Flaming ArtistThis is the first page of a dramatic sequence in which Frank awakens from a drugged slumber to discover himself framed for the brutal murder of Karen and Carmen, the teen runaway who set the plot in motion. I found it challenging to draw the light and shadows from the Venetian blinds and keep things simple and readable. I had to cheat, for instance, by framing Frank’s hand and gun in white rather than striped or black shadow as would be more realistic.
In “Fogtown,” my goal was to design and depict four different individual women. I feel I succeeded with their faces, but failed with their bodies, which are basically the same.
I did this drawing while tabling in the Artist’s Area at the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco on Sunday, September 26, this past Sunday. The original is approx. 16″ x 20″. It is drawn with Pitt permanent ink pens and brush pens. I was inspired by the various leather men on display in the hot indian summer sun.
By the way, my table-mate at the fair was Bil Sherman, artist of “Wanky Comics” and the just published “Sloppy Seconds”
Frank is entering the lair of Madame Tse. I re-purposed an elevator from the Bradley Building, here
in Los Angeles. The building was used as the interior for the Outer Limits episode, “Demon With a Glass Hand”, and in “Blade Runner”.
Frank is escaping from Eliza, in her office in the Omni-Zeotrope building, across Columbus Avenue, into Jack Kerouac Alley, next to what is now City Lights Books. I used the same alley on pages 30/31, which leads into China Town on pages 32/33 and 116.
I’m posting a link to my latest interview,by Dale Lazarov, at bleedingcool.com. It turned out really well, I think.http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/09/18/all-is-full-of-linky-love-3-questions-with-brad-rader-illustrator-of-fogtown-by-dale-lazarov/
This is a sketch I did while tabling at the recent Hard Heroes fundraiser at MJ’s bar and grill. It went with the event’s theme of erotic superheroes.
This is a recent sketch, done while tabling at the recent “Hard Heroes” at MJ’s Bar in Silverlake.
Will Norman has posted the 2nd half of his interview with me at http://queersotv.com/daVinciPodcast.html.
I first met Russ Heath in Will Meugniot’s office at DIC, in the summer of 1989. I was there to pick up or drop off a freelance storyboard on “The Real Ghostbusters”. Sitting next to Will was a handsome middle-aged man dressed stylishly in black accenting his thick, gun-metal gray hair. I found myself shaking hands with none other than Russ Heath. Not only was he HOT, but he was (and is) one of my favorite artists.
As I recall, we had 2 interactions that summer while I repeatedly free-lanced for Will.
1): I had Russ sign the page of original art I owned to the recently published graphic novel, “The Shadow; Hitler’s Astrologer: 1941”. While he wrote his signature in red ballpoint pen, I attempted to commiserate with him about the truly wretched coloring and production job with which Marvel Comics had desecrated the artwork. Russ deflected my impassioned indignation nonchalantly, pretending it was just a job like any other; he got paid, who cares? For myself, I was so offended by the coloring that I got rid of the book, even though it was magnificently illustrated by 2 of my favorite artists, Mike Kaluta and Mr. Heath. (I re-purchased the volume, after more than 20 years, on Amazon.com, while writing this essay.)
2) While visiting DIC I observed Russ showing a copy of Blazing Combat, with his artwork to the Archie Goodwin scribed story “Give And Take”, to a young artist with whom he was working. Russ was obviously out to impress; “Give and Take” is one of his stellar accomplishments in a long and stellar career. The kid apparently didn’t know or care who Russ was. I watched Russ point out specific panels he of which he was particularly proud to the blasé tyro. I was jealous that Russ seemed to care what the idiot punk thought but amused by Russ’s rejection by the clueless fool.
The interesting thing about writing this reminiscence is the ambiguous, transitory nature of memory. Was Russ’s hair gray in 1989, or had it already gone white? Was the young artist really unimpressed, or was that just my impression, magnified by jealous memory? (I knowhe signed my piece of original art; I still have it with his signature thereon.)
The art piece I’ve done for the tribute book is a recreation from “IL SHOWDOWN A RIO JAWBONE”, published in “National Lampoon Presents: The Very Large Book of Comical Funnies”, (1975). This story had a huge impact on me as an aspiring comic book artist in his mid-teens. What I loved (and still love) about his humor work is that it’s played totally straight; with no “wink-wink, nudged-nudge”. Then as now I am in awe of his control of the pen and brush, the hyper-realistic yet exaggerated nature of his posing, composition and lighting, and the skilled and dramatic way he spots blacks, second only to Alex Toth. This acolyte salutes you, Maestro Heath.