Crusty Bunker, or the Crusty Bunkers, was the collective pseudonym of a group of

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

inkers clustered around

Neal Adams Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Sup ...

' and

Dick Giordano Richard Joseph Giordano (; July 20, 1932 – March 27, 2010) was an American comics artist and editor whose career included introducing Charlton Comics' "Action Heroes" stable of superheroes and serving as executive editor of DC Comics. Early ...

's New York City-based art and design agency

Continuity Studios Continuity Studios (formerly Continuity Associates, originally known as Continuity Graphics Associates)Eury, Michael and Giordano, Dick. ''Dick Giordano: Changing Comics, One Day at a Time'', TwoMorrows Publishing, 2003. is a New York City and Los ...

from 1972 to 1977. The group was also occasionally credited as Ilya Hunch, Chuck Bunker, or The Goon Squad. Theakston, Greg and Nowlan, Kevin, et al., at Many Crusty Bunkers team members went on to successful individual careers in the comics industry.

History

According to former member Alan Weiss, the name "Crusty Bunker" was first coined by Adams in relation to his children: "It was like calling someone a name that wasn't really dirty. ... It didn't really mean anything, it just sounded good". There were over 60 artists who at one time or another were Crusty Bunker members. The core group consisted of artists who rented space at Continuity or worked up front in the advertising studio itself. Continuity would get the assignment, someone with experience (usually Adams or Giordano)Netzer, Michael
"The Lives and Time of Crusty Bunker", Michael Netzer Online, September 17, 2007
. Retrieved July 5, 2008. would ink the faces and main figures, then pass it around for everyone to work on it, until the whole thing was completed. Comic book titles that the collective worked on included Marvel's ''

Red Sonja Red Sonja is a fictional sword and sorcery comic-book superheroine created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith for Marvel Comics in 1973, partially inspired by Robert E. Howard's character Red Sonya of Rogatino. Marvel Comics p ...

'' and ''

Marvel Premiere ''Marvel Premiere'' is an American comic book anthology series that was published by Marvel Comics. In concept it was a tryout book, intended to determine if a character or concept could attract enough readers to justify launching their own serie ...

'', the Marvel black-and-white magazine titles ''

Dracula Lives! ''Dracula Lives!'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 13 issues and one '' Super Annual'' from 1973 to 1975, and starred the Marvel version o ...

'', ''

Tales of the Zombie ''Tales of the Zombie'' was an American black-and-white horror comics magazine published by Magazine Management, a corporate sibling of Marvel Comics. The series ran 10 issues and one '' Super Annual'' from 1973 to 1975, many featuring stories of t ...

'', and '' Monsters Unleashed''; and DC's '' Sword of Sorcery''. Former Crusty Bunker

Larry Hama Larry Hama (; born June 7, 1949) is an American comic-book writer, artist, actor, and musician who has worked in the fields of entertainment and publishing since the 1960s. During the 1970s, he was seen in minor roles on the TV shows ''M*A*S*H'' ...

recounted: "If a job was incredibly late, then the Crusty Bunkers would gather together half-a-dozen to a dozen inkers and... turn out a whole book in a day or two, all under the supervision of Neal

dams A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

It was a whirl. Guys would be passing pages back and forth. Guys would be standing over boards filling in blacks upside down while somebody was rendering a face at the bottom of the page". This period was one of transition in the comics industry, as

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

had been toppled from comics dominance by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. In an attempt to revitalize its brand, DC made a concerted effort to entice young artists, including from this talent pool. As many of the Crusty Bunkers began getting regular comics work, they discontinued working in the group's collaborative fashion. The collective was effectively disbanded in 1977, although Adams resurrected the name for some of the comics put out by his own publishing company,

Continuity Comics Continuity Publishing, also known as Continuity Comics, was an American independent comic book company formed by Neal Adams in 1984, publishing comics until 1994. History After years as a freelancer and comics art packager (with his company Con ...

, from 1985 to 1993.

Art style

Although directed (and often worked on directly) by Adams, the Crusty Bunkers inking style was not a clone of Adams' individual work. Their early published work showed a herky-jerky, jumble of styles that revealed the work of multiple hands. Within about a year, however (in response to the demand from publishers for a homogenous look), the Crusty Bunkers had developed a true "house style", with only hints of the individual styles that the respective artists later became known for. This house style was more rough-hewn than similar work by Adams.

Members included

Source: *

– principal *

– principal * Jack Abel *

Vicente Alcazar Vicente Alcazar (born April 4, 1944) is a Spanish comics artist best known for his work for the American comic-book publishers DC Comics and Marvel Comics, including a 1970s run on the DC Western character Jonah Hex. His name is sometimes mis-c ...

Sal Amendola Sal Amendola (born 1948, in Italy) is an Italian American comics artist and teacher primarily known for his association with DC Comics. Career Sal Amendola graduated from the School of Visual Arts in 1969 with the school’s then offered 3-year ...

*Steven Austin * Terry Austin *Joe Barney *Rick Basile *Pat Bastienne *

Pat Broderick Pat Broderick (born November 26, 1953) is an American comics artist, known for his work on the ''Micronauts'' and ''Alpha Flight'' for Marvel Comics, and '' Legion of Super-Heroes'', ''Captain Atom'' and ''Green Lantern'' for DC Comics. Broderick ...

*Joe Brozowski er Bailsor Joe Brosowski

Bob Layton Bob Layton (born 1953) is an American comic book artist, writer, and editor. He is best known for his work on Marvel Comics titles such as '' Iron Man'' and ''Hercules'', and for co-founding Valiant Comics with Jim Shooter. Early life Bob Layt ...

in *

Frank Brunner Frank Brunner (born February 21, 1949) is an American comics artist and illustrator best known for his work at Marvel Comics in the 1970s. Early life Brunner attended Manhattan's High School of Art and Design. He was in the same graduating class ...

*Rick Bryant *

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Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin (; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane, and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker. Early life ...

Frank Cirocco Frank Cirocco (born June 13, 1956) is an American comics artist and video game designer best known as the co-creator of ''Alien Legion'' with Carl Potts and Alan Zelenetz. Early life Frank Cirocco moved from Elmwood Park, New Jersey to San Jose, ...

Dave Cockrum David Emmett Cockrum (; November 11, 1943 – November 26, 2006) was an American comics artist known for his co-creation of the new X-Men characters Nightcrawler, Storm, Colossus, and Mystique, as well as the antiheroine Black Cat. Cockrum was ...

Denys Cowan Denys B. Cowan (born January 30, 1961) is an American comics artist, television producer, media executive and one of the co-founders of Milestone Media. Early life Denys Cowan was first inspired by superheroes as a child from reruns of the 1950s ...

*Joe D'Esposito *Ed Davis *Karin Dougherty *

Steve Englehart Steve Englehart (; born April 22, 1947) is an American writer of comic books and novels. He is best known for his work at Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s and 1980s. His pseudonyms have included John Harkness and Cliff Garnett. Early lif ...

*John Fuller * Dan Green *Darrell Goza *

*Steve Harper *

Russ Heath Russell Heath Jr. (September 29, 1926 – August 23, 2018), was an American artist best known for his comic book work, particularly his DC Comics war stories and his 1960s art for ''Playboy'' magazine's "Little Annie Fanny" feature. He also prod ...

* Klaus Janson *

Jeffrey Catherine Jones Jeffrey Catherine Jones (January 10, 1944 – May 19, 2011) was an American artist whose work is best known from the late 1960s through the 2000s. Jones created the cover art for more than 150 books through 1976, as well as venturing into ...

Paul Kirchner Paul Kirchner (born January 29, 1952) is an American writer and illustrator who has worked in diverse areas, from comic strips and toy design to advertising and editorial art. Early life Paul Kirchner was born in New Haven, Connecticut. He atte ...

Alan Kupperberg Alan Kupperberg (May 18, 1953 – July 16, 2015) was an American comics artist known for working in both comic books and newspaper strips. Early life Alan Kupperberg was born on May 18, 1953 in New York City. He graduated from the High School o ...

Carl Lundgren Carl Leonard "Lundy" Lundgren (February 16, 1880 – August 21, 1934) was an American baseball and football player and coach. Lundgren played football and baseball for the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign and played eight seasons o ...

Esteban Maroto Esteban Maroto (born 1942) is a Spanish Comics, comic book artist. Career Born in Madrid, he began his career in the 1960s with series like ''Cinco por infinito'', published in English by Continuity Comics as ''Zero Patrol'' (heavily retouche ...

*Gary Martin * Bob McLeod *

Al Milgrom Allen L. Milgrom (born March 6, 1950) is an American comic book writer, penciller, inker and editor, primarily for Marvel Comics. He is known for his 10-year run as editor of ''Marvel Fanfare''; his long involvement as writer, penciler, and inker ...

*Steve Mitchell *Yong Montano *Tim Moriarty *

Gray Morrow Dwight Graydon "Gray" Morrow (March 7, 1934 – November 6, 2001).e., the Gilberton Company, publisher of the ''Classics Illustrated'' comic-book series of literary adaptations], and I was given a script. One thing led to another and I was soo ...

* Michael Netzer, Michael Netzer (Nasser) *Bruce Patterson *

Carl Potts Carl Potts (born November 12, 1952) is an American comics artist, writer, teacher, and editor best known for creating the series '' Alien Legion'' for the Marvel Comics imprint Epic Comics. Early life Born in Oakland, California, and raised in t ...

Ralph Reese Ralph Reese (born May 19, 1949) is an American artist who has illustrated for books, magazines, trading cards, comic books and comic strips, including a year drawing the '' Flash Gordon'' strip for King Features. Prolific from the 1960s to the 1 ...

*Mark Rice *

Marshall Rogers William Marshall Rogers III (January 22, 1950 – March 24, 2007),William Marshall Rogers III

Josef Rubinstein Josef "Joe" Rubinstein (born 4 June 1958) is a comic book artist and inker, most associated with inking Marvel Comics' '' The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe'' and the 1982 four-issue ''Wolverine'' miniseries by Chris Claremont and Frank ...

* James Sherman *

Mary Skrenes Mary Skrenes is a comic book writer and screenwriter. She may be best known as co-creator (with Steve Gerber) of Omega the Unknown for Marvel Comics, although she worked on other Marvel characters such as the Defenders and Guardians of the Galax ...

*Bob Smith *

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Greg Theakston Greg Allen Theakston (November 21, 1953 – April 22, 2019) was an American comics artist and illustrator who worked for numerous publishers. He is known for his independent publications as a comics historian under his Pure Imagination impri ...

Trevor Von Eeden Trevor Von Eeden (born July 24, 1959) is a Guyanese-American comics artist, actor and writer known for his work on such titles as ''Black Lightning'', ''Batman'', ''Green Arrow'', '' Power Man and Iron Fist'', and the biographical series ''The Orig ...

* Alan Weiss *

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*Gary Winnick *

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Bibliography

Source unless otherwise noted:

1970s incarnation

Atlas/Seaboard

*''Wulf the Barbarian'' #2 (1975)

Charlton

*''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing the two short-lived situa ...

'' (1976) *''

Six Million Dollar Man ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' is an American science fiction and action television series, running from 1973 to 1978, about a former astronaut, USAF Colonel Steve Austin, portrayed by Lee Majors. After a NASA test flight accident, Austin is re ...

'' (1976)

DC

*'' Mr. Miracle'' (1977) *'' Sword of Sorcery'' #1–2 (1973) *'' Weird Worlds'' #2–3 (1972–73), credited as "C. Bunker"

Marvel

*''

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...

'' #44–45, Annual #3 (1974–77) *''

Crazy Magazine ''Crazy Magazine'' is an illustrated satire and humor magazine that was published by Marvel Comics from 1973 to 1983 for a total of 94 regular issues (and two ''Super Special''s (Summer 1975, 1980)). It was preceded by two standard-format comic b ...

'' #2 (1974) *'' Deadly Hands of Kung-Fu Special Album'' #1 (1974) *'' Doctor Strange'' #4 (1974) – uncredited''Doctor Strange'' #4 (Oct. 1974)
at the

Grand Comics Database The Grand Comics Database (GCD) is an Internet-based project to build a database of comic book information through user contributions. The GCD project catalogues information on creator credits, story details, reprints, and other information useful ...

. Retrieved September 1, 2008. *'' Dracula Lives'' #3, 10, Annual #1 (Curtis/Marvel, 1973–1975) *''Haunt of Horror'' #4 (1974) *'' Iron Man'' #91 (1976) *'' Ka-Zar'' (1974–75) *''

'' #10, 12–13 (1973–74) *''

Marvel Preview ''Marvel Preview'' is a black-and-white comics magazine published by Magazine Management for fourteen issues and the affiliated Marvel Comics Group for ten issues. The final issue additionally carried the imprint Marvel Magazines Group. Publica ...

'' #1 (1975) *''

Marvel Treasury Edition ''Marvel Treasury Edition'' is an American comic book series published by Marvel Comics from 1974 to 1981. It usually featured reprints of previously published stories but a few issues contained new material. The series was published in an oversi ...

'' #6 (1975) *'' Monsters Unleashed'' #3, Annual #1 (1973–75) *'' Power Man'' #31 (1976) *'' Savage Sword of Conan'' #2–3 (1974) *''

Savage Tales ''Savage Tales'' is the title of three American comics series. Two were black-and-white comics-magazine anthologies published by Marvel Comics, and the other a color comic book anthology published by Dynamite Entertainment. Publication history Ma ...

'' #7, 10 (1974–75)

1980s and 1990s

Continuity

*''Armor'' #1 (1985) *''The Basics'' (1985) *''Hybrids: The Origin'' #4–5 (1993) *'' Ms. Mystic'' #5 (1990) *'' Ms. Mystic'' (vol. 2) #1, 3 (1993) *''Revengers Featuring Armor and Silver Streak'' #1 (1985) *'' Urth 4'' (1989–1993)

References

External links

* Netzer, Michael
The Lives and Time of Crusty Bunker
Michael Netzer Online, September 17, 2007 * Rozakis, Bob

Comics Bulletin Comics Bulletin was a daily website covering the American comic-book industry. History Silver Bullet Comicbooks The site was founded in January 2000 as Silver Bullet Comicbooks by its New Zealand-based publisher/editor Jason Brice. During this ...

, April 23, 2001
Crusty Bunkers at the Comic Book DB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bunkers, Crusty American comics artists Collective pseudonyms Comics groups and collectives Comics inkers Continuity Comics