Eury on His Giordano Bio: Q&A

Posted: Wednesday, February 4, 2004
Posted By: Tim O'Shea

Michael Eury and I, late last year, talked about Back Issue, the new TwoMorrows magazine he’s editing,. At that time, I also promised an interview with him regarding his Dick Giordano biography for TwoMorrows, Dick Giordano: Changing Comics, One Day at a Time. Here’s the basic vitals of the book, according to TwoMorrows, as it “covers his (Giordano’s) career as illustrator, inker, and editor, peppered with Dick’s personal reflections on his career milestones; lavishly illustrated with rare and never-before-seen comic book, merchandising, and advertising artwork; Extensive index of his published work; comments & tributes by Neal Adams, Dennis O’Neil, Terry Austin, Paul Levitz, Marv Wolfman, Julius Schwartz, Jim Aparo & others; and with a Foreword by Neal Adams and Afterword by Paul Levitz! The 176 page, 8-1/2" x 11" trade paperback with a full color cover and black-and-white interiors retails for $19.95 in the United States.” Now, on with the promised Q&A.

Tim O’Shea: Given your long-term friendship with Giordano, did you have to restrain yourself from becoming too much his booster when writing the book?

Michael Eury: A bit, but it’s difficult to be a Giordano detractor, once you know Dick.

Most of Dick Giordano’s professional relationships have been positive, and overwhelmingly so. That’s not to say he hasn’t ruffled a few feathers over the years. As DC’s executive editor (and later its editorial director) throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, he sometimes had to deliver bad news to creators and editors—series cancellations, creative-team changes, and the like—and most people don’t like to be told “no.” So what little “bad blood,” if any, that exists is project related.

TO: How hard or easy was it to get Paul Levitz to write a piece for the book, given the nature of Giordano’s relationship with DC in recent years?

ME: Paul Levitz has the utmost respect and affection for Dick Giordano, and jumped at the opportunity to pen the Afterword. Paul was extremely cooperative in offering his insight into Dick’s career at DC.

Dick Giordano is still, and will always be, a part of DC Comics’ extended family. He retired from the company on good terms—in fact, as the bio reveals, Levitz made generous gestures to try to keep Dick at the company in some capacity.

TO: On a related note, do you expect that Giordano’ll create for DC again?

ME: I hope that he will, but if so, it’ll probably be through some special or “retro” project. While Dick’s artistic style epitomized DC Comics for two decades, the look of the company’s line has moved into a different direction.

That’s certainly not to say that Giordano is without work—he’s the busiest “retiree” I know. He’s illustrated a book (Moby Dick), is drawing Deathmask projects for Future Comics, occasionally illustrates The Phantom for European publisher Egmont, and has other projects on his drawing board.

TO: In compiling this book, which efforts to cover the five decade history of Giordano’s work in 176 pages, what was left out due to space? What was the most unique/entertaining discovery that you learned about him from developing the book? Was there any piece in particular that was hard to track down?

ME: I write in a pithy style, and never intended the Giordano biography to cover the minutiae of Dick’s lengthy and illustrious career for fear of alienating all but the most dedicated comics historians. But there’s a wealth of info and illustrations in those 176 pages.

My favorite anecdotal discovery was a delicious story told by Neal Adams—in a “celebrity roast” fashion—about Dick’s stint as a “mobster.” And as a fan of blaxploitation films of the 1970s, I got a kick out of learning that Dick illustrated the movie poster to Black Street Fighter.

The most difficult info to track down was the Giordano checklist. When I started interviewing Dick I asked, “Did you keep a record of your credits?” He rolled his eyes and laughed—not the “Sure, Michael, and I’ve got it right here!” answer I’d hoped for. As an editor, inker, penciler, cover artist, and illustrator, Giordano produced a tremendous number of comics—I suspect his body of work places him in the top-five comics pros in terms of volume. Several parties generously contributed to the book’s checklist, and I ask readers who discover omissions to email them to me at euryman@msn.com; if we do a second edition, the checklist will be revised accordingly.

TO: When talking to the myriad Giordano contemporaries/collaborators, did you find yourself thinking at certain points: “Hey, once I’m done with this book, I should do a book on this creator?”

ME: Most of my other favorite comics creators—Jack Cole, Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson, Neal Adams, Carmine Infantino, and Nick Cardy—have wonderful bios or art books in print. But, wait. . . Jim Aparo! Hmmm. . .

TO: This may have been addressed in your book and I overlooked it, but how many people would you estimate are in the industry today because of breaks given to them by Giordano?

ME: You’re asking me to do math! Either directly or indirectly, Dick influenced the lion’s share of inkers who started in the business from the mid-1970s through the early 1990s. As Neal Adams says in the book, “Dick has become the mother and father of a kind of inking style that’s a basic foundation in a tremendous amount of work that’s done in comics.” And he encouraged dozens of young DC editors, myself included.

TO: In examining his body of work, who would you say is Giordano’s most unique or compatible collaborator?

ME: Neal Adams, hands down. They’re the “Lennon and McCartney” of comics.

TO: In closing, in what way would you say Giordano has had a lasting impact on this industry-what is his legacy?

ME: Among industry professionals, Dick is highly regarded as a teacher and mentor. Many careers were guided by Giordano, and many “risky” projects were given life due to his support. His influence has often been invisible, but it’s strong and highly important—hence the subtitle of the bio, Changing Comics, One Day at a Time.

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