Bob Lubbers
Bob Lubbers | |
---|---|
Born | January 10, 1922 |
Died | July 8, 2017 | (aged 95)
Nationality | American |
Area(s) | Cartoonist, Penciller, Inker |
Notable works | Tarzan Li'l Abner Long Sam |
Awards | Inkpot Award 2002 |
Robert Bartow Lubbers (January 10, 1922 – July 8, 2017) was an
.Biography
Born Robert Bartow Lubbers in 1922,
- My pal Stan Drake and I left Bridgman's life class one day and marched down to Centaur and sold the comic mag features we'd created. Before long I was doing features at Fiction House until the War.[2]
For
Remembering his first, pre-World War II employment at Fiction House, Lubbers recalled "a young teenager who'd come in now and then to show a little sample book he'd made up called Panther Lady. We could see this kid had the right stuff. He had no luck selling it to Fiction House, but it was just as well. Frank Frazetta has become a glittering star in the world of fine art."[3]
After World War II, he returned to comic books. Fiction House "welcomed me back and features and covers poured out until 1950, when my mentor
Comic strips
In 1950, he began his association with Tarzan, continuing on that strip for the next four years. In 1954, he first did work at the Al Capp studio and entered, as he put it, Capp's "star-studded world of movers and shakers".[3]
He began drawing
Lubber's own strips were Robin Malone (for NEA from 1967 through May 1970) and Long Sam, created by Al Capp and syndicated by United Feature Syndicate from 1954 to 1962. Although Long Sam was initially written by Capp, who soon turned the duties over to his brother, Elliot Caplin, Lubbers eventually assumed the writing duties himself in the strip's final phase. Long Sam was, like Li'l Abner, a hillbilly strip, though based on a female character. The title character, Sam, was a tall, voluptuous, naive mountain girl who had been raised in a hidden valley away from civilization by her Maw, who hates men and wishes to protect her daughter from them. The stories deal with Sam's inevitable discovery of the world and its discovery of her. Lubbers concluded Robin Malone in an ambiguous manner that left the survival of the protagonist unresolved.[5]
Comic books
In addition to
Reprints
In 2001, when his work was collected in the 100-page Glamour International: The Good Girl Art of Bob Lubbers, comics historian Paul Gravett reviewed:
- Bob Lubbers is not the celebrated cartoonist he should be, but thanks to a legion of Italian admirers, he is now getting his day in the sunshine in his 80th year. The latest edition of the long-running Italian magazine Glamour International No. 26 (2001, $34.95) pays tribute to his Good Girl Art in a deluxe, bi-lingual 100-page, 12" x 12" inch square showcase, edited by the respected authority Alberto Beccattini. Lubbers himself writes the commentary tracing his fascinating life and 40-year career in comics, accompanied by photos, sketches, a host of brand new colour illustrations and covers, plus some specially colored panels of his Firehair, Camilla and Captain Wings comic books from his Fiction House days in the Forties and from his string of newspaper strips, Tarzan... Long Sam, The Saint, Secret Agent X9, Robin Malone and L'il Abner. Bob credits being in the right place at the right time for keeping him busy, jumping from one series to the next or juggling several at once. But this modesty overlooks his constantly fresh and lively draughtsmanship, his crisp storytelling skills and his particular lifelong love affair with the female form, qualities that have kept him in constant demand... Writing about his experiences in the comics industry, his encounters with stars, presidents and models, his passions for playing music and golf, and his current success at devising crossword puzzles, Lubbers comes across as a genial, big-hearted man, who has always enjoyed his life and developing a variety of talents. This book concludes with the most thorough checklist of his work to date, 11 pages meticulously compiled by Beccattini with help from many experts.[3]
Awards and exhibitions
In 1998, Lubbers was honored with the
In 2016 he was inducted into the National Cartoonist Society's Hall of Fame, one of only 16 cartoonists to receive that honor.
Lubbers died on July 8, 2017, at the age of 95.[8][9]
References
- ^ a b c d "Bob Lubbers". Lambiek Comiclopedia. November 4, 2011. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016.
- ^ a b "Bob Lubbers". National Cartoonists Society. n.d. Archived from the original on April 4, 2016. Retrieved April 24, 2016.
- ^ a b c Gravett, Paul (2003). "Bob Lubbers: 15 Minutes of Fame". Comics Forum. Archived from the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved April 24, 2016.
- ^ Frank Godwin, by Mark Radcliffe, at American Art Archives; published no later than September 27, 2007 (earliest version on archive.org); retrieved June 3, 2019
- ^ Heintjes, Tom (February 28, 2014). "The Life (and Death?) of Robin: Bob Lubbers' Robin Malon". Hogan's Alley (19). Bull Moose Publishing. Archived from the original on March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2014.
- ^ Bob Lubbers at the Grand Comics Database
- San Diego Comic-Con International. 2016. Archivedfrom the original on April 4, 2016.
- ^ "In Memory of Robert B. Lubbers". Fairchild and Sons Funeral Chapel Inc. July 8, 2017. Archived from the original on July 16, 2017.
- ^ Evanier, Mark (July 9, 2017). "Bob Lubbers, R.I.P." News From ME. Archived from the original on July 16, 2017.
External links
- Bob Lubbers at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Bob Lubbers Gallery