(New Bedford, MA/USA—November 5, 2024) The 501(c)(3) non-profit Inkwell Awards, devoted to promoting the art of comic book inking, announces that it’s 3rd Joe Sinnott Legacy Challenge Spotlight, featuring Marvel’s Incredible Hulk by artist Allen Milgrom.
The event was launched in 2021 to commemorate the life and long career of the late, award-winning ink artist Joe Sinnott, and the prior annual inking event that had borne his name since 2010. The previous Challenge featured Sinnott’s oft-partner Ron Frenz on Thor and his Amazing Spider-man Sunday news strip partner Alex Saviuk with Spidey and Mary Jane. This year, artist Al Milgrom‘s exclusive pencil art was scanned and sent to a variety of ink artists to embellish. Al’s career started in 1972 with ink assisting Murphy Anderson and Crusty Bunkers before he was credited for inking jobs. Around 1975 he was pencilling Captain Marvel following Jim Starlin and Guardians of the Galaxy in Marvel presents. For much of his career, he was not only penciling and inking titles but he was also an editor from 1977 at DC, where he also co-created Firestorm, and started editing at Marvel in 1979 leading to a memorable ten-year stint on Marvel Fanfare. In the 1980s not only was Al incredibly prolific with inking much of the Marvel Universe of projects but he was also hired for his writing on Spider-man and the Hulk. Joe Sinnott was paired with Al for a couple of notable, long stints at Marvel in the 1980s such as the Avengers for 2 years followed by West Coast Avengers for 2 years, and many covers starting in the late 1970s through the 1980s.
Al Milgrom shared “I worked with Joe for a number of years both as an editor and as a penciller. He was undoubtedly one of the very best, most reliable pros I ever worked with. I was always thrilled to have him ink any of the books I edited. So much so that if his workload or deadline pressures ever threatened to keep him from completing a book for me, I would often jump in and do backgrounds for him just so he could complete all the figure work. As a penciler, I was always astonished at how well he transformed my breakdowns into much more polished, professional-looking work! Any weaknesses in my drawing were smoothed over if not completely wiped away by his superior drawing ability and level of craft. I counted myself very lucky indeed to have him ink me on many issues of the Avengers and West Coast Avengers. I’m sure he would’ve been welcomed on other titles by better artists but I knew a secret…Joe liked inking breakdowns. On those looser, less finished scratchings he got paid an extra $25 per page and I got the same amount less per page. According to Joe, he was going to do the same amount of work either way so he was glad to get the extra amount added to his page rate. Believe me–I was the happier of the two of us to take the lower rate to get Joe’s exquisite India Ink Improvements on my work. On top of all that he was as sweet-natured an individual as you could ever want to work with, a true gentleman in every sense of the word. Besides the titles mentioned above I penciled a fair number of Hulk covers which Joe inked–to excellent results. That’s why I chose to draw our not-so-jolly green giant for this inking challenge. Now get out your pens and brushes fellow ink-slingers and try, just try to compete with the great Joe Sinnott. And you’re not getting that extra $25 a page!”
Joe’s son and Inkwell special ambassador Mark Sinnott added “On behalf of the entire Sinnott family, I am pleased to announce that Al Milgrom has agreed to be the next artist of the Inkwell Awards’ Joe Sinnott Legacy Challenge. Al will be the third artist that collaborated with my dad to contribute, joining Ron Frenz (Thor) and Alex Saviuk (Spider-man). Al and Joe worked together on numerous issues of The Avengers and West Coast Avengers, as well as several covers of ROM Spaceknight, Nova, Marvel Team-up, Fantastic Four, Ms. Marvel, Savage She-Hulk, and The Incredible Hulk. It is the Hulk that Al will be adding to this challenge for the inkers to participate in and honor Joe’s legacy. I would like to thank Al for all the great work over the years that he and my dad produced, and for being the feature artist on this Joe Sinnott Legacy Inking Challenge. Also, a big thank you in advance to all the inkers that will have the opportunity to ink Al’s Hulk as a tribute to Joltin’ Joe.”
For a month, 40 artists have volunteered to participate by inking the blueline pencils printed on board with the option of using the clean, slick line for which Sinnott was known, or in their own way to showcase how much the ink artist can contribute stylistically. Both professionals and amateurs were allowed to take part for the Inkwell’s promotional and educational fundraiser project.
As in past years, Sinnott’s son Mark and daughter-in-law are also contributing. Artists include relative newcomers and legendary veterans, from mainstream professionals to small press/indie pros. And ink artists new to the Challenges include Steven Baskerville, Matt Slay, Karl Story (tentative), and Tom Raney among others. In alphabetical order, the participants as of press time are:
- Gerry Acerno
- Oclair Albert
- Noah Barrett
- Stephen Baskerville
- Steven Bearfield
- Sean Begley
- Eliot R. Brown
- Bill Cader
- Sergio Cariello
- Kevin Conrad
- Marc Deering
- Michelle Delecki
- Mark Farmer
- Eber Ferreira
- David Fox
- Scott Hanna
- Don Ho
- Scott Koblish
- Tony Kordos
- J.E. Lozano
- Criss Madd
- Henry Martinez
- Jose Marzan Jr.
- Mark McKenna
- Jason Metcalf
- Chuck Morgan
- Ed Murr
- Joe Orsak
- Steven Pennella
- Tom Raney
- Marc Rubino
- Matt Santorelli
- Tom Schloendorn
- Mark Sinnott
- Belinda Sinnott
- Matt Slay
- Bob Smith
- Mark Stegbauer
- Karl Story (tentative)
- Keith Williams
- Chance Wolf
Each inked page will be signed by Milgrom and the inker. All pages, plus a certificate of authenticity signed by The Inkwells’ founder/director, Bob Almond, will be auctioned off as an eBay fundraiser in biweekly waves beginning a weekend in mid-January. Information about the upcoming fundraising auctions can be found on the Inkwell’s website and Facebook group.
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