Full text written by
Stan Lee (Creator of "Spiderman" and "Hulk")
about Alex Schomburg:
I've always felt that Alex Schomburg was to comic books what Norman Rockwell was to The Saturday Evening Post. He was totally unique, with an amazing distinctive style. You could never mistake a Schomburg cover for any other artist's. When it came to illustrating covers, there was simply no one else in Alex's league.
Now then, lest it sound as though I'm a long-time fan of Alex Schomburg, this is the time to set the record straight. You can bet your entire comic book collection I am!
And I'm not the only one. I remember
'way back in the early '40s when Martin Goodman was the publisher
of Timely Comics (which was destined to become world-famous Marvel
Comics some twenty years later), I remember hearing Martin tell
me time and again how great a cover illustrator Alex was, and
how he wished we had more like him. And take it from me, O true
believer, publishers have never been known for bestowing praise
lightly.
Alex's artwork was so unique,
so stylized, that I can remember it as clearly now as when I first saw it at the dawn of the Golden Age of Comics. Here's why...
He was the only artist I knew able to combine strong, dramatic layouts, and exciting superhero action with a simplistic, almost cartoony style of execution. One could never be sure if Alex was an illustrator who approached his work like a cartoonist, or a cartoonist who chose to render his artwork like an illustrator. But whatever the answer, the end results were nothing short of superb.
One other thing must be noted. In the world of comic books, deadlines are of paramount importance. If an artist doesn't deliver his pages on time, the magazine just won't be published. Well, despite the quantity of work we gave him, despite the care and effort that went into every Schomburg cover, I cannot remember Alex ever being late with any illustration. He was as reliable as he was talented.
At the bullpen itself, our whole staff of artists and writers was enthusiastic Schomburg fans. We used to wonder how he managed to get so much detail in every cover. No matter how difficult the scene, no matter how many people, Alex drew them clearly, accurately and excitingly. If he had to draw a bridge, you'd see every rivet, every girder in the structure. If he drew a crowd scene, you'd see everyone in the crowd doing something specific and interesting.
In short, Alex Schomburg never
faked it. He gave both the comic book company and the reader their
money in spades, and he did it with style, with humor, with talent
and grace.
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