Move to big screen dazzles Berkley comic artist
Comic book artist Al Milgrom was thrilled to follow in the footsteps of the late Jack Kirby, who created or co-created such iconic characters as Captain America, Thor, Iron Man, the Hulk, the X-Men and more — characters that went on to reach mass audiences on the big screen.
“I’m an inveterate Kirby fan. He’s my all-time favorite,” says Milgrom, who grew up in Oakland County and now lives in upstate New York. “He’s the single most creative force in the history of comic books.
“Kirby, through decades and decades, has created stuff that has had legs and gone on to incredible success for a long, long, long time,” Milgrom says. “How many other creators have movies based on stuff they’ve created at two to three different companies? It’s astonishing.”
Milgrom, an alumnus of Norup Middle School in Oak Park and Berkley High School, graduated alongside fellow artist Jim Starlin, who created Thanos, the villain in 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame.” After graduating from the University of Michigan, Milgrom has worked as a comic book artist, writer and editor for about 45 years, primarily at Marvel.
Milgrom’s artwork is featured in a new paperback, “The Eternals: The Dreaming Celestial Saga.” In this lesser-known Kirby creation, the Eternals are an immortal offshoot of humanity that’s been around since the dawn of civilization, often confused with Greek gods. For instance, Sersi is based on Circe, the sorceress of Homer’s “The Odyssey.”
“Anything based on a Kirby character, I’m always happy to be part of,” Milgrom says. “I recently reread a ‘Captain America’ story I drew, where Cap needs to disguise himself and goes to Sersi — ‘Can you turn me into a teenager?’ She intimates (that) to return the favor, she wants to have sex with him down the line. It was a little more subtle than that, being Marvel Comics in that period.”
An “Eternals” movie will be released Nov. 5 as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starring Oscar winner Angelina Jolie and Gemma Chan (“Crazy Rich Asians”) as Sersi.
Milgrom praised Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige for his ability to bring background characters to