Research Prompts from IJOCA 26:1 - #3 What about black superhero cartoonists before Milestone and after?

  Some Ideas for Articles, written by Mike Rhode, and excerpted from the print edition.

There are significant black/African-American cartoonists, besides those

who have been part of the Milestone company.

One normally does not think of Thor or the Fantastic Four’s Thing as something you would find in a black comics history article, but both of them were drawn for a long time by black cartoonists. Keith Pollard and Ron Wilson had long runs with Marvel Comics, as did writer Jim Owsley/ Christopher Priest. While some university libraries are collecting African-American comics, they are probably not collecting Thor or the Thing. Brian Stelfreeze had a major Batman run, as did Shawn Martinbrough. Mark D. “Doc” Bright passed away recently and while he was part of Milestone Comics, he had a long career on either side of it. He drew runs of Iron Man and Green Lantern before Milestone, and co-created Quantum and Woody after Milestone. His death perhaps means that we should look at other black superhero cartoonists while they are still alive. 1960s-1970s cartoonists Grass Green, Billy Graham, and Wayne Howard are already gone.

A similar historical amnesia applies to the black comic strip artists of the 1960s and 1970s. While Charles Schulz is getting a lot of renewed attention this year for introducing one black character, Franklin, and Barbara Brandon-Croft’s strip is having a renaissance, still Brumsic Brandon’s “Luther,” Ted Shearer’s “Quincy,” and Morrie Turner’s “Wee Pals” could use more attention. E. Simms Campbell’s magazine cartooning career is only known to specialists as well. Significantly-recognized cartoonists include: Oliver Harrington, Matt Baker, and Jackie Ormes. It is also important to keep in mind that George Herriman publicly identified as Greek, and not black, so he is not a pioneering black cartoonist, in spite of claims made for him.

Ken Gale responded, "Jamal Igle is still drawing.

    In the '70s Ron Wilson, Arvell Jones and Andre Gordon (uncredited penciller on Marvel's Robin Hood, but also background inker on various comics that Tony Dezuniga/NY Tribe inked).  A few others, as well, mostly (only?) at Marvel."

Håkan Storsäter responded, "Ken Quattro mentions, in his book Invisible Men, Elmer Cecil Stoner,

Matt Baker, and Alvin Carl Hollingsworth, somewhat dependent on how strict you are about defining the superhero genre, related to other adventure tropes."