Normally I don’t dwell over obituaries after I write my own tribute to the deceased, but in the case of Dave Stevens, I’m learning a lot of interesting things about a guy I actually knew little about.

For instance, the LA Times obit notes that Stevens drew storyboards for Raiders of the Lost Ark — the Official Star Wars blog specifies that Stevens illustrated the truck-fight sequence and “a famous lost Shanghai scene from Raiders which was later repurposed for Temple of Doom,” a little piece of trivia I’ve never encountered before — as well as Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video in 1983. (A slight tangent: I just purchased the 25th anniversary CD of the Thriller album, which includes a bonus disc of videos; I’d forgotten just how captivating and entertaining that “Thriller” vid is. Jackson may have turned into a creepy loon over the years, but at his creative peak, he really was something. An immense talent derailed by, I believe, psychological problems that no one wants to call him on.)

Anyway, the Times also mentions that Stevens thought Art Deco and old-fashioned streamline designs “much more charming than the world [he] found around [him],” an attitude I can relate to and which probably helps explain why I find his Rocketeer art so pleasing.

The Comics Reporter delves into Stevens’ career in some detail, calling him “one of the first stars of the 1980s independent comics generation” and noting that “[a]longside other emerging artists… Stevens helped provide the entire non-mainstream end of American comic books with a subtle, almost subliminal, legitimacy.” This account also explains that The Rocketeer‘s erratic publishing history wasn’t entirely because of Dave’s slow work pace (there was apparently a ridiculous lawsuit brought against Dave by Marvel Comics) and that Stevens was generally pleased with how the Rocketeer movie turned out, even if Disney was far more interested in potential licensing opportunities than in the story itself. (Typical.)
I was interested in artist William Wray had to say about his long friendship with Dave Stevens, which stretched back to their respective teen years and went through some ups and downs. His sentiments are a bit on the rambling side — understandably, considering he’s writing about a friend who has died unexpectedly — but they are real and heartfelt, and they provide a nice peek at the personal side of this great artist. (If nothing else, you’ve got to skim this piece for the anecdote about the aforementioned Michael Jackson, who wanted Stevens to draw a comic about him.)
And finally, I want to share some of Dave’s amazing art, which never fails to press my happy buttons. (Full disclosure: these pieces all came from the Comics Reporter article, but I thought I’d bring them over here in case you don’t feel like clicking through.) The first image is of The Rocketeer’s “lady luck,” Betty, which fans of classic cheesecake will recognize as an uncanny likeness of Bettie Page:

Next up is a page from the actual Rocketeer comics, which gives you a good idea of the style, tone, and detail of these great books:

I love the copy there in the corner; it’s so deliciously over the top, and right out of the old Shadow radio shows…
And finally, a glimpse of the sort of one-off covers and pin-up work that Dave had been concentrating on in the post-Rocketeer phase of his career:

You can, of course, click any of these to blow them up and get a better view. I recommend that you do so…