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Volume 2966
From the Danton Burroughs/John Coleman Burroughs Archive Site
Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan®



MIKE GRELL SKETCH ART
MEET MIKE GRELL
Ref: The Mike Grell Official Website
        Wikipedia Entry

Mike Grell (born September 13, 1947) studied at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay, the Chicago Academy of Fine Art, and took the Famous Artists School correspondence course in cartooning. His entry into the comics industry was in 1972, as an assistant to Dale Messick on the Brenda Starr comic strip.

In 1973 Grell moved to New York, and began his long relationship with DC Comics. His first assignment at DC was on Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes. It was here that he created his best-known creation, The Warlord. He also worked on titles such as Aquaman, Batman, the Phantom Stranger, and the revamped Green Lantern/Green Arrow series.

Grell wrote and drew the Tarzan Sunday strip from July 19, 1981 to February 27, 1983 (except for one strip, February 13, 1983, by Thomas Yeates).

Through the 1980s many more titles including Starslayer and Jon Sable Freelance, sort of a cross between James Bond and Mike Hammer, and a precursor to what would eventually be known as "the Dark Age of Comics," when even long-established super-heroes would become increasingly grim and violent. Sable was later adapted into a short-lived television series.

In 1987, Mike Grell wrote and redesigned Green Arrow with great critical success. In 1988, Grell authored and illustrated the graphic novel adaptation of the Timothy Dalton James Bond film Licence to Kill, followed by an original three-issue Bond mini-series Permission to Die. This was followed in the '90s by the ecologically-themed Shaman's Tears and Bar Sinister and a rejuvenated Turok. This was followed by work on Marvel's Iron Man and more work on DC superheroes. He is currently working on reviving the popular titles he created back in the '80s and '90s.

Grell is an avid big-game hunter, which serves as an influence on his artwork and story lines, particularly in the Jon Sable Freelance series. Grell currently lives in Washington state with his wife, Lauri, noted horsewoman and creator of the EQUUEST (tm) system of equine communication.



Partial Bibliography of Interior Art
From Wikipedia

DC Comics
Action Comics #442 (Atom), 441, 444-446, 450-452, 456-458 (Green Arrow)
Adventure Comics #435-437 (Aquaman), #440 (Crimson Avenger)
All-New Collector's Edition #C-55 (Legion of Super-Heroes)
Amazing World of DC Comics #12 ("Alien among us" story)
Batman #287-290
Batman Family #1 (Robin & Batgirl)
DC Super-Stars #17 (Green Arrow)
Detective Comics #445 (Robin), #455 (Batman), #463 (Atom), #464 (Black Canary)
1st Issue Special (Warlord) #8
Flash #237-238, 240 (Green Lantern backup stories)
Green Lantern (vol. 2) (Green Lantern/Green Arrow) #90-99, 106, 108-110
Green Arrow The Longbow Hunters (3-part miniseries, prestige format); The Wonder Year (4-part miniseries)
Legion of Super-Heroes (vol. 3) #45 (3 pages only)
Phantom Stranger (vol. 2) #33
Superboy (Legion of Super-Heroes) #203-224, 235
Warlord #1-53
First Comics
Jon Sable Freelance #1-43
Starslayer #1-6
 Image Comics
Maggie the Cat #1-2
Shaman's Tears #1-12
Spawn The Impaler: #1-3

More at:
Detailed Checklist from the Official Mike Grell Site




Mike Grell Sketches

REFERENCE INFORMATION
 http://www.erbzine.com/mag29/2967.html

ARTIST
CONTINUITY
TITLE
DATE BEGUN
Mike Grell Mike Grell #1 Return to Opar Pts. 1-10 ~ 2605-2614 July 19, 1981
Mike Grell Mike Grell #2 The Mercenaries  Pts. 1-12 ~ 2615-2626 Sept 27, 1981
Mike Grell Mike Grell #3 Wisconsin Christmas Pts. 1-12 ~ 2627-2638 Dec 20, 1981
Mike Grell Mike Grell #4 Wildlife Artist Pts. 1-12 ~ 2639-2650 Mar 14, 1982
Mike Grell Mike Grell #5 Jane Awakens Pt. 1 ~ 2651 June 5, 1982
Mike Grell Mike Grell #6 Strangers in Pal-ul-don Pts. 1-11 ~ 2652-2662 June 13, 1982
Mike Grell Mike Grell #7 Space War Pts. 1-12 ~ 2663-2674 Aug 29, 1982
Mike Grell Mike Grell #8 Christmas with Meriem Pts. 1-12 ~ 2675-2686 Nov 21, 1982
Thomas Yeates Thomas Yeates The Lion Pt. 1 ~ 2687 Feb 13, 1983
Mike Grell Mike Grell #9 Tarzan and the Crocodile Pts. 1 & 2 ~ 2688-2689 Feb 20, 1983
CONTENTS
1 Return to Opar
2 The Mercenaries
3 Wisconsin Christmas
4 Wildlife Artist
5 Jane Awakens
6 Strangers in Pal-ul-don
7 Space War
8 Christmas with Meriem
The Lion (Thomas Yeates)
9 Tarzan and the Crocodile

THE LOST PAGES



In Mike Grell's first story, two pages were lost in the mail and some studio hack had to draw them over to make up for the loss. Then after the pages were published, the mail service found the pages and gave them back to Grell. They were never printed. Although our copies are of marginal quality we present them here as curiosity pieces.



Tarzan Strip Tryout


 
 

WEB REFS
Mike Grell Official Website

ERBzine ERB Artist Encyclopedia
Dark Horse Illustrated Bibliography
Wikipedia: Mike Grell
Read more about Mike Grell in Comic News
A Spotlight Interview with Mike Grell (part 1)
A Spotlight Interview with Mike Grell (part 2)


Mike Grell
THE MIKE GRELL SERIES
PART OF THE ERBzine SPECIAL FEATURES SERIES:
ERB ART ENCYCLOPEDIA
ERB COMICS ENCYCLOPEDIA
ERB AND THE PRESS



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