SPIRIT WORLD
Vol. 1 No. 1
Hampshire Distributors, Inc. (DC Comics)
Editor: Jack Kirby
Assistant Editors: Steve Sherman; Mark Evanier
Cover: Jack Kirby w/extensive revisions by Neal Adams
Pages: 52
Cover price: 50 cents
One of the weirdest-ever anomalies in comic book publishing is JACK KIRBY'S SPIRIT WORLD, an experimental, full-size 'zine where he was apparently given full rein over the content. Drenched in Kirby's burgeoning classic 70's cosmic excursions, it landed from outer space in the Fall of 1971, around the time that the Fourth World Mothership was just lifting off.
The images nearly explode off the page and his use of collage only intensifies the kaleidoscopic, mind-numbing visuals. If anyone doesn't think Mr. Kirby was a genius after they see this, they are either being kept prisoner in a room without windows or don't read comics!
Despite the colophon, SW was published by DC, who gave him the go-ahead for this project with a wink and a nod. He was assisted by Steve Sherman and Mark Evanier, who eventually authored his biography. His pencils were inked by Vinnie Colletta.
The stories were all psychic/occult-themed, including a wild one that was about a woman who foresees JKF's death and a captioned photo story concerning a California UFO cult (!). Sherman and Evanier add a text story and there is one page of Sergio Aragones cartoons. Also included is the 4-page pull-out poster that originally came with the magazine.
SW suffered from really lousy distribution and was probably at least partially due to DC's half-hearted support of the project. As a result, mountains of warehouse copies were left over and found themselves remaindered to intrepid hucksters who sold them over the years to collectors, mostly for cheap.
DC loosened the chain one more time for a Kirby magazine-size comic, IN THE DAYS OF THE MOB (coming to WoM soon!). While the material was a little more conventional, what do you do for product placement on the newsstand with something like these?
One more note -- there was announcement in February of this year that there was a planned relaunch of SPIRIT WORLD by -- wait for it -- DC! Does it get any weirder?
Gaze ye now in wonderment, into the spirit world of Jack Kirby!
Thanks. Spirit World is truly weird comic. And I agree with you -- Jack "King" Kirby is a genius. The reprint DC did some years ago gathers together all the stories which Kirby did for this issue and the unpublished second. It's a great package if you can find it for a reasonable price.
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