Who Would You Put in Your Comics Hall of Fame?

This is an idea someone came up with on the DC boards, but they seemed to be restricting it to purely American creators. Taking a global view, who would you place in your personal Hall of Fame as the most significant and influential comics creators of all time, and why? Note that I said significant and influential, people who've actually made a mark on the medium and on the way it is perceived, not just your personal favourites. And to keep things interesting: you're only allowed ten choices!

For me, I think it would have to be:

Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, for effectively creating the concept which launched the superhero phenomenon which has dominated American comics for over 70 years.

Jack Kirby, probably the single most influential comics artist who ever lived.

Stan Lee, the first comics creator to really understand and exploit the power of Public Relations.

Alan Moore, who redefined the way comics were seen in the eighties and has been pushing the boundaries ever since.

Pat Mills, rightly regarded as the godfather of modern British comics.

Georges Remi (Herge) whose work has probably been read by more people around the world than any of the others.

Bob Kane, arguably the first American creator to become well known in his own right.

Dudley D Watkins and David Law, who created some of the most enduring and iconic characters in British comics history.

Moebius, since I'm reading some of his work right now. I hope to find more. As I think of more, I'll add them.

We've been talking about him just recently in the French Comics thread! Definitely a contender. If we're talking European talent, I'd add Herge, Milo Manara and Carlos Ezquerra for starters...

The problem I have is that while I know writers/artists from other places (like Jodorowsky) I have no way to put them into context, and know how good they really are.

Not sure I entirely understand you...

tony ingram wrote:Not sure I entirely understand you...

I don't know who is really "great" outside the US, because I don't know enough about the comics cultures in other areas. I know some names and I can see how good their work is, but I don't know enough to really see how much they've done that's above and beyond for their area. I can compare it to the US, but that's largely a superhero market and has been for a long time, so it's not much of a competition.

Ah, I see! Well, that basically just means you've an awful lot of great comics still to discover, which has to be a good thing!

tony ingram wrote:Ah, I see! Well, that basically just means you've an awful lot of great comics still to discover, which has to be a good thing!

I do indeed, and I'm looking forward to finding more and more. Especially with this list, and the ones from DC (a discussion I saved).

What about Guido Crepax? His work seems interesting, but it's been years since I saw much of it.

I remember seeing some of his work appearing in Heavy Metal in the eighties, beautiful stuff! Some of his Valentina stories, as i recall. He drew absolutely gorgeous women...

tony ingram wrote:He drew absolutely gorgeous women...

Not enough reason in itself to add him, but not a bad one...

How about Mr. Severin? Are we limiting ourselves to recent work?

No, not at all! John Severin probably ought to qualify based on the sheer volume of his output, though I don't think he was ever what I'd call a pioneer. Joe Kubert, on the other hand, or Frazetta...

Mbast1 wrote:Moebius, since I'm reading some of his work right now. I hope to find more. As I think of more, I'll add them.

what have you been reading? i really loved the incal, and i'm eagerly waiting for madwoman of the sacred heart to be released on tuesday.

freedumbdclxvi wrote:what have you been reading? i really loved the incal, and i'm eagerly waiting for madwoman of the sacred heart to be released on tuesday.

I have a Heavy Metal Special of his work, and two of the Marvel trades, and I am trying to get them finished soon. I'm reading a bunch of things at once, as I too often do.

They print comics outside the US?

(Ducks)

Spektre wrote:They print comics outside the US?

(Ducks)

A quite surprising number of them, in fact.
Of course, the printing presses are still steam powered...

Carl Barks
Leo Baxendale
Jack Cole
Robert Crumb
Rene Goscinny
Herge
Jack Kirby
Harvey Kurtzman
Don Martin
Osamu Tezuka

Good choices, and I'm really glad to find another Baxendale fan.

If we're just talking superhero comics (which we yanks tend to do), my list has to be:

Siegel and Shuster

Stan Lee

Jack Kirby

Gardner Fox and John Broome

Alan Moore

Frank Miller

Kane and Finger (but mostly Finger)

Carmine Infantino

Tom DeFalco

Brian Michael Bendis

. . .Because, for good or ill, the marks they made were felt. Branching outside of superheroes, though, I'd have to include Herge, Uderzo, Barks, Gaiman and Wagner.

Wagner. John or Matt?

John, I think. The Judge Dredd guy.

In no particular order, and limited to the good ol' US of A:
Julius Schwartz
Gardner Fox
Jerry Robinson (sorry, no Robinson, no Kane)
Wayne Boring
Gil Kane
Joe Kubert
Curt Swan
Murphy Anderson
Carmine Infantino
Dick Dillin
John Broome
Paul Levitz
C.C Beck
Otto Binder
Bill Parker
Marv Wolfman
George Perez
William Moulton Marston

Embarrassingly, I actually had to Google Bill Parker.   

I think Parker got the short shrift, given Beck and then Binder's contributions to Cap.

I'd add Joe Simon, Will Eisner, Lou Fine and Chuck Cuidera as well.

There seems to be a certain amount of confusion as to what Chuck Cuidera did or didn't create. I'm not quite sure what to think, there.

I'd also add Nick Cardy for his entire body of work, Neal Adams, Denny O'Neil and Frances Herron and Dave Wood (both of whom wrote so many stories in the mid to late 50s and early 60s for DC that they kept the comics not featuring Batman or Superman afloat!)

Ashamed to admit, I was clueless about Dave Wood, too.
I mean, I know a Dave Wood. He's a colleague of mine, a local councillor and a member of the Liberal Democrats. But I'm fairly certain he didn't create Mr. Freeze...

Besides writing Green Arrow while Jack Kirby drew it, he created along with Carmine Infantino, Animal Man and, with Kirby, the Challengers of the Unknown. He wrote a lot of back-ups and also wrote for DC during the 40s.

I shall have to look into him! I'm obviously woefully uninformed, there.

tony ingram wrote:I'm obviously woefully uninformed

I'm 'aving that.

tony ingram wrote:I shall have to look into him! I'm obviously woefully uninformed, there.

to be fair to you, much of Wood's work (like Herron's who often alternated writing stories with Wood in various monthlies in the late 50s-early 60s), were usually uncredited. You'd have to look at Showcase Presents to see either Wood or Herron credited. And not all of their stories were "great" but they were good enough (especially considering most readers were kids).

I'd also add
Robert Kanigher
Russ Heath
Mike Sekowsky
Ramona Fradon
Brune Premiani
Jim Shooter
Ed Hamilton
Kurt Schaffenberger

But you're only allowed ten choices, not a hundred and ten.

Trouble is, to be absolutely fair, you could probably come up with three hundred and ten who deserved it...

That's the problem with 'best of' lists. Everyone's good at different things, so a finite list is needlessly restrictive.

Lucy McGough wrote:That's the problem with 'best of' lists. Everyone's good at different things

Except Rob Liefeld, obviously.

He's... um... good at being bad?

I'm not trying to limit it to 10. If its MY Comics Hall of Fame, I can put as many into it as I like.   

Yeah! Fight the power!

I would expect nothing less from the defender of Fair Play.

Silogramsam wrote:I'd also add
Robert Kanigher
Russ Heath
Mike Sekowsky
Ramona Fradon
Bruno Premiani
Jim Shooter
Ed Hamilton
Kurt Schaffenberger

I'm glad someone abroad remembered the great original Doom Patrol artist, Bruno Premiani, Italian, expatriate for political reasons first in USA and then in Argentina, where he died in 1984.

Barry_Allen wrote:

Silogramsam wrote:I'd also add
Robert Kanigher
Russ Heath
Mike Sekowsky
Ramona Fradon
Bruno Premiani
Jim Shooter
Ed Hamilton
Kurt Schaffenberger

I'm glad someone abroad remembered the great original Doom Patrol artist, Bruno Premiani, Italian, expatriate for political reasons first in USA and then in Argentina, where he died in 1984.

I didn't know anything about Premiani's background until you mentioned it and I looked him up. Persecuted for being anti-fascist. Interesting. Sounds like he was a brave man.

Sure he was I have read in a Italian fanzine that then his brother came back living in Italy until his death but never wanted to talk about that period and also about Bruno's work for comics...