Gary Friedrich & Ghost Rider

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Marvel Comics,

This made the rounds of Facebook all day the other day. It's a little snippet about Gary Friedrich, Ghost Rider and who created what.

I couldn't trace it back to the original poster, so I apologize for not giving him or her their deserved credit, especially in a post about credits!

One of the issues between Marvel Comics and Gary is the issue of Gary's credit as the sole creator of Ghost Rider.

While it may not be definitive, this is an excerpt from Marvel's own Bullpen Bulletins page in August 1972.

Marvel says of Ghost Rider: "...this GR is a mad, mod, mystic hero who straddles both the world of motorcycles - and the supernatural! (And that's some job of straddling!) It's by the titanic team of Groovy Gary Friedrich who dreamed the whole thing up, and Madcap Mike Ploog, whose own Werewolf by Night series is scheduled to gain its very own mag in a month or two!"

Daniel Best, who originally broke the story of Gary's fight with Marvel, has an update separating fact from rumor.

[Artwork: Bullpen Bulletins, © Marvel Comics]

Marvel Comics And Gary Friedrich

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Marvel Comics,

Unless you’ve been living in a hole for the last several days, you’ve no doubt heard about Marvel Comics' demand against one of their former writers, Gary Friedrich.

Friedrich sued Marvel for compensation related to exploitation of a character he created, Ghost Rider. He lost the first round, and Marvel’s coming after him. Here’s a round-up of just a handful of links and commentary to get you better acquainted.

Daniel Best at 20th Century Danny Boy broke the story about Marvel’s pushback against Friedrich, with a post that includes documentation.

Here’s an update with a note from Friedrich.

Mark Evanier has a sane and rational view of the situation.

One of the greatly appealing things about webcomics is that the creators managed to hold onto their rights and are free to exploit their work according to their own path. Gary Tyrrell at Fleen has some thoughts on Friedrich’s situation.

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Jack Kirby And Marvel Comics

Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Marvel Comics,

Most of you already know that a federal judge ruled in favor of Disney/Marvel and against the estate of Jack Kirby in their claim for copyright termination for 45 characters Kirby either created or co-created.

Naturally, there has been some reaction to this as we all await what the next step will be in what one can only assume is an ongoing, sad, and unnecessary struggle.

Here are some links if you want to follow along:

Michael Dean at The Comics Journal - which has a history with Kirby and was instrumental in helping Jack get what was left of his art back from Marvel in the 1980s and exposing how Marvel was extorting his signature - does the heavy lifting on the ruling.

Dean also wrote a summing up of Kirby’s 1980s-era battle with Marvel over the return of his original art.

Click to continue reading Jack Kirby And Marvel Comics