Cover artists

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richl
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Re: Cover artists

Post by richl »

OK, how about another classic comic strip character from Melbourne House? The cover art for Asterix and the Magic Cauldron is by Albert Uderzo (who else?) :)

Oh, and both Garfield games have Jim Davis' signature on the cover too (although a lot of his stuff is most likely done "in house" by Paws, Inc. rather than by him necessarily). And I guess the same goes for The Simpsons: Bart vs the Space Mutants and Matt Groening (who I'm almost certain does not/did not draw every single Simpsons-related picture that's been produced despite them all having his signature on). Maybe I'm opening too big a can of worms here?! :P
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Juan F. Ramirez
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Juan F. Ramirez »

Well, in my opinion we should include the author of the cover, no matter if the artwork is original or based on a comics character.

So, yes, let's open that can of worms! :mrgreen:
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

Juan F. Ramirez wrote: Sat Mar 10, 2018 9:59 pmJudge Dredd (Melbourne House): In the instructions it can be read: "cover artwork by an original design by Brian Bolland"
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

Einar Saukas wrote: Sun Mar 11, 2018 3:38 pm
Juan F. Ramirez wrote: Sat Mar 10, 2018 9:59 pmJudge Dredd (Melbourne House): In the instructions it can be read: "cover artwork by an original design by Brian Bolland"
Added to ZXDB, thanks!
The loading screen (where Dredd is pointing angrily at the viewer) is based on a Brian Bolland drawing from the Block Mania storyline ("I'm with Rowdy Yates block!").
The inlay cover illustration is clearly by Mike McMahon (it's the cover of 2000AD #148):
http://www.2000ad.org/functions/cover.p ... mic=2000ad
Not that I'm a fan or anything... :)
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Juan F. Ramirez
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Juan F. Ramirez »

But if you look at the mobygames entry:

http://www.mobygames.com/game/judge-dredd__/cover-art

In 'manual side B', in the credits section it can be read (ok, a bit small, but it can be read) the artwork is by Bolland.
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

The inlay must be referring to the loading image.
Bolland and McMahon couldn't be more different artists, and that cover is, very clearly, by McMahon.
Here are all the McMahon covers.
www.2000ad.org/?zone=covers&page=artist ... mic=2000ad
Unfortunately, he didn't specifically sign this one (or the signature got cropped for publication).
By contrast, here is the original image that the loading screen is based on:
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/block-mania/4045-56739/
It's from the last issue of the story arc, drawn by Brian Bolland.
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

So what's the verdict? Should I modify the credits of this game?

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 96&id=2648
richl
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Re: Cover artists

Post by richl »

I'd say the cover was Mike McMahon too. The credit on the instructions says "from an original design by Brian Bolland" but doesn't say he actually drew it. It doesn't look like his style and there's the fact that it is a perfect match for the cover of 2000AD Prog 148.

Here's a larger version of that portion of the instructions from my own scan:

Image

Also, here's some info for Slaine. Glenn Fabry did the cover and there's also some other info about who worked on the game (actually, the Judge Dredd one has some potentially missing info too):

Image
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

Do you mean credits for Judge Dredd should be like this?

Cover by Mike McMahon
Load screen by Brian Bolland
richl
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Re: Cover artists

Post by richl »

I can't speak for Kweepa (obviously!) but I think crediting the loading screen to Brian Bolland doesn't sound right. The cover artwork is by Mike McMahon and it could be argued that the loading screen is based on an image by Brian Bolland but that might be stretching it a bit. It's not an exact copy of the Brian Bolland image but it may be what they meant to refer to in the credits section on the instructions sheet. Personally, I think someone just made a mess up when putting the instructions together (or they swapped out the cover image at some point?) and Bri got a credit he shouldn't have because (unless I'm massively wrong!) he didn't create Judge Dredd's original design.

Anyway, it's probably best to stick to what is verifiable and in this case only the cover artist is 100% verifiable... currently.
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

richl, my thoughts exactly.
(Dredd's look was designed by Carlos Ezquerra, another iconic artist whose style is immediately recognizable and not on display here...)
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

OK, this will be changed in the next ZXDB update. Thanks!
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Juan F. Ramirez
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Juan F. Ramirez »

Driller Tanks:

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 96&id=1524

In the scanned instructions (see the Mobygames link) it says:

"Cover Illustration: Roger Garland, Young Artists"
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

We have been contacted by someone working on a documentary, trying to identify authors of cover artists for the following games:

Zaxxan (Starzone Software)
Death Cruiser (Noble House Software)
Volcano - The Action Game
Anirog - Specgraf (Anirog Software)
Jasper! (Micromega)
Starstrike (Realtime software)
Codename Mat (Micromega)
Moon Buggy (Anirog)
Hungry Horace

Does anybody have information about these titles?

Thank you!
richl
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Re: Cover artists

Post by richl »

Jasper! is by Paul Cemmick
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Cemmick

His signature is on the bottom left of the cover but isn't very clear. On the magazine ads they put text over the top of it but I eventually worked out what it was through some trial and error!

Here's a clearer example of his signature, just because I like to present evidence to back up my claims! ;)

Image
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

Thanks!
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

Zaxxan - nothing in the scans; really nice illustration for 1983!
Death Cruiser - "Design by Portland Artists" is the credit in the advert (same illustration as the cover).
Volcano - "Design/Illustration by Angel Art".
Specgraf - no obvious signature or credit
Jasper! - signature is small (under the snake in the bottom left). Here's the best pic I could find from the covers in ZXDB:
Image
Nicely found, richl! (I thought it said Paul Comwick :( )
Starstrike - Olly Frey? according to the contributor list in ZXDB
Moon Buggy - no obvious signature or credit (looks similar to Specgraf - in terms of art skill level)
Hungry Horace - just looks like a copy of the loading screen art, which was probably by William Tang

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Last edited by Kweepa on Tue Mar 13, 2018 10:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

Thanks!
richl
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Re: Cover artists

Post by richl »

Kweepa seems to have covered pretty much all of them but I've got a couple more signatures:

Zaxxan is Oli Frey - his signature has ZX Spectrum 48k slapped over the top of it on the inlay but is visible on the full page ad for the game
Same again for Starstrike - his signature is visible on the bottom left of the cover image
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

Well spotted!
:)
I just looked up Oli Frey because I thought maybe he had died (nope, that was Bob Wakelin), and that might be a problem for the documentary. I didn't know about his 'Zack' years! Or that he was in the Swiss army.
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

Rogue Trooper cover is by Dave Gibbons (it's the cover of 2000AD 228, the first appearance of Rogue Trooper).
Strontium Dog: The Killing cover is by Carlos Ezquerra. I didn't find a reference in the Agency Files - it may be an original for the game.
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Kweepa
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Kweepa »

The cover to Nemesis the Warlock is by Bryan Talbot (you can see his signature along the left hand side). Definitely not his best work!
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Rorthron
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Rorthron »

Confirmed as by Roger Garland (box credits);
Oil Strike
Weathermaster
Disease Dodgers
Planet Patrol
Eric and the Floaters
Bubble Buster
Panama Joe
Driller Tanks

Linda and Roger Garland (box credits):
King Arthur's Quest (cover and poster)

Very probably also by Roger Garland, but not confirmed (same style, same time):
Stop the Express

(An aside: Roger Garland is probably best known for his Tokien illustrations. He provided the covers for most of the 1980s Unwin paperback editions, for example.)

Confirmed as by Dave Eaton (box credits):
MacMan and the Caber Eater
MacMan and the Treasure Caves
MacMan's Magic Mirror
Soundabout
Body Swap
LOGO (Sinclair)

Almost certainly also by Dave Eaton, but not confirmed (same series, same characters, same style):
MacMan and the Great Escape
Alphabetter
Learn to Read 1-5
Wordsetter

Stuart Hughes (box credit):
Zipper Flipper

John Harris (internet mentions, eg Wikipedia):
Original ZX81 manual
Original ZX Spectrum manual

Michael Foreman (box credit):
The Saga of Erik the Viking
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Rorthron
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Rorthron »

Stephen Robertson:
Happiest Days of Your Life
Harvey Headbanger
I, Ball
Olli and Lisa

David Rowe:
Bounces
The Sentinel
Flying Shark
Soft Aid
Way of the Exploding Fist
Frenzy
Glass
Dandy
Infodroid
Prodigy
The Centurions: Power X Treme
Delta
Dogfight: 2187
Hybrid
I, Ball II
Chubby Gristle
Licensed to Kill
Continental Circus
Tank Attack

Susan Rowe:
Jewels of Darkness (internal art)

Herman Serrano:
Weird Dreams
Carrier Command

Steinar Lund:
Starglider (poster)
Gyron
I, Ball
3D Pool
QS Defenda
QS Asteroids
QS Invaders
Classic Adventure
Dragonsbane
Smugglers Cove
Xadom
Boulderdash
Blood 'n' Gutz
Gatecrasher
Fighting Warrior
Gyroscope
Codename: MAT II
Riddlers Den
Battle of the Planets
Dynamite Dan
Terror of the Deep
Cop Out
Frost Byte
Stainless Steel
Orbix the Terror Ball
Mermaid Madness
Jahangir Khan World Championship Squash
Knuckle Busters
Redhawk
Kwah!
Moon Strike
Nigel Mansell’s Grand Prix
Armageddon Man
Mega Apocalypse
Terramex
Live and Let Die
Hellfire Attack
Pac-Mania
APB
Space Harrier II
Total Eclipse
Thunderbirds
Lords of Chaos
Scramble Spirits
Stunt Car Racer
Manchester United

Sources:
Crash 19
http://birdsanctuary.co.uk/artists/
http://www.boxequalsart.com/djrartistpage.html
http://www.boxequalsart.com/steinarlundartistpage.html

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Einar Saukas
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Re: Cover artists

Post by Einar Saukas »

Thanks! I'm adding all this information to ZXDB.

However I'm having trouble to identify the following titles:

The Centurions: Power X Treme
Delta
QS Invaders
Classic Adventure
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