It’s a celebration of something we’ve waited decades for…
The wait was long and the wait was short. For decades, fans in the know have wanted the famed DC Comics Style Guide, first issued in 1982 with art mostly by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and Dick Giordano, to be released commercially.
Finally, this past May, we found out it was coming from Brooklyn boutique publisher Standards Manual, under license from DC. And there was much rejoicing throughout the land. The book was anticipated for summertime but, as they often do, delays set in, largely because Hamish Smyth and Jesse Reed of Standards Manual are pesky perfectionists. (Their primary business is graphic design and if you know anyone who’s really talented in that field, then you know they are all that way.)
So there was some wringing of teeth and gnashing of hands among segments of fandom, but lo, the book is out — and just in time for the holidays. Looking back, it all happened in only eight months. That’s practically overnight for a publication like this.
My own copy
I’m deeply gratified to have been part of the project. I interviewed Garcia-Lopez and the Guide’s original project manager, Mary Moebus Yedlin, and ended up helping out on other aspects of the book. Seeing myself listed as “technical advisor” is mind-blowing in a way I cannot quite describe.
But that’s of little consequence. What’s important is that we finally have a version of the 1982 DC Comics Style Guide in our hands. (I say “a version” because finding a definitive copy is exceedingly difficult. It was a looseleaf and there were many updates, so merchandisers and others who actually utilized the guide routinely swapped pages in and out.) And seeing readers so excited that they’ve been posting photos of theirs on Facebook — 13 examples below — has been a wonderful celebration of the artistry of a bygone era that nevertheless endures to this day.
I hope you enjoy your copy as much as I enjoy mine.
Artist June Brigman, who wrote “Merry Christmas to me!”
13th Dimension Contributor-at-Large Scott Tipton
David Ace Gutierrez
Letterer Taylor Esposito
Robert Jacobs
Nicholas Lucero
Jeff Dyer
Rod Pellegrini
Daniel Klos
Ryan Francis
Jon Bravo
Tom Patrick
Artist Joe Corroney
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MORE
— HERE IT IS! Your EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK at the 1982 DC COMICS STYLE GUIDE Hardcover. Click here.
— The 1982 DC COMIC STYLE GUIDE Is Shipping NOW. Click here.
