The Batman Strikes! 1977 Albert Bigley Original Art! DC Comics?

Another "gem" from my vault of childhood drawings! This time, take a look at this 1977 pencilled piece, a shameless cop of the then-current (and very exciting) Batman as seen in the pages of DETECTIVE COMICS! The great new art team of Marshall Rogers and Terry Austin was beginning their still-heralded run on the Dark Knight, adding a ton of mood and mystery to the strip, and it certainly wowed a 12-year-old me! Click below to enlarge!

Above: The indelible inspiration for my pencilled pin-up, from DETECTIVE
COMICS #468! Art by Marhsall Rogers and Terry Austin (who would one day
 ink my own pro comics work)!

Batman and Robin vs. The Master Mind?! 1977 Albert Bigley Art! DC Comics?!

Another rare "treat" for faithful BIG GLEE! followers (all seven of you)! Here is my (age twelve) version of a Silver/Bronze Age BATMAN cover that never was! Seems I thought Batman and Robin shoulda matched wits with a new super-foe I dreamt up, called the Master Mind! Not only does he twist Robin into his own personal murder-machine, but the Teen Wonder's weapon of choice seems to be a flaming knife! Or is that a sword of ice? A popsicle? And--Shouldn't that blurb read "Control of the Master Mind?" Click below to enlarge this 1977 masterpiece!

BONUS! Click below to gaze at the Neal Adams-created cover that was undoubtably my inspiration for Batman's panicked pose above! I had access then to a great used bookstore that sold Silver Age comics, and I must have snagged this 1969 issue of DETECTIVE COMICS at the time!

The Monkees Yell "Charge!" 1977 Albert Bigley Original Comic Art!

Another Monkees masterpiece (?) from my youth! Dig this 1977 drawing of "Mikey," Mike, Peter and Davy, as they charge up a hill in complete "foreign legion" garb! Copied from one of the famed 60s Dell MONKEES comic books, you can tell that the 11-year-old me had a long way to go, specifically when it came to capturing celebrity likenesses! Click below to enlarge!

Above: My 1977 drawing (part of a planned "portfolio?"), cribbed from a 1967
Dell MONKEES comic, the only one I owned at the time (along with a small
smattering of Monkees LPs, 8-tracks, and other memorabilia)! I bought the
 comic from a used book and magazine shop, where I regularly gorged on back-issue
superhero comics, and was thrilled to make this find! Who even knew there
were Monkees comics? Note my wonky tracing of the logo, my oh-so-funny 
captions (swiped from daily afternoon reruns of the show), and the odd 
logo featuring silhouettes of the band!

Above: The page from that same MONKEES comic book that 
inspired my pencilled piece! Art is thought to be by Jose Delbo!

Nick Fury! Custom SHIELD Mego Action Figure! Marvel Comics!

Yet another one of my custom Mego figures, this one made sometime around 2005, as a gift for a Fury-loving pal! Here's the famed SHIELD ramrod, Nick Fury himself! I tried to approximate how the Mego mavens woulda produced a Fury figure, with one eye (heh) toward the Jim Steranko art of the late-60s SHIELD comic, complete with hints of tech hardware and such, but keeping the actual detailing very simple! Click below to enlarge pics, and enjoy!

Starting with a custom sculpted head (complete with soggy stogie), I added a
blue "zip suit," with my own Mego-like printed detailing! A few added found
accessories, like belts, holsters and hose, and Nick seems to have festooned
himself with tons of hardware!

Above: I also created this psychedelic custom card, featuring
actual Jim Steranko artwork, and Mego graphic icons!

The Monkees and MIKEY Dolenz?! 1977 Albert Bigley Original Art!

Ouch! Here is my own lovingly-rendered 1977 portrait of the Monkees' own dynamic drummer, Micky Dolenz! Of course, I somehow re-named him "Mikey" Dolenz, but I was 12, and my spelling skills weren't quite up to snuff, so cut me some slack! Taken from the cover of the RCA "Laurie House" Monkees 2-LP set that was offered the previous year (great set, but a dreadful and cheap cover), I managed to make Micky look like a distorted version of Chuck Woolery! Click here to see some of his bandmates from the same frenzied drawing session! Click image below to enlarge!

SPIDER-MAN! 1977 Albert Bigley SPECTACULAR Artwork!? The Vulture! Marvel Mirth!

Another big one, from my checkered past! Here is my line-for-line (!) re-creation of the cover for SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #5! Well, it was the best I could do at age 11, in early 1977! Had I not heard of straight-edges or templates then?! I had a real thing for covering covers back then, having to include every line of text, indicia, and even UPC boxes! The original cover was drawn by dandy Dave Cockrum, when the title was still fresh and exciting, at a time when the world-weary Wall-Crawler only had three regular ongoing new titles! Compare that to the mind-numbing amount of poorly-produced periodicals he headlines today! Click to enlarge, art lovers!

Albert Bigley 1977 IRON MAN # 100 Cover Art?! Jim Starlin? Marvel Comics?!

Hoo Boy! You can sorta tell I was inspired by the well-drawn cover (by Jim Starlin) to 1977's IRON MAN # 100, can't ya? Here, below, is my attempt at re-creating that once-in-a-lifetime (twice?) cover art, and, considering I was 12 that year, I guess it ain't so bad. Note that such a dynamic and simple cover was a rarity in those days, with its lack of captions, word balloons, and general hyperbolic ballyhoo announcing ol' Shellhead's anniversary issue! Nowadays, in a failed attempt to create the same kinda vibe, almost every cover looks like this one, with the same characters preening, posing, and grunting in an endless parade of costumes and muscles that blend into one big mush...Click to enlarge!

1977 Albert Bigley BATMAN Epic! "Best Cop in Gotham City?!" DC Comics?!

Another attempt to draw (and write) my own comics, this one from early 1977! You can see that I (age 11) was very influenced by Neal Adams' BATMAN work, but also by my back issue of DETECTIVE COMICS # 428, from 1972, which introduced a new supporting player to the Batman books. That issue introduced a tough cop called "Shotgun Smith," created in the mold of then-current movie cops such as DIRTY HARRY and such. So, I tried to add my OWN law-enforcing thorn-in-the-side for the Caped Crusader in my own tale! I decided to give Batman a dapper, by-the-book kinda policeman, one who wouldn't take so kindly to vigilantes, the way Commissioner Gordon and his crew did!  Also, in the tradition of all the cop shows of the day, my new character needed a very visual accessory, ala IRONSIDE (and his wheelchair) or KOJAK (and his lollypops and bald pate). Alas, only 2 pages were ever produced before I moved on to other things. But, get a load of that great dialog! Batman holds the murder weapon in front of his face and mutters, "probably a .45 caliber?!" That's "the world's greatest detective?!" Click to enlarge!

Below: My inspiration! A page from the aforementioned DETECTIVE COMICS # 428, showcasing the friction between Batman and newcomer "Shotgun Smith!" Art by Bob Brown and Dick Giordano!

Batman! In the Burbs?! 1977 Albert Bigley Art?! DC Comics?!

Hoo boy. Using a technique I had only tried a few times, here is the Dark Knight himself, the Batman, standing triumphantly among the crime-ridden dark streets of the--suburbs of North Carolina?! Yep, I wanted to meld my drawings with some actual photos, such as I had seen on a few comic covers then, using some "real" backgrounds, but in 1977, before the internet and such, all I had were a few issues of WOMAN'S DAY magazine (thanks, Mom!) and the local NC newspaper. So, my Neal Adams-inspired Caped Crusader gets to pose in front of some random houses that were up for sale then. Perhaps I shoulda used SOUTHERN LIVING magazine, instead? Sigh. Click to enlarge.

1977 Albert Bigley SHAZAM! Artwork?! Captain Marvel?! DC Comics?!

Yet another blast from my artistic past! Here is my own drawing of young Billy Batson and his invincible alter-ego, Captain Marvel, as they take off for fabulous new adventures! Drawn by me at age 12, in 1977, I was certainly inspired by Neal Adams' wonderful rendering of the mystical duo, as it appeared in the 1976 DC Calendar, and also on tons of shirts, toys, and merchandise during that period! Click to enlarge!

Albert Bigley 1977 FANTASTIC FOUR Artwork!? Marvel Comics Calendar?!

Another brain-blistering look at my early work! This time we view some not-so-fabulous FANTASTIC FOUR artwork, drawn by me in 1977, at age 12! Fully cribbed from the then-current 1977 MARVEL MEMORY ALBUM calendar, here is my attempt (using crow-quill pens and nibs) to re-create that good old Jack Kirby/Joe Sinnott magic you see beneath my art, in the image below! How'd I do? Never mind. Just click to enlarge!

The Monkees?! 1977 Albert Bigley Art! Davy Jones!?

Another 70s attempt (by me, age 12) to depict The Monkees in pencil form! Culled from a then-recent teen magazine article on the group (their popularity re-ignited due to after-school reruns of the show), here is the group in all their psychedelic glory! Dig that KISS-like logo I also provided! One of my early stabs at celebrity caricature (always difficult)...At least the composition is interesting! Sheesh! Click to enlarge!

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA! Original 1977 Albert Bigley Art! DC Comics?! Batman?!

Here we go again! Take a look at this --er--interesting take on the long-standing superhero group, the JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA! Drawn by me in early 1977 (age 11), here are all your favorite characters, seen as never before (ain't that the truth)! Also-don't miss my little note, to you, the wonderful viewer! Click to enlarge, JLAers!

Batgirl! Albert Bigley vs Carmine Infantino! 1977 Comic(al) Art!

After another long (and merciful) drought, here is another of my splendid childhood superhero drawings. This time, it's that sexy, flame-haired crime-buster, Batgirl! Or, an odd, short, big-headed lady in a Batgirl costume. For your fun and amusement, I've included the original 1967 Carmine Infantino art that inspired this drawing by the 11-year old me. Click to enlarge if ya must.

Whose Baby Are Ya?

About 6 people will get the title of this one..

Anyway, this 1977 drawing was swiped from a BATMAN FAMILY (loved that book) comic. Maybe one of the Curt Swan drawn stories.

An early attempt to understand female anatomy, realizing it ain't just a male body with some bumps added...

Looks like I lost interest when the time came to draw the thug's lower body...And my signature...And the background details...I thought then a HINT of background was enough....Hey, you were lucky to get THAT!

Check out the size of that noggin on Batgirl! Wow!