NEW BAMA BOOK INCLUDES “DOC” COVERS: The illustration art of Cody artist James Bama have now been collected into a 160-page full-color book, James Bama: American Realist (hardbound edition ISBN: 0-9723758-8-0, signed and numbered hardbound edition ISBN: 0-9723758-9-9). It was written by Brian M. Kane with Harlan Ellison and Len Leone. Here’s a description: "James Bama: American Realist is the first book to span his entire career. Examples explore his diverse brush from magazine illustrations, paperback book covers, and advertising. Chapters examine his work in pop culture, horror, science fiction, adventure and western genres, concluding with his most recent fine art endeavors. This volume features a detailed biography exploring his noteworthy and singular career. Insightful quotes by Bama accompany many pieces. In addition, testimonials by leading artists, writers, and historians are contained throughout. During his career, Bama’s art graced many memorable pop culture paperback book covers. Among his most notable works are the 62 cover paintings for Bantam’s Doc Savage adventure series, all of which are contained within. More than 260 illustrations are featured, of which more than 85 are from the original art. The deluxe edition is limited to 1,000 signed and numbered copies, with slipcase, and Paul Jilbert’s one hour documentary of the artist on DVD.” What I found particularly intriguing are Bama’s illustrations of the “Doc Savage” covers. These book were written by Lester Dent, who grew up (1912-1918) as an only child on a remote ranch near Pumpkin Buttes in the Powder River Basin. While Dent’s imagination ran free during his years of isolation, he fled Wyoming when he was old enough. Bama, on the other hand, escaped from New York City in 1968 to move to Cody. These two talented men never met, but their lives intersected on the cover of a book. Here’s a quote about Dent from Will Murray’s unpublished biography of the author: “Because he lived in an arid locale where the nearest water was a day’s ride away, many of his daydreams concerned the ocean, which he had never seen.”
- posted by Michael Shay @ 4:00 PM