Johnny Craig

John Thomas Alexis Craig was an American comic book artist notable for his work with the EC Comics line of the 1950s. He sometimes used the pseudonyms Jay Taycee and F. C. Aljohn.

Biography

Early life and career Born in Pleasantville, New York, Craig studied at the Art Students League of New York. While attending classes, he began working in 1940 as an assistant of Harry Lampert, When he teamed with Al Feldstein, they used the pseudonym F. C. Aljohn. His first EC horror work came with the cover art for The Crypt of Terror #17 (May 1950) and both the art and script for that issue's seven-page story "Curse of the Full Moon". Ironically, Craig was one of the more wholesome EC artists, frequently choosing to show the reactions of characters rather than the horrific event itself.

Later career After EC's collapse in the wake of the United States Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency hearings, Craig worked briefly for Atlas Comics, the 1950s predecessor of Marvel Comics, then spent several successful years at an advertising agency in Pennsylvania, though he lamented that his responsibilities there prevented him from drawing much. He returned to comics in the 1960s with art for ACG's Unknown Worlds and other titles.

His resurfacing prompted Warren Publishing editor Archie Goodwin to have Craig draw for Warren's magazines from 1966 to 1968, during which time Craig (who still worked in advertising) used the pseudonym Jay Taycee, a phonetic pronunciation of his four initials. Of his attempts to work for DC Comics and Marvel Comics, however, comics historian Mark Evanier wrote,

By any name, the work was excellent, but Craig's efforts to work for the "big two" — DC and Marvel — were not as successful. In 1967, he applied at DC. Recalling the excellence of his EC stories, editor George Kashdan gave him an issue of The Brave and the Bold to draw — a Batman/Hawkman team-up. Craig handed the job in weeks late, whereupon his art was deemed too subdued, even for the relatively staid DC super-hero comics of the time. Before publication (in issue #70), the pages were heavily retouched and revised as to expunge any trace of Johnny Craig's style. After penciling and inking Iron Man #2 and a supernatural story in Tower of Shadows #1, heavily retouched by John Romita Sr., Craig became primarily an inker. He did however complete Iron Man #2–4, 14, 24 and 25, the latter inked by Sam Grainger.

By the early 1980s, Craig stopped drawing for comics and was semi-retired until his death in 2001. He did do many paintings of the Vault-Keeper, Drusilla and other E.C. horror themes, for private commissions, E.C. fanzines and other publications, and these works showed excellent technique in oils. His last known residences were Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, and Shiremanstown, Pennsylvania.

Awards Craig was posthumously inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame on July 15, 2005, at San Diego Comic-Con.