Comics RIP Steve Ditko

[Donald Thomas]

Aloha,
When you say The Amazing Spider-Man, you must always say Lee/Ditko or Lee Romita as the true fathers of the character. One of those fathers has passed.
Steve Ditko created the look of what we now know as both Spider-Man and Dr. Strange. He lived to be 90 years old.RIP

In your honor, I say

SPIDEY RULES!

 

[The Sand Master]

He's not really the "co"-creator of Spider-Man, but the creator. Stan Lee was his boss and so, like all bosses, simply put his name on the ideas of his more capable subordinates.
Stan even said he used to throw out a very basic idea and the artist would flesh out the characters look, powers, costume and powers. And Stan would get a co-creator credit. Stolen ideas and not crediting the right people was rife in the comic book world. Probably still is. It's one of the reason Steve and Jack Kirby left marvel even at the top of their fame.

That said, R.I.P. Mr Ditko and thank you for one of the most brilliant creations ever to grace the printed page.

And if this thread doesn't get to at least two pages full of comments paying respect by the end of the day, then it really is sad times indeed.

 

[Spider-Gnome]

When I was a kid, the two superheroes were Superman and Batman. Then, the 60's Spider-Man cartoon hit syndication afternoons after school. His design was so unique, combined with his sense of humor, I was hooked. I would not be in these boards forty-five years later, if it were not for Steve Ditko.

It's sad that Ditko never came out of seclusion to enjoy the fame of the characters he helped create. It would have been great for him to have a cameo in a Spidey film. It would have been awesome if it were in Far From Home and they decided to include Doctor Strange.

R.I.P.

 

[Ben_Reilly]

I also agree with Ditto being the true creator of Spider-Man


Very sad that he's gone. And before Stan no less. I was really hoping to finally get the truth about everything that happened at early Marvel. Now with Stan around, you know we'll get nothing but lies, like always

 

[THUNDERSTRIKE]

I gave Steve Ditko his props yesterday over on the RIP celeb thread, when news of his passing first came to light... upon further reading of his passing, I discovered that the NYPD announced the date of his passing as being June 27 and that his body was discovered two days later and it was only announced yesterday, which made it feel even more sadder, as Steve passed in the way that he lived... by himself... and with no one with him... no one should meet their maker in such a fashion...

I grew up on Steve Ditko and John Romita Spidey art all those years ago back in the 1960's and as far as I'm concerned, they will be THE true Spidey artists to me... Steve's Spidey was set most times in the darkness and shadows of the city with gangsters, waterfronts, water towers and the like... truly set amongst the underworld, when he wasn't battling supervillains... Ditko's criminal element were the low-life thugs and hoodlums... it was all set in the shadowy darkness of the city...

and then Romita's Spidey came out of the shadows and into the light of the day... gone was the spidery-ness of the web-slinger and he was transformed into a Hollywood-looking Spider-Man... everything was bright and even higher above the city than before... the underworld element was still there, but now it was mobsters and organized crime and the supervillains were becoming even MORE dangerous and larger than life...

and the Spider-Man legend grew even MORE from that point on...

but I get nostalgiac that way when I think of all that past Ditko and Spidey greatness...

I was fortunate enough about five or six years ago to have received a letter from Steve Ditko after I had sent him one just telling him that I had followed his work since I was a child and I simply thanked him for the wonderful work... no fanboy gushing, no asking for an autograph, NOTHING... and he ALWAYS responded by writing in pencil and not a typewritten letter or a letter generated by whatever means... he seemed to really like that truly personal touch, so I decided to do the same when I sent him MY letter, maybe hoping that he would appreciate that... and I still have that letter and the envelope that it came in with his return address framed in my hobby room...

more than ever, I will treasure it, much like his work, which as he always said, speaks for itself...

he stood fast and held true to his beliefs and never compromised himself...
and that's what made him unique...

we lost one of the great ones and I'll miss you, Steve...

Steve Ditko RIP

 

[Spider-man95]

A true legend in the comic book industry. Rest in peace sir, you've earned it.

Thank you for everything.

 

[ouroboros]

He's not really the "co"-creator of Spider-Man, but the creator. Stan Lee was his boss and so, like all bosses, simply put his name on the ideas of his more capable subordinates.
Stan even said he used to throw out a very basic idea and the artist would flesh out the characters look, powers, costume and powers. And Stan would get a co-creator credit. Stolen ideas and not crediting the right people was rife in the comic book world. Probably still is. It's one of the reason Steve and Jack Kirby left marvel even at the top of their fame.

That said, R.I.P. Mr Ditko and thank you for one of the most brilliant creations ever to grace the printed page.

And if this thread doesn't get to at least two pages full of comments paying respect by the end of the day, then it really is sad times indeed.

I understand why a lot of people choose to believe that Lee did nothing in the early collaborations, particularly because the fact that he did no full scripts makes it impossible to judge what he might've contributed.

Still, SPIDER-MAN is so different from everything Ditko did before and after Ditko's SPIDEY tenure that I have to believe he was responding in part to Lee's generalized editorial requirements.

Your mileage may vary, though.

 

[Brutikus]

 

[Venom 1988]

He's not really the "co"-creator of Spider-Man, but the creator. Stan Lee was his boss and so, like all bosses, simply put his name on the ideas of his more capable subordinates.
Stan even said he used to throw out a very basic idea and the artist would flesh out the characters look, powers, costume and powers. And Stan would get a co-creator credit. Stolen ideas and not crediting the right people was rife in the comic book world. Probably still is. It's one of the reason Steve and Jack Kirby left marvel even at the top of their fame.

That said, R.I.P. Mr Ditko and thank you for one of the most brilliant creations ever to grace the printed page.

And if this thread doesn't get to at least two pages full of comments paying respect by the end of the day, then it really is sad times indeed.

Sorry but I have to call BS on this.

This isn't the same thing as Bob Kane and Bill Finger where Finger came up with everything and Kane just slapped his name on it. Yes Ditko contributed a lot to the Spidey mythos but as far as the core of who Peter Parker/Spider-Man is a character...that's Stan Lee. Ditko believed in Objectivism and everything being black and white. As the book went on a lot of that started to seep into the book and would often put things in the book that made Peter come across as a bitter, angry person. If Ditko had stayed on the book, he would have eventually molded it into Atlas Shrugged or Mr A.

 

[The Joker]

Sorry but I have to call BS on this.

This isn't the same thing as Bob Kane and Bill Finger where Finger came up with everything and Kane just slapped his name on it. Yes Ditko contributed a lot to the Spidey mythos but as far as the core of who Peter Parker/Spider-Man is a character...that's Stan Lee. Ditko believed in Objectivism and everything being black and white. As the book went on a lot of that started to seep into the book and would often put things in the book that made Peter come across as a bitter, angry person. If Ditko had stayed on the book, he would have eventually molded it into Atlas Shrugged or Mr A.

Exactly right. Stan wrote everything that makes Spidey who he is. Ditko put the visual image on it.

Apparently Ditko wanted the Green Goblin to be someone the readers had never seen before. But Stan said that would be unfair, and put his foot down. That's when Ditko left.

 

[shinlyle]

This news ruined my Saturday. This man was a legend, and for any of the new kids out there who look at his artwork and roll their eyes, I pity you! As an artist myself, I can tell you that man put so much detail into his work it was mind-blowing! Look at any modern comic. 6 panels per page is a lot nowadays, and half will be close-ups or shots with little or no background... and then there's Ditko. 9-12 panels per page, all detailed, full backgrounds, and they told a cohesive story, which is the whole purpose of the comic!

As for the Lee/Ditko controversy, they were co-creators in the beginning, with the latter half of the books being more Ditko than Lee, as evidenced by his "plotter" credit. Lee was basically putting words to the heads Ditko has already drawn. It's one of the reasons he left Marvel. Either way, they are two legends who worked together for a brief while, and neither of them created anything apart as good as what they created together, so there.

Rest In Peace, Mr. Ditko. We'll all be trying to emulate your work for the next 50 years.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

This may get some down votes but I am not fond of Ditko's art style--I much prefer the designs of someone like Kirby or even Romita. IMO, Ditko's art was too stiff and quirky. However, I feel that Ditko's art was essential in the creation and success of Spider-Man.

Ditko was the better choice imo since he presented art that separated Spider-Man from everything else that was going on in Marvel. Because the majority of Marvel's works were either Kirby or had the influence of Kirby. And with Spider-Man being a lanky, thin hero Ditko was perfect. Kirby's art was too bombastic, too much of a broad shoulder big man art that would probably have hindered what helped to make Spidey such a great character. One that people would connect with on the level that they did. Ditko's simplistic designs were not as notable as Kirby, for instance, but his designs were very unique and more importantly the costumes were more about functionality and realism--less clutter, better patterns i.e. Sandman's striped shirt and pants and Mysterio's checkered suit and bowl. The simplistic approach and stylistic patterns that matched the names of characters helped to give Spider-Man's world a distinct voice of its own making it standout against the Marvel crowd.

The first year or so of Spider-man is some of the best storytelling in superhero history. Ditko was key in laying that groundwork. Sure those early stories were also formulaic however it built structure and as any good storyteller knows once you have that ever so important foundation laid, you can move onward and upward to change things, add concepts, introduce new characters, and expand upon the initial core characterizations--expand the corner of the world in which Spider-Man lived. It was all so seemingly organic.

While Ditko is not my favorite artist, there are many others I prefer, if it wasn't for his influence, style and contributions to the storytelling in those early days we wouldn't have the Spider-Man we love.

RIP Mr. Ditko. Thank you for everything.

 

[jolldan]

RIP he was truly one of the most gifted minds the industry has ever seen.