The Falcon

This is a drawing of Captain America's 1970's era sidekick, the Falcon , as he appeared at the time. It was done by my friend, Arvell Jones . Arvell was at the time one of a group of comic book artists that came from Detroit. They were all friends of Rich Buckler (whom I have always been a great fan of, but have never actually met), and included other such notables as , Al Milgrom, Keith Pollard, Michael Netzer,Greg Theakston, and Jim Starlin.

I actually met Arvell, and his brother Desmond (a comics letterer) through my friendship with Michael Netzer who had not yet gone pro at the time. This drawing was published in my one issue fanzine attempt, Fantastic Fan Scene, of which I have the only known surviving copy. Unfortunately, it and several other pieces of artwork ( by Michael Netzer, Howard Chaykin, and my own considerable portfolio) were lost several years ago in a flood at my home ( I still get angry when I think of the inept dishwasher installers whose shoddy work destroyed years of memories).

It was a great time to be a comic book fan in Detroit. Many top artists hailed from Detroit and were more than happy to talk comics and art on the phone with this 13 year old fan ( The long distance charges back then! Detroit to New York). Imagine a film geek actually hanging out with the creators of the movie! That's what it was like for a comics fan back then.

Eventually, as all boys do, I grew older and my interest in comics waned, and I lost touch with these people as I graduated from high school and went into the Coast Guard. Although after awhile I found myself stationed in New York City (comics Mecca), my friends in the business had moved on to bigger and better things than the comics. Many moved to L.A. to work in films (storyboard artists and animators) and I was unable to reconnect with any of them in NYC. Still, I never forgot the pleasure those old comics gave me, and through the magic of the internet, Arvell and I have bumped into each other via Facebook.

Arvell is now back in Detroit and has taught at the Center for Creative Studies, a premier art college in Detroit. I am looking forward to having lunch with him someday soon and hopefully getting some artwork pointers, although my art career is now strictly for my own enjoyment.

Here you see the drawing as it appeared in Fantastic Fan Scene. The lettering at the bottom was originally diagonal on the left, but I have reoriented it.

This version I colorized using my WACOM Intuous IV tablet.