Any true fan of comics and popular culture will tell you that George Wilson’s painted cover art for Dell and Gold Key Comics from the 1950’s through the 1980’s is the stuff of legend. While publishers like DC, Marvel, and Charlton offered covers with line art and mechanical four-color process coloring, Wilson’s brush strokes soared above the competition on spinner racks to grab the eyes of young readers. For many years, parent company Western Publishing’s books outsold Superman, Batman, and many of the other popular characters offered by the leading publishers.
The new book The Art of George Wilson by Anthony Taylor, due for release on March 5th from Hermes Press explores Wilson’s visual magic in great depth via outstanding reproductions of his work and valuable insights by fellow artists.
Astounding Attention to Detail
“His cover work for Dell/Gold Key Comics alone is staggering in not only its breadth and diversity of subject matter, but in the consistency of quality he maintained. No detail ever seemed to be overlooked or fudged. Period clothes and cars and carriages and ships, as well as animals and dinosaurs of every type were all meticulously and accurately rendered. Likenesses, like Jonathan Frid’s Barnabas Collins (from Dark Shadows), were always on-point,” raves artist Joe Jusko. “His imagination and design sense both awe and inspire me to this day.”
A posthumously (1921-1998) decorated World War II veteran, Wilson was part of the “Ghost Army,” a brigade of artists and designers that kept Allied Forces safe in occupied Europe by confounding the Nazis with disinformation and glorious artifice using such tricks as inflatable tanks and “phantom” troop movement sounds. The Ghost Army soldiers received the Congressional Gold Medal in March of 2024 for their exemplary service.
George Wilson’s illustrations reliably reflected his personal flair, an impeccable sense of color and design, and they were always—ALWAYS—handed in on time. His “under-promise, over-deliver” work ethic made him popular with art directors and clients, and his gorgeous imagery endeared him with readers. A quiet and unassuming fellow, he let his work speak for him. And it spoke volumes.
The Art of George Wilson clocks in at 208 pages, with more than two-hundred color reproductions, a foreword by Joe Jusko and an afterword by Ghost Army Legacy Project founder, filmmaker, and journalist Rick Beyer. The hardcover book will be available both online and at retail, in bookstores and comic book shops.
For more information, visit Hermes Press.
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