The Goethe Award, later known as the Comic Fan Art Award, was an American series of comic book fan awards, first presented in 1971 for comics published in 1970. The award originated with the fanzine Newfangles and then shared close ties with The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom.

Goethe Award / Comic Fan Art Award
Awarded forExcellence in comic books, as voted on by fans
VenueComic Art Convention (1972, 1974)
CountryUnited States of America
Presented byNewfangles / The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom
First awarded1971
Last awarded1975

The Goethe Award was named after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; Goethe was the person who encouraged Rodolphe Töpffer, "the father of comic strips," to publish his stories.[1]

The Comic Art Convention (CAC) twice hosted the presentation of the awards, at the 1972 and 1974 CACs. The format and balloting of the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards, presented by the Comics Buyer's Guide from 1982 to circa 2010, were in many ways derived from the Goethe Award/Comic Fan Art Award.

Overview edit

The Goethe Awards/Comic Fan Art Awards were tallied yearly for comic books produced during the previous year, and were given out in several categories, separated into people and works, and further divided into professional publications and fanzine/underground publications:

  • PEOPLE
    • Favorite Pro Artist/Penciller (1970–1974)
    • Favorite Inker (1974)
    • Favorite Pro Writer (1970–1974)
    • Favorite Pro Editor (1970–1974)
    • Favorite Fan Writer (1970–1973)
    • Favorite Fan Artist (1970–1973)
  • WORKS
    • Favorite Pro Comic Book (1970–1974)
    • Favorite Underground Comic/Non-Newsstand Comic (1970–1972)
    • Favorite Comic-Book Story (1970–1973)
    • Favorite Comic-Book Character (1970–1973)
    • Favorite Fanzine (1970–1974)

History edit

Don & Maggie Thompson created the Goethe Awards in 1971; the Goethe Awards for comics published in 1970 were first published in a 1971 issue of their fanzine Newfangles.

Nominations for the 1972 Goethe Awards (for comics published in 1971) ballot were initially published in The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom (TBG),[2] The Monster Times,[3] and Graphic Story World.[4] Nominations were sent in from 335 readers. Ultimately, there were 7 categories with 4-7 nominees in each category. 700 fans voted for the final nominees.[5] The 1972 Goethe Awards were presented July 3, 1972, at the Comic Art Convention, New York City, in a ceremony emceed by Tony Isabella and Carl Gafford.[5] The award results were also published in Comic Art News & Reviews no. 1.

Ballots for the 1973 awards (for works published in 1972) — now renamed the Comic Fan Art Awards[6] — were printed in TBG, Comic Crusader, The Comic Reader, the Gazette Advertiser, The Menomonee Falls Gazette, and Rocket's Blast Comicollector. 1,011 fans cast their votes.[5] The results were published in The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom #38 (June 15, 1973).

In 1974, the Thompsons grew frustrated with perceived ballot-stuffing[7] and passed the awards to Tony Isabella.[5] The awards for comics published in 1973 were presented at the 1974 Comic Art Convention,[8] held at the Commodore Hotel, New York City. They were later published in TBG #63 (Aug. 1, 1974).[5]

The final Comic Fan Art Awards (for comics published in 1974) were co-administered by Ken Gale[9] and were not announced until TBG #123 (March 26, 1976).[5]

In 1982, the Comics Buyer's Guide (the successor to The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom), began presenting their Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards, in many ways modeled on the Goethe Award/Comic Fan Art Award.

Winners edit

Years represent when the work was published, not when the awards were presented

People edit

Favorite Pro Artist/Penciller

Favorite Inker

Favorite Pro Writer

Favorite Pro Editor

Favorite Fan Writer

Favorite Fan Artist

Works edit

Favorite Pro Comic Book

Favorite Underground Comic/Non-Newsstand Comic

Favorite Comic-Book Story

Favorite Comic-Book Character

Favorite Fanzine

References edit

  1. ^ Thierry Groensteen and Benoît Peeters, Töpffer, l'invention de la bande dessinée, Paris: Hermann, "Savoir : sur l'art" Collection, 1994, p. 83).
  2. ^ "The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom". No. 14. Apr 1972.
  3. ^ "Comix Freex Rally! Unite! Vote for your favorite comix!". The Monster Times. No. 7. Apr 26, 1972. pp. 6–8.
  4. ^ "The 1971 Goethe Awards". Graphic Story World. Vol. 2, no. 2 (whole #6). July 1972. p. 29.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Miller, John Jackson (July 19, 2005). "GOETHE/COMIC FAN ART AWARD WINNERS, 1971-74". Comics Buyer's Guide. Archived from the original on September 20, 2010.
  6. ^ "1972 Comic Art Awards Results!". The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom. No. 38. June 15, 1973. p. 20.
  7. ^ Thompson, Maggie (August 19, 2005). "Comics Fan Awards 1961-1970". Comics Buyer's Guide. Archived from the original on September 14, 2015.
  8. ^ a b Bender entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 4, 2016.
  9. ^ "Ken Gale". Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Retrieved Feb 4, 2016.
  10. ^ Adams entry, Who's Who in Comic Books: 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 3, 2016.
  11. ^ O'Neil entry, Who's Who in Comic Books: 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 3, 2016.
  12. ^ a b Thomas entry, Who's Who in Comic Books: 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 3, 2016.
  13. ^ The Comic Reader #90 (October 1972).
  14. ^ Don Thompson entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 4, 2016.
  15. ^ Newton entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 4, 2016.
  16. ^ Stern, Martin (Sep 1972). "Fans Create a Comicbook Culture". The Michigan Daily.
  17. ^ a b Paul Levitz entry, Who's Who of American Comic Books, 1928–1999. Accessed Feb. 4, 2016.

Sources edit

  • 1970 awards (presented in 1971): Thompson, Maggie (August 19, 2005). "Comics Fan Awards 1961-1970". Comics Buyer's Guide. Archived from the original on September 14, 2015.
  • 1971–1974 awards: Miller, John Jackson (July 19, 2005). "GOETHE/COMIC FAN ART AWARD WINNERS, 1971-74". Comics Buyer's Guide. Archived from the original on September 20, 2010.
  • 1971 awards (presented in 1972): Seiler, Rick (Sep 1972). "Telegraphics". Comic Art News & Reviews. Vol. 1, no. 1. pp. 3–4.
  • 1972 awards (presented in 1973): "1972 Comic Art Awards Results!". The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom. No. 38. June 15, 1973. p. 20.
  • 1973 awards (presented in 1974): The Buyer's Guide to Comics Fandom. No. 63. Aug 1, 1974. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  • 1974 awards (presented in 1975): The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom. No. 123. March 26, 1976. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)