John Severin

John Powers Severin (December 26, 1921 – February 12, 2012) was an American comics artist noted for his distinctive work with EC Comics, primarily on the war comics Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat; for Marvel Comics, especially its war and Western comics; and for his 45-year stint with the satiric magazine Cracked.

After graduating from the school in 1940, he worked as an apprentice machinist and then enlisted in the Army, serving in the Pacific during World War II.

In late 1947, he recalled, the writer-artist-editor team of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby at Crestwood Publications "gave us our first job."

Since it was not standard practice to credit comics creators during this era, a comprehensive list of his early work is difficult to compile.

Author and historian Jim Vadeboncoeur Jr., based on Severin's description of "a crime story about a boy and a girl who killed somebody ... I think it was their stepfather. They lived on a farm, or out in the suburbs," believes that first Severin/Elder story was the eight-page "The Clue of the Horoscope" in Headline Comics #32 (cover-dated Nov. 1948), from the Crestwood-affiliated Prize Comics.

The standard reference Grand Comics Database has no credits for that story, and lists Severin's first confirmed work in comics as two stories published the same month: the ten-page Boy Commandos adventure "The Triumph of William Tell" in DC Comics' Boy Commandos #30; and the eight-page Western story "Grinning Hole in the Wall" in Prize Comics' Prize Comics Western vol. 7, #5 (each Dec. 1948), both of which he penciled and the latter of which he also inked.

For the future Marvel Comics, he penciled the seven-page romance comic story "My Heart Had No Faith" in Timely Comics' Actual Romances #1 (Oct. 1949).

Following the cancellation of EC's comic book line in the wake of the Comics Code in the mid-1950s, Severin began working for Atlas Comics, the 1950s forerunner of Marvel Comics.

Sergeant Barney Barker, drawn by Severin, was Atlas' answer to Sgt. Bilko.

For EC Comics, he debuted with the seven-page "War Story" in Two-Fisted Tales #19 (Feb. 1951), continuing to work in tandem with his friend Elder as his inker, notably on science fiction and war stories.

Severin drew stories for both Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat.

When Kurtzman dropped the war comics to devote more time to Mad, Severin became sole artist on Two-Fisted Tales for four issues and scripted some stories.

He also illustrated stories written by his friend Colin Dawkins and future Mad art director John Putnam.

Severin and Dawkins were the uncredited co-editors of Two-Fisted Tales #36–39.

Severin and Elder eventually split as a team at EC.

They both were in the group of the five original artists who launched editor Harvey Kurtzman's landmark satiric comic book Mad, along with Kurtzman, Wally Wood and Jack Davis.

He was one of the founding cartoonists of Mad in 1952.

Severin appeared in nine of Mad's first ten issues, drawing ten pieces between 1952 and 1954.

According to accounts by both Severin and Kurtzman, the two had a falling out over art criticisms Kurtzman made during this period.

It was Kurtzman who suggested that Severin ink with a pen as opposed to brush inking.

Though Severin eventually took this advice in his later work, he was annoyed at Kurtzman at the time, for this and other remarks, and refused further work with him.

Kurtzman insisted on doing the layouts for all the artists, which some resented, including Severin.

His ability to draw people of different nationalities convincingly was highly admired by his peers, as was his eye for authentic details.

Upon Severin's death, writer Mark Evanier remembered, "Jack Kirby used to say that when he had to research some historical costume or weapon for a story, it was just as good to use a John Severin drawing as it was to find a photo of the real thing. They don't make 'em like that anymore."

Through 1955, Severin drew a large number of stories for the latter title and other Western series from Prize, and as penciler, he co-created with an unknown writer the long-running Native American feature "American Eagle" in Prize Comics Western vol. 9, #6 (Jan. 1951), inked by his high-school classmate turned fellow pro Will Elder.

Around this time, Severin did his first confirmed work for two publishers with whom he would long be associated, Marvel Comics and EC Comics.

"I was in the [company's artist room known as the] Bullpen with a lot of well-known artists who worked up there at that time. We had our Bullpen up there until about 1958 or 1959. [ sic; the Bullpen staff was let go in 1957] The guys ... who actually worked nine-to-five and put in a regular day, and not the freelance guys who'd come in a drop off their work ... were almost a hall-of-fame group of people. There was John Severin. Bill Everett. Carl Burgos. There was the all-time great Joe Maneely ... We all worked together, all the colorists and correction guys, the letterers and artists ... We had a great time."

After Atlas transitioned to become Marvel Comics in the 1960s, Severin did extensive work as penciler, inker or both on such series as The Incredible Hulk, Conan The Barbarian, and Captain Savage and his Leatherneck Raiders.

In a 1980 interview, Severin recalled his start as a professional artist:

"I had decided to exhibit some paintings of mine in a High School of Music and Art exhibition for the alumni. Charlie Stern was in charge of it, so I went to see him at his studio. He was the 'Charles' of the Charles William Harvey Studio, the other two being William Elder and Harvey Kurtzman. They asked me if I'd like to rent space with them there. I did, and started working with them. When Charlie left ... I became the third man, but they didn't want to change it to John William Harvey Studio, so they left the name ... Harvey was doing comics, Willie and Charlie were doing advertising stuff, and I just joined in ... [I did] design work, logos for toy boxes, logos for candy boxes, cards to be included in the candy boxes."

Inspired by the quick money Kurtzman would make in between advertising assignments with one-page "Hey Look!"

gags for editor Stan Lee at Timely Comics, Severin worked up comics samples inked by Elder.

Severin recalled in 1999:

"I was sometimes selling 19 or 20 of them a week. Not every week, naturally. But I didn't have to get a regular job to carry me through high school. It was almost every week—not every week—but almost every week. I didn't have to get a job. I hated to work, I'll tell you. I didn't have to get a job then, because I was in high school."

He attended the High School of Music & Art in New York City, together with future EC Comics and Mad artists Harvey Kurtzman, Will Elder, Al Jaffee and Al Feldstein.

Severin was inducted into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 2003.

John Severin was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, of Norwegian and Irish descent.

He was a teenager in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York City, when he began drawing professionally.

While attending high school, he contributed cartoons to The Hobo News, receiving payment of one dollar per cartoon.

Artist and colorist Stan Goldberg, a company colleague, recalled in 2005,