Duane S. reviewed Hal Foster: Prince of Illustrators, Father of the Adventure Strip on + 23 more book reviews
Hal Foster worked during the Golden Age of newspaper comic strips -- what we called the Funny Pages in my youth (which was long after that Golden Age) during Foster's tenure works of art on each newsprint page. Foster's lovely work with pen and ink and brush was closer to that of the turn-of-the-century illustrators, such as N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle, Frank Schoonover, Harvey Dunn, Charles Russell, among others. He is notable for being the first artist to draw the Tarzan comic strip, which had as vigorous a popularity as Edgar Rice Burroughs' novels and the many films about the Ape Man. Foster's greatest creation, of course, was Prince Valiant. His careful storytelling combined with his beautiful artwork to build something absolutely remarkable and unique in the history of comic strips. This book offers many, many examples of his work, and is a delight to view.
