Basil Wolverton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Basil Wolverton |
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Basil Wolverton at his drawing board, c. 1950
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| Born | July 9, 1909 Central Point, Oregon, U.S. |
| Died | December 31, 1978 (aged 69) Vancouver, Washington, U.S. |
| Area(s) | Cartoonist, Writer, Penciller, Inker, Letterer |
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Notable works
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Powerhouse Pepper, Spacehawk |
| Awards | Jack Kirby Hall of Fame |
| Relatives | Monte Wolverton (son) |
Basil Wolverton (July 9, 1909 – December 31, 1978) was an American cartoonist and artist. He was famous for drawing very detailed and often strange-looking characters. People sometimes called him the "Producer of Preposterous Pictures of Peculiar People who Prowl this Perplexing Planet." This means he drew funny and odd pictures of strange people. His art appeared in popular comics like Marvel Comics and Mad magazine.
Other cartoonists had different opinions about his work. Will Elder thought Wolverton's art was "outrageously inventive" and very funny. But Jules Feiffer simply said, "I don't like his work. I think it's ugly." After he passed away, Basil Wolverton was honored in the Jack Kirby Hall of Fame in 1991. This is a special award for people who made a big impact on comic books.
Contents
Basil Wolverton's Life and Art
Early Days and First Comics
Basil Wolverton was born in Central Point, Oregon. He later moved to Vancouver, Washington. When he was young, he worked as a performer in vaudeville shows and also as a cartoonist for a newspaper. At just 16 years old, he sold his first drawing that was published across the country.
He tried to get his own comic strips published. In 1929, a company accepted his comic strip called Marco of Mars. However, it was never printed because it looked too much like another popular comic, Buck Rogers.
In 1938, his comics Disk-Eyes the Detective and Spacehawks were published. Later, in 1940, a new and improved comic called Spacehawk started in Target Comics. This comic ran for 30 episodes. Wolverton also created other characters like Scoop Scuttle, a newspaper reporter, and Mystic Moot.
Powerhouse Pepper and Lena the Hyena
One of Wolverton's most famous funny comics was Powerhouse Pepper. This comic was about a super-strong but not-so-smart boxer. It appeared in various comic books from Timely Comics, which later became Marvel Comics. Powerhouse Pepper was known for its rhyming words and silly humor.
In 1946, Wolverton won a special contest. The famous comic strip Li'l Abner had a running joke about the world's ugliest woman, Lena the Hyena. Her face was always hidden. The comic's creator, Al Capp, asked artists to draw what they thought Lena looked like. Out of 500,000 entries, Basil Wolverton's drawing was chosen as the winner! His picture of Lena the Hyena was printed in the Li'l Abner comic strip and even in Life magazine. This made Wolverton very famous for a short time. His unique style, sometimes called "spaghetti-and-meatballs," became his trademark.
In the 1950s, Wolverton also drew many horror and science-fiction stories for Marvel and other comic companies. He was praised for creating truly strange and scary monsters in these comics.
Working for Mad Magazine
Basil Wolverton first drew for Mad magazine in 1953. Even though he only contributed to nine issues over 20 years, his artwork was very memorable. In 2009, The New York Times called him "The Michelangelo of Mad Magazine." He also drew for other funny magazines like Cracked.
Later Art Projects
In 1968, Wolverton created a series of Ugly Posters trading cards for Topps. These cards showed his signature style of twisted and funny faces.
He returned to mainstream comics in 1973, drawing several covers for Plop! comic books at DC Comics. He also had two comic strips, "Calvin" and "Weird Creatures," in Comix Book.
Personal Life
In 1934, Basil Wolverton married Honor Lovette, who he knew from high school. They were married until he passed away. His son, Monte Wolverton, also became a cartoonist. Basil Wolverton died on December 31, 1978, when he was 69 years old.
Images for kids
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Basil Wolverton at his drawing board, c. 1950
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Wolverton as a senior in high school, 1927.
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Target Comics v3 7, art by Basil Wolverton, September 1942.
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Li'l Abner daily strip by Al Capp, introducing Basil Wolverton's "Lena the Hyena"
