13 COVERS: A JIM APARO Birthday Celebration

One of the all-time greats was born 88 years ago…

For a lot of fans, Jim Aparo — born Aug. 24, 1932 — is on their Mount Rushmore of Batman artists.

Personally, I didn’t really understand his appeal — and greatness — until well after his heyday. I think part of it is that when I was a kid in the ’70s, he drew The Brave and the Bold — an “extra” title — and we didn’t often see him pencilling straight-up Batman stories. Given his grittier style of the time, I can only imagine how wonderful it would have been to see Aparo full time on, say, Detective Comics.

So with that in mind, this year’s 13 COVERS birthday celebration is all ‘Tec — mostly from the ’70s. Because why not?

Dig it.

MORE

— 13 COVERS: A JIM APARO Birthday Celebration — 2019 Edition, Featuring AQUAMAN. Click here.

— 13 COVERS: A JIM APARO Hall of Fame Salute, Featuring THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD. Click here.

Author: Dan Greenfield

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16 Comments

  1. Jim is definitely on the side of that mountain. With the right inks, his style came alive..

    But, I give. Why do the cover images not have prices on them? There’s something missing without the big block .20 cents.

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    • ComiXology do that, apparently they or DC reckon we’re really stupid and would demand the price we see. And yes, it looks horrible.

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      • I tend to use the scans from the DC Universe app because they’re usually cleaner and higher-res. I also miss the price tag but it’s a trade I’m willing to make most of the time.

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        • Oh, to be able to have that DC app – maybe non-US folk will finally be able to pay a subscription now that the screen stuff is leaving

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  2. Great covers by Aparo. And I loved the era with the original logo. Wish they’d never changed it.

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  3. Aparo did some amazing work in the 70s–especially on B&B. He’ll always be a favorite artist of mine.

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    • Me too, they’ve never improved on that logo, and the bigger it’s used, the better it looks. Ditto Action Comics.

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  4. Aparo really was a brilliant designer. Mind, child Batgirl look any happier at the prospect of being a murderer on #498?

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  5. Hey Dan,

    I know there’s some legal wranglings or something, but what is the deal with the Aparo retrospective book? I’ve heard it’s in the works, then it’s not. I mean, it’s high time. Thought you might know

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  6. Loved those 100-page Super-Spectacular issues. Would love to see Star Hawkins reprinted again somewhere!

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  7. Great covers from one of the best! I have so many of these. Aparo, Adams, and Kubert are locked into my Mt. Rushmore with the 4th changing from time to time. Ditto on the Star Hawkins reprints.

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  8. There IS a reason that there is a street named after Jim Aparo on the maps of Gotham. Hopefully there’s also one in his real hometown to give him even more honor. He’s definitely one of my all time favorite Batman artists.

    I too was wondering why there were no prices of the comics shown above. I’m glad someone else noticed and asked about it. I assumed that Dan got them from a DC source that didn’t want younger or new readers to know how much or how little they USED TO cost.

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  9. Great post! Jim Aparo was my first favorite artist! He was definitely one of the all-time greats! His work on Spectre, Phantom Stranger & Aquaman was also excellent. Of the covers you posted, Det #446 is my favorite.

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  10. Great selection of covers. It’s so nice to see Aparo get so much love nowadays. I feel he was under appreciated for a very long time. His art has a visceral energy few others can match.

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