Gene Colan

[Perry Holley]

http://ohdannyboy.blogspot.com/2008/...an-part-i.html

Dammit...

[dan bailey]

My god, I hope he can pull out of this. Gene the Dean is one of the all-time greats, pure & simple.

Cutting & pasting from the above-linked blog --

with the full knowledge and permission of the Colan family, I'm asking for anyone and everyone who's been touched by Gene's talent to send him a get well card. Nothing more, just a card and a short note to tell Gene how much he's meant. You can send the cards to this address:


Gene Colan
2 Sea Cliff Avenue
Sea Cliff, NY 11579
USA


If you admire Gene then let him know. Let him know that people out there are thinking of him.

[benday-dot]

My admiration for Gene Colan comes without qualifaction. He's one of those very few artists whose books I know I'll enjoy before seeing the work. One of the pillars, along with Kirby, Ditko and Romita, of the House that Marvel built. And his work remarkably looks as good today as ever. One of the true surviving masters of the comic book art form. Let us pray he continues to be so.

Somewhere on CBR Classics there is a Gene Colan appreciation thread, created on occasion of his birthday I believe.

We ought resurrect it.

[Kan-Man]

One of the things that strikes me beyond the obvious concern for his health is that he lives in my hometown of Sea Cliff. This is a one square mile beach town on the north shore of Long Island, where my parents still live. There are people on Long Island who have never heard of Sea Cliff, so to see it as his place of residence surprised me.

I hope this didn't come across as trivial or cold, I just never realized one of the masters lived in the village I grew up in.

My best wishes are with Gene and his family.

[Paradox]

I've loved Gene's work since first coming across it in the late '60s/early '70s. The one thing that stuck out for me was that he dared to draw "civilians" as less than super-models. His ordinary street people looked like PEOPLE, not idealized demigods. I grew to appreciate his work as a whole as I learned more, but he'll never cease to pop up in my mind as "the guy who drew real people".

This news is very sad, and you bet I'll send him a card this Monday. You're still one of the greats, Gene, don't ever forget that.

[Beria]

I'm sorry to see that he's ill. I hope he gets better.

Incidentally I've been reading some of his old Daredevils these last days. Great stuff. Gene's one of my all time favourites.

[The Man Without Fear]

I'm currently going through my Daredevil collection again, and all the while I keep thinking how underrated Gene Colan's art is. When talking about classic artists at Marvel, you almost always hear about Kirby, Romita, and Ditko, but sadly I think the Dean's body of work is often times overlooked in comparison. Truly one of the all-time greats.

My thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family, as well as my thanks for the years of superb storytelling he helped to bring to us all. I'll be sure to send him that get well card tomorrow.

- Manning

[Lupek]

My best wishes of health for Mr Colan.

I bought the Essential Tomb of Dracula books for my brothers birthday last year and it was quite a hit.

Thank you for all the great art and comics Mr Colan.

[Will.S]

I hope he gets better as well, he's a great artist and from what I've heard of him on podcasts a really friendly guy.

[david r]

I hope Gene Colan pulls through. He remains one of my favorite artists of the 1970s. I adore his under-appreciated Night Force series, also. Gene has his own unique style and I can't bare the thought of losing him.

[johanskull]

This doesn't sound good at all. I really do wish Gene all the best, and I pray that he recovers. He is too talented to lose.

When I was younger, I never appreciated his artwork as a kid. But there he was drawing Avengers, Daredevil, Iron Man, Tomb of Dracula, etc. I liked his TOD and Doctor Strange, but not his superhero work. After I matured, I re-discovered the his unique storytelling with fresh eyes.

Last year, I wrote him a thank you note basically telling him the same story. And he replied back with just as long a email as I had written :)

He's a wonderful and talented man, who is still a powerful craftsman. His later works have gotten stronger, not weaker. Some of his known commission work is breathtaking.

And, yes, Gene has always been underappreciated as a comic book artist by fans and the industry. When he fell out with Marvel, however, DC did everything they could to accomodate Gene Colan's arrival: large full page ads announcing Gene on Wonder Woman and Batman. Not since Kirby had DC welcomed a vet from their rival with such public enthusiasm. But Gene deserved it.

I highly recommend folks pick up Secrets in the Shadows: the art of Gene Colan from Twomorrows Press. I had bought the softcover, but after reading it, cursed myself for not getting the deluxe edition. Lots of stories, interviews, and beautfiul art from Gene.

Keep smiling, Gene. We love you!

-- Jeff

[Clea]

How terribly sad. My thoughts are with him and his family.

[Leocomix]

He improved every feature he worked on: Daredevil, Iron Man, Captain America. He also excelled at fantasy (Dr. Strange) comedy (Howard the Duck) and horror (Tomb of Dracula).

He was supposed to be working on a Captain America Brubaker script, I'm still waiting for this and hope he can complete it.
The 1968-1978 is my favourite period of comics and Gene is an essential part of it. His career extends farther on both sides. I can't cite here all the features I've read and enjoyed

[cg_maniac]

I am very sad to hear this news. I was one of the luckiest people on the planet to have had Mr. Gene Colan as an instructor for a semester at the School of Visual Arts. He is a great teacher, as well as a very nice guy, and I learned a lot from him during those months. When he drew in class, it was surreal to watch how effortlessly he could create a masterful piece of artwork. That skill level is slowly fading away from comics, and thankfully he passed some of that on to future artists.

Best wishes Gene and family, get well soon.

[Ghost Shark]

My most heartfelt best wishes to Gene and his family. I love his art, absolutely love it.