Happy 90th Birthday to comic book and comic strip cartoonist Larry Lieber!
It was the latter half of the 1960s when I became infatuated with Marvel Comics, among the favorites was Larry’s Rawhide Kid. (I still retain an affection for western comics.) Within a few years I gathered quite a few of the early Marvels I had missed including a bunch of Larry’s earlier superhero work.
The Rawhide Kid became Larry’s bread and butter during Marvel’s glory years,
though he would unexpectedly show up elsewhere on occasion.
Larry worked on the Rawhide Kid comic book for about eight years before they cut his pages and eventually turned it into a reprint book. As my tastes changed and superheroes took a back seat to other genres, Larry’s western remained on my must-buy list for much of that era.
I would learn about Larry’s work in the suspense/mystery/sci-fi comics of the pre-Marvel Age when they started reprinting those stories, and while he was never a *Big Name* artist I was already a fan and enjoyed his cartooning. Unlike Larry I was taken with those stories where Larry’s brother, editor Stan Lee, partnered him with Matt Fox as inker.
Then Larry hit what his generation considered the big time – Comic Strips!
Writing and drawing The Incredible Hulk. And then getting the thankless task of following John Romita on The Amazing Spider-Man strip. He stayed with it for decades.
When the name Larry Lieber comes up it brings with it a nostalgic wave of good times.
This has turned into a personal reminiscence so for more biographical information I will point all to Lambiek and Wikipedia.
… While I just wish Larry a very happy birthday and thank him for the good times.
comic art © Marvel Entertainment
