L.B. Cole
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Leonard Brandt Cole (August 28, 1918 – December 5, 1995), commonly known as L. B. Cole, was a
comic book artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comics illustrators/artists in that they produce both the literary ...
, editor, and publisher who worked during the
Golden Age of Comic Books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and ma ...
, producing work in various genres. Cole was particularly known for his bold covers, featuring what he referred to as "poster colors"—the use of primary colors often over black backgrounds. In addition to his covers, Cole did interior art for comics published by
Holyoke Publications The Holyoke Publishing Company was an American magazine and comic-book publisher with offices in Holyoke, and Springfield, Massachusetts, and New York City, Its best-known comics characters were Blue Beetle and the superhero duo Cat-Man (later ...
, Gilberton, and
Ajax/Farrell Farrell Publications is a series of American comic book publishing companies founded and operated by Robert W. Farrell in the 1940s and 1950s, including Elliot Publishing Company, Farrell Comic Group, and Excellent Publications. Farrell is partic ...
. He also worked as an editor for Holyoke in the 1940s.


Biography

Born in Germany, Cole was awarded a doctorate of Anatomy & Physiology at the
University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...
. Before entering the
comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
industry, Cole worked as an art director in the
lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...
industry. Cole's comic book career started in the early 1940s, mainly as a cover artist for titles such as ''Suspense Comics'' ( Et-Es-Go Magazines) and '' Contact Comics'' ( Aviation Press). He soon became known for his distinctive covers: examples include the covers to ''Mask Comics'' #1, ''Mask Comics'' #2 ( Rural Home), ''Contact Comics'' #12, and '' Captain Flight Comics'' #11 ( Four Star Publications). An avid
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
fan, Cole was known for slipping in sci-fi elements even when they weren't appropriate, such as
rocket ship A space vehicle is the combination of a spacecraft and its launch vehicle which carries it into space. The earliest space vehicles were expendable launch systems, using a single or multistage rocket to carry a relatively small spacecraft in pr ...
s and
ray gun A raygun is a science-fiction directed-energy weapon usually with destructive effect.Jeff Prucher, '' Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction,'' Oxford University Press, 2007, page 162 They have various names: ray gun, de ...
s appearing on the covers of ''Captain Flight Comics'' and ''Contact Comics''.Cole biography
Lambiek's Comiclopedia
(Both titles were supposed to be devoted to contemporary
aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...
.) During this time, Cole created the character "Wiggles the wonderworm" who appeared in five issues of ''Taffy Comics'', published by Rural Home/Orbit Publications. From 1942 to 1948, Cole ran his own comics studio, often packaging work for a variety of publishers, including Ace Magazines, Aviation Press, Chesler Publications,
Farrell Publications Farrell Publications is a series of American comic book publishing companies founded and operated by Robert W. Farrell in the 1940s and 1950s, including Elliot Publishing Company, Farrell Comic Group, and Excellent Publications. Farrell is partic ...
,
Fawcett Comics Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s. Its most popular character was Captain Marvel, the alter ego of radio reporter Billy Bats ...
,
Holyoke Publishing The Holyoke Publishing Company was an American magazine and comic-book publisher with offices in Holyoke, and Springfield, Massachusetts, and New York City, Its best-known comics characters were Blue Beetle and the superhero duo Cat-Man (later ...
,
Magazine Enterprises Magazine Enterprises was an American comic book publishing company lasting from 1943 to 1958, which published primarily Western, humor, crime, adventure, and children's comics, with virtually no superheroes. It was founded by Vin Sullivan, an ed ...
,
Spotlight Comics Spotlight Comics was an American comic publisher based in western Connecticut. It is best known for a short run of comic books based on licensed characters such as Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle that contained contributions from several ma ...
,
Novelty Press Novelty Press (a.k.a. Premium Service Co., Inc.; a.k.a. Novelty Publications; a.k.a. Premier Group) was an American Golden Age comic-book publisher that operated from 1940 to 1949. It was the comic book imprint of Curtis Publishing Company, pu ...
,
Orbit Publications Orbit Publications, also known as Orbit-Wanted, was an American comic book publishing house operated by the female publisher, editor, and cartoonist Ray Herman during the Golden Age of Comic Books.
, and Rural Home Publishing. In 1949, publisher
Novelty Press Novelty Press (a.k.a. Premium Service Co., Inc.; a.k.a. Novelty Publications; a.k.a. Premier Group) was an American Golden Age comic-book publisher that operated from 1940 to 1949. It was the comic book imprint of Curtis Publishing Company, pu ...
sold its characters and artwork to Cole, who was the cover artist for Novelty's '' Blue Bolt Comics''.Markstein, Don
"Blue Bolt," Don Markstein's Toonopedia.
Retrieved July 11, 2008.
Using his new assets, Cole began
Star Publications Star Publications, Inc. was a Golden Age of Comic Books, Golden Age American comic book publisher, operating during the years 1949–1954. Founded by artist/editor L. B. Cole and lawyer Gerhard Kramer,
, which operated from 1949 to 1955. After the closure of Star, Cole continued doing cover illustrations, many for ''
Classics Illustrated Junior ''Classics Illustrated Junior'' is a comic book series of seventy-seven fairy and folk tale, myth and legend comic book adaptations created by Albert Lewis Kanter as a Spin-off (media), spin-off of his flagship comic book line ''Classics Illustra ...
''. In the early 1960s, Cole was art director and editor at
Dell Comics Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1973. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium.Evanier, Mark"Wh ...
. From the mid-1960s through the 1970s, Cole created instructional materials and audio-visuals for University Films. He gained further recognition when comic fandom grew in the late 1960s and through the 1970s. In 1981, he created a new painting that was featured on the cover of the 11th edition of the ''
Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide ''The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide'' (or ''Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide'') is an annually published comic book price guide widely considered the primary authority on the subject of American comic book grading and pricing in t ...
''. During this same time, he began selling re-creations of his classic covers. In the early 1990s, Ernie Gerber published his two-volume ''Photo Journal Guide to Comic Books'' which featured on its covers a number of Cole's covers. As a result, the demand for Cole's work increased dramatically. Cole married Ellen Kovack in 1942; she later became a proficient
letterer A letterer is a member of a team of comic book creators responsible for drawing the comic book's text. The letterer's use of typefaces, calligraphy, letter size, and layout all contribute to the impact of the comic-book-reading experience. The l ...
in her own right. Cole died of a heart attack on December 5, 1995.


Awards

An
Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at Comic-Con Internati ...
recipient in 1981,Inkpot Award
/ref> Cole was posthumously inducted into the Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame in 1999.


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cole, L. B. Golden Age comics creators Will Eisner Award Hall of Fame inductees 1918 births 1995 deaths Inkpot Award winners German emigrants to the United States 20th-century American lithographers