Is Joe Kubert the only remaining cartoonist whose career began in the 1930s?

[Sir Tim Drake]

According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Kubert#Early_life_and_career), Joe Kubert claims that he got his first inking job in 1938, when he was twelve years old, although that claim has been disputed, and Kubert's first verifiable professional work was in 1942.

Assuming that Kubert actually was working in comics in 1938, if he's still working in comics in 2010, then his career will have lasted nine decades.

Is there any other cartoonist who was (or may have been) active in the 1930s, and who could reasonably still be active in the 2010s? Or is Joe Kubert the only one?

[dan bailey]

I sure as heck can't think of any. Offhand, I know a couple of personal favorites of mine who still occasionally draw (& wonderfully well, I might add) -- John Severin & Russ Heath -- are more or less Joe's age, but they sure as heck didn't get any work before they were teenagers.

[Lone Ranger]

According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Kubert#Early_life_and_career)
Is there any other cartoonist who was (or may have been) active in the 1930s, and who could reasonably still be active in the 2010s? Or is Joe Kubert the only one?

I seriously doubt it.

There are some, like Creig Flessel, who still do commission work - but certain aren't part of the 'industry' per se.

The only others is the same ballpark as Kubert would be Russ Heath and John Severin - but of whom got started circa 1948. I think Joe Giella is in that range too, and I assume he's still drawing Mary Worth.

Mort Drucker is another late 40s guy. He's not in funnybooks anymore but I've seen commerical work by him recently (some Mr. Clean product if memory serves).

[Scott Shaw!]

Sam Glanzman is still around, too, and his first published funnybook art was in AMAZING-MAN COMICS, 1939. He hasn't done a comic book in the last few years, but he draws stuff for his local newspaper, and even had a page or two in the recently-departed WEEKLY WORLD NEWS.

Aloha,

Scott!

[dan bailey]

Cool to know, Scott! I had no idea Sam started that far back. His Charlton Hercules strips would've been some of the earliest comics to make a real impression on me back when I was in ... geez ... maybe 3rd grade.

[MDG]

There are some, like Creig Flessel, who still do commission work - but certain aren't part of the 'industry' per se.
George Tuska is another who still does commissions--not sure if he started in the 30s, but I wouldnt doubt it.

[dan bailey]

Highly possible, judging from Tuska's Wikipedia entry --

In 1939, he became an assistant on the Associated Press newspaper comic strip Scorchy Smith, about an aviator. He also worked for comic book packager Eisner & Iger, ...

Tuska later left to work with packager Harry "A" Chesler's studio, helping to supply content for such Fawcett Comics publications as Captain Marvel Adventures, and for such characters as Golden Arrow, Uncle Sam and El Carim. Tuska also drew the debut of the Quality Comics feature "Hercules" — starring a superhuman circus strongman, not the mythological figure — in Hit Comics #1 (July 1940).

[MWGallaher]

Joe Simon's still active, at least in the sense that he's still marketing the copyrighted characters he owns, like Fighting American, as well as drawing cover reproductions. He's a contender to stay active through 2010, though he's evidently not nearly as active as Kubert continues to be.

[benday-dot]

And Stan Lee would be close to breaking that 30's mark.

I was checking out Frank Frazetta, but comics.org has him cutting his teeth at about 1944... a real late bloomer compared to Kubert.

[Chad]

I think I've heard that Shelly Moldoff did work on Action Comics 1. It may have been on one of those "Did You Know...?" one page features. He of course would've done the cover for Flash 1 and the Hawkman work sometime in 1939 since that issue is cover dated Jan 1940. Was he working on Batman by this point? His last published stuff that I know of was in World's Funniest which was almost 10 years ago, but I suspect he still does commissions.

Jerry Robinson was around for Batman 1 and had a hand in the creation of Robin, so he would've been around at least as early as 1940 if not '39. Robionson was also been given a consulatant role at DC recently.

[Sir Tim Drake]

I think I've heard that Shelly Moldoff did work on Action Comics 1. It may have been on one of those "Did You Know...?" one page features. He of course would've done the cover for Flash 1 and the Hawkman work sometime in 1939 since that issue is cover dated Jan 1940. Was he working on Batman by this point? His last published stuff that I know of was in World's Funniest which was almost 10 years ago, but I suspect he still does commissions.

Huh. I didn't realize he was even still alive.

Jerry Robinson was around for Batman 1 and had a hand in the creation of Robin, so he would've been around at least as early as 1940 if not '39. Robionson was also been given a consulatant role at DC recently.

I thought of Jerry, but it seems like he's been mostly retired from comics for several decades, although he still is very active and energetic.

[Slam_Bradley]

I think I've heard that Shelly Moldoff did work on Action Comics 1. It may have been on one of those "Did You Know...?" one page features. He of course would've done the cover for Flash 1 and the Hawkman work sometime in 1939 since that issue is cover dated Jan 1940. Was he working on Batman by this point? His last published stuff that I know of was in World's Funniest which was almost 10 years ago, but I suspect he still does commissions.

Jerry Robinson was around for Batman 1 and had a hand in the creation of Robin, so he would've been around at least as early as 1940 if not '39. Robionson was also been given a consulatant role at DC recently.

Moldoff does indeed do commisions, but isn't active in doing actual comics. He had a sports filler that appeared on the inside front cover of Action # 1.

[DonEMC]

Carmine Infantino started work in 1940 and still does commissions. As far as oldest artist, I wonder just how old Luis Dominguez is. Someone told me he's close to 100.
Don

[Sir Tim Drake]

Carmine Infantino started work in 1940 and still does commissions. As far as oldest artist, I wonder just how old Luis Dominguez is. Someone told me he's close to 100.
Don

I don't think so -- according to this page (http://lambiek.net/artists/d/dominguez_luis.htm), Luis Dominguez was born in 1923, which would make him about 85.

[DonEMC]

According to his art agent, that listing is incorrect and he is well over 90 and close to 100. Luis told me recently when I spoke with him that he is over 90.

[Sir Tim Drake]

According to his art agent, that listing is incorrect and he is well over 90 and close to 100. Luis told me recently when I spoke with him that he is over 90.

Huh. Maybe his agent should inform Lambiek of the error.

If you don't mind my asking, under what circumstances were you speaking with him?

[Glen Cadigan]

According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Kubert#Early_life_and_career), Joe Kubert claims that he got his first inking job in 1938, when he was twelve years old, although that claim has been disputed, and Kubert's first verifiable professional work was in 1942.

It's more than disputed, it's disproven. The first place that Joe Kubert ever worked was MLJ (later Archie Comics), and the first comic book MLJ ever published was Blue Ribbon Comics # 1, cover dated November, 1939. That means that it was published two months prior, in September. Not only that, but the early MLJ titles were, in all likelihood, packaged by Harry "A" Chesler's shop. So realistically, the earliest he would have been there is 1940, and he always says that one of the first things he worked on was an early Archie story. Archie first appeared in Pep Comics # 22, cover dated December, 1941. That would make it late '41, probably early '42.

No one's accusing Kubert of lying, but it's indisputable that he has his dates wrong.

[Chad]

Nick Cardy and Irwin Hasen - Cardy was working for Will Eisner in 1939 and Hasen, according to an interview with Roy Thomas was working with Charles Biro, Irv Novick, and Mort Meskin for Harry Chesler in 1939.

Marc Swayze has been working since 1941 so he misses the cut-off date but the guy co-created Mary Marvel and still contributes columns to Alter Ego

Al Plastino was working on Sub-Mariner and I believe Capt America in 1942.

[Bill Angus]

I thought Nick Cardy might qualify... I knew he also started quite young... but I couldn't remember exact dates.

[Roquefort Raider]

Is there any other cartoonist who was (or may have been) active in the 1930s, and who could reasonably still be active in the 2010s? Or is Joe Kubert the only one?

Jacques Martin, the creator of Alix, seems to have published his first comic in 1942 (like Kubert) but as he was already in his early 20s, he might have done something earlier. Alix hasn't been good for a while, but books still come out on an irregular basis.

I thought Albert Uderzo might also have been in that select club, but according to a biography I read recently he definitely started in the mid-40s. Uderzo retired after the latest Astérix (a wise decision, I think) but I'm should he still pushes a mean pencil.

[Slam_Bradley]

Sam Glanzman's first work was dated in early 1940. Early enough that it could easily have been drawn some time in '39.