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ABOUT THE AUTHOR 
Blake Bell is a writer who resides in Toronto, Canada. His next book, Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko will be on shelves in June of 2008. He has written a myriad of essays and introductions for Marvel and DC Comics, and his first book, "I Have To Live With This Guy!" was published by TwoMorrows in 2002. Prospective employers can EMAIL BLAKE about commissioning him for articles, essays, introductions, comic books, fiction and non-fiction work.
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Blake Bell's
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 Back in the summer of 2002 - while finishing my I Have To Live With This Guy! book - I attended my second San Diego Comic Con. I had convinced the Con to allow me to moderate an Art of Steve Ditko panel featuring Batton Lash, Paul Smith, John Romita, and Gary Groth (co-publisher of Fantagraphics). The day before the panel, I had been showing Gary B&W images from Ditko's 1950s Charlton work. Gary casually said, "Maybe we should do a book on Ditko," unbeknownst to him that one of my dreams in coming to the Con was in finding someone to do so (but didn't think many publishers would do so, for fear of incurring Ditko's wrath).
The panel was a stunning success, the large room filled to the brim with fans for an artist not even at the show. As he was walking after the platform - lacking any casualness of the previous conversation - Gary said, "Let's do a Ditko book."
Enter Jackie Estrada - a real-life Copy Editor - and she and I began to work on the Spider-Man chapter. By September, we had produced a chapter that pleased Gary and we were ready to roll.
March 2005 saw the project launch into overdrive. I wrote over 8000 words in the first four weeks - a complete and utter re-write of the original 50 pages, the concept of the book completely reconceptualized. The text for the book was finished in January of 2006, but a new job and another life transition put the book on the burner until early 2007. Greg Sadowski, writer of the Bernie Krigstein artbook for Fantagraphics, was now on board as the book's copy-editor. After a slow start, the project began catching fire in September 2007. The text was condensed from 64,000 words to 48,000 by the end of the year. Adam Grano began designing the book in early 2008, completing work in late March of 2008. June 2008 saw the book in limited release in New York City at Jim Hanley's Universe (Mon Jun 9th), at The Beguiling and on the Fantagraphics web site (Wed Jun 18). Early July will see its unveiling the world over to an unsuspecting populace...
 CHAPTER ONE: Johnstown, Pennsylvania (1927-1949) - What circumstances formed the artist that came to New York in 1950? Examining Ditko's love of Jerry Robinson, devotion to Eisner's The Spirit, and comparisons to Kubert and Meskin.
 CHAPTER TWO: New York City (1950-54) - Ditko's leaves his hometown, traveling to New York City. Follow him from his first published works, to this time at the Simon/Kirby studio, Charlton Comics, and the sickness that forced him home in 1954.
 CHAPTER THREE: Marvel Comics and Stan Lee (1956-62) - Ditko returns to New York. His first stop? Marvel Comics. Work is short-lived at the House of Ideas, forcing a return to Charlton, but the main players - Ditko, Stan Lee and owner Martin Goodman - are all in place.
 CHAPTER FOUR: Spider-Man (1962-66) - Ditko's role in the creation of Spider-Man - and his artistic contributions - is examined from all angles. What did Ditko bring to the strip that made this character so endlessly enduring?
 CHAPTER FIVE: Dr. Strange (1962-66) - An in-depth examination of one of the most unique creations in comic-book history. Those artists who have followed in his footsteps dissect the universes only Ditko could conjure.
 CHAPTER SIX: Ayn Rand & The End at Marvel - Ditko, Ayn Rand, Lee and Goodman collide. Creative and financial turmoil between the group leave Ditko walking away from his two co-creations before they make millions for everyone but Ditko.
 CHAPTER SEVEN: Archie Goodwin and Warren (1966-67) - Freed from Marvel in 1966, Ditko produced some of the most stunning wash work in the medium's history. Combined with his extraordinary pen and ink work, Ditko is vaulted to his artistic peak.
 CHAPTER EIGHT: Randian Heroes at Charlton and DC (1967-68) - Ditko the freelancer chases work from Tower Comics, to reviving Captain Atom and the Blue Beetle, to joining DC Comics. But Steve Ditko's career is about to change with the creation of The Question and Mr. A.
 CHAPTER NINE: Fans vs. Ditko (1959-75) - Ditko spends the 1960s legitimizing comic-book fandom - the only home he can find for his Rand-inspired material - before fandom bites back, forcing Ditko to blaze a trail in independent publishing.
 CHAPTER TEN: Can't Go Home Again (1975-87) - Ditko returns to the Big Two for one last gasp at consistent, mainstream success. Trying to survive in a new era in comics that is leaving his generation behind becomes his greatest struggle.
 CHAPTER ELEVEN: Fade to Black and White (1988-present) - The 1990s are barren before the Internet and the rebirth of the Fanzine drive a new wave of nostalgia...that Ditko rejects at every turn. Artistically, the hands of a legend fade to gray.
 CHAPTER TWELVE: The Avenging Artist - The 1970s sees Ditko make a complete split between his work-for-hire & Objectivist material. Did he lose his artistic focus while spreading the Objectivist doctrine? What are the successes and failures of his highly personal work?
 CHAPTER THIRTEEN: The Lighter Side Of... - Ditko could have been one of the finest humorists of comics. Considered such a solemn and serious artist, open the door to a career filled with humor and a strong sense of the joy of life.
 CHAPTER FOURTEEN: 1950s Cover Gallery - Ditko's best and rarest from this untapped decade of horror, suspense and mystery; all in full-page glory. From sizzling electric chairs to cowboys and indians, Ditko covered the entire gamut at Charlton Comics.
The above chapters are preceeded by an introduction that sets the scene when Ditko entered the turbulent comic-book industry of the early 1950s. At the end of the book, we spend five pages sourcing every aspect of the book in our Endnotes section.
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By September, plans had been cemented. Gary requested the project finished by January 1st, but I asked to push that back to April 1st, 2003. Even with my new date, there existed a lack of reality with regards to how long a finished product would take to produce (especially with myself working a "real" job to pay the bills). I rushed through writing the first 50 pages and the Spider-Man chapter and the results were less than stellar. This was recognized and the project was rescheduled.
Enter a divorce and new job with tons of new time-consuming responsibilities that mothballed the project during 2004. Time and energy was just not present for all but writing the introduction to the
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SITE MAP Ordering Books Articles/Info. Ditko Checklists Creations Cover Gallery The Ditko Influence Pre-Inked Pages Fabulous 50s Visual Templates Ditko Links 2008 News PAST NEWS 2007 News 2003-06 News 1998-02 News
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