If anything can be said about the large community of comic artists and writers (and to an extent, readers), it’s that they function like a small town – everyone knows everyone else, has had some interaction with them, might have some ongoing political debate that the rest of the world has no interest in or awareness of, but ultimately, there’s a closeness and an innate desire to help each other out when times get rough. We’ve seen our share of illnesses and deaths, and I’ve never experienced an instance where respect was not properly paid.

So, the comic-reading audience collectively mourned in late 2006 when we learned that notable creator and artist Dave Cockrum passed away due to complications with a long-time illness. He’s most noted for being a co-creator to some staple X-Men characters, including Colossus, Storm, and Nightcrawler, as well as redesigning and thus redefining DC Comics’ Legion of Superheroes. In addition to that, he’s had a hand in just about every comic you can name, in one way or another – Fantastic Four, Iron Man and Spider-Man covers, Batman and Justice League interiors, Marvel’s Star Trek comics, and even pre-career letters to the editor found in the back pages of a handful of comics. When he passed, a significant creative force passed as well.

As most comic creators are, he was also a comic collector, and as collectors here, we’ve all idly wondered what our poor families are going to do with our stuff when we’re no longer around to deal with it. After his passing, his widow was left with a significant comic collection.

Enter Clifford Meth : writer, advocate for comic creators, and close friend of my most favorite author, Harlan Ellison (which terrifies me to no end) – mostly because I’ve always imagined Mr. Ellison at the top of a gargoyle-riddled watchtower with a typewriter, a shotgun, and the largest NO TRESPASSING sign known to man. You could see it from space. Even before Dave Cockrum’s death, Clifford Meth (along with Neal Adams) arranged a benefit to help Cockrum’s failing health and increasing poverty, and while that afforded him some more comfortable final years, Meth’s efforts still continue, providing continuing comfort for the family.

Meth has single-handedly been arranging the sale of Cockrum’s vast comic collection, eschewing the fee-riddled venue of eBay and depending on word-of-mouth and the admiration of comic fans – which shouldn’t be underestimated. Nothing says ‘disposable income’ like income that’s spent on costumed superheroes. Meth stopped by the blog here a few days ago to make mention of this, and I thought that it deserved a much larger mention that a blog comment. The frequently-updated comic listings can be seen at his blog, The Clifford Method. Each comes bagged, boarded, and with seal indicating that it has come from the Estate of Dave Cockrum. Beyond even this, Mr. Meth is selling some of his own comics, all checks payable to Paty Cockrum.

There’s a certain appeal to owning a comic that’s been read and appreciated by someone intimately involved with the medium. Included in the assortment are comics that Cockrum referenced while drawing his own art, books that he’d worked on, and books that he just liked. Swing on by the blog and buy some books, and don’t think of it as charity – think of it as genuine and well-deserved appreciation.

==============

Gotta Collect? Then You Gotta Connect – Join our Collectors’ Community!

---

================

Gotta Collect? Then You Gotta Connect - Join our Collectors’ Community!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 16th, 2008 at 1:01 am and is filed under collecting fyi. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.