Posted By Dan Greenfield on Jan 5, 2025 | 2 comments

Magnus, Tarzan, you name it — a BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE to the late artist, who was born 96 years ago, on Jan. 5, 1929…

By PETER STONE

Neal Adams, during one of his more humorous moments, used to refer to one of Russ Manning’s best-known and revered creations as “Magnut, Robot Biter.” Neal said it in good fun because he had a tremendous amount of respect for Manning. His run on Gold Key’s Magnus, Robot Fighter in the ’60s was light and airy, filled with stylish ships, unlike the “rocket” design that many artists in the ’50s were drawing. Magnus was a beautiful, powerful man with the ability to use the side of his bare hand to destroy a robot with a single blow.

The women in the year 4000 were beautiful and sexy. They wore short dresses and revealed stunning legs. In 1963, when Magnus first appeared in Gold Key Comics, it rose quickly to popularity. Manning drew 21 issues of the series, establishing its look and feel. He was the best artist who ever worked on the title.

Magnus, Robot Fighter influenced many artists, but particularly Steve Rude, who drew a two-part series called Magnus, Robot Fighter and Nexus, co-starring his own creation. Rude’s ships, for example, are a more advanced version of Manning’s. Chris Samnee and Cliff Chiang are among many others who also convey the Manning influence.

While he was writing and drawing Magnus, Manning also illustrated Tarzan stories for God Key. From 1965-69 he adapted 11 of the classic Tarzan novels. (They were written by Gaylord Du Bois.) Manning’s style was clear and clean, much like his Magnus work, but still a valid artistic interpretation of the character. He wasn’t Frazetta or Kubert or Adams, but he ranks up there. He knew male and female anatomy and his poses and action sequences were unlike anything other artists were doing. There weren’t bloody scenes or too many deaths on-panel, unlike Frazetta, with his clenched muscles and gritted teeth, or Kubert and his impaling spears, or even Adams with his “Lion on a skewer” painting.

Manning was the kind of artist that all ages liked reading. Kids never got confused by the panel design or forced perspective. Adults could easily see that Manning had some real skills. Readers were vastly disappointed when he moved on from their favorite comic to something new. But they followed him, that’s for sure.

They followed him to Gold Key’s Korak, Son of Tarzan. Manning drew 11 issues of that series as well. He then got a more national gig, the daily newspaper strip for… yep, you guessed it… Tarzan. He did the dailies from 1967-72. During this same period and slightly after, he created four original Tarzan stories not based on Edgar Rice Burroughs’ work. During this time, Manning started using assistants like William Stout, Rick Hoberg, Mike Royer and Dave Stevens.

His did his last major work as cancer started to attack his body. From 1979-80, Manning wrote and drew the Star Wars daily newspaper strip. Steve Gerber and Archie Goodwin provided the scripts for him to follow, but Manning could only provide a certain amount of material. On December 1, 1981, Manning died in California at the age of 52, leaving behind a legendary body of work. He is honored every year during the Eisners with his name on the Russ Manning Most Promising Newcomer Award.

For anyone who is interested in investigating Manning’s art, Dark Horse Comics has reprinted his Magnus, Tarzan, Korak, and even his Star Wars strips. I recommend Magnus and Tarzan, in particular, because they’re different from anything else you’ll see connected to these characters. But all of it is well worth reading.

—

MORE

— RUSS MANNING: The Gloriously Trippy World of MAGNUS, ROBOT FIGHTER. Click here.

— 13 GREAT ILLUSTRATIONS: A RUSS MANNING Birthday Celebration. Click here.

—

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.