Smiling at the new DEATHSTROKE #15 variant cover by Neal Adams. My inner comic fan was always tickled to be in the comics, going all the way back to a Gold Key issue of STAR TREK when Allan Asherman and I were written in as red shirts (and we all know what happens to them…). Showing up in stories I was connected to was nice but not surprising (the LEGION tabloid, the Wedding of Superman and Lois a generation later, with a few others in between). Being mentioned in the Marvel Bullpen Bulletins a couple of times was a special treat, as it crossed company lines. But covers are so rare. As best I can recall, the last time I made the cover was also by Neal — SUPERMAN VS. MUHAMMAD ALI with its amazing crowd scene. Thanks, Neal!
BTW, recalling the ALI cover brings to mind Carol Fein. Carol had been Carmine’s secretary before leaving to have her second daughter. I used to stand by her desk to read Jack Kirby’s Fourth World issues as they came in from the coast. She came back to DC shortly after Jenette Kahn arrived to assist Jenette when the secretary she inherited from Carmine was a bad fit. Carol became the company morale officer, with her booming boro accent (think Fran Drescher with less restraint), sexy sense of humor, and endless warmth. No one could make a bagel party come to life better than Carol. Anyway, Carol was responsible for chasing the paperwork permissions for each of the people on the ALI cover: celebrities, politicians, comics folks; and only the very rare person would say no to her. In mid-life she battled MS with enormous courage, and sadly we lost her way too soon. A lot of the people on the DEATHSTROKE cover shared smiling moments with Carol…
And, of course, you’ve also tickled folks’ inner fanchild. I certainly appreciated it when you used my name in Legion for a scientist whose theorem Brainiac 5 approved of, and enjoyed thinking of how I would’ve reacted as a kid reading my favorite book to know that’d eventually happen.