Sally here with a look at work by Paty Greer/Cockrum, notes on the Drawn to Purpose show at the Library of Congress, and new comics by M. S. Harkness and Eleanor Davis!
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A comics long box find inevitably leads to an internet wormhole…which I both love and hate…but it is all in pursuit of expanding my knowledge of the women who worked and continue to work in comics. An issue of The Amazing Spider-Man from 1985 surfaces, with art by “Paty” – WHO IS PATY?
She is Paty Greer, who became Paty Cockrum when she married Dave Cockrum (the artist/writer behind X-Men characters like Nightcrawler). Paty Greer/Cockrum worked in the Marvel bullpen of the 1970’s under both names, and often just Paty. She did a lot of production work, but was also a colorist and occasional artist. In addition to the issue of The Amazing Spider-Man shown above, I know that she was the artist on The Claws of The Cat #3 (along with Bill Everett; a page from the comic is shown below).
The Claws of The Cat (1972) was a short-lived series written by Linda Fite, and was one of the first Marvel attempts at bringing a female superhero to the comics page. (I’ll write more about this series soon – I desperately want to get my hands on the first issue, which was penciled by Marie Severin.) The title character – when she isn’t The Cat – is named Greer Nelson, which naturally leads me to believe that Linda Fite and Paty Greer were pals in the Marvel bullpen. Like Paty, Linda Fite was a production and editorial assistant at Marvel (and she married Herb Trimpe soon after).
I found a piece of an interview with Paty where she describes the Marvel bullpen in her day, and specifically the day she noticed Dave Cockrum using the Xerox machine…read that story HERE.
I’ll be keeping an eye out for Paty’s name as I continue to dig through long boxes and fall down internet wormholes…
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Check out the official website for the fantastic show that is on display this year at the Library of Congress – “Drawn to Purpose: American Women Illustrators and Cartoonists“. I recommend taking a look at the Online Exhibition, which offers a taste of the full show (which is so large that it will be completely switched out half way through). If you are in the D. C. area anytime this year be sure to check out the events associated with the exhibition as well – recently Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and the show curator Martha H. Kennedy had a conversation with Whitney Sherman, Barbara Brandon-Croft and Jillian Tamaki. There’s plenty more going on – keep up with it HERE.
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M. S. Harkness‘s new comic Tinderella (partially inked during her Comics Workbook Rowhouse Residency last summer) will be coming out as part of the Kilgore Books & Comics 2018 Releases – consider preordering a copy HERE.
If you can’t wait until June for more Harkness then order Normal Girl, another new release, from her HERE. It is sold gold. Or anyway, the cover is gold so you probably need it in your life. See what else she is up to HERE.
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HERE is an excerpt from Eleanor Davis‘ Why Art? on The New York Review of Books. And HERE is a review of Why Art? by Eleanor Davis on the A.V. Club.
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Suzy and Cecil – 3-16-2018 – by Sally Ingraham