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After seeing my first Spider-Man comic a little later, Superheroes were to become the main subject matter in my future endeavors.
They were my solace as I started going to school. Where we resided, there weren’t too many of ‘Us’ (Black Folks), and we were just coming into our Civil Rights. Back then, Black people weren’t employed for the media, were mostly played by white actors in makeup or were portrayed as mindless savages in Tarzan movies.
Most of my scholastic years were plagued by Jocks, Jerks and Assholes of various races. They were often delegated to the roles of villains in the comic worlds I created, but I had never received any trouble or animosity from the female members. I guess you could figure who were the partners or prizes in my stories…
Any who, I grew up in an era of heroes, both real and fictional. People like Frank Buck, Sugar Ray Robinson, Cassius Clay and more, stood out as examples, telling kids everywhere that you could be like them, rather than the narcissistic, uneducated and greedy assholes who pomp and preen in front of the cameras today.
Many people like Sammy Davis Jr., Bill Cosby, Mohammed Ali, and Jimi Hendrix broke through the color barriers, paving the way and proving that we were just as good, if not better than our social oppressors. Films like Shaft and Slaughter took us out of the Ghetto Prison, while Gil Scott-Heron and Hendrix reminded and inspired.
Yes, This was the time of heroes.
But there was still a field that we had not fully entered. Comics.
This genre was dominated by the euro-centric masses and it would take a great effort to introduce us into the fold, both as characters and contributors.
When Jack Kirby created the Black Panther, he was the first White, Jewish man who took it seriously. The Panther was an intelligent Blackman, ruler of an African kingdom, a scientific genius and a formidable adversary, equal to the best that world had to offer.
When most companies portrayed black men as incidental tokens or brainless mules, incapable of nothing more than busting heads and cursing ‘the Man’, Kirby gave us a spark of hope and the need to see more.
We needed to see more, to show us out of the mental Ghetto, but it would only come in drips and drabs.
After graduating High school, I then enlisted into the Air Force, experiencing the tail end of the Viet Nam conflict. Five years of dealing with clueless, higher-ranking jerks made me realize that being an ant in someone else’s Army ‘licked the fur off the Donkey’s balls.’
In other words: I didn’t like having my fate decided by someone who knew nothing about me.
Once out, I continued my pursuit of becoming an artist. My first visit to a Philadelphia Comic convention was the day that changed my life as I met Paris Cullins, Martin King and the other members of ‘Gemini Graphics’.
They opened my eyes and the doors to a future that was hidden from me for so long. They inspired me by proving that we were a formidable force, up and coming, showcasing heroes of color in a light denied by the large companies.
When Maximum Overtime was formed, I was fortunate to be one of the ground level members, as our talents combined and started to carve a niche in the comic community, working on titles such as, The Blue Beetle, New Gods, Speed Racer, and more.
Yet my first solo flight were two short stories for Antarctic Press: Star Mercs, which later allowed me to follow with a six-issue series called ‘Knightmare’. A short story contribution to London Night Studios lead to 2 mini series: Demonique and Jurassic Jane, (although the title of the latter sucked. I had nothing to do with that!)
Fantagraphic books allowed my first foray into the adult comic world, as I introduced a character loosely inspired by a favorite series of mine, Marcia Bolens: The Sexecutioner. She came out in a few self-contained mini-series.
After time, I returned to the fold of Maximum Overtime, this time playing the role of the artistic Ninja behind the curtain. I often ghosted backgrounds and layouts, eventually graduating to letterer and computer colorist.
All the while, my stable of characters grew, with a large majority of the leads being female. I attribute this to my appreciation of the female form. After being forced to draw Skinny-assed Barbie dolls with monstrous tits, it’s long overdue to deliver fuller, thicker females, the way I like them.
In the meantime, I try to introduce MY brand of women into the comic world as the stars, not the comedic background. My greatest love goes for ‘Ginger Girls’, redheads. In my world women are either scantily clad or completely nude. Nothing else will satisfy me.
…and I make no apologies!
