Simon - Joe Simon: my life in comics

JOE SIMON: MY LIFE IN COMICS

ISBN: 9780857687913

Published by
Titan Books
A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd.
144 Southwark St., London SE1 0UP

First edition: June 2011

Joe Simon: My Life in Comics

Copyright 2011 Joseph H. Simon

Front cover:

Captain America: Marvel and all related character names and likenesses are & 2010 Marvel Entertainment, LLC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved.

Photo of Joe Simon copyright 2003 Joe Simon and Jim Simon. Used with permission.

Photos courtesy of Joseph H. Simon, except when otherwise stated. Copyright Joseph H. Simon. Used with permission.

Imagery on pages 3, 29, 65, 68, 88, 91, 93, 100, 108, 111; color section pages 3 (top), 7 (top). Marvel and all related character names and likenesses are & 2010 Marvel Entertainment, LLC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved.

Imagery on pages 3, 18, 84, 103, 119, 121, 125, 139, 220, 230 (right), 232; color section pages 2 (top), 3 (bottom right), 7 (bottom right). All characters, their distinctive likenesses, and all related elements are trademarks of DC Comics 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Photos on pages 32, 147, 238 copyright 2003 Joe Simon and Jim Simon. Used with permission.

Image on page 160 copyright 2011 Tribune Media Services.

Image on page 210 copyright 2011 The New York Times.

Photo on page 243 courtesy of Joe Sinnott.

Photos on page 8 of the color section by Dana Hayward. Copyright 2011 Dana Hayward. Used with permission.

The Comic Book Makers Copyright 1990 Joe Simon and Jim Simon.

The right of Joe Simon to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988.

Editors: Steve Saffel

Jo Boylett

Consulting Editor: Megan Countey

Art and photo restoration: Harry Mendryk, Dana Hayward

Acknowledgements: Special thanks to Harry Mendryk, Steve Saffel, and Tedd Kessler, without whom this book wouldnt have been possible. My thanks to the Kirby family, Stephen Broussard, David Althoff, Mark Vaz, Mark Zaid, Michael Grossman, Scott Price, Georgina Ryan, and the entire team at Titan Books, including Nick Landau, Vivian Cheung, Katy Wild, Tim Whale, Jo Boylett, Martin Stiff, Natalie Clay, JP Rutter, Lizzie Bennett, and Bob Kelly.

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A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

More than ever, this is for Harriet

And for Jon, Jimmy, Melissa, Gail, and Lori,
as well as my grandchildren Emily, Jedd, Jeremy,
Jesse, Jillian, Joel, Megan, and Michael.

THERE WERE MANY INCIDENTS that inspired my search for the great American hero. A pivotal one occurred when I was eight or nine years old in public school in Rochester, a middle-class tailoring center in upstate New York. This was my first contact with a living legend, a fragile little old man, obviously bewildered, dressed in a blue Civil War uniform worn thin over the years.

I never learned the mans name. Our teacher, a pretty young woman whose military knowledge was limited, just presented him as, The Soldier. That was enough for us kids he was The Soldier, plain and simple, a veteran to be honored, though long past his fighting prime.

The old vet lovingly clutched a flag as tall as he was, holding it rigidly upright like an antenna.

He faced the class. Proudly he unfurled the flag to the cheers of his eager young audience.

This was a banner I had never seen before. It had the same number of red stripes as today, four above the union, three below. However, the blue union area in the upper corner carried a single five-pointed star made up of 35 smaller stars.

At a much later date I learned that it was a popular flag at the time, called the 35-star Great Star Flag, similar to the 36-star flag that draped President Lincolns coffin. The company that made the coffin flag gave it 36 stars by mistake.

Yes, the nation confused us as much then as it does now.

The teacher came forward.

Class, we are fortunate today to be addressed by a great American hero who brings to you an historic message.

The little soldier stepped forward. Beginning with the student in the back left corner of the room, he extended his right hand, and shook the seated kids hand. As he did, he said these words:

Shake the hand that shook the hand of Abraham Lincoln!

He moved from desk to desk, shook every hand, and repeated the same message to each and all.

Wow!

Historic? More than that... it was iconic.

Our teacher sidled into a position in back of the vet. She pointed her finger to her forehead and twirled it. We all hoped it didnt mean what we all knew it meant. We kids of Rochester, New York, were smarter than a lot of people thought we were.

So we paid her no mind. Our enthusiasm was evident, and the inspired old soldier was encouraged. He burst out into song.

Oh, the old flag never touched the ground, boys. The dear old flag was never down!

Mission accomplished. The children kept on cheering and the old vet kept singing as he marched out of the classroom, another battle won. Another great boost for a patriotic nation.

I would always remember the odd little fighting man as I continued in my life-long quest for the great American Hero. Eventually I would find him... and more.

You must have seen a few of them in your neighborhood the ever-expanding, ever-exciting fantasy world of comic books.

SOMETIMES it seemed like we were all the sons of Schneiders. Jack Kirby, Will Eisner, and I all of our fathers were tailors. Even Jerry Siegels father was a haberdasher. When you look back at it, the whole comic book industry seemed to stem from the clothing business.

My father, Harry Simon, was an immigrant from Great Britain. He came from Leeds, a major British clothing center famous for the manufacturing of wool, so it was only natural that when he came to the United States in 1905 he would land in Rochester, NY.

He looked just like Harry Truman, and I think he was 20 years old when he came to the United States with $5 in his pocket. At Ellis Island they asked him where he was going to live. He told the authorities he would be staying with his brother, who had arrived a couple of years earlier. His whole family had been moving here, one after the other, and he went into business with his younger brother, Isaac, who was also a tailor a pants maker.