Comics Interview — Issue #081

McFarlane discusses leaving Amazing Spider-Man to launch a new self-written Spider-Man series, explaining his desire to write and draw his own stories outside continuity, with standalone arcs of three to five issues. He reflects on his artistic influences (Ditko, Romita, Golden, Kirby), his approach to the character's visual redesign (bigger eyes, heavier webbing), and his philosophy of letting sales—not critics—judge his work.

Part one of a sprawling Golden Age oral history, with Barry recounting his early career in Brooklyn, his introduction to comics through Joe Heller's social circle, his apprenticeship at the Simon & Kirby studio, and working for Fawcett under the Binder packagers. He discusses the creative genius of Harvey Kurtzman (who co-wrote early Flash Gordon strips), the unsung mastery of Mort Meskin, and the legendary perfectionism of Mac Raboy on Flash Gordon. Part one of two.

Gelb reconnects with Simmons after discovering that the KISS co-founder had written columns in his 1960s fanzine Men of Mystery under the pseudonym Gene Klein. Simmons recalls his 1958 arrival from Israel, learning English through DC and Marvel comics, his intense fandom for Kirby, Ditko, and Gil Kane, and his own fanzine publishing. He discusses how comic-book archetypes directly influenced KISS's visual identity, the Marvel KISS comic (with Stan Lee present for a blood-in-the-ink promotional stunt), his failed attempt to play Jon Sable on television, and current projects including the Delta Tenn TV pilot and his record label Simmons Records.

A reprint of an unpublished college paper written by Simmons under his birth name Gene Klein, arguing that comics should be used as classroom teaching aids across subjects such as English, sociology, and science. The paper draws on McLuhan's media theory and Simmons's own experience learning English through comics as an Israeli immigrant.