The NEAL ADAMS-BILL SIENKIEWICZ BATMAN Painting You’ve Never Seen

A BIRTHDAY SALUTE to the protege turned master in his own right…

By PETER STONE

Everyone (almost everyone) knows the story of how Bill Sienkiewicz got into the comic industry. How he showed up at Continuity Associates to meet the great and powerful Neal Adams, his artistic idol, and to show his portfolio.

Did he have a chance in the comic world?

Neal flipped through Bill’s portfolio and then bellowed (as he was wont to do) to get Jim Shooter on the phone. Two minutes later, Neal told Jim Shooter that he had to hire this young man immediately. It wasn’t because Bill drew like Neal, it was because Bill was a talented young man who could really draw. That was always what Neal was looking for. Artists who could draw. Bill’s entry to the world of comics was far smoother than, say, Frank Miller’s. But both got in, proving that there is no common path. It’s all about working as hard as you can and being in the right place at the right time.

Colorized version of Sienkiewicz’s Moon Knight debut in 1978’s The Hulk! #13

Bill — who was born 66 years ago, on May 3, 1958 — didn’t just enter the comics world, he exploded, with his early work on the Hulk! black-and-white magazine, drawing the Moon Knight feature that soon turned into a monthly comic. In the magazine, Bill was still channeling Neal, but when he moved through the issues of Moon Knight, his style rapidly became more and more stylistic and exciting. The culmination of the transformation was the 1982’s Issue #26 — “Hit It!” Bill was freeing himself from his past influences and searching for new ones.

The New Mutants became a perfect example of an artist morphing into a new form. The Demon Bear Saga was so unique and almost esoteric that it became the focus of the New Mutants movie, even if they didn’t follow Bill’s visuals. His covers were his way of experimenting  with painting and even 3-D images. No, not computers… 3-D being what he could attach to the art. Industrial metal, tape, wood or whatever he thought looked cool. It was the butterfly emerging from the cocoon and starting to flap its wings.

He becomes a talented cover artist, illustrating a ton of Marvel Comics covers. But then he puts his foot to the floor and produced Elektra: Assassin and Daredevil: Love and War, with Frank Miller writing. Painted stories that blew up the comics world. Bill had discovered his painting heroes, Bob Peak main among them. He became a superstar and did a personal project called Stray Toasters.

Megalith #5

However, most birds return to their roost. Neal watched Bill’s progression and liked what he saw. He knew Bill had gotten better and better. So, when he asked him to ink an issue of Continuity Comics’ Megalith, Neal knew he would get a quality job. He asked Bill to ink the second issue of the Ernesto Infante Megalith story and he did a great job. We had a terrible time with the first issue, three different inkers before we managed to finish that story. Bill, however, did a great, professional job. Megalith #5 from the Rise of Magic crossover was terrific.

Bill did an alternate cover for Neal’s Twilight Zone story from Now Comics. Apparently the cover was pieces of metal he’d found in a junkyard. Car parts and other weirdo bits of junk. It was strange but wonderful.

Megalith #5

When Neal was working on Batman: Odyssey, he personally inked the first six issues with some help from Michael Golden and Scott Williams. Then, with deadlines looming, Neal started looking for inkers that could help him out. Of course, he had access to Rudy Nebres, but he needed a superhero inker. The two he thought of immediately were Kevin Nowlan and Bill Sienkiewicz. Kevin managed to find time to ink Issue #12, but Bill inked several full issues. Neal was happy with the outcome even though it was not his own inking. Bill brought a stylistic flair to Neal’s pencils.

Then, in February 2016, when DC did a special month of 27 Neal Adams variant covers, each had to have an inker — and they included such big names as Walt Simonson, Nowlan, Jim Lee and even Simon Bisley. Bill inked two of them and they are some of the most sought after, especially the riff on Batman #244. It’s the famous third Ra’s Al Ghul cover in the desert except this time it’s Batman killing a bare-chested Superman with a kryptonite sword. (For much more on this, click here.)

Then after Neal passed, we at Continuity had a problem. He had almost completed a painting of Batman saving Talia from falling off a cliff. It was a commission, so we had to finish it somehow. We scanned through our brains to figure out someone who could do finish the difficult mid-section of Batman. It was roughly penciled by Neal, but it was hard to see precisely where the abs were and how they connected to the rest of the chest. Who in the world was good enough to figure this out AND finish painting the entire piece? Who indeed?

Bill jumped at the chance. Was it a struggle for him? I’m sure it was. Neal can be difficult to figure out sometimes. In the end, Bill created a wonderful combination of himself and Neal. It’s a never-before-seen classic painting by Neal and Bill, filled with all the emotion you could imagine. The student showing that he can work with his mentor and create something for the ages.

Happy Birthday, Bill. You’re one of my idols and one day you might be willing to sign my copy of Moon Knight #26!

MORE

— NEAL ADAMS STORE’s Exclusive, Limited Edition ARTIST’S EDITION Volumes Now Up for Pre-Order. Click here.

— Dig NEAL ADAMS’ Spectacular Original Cover Art for the BATMAN-RA’S AL GHUL TREASURY. 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, and their Burbank, California, comics shop Crusty Bunkers Comics and Toys.

Author: Dan Greenfield

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