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| Dave Gibbons | |
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| Born | April 14, 1949 |
| Nationality | British |
| Area(s) | Penciler, Inker, Writer |
| Notable works | Watchmen |
| Awards | Jack Kirby Award
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Dave Gibbons (born April 14, 1949) is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the best-selling Watchmen (chosen by Time magazine as one of the "all-time" top 100 novels1) and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything". He also was an artist for UK anthology 2000AD, for which he contributed a large body of work from its first issue in 1977.
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British Comics work
IPC Comics
Gibbons broke into British comics by working on horror and action titles for both DC Thomson and IPC. When the science-fiction anthology title 2000 AD was set up in the mid-1970s, Gibbons contributed artwork to the first ever issue, Prog 01 (Feb, 1977), and went on to draw the first 24 installments of Harlem Heroes, one of the founding (and pre-Judge Dredd) strips.
After the first year he began illustrating Dan Dare, a cherished project for Gibbons who had been a fan of the original series and artist Frank Hampson who, alongside Frank Bellamy, Don Lawrence and Ron Turner are well-liked and inspirational artists to Gibbons, whose "style evolved out of [his] love for the MAD Magazine artists like Wally Wood and Will Elder."2
Also working on early feature Ro-Busters, Gibbons became one of the most prolific of 2000AD's earliest creators, contributing artwork to one-hundred and ten of the first 131 Progs/issues. He returned to the pages of "the Galaxy's Greatest Comic" in the early 1980s to create Rogue Trooper with writer Gerry Finley-Day and produce an acclaimed early run on that feature, before handing it over to a succession of other artists. He also illustrated a handful of Tharg's Future Shocks shorts, primarily with author Alan Moore.
He was also known, by sight but not by name, to readers of the short lived IPC title Tornado. Whereas 2000 AD was said to be "edited" by the alien Tharg, Tornado was "edited" by superhero Big E, who as alter-ego Percy Pilbeam also worked on the magazine. These characters appeared in photographic form within the comic, with Gibbons posing as both Big E and Pilbeam for the entire 22 issue run of Tornado before it was subsumed into 2000 AD.
Doctor Who
Gibbons departed from 2000 AD briefly in the late 1970s/early 1980s to became the lead artist on Doctor Who Weekly/Monthly, for which magazine he drew the main comic strip from issue #1 until #69, missing only four issues during that time.
His work mostly starred the fourth (Tom Baker) incarnation of the character, for which version he drew the entirety of The Iron Legion and all-but-two-issues of Dragon's Claw. He also contributed the first two (of six) chapters to The Tides of Time, the sole fifth (Peter Davison) incarnation's tale.
The Doctor Who Storybook 2007 (released Christmas 2006) features a story called “Untitled” which includes the name Gibbons in a list of great artists of Earth history.
American Comics work
The 1980s (DC)
Gibbons was one of the British comic talents identified by Len Wein in 1982 and was hired primarily to draw "Green Lantern Corps" backup stories within the pages of Green Lantern for DC. Cover-dated February - March, 1983, Gibbons' first DC work was on the Green Lantern Corps stories in Green Lantern #161 and #162 (with writers Robin Snyder and Todd Klein) as well as the concurrently released "Creeper" 2-part backup story in Flash #318-319.3 With Green Lantern #172 (Jan 1984), Gibbons joined new writer Len Wein on the main feature while continuing to illustrate the backup features. Ceding the Tales of the Green Lantern Corps backup features to various other individuals from #181, and with a handful of fill-in issues (primarily by Gil Kane), Gibbons last issue with Len Wein was issue #186 (Mar 1985). Gibbons returned to pencil issue #188, however, by writer Steve Englehart, as well as the backup Tale "Mogo Doesn't Socialize" with Alan Moore.
While Marvel Comics reprinted some of Gibbons' Marvel UK Doctor Who work, Eclipse Comics reprinted some of his Warrior work and Eagle reprinted various Judge Dredd and Robo Hunter tales, Gibbons continued to produce new work almost exclusively for DC throughout the 1980s.3 For the 1985 Superman Annual #11, Gibbons drew the main story "For the Man Who Has Everything," again written by Alan Moore.
During 1985 and 1986, Gibbons' artwork graced the pages of several issues of both DC's Who's Who in the DC Universe guidebook and Marvel's The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition. In December 1986, he contributed to Harrier Comics' Brickman #1 alongside Kevin O'Neill (who had also illustrated several "Tales of the Green Lantern Corps"), Lew Stringer and others. Between May and August 1988, he contributed covers with Joe Orlando to Peter David and Orlando's four-issue The Phantom miniseries, and in May of 1988 he both inked Kevin Maguire's pencilled contribution to the landmark Action Comics #600, and produced the cover to Action Comics #601.3
Watchmen
He is best known in the US for collaborating with Alan Moore on the 12-issue limited series Watchmen, now one of the best-selling graphic novels of all time, and the only one to feature on Time's "Top 100 Novels" list.1 Gibbon's artwork in Watchmen is notable both for its stark utilisation of the formulaic comicbook nine-panel grid layout, as well as for its intense narrative and symbolic density (with some symbolic background elements suggested by Moore, others by Gibbons).
Initially pitched by Moore to utilize the Charlton Comics characters which had been purchased by DC Comics, Watchmen was re-tooled to feature new - analog - characters when it became clear that the story would have significant and lasting ramifications on its main players. Gibbons believes that his own involvement likely came about after the idea was already in its early initial stages. He recalls that he had:
| “ | ..known Alan for a while and we had tried to get things off the ground with DC and hadn't really succeeded. Then Alan finally broke into DC with Swamp Thing and I guess I must have heard on the grapevine that he was doing a treatment for a new miniseries. I rang Alan up, saying I’d like to be involved with what he was doing. He said ‘Oh, yeah great’ and sent me the outline for it. Then I was at a convention in the US and asked Dick Giordano, Managing Director of DC at the time, point blank whether I could draw this thing Alan was writing. He said ‘How does Alan feel about that?’ I said ‘Yeah he’s fine with it’ and Dick said ‘Yep, OK, it’s yours!’2 | ” |
To compliment the story, Gibbons remembers working on rough character designs (which ultimately changed little from their final looks) from "the descriptions that Alan had provided," trying to come up with "a classic superhero feel but be a little bit stranger... a sort of operatic look... an Egyptian kind of a look."2
Gibbons returned to Watchmen in 2008, producing the behind-the-scenes book Watching the Watchmen to tie into the release of the 2009 film. Watching the Watchmen is his take on the creation of the seminal work, and features a number of rarely seen pieces of artwork including sketches and character designs, as well as "stuff," he says "that I just don't know why I kept but I'm really pleased I did."2
Other work
From the start of the 1990s, Gibbons began to focus as much on writing and inking as on drawing, contributing to a number of different titles and issues from a variety of companies. Particular highlights included, in 1990, Gibbons writing the three-issue World's Finest miniseries for artist Steve Rude and DC, while drawing Give Me Liberty for writer Frank Miller and Dark Horse Comics.3 He penned the first Batman Vs. Predator crossover for artists Andy and Adam Kubert (Dec 1991 - Feb 1992), and inked Rick Veitch and Stephen R. Bissette for half of Alan Moore's 1963 Image Comics series (1993).3
Rejoining Frank Miller in mid-1994 on Martha Washington Goes to War, the following year Gibbons wrote the Elseworlds title Superman: Kal for José Luis García-López, melding Arthurian legends to the Superman mythos in an "out-of-continuity" tale set in an alternate DC Universe. In Marvel Edge's Savage Hulk #1 (Jan 1996), Gibbons wrote, penciled, inked, colored and lettered "Old Friends," a version of the events of Captain America #110 from the point of view of the Hulk.4 In 1996 and 1997, Gibbons collaborated with Mark Waid (and Jimmy Palmiotti) on two issues of the Amalgam Comics character "Super-Soldier," a character born from the merging of the DC and Marvel Universes after the events of the 1996 intercompany crossover DC vs. Marvel/Marvel vs. DC.3
Among many other covers, one-shots and minor works, Gibbons worked with Alan Moore again briefly on the latter's Awesome Entertainment Judgment Day miniseries, providing (variant) covers to all three issues, on the first issue of Kitchen Sink Press' The Spirit: The New Adventures revival and within the pages of the Alan Moore Songbook. In 1999 he penciled and inked Darko Macan's 4-issue Star Wars: Vader's Quest miniseries (Feb-May), and in December 2001 he helped Stan Lee re-imagine Green Lantern in the pages of Just Imagine... Stan Lee creating Green Lantern.3
Recent work
In 2002, Gibbons followed Chuck Austen as writer on the Marvel Knights Captain America series, penning issues #17-20 (Nov '03 - Jan '04) for - primarily - artist Lee Weeks. In 2005, he produced a handful of covers for Geoff Johns' JSA, as well as producing the complete original graphic novel The Originals, a black and white graphic novel which he scripted and drew. Published by Vertigo, the work is set in the near future, but draws heavily on the imagery of the Mods and Rockers of the 1960s.
He wrote the DC Comics six-issue limited series The Rann/Thanagar War (one of four lead-ins to the Infinite Crisis storyline) and returned to the Green Lantern Corps with the five-issue Green Lantern Corps: Recharge (co-written with Geoff Johns, Nov '05 - Mar '06), which spun-off into an ongoing - Gibbons written - series in August 2006.
Gibbons was involved in two series released by DC/WildStorm when DC acquired American rights to the IPC stable of characters. He provided cover artwork for the flagship title Albion, the six-issue limited series written by Leah Moore and her husband, John Reppion (and co-plotted by her father, Alan). Gibbons also wrote the Albion spin-off Thunderbolt Jaxon (April-Sep 2006), with art by John Higgins. Due to scheduling difficulties, the August 2005-launched Albion actually finished two months after (Nov 2006) Thunderbolt Jaxon.
Gibbons provided covers for three issues of Kurt Busiek and Fabian Nicieza's run on Action Comics (issues #841–843) and co-penciled (with Ethan van Sciver) the Green Lantern: Sinestro Corps special issue as part of the Sinestro Corps story arc, inspired by a Green Lantern story written by Alan Moore in the 1980s.citation needed He left the on-going Green Lantern Corps title with issue #17 (Dec 2007), handing over to writer Peter Tomasi. More recently he has provided new, alternate covers to IDW Publishing's reprints of his Marvel UK Doctor Who comics.
Non-comics
Works other than comics include providing the background art for the 1994 computer game Beneath a Steel Sky.
Awards
Gibbons has won several awards:5
- The 1987 Jack Kirby Award for Best Finite Series (Complete in 1986) for Watchmen with Alan Moore
- The 1987 Jack Kirby Award for New Series for Watchmen with Alan Moore
- The 1987 Jack Kirby Award for Best Writer/Artist (Single or Team) for Watchmen with Alan Moore
- The 2007 Eagle Award for "Favourite Letterer"
He has also received nominations for other awards:
- The 1986 Jack Kirby Best Single Issue nomination for Superman Annual #11 (1985) with Alan Moore
- The 1987 Jack Kirby Best Single Issue nomination for Watchmen #1 with Alan Moore; another nomination for Watchmen #2 with Alan Moore.
Bibliography
Comics work includes:
- Harlem Heroes (with Tom Tully):
- “The Sport of Tomorrow” (with co-writer Pat Mills, in 2000 AD #1, 1977)
- “The Baltimore Bulls” (in 2000 AD #2–5, 1977)
- “The Siberian Wolves” (in 2000 AD #6–8, 1977)
- “The Montezuma Mashers” (in 2000 AD #9–11, 1977)
- “The Flying Scotsmen” (in 2000 AD #12–15, 1977)
- “Gorgon’s Gargoyles” (in 2000 AD #16–21, 1977)
- “The Bushido Blades” (in 2000 AD #22–24, 1977)
- Dan Dare (in 2000 AD #28–60, 64–72 & 73–78, 1977–78)
- Ro-Busters (in 2000 AD #86–92, 1978)
- Judge Dredd (with John Wagner):
- “Judge Dredd Outlaw” (with co-artist Brian Bolland, in 2000 AD #87, 1978)
- “Dredd and the Mob Blitzers” (in 2000 AD #130, 1979)
- Ro-Busters (in 2000 AD #98–101, 1979)
- Dan Dare (in 2000 AD #100–126, 1979)
- ABC Warriors: “Cyboons” (with Pat Mills, in 2000 AD #130–131, 1979)
- Doctor Who:
- The Iron Legion (1979-1980, TPB, Panini, 2004, ISBN 1904159370) collects:
- “The Iron Legion” (with Pat Mills/John Wagner, in Doctor Who Magazine #1–8)
- “City of the Damned” (with Pat Mills/John Wagner, in Doctor Who Magazine #9–16)
- “The Star Beast” (with Pat Mills/John Wagner, in Doctor Who Magazine #19–26)
- “Dogs of Doom” (with Pat Mills/John Wagner, in Doctor Who Magazine #27–34)
- “The Time Witch” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #35–38)
- Dragon’s Claw (Panini, 164 pages, 2005, ISBN 1904159818) collects:
- “Dragon’s Claw” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #39–45)
- “The Collector” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #46)
- “Dreamers of Death” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #47–48)
- “The Life Bringer” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #49–50)
- “The War of Words” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #51)
- “Spider-God” (with Steve Moore, in Doctor Who Magazine #52)
- “The Deal” (with Steve Parkhouse, in Doctor Who Magazine #53)
- “End of the Line” (with Steve Parkhouse, in Doctor Who Magazine #54-55)
- “The Freefall Warriors” (with Steve Parkhouse, in Doctor Who Magazine #56–57)
- “The Neutron Knights” (with Steve Parkhouse, in Doctor Who Magazine #60)
- The Tides of Time (with Steve Parkhouse, Panini, 212 pages, 2005, ISBN 1904159923) collects:
- “Tides of Time” (in Doctor Who Magazine #61–67)
- “Stars Fell on Stockbridge” (in Doctor Who Magazine #68–69)
- The Iron Legion (1979-1980, TPB, Panini, 2004, ISBN 1904159370) collects:
- Ro-Jaws’ Robo-Tales (in 2000 AD #157, 1980)
- Ro-Jaws’ Robo-Tales (in 2000 AD #176, 181, 183, 184 & 198, 1980–81)
- Rogue Trooper (in 2000 AD #228–232, 234–235, 239–240 & 249–250, 1981–82)
- Tharg’s Future Shocks (with Alan Moore):
- “Return of the Thing” (in 2000 AD #265, 1982)
- “Skirmish” (in 2000 AD #267, 1982)
- “The Wild Frontier” (in 2000 AD #269, 1982)
- “The Disturbed Digestions of Dr. Dibworthy” (in 2000 AD #273, 1982)
- Time Twisters: “Chrono-Cops” (with Alan Moore, in 2000 AD #310, 1983)
- Green Lantern #160, 162, 165–167, 173–176, 178–183, 185–186, 188 (DC Comics, Jan. 1983–May 1985)
- Superman: “For the Man Who Has Everything” (with Alan Moore, from Superman Annual #11, 1985)
- Watchmen (with Alan Moore, DC, 12 issue limited series, 1986–1987, tpb, 1987)
- A1: Book 1 (with Ted McKeever, ISBN 1-871878-05-5):
- Survivor
- Libretto
- Rogue Trooper (Friday) (script, with Will Simpson):
- “The War Machine Part 1” (in 2000 AD #650–653, 1989)
- “The War Machine Part 2” (in 2000 AD #667–671, 1990)
- “The War Machine Part 3” (in 2000 AD #683–687, 1990)
- Give Me Liberty (with Frank Miller, Dark Horse Comics, 1990–1997)
- Batman vs. Predator (script, with art by Andy Kubert and Adam Kubert, Dark Horse Comics, 1991)
- World’s Finest (script, with Steve Rude, three-issue mini-series, DC, 1990)
- The Dome: Ground Zero (script and layouts, with art by Angus McKie, Helix, 1998)
- Rogue Trooper: “Remembrance Day” (with John Tomlinson, in 2000 AD Prog 2000, 1999)
- Captain America (Vol. 4) #17-20 (writer; with art by Lee Weeks) (Marvel, 2003)
- The Originals (DC, 2004)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (2005)
- Rann-Thanagar War (2005)
- Green Lantern Corps: Recharge (2006)
- Green Lantern Corps (2006–?)
Covers
Covers work includes:
- Albion (2005) [covers only]
- Action Comics (2006) #841–843 (covers only)
Notes
- ^ a b "All-Time 100 Novels" (English-language, 1923 to the present): Watchmen. List by Lev Grossman and Richard Lacayo; Watchmen details by Grossman. Accessed July 19, 2008
- ^ a b c d Titan Books' Watching the Watchmen interview with Dave Gibbons. Accessed July 19, 2008
- ^ a b c d e f g Dave Gibbons at the ComicBookDb. Accessed July 19, 2008
- ^ ComicBookDb: Savage Hulk #1. Accessed July 19, 2008
- ^ Comic Book Awards Almanac
References
- Dave Gibbons at the Grand Comic-Book Database
- Dave Gibbons at the Comic Book DB
- Dave Gibbons at 2000 AD online
External links
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This section includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. |
- Dave Gibbons Fansite
- CCI: Spotlight on Dave Gibbons, Comic Book Resources, July 28, 2008
- Dave Gibbons Live at the BICS 2008 Geek Syndicate Panel
- Meet Dave Gibbons by George Khoury, Pop!, Comic Book Resources, October 12, 2008
- Dave Gibbons on 'Watching the Watchmen': Part One, Newsarama, October 22, 2008
| Preceded by Chuck Austen |
Captain America writer 2003–2004 |
Succeeded by Robert Morales |
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