A couple of months ago in this column I talked about Good Girl Art covers and in the post I mentioned a few of the iconic ones and I also wrote that I wasn’t qualified to rate them. I’m walking that statement back because in today’s post I’m going to list the top ten Good Girl Art covers of the Golden Age. This will be my second Top 10 post if you count my recent Top 20 Pre-Code Horror covers. In that post I mentioned how covers 11 to 20 could be easily changed to others just as worthy. I think the same applies to Good Girl Art covers so I’ll stick to the Top 10.
This list took a bit of work, I had a few no-brainers to help me out but even with those, I had to choose the rankings. The rest on the list come from personal preference as I had to exclude a lot of great Good Girl Art covers. I’ve probably even missed a few though I did look at at least 100 covers and I’ve been a fan of the genre forever.
I did use some constraints for this list, I tried to stay away from repeated motifs so I limited the number of covers of Phantom Lady tied to a pole for example. I also tried to use a variety of artists as I’m sure Matt Baker could have squeezed a few more onto this list. I also defined the Good Girl Art genre very loosely and ventured into Crime and Humor as I saw fit.
So let’s get to the covers.
10. Joe Doolin’s cover to Planet Comics #57 is a personal favourite, I think its the best Good Girl Art cover of the run and its the only one on the list that I can admit to forcing in.
9. As soon as you see a copy of Arthur Peddy’s cover to Airboy Vol 4 #8 you want to buy it, I chose it as the best of the multiple covers that share a similar motif, Fight Comics had a few good candidates like #27 but for me its the Airboy.
8. Bob Montana’s cover to Archie #50 has turned into a Good Girl Art must have. The Headlight cover is exaggerated by Archie looking and getting caught like a deer in the headlights.
7. Graham Ingels’ cover to Startling Comics #46 with its airbrush effect is a great Good Girl Art cover. I think its the sleeper cover on this list as you don’t see it talked about as much as many of the others.
6. Bob Lubbers gives us a classic Good Girl Art cover on Wings Comics #80. Great subtlety in his lines, top shelf stuff right here.
5. Bill Ward’s cover to Torchy #5 is one of the genre’s favourites. The whole Torchy title screams Good Girl Art. Torchy #5 with the timeless and not so subtle erection innuendo makes it a must-have.
4. Jack Kamen’s cover for Brenda Starr #14 is hardcore stuff, one of the toughest covers of the whole genre. The cover has a jarring effect that draws you right into the situation.
3. Matt Baker making us want to go out for a walk with his glorious cover to Giant Comics Edition #12. There is a well-collected sub-genre of working girl covers and this is the most coveted of them all.
2. Will Eisner’s masterpiece is his cover to Spirit #22, this thing is beyond legendary. Spirit #22’s beauty comes from its style and its simplicity in its depiction of the one thing no man has a defence for, the Femme Fatale.
- No surprise here, Matt Baker’s cover to Phantom Lady #17 is the most celebrated, controversial and written about cover of the genre. The importance of this cover cannot be overstated. Jump online one day when you have time and read up on this icon.
Limiting to ten does pose a problem as there were a lot of great covers in this category! My list would have included Nellie the Nurse 10 and True Life Secrets 23 ( a book I got from you… shameless plug)! Airboy had a lot of great covers… while there are plenty I like better, but this has to be included for the strapped to the propeller aspect. I find the Airfighters with Valkerie more to my liking however! I knew the Betty Archie cover would be included and it is on my bucket list if I can ever find an affordable copy! Honorable mentions are all the female heroes, Blackcat, Namora, Sheena, etc. Also, its hard to pick a Planet and Startling cover from the many produced! Perhaps a part two is in order?
I agree Gerald, a part two is in order…too many of the same ol same ol famous good gal covers, as many more undiscovered ones exist out there. Whatta ya say Walt? you knew Id bust your chops about this
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Archie 50 is an absolutely favorite of mine–I haven’t pulled the trigger on it yet, but expect to do so at some point in the future.
Walt! Now you’re talking my language here. I think most of your choices are great however I just can’t bring myself to thinking the Brenda Starr is up there with the rest. I don’t think it’s cheesecake-y or pinup-y (I don’t think either of those are words but you get the drift) enough for me.
Gerald, I completely agree. There really should be a part 2 to this post. Those are mostly great but also most of them, if not all, are the usual suspects. But all in all I think it’s a great post and certainly deserving to be on GGA collectors lists.
Maybe we should all pitch in one issue and the next post can be a cumulative top 10. Thoughts? Well if not, I’m still going to say Sugar Bowl #4 should be up there too.
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Wow… that True Love Pictorial is great Dave! I was not familiar with Sugar Bowl either Chris… another good one! Those forties artists LOVED those skating covers! I know both Suzy and Ginger had covers similar to the Betty one but I like Betty the way Chris loves Power Girl… well…. maybe not quite the way he loves Power Girl….
Great list! I love it when you stray a bit from the norm and give us more insight. I also like it when the group lists some others that have bubbled under the radar. You are right about Matt Baker. Of the 20 most valuable good girl art comics, eleven have Baker covers. I have an affinity for Junior Comics 15 as this is an exact representation of my wife and I on our last canoe jaunt. Except the age is off by decades.
Perhaps a romance comic good girl art list.
Guys, many of these are same old same old for a reason, they are the best of the best!
Round 2? Might be a good idea but for sure I’ll take Alex up on the Top 10 Romance Covers which is different enough from GGA.
Nice to see Archie 50 get a few nods and its nice to see some of your examples and favorites. Dave, pal, a few of yours are – show should I say – questionable.
I think a part 2 must be in order. Dave, some good ones but I’m not sure about the Tarzan’s.. and yes that Ginger is great… But I have to say that True Love Pictorial is amazing!
Alex, that Junior 15 is great. A lot of those were by the great Al Feldstein. Fantastic choice.
Gerald, do I need to do a top 10 Power Girl covers if Walt lets me?
That would be great Chris! In fact the ONLY thing I know about Power Girl is that she really fills out a costume…it is a white costume I think…
Walt, Chris…just trying to open your eyes to something new in Good girl Covers….
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