Fri Jan 2, 2009 4:32PM8 comments ›
Fri Jan 2, 2009 — by Glenn Hauman
Happy 80th birthday, Don Heck!
Don Heck. Today would have been his 80th birthday.
I first met Don twenty-seven years ago at his house in Centereach. He and my dad frequented the same bar, the Emerald Pub. My dad knew I was a fan of his on The Flash, and thought I should meet him, and finagled an invite.
It was the first time I'd ever seen a comic artist's studio-- and to this day, the best analogy is the scene in the movie where the young boy visits the wizard's cave and sees the dimly-lit wonders, or the hacker's technical sanctum and all the neat knick-knacks, you know the scene.
It was magic.
And like any good magician, he gave a gift to the audience-- the page to the right, from The Flash #292, was one of them.
Don still hasn't gotten the appreciation he deserves-- for creating Iron Man, Hawkeye, and the Black Widow; for his runs on Avengers, Wonder Woman, Batgirl, and Justice League of America; for hundreds of stories without a single costume in them-- but there are those of us who still remember.
Thanks for the magic, Don. Happy birthday.
Jump to comments (8) 
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Comments (8)
Andrew Pepoy (8:02 PM on Fri Jan 2, 2009)
He did some good girls. His work on Black Widow in Amazing Adventures or on Batgirl stand out to me. His romance work, too. Didn't appreciate him as a kid, but I've grown to be a fan. I was offered a chance to ink him right when I started in the business. Turned the job down, I can't remember why, not knowing I'd never get another chance. Still hoping to find a nice original someday.
Glenn Hauman (8:43 PM on Fri Jan 2, 2009)
You inking Don Heck? That would have been something to see...
Andrew Pepoy (4:23 PM on Sat Jan 3, 2009)
Actually, probably not. This was almost 20 years ago. A kind way to put it is that I got better over the last 20 years. At that point I don't think I would've known quite how to ink Heck. I inked Curt Swan around then, and I know I sure wish I'd had another chance 10 years later when I might have been able to do better and had something better to show.
Lee Houston, Junior (11:45 PM on Fri Jan 2, 2009)
Glenn: Actually, Don Heck's name is included in the "Created by" credits during the end of the Iron Man movie.
Glenn Hauman (1:07 AM on Sat Jan 3, 2009)
He does get the credit for Iron Man in the movie, yes. But he's not appreciated, certainly not in the same way that Kirby and Ditko are, by the comic reading community. And that's a shame.
There's a scene in Understanding Comics when a working comic artist comes across an underappreciated guy from the past and goes "This guy was GOD!!!" That should be happening more with Don. (The last guy that evoked that in me, by the way, was Agnolo Bronzino at the Uffizi.)
barry miller (10:26 AM on Sun Jan 4, 2009)
Don Heck is one of the many artist i have come to appreciate more as time has passed. Sometimes young fans are too quick to like the flavor of the month and throw good solid pros like Don Heck under the bus. His Avengers work inked by Frank Giacoia was top notch as well as his Spiderman material that was inked by Mike Esposito . I suggest anyone interested to look at some of the material Marvel has reprinted in their Masterwork books or DC in their Batgirl showcase book to see how good Don Heck was.
Anonymous (6:09 PM on Mon Jan 5, 2009)
Really love Heck's work on the Avengers in the 60's (even if i was only exposed to it through Marvel Triple Action). Don't know who was inking him then, but their work is uncannily close to what was happening in the Italian comic scene quite a few years later.
Dude had some real CRAZY foreshortening things going on esp. with Giant Man.
Dave (10:43 AM on Thu Jan 8, 2009)
For a guy who was more used to drawing westerns, Don Heck made a wonderful - and unique - transition to superhero comics. My first exposure was a reprint of Avengers #24 in a coverless copy of Marvel Triple Action #24 while waiting in a barber shop. Since then, I've collected all of his Avengers work (and many of the other Avengers comics). By the way, great as he is, Don CO-created Iron Man with Stan Lee. It was not a solo creation.