Kirby Award
Encyclopedia
The Jack Kirby Award for achievement in comic books was presented from 1985-1987 by Amazing Heroes
magazine, and managed by Fantagraphics employee Dave Olbrich. It is named after the pioneering writer and artist Jack Kirby
, and voted on by comic-book professionals.
In 1987, a dispute arose when Olbrich and Fantagraphics, publisher of Amazing Heroes, each claimed ownership of the awards. A compromise was reached, and starting in 1988, the Kirby Award was discontinued and two new awards were created: the Eisner Award
, managed by Olbrich and named after Will Eisner
; and the Fantagraphics-managed Harvey Award
, named for Harvey Kurtzman
.
Amazing Heroes
Amazing Heroes was a magazine about the comic book medium published by Fantagraphics Books from 1981 to 1992. Unlike its companion title, The Comics Journal, Amazing Heroes was a hobbyist magazine rather than an analytical journal....
magazine, and managed by Fantagraphics employee Dave Olbrich. It is named after the pioneering writer and artist Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby
Jack Kirby , born Jacob Kurtzberg, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor regarded by historians and fans as one of the major innovators and most influential creators in the comic book medium....
, and voted on by comic-book professionals.
In 1987, a dispute arose when Olbrich and Fantagraphics, publisher of Amazing Heroes, each claimed ownership of the awards. A compromise was reached, and starting in 1988, the Kirby Award was discontinued and two new awards were created: the Eisner Award
Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
, managed by Olbrich and named after Will Eisner
Will Eisner
William Erwin "Will" Eisner was an American comics writer, artist and entrepreneur. He is considered one of the most important contributors to the development of the medium and is known for the cartooning studio he founded; for his highly influential series The Spirit; for his use of comics as an...
; and the Fantagraphics-managed Harvey Award
Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and founded by Gary Groth, President of the publisher Fantagraphics, are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are...
, named for Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman
Harvey Kurtzman was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic books and magazines. Kurtzman often signed his name H. Kurtz, followed by a stick figure Harvey Kurtzman (October 3, 1924, Brooklyn, New York – February 21, 1993) was an American cartoonist and the editor of several comic...
.
Best Single Issue
- 1985 Swamp ThingSwamp ThingSwamp Thing, a fictional character, is a plant elemental in the created by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson. He first appeared in House of Secrets #92 in a stand-alone horror story set in the early 20th century . The Swamp Thing then returned in his own series, set in the contemporary world and in...
Annual #2, by Alan MooreAlan MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...
, Steve Bissette and John TotlebenJohn TotlebenJohn Totleben is an American illustrator working mostly in comics.-Biography:After studying art at a vocational high school in Erie, Totleben attended The Kubert School for one year...
(DC ComicsDC ComicsDC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
) - 1986 DaredevilDaredevil (Marvel Comics)Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
#227, by Frank MillerFrank Miller (comics)Frank Miller is an American comic book artist, writer and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
and David MazzucchelliDavid MazzucchelliDavid Mazzucchelli is an American comic book artist and writer. His latest work is the award-winning graphic novel, Asterios Polyp.-Career:...
(Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
) - 1987 Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsBatman: The Dark Knight ReturnsBatman: The Dark Knight Returns is a four-issue comic book limited series written and drawn by Frank Miller, originally published by DC Comics under the title Batman: The Dark Knight in 1986. When the issues were released in a collected edition later that year, the story title for the first issue...
#1, by Frank Miller, Klaus JansonKlaus JansonKlaus Janson is a German-born American comic book artist, working regularly for Marvel Comics and DC Comics and sporadically for independent companies...
and Lynn VarleyLynn VarleyLynn Varley is an award-winning colorist, notable for her collaborations with her former husband, comic book writer/artist Frank Miller, whom she divorced in 2005.-Biography:...
(DC)
Best Continuing Series
- 1985 Swamp Thing, by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette and John Totleben (DC)
- 1986 Swamp Thing, by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette and John Totleben (DC)
- 1987 Swamp Thing, by Alan Moore, Steve Bissette and John Totleben (DC)
Best Black & White Series
- 1985 Cerebus by Dave SimDave SimDavid Victor Sim is an award-winning Canadian comic book writer and artist.A pioneer of self-published comics and creators' rights, Sim is best known as the creator of Cerebus the Aardvark, a comic book published from 1977 to 2004, which chronicles its main character in a 6,000-page self-contained...
(Aardvark-VanaheimAardvark-VanaheimAardvark-Vanaheim is a Canadian independent comic book publisher founded in 1977 by Dave Sim and Deni Loubert. It is best known for publishing Sim's Cerebus....
) - 1986 Love & RocketsLove and Rockets (comics)Love and Rockets is a black and white comic book series by Gilbert Hernandez and Jaime Hernandez, sometimes cited jointly as Los Bros Hernandez. Their brother Mario Hernandez is an occasional contributor...
by Gilbert HernandezGilbert HernandezGilberto Hernández, born February 1, 1957, in Oxnard, California, usually credited as Gilbert Hernandez and also known by the nickname Beto , is an American comics writer/artist...
and Jaime HernandezJaime HernandezJaime Hernandez is the co-creator of the black & white independent comic book Love and Rockets .-Early life:...
(Fantagraphics) - 1987 Cerebus by Dave Sim (Aardvark-Vanaheim)
Best Finite Series
- 1985 Crisis on Infinite EarthsCrisis on Infinite EarthsCrisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify its then 50-year-old continuity...
, by Marv WolfmanMarv WolfmanMarvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning American comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and The New Teen Titans for DC Comics.-1960s:...
and George PérezGeorge PérezGeorge Pérez is a Puerto Rican-American writer and illustrator of comic books, known for his work on various titles, including Avengers, Teen Titans and Wonder Woman.-Biography:...
(DC) - 1986 Crisis on Infinite Earths, by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez (DC)
- 1987 WatchmenWatchmenWatchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colourist John Higgins. The series was published by DC Comics during 1986 and 1987, and has been subsequently reprinted in collected form...
by Alan Moore and Dave GibbonsDave GibbonsDave Gibbons is an English comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
(DC).
Best New Series
- 1985 Zot!Zot!Zot! is a comic book created by Scott McCloud in 1984 and published by Eclipse Comics until 1990 as a lighthearted alternative to the darker and more violent comics that predominated the industry during that period. There were a total of 36 issues, with the first ten in color and the remainder in...
, by Scott McCloudScott McCloudScott McCloud is an American cartoonist and theorist on comics as a distinct literary and artistic medium...
(Eclipse ComicsEclipse ComicsEclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book specialty store market...
) - 1986 MiraclemanMiraclemanMarvelman, also known as Miracleman for trademark reasons in his American reprints and story continuation, is a fictional comic book superhero created in 1954 by writer-artist Mick Anglo for publisher L. Miller & Son. Originally intended as a United Kingdom home-grown substitute for the American...
, by Alan Moore and various artists (Eclipse) - 1987 Watchmen, by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (DC)
Best Graphic Album
- 1985 Beowulf (First ComicsFirst ComicsFirst Comics was an American comic-book publisher that was active from 1983–1991, known for titles like American Flagg!, Grimjack, Nexus, Badger, Dreadstar, and Jon Sable...
) - 1986 The Rocketeer, by Dave StevensDave StevensDave Stevens was an American illustrator and comics artist. He is most famous for creating The Rocketeer comic book and film character, and for his pin-up style "glamour art" illustrations, especially of model Bettie Page...
(Eclipse) - 1987 Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsBatman: The Dark Knight ReturnsBatman: The Dark Knight Returns is a four-issue comic book limited series written and drawn by Frank Miller, originally published by DC Comics under the title Batman: The Dark Knight in 1986. When the issues were released in a collected edition later that year, the story title for the first issue...
, by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson (DC)
Best Artist
- 1985 Dave Stevens, for The Rocketeer (ComicoComico ComicsComico: The Comic Company was an American comic book publisher, headquartered in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Its best-known comics include the Robotech adaptations, the Jonny Quest continuation written by co-creator Doug Wildey, and Matt Wagner's Mage: The Hero Discovered and Grendel...
) - 1986 Steve RudeSteve Rude-Career:In 1981, Rude became widely known in the comics world when he and writer Mike Baron created Nexus, an independent science fiction comic book with a large supporting cast. For the series, Rude designed a dozen or so distinctive alien races, including the Thunes, the Amphibs, the Quattros,...
, for NexusNexus (comics)Nexus is an American comic book series created by writer Mike Baron and penciler Steve Rude in 1981. The series is a combination of the superhero and science fiction genres, set 500 years in the future.-Publication history:...
(First) - 1987 Bill SienkiewiczBill SienkiewiczBoleslav Felix Robert "Bill" Sienkiewicz [pronounced sin-KEV-itch] is an Eisner Award-winning American artist and writer best known for his comic book work, primarily for Marvel Comics' The New Mutants and Elektra: Assassin...
, for Elektra: AssassinElektra (comics)Elektra Natchios, usually referred to only by her first name Elektra, is a fictional character in publications from Marvel Comics.Elektra is a kunoichi – female ninja assassin – of Greek descent. She wields a pair of bladed sai as her trademark weapon. She is a love interest of the superhero...
(Marvel)
Best Writer
- 1985 Alan Moore, for Swamp Thing (DC)
- 1986 Alan Moore, for Swamp Thing (DC)
- 1987 Alan Moore, for Watchmen (DC)
Best Writer/Artist (single or team)
- 1986 Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli, for Daredevil (Marvel)
- 1987 Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, for Watchmen (DC)
Best Art Team
- 1985 Steve Bissette and John Totleben, for Swamp Thing (DC)
- 1986 George Pérez and Jerry OrdwayJerry OrdwayJeremiah "Jerry" Ordway is an American writer, penciller, inker and painter of comic books.He is known for his inking work on a wide variety of DC Comics titles, including the continuity-redefining classic Crisis on Infinite Earths , his long run working on the Superman titles from 1986–1993, and...
, for Crisis On Infinite Earths (DC) - 1987 Frank Miller, Klaus Janson and Lynn Varley, for Batman: The Dark Knight Returns (DC)
See also
- Alley AwardAlley AwardThe Alley Award was an American series of comic book fan awards, first presented in 1962 for comics published in 1961. Officially organized under the aegis of the Academy of Comic Book Arts and Sciences, under executive secretary Jerry Bails, and later Paul Gambaccini and David Kaler, the award...
- Eagle AwardEagle AwardsThe Eagle Award is a series of awards for comic book titles and creators. They are awarded by UK fan voting for work produced during the previous year. Named after the UK's Eagle comic, the awards were set up by Mike Conroy, Nick Landau, Colin Campbell, Phil Clarke and Richard Burton, and launched...
- Eisner AwardEisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
- Harvey AwardHarvey AwardThe Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and founded by Gary Groth, President of the publisher Fantagraphics, are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are...
- Inkpot Award
- Shazam Award