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Binding: HardcoverDewey Decimal Number: 741 EAN: 9781560979210 ISBN: 1560979216 Label: Fantagraphics Books Manufacturer: Fantagraphics Books Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 220 Publication Date: July 16, 2008 Publisher: Fantagraphics Books Studio: Fantagraphics Books Editorial Review: Product Description: The first critical retrospective of the work of the reclusive Spider-Man co-creator. In the wake of the astonishing success of Sam Raimi's three Spider-Man movies, Steve Ditko has become known as the co-creator, with Stan Lee, of the early 1960s character that helped propel Marvel Comics' popularity on college campuses and gave it much of its cultural cachet throughout that decade. But, in the context of Steve Ditko's 50-year career in comics, his creative involvement with Spider-Man is merely the tip of the iceberg. Ditko is known among the cartooning cognoscenti as one of the supreme visual stylists in the history of comics, as well as the most fiercely independent cartoonist of his generation. His unique style and innovative spatial designs moved from the imaginatively hallucinatory landscapes of Dr. Strange to the almost plebeian earthiness of The Amazing Spider-Man. Ditko began his career in the 1950s drawing comics for the notorious low-budget Charlton Comics (the Roger Corman Productions of the comics industry) where he developed his craft on various genre titles. He started working for Stan Lee at Marvel Comics in 1958, churning out monster/horror stories, until he was conscripted to work on Marvel's new super-hero line, for which he provided the visual conceptions of The Hulk, Spider-Man, and Dr. Strange, and plotted and drew these characters' adventures between 1962 and 1966. By 1966, Spider-Man had become a pop culture icon, and it was then that Ditko quit drawing the character over mysterious circumstances that will, for the first time, be investigated here. He immediately created his Ayn Rand-inspired character, Mr. A, whose first story appeared in Witzend, a black-and-white pre-underground independent comics magazine edited and published by Wally Wood, another talented stylist who chafed under the constraints of the mainstream comics publishers of the time. Ditko went on to work at various publishing companies such as DC Comics, Warren Publishing, and even Marvel Comics (albeit steadfastly refusing to ever draw Spider-Man again), writing and drawing his didactic Mr. A stories, relentlessly extolling the philosophical precepts of Ayn Rand, and, more recently, bitter visual jeremiads against the moral status quo of the comics industry. Strange & Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko is a coffee table art book tracing Ditko's life and career, his unparalleled stylistic innovations, his strict adherence to his own (and Randian) principles, with lush displays of obscure and popular art from the thousands of pages of comics he's drawn over the last 55 years. Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Not just for Ditko fansI can't claim I was ever a big fan of Steve Ditko, I grew up reading comic books, and of course, I read reprints of his work on Spiderman, but I liked the more realistic work of John Romita (and perhaps, the unrealistically beatiful women he drew). Now I can look at it and see how revolutionary it was in the early 60s, and it was a really unique way to draw a superhero book, I'm sure that was no small part of why Spiderman caught the popular imagination of the day. My main exposure to ... Read More Rating:  - The Perfect Ditko Book for Every Ditko FanThis is a really great book. Steve Ditko remains, after my first exposure to his work more than 44 years ago, my all-time favorite comic book creator. Those of you who know me also know that I credit him completely with the creation of both The Amazing Spider-Man and Dr. Strange--books which he produced for Marvel Comics, and characters whose names are now attached to a man who had almost nothing to do with their creation. This book has so far been something of a treasure for me. For instance, ... Read More Rating: - Ditko, a fascinating and uncompromising artistThis is an incredibly entertaining book. Looking at the cover, one can tell they are not looking at just another comic book artist. Opening the book one sees the first glimpse of Ditko, a five page black and white story called "Stretching Things". The story is a look at a man grown bitter by his handicap, so much so that a possible cure to his condition does'nt bring a happy ending, but a descent into evil. This is'nt your average "comic book artist". The book is a entertaining yet somber look at the ... Read More Rating: - STEVE DITKO - A DECENT TRIBUTE TO AN EXCEPTIONAL MANGrowing up, my Grandmother (who bore striking resemblance to Spiderman's Aunt May) used to hand me a few comic books in a brown bag whenever I would come and see her. On one of these occasions I was introduced to the world of Steve Ditko's Spiderman in reprinted form, issued by Marvel. Through Ditko's art, I received what was to be my first taste of "the heroic" as a child. Those faces, imagery, movements - stunned me into adoration for this character who I was to lose interest in as soon as he became another ... Read More Rating: - Ditko, the shining starFew comic artists have left their mark on the comic book industry like Steve Ditko. With his groundbreaking work on Spiderman and Doctor Strange with Stan Lee, his signature style art connossieurs find recognizable no matter who inked him, and then his remarkable hermitish existence away from the front lines of comicdom, he is a shining star much like B Traven (Treasure of Sierra Madre). Steve Ditko began his career in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, born to a family with a strong work ethic and ... Read More |
