character design. His enthusiasm for being in comics came through on every page. You can tell he was excited to be a comic book artist at last.
I haven't read any of Legion of the Super-Heroes, his pre-Marvel work when he worked for DC Comics.
Kirk G
11-26-2007, 01:35 PM
I must say that I really never got into Cockrum's art, but I realize that he helped to mold the industry shaking X-men... and paved the way for the Clarmont-Byrne X-men. As such, I have bought all the back issues and the Masterworks reprint volumes for reference, but I grew tired of reading X-men as an imitation Blackhawks book at first.
I must say, it became clear who's favorite characters were getting the lime-light in the early books of the X-men.
Oh, and I would recommend the four part Nightcrawler mini-series from about the mid-1980s. If you can find it, it's very much worth the effort. Only 4 issues, as one of the first Mini-Series Marvel produced...
He was never one of my top favourites, but his work was almost always competent and every now and then he'd do something I really liked. I was reading the X-Men when him & Claremont began to make it into the monster it's been ever since, but I was never really a big X-Men fan. For me personally, his claim to fame is that he 's responsible for the iconic version of Mantis from the Englehart Avengers, one of the best characters to come out of mainstream comics from someone other than Kirby or Ditko. I'm thing pf the picture from the Celestial Madonna Annual or whatever it was, the one they used for the cover of that collection a few years ago.
Loved him, loved him, loved him.
He is my all time favorite Legion artist, all time favorite X-Men artist and I even loved the damm Futurians too.
The man was an innovative and important artist who never got the public or financial respect he deserved.
Stephane Garrelie
11-27-2007, 01:48 AM
A great artist and a great guy.
And occasionaly a great writer, like on his Nightcrawler mini serie from 1985. My favorite of his works.:)
dan bailey
11-27-2007, 07:33 AM
I'd have to sit down & take a chronological stroll through his credits on the GCD, which at least as of a few minutes ago wasn't cooperating with searches of any sort, but certainly one of my earliest encounters with Cockrum would've been Giant-Size X-Men #1, which was, y'know, a pretty decent comic.
Not sure if I read any of his LOSH work at the time it was out ...
C.O. Jones
11-27-2007, 08:50 AM
GS Avengers #2 was my 1st exposure to Cockrum's art. It was a great book and I'll never forget how the death of the Swordsman stayed with me for a long time. Once he got rolling with the X-Men it was only then that I realized that he was the artist on GS Avengers #2.
Favorite DC X-Men issue would be #98 hands down.
Jolly Mon
11-27-2007, 03:30 PM
Loved him, loved him, loved him.
He is my all time favorite Legion artist, all time favorite X-Men artist and I even loved the damm Futurians too.
The man was an innovative and important artist who never got the public or financial respect he deserved.
The Futurians were a favorite of mine, as well. Thinking about them never again seeing the light of day, makes his loss a little sadder yet.
Happened to see this in the bookstore the other day:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c259/bmaclean/51Q62HVIDOL__SS500_.jpg
It's the cover of the new Penguin edition of Edgar Rice Burroughs's Princess of Mars, a nice Cockrum illustration from the old Marvel John Carter series.
BTW, is Cockrum pronounced the way it looks, cokk-rum, or is it coh-rum, the way Cockburn is pronounced coh-burn?
Agentum
11-28-2007, 01:09 AM
I guess it's cokk-rum, but i'm not an american.
I liked his art and i think he had a big part in the success och The new uncanny X-men etc.
Agentum
11-28-2007, 02:03 AM
...........................
Glen Cadigan
11-28-2007, 07:08 PM
Happened to see this in the bookstore the other day:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c259/bmaclean/51Q62HVIDOL__SS500_.jpg
I think if Dave hadn't already died and gone to heaven, he would have done exactly that at the thought of his artwork being on the cover of A Princess of Mars!
BTW, is Cockrum pronounced the way it looks, cokk-rum, or is it coh-rum, the way Cockburn is pronounced coh-burn?
It's pronounced exactly the way it looks.
Sir Tim Drake
11-28-2007, 07:28 PM
Happened to see this in the bookstore the other day:
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c259/bmaclean/51Q62HVIDOL__SS500_.jpg
It's the cover of the new Penguin edition of Edgar Rice Burroughs's Princess of Mars, a nice Cockrum illustration from the old Marvel John Carter series.
BTW, is Cockrum pronounced the way it looks, cokk-rum, or is it coh-rum, the way Cockburn is pronounced coh-burn?
Or the way cockfighting is pronounced coh-fighting?
Dr.J.
11-29-2007, 02:56 AM
I believe the first Cocrum art I seen, was in an issue of Creepy,back in 1971, where it looked allmost like Ditko art. Then Superboy 195,& shazam 9 on a great captain marvel jr. story.I recall reading on the matter,that drove him from DC,dispite loving both the legion and cap jr,was he asked for the return, of the full wedding page for superboy 200,& Infantino over ruled its return. Because of this incident, one single page of art,not being returned, he went to marvel,& co created the new x men. Not exactly a wise move on Infantinos part.He was still willing to do cap jr, but it was either work exclusivly for us,or get out attitude.A shame,his cap jr if continued, would have taken the book to issue 100.His letters, are in many a 1960s marvel and dc book.Recall one I believe,in atom 24,when he was in the navy.
devildinosaur
12-03-2007, 01:56 PM
Loved him, loved him, loved him.
He is my all time favorite Legion artist, all time favorite X-Men artist and I even loved the damm Futurians too.
The man was an innovative and important artist who never got the public or financial respect he deserved.
Ditto, here. I appreciated his run on Uncanny more than Byrne's. I think that sums up how talented he was. The first time I saw his art on a Giant Sized X-Men #1 digest, I fell instantly in love.
Paradox
12-05-2007, 08:39 AM
My first exposure to Dave's work was in the old Legion Fanzine, Legion Outpost. It was the second issue I'd gotten, and it included a cover and inside page by the "new" Legion artist. It was new costumes for Lightning Lad, Phantom Girl, Chameleon Boy and Duo Damsel, the ones they actually used over the next few months.
I fell in love with his work then, and I never really stopped. Byrne eclipsed him on the X-books, I think, and Dave's return there was less than stellar. But Dave stayed Dave, steady good quality over the years while Byrne became...well, Byrne.
We miss ya, Dave. You had a great eye.
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