Don Newton

Fan
Name:	Don Newton
Alias(es):
Type:	fanartist
Fandoms:	Comics
Communities:
Other:
URL:	The Art of Don Newton (via Wayback Sep 12/12)
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Self-Portrait, 1984

Don Newton (1934-1984) began as a fanartist before becoming a professional comics artist for Charlton Comics, Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the early 1970s. Known for his work on The Phantom, Aquaman, and Batman, he passed away of a heart attack at the age of fifty.

History

While working as an elementary school art teacher, Newton discovered US comics fandom in the 1960s with G.B. Love and the SFCA and he began providing art for Love's Rocket's Blast and its successor Rocket's Blast Comicollector; he produced over two dozen covers for these between 1969 and 1973, as well as contributing art for most of the major fanzines during these years. As well as covers and illustrations, he also produced a comic strip, "The Savage Earth," which ran in issues 60-70 of the RBCC. It is estimated that his art appeared in over 100 different fanzines.

"Don Newton was indeed the mainstay artist for many of the publications I did. And I never met a nicer person. He never asked for any payment for any work he did for me, though I would send him a few bucks when I could afford it...I guess I discovered Don. In the early sixties he wrote me a letter along with a couple of photos of his work. One was a color painting of Capt. Marvel and SHAZAM. I wrote him back asking if he would like to do some art for the RB&CC, and I mentioned the painting in the photo looked very nice. A couple of weeks later I received it in the mail as a gift (unfortunately I no longer have it)...I will say one thing. Don has much (if not more) to do with the success of the RBCC as anybody."

 

As well as a fanartist, Newton was a cosplayer, designing and wearing his own Captain Marvel/Shazam! costume at various early comic conventions. He also cosplayed as Superman.

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  Phoenix Comic Con (1970)

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  With C.C. Beck (creator of Shazam!) at Phoenix Comic Convention 1972

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  Don Newton (Superman), his son Tony (also Superman), David Lee (The Phantom) and Shane Shellenberger (Shazam!) at San Diego Comic Con (1973)

Newton began working for Charlton Comics in 1974, providing art for their horror comics line before moving onto The Phantom. From there he worked on a couple of pieces for Marvel before moving to DC, then to Marvel, then to DC again. A full bibliography of his professional work can be found on Wikipedia

Awards

• Comic Fan Art Award - Favorite Fan Artist - 1973

Fan Interviews

• Interview by Bill G. Wilson in the pages of The Collector #17 [1969]
• Interview by Howard Siegel in the pages of The Charlton Bullseye #5 [1976]
• Artist Don Newton on The Phantom and the death of Batwoman, a comic book deep dive David Books and Comics.
• Don Newton, an artist's artist! Let's look at his work! Andy Smith- Comic Artist.

Fanworks

A full checklist of Newton's fanzine contributions is available at Gary Keller's fansite, The Art of Don Newton. There is also a fandom gallery of his fanart from 1968 to 1982.

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  Rocket's Blast Special #8 front cover - Shazam! (1969)

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  Rocket's Blast Special #8 - Shazam! origin strip (1969)

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  Rocket's Blast Special #8 wraparound cover (1969)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #65 front cover - "This Savage Earth", Newton's original comic strip (1969).

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #68 cover - The Hangman (1970)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #69 interior centrespread - Thor (1970)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #75 front cover (1970)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #76 front cover - Flash Gordon (1970)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #82 front cover - Hawkman (1971)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #84 front cover - Tarzan (1971)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #87 front cover - Green Hornet (1972)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #89 front cover - Green Lantern

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #90 front cover (1972)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #91 front cover - Shazam! Family and C.C. Beck (1972)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #95 front cover - Zorro (1972)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #97 front cover - Captain Boomerang (1973)

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  The Collector #28 front cover - The Shadow (1973)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #99 front cover - Spacehawk (1973)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #100 front cover - Superman (1973)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #104 front cover - Starman (1973)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #105 front cover - The Phantom (1973)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #110 front cover - Dracula (1974)

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  Rocket's Blast Comicollector #112 front cover - Flash Gordon (1974)

Reviews and Reactions

I'll be honest: my first exposure to Don's work has been this year, while translating his long runs on BATMAN and DETECTIVE COMICS for the new Italian edition, so I'm not an old fan of his work. Before that, I only heard his name in Italy something like... twice. Being common thought that Batman before Frank Miller almost didn't exist, just a few readers know and remember the art of Don Newton. And surely I'm glad I'm now one of them.

I love how Don was able to give humanity to his characters. Batman and the others were persons, but no photos like in so many current comics. He could draw very well both action and reflexive scenes. I especially like his Batman/Commissioner Gordon dialogues, where the two characters really seem old friends.

 

Don Newton is a puzzlingly under-rated artist. It’s not as if too few of his pages exist to appreciate properly, as he worked for DC between 1978 and his tragically early 1984 death, primarily on Batman or related strips. This collection reprints roughly half his Batman output.

There’s never any querying what’s happening in a Newton story, or wondering how a character arrived in one spot from another, but that clarity is accompanied by imaginative, memorable page layouts and thought about Batman as a person. It’s now rare to look at Batman comics and believe he’s the same person as Bruce Wayne, yet with Newton’s pages it’s eminently plausible. His is an energetic, gymnastic Batman in action, a thoughtful character when following clues or assessing evidence and a believable human being. He’s placed in a shadowy Gotham oozing atmosphere, and Newton is a constantly improving artist.

 

I was already enjoying Charlton’s Phantom series, and then along came Don Newton’s electrifying new take. I’ll never forget how exciting his early work was.

Any comics fan who hasn’t seen Newton’s work should seek it out.

Newton was a special talent, and his premature death was a tragic loss for every lover of the comics medium.

 

When Dick Giordano said good bye to Don in the pages of DC comics he said this, “Don was a true professional. He made his deadlines, was completely absorbed in his work, never complained or made excuses, and didn’t spend a lot of time on the phone either to the office or to his fellow professionals. When he had to, he phoned. Otherwise, he preferred to spend his time drawing. To my mind, Don’s final statement was the Green Lantern Corps story he penciled and inked that appeared in Green Lantern #181. he showed us how to do it right.”

 

External Links

• An Homage to Don Newton - Facebook.
• "Don Newton" tag, Cap'n's Comics