No.31: Creig Flessel
One of the original DC artists, Creig Flessel got his start in illustration working on pulps such as Street and Smiths’ The Shadow, before moving to DC in 1936, where he worked on More Fun Comics, pencilling mainly cartoon pages. Dividing his time between working at DC with drawing newspaper strip Dixie Dugan and at the advertising agency Johnstone and Cushing, his career in comics came into focus when he began illustrating the covers for National’s new anthology title, Detective Comics, in 1937. Words: Andrew Colman…
photo courtesy of Greg Preston
Flessel’s covers for the book that gave the fledgling company its name is of course what he is most remembered for – the pre-Batman run from issues 2-19 that showcased some superb pulpy, poster-style art that was both inspired and evocative, not just of the era but of the new form. Featuring portraits or close-ups of grizzled villains, well-heeled thieves, hard boiled detectives and crime scenes, Flessel’s covers virtually established the genre in comics while creating some of the most iconic images of the pre-hero era. His hallmark was detailed, carefully constructed simplicity, with the emphasis on nuance, characterization and immediacy, his covers bringing a unique edge to the medium that was yet to take off.
Although his work was mostly confined to the golden age period at DC Flessel did work on some classic series, notably his run on the Sandman in Adventure Comics in 1940, where once again he created some iconic covers that had pulp and cinematic elements. In 1941 Flessel created his best-known character for DC, the Shining Knight, again for Adventure Comics. During this period, he also moved to Columbia Comics and later to Magazine Enterprises, where he worked as associate editor.
After the war Flessel moved away from the industry to work primarily in advertising, although he did moonlight at DC on Adventure Comics and Superboy for DC in the 1950s, along with ACG’s classic anthology title Adventures into the Unknown. His other illustration work included David Crane, a strip about a minister for Hall Syndicate where he took over the reins from co-creator Win Mortimer throughout the 1960s, as well as a strip for Playboy in the 1980s.
After the Gerber photojournals in the 1980s gradually brought his work to the attention of a new generation of enthusiasts, Flessel’s contribution to the medium garnered awards and plaudits from both fans and artists alike, with convention appearances in the 2000s. For an artist who had been around at the beginning of comics prior to Action Comics 1, his work has remained remarkably timeless, his Detective and Adventure covers exuding a retro, filmic quality.
Here’s links through to the other entries in our 101 Greatest so far as well
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.32: Milt Caniff
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.34: Burne Hogarth
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.35: LB Cole
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.37: Bill Everett
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.38: Robert Crumb
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.39: Mac Raboy
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.41: Jim Starlin
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.42: Mike Zeck
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.43: Adam Hughes
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.44: Daniel Clowes
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.45: Gene Colan
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.46: George Perez
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.47: Michael William Kaluta
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.48: Cary Nord
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.49: Frank Quitely
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.50: Mike Ploog
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.51: Johnny Craig
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.52: Darwyn Cooke
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.53: Steve Dillon
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.54: Gil Kane
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.55: Michael Zulli
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.56: John Romita
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.57: Joe Maneely
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.58: Marshall Rogers
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.59: John Severin
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.60: Alex Toth
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.61: Brian Bolland
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.62: David Mazzuchelli
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.63 Reed Crandall
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.64 Harry Anderson
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.65 Nick Cardy
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.66 Matt Wagner
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.67 Bryan Hitch
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.68 Shawn Martinbrough
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.69 Al Feldstein
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.70 Nestor Redondo
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.71 Tarpe Mills
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.72 Eduardo Risso
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.73 JH Williams III
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.74 Irv Novick
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.75 Dan Zolnerowich
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.76 Gilbert Shelton
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.77 Tommy Lee Edwards
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.78: Sean Phillips
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.79: Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.80: Dan DeCarlo
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.81: Marie Severin
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.82: John Paul Leon
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.83: Jim Lee
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.84: Denys Cowan
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.85: Ross Andru
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.86: Paul Gustavson
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.87: George Evans
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.88: Michael Golden
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.89: Matt Baker
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.90: Todd McFarlane
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.91: Fiona Staples
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.92: Carl Barks
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.93: Carmine Infantino
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.94: Alan Davis
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.95: CC Beck
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.96: Syd Shores
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.97: Bob Fujitani
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.98: Tim Sale
Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.99: Jim Aparo
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The post Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.31: Creig Flessel appeared first on TRIPWIRE MAGAZINE.
No.31: Creig Flessel One of the original DC artists, Creig Flessel got his start in illustration working on pulps such as Street and Smiths’ The Shadow, before moving to DC in 1936, where he worked on More Fun Comics, pencilling mainly cartoon pages. Dividing his time between working at DC with drawing newspaper strip Dixie
The post Tripwire’s 101 Greatest Comic Artists Of All Time: No.31: Creig Flessel appeared first on TRIPWIRE MAGAZINE.Read MoreTRIPWIRE MAGAZINE