Russ Jones
Encyclopedia
Russ Jones is a Canadian
novelist, illustrator, and magazine editor, active in the publishing and entertainment industries over a half-century, best known as the creator of the magazine Creepy
for Warren Publishing
. As the founding editor of Creepy in 1963, he is notable for a significant milestone in comics history by proving there was a readership eager to read graphic stories in a black-and-white magazine format rather than in a color comic book.
During the mid-1960s, Jones also pioneered the presentation of original comics formatted directly for paperback books, such as Christopher Lee
's Treasury of Terror (Pyramid, 1966).
, Jones worked on Leatherneck
magazine. Arriving in New York, he teamed with Wally Wood
and Joe Orlando
on several comics-related projects, some for Warren Publishing. Jones drew and scripted comic book stories for a variety of publishers, including Marvel, Seaboard, Gold Key, and Charlton. He penciled DC Comics
' Mystery in Space
, and his slick brush inking provided a polish to many DC romance comics
, some inked in collaboration with Bhob Stewart
. Jones and Stewart also teamed on scripts and art for Charlton Comics
' Ghostly Tales
. Jones teamed with penciler Jay Scott Pike
as inker on DC's Heart Throbs
for the long-running feature "3 Girls—Their Lives—Their Loves," which ran from 1966–1970.
Russ Jones Productions' Dracula (Ballantine Books
, 1966) was an adaptation of Bram Stoker
's tale into a graphic novel illustrated by Alden McWilliams with text by Otto Binder
and Craig Tennis. In addition to other story adaptations for Jones, Tennis later wrote the book Johnny Tonight about his experiences as a talent coordinator working with Johnny Carson
and The Tonight Show
.
caricatured famed scenes from classic cinema. Humphrey Bogart
cradling Woody Woodpecker
, rather than the falcon statue of The Maltese Falcon
, was the Davis cover for the issue on the films of 1941.
His work as an illustrator was displayed on front and back covers for Castle of Frankenstein
and other magazines. His paintings were also seen in the feature film, The Salton Sea
(2004).
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
novelist, illustrator, and magazine editor, active in the publishing and entertainment industries over a half-century, best known as the creator of the magazine Creepy
Creepy
Creepy was an American horror-comics magazine launched by Warren Publishing in 1964. Like Mad, it was a black-and-white newsstand publication in a magazine format and thus did not require the approval or seal of the Comics Code Authority. The anthology magazine was initially published quarterly but...
for Warren Publishing
Warren Publishing
Warren Publishing was an American magazine company founded by James Warren, who published his first magazines in 1957 and continued in the business for decades...
. As the founding editor of Creepy in 1963, he is notable for a significant milestone in comics history by proving there was a readership eager to read graphic stories in a black-and-white magazine format rather than in a color comic book.
During the mid-1960s, Jones also pioneered the presentation of original comics formatted directly for paperback books, such as Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
's Treasury of Terror (Pyramid, 1966).
Comics and graphic novels
While in the Marine CorpsMarine corps
A marine is a member of a force that specializes in expeditionary operations such as amphibious assault and occupation. The marines traditionally have strong links with the country's navy...
, Jones worked on Leatherneck
Leatherneck Magazine
Leatherneck Magazine of the Marines is a magazine for United States Marines. It was first published as a newspaper by off-duty Marines at Marine Corps Base Quantico in 1917, and was originally named The Quantico Leatherneck...
magazine. Arriving in New York, he teamed with Wally Wood
Wally Wood
Wallace Allan Wood was an American comic book writer, artist and independent publisher, best known for his work in EC Comics and Mad. He was one of Mads founding cartoonists in 1952. Although much of his early professional artwork is signed Wallace Wood, he became known as Wally Wood, a name he...
and Joe Orlando
Joe Orlando
Joseph Orlando was a prolific illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist during a lengthy career spanning six decades...
on several comics-related projects, some for Warren Publishing. Jones drew and scripted comic book stories for a variety of publishers, including Marvel, Seaboard, Gold Key, and Charlton. He penciled DC Comics
DC Comics
DC 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...
' Mystery in Space
Mystery in Space
Mystery in Space is the name of two science fiction comic book series published in the United States by DC Comics, then known as National Comics. The first series ran for 110 issues from 1951 - 1966, with a further 7 issues continuing the numbering during a 1980s revival of the title...
, and his slick brush inking provided a polish to many DC romance comics
Romance comics
Romance comics is a comics genre depicting romantic love and its attendant complications such as jealousy, marriage, divorce, betrayal, and heartache. The term is generally associated with an American comic books genre published through the first three decades of the Cold War...
, some inked in collaboration with Bhob Stewart
Bhob Stewart
Bhob Stewart is an American writer, editor, artist and film maker who has written for a variety of publications over a span of five decades. His articles and reviews have appeared in TV Guide, Publishers Weekly and other publications, along with online contributions to Allmovie, the Collecting...
. Jones and Stewart also teamed on scripts and art for Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics
Charlton Comics was an American comic book publishing company that existed from 1946 to 1985, having begun under a different name in 1944. It was based in Derby, Connecticut...
' Ghostly Tales
Ghostly Tales
Ghostly Tales was a horror-suspense anthology comic book series published by Charlton Comics from 1966 to 1984 . The book was "hosted" by Mr. L. Dedd , a middle-aged gentleman with purplish skin and horns who dressed like a vampire. Mr...
. Jones teamed with penciler Jay Scott Pike
Jay Scott Pike
Jay Scott Pike , is an American comic book artist and commercial illustrator known for his 1950s and 1960s work for Marvel Comics and DC Comics, advertising art, and as a Playboy-affiliated good girl artist...
as inker on DC's Heart Throbs
Heart Throbs
Heart Throbs was a romance comic published by Quality Comics and DC Comics from 1949 to 1972. Quality published the book from 1949–1957, when it was acquired by DC. Most issues featured a number of short comics stories, as well advice columns, text pieces, and filler...
for the long-running feature "3 Girls—Their Lives—Their Loves," which ran from 1966–1970.
Russ Jones Productions' Dracula (Ballantine Books
Ballantine Books
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann AG in 1998 and remains part of that company today. Ballantine's logo is a...
, 1966) was an adaptation of Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's tale into a graphic novel illustrated by Alden McWilliams with text by Otto Binder
Otto Binder
Otto Oscar Binder was an American author of science fiction and non-fiction books and stories, and comic books...
and Craig Tennis. In addition to other story adaptations for Jones, Tennis later wrote the book Johnny Tonight about his experiences as a talent coordinator working with Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
and The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
.
Magazines
In the years following Creepy, Jones founded and edited several other popular culture magazines, including Monster Mania. His magazine Flashback, co-edited with Stewart, employed an unusual approach to the coverage of Hollywood's past by devoting an entire issue to the films of a specific year. A series of front covers by Jack DavisJack Davis (cartoonist)
Jack Davis is an American cartoonist and illustrator, known for his advertising art, magazine covers, film posters, record album art and numerous comic book stories...
caricatured famed scenes from classic cinema. Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
cradling Woody Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker
Woody Woodpecker is an animated cartoon character, an anthropomorphic acorn woodpecker who appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz animation studio and distributed by Universal Pictures...
, rather than the falcon statue of The Maltese Falcon
The Maltese Falcon (1941 film)
The Maltese Falcon is a 1941 Warner Bros. film based on the novel of the same name by Dashiell Hammett and a remake of the 1931 film of the same name...
, was the Davis cover for the issue on the films of 1941.
Novels
Jones wrote more than two dozen paperback novels under the name Jack Younger and other pseudonyms. Devlin (Manor Books, 1976), with Kennedy-like characters, carries the blurb, "They were the most powerful family on Earth—but was that power spawned in hell?" Younger also is the byline on Maniac! (Manor, 1977), Demon (Carlyle, 1979) and Claw (Manor, 1976), a tale of vicious cats, as noted in the back cover blurb:- Beware the cats!
- From out of nowhere, thousands of cats swarmed through the remote summer resort. They were considered only a nuisance at first-until they suddenly went crazy. In the beginning, they preyed on only the young, the aged, the helpless. But as their numbers grew, they began attacking anyone-anywhere-without fear. They kept on coming, relishing the taste of human blood. The town was surrounded; isolated from the mainland. Those who had survived the deadly onslaught huddled together for protection-waiting for help... waiting for an answer... waiting... if only for death...
His work as an illustrator was displayed on front and back covers for Castle of Frankenstein
Castle of Frankenstein
Castle of Frankenstein was an American horror, science fiction and fantasy film magazine, distributed by Kable News and published in New Jersey from 1962 to 1975 by Calvin Thomas Beck's Gothic Castle Publishing Company. The first three issues were edited by Larry Ivie and Ken Beale. From 1963 and...
and other magazines. His paintings were also seen in the feature film, The Salton Sea
The Salton Sea
The Salton Sea is a 2002 American neo-noir film starring Val Kilmer and Vincent D'Onofrio directed by D. J. Caruso.-Plot:While playing the trumpet in a burning room, the protagonist's voice is heard in narration. His story begins with him posing as "Danny Parker", a speed freak addicted to...
(2004).