Orbit: Comic Creators: Stan Lee, Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, Jack Kirby & William M. Marston , bd

More than fifty years later, he'd
recall arriving in France ten
days after the D-Day invasion.

"An unimaginable sight,
thousands of bodies.

JUNE 16, 1944
OMAHA BEACH
NORMANDY, FRANCE

Jack Kirby was never the
same after World War II.
How could he be?

"All the horror of those
memories live with me to this
day. They are a part of me."

THE MAN WHO WAS
THE KING

1930s
NEW YORK CITY

Jacob called it
the "street code."

He enforced the code,
just like his neighbors,
although he was a little...
creative... in his violence.

J a c o bw a sa sm a l lk id ,a l w a y s
a c u t e l ya w a r eo ft h en e e dt o
l o o kt o u g h ,t ot a k et h ep a inb u t
n e v e rs h o wy o uw e r ef e e l in git .

I tw a sa ha r dl if ef o r
s o m e o n ea ss e n s it iv ea s
J a c o b ,f o ra na r t is t .

" Iw a s
h u r t in g . . .

Of course violence had always
been a part of his life, a life that
began under the name Jacob
Kurtzberg on August 28, 1919, in
Manhattan's Lower East Side.

"I was a tough kid from a
tough neighborhood," Jack
once recalled.

"I got into
fights everyday."

"Corn-on-the-cob, when
thrown swiftly and well, was
effective as any brick."

" . . . h u r t in gf o rt h el o u s y
t h in g sw eh a dt od of o r
t h es t r e e tc o d e . "

A g a in ,it wa sn ol if e
f o ra se n s it iv ea r t is t .

" Il o v e dm yf a t h e r ,b u tI
d id n 'tw a n tt ob eh im . "

" W ew o r k e do nr o w s
o ft a b l e s2 0 0y a r d s
l o n g .I tb e g a nt o
l o o kl ik et h eg a r m e n t
f a c t o r yw h e r em y
f a t h e rw o r k e d .

E d g a rR ic eB u r r o u g h s ,H . G .W e l l s ,
f a n t a s t icp u l pt a l e s .A n dc a r t o o n is t s ,
m e nl ik eC h e s t e rG o u l d ,M il t o nC a n if f ,
a n dA l e xR a y m o n d .

J a c o bh a dl o v in gp a r e n t sin
R o s ea n dB e n j a m in ,t h el a t t e r
a ta il o rin a ga r m e n tf a c t o r y .

B u tit wa s n 't
a l lb a d .

A n dh eh a dh ise s c a p e s .

H ee v e na t t e n d e dt h ef a m e dP r a t t
A r tI n s t it u t ein 19 3 1 .F o ro n ew e e k .

I tw a sa de p r e s s io n
a l r ig h t ,b u tw h a tw a s
s og r e a ta b o u tit ?

T h e nB e n j a m inl o s t
h isj o b ,a n dt h e r e
w a sn om o n e yf o r
t h et u it io n .

S ow h e nt h es t u d io
r e l o c a t e dt oF l o r id a ,
J a c o bm o v e do nt o o ,t ot h e
w o r l do fc o m icb o o k s .

I tw a s1 9 3 8 ,a n dw it h
t h ep h e n o m e n a ls u c c e s s
o fS u p e r m a n ,t h ec o m ic s
b izw a sb o o m in g .W it ha
l it t l et a l e n ta n da lo t
o fw o r k ,a n y o n ec o u l d
m a k ea liv in gb y
c h u r n in go u tp a g e sf o r
t h ed o z e n so ff l y - b y
n ig h t ss p r o u t in gu pa l l
o v e rt h ep l a c e .

H ed e v o u r e d
in s t r u c t io n a l
b o o k so nd r a w in g ,
a n dd r e a m e do f
m a k in gh isw a yt o
a be t t e rl if eb y
u s in gh iss k il la s
a na r t is t .

F o u ry e a r sl a t e r ,J a c o b
d r o p p e do u to fh ig hs c h o o l
t oj o int h ef a m e dF l e is c h e r
a n im a t io ns t u d ioa sa n
" in - b e t w e e n e r ,"o n eo fa
legio no fa n o n y m o u sar t is t s
w h od idt h eg r u n tw o r ko f
r e p r o d u c in gt h et h o u s a n d s
a n dt h o u s a n d so fd r a w in g s
n e e d e dt om a k ea ca r t o o n .

J a c o bw a ss o o nw o r k in gf o r
t h el e g e n d a r yW il lE is n e r ,
c r a n k in go u tp a g e st h a tt h e y
p a c k a g e da n ds o l dt o
c o n t e n t - h u n g r yp u b l is h e r s .

H ew a sm a k in ga liv in g
a sa na r t is t ,b u tt h e
f ig h t in gw a s n 'td o n e .

L o o k ,w e
d o n ’tw a n t
a n yc r a po u t
o fy o u !

O n ed a y ,W il lr e c e iv e d
a vis itf r o ma ma s s iv e
s t r a n g e r .

H ec o m e s
b a c ka g a in ,
c a l lm e .I ’l l
t a k ec a r e
o fh im .

W ed o n ’t
w a n tt oh a v e
n ot r o u b l e
w it hy o u .

W ew a n t
e v e r y t h in gt o
g on ic e ,s e e ?

W il lh a db e e nu n s a t is f ie dw it h
t h eb u il d in g ’st o w e ls e r v ic e ,s o
h eh ir e da n o t h e rc o m p a n y ,n o t
k n o w in gt h a tt h eo u t f ith ew a s
d r o p p in gw a sm o bc o n t r o l l e d .

N o wg e t
t h eh e l lo u t
o fh e r e !

“ J a c kw a sa
l it t l ef e l l o w ,”
E is n e ro n c e
s a id .“ H e
t h o u g h th e
w a sJ o h n
G a r f ie l d ,t h e
a c t o r .V e r y ,
v e r yt o u g h . ”

T h a tk in do fc h u t z p a hs e r v e d
J a c o bw e l lin th ew a r .H eu s e d
t ot e l la n e c d o t ea f t e ra n e c d o t e
a b o u tt h ed a n g e r sh ef a c e d
t h e r e ,a n e c d o t e sl ik et h iso n e .

" Iw a sg o in gt h r o u g h
t h ish o t e l .I wa sa n
a d v a n c es c o u t .T h e r ew a s
n o b o d yin th eh o t e l .I t
w a sb o m b e do u t .

" A n dt h e r e 's
s ixN a z is .

" T h e r e 'ss ixg u y s
t h e r ea n dt h e ys t a r t
c o m in go v e rt om e
a n ds t a r tc a l l in gm e
a nid io t ,a je r k ,a
t h isa n da th a t .

" A n dt h e yg o tm e
s o r ec a u s et h e y
s a ids o m e t h in g
a b o u tm ym o t h e r
- an dI bl e wu p .

" T h e ys a id ,
'Y o u 'r eJ e w is h ? '

" T h e yw e r ea s
s c a r e ds h it l e s s
o fm ea sI wa s
o ft h e m . "

T h e yt u r n e dt a il
a n dr a na ss o o n
a st h es h o o t in g
s t a r t e d .

" T h e yg a v em e
t h ew o r k s ,e v e r y
d ir t yn a m et h e y
c o u l dt h in ko f .

T h o s eR a t z is
s h o u l dh a v ek n o w n
n o tt oin s u l ta
g u y 'sm o t h e r .

N o tw h e nt h a t
g u yg r e wu p
l iv in gb yt h e
s t r e e tc o d e .

" It o l dm y s e l fI ha dt ob e
s t u p id .I wa s n 'tc a r e f u l
a b o u tt h in g s .I fy o ud w e l l e d
o nt h es it u a t io n ,y o ud ie d .
T h es e c r e tw a sn o tt og iv ea
d a m na b o u ta n y t h in ge l s e .

1940
BROOKLYN, NY

" Id id n 'tw a n tt og o
a n df ig h t .I ha da go o d
l if ea n dw a se a r n in g
g o o dm o n e yd r a w in g .I
h a dm yg ir l ,t o o . "

J a c ka c t u a l l ya s k e d
R o zif sh e 'd" l ik et o
s e em ye t c h in g s . "

S u r e ,it so u n d sl ik e
a ch e e s yl in e ,b u t
J a c ka c t u a l l ym e a n t
it .A n dit wo r k e d .

" M yg ir l "w a st h ef o r m e r
R o s a l in dG o l d s t e in ,a l s ot h e
c h il do fa ta il o r ,w h o mJ a c k
h a dm e tt w oy e a r sb e f o r e .

B yt h a tt im e ,J a c o bK u r t z b e r g
h a db e c o m eJ a c kK ir b y ,a n d
w a sm a k in ge n o u g hm o n e yt o
m o v eh isf a m il yt oB r o o k l y n .

O n es u m m e rd a y ,
1 7 - y e a r - o l dR o z 'sf a m il y
m o v e din t ot h ep l a c e
d o w n s t a ir sf r o mt h e
K u r t z b e r g s .

" S oh et a k e sm et oh is
b e d r o o m ,a n dI th o u g h t ,
'W h a tc o u l dh a p p e n ?M y
f o l k sa r et h e r e ,h is
f o l k sa r et h e r e . 'A n d
t h a t 'st h ef ir s tt im eI
s a wC a p t a inA m e r ic a . "

C a p t a inA m e r ic aw a s
t h ec h a r a c t e rt h a t
s h o u l dh a v em a d e
J a c kr ic h .T h ef i r s t
c h a r a c t e rt h a t
s h o u l dh a v em a d e
J a c kr ic h .

A n dR o zw a st h e
g ir lh es h o u l dh a v e
m a r r ie d .

W e l la tl e a s t
s o m e t im e st h in g s
w o r ko u tt h ew a y
t h e ys h o u l d .