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Kurt Schaffenberger

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Kurt Schaffenberger
Schaffenberger self-portrait from Jimmy Olsen #155 (Jan. 1973)
Born(1920-12-15)December 15, 1920
Thuringian Forest, Germany
DiedJanuary 24, 2002(2002-01-24) (aged 81)
Brick, Ocean County, New Jersey
NationalityNaturalized American
Area(s)Penciller
Notable works
Captain Marvel,
Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane
AwardsNational Cartoonists Society Comic Book Award, 1984.

Kurt Schaffenberger (December 15, 1920[1] – January 24, 2002)[2] was an American comic book artist. Schaffenberger was best known for his work on Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family (during both the Golden Age and Silver Age of comics), as well as his work on the title Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane during the 1950s and 1960s.

Biography

Early career

Schaffenberger was born on a farm in the Thuringian Forest, Germany, where, as a boy, he ". . . tended geese, herded goats, and hoed potatoes."[3] Emigrating to America as a 7-year-old (first to Hartford, Connecticut, and then to New York City),[3] he eventually won a scholarship to the Pratt Institute.[3] After graduation, he joined Jack Binder's studio in 1941, where he worked on key Fawcett titles including Captain Marvel, Bulletman, and Ibis.

While working for Binder's studio, which was located in Englewood, New Jersey, Schaffenberger took over an apartment from the local high school football coach, Vince Lombardi (who had yet to achieve success in the National Football League).[3]

During this time, Schaffenberger's work was also published by Prize, Street & Smith, and Pines.

Schaffenberger served in the U.S. military during World War II, including a stint with the Office of Strategic Services,[3] leaving the military with the rank of Master Sergeant.[3]

Schaffenberger returned to the world of professional sequential art soon after war's end. He resumed his work for the Captain Marvel family of titles, and expanded his reach to an even more diverse group of publishing houses, including EC, Gilberton, Premier Magazines, American Comics Group, and Marvel Comics. At Gilberton, Schaffenberger provided the interior art for Classics Illustrated No. 119, Soldiers of Fortune (May 1954).[4]

DC Comics

An example of Schaffenberger's art, drawing the young Ma and Pa Kent, from The New Adventures of Superboy #1 (January 1980).

In 1957 Otto Binder recruited Schaffenberger to DC to work on the Superman family. He stayed at DC for the next 30 years, making an especially large contribution to the development of Lois Lane. In this capacity, he was the lead artist on the book, Superman's Girl Friend, Lois Lane, for the entirety of its first decade. Indeed, Schaffenberger's rendition of Lane became cited by many[5][6] as the "definitive" version of the character, and Schaffenberger was often asked by DC editor Mort Weisinger to redraw other artists' depictions of Lois Lane in other DC titles where she appeared.[6] In issue #80 (Jan. 1968), Schaffenberger updated the character's fashions to a then-more contemporary look.[7]

He was essentially fired from DC in 1970 for helping to organize other artists to protest bad working conditions.[8] He then briefly freelanced and worked for Marvel, but returned to DC in 1972.

When, in the 1970s, DC acquired the rights to the Marvel Family, Schaffenberger was one of the key players in the revival of those characters. The late 1970s saw him contribute well outside the Superman family of titles, including short-lived runs on titles like Wonder Woman and The Super Friends.

In 1980, Schaffenberger was again leading a Superman family title, The New Adventures of Superboy[9] (the final, post-Legion title for the original Superboy). Somewhat metaphorically, the Superboy- and Supergirl-less DC universe that followed the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths turned out to be a mostly Shaffenberger-less one as well. He largely retired from comics soon after helping with the final pre-Crisis Superman tale "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?"

Schaffenberger was a special guest at the 1996 San Diego Comic Con.

Personal life

Schaffenberger was married with two children, and spent most of his adult life living in suburban New Jersey.[3]

Awards

Schaffenberger's work won him the 1984 National Cartoonists Society Award in the "Comic Book" division. He also received an Inkpot Award in 1996.

Notes

  1. ^ Miller, John Jackson (June 10, 2005). "Comics Industry Birthdays". Comics Buyer's Guide. Archived from the original on October 29, 2010. Retrieved December 12, 2010. {{cite web}}: Text "John Jackson Miller" ignored (help)
  2. ^ Social Security Death Index, Social Security #040-14-9389.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Jimmy Olsen's Pen-Pals," Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #155 (January 1973).
  4. ^ William B. Jones Jr., Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History, with Illustrations (Jefferson, NC, and London: McFarland & Co., Inc., 2002), p. 101.
  5. ^ Voger, Mark and Voglesong, Kathy (PHT). "Front Page Romance," Hero Gets Girl!: The Life and Art of Kurt Schaffenberger (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003).
  6. ^ a b Eury, Michael. "Kurt Schaffenberger: Ladies' Man," in "The Superman Mythology," The Krypton Companion: A Historical Exploration of Superman Comic Books of 1958-1986 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2006), p. 67.
  7. ^ McAvennie, Michael; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1960s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. Dorling Kindersley. p. 128. ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9. She started trading in her generic blouse-and-pencil skirt combinations for a "mod" wardrobe filled with printed dresses, go-go boots, mini-skirts, and hot pants. {{cite book}}: |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Barr, Mike W. "The Madames and the Girls: The DC Writers Purge of 1968," Comic Book Artist Collection Volume 2 (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2002), pp.56–61.
  9. ^ Manning, Matthew K. "1980s" in Dolan, p. 186: "After recently departing the pages of Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes, Superboy was free to pursue his own adventures...in this premiere issue written by Cary Bates and illustrated by Kurt Schaffenberger."

References

  • Kurt Schaffenberger at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
  • Voger, Mark. Hero Gets Girl! The Life and Art of Kurt Schaffenberger (TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003). ISBN 1-893905-29-2
  • Jones, William B., Jr. Classics Illustrated: A Cultural History, with Illustrations. Jefferson, NC, and London: McFarland & Co., Inc., 2002.

Further reading

  • Interview, Comic Book Marketplace #59 (May 1998) pp. 18–33. Gemstone Publishing.

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