Sure, I've created a loose version of this variant of Captain America before (click here), but I always wanted to make a fully representational cosplay of the famous (some would say infamous) 1979 CBS-TV movie Cap! So, come along with me as I detail the making of this star-spangled superhero suit! Click images to enlarge!
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| Above: The difficult part was finding appropriate 70s helmets! Luckily, eBay came to the rescue, with these two road-worn toppers! |
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| Above: The black helmet fit better, so I needed to swap out the innards of the red one, to better replicate the TV helmet! |
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| Above two images: Test-fitting the helmet! |
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| Above: The painting begins! |
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| Above two images: Working with various face masks, balaclavas, etc.. |
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| Above: Cutting a clear snap-on visor, to make Cap's own face-shield! |
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| Above five images: Crafting the helmet wings and "A" from foam board! All based on screen-grabs from the TV movies! |
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| Above: The finished helmet, ready to go! |
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| Above images: Making custom leather gloves! These were crafted for me specifically by master seamstress Kalliste Cosplay! Note the wonderful interior customizations! |
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| Above: My custom-designed bodysuit pattern! I designed this in Photoshop, then had it printed by an overseas firm! |
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| Above: The finished cosplay! I already had the custom shield, so... Pic by The Variant. |
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| Above: I just had to re-create this cheeky photo-op! |
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| Above: I also created a custom belt, made from foam board! |
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| Above: I found the "buccaneer boots" on eBay, which required quite a few coats of red vinyl spray paint! |
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| Above: The inside of the shield, festooned with signatures from many of Cap's comics creators! Mike Zeck, Allen Bellman, John Beatty, Jim Shooter, and Jim Steranko have all added their names to this powerful prop! |
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| Above two images: I wanted to revise the visor (heh), so I found a face shield with the "teardrop" shape. Then, after a little cutting and fitting... |
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| Above: Much better! |
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| Pic by Jamie Earls! |
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| Above two images: I just had to do it! A re-creation of Jim Steranko's famed cover for CAPTAIN AMERICA #111, from 1969! It took three different pics (patched together) just to get Cap's pose to correspond with the original! |
So flattered to be the subject of this wonderful
illustration by European artist AndreHQ!
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| Pic by Clarence Adams. |
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| Pic by Clarence Adams. |
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| Pic by Clarence Adams. |
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| Above three pics by Ln Ag. |
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| Above: Cap gets scanned for his own little mini-statue! The scanning folks nixed any clear objects, so changes had to be made! |
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| Above images: I decided to slightly revise the traditional outfit, adding sleeve stripes, a different approach to the midriff bars, etc. Lots of fun! |
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| Above: Using this cosplay, I just had to recreate the covers to TALES OF SUSPENSE #39 and IRON MAN #126! |
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| Above: Please don't judge. |
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| Above images: Yet another variation on a theme! |
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| Above: Testing out a new custom-made helmet! |
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| Above: "Say, you don't look like that other Vision I just ran into...." |
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| Above: Brother Power meets Cap! Two Joe Simon creations unite (along with former DC editor and BACK ISSUE! magazine maven, Michael Eury)! |
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| Pic by Fablegraph |
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| Pic by Fablegraph |
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| Pic by Johnny Andrews Photography |
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| Above images: Yet another version of Cap, this one a crazy combo of the look of Fighting American, the 40s movie serial Cap, and the (of course) 1979 "TV Cap!" |
BONUS! See (below) a sensational video that details
the creation of this star-spangled superhero costume!
BONUS BONUS: Wanna see "TV Cap" in action? Just peer below!
BONUS BONUS BONUS: Using my cosplay, I had fun creating a "what if" 70s episode opener for the Reb Brown-helmed live-action TV Cap! Click Below!