by Larry Brody
Back in pre-history, AKA in the third quarter of the 20th century, one of my favorite comics was Tomb of Dracula, created by my writer-producer bud Gerry Conway and Gene Colan, one of comics best artists, whom, unfortunately, I never got to know. (He died in 2011. Oh, and he also was part of the team that created the vampire-hunting character Blade)
As a writer who often has found himself at odds with collaborating directors and artists (and the occasional actor as well), I’m always fascinated by the way the more visual collaborators like Gene think. More so now, at a time when comic book heroes and the horror genre have become so big on TV.
In this interview, we get a glimpse of how amazingly cinematic Gene. Colan’s personal universe was:
Wow, Larry – so thrilled to see this. I’m the guy that did that video on Gene the Dean. I grew up on your early work in TV drama, but really became a true fan with your 90s cartoon work. I still believe Silver Surfer was one of the greatest landmarks in TV animation that no one seems to know about. I think I even emailed you in the 2000s regarding that work, you were definitely someone I always wanted to interview! So, it’s really cool to see that all these years later you recommended some of my work, I’m truly honored! Sorry it took so long to find this
Glad you finally saw this. Guys like us have to stick together.
All my best,
LB