Interview by Nicki Faust
Regardless of what time period or genre they cover, TwoMorrows works hard to provide its readers with in-depth coverage of history and creators, with a fun, positive slant, in the most professional manner possible.
Since 1994, it's been the future of comics, LEGO®, and pop culture history, with no end insight. You can learn the company's full history in their anniversary book THE WORLD OF TWOMORROWS, available now through PREVIEWS!
In the following interview, publisher John Morrow gives you every reason to celebrate 30 years of TWOMORROW.
Please tell us a bit about yourself!
I'm John Morrow, TwoMorrows Publishing's publisher (my wife Pam is the other "Morrow"), and editor of the Jack Kirby Collector magazine, which launched my company with its first issue back in 1994. I'm, of course, a longtime Jack Kirby fan, but a lover of many of the great comic creators and series from the 1960s to today, as you’d expect seeing all our comics history magazines like Alter Ego, Back Issue, and Comic Book Creator. Our two little Morrows are both grown and in college now, but those daughters have thoroughly enjoyed getting to hang out at Comic-Con International and enjoying the West Coast almost every summer of their lives. It's hard to believe I started TwoMorrows 30 years ago with a little photocopied Jack Kirby fanzine...
What are your favorite projects you’ve contributed to over the past decade?
I may be most proud of my book Kirby & Lee: Stuf' Said, which for the first time examined both Jack and Stan's own comments about their working relationship, put in chronological order to help us more fully understand how things progressed in the creation of the 1960s Marvel Universe, and eventually deteriorated between them. Another is The Best of Simon & Kirby's Mainline Comics, which collects fully restored stories from Joe Simon and Jack Kirby's own company Mainline Comics of the late 1950s. Few people have seen those comics, and the anti-comics crusade and the Comics Code killed their company before it had a chance to succeed.
What are you currently working on?
I'm wrapping up my 30th anniversary issue of the Jack Kirby Collector (#91), and we're about to launch our newest magazine, Cryptology (all about retro-horror) in October. We're also finalizing the 1945-49 volume of our American Comic Book Chronicles series to ship this summer, which will complete the set, covering comics history from the 1940s to 1990s. And our retro-pop culture magazine RetroFan continues to be a blast to produce, as well as our recent series of pop culture books.
What fun titles are you reading?
I don't read many floppies these days, but I love Dark Horse's EC Archives; they're a great way to introduce today's readers to that classic material, while keeping it affordable. You can't reprint EC enough, as far as I'm concerned. And I'm intrigued to see what Oni Press' new EC-style titles Epitaphs from the Abyss and Cruel Universe are like when they debut this summmer. Also, Fantagraphics' Atlas Comics Library series is fantastic. Michael "Doc V" Vassallo is doing an outstanding job shepherding this project. I recently read their Atlas Artist Edition #1 featuring Joe Maneely (SEP231701), who is an under-appreciated genius of comics.
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TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) Various (A) VARIOUS (CA) Tom McWeeney
In 1994, amidst the boom-&-bust of comic book speculators, The Jack Kirby Collector #1 was published for true fans of the medium. That modest labor of love spawned TwoMorrows Publishing, today's premier purveyor of publications about comics and pop culture. Celebrate our 30th anniversary with this special retrospective look at the company that changed fandom forever! Co-edited by and featuring publisher John Morrow and Comic Book Artist/Comic Book Creator magazine's Jon B. Cooke, it gives the inside story and behind-the-scenes details of a quarter-century of looking at the past in a whole new way. Every major TwoMorrows publication and contributor is covered with the same detail and affection the company gives to its books and magazines. With an Introduction by Mark Evanier, Foreword by Alex Ross, Afterword by Paul Levitz, and a new cover by Tom McWeeney!
In Shops: May 27, 2020
SRP: $37.95
PREVIEWS Page #412
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TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
Take a ride with CHiPs' Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox, courtesy of Herbie J Pilato! Plus: an interview with movie Hercules Steve Reeves, Weird-Ohs cartoonist Bill Campbell, Plastic Man on Saturday mornings, Tiny Tim, Remo Williams, the search for a Disney artist, and more! Featuring columns by Andy Mangels, Will Murray, Scott Saavedra, Scott Shaw, and Mark Voger. Edited by Michael Eury.
In Shops: Aug 21, 2024
SRP: $10.95
PREVIEWS Page #400
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) VARIOUS (A) VARIOUS (CA) John Romita Sr.
Alter Ego is a titanic and well-deserved tribute to the late, great John Romita! Featuring a transcript of a podcast recorded shortly after the Jazzy One's passing featuring John Romita Jr., Jim Starlin, Steve Englehart, Brian Pulido, Roy Thomas, Jaime Jameson, John Cimino, Steve Houston, and Nile Scala! Plus David Armstrong's con mini-interview with John Romita-and John Cimino on John's ten greatest hits! With FCA (Fawcett Collectors of America), Mr. Monster's Comic Crypt, and more!
In Shops: Aug 21, 2024
SRP: $10.95
PREVIEWS Page #400
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
New printing with text corrections, even better binding, and enhanced cover durability, so even if you own the first printing, you'll love this one even more! Bill Schelly authors the volume on the 1950s era of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, with a year-by-year account of the most significant publications, notable creators, and impactful trends, including: the rise of the great EC "New Trend" titles (Tales of the Crypt, Weird Science), Harvey Kurtzman's Mad, and Carl Barks' classic work on Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge! The re-tooling of the Flash in Showcase #4 that kicked off the Silver Age of Comics, and the introduction of DC's Martian Manhunter, Adam Strange and the new Green Lantern! Plus the return of the Timely heroes Captain America, the Human Torch and Sub-Mariner, and the birth of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby's Fighting American and The Fly!
In Shops: May 22, 2024
SRP: $46.95
PREVIEWS Page #401
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) VARIOUS (A) Various (CA) Nick Cardy
From team players to wannabes, meet the Bronze Age Not-Ready-for-Primetime DC Heroes! Black Canary, the Elongated Man, Lilith, Metamorpho, Nubia, the Odd Man, Ultraa of Earth-Prime, Vartox, and Jimmy Olsen as Mr. Action! Plus: Anybody remember Jason's Quest? Featuring Mike W. Barr, Cary Bates, Steve Ditko, Bob Haney, Denny O'Neil, Mike Sekowsky, Mark Waid, and more ready-for-primetime talent. Retro cover by Nick Cardy.
In Shops: Aug 21, 2024
SRP: $10.95
PREVIEWS Page #400
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
TwoMorrows compiles a tempestuous trio of never-seen 1970s Kirby projects! These are the final complete, unpublished Jack Kirby stories in existence, presented here for the first time! Included are: Two unused Dingbats of Danger Street tales, Kirby's final "Kid Gang" group, inked by Mike Royer and D. Bruce Berry, and newly colored for this book! True-Life Divorce, the abandoned newsstand magazine that was too hot for its time, reproduced from Jack's pencil art! And Soul Love, the unseen '70s romance book so funky, even a jive turkey will dig the unretouched inks by Vince Colletta and Tony DeZuniga.
In Shops: May 22, 2024
SRP: $43.95
PREVIEWS Page #401
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TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) Jack C. Harris (A) Steve Ditko (CA) Steve Ditki
Working With Ditko takes a unique and nostalgic journey through comics' Bronze Age, as editor and writer Jack C. Harris recalls his numerous collaborations with legendary comics master Steve Ditko! It features never-before-seen preliminary sketches and pencil art from Harris' tenure working with Ditko on The Creeper, Shade the Changing Man, the Odd Man, the Demon, Wonder Woman, Legion of Super-Heroes, The Fly, and even Ditko's unused redesign for Batman! Plus, it documents their work on numerous independent properties, and offers glimpses of original characters from Ditko's drawing board that have never been viewed by even his most avid fans! This illustrated volume is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience the creative comic book process by one of the industry's most revered creators, as seen through the eyes of one of his most frequent collaborators!
In Shops: May 29, 2024
SRP: $24.95
PREVIEWS Page #401
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
Just when you thought it was safe to walk the streets again, From The Tomb (the UK's preeminent magazine on the history of horror comics) digs up more tomes of terror from the century past. It Crept From The Tomb (the second "Best of" collection) uncovers atomic comics lost to the Cold War, rarely seen (and censored) British horror comics, the early art of Richard Corben, Good Girls of a bygone age, Tom Sutton, Don Heck, Lou Morales, Al Eadeh, Bruce Jones' Alien Worlds, HP Lovecraft in Heavy Metal, and a myriad of terrors from beyond the stars and the shadows of our own world!
SRP: $29.95
PREVIEWS Page #401
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TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) VARIOUS (A) Various (CA) Dan Jurgens
A celebration of quintessential 1970s writer/editor Denny O'Neil is the centerpiece of CBC #35, featuring an in-depth look at his life, work, and legacy, focusing on the era of relevant comics - from the fabled Green Lantern/Green Arrow series to the mod, mini-skirted Wonder Woman - that brought comics into the modern age. Plus, Bob Levin examines the roller-coaster life and chaotic career of George Caragonne, from his start as Jim Shooter protege at kiddie Star Comics to becoming the drug-fueled helmsman of Penthouse Comix, plunging off a Times Square hotel to his death at age 29. Also, part one of a career-spanning interview with Arnold Drake, co-creator of The Doom Patrol and Deadman. Plus we visit with Jack Butterworth (Warren horror mag writer and comics historian), chat with alternative cartoonist Tim Hensley, and of course, the great Fred Hembeck's latest "Dateline" feature is here too!
In Shops: Jul 24, 2024
SRP: $10.95
PREVIEWS Page #375
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) Mark Voger (A) Various
Holy phenomenon! In the way-out year of 1966, the action comedy Batman starring Adam West premiered and triggered a tsunami of super swag, including toys, games, Halloween costumes, puppets, action figures, and lunch boxes. Meanwhile, still more costumed avengers sprang forth on TV (The Green Hornet, Ultraman), in movies (The Wild World of Batwoman, Rat Pfink and Boo Boo), and in animation ("Space Ghost," "The Marvel Super Heroes"). Zowie! traces the history of the superhero genre from early films, through the 1960s TV superhero craze, and its pop culture influence ever since. This history, in pop art colors that conjure the period, spotlights the coolest collectibles and kookiest knockoffs every '60s kid begged their parents for, and features interviews with the TV stars (West, Burt Ward, Yvonne Craig, Frank Gorshin, Burgess Meredith, Cesar Romero, Julie Newmar, Van Williams), the artists behind the comics (Jerry Robinson, Dick Sprang, Carmine Infantino, Joe Giella), and others.
In Shops: Jul 24, 2024
SRP: $43.95
PREVIEWS Page #375
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
(W) Christopher Irving
Hold on tight as historian Christopher Irving explores the origins of the first on-screen superheroes and the comic creators and film-makers who brought them to life. CLIFFHANGER! touches on the early days of the film serial, to its explosion as a juvenile medium of the 1930s and '40s. See how the creation of characters like Superman, Captain America, Spy Smasher, and Captain Marvel dovetailed with the early film adaptations. Along the way, you'll meet the stuntmen, directors (Spencer Bennett, William Witney, producer Sam Katzman), comic book creators (Siegel & Shuster, Simon & Kirby, Bob Kane, C.C. Beck, Frank Frazetta, Will Eisner), and actors (Buster Crabbe, George Reeves, Lorna Gray, Kane Richmond, Kirk Alyn, Dave O'Brien) who brought them to the silver screen.
In Shops: Apr 17, 2024
SRP: $39.95
PREVIEWS Page #375
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
New Edition With 16 Extra Pages! Marvel Comics in the 1970s covers Marvel's final historical phase: the twilight years of the 1970s, after the initial '60s wave of popularity pushed the company to the forefront of the comics industry, and made many of its characters household names. This full decade of pop-culture history saw Stan Lee's role as writer diminish as he ascended to Publisher, the stunning departure of Jack Kirby to DC (and his later return to Marvel), the rise of Roy Thomas as editor (and eventual Editor In Chief), and the introduction of a new wave of writers and artists who would expand the boundaries of comics beyond super-heroes, while planting the seeds for the company's eventual self-destruction.
In Shops: Apr 17, 2024
SRP: $29.95
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Nicki Faust's heart is as cold as concrete in the Chicago winter. When not writing for PREVIEWSworld, Nicki is busy playing Limbo on Twitch, writing about the great robot uprising on Medium, and completing the untitled follow-up to the 2012 best-seller, Sue Storm: A Nude Photobook.
