Posted By Dan Greenfield on May 1, 2024 | 2 comments

A BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION of the Filipino artist, who turns 84…

By PETER STONE

Alex Nino is one of the most unique artist history of comics. Every single comic is different than any other comic he’s ever drawn. Sometimes it’s painted, sometimes black and white, sometimes gray tones, and even sometimes pencils. He’s worked in comics, advertising and animation. What I’m trying to say is that he is an unconventional genius. He’s not a superhero artist, but he’s a Conan/Tarzan/ninja/science fiction/pirate/House of Mystery kind of guy.

Born in the Philippines on May, 1, 1940, Nino came to the U.S. in the mid-’70s to work with Ralph Bakshi on the movie Wizards, but the timing proved to be difficult and it didn’t work out. He worked on some Marvel material, then found a home for a time at Warren Publishing. Later, he finished the Thriller title for DC Comics after Trevor Von Eeden left. He even did design work for the animated film Atlantis: The Lost Empire.

Before he retired to draw and paint commissions, teach classes in his native Philippines, self-publish art books and create a social media presence, Nino worked briefly at Continuity Comics doing what he does best. He designed the motif that ran across the top of all of our Rise Of Magic comics. It was a demon surrounded by other hellbound shapes and forms. Neal Adams decided to print the cover on a rough, almost parchment paper. It created a unique look that no one else in comics had thought of. Nino was a huge part of that. (Just so everyone knows, Nino’s rejected drawings were just as cool as the final choice.)

Neal Adams pencils, Rudy Nebres inks

Then, when Alex Nino asked if there was a comic he could draw, Neal and I both leaped at the chance to work with this comics stalwart. Neal thought about Toyboy, but we were gearing up to start the Rise Of Magic so the logic was to give him our own personal Conan. His name was Shaman. Neal and I came up with a great story. Neal wanted to add how aspirin was created… from birch trees. Shaman deals with a wound with a very early version of aspirin. After that, he left it to me.

One of my favorite parts was doing research (way before the internet) about primitive animal forms: The wooly mammoth. The saber-toothed tiger. For me, the best was the rhinoceros. A full page of rhinos (but from the dawn of man) stampeding through an epic Alex Nino Conan-like battle, allowing Shaman to triumph over an evil empire filled with magic sorcerers. I could not have been more happy. Alex Nino did that thing that every writer wants… he exceeded my wildest expectations. I wrote it and he read it and then said, “Pete, hold my beer.”

I fought hard to get that 48-page story printed, but the market was starting to crash. Alex was never a major star except when you talked to artists. Then he was a god. But for the regular comics fan he was a super-stylized artist who could only draw weirdo monsters and barbarians. So in late 1993 we sold him with a Neal Adams story. Continuity Comics printed 16 pages of Alex Nino, introduced by five pages of Neal. It’s called Shaman #0, and it was offered as a special retailer incentive. One day, it’ll be sought after.

I recommend anyone who loves the work of Alex Nino, or is even curious, to follow him on Instagram and you’ll occasionally get to see a video of him painting something absolutely spectacular. It’ll be like nothing you’ve seen before but it will be visceral and savage and beautiful.

Alex Nino is a brilliant artist even at 84. Happy birthday, Mr. Nino. You are a legend!

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Peter Stone is a writer and son-in-law of the late Neal Adams. Be sure to check out the family’s twice-weekly online Facebook auctions, as well as the NealAdamsStore.com, and their Burbank, California, comics shop Crusty Bunkers Comics and Toys.