AN OLD SKETCHBOOK FROM MY YOUTH

IN THIS EPISODE: Here is one of my old sketchbooks from my freshman year of art school. You can see my drawings of superheroes in a few different styles of my favorite comic book artists, Frank Frazetta, Neal Adams, Bernie Wrightson, John Buscema, and Al Williamson. There are also a bunch of drawings by my best friend Steve Brummell, who was a student at the school. He was so advanced as an artist, and we both wanted to do illustration and comic books after art school. We would show our art to each other, and he would give me advice and draw in my book his version of my drawings. We had a great time talking about comics in between classes. I knew who Neal Adams was, but Steve could draw like Neal Adams at age 17. He was great. I started buying back issues of old Neal Adams comics at that point. Which were starting to go up in price, some comics of his were going for $5 or $10, a princely sum back then when I didn’t have a job because I was a student. I kept my old sketchbooks so I could see how much I improved over the years, when you’re making the art, you don’t really see how much better you are getting, but after so many years, you can see it. At this point in my life I wanted to get a job at Marvel Comics, or DC Comics, or Warren Comics. How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way didn’t come out until after I graduated. And at that time I wanted to get a job in the animation field. So I had to start learning how to draw in a whole different style. My friend Dan Haskett told me it was all the same, just fewer lines. I just couldn’t see it that way for the longest time. But I learned. Long story. As for all of you, I hope you keep drawing. Have fun, enjoy the journey.