The late Dave Stevens. A truly great and influential artist who left us way too soon. These pics are from 2005.
I stated a little while back in this thread that the first San Diego Comic Con I attended was in 1982. As luck and fate would have it, that magical year was also when a great comic book character called the Rocketeer first premiered, first as back up feature in Starslayer number 2, then later that year as the lead feature in Pacific Presents.
I absolutely fell head over heels in love with that character, that story and that art. I loved the Golden Age feel, I loved that it was based in Hollywood, and I pretty much loved every aspect of it. And that is how the artist Dave Stevens became known to me. I knew I had to meet him at the show, and as soon as I got in the dealers room of the convention, I sought him out. He was so young then (I guess we all were) and so handsome he made me sick. Seriously. I had a huge aversion at looking into mirrors after that. But he was so nice and just a lot of fun to talk to. He and I both lived in Los Angeles at the time and I would occasionally see him at the Golden Apple comic book store on Melrose Avenue in Hollywood.
Dave was born in Lynwood California in 1955 but he grew up in Portland, Oregon. His family relocated to San Diego and he attended San Diego City College for two years. During this time he started becoming a regular at SDCC. His first professional comic work was inking
Russ Manning's pencils for the
Tarzan newspaper comic strip and two European
Tarzan graphic novels in 1975; he later assisted Manning on the
Star Wars newspaper strip. And then, as I said, in 1982 he created The Rocketeer and his career took off like a ... well, rocket. He was heavily influenced by great Golden Age artists like
Will Eisner,
Lou Fine,
Reed Crandall, Maurice Whitman,
Frank Frazetta and
Wally Wood. I had never seen anything that quite like it. It was breathtakingly beautiful and evoked a simpler time but with a modern sensibility. Dave was widely recognized, along with artists such as
Steve Rude and
Jaime Hernandez, as one of the finest comic book artists of his generation.
Sadly, Dave passed away in 2008 after a long battle with Leukemia.
There are names and faces I will always associate with the San Diego Comic Con ... Peter David, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, Gil Kane, Will Eisner, Mark Evanier, George Perez and a whole host of others. Unfortunately, we have a lost a fair number of them over the years. And Dave Stevens is a name that's right near the top of the list.
I can't think of Dave Stevens without thinking of the San Diego Comic Con. And I can't think of the San Diego Comic Con without thinking of Dave Stevens. In my mind, they will forever be linked.
23 Days Until SDCC 2025!