Jack Kirby Interview

This is a clip from a long out-of-print documentary called The Masters Of Comic Book Art. It's introduced by Harlan Ellison.
Jack Kirby is seen talking about his cosmic Marvel comics (Galactus, Silver Surfer etc.) and how those led to his Fourth World books at DC. He then says a few words about the history of comics.
I never met Jack Kirby, so I don't know if he was always like this, but he has a strange mixture of emotions as he talks: angry and serious but somehow always on the cusp of smiling, too. A fascinating man and an incredible talent.

[@slagit]

I was lucky enough to meet Jack Kirby at his home thanks to my friend Britt. What a great afternoon. Mr. Kirby treated everyone as a new friend and he was almost like a lost uncle. He had much to say and left a strong impression on me. Just watching this now really makes me miss him and the character that he was. It is amazing the imagination and what came from his mind into our reality. Long live Jack KING Kirby.

[@jema021]

All hail "The One Above All"

[@larryfenderson8922]

jema021 oh then you mean all hail Stan Lee 😉

[@LazerDeath314]

@@larryfenderson8922 LOOOL Stan Lee is nothing without Jack Kirby

[@mariovazquez4436]

@@LazerDeath314yep and Jack isn't nothing without lee

[@paulakroy2635]

Mario Vazquez Nah he creates darksied, the whole new gods and captain America without stan Lee.

[@absolutesilence9371]

Bro every KZbinrs says that TOAA is stan lee And fulcrum is Jack Kirby

[@RANDOMPEPSIBOTTLES]

I can see Al Paccino playing Kirby in a biopic, since he's been doing roles like that, lately.

[@3070Gordo]

You're absolutely right! I would love to see that. Jack absolutely deserves a biopic.

[@oneyedthing]

Unfortunately, they wont make a movie about Jack Kirby. That will expose Stan Lee for just being a businessman and Jack Kirby being the true artist and visionary of comics.

[@madbug1965]

I shook his hand and took a picture with JK at this final Comic Con appearance. What a great guy! I was glad that I got the opportunity to meet and thank him...

[@bourbonbigshot]

Jack Kirby used to take a lot of abuse from the comic book industry in the 70s and 80s for being outdated, and yet I think he was the most creative and forward thinking of them all. You can just witness from this segment that he was always brinmming with thoughts and ideas and creativity. He really was "the King."

[@evilnewwargod]

his general reputation among comic readers still hasn't recovered much from those old claims. i love his later work, i've seen younger readers coming around to New Gods and understanding and appreciating it (i mean, hell, i'm practically in that group myself), but there's still plenty of people out there who will fall back on the same old junk about how his writing was stuck in the golden age*, how none of it makes sense, how it's just muscle men screaming at each other with no depth or any thought put it into it, how he couldn't draw/stopped drawing well, needed a "real" writer/scripter to make sense of his ideas/palatable to the average reader, and on and on. i chalk it up to to general ignorance and a particular insecurity, ie. people who read superheroes (and maybe a bit of general fantasy/sf) exclusively and cling onto the notion of comic books "growing up" through that genre from the 80s to the present. Kirby reminds them, for all the wrong reasons, of what makes their hobby embarrassing as adults, and so they lash out. they also lack, as Grant Morrison put it, Kirby's "reading list". the man imbued much of his work with his knowledge of classic literature and mythology. the vast majority of (superhero) comic readers who check him out and find him offputting ain't lookin' at or even care about what influenced him, i am positive about that. they write him off and are content to see him as some weird, out-of-touch guy well past his prime. it's sickening, the disrespect he continues to get and how few fans of his recognize this. a man who gave so much and is treated like dirt over petty and nonsensical things while the thieves who helped ruin his reputation are publicly lauded for doing work they didn't actually do. *these people know little about comics, as a whole, from that period, especially Kirby's post-war work which prove how strong of a writer and dramatist he was.

[@vitesenzafine]

He speaks with the solemnity and conviction of a biblical figure! That's an artist who believed in what he did. Thank you a lot for posting the clip.

[@KcDBG]

The man carried the industry through it's toughest and darkest times and elevated it to levels no one ever thought possible.

[@CHCHuser]

Happy Birthday Jack Kirby.

[@berto1999]

Jack Kirby is the NUMBER 1 and he will be always the number 1!

[@cha5]

I mean I'm glad they have (for the present) Jack's name in the film credits of Marvel movies that have characters that he and Stan created, But when Robert Downey Jr is getting a $50 million dollar salary boost for 'Iron Man 3' and Jack's family is getting just about nothing. There's something a bit obscene there IMO.

[@AceLM92]

Spot on

[@RobLed]

kirby's creations have been very important in my life - some might find that funny, pathetic or bizarre - but it is true. God Bless Kirby.

[@cha5]

The main thing that really irritates me more than Stan's past history of taking creator credit is that Jack's family isn't getting a dime from the merchandising of the Marvel/Disney movies from the mouse these days.

[@jorgegfigueroa9755]

Sucks because they made peace yet companies don't care. Guess it's because Stan's such an icon doing business with the media that he eclipses most in terms of popularity even if they're co-creators

[@jayinri6658]

what a truly magnificent human being, to have taken his form of expression and creativity to the realm of his spiritual questions answers and revelations it takes a truly deeply spiritual individual to take ur disciplined to this level, absolutely sublime

[@BubsArcadeFighters]

Jack Kirby is the man! I just picked up "Galactic Bountyhunters" and I'm hooked on it! I think it's so cool that his fam. is now publishing his previously unpublishe work!

[@KiwamuTheKappa]

Stan's the man, but Kirby is the King!

[@Sancho_Retablez]

When I was young, I didn't appreciate Kirby because I saw him like the "typical comic style". But someday something changed in my eye when I was staring at his drawings. The fact is the "typical comic style" comes from him, he is the unique style, he is "the king". Nobody achieve his action and style even they try.

[@altraferne]

I feel so cheated to never be able to meet this man. I've only recently begun to appreciate the true depth and magnificence of his work. His mind was so far beyond this world, he gave us things no one had ever concieved of. How does a poor kid from Brooklyn come up with guys like Galactus and Darkseid? Though I never met him, I feel a kinship to this man, this legend. Long Live The King!

[@angelmanfredy]

Wish I’d met him. Such a sweet down to Earth man and incredible creator.

[@colderbeer]

Jack Kirby was the first really GREAT comic book artist.....with fondness I remember his work with the Fantastic Four.....and I loved how his worked was borderline "over-inked," which contributed to how dramatic his work was....

[@glring3519]

Stan Lee is a very charismatic and funny man, a great showman but Jack Kirby had a big and kind heart. He had a heartwarming presence that Stan Lacks. #TeamKirby forever.

[@aaronderrico7193]

Thank you for your vision, wisdom and your work, Jack.

[@Modern_Robot]

If only there was MORE of this interview. Kirby was a very profound man of the medium. He and Will Eisner and many others molded the industry and the artform to the next generation, and as always for we as a people it's a part of our heritage and history and sadly isn't taught in many schools art programs.

[@h.e.finleyjr.8463]

Kirby had that Sky Masters piece framed on his wall..... That shit kicked massive ass. Kirby and Wally Wood were the real dream team of comics

[@RX552VBK]

As much as I respect Stan Lee and the work he produced it was Jack "King" Kirby who was the true creative genius of all these beloved characters. It hurts that he had not lived long enough to see his creations worshiped by millions of fans all over the planet. And to have such an influence over later artists, filmmakers, writer, etc. RIP.

[@Stepper11]

Great clip. Thanks for posting. I love Kirby for many reasons. One is his down-to-earth,practical motivations: you wanna eat,you create timeless myths and legends that form the imaginative backbone for both DC and Marvel, as well as the countless ideas & creators they inspire for generations to come.

[@Cirnenric]

It’s fantastic how Kirby was always thinking forward on characters and the medium.

[@agapitomemelas8181]

That desings of Jack Kirby are very amazing.

[@cha5]

Well myself I actually really love what Joe & Jack did story and artwise in the 1940's - 1950's in their comics ranging from Captain America & Boy Commando's all the way to Black Magic & Boy's Ranch, and I never get tired of Kirby's Fourth World Saga which certainly was erratic but IMO it's also unforgettable and is something that was deeply personal to Jack. For me 'The Death Wish of Terrible Turpin' has just as much of an impact as 'The Galactus Saga' in it's own way. Of course that's JMO.

[@slagit]

The KING rules!!!!!! I was so lucky to meet him in the 80s and 90s a great inspiration!

[@DaveM599]

I don't think you'd ever forget a Jack Kirby comic.

[@ronniet71]

Powerful interview, our brother Kirby. Thank you for this post.

[@IG2HI]

All five are legends in their own right. Two out of the three are gone but their legacy livs on. The three who remain need to have their flowers given to them before they leave this world.

[@marcusunlimited]

Its amazing how the unique appearance of the artist ends up in the art. Take a look at Kirby's nose and eye line then look at the nose and eye line of his comics:) He is an amazing artist!

[@algoenespanol]

“The questions have been terrific.” What an epitaph

[@cha5]

I can understand your feelings about Stan and I'm glad he's more forthcoming about the fact that the Marvel Universe of the 1960's was a joint creation in writing and art that will IMHO never be duplicated.

[@MCJohnnyFresh]

I really look up to both Harlan and Jack. Wish there was more people like these two men.

[@evilmulder]

"And I was thinking how the world should have cried/On the day Jack Kirby died/I wonder if I'm ill?" Monster Magnet - "Melt"

[@daniarmstrong3023]

Greatest comics artist ever

[@vasglorious]

Man,I could hardly hear Jack "The King" Kirby. But I respect this man and, also Stan "The Man" Lee,and everyone else who worked at Marvel during the 60's. Long live the king! Long live the king! Long live the king!

[@markptolemy]

Whether you liked his graphic style or not, there is no denying that Kirby was one of, if not the primary influence on comics, since their advent. I personally didn;t enjoy his writing stlye, especially for DC in the 70s, but that art - it lived on the page. It was alive.

[@IG2HI]

Fifteen years after his passing, Kirby is still the God.

[@bobojosh]

Thanks for this clip. What a beautiful man, who gave us the most beautiful super-hero comics ever. The King indeed.

[@aeyliaslopez1986]

Kirby is king and has inspired me to do the ranger-core--you shine brighter than i can ever hope to! thank you for you for your inspiration!

[@cha5]

That's good, One thing about Kirby he had very strong opinions on comics as an artform which he never shied away from, A librarian once asked him if he thought comics mirrored reality "No comics transcend reality" She said to him "If you were to mirror reality, then perhaps others could begin to understand it" "Madam when you mirror reality, you see it all backward. When you start transcending it, that's when you have a good shot at figuring what's going on" One of a kind

[@bolgert911]

The king

[@Ali_M3]

Happy 100th birthday

[@IG2HI]

They deserve credits on each book. Let's hope Marvel and DC alike will make it happen.

[@cha5]

According to an interview with Jack's son Neal (Jack Kirby Collector 45) from 1950-1968 or the end of 1969, The Kirby family lived in a Long Island town called East Williston. Besides bringing art into Marvel by train Kirby was supposed to have brought his children to museums like the Metropolitan Museum Of Art whenever he brought his family took the train to The City.

[@cha5]

Yeah he loved telling stories and creating new characters but providing for his family was always his biggest concern.

[@LaJaDiSc]

The scholar, Joseph Campbell, spoke of the modern day poets and artists being the source for an updated mythology. Jack Kirby was just that in his creations. Kirby art is a powder keg of dynamic expression. Much can be learned from his style. Thanks to patabongo for uploading this clip.

[@DanielKeithMorrison]

Heard too much about this guy, thanks to teenage mutant ninja turtles being the first introducing him to me. Since then I'd hear his name from other comic book creators and dvd movies. I had a feeling my ass being a new comic book geek since 07 I should be familiarized with him. Its a shame jack isn't around to see where comics has gone to. Its most definetly a blessing.

[@itzjoeymac]

Considering that comics are a visual medium, it is clear that KIRBY is the true CREATOR. It is one thing to say I want an interesting character that can do this or that, it is another to draw it and bring it to life, plus Kirby, as Stan admits, did most of the actual plotting as well.

[@justingonzalez2035]

Thank you jack kirby, you fulfillied prophecy, may you rest in peace in heaven

[@joeymcmillan4708]

Jack is King. No one comes close.

[@Stepper11]

Funny. I didn't like his art as a kid. But as I grew up and learned more about the visual arts,I began to revere him as a true visionary and genius. Then you add in his prowess as an idea man. Breathtaking. As a writer, I totally identify with what he says about knowing these characters. It's as if you meet your best characters, rather than create them, because they are so spontaneous and real to you. BTW, when and where is this from? Wonderful.

[@cha5]

The authorized Kirby biography 'Jack Kirby King Of Comics' by Mark Evanier just came out a couple of days ago, It has an interesting account in it of how Kirby got the title 'The King Of Comics' a publisher of his from 1940 Victor Fox was supposed to have always said "I'm the king of comics!" to all his artists who worked under his thumb, Everyone who worked for him looked on Fox as something of a joke.

[@johnfinck288]

I love Kirby's work. I grew up on the tail end of his run at Marvel. Like most kids at the time, I wasn't a fan; his style seemed so dated, so harsh and angular...I knew he was 'important', yet I was much more into guys like Neal Adams. Yet as I grew older, and went back to Kirby, his style grew on me. Now, of course, I appreciated him as the master illustrator that he was. It would be only justice for Disney to compensate his family better. I just don't like blaming Stan for everything.

[@MrOphachew]

Can't do better than that. Having a doc on your life hosted by the angry young man of sci-fi. I wish he was still giving his commentary on the sci-fi channel.

[@Vampirith]

The King is Dead! Long Live The King! Wow! This is the first time I've heard Jack Kirby speak. I LOVE! his work. And now he is teaching the Angels how to draw and create cool stories.

[@cha5]

He and Roz then lived in an apartment in front of Manhattan Beach not too far from Brighton Beach and Coney Island where he and Roz lived until he was drafted for WW2 in mid 1943, Kirby did most of his earliest comic art on a kitchen table, But when he and Joe Simon left Timely (Marvel) Comics they set up a studio in Tudor City where quite a few comic pros worked back then, Will Eisner and others.

[@cha5]

Also Jack Schiff sued Kirby at this time, for breach of contract on Sky Masters, he thought he could convince a judge, he was unable to Kirby lost the suit also what didn't help matters was Kirby's faulty what didn't help matters, Kirby's wandering mind, and faulty memory, and his eccentric manner of speaking, he was simply a bad witness, Roz would remark "Under oath, he couldn't get his own name right". So Kirby lost the suit had to pay Schiff out of his own checkbook in 1960 when the suit

[@itzjoeymac]

Also, as Kirby intimated, the artists were constantly submitting ideas. As editor, and a damn dood one, Stan would take these ideas and either use them as is or shape them as he liked. The Marvel Vault book shows the one page synopsis for the Fantastic Four that stan gave Jack and it is clear that Kirby was responsible for the actual story as well as the character designs. Stan instigated it that time and was a great scripter, usually better than Jack, but Kirby was the IDEA guy and creator.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH No this issue was about the facts that Kirby got just about no insurance coverage from Marvel, that he was losing his vision in both eyes and had no financial security for him and his wife and four children, Which was a main factor in his leaving Marvel in the 1970s.

[@cha5]

This interview was made towards the end of Kirby's life around the time he suffered from a heart attack and a small stroke that affected his drawing hand, he could barely do signatures or even a simple sketch at this point in his life. In any case Kirby always had his own outlook on creativity even if he didn't express it with the purple prose of a Stan Lee.

[@marconi451]

Harlan and Jack are two of my life long artistic heroes. A+++++

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH No but Coppola's basic twist on the "It's all business" outlook of the American dream is just perfect for your outlook actually my favorite quote is Balzac's "Behind every great fortune there is a crime"

[@cha5]

@CosmoShidan One reason is that Kirby when he was a kid started doing animation work at the Fleischer studios from 1935-1937, he started doing bottom of the barrel work opaquing cells, it paid poorly, the work was uncreative and Kirby didn't get along with his bosses "Cartoon studios expected you to starve for years while you learned your craft" Kirby worked his way up to doing cleanup work and then assistant animation inbetweening which also didn't pay much,

[@IG2HI]

Even in death Kirby is still the pinacle of comic book greatness. Let us not forget also Gil Kane, John Buscema and Wally Wood. While they're still here, show love to Gene Colan, Carmine Infantino and Joe Kubert.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH Alright Kirby roots were those of an immigrant kid from TLES who knew nothing about business he wasn't a lawyer, he didn't have the purple prose of a Stan Lee, his main concern was providing for his family and being creative, he basically built up Marvel, who signed him on when he couldn't get work form anyone else and Marvel was his only option for better or worse, Marvel denied him health coverage, they never gave him anything in the way of long term security.

[@spirit1600]

I agree with you about the royalties. Kirby waited until the 80's to want his art back. You can't hand in a piece of work to your boss, then twenty years later when it becomes worth 10 grand, ask for it back and expect your boss to say sure, here you go. Explain if you think Marvel will just hand these back because he just decided now, after 20 years that he wanted them back after they preserved them. Did Kirby have a contract for Marvel to keep this art preserved for him? If not it is Marvel's.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH They always evaded paying Kirby a pittance extra for using the Simon & Kirby Captain America, they never paid him anything in royalties from toy sales, use of his artwork in animation, they gave no promise of long term security when his health and eyesight began to fail, in the event he wouldn't be able to draw his family would be penniless. Whenever he tried to ask for better conditions the response was always "we'll get back to you on it" He always was represented by Marvel PR

[@cha5]

Also Kirby suffered a heart attack around this time, He wanted his original art as something of a nest egg for his wife and family when he was no longer around, Kirby refused to sign Marvel's 'special contract' and finally after industry pressure on Marvel which involved a petition via The Comics Journal from the majority of comic professionals demanding the return of Kirby's art with no conditions attached Kirby got 2,100 pages of original artwork returned to him before his death.

[@jefferysummers830]

JACK KIRBY is the ORIGINAL superstar ARTIST. 👑

[@cha5]

He left New York in 1970 I believe, Kirby lived in Williamsburg Long Island, (I think that's the name) a small town outside of NYC from 1949-1969 He lived in NYC itself from 1917-1949, He was born in The Lower East Side and lived at 76 Suffolk St which is a parking lot these days connected to Delancy St which was the name source of 'Yancy St' You can still see the old monument building on Suffolk St mentioned in 'Street Code' which is an account of Kirby's childhood growing up in TLES.

[@thomasgreissfan17]

Rest well King. RIP

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH Also Also there is the little fact that back in the late fifties when Kirby went back to work because it was the only job he could get at the time and he really had no choice in the matter being that he couldn't get any work at DC because of the Jack Schriff Sky Masters lawsuit. "Shipwrecked at Marvel" was how he put it, also this was the same company he and Joe Simon had been fired from back in 1940 over Captain America.

[@Mike_The_1950s_Historian]

I wish OMAC was finished. I LOVED that book. I think that would make a great movie.

[@patabongo]

It's the entire Kirby segment of the documentary, yeah.

[@cha5]

I forgot to mention at 290 East Third St is where 'The Boys Brotherhood Republic' used to be which was a sort of middle neutral ground for all the kid gangs back then and which used to have some original early Kirby art on the wall, Sadly that building is also gone.

[@wallbreaker2]

It is my understanding that you are correct. Alot of the artists and writers didn't even own the rights to the characters they created.

[@tonymontano6898]

The King :---]

[@MG-ts1xs]

oh my god. i'm working on a project and this is like digging into a mountain and finding it hollowed out, filled with gold

[@cha5]

During the Marvel Renaisance of the 1960s Jack did most of his work at his home in Long Island NY, I believe he took the train into NYC about once a week to deliver his artwork to Marvel. Sorry for the length of this post, Mark Evaneer will be writing a complete autobiography on Kirby which will come out in a few months, And I may be doing a short KZbin video on Kirby's early life in NYC on my next trip up there. (Self Promo)

[@chaospoet]

"I enjoyed the questions." Now that's a mans man to admire. Long live The King!

[@Nick00Fury]

one of a kind. R.I.P.

[@BigHosMan]

R.I.P. Jack Kirby. The quintessential comic book artist. The King is dead! Long live The King!!! *kneeling*

[@cha5]

@CosmoShidan I think he could have if he had really wanted to go in that direction, Much later on in his career he was involved in designing characters for Hanna Barbera in the 1980s. It's sometimes interesting to speculate on what might have happened if Kirby had committed himself to animation early on instead of comics but I'm kind of glad he went on to become The King Of Comics and gave us Captain America, The Fantastic Four and so many other creations.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH Yeah I do, honestly, it's something that's just kind of always been close to my heart ever since I first started really getting into his art, I only wish I could have met the man.

[@jackedsamurai772]

People always make such a big deal about Stan Lee, but Stan is only ever as great as the people he works with. This is especially true with Jack Kirby.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH The main thing I remeber is that by the 1980s Kirby though the term "The King Of Comics" was a cruel joke, of course this time was when Kirby had left comics for animation character design work and was fighting to get his original artwork back from Marvel which thanks to fan and professional support they finally were shamed into returning 40% of it.

[@herbiethefatfury]

Lkie any true genius, he is modest, elegant, and has a clear vision.

[@cha5]

@SCORNDOGGMELACH The general response when Jack asked for even a slight improvement on his situation was always on the lines of "we'll get back to you" Jack stayed with Marvel until it was no longer an option due to his health and the new terms the new owners came up with. Stan was a hustler and was able to make his own way, that wasn't Jack Kirby and never would be.

[@cha5]

Right on the block where the no 76 Suffolk St tenement building used to be there aren't anymore buildings except for one where Suffolk St connects to Grand St, Right where the southern tip of Suffolk St connects with Delancy St is where no 76 would have been, There's nothing but two ugly parking lots on both sides of Suffolk St now but you can still see on that block some original street cobblestones which Kirby would have crossed millions of times over.

[@RYANOvision]

Jack was and always will be the King of Comics! Stop the hate, yes Marvel and Stan have made out like bandits, but the cool thing is we are all left with Jack's work! Let it inspire and captivate you! You'll find the more you look past the obvious disrespect, you will realize we all have Jack to thank for comics still being around in the format it is today, which almost makes up for him getting screwed.

[@acholl980]

@cha5 Actually he worked for Depatie-Freleng when they were doing The New Fantastic Four (although H-B originally going to make this.) He later worked on Fred and Barney Meet the Thing a year later and then worked on Thundarr the Barbarian and Turbo Teen for Ruby-Spears. He had other sketches for other shows (like Wonder Woman) that unfortunately never got past the planning stages.

[@dageekundaground]

Long Live The King !!

[@D4rkJOKER1]

truly this man is The King

[@policyjunkie3312]

The king man such an artist

[@ralphwiggum3540]

Long Live Jack Kirby...

[@bobboster9997]

The best Comicbook artist Ever