The first work of Herb Trimpe's I noticed was on Incredible Hulk No.115 in May 1969. A striking cover and interior art that grabbed my attention on the shelf of my corner shop and which I eagerly bought for a shilling (5p).
I've admired his work ever since. It was the beginning of a great era for the Hulk and it became my favourite American comic at the time.
Many of those strips were of course reprinted in the British weekly The Mighty World of Marvel.
He drew other strips as well of course, putting his love of aircraft to use by drawing The Phantom Eagle one-off in Marvel Super-heroes, the early issues of Captain Britain, various Western comics, and a long stint on Marvel's Godzilla comic in the 1980s, to name but a few. In recent years he wrote and drew a new strip for digital comic Aces Weekly.
A book on the artist's work, The Incredible Herb Trimpe, was already scheduled to be published soon by Twomorrows:
http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1196
From the Twomorrows website. |
Interview with Herb Trimpe:
http://www.sequentialtart.com/article.php?id=1593
More information:
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2015/04/14/herb-trimpe-passes-away-aged-75/
All images on this post (except the Twomorrows book cover) are from my personal collection.
10 comments:
Yes, friends of mine who had met him said he was a really nice bloke. It was quite sudden apparently. He'd been at the East Coast Comicon at the weekend then passed away on Monday night.
In Captain Britain No.1 he drew Brian Braddock smoking a pipe which to me looked strange considering BB was about 22 - you couldn't imagine Peter Parker with a pipe. But, like John, I loved his art on Captain Britain.
Very sad news indeed. I absolutely LOVED his work on Captain Britain and by all accounts he was a thoroughly nice bloke.
I am going to pay my respects by revisiting the old Herb Trimpe's blog.
Having a character with a pipe was usually comic shorthand for showing he was a bit of a boffin, but it didn't really suit Brian Braddock. That said, a schoolmate of mine used to smoke a pipe when he was 13! "A sign of maturity" he reckoned, puffing away in his school blazer.
Brian Braddock with a pipe was perfect given what a square he was.
Can't wait for the TwoMorrows book.
I can't say I'd given the panel with the pipe any thought until Colin mentioned it. Anyway, forget the pipe, look at that excellent artwork! Such great covers.
It's always sad to hear the news that one of the old Marvel Bullpen has passed away. With Percy Sledge also dying yesterday another part of our youth crumbles away with Herb Trimpe's leaving.
Oh that is sad indeed, another legend and one of my personal heroes (and it seems by all accounts a great guy) sadly no longer with us. Like you Lew I was, and still an a massive Herb Trimpe fan, his Hulk art, especially (for me at least) with John Severin inks ( who has also sadly passed away) are amongst my all time favourite comics in any genre and time period. Some of Herbs covers are the most iconic in the genre especially issue 181 introducing the Wolverine (who I think he co-created). I always remember picking up my first US “Hulks” which were issues 136 and 137 ( “Klaatu the Behemoth beyond the stars”) and being instantly in awe of the art and characters ( issue 137 was my first exposure to the “Abomination” my favourite villain) I am still searching for these 2 issues having “lost” them a long time ago (I have a copy of part 1 in a Panini MWOM to tide me over). His later work on titles like “ Shogun Warriors” and “Godzilla” were not great (mostly as they were not great stories) but I recall him doing a great job on “GI Joe” and a few excellent black and white stories. Commiserations to Herbs family, friends and indeed to the Hulk on their loss.
I know I'm in the minority but I preferred the Hulk stories that Herb inked himself. I like John Severin's artwork on other strips though such as Kull, Ringo Kid etc.
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