Wayne Boring

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wayne Boring

Wayne Boring (also Jack Harmon ; born June 5, 1905 in Minnesota , † 1987 Pompano Beach , Florida ) was an American artist and cartoonist . Boring was best known as the illustrator of numerous adventures of the comic hero Superman , whose most famous identification mark, the so-called "Superman logo", a stylized red S on a yellow background emblazoned on the hero's chest, Boring in a modification of the much less conspicuous original Superman -Logos from 1938 he created in the 1940s.

Life

Boring was born in Minnesota in 1905. He attended various American art schools such as the Minnesota School of Art in his hometown and the renowned Chicago Art Institute. From 1937 he worked as a draftsman for the publishing house "National Publications" (later renamed DC) for which he was responsible for comic strips such as " Slam Bradley " , "Spy" and " Dr. Occult " . His style was mainly influenced by that of the "Flash Gordon" creator Alex Raymond . Since 1938 Boring drew numerous adventures of the "Man of Steel" as an employee of the studio belonging to National Publications of the Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster . The comic hero adventures drawn by Boring were mainly published in series such as "Action Comics" or "World's Finest". His creative partners were mostly Jerry Siegel as the author and Stan Kaye as the revising ink draftsman (Inker). With the latter, Boring formed a productive team from 1942 to the 1960s. Boring drew the Superman series into the 1960s: As a regular draftsman he retired in 1964, his last "occasional work" on the figure dates from 1967. His successor as the regular draftsman of the Superman series was Curt Swan . He then worked as an anonymous background artist for the adventure series "Prinz Eisenherz" (1968–1972) written by Hal Foster and as an illustrator of the superhero "Captain Marvel" for Marvel Comics. Most recently he worked as a security guard in a bank in Florida until his death in 1987 (heart attack).

Artistic importance

Boring's most lasting artistic success is the iconic Superman logo he developed, which he created as a modification of the less spectacular "S" symbol of the hero, designed by Joe Shuster in the early 1930s. In the 1940s, he gradually developed the S logo known today by gradually enlarging, distorting and coloring the older logo in brighter colors. In addition, Boring gave the hero his characteristic appearance by portraying Superman - who when he first appeared as a man with a rather average stature - as a tall, muscular giant and with the "barrel-shaped chest" and pithy "granite chin that have become style-defining for comic heroes "provided.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Boring, Wayne
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Harmon, Jack
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American artist and comic book artist
DATE OF BIRTH June 5, 1905
PLACE OF BIRTH Minnesota
DATE OF DEATH 1987
Place of death Pompano Beach