Rick Altergott: A Young Man Cracked 1986-1988

I previously posted a few early pieces from Dan Clowes when he produced work for Cracked Magazine which can be found here. Below are comics from the same time period produced by Rick Altergott.

Rick Altergott may not be a familiar name to most, but for those who read alternative rags (that's what I call them, it's hip) in the 90's, he was this cartooning genius that had an off-kilter sense of humor and...kinda drew like Wally Wood? I first became AWARE of him through the letters pages in Clowes' comic Eightball. Clowes and he were old friends and had published a fanzine together (along with Mort Todd) in the early 80's called Psycho. By this time he was self-publishing his own mini comic called Doofus, which Clowes was plugging in the pages of Eightball at the time. I stressed "aware" earlier because even though I was reading comics he was drawing in the late 80's in the pages of Cracked, I really didn't pay much attention to his style. I suppose it didn't help that he was mainly drawing the TV parodies, which were my least favorite part of the magazine. Looking back on the stories, Altergott truly had chops and his style is right there. I ordered Doofus #2 a few years later and was an instant convert. This guy had chops and a great sense of humor. And he kinda drew like Wally Wood? Yeah, he did. He channeled Wood's style yet he made it his own. Wayne Howard, eat your heart out.

So yeah. Enjoy a few early works from Rick Altergott. And if you feel so inclined, check out his later superior work. For the past few years, he's been providing strips for Vice which can be found here. You should also go buy back issues of Raisin Pie, which lasted 5 issues from 2002-2007 and was a collaboration with his wife Ariel Bordeaux, an equally talented cartoonist in her own right.

Doofus #1 1992 Self Published

The Doofus Omnibus 2002

Raisin Pie #1 2002

And just for the heck of it, a Marvel Comics cover from 1994. Curse of the Weird #2. Edited by Mort Todd.

And now, CRACKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cracked Magazine #225 1987

Cracked Magazine #228 1987

Cracked Magazine #234 1988

Cracked Magazine #235 1988

The Weird Science Fiction Mysteries of Angelo Torres

I'm pretty excited about posting the following Angelo Torres stories he drew for Atlas in the late 1950's. As with many other artists, this seems to be an untapped period when it comes to recognizing their work. Very few Atlas Comics have been reprinted outside of a select few titles. Of course, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko have been given their deserved due. So many artists were given work at Atlas after the advent of the Comics Code in 1955. The industry took a hit and many publishers went out of business, leaving a lot of artists looking for work in a shrinking market. Many went into advertising or teaching, while the few that remained had to take on lower-paying jobs. Atlas was one of the companies that a lot of the artists found work at. Angelo Torres was no exception. Torres had previously assisted Al Williamson at EC Comics and his one solo story that would have been published in the last issue of EC's Incredible Science Fiction was substituted at the last minute for a reprint. The Comics Code found that the story didn't adhere to their strict rules. So his story, An Eye for an Eye, wasn't printed until years later.

Torres is best known for his work at Mad Magazine where he began a long career with them in 1969 until 2005. He was also a prolific artist for Warren in the mid-1960's, where he illustrated beautiful stories in the horror genre. He had, by then, altered his style to where is was much more modern and illustrative and less romantic and lush as seen below. During his Atlas period, his work is very reminiscent of his peers and friends Frank Frazetta and Al Williamson, whom he worked with in the early 50's. As time passed and the demands of cartoonists and styles changed, Torres and others (Williamson included) moved towards a more illustrative look. But here, in these early stories, Torres is in full bloom as a romantic. His art is bursting with youthful passion, clearly influenced by the past strip artists Hal Foster and Alex Raymond.