Don Newton: gone too soon

Don Newton was an artist I admired in the '70s. He went from fanzines to Charlton Comics, and did some amazing work there, despite being nearly sabotaged by Charlton's crappy printing.

In an era when artists were either pencilers or inkers, Newton had skill at both. I'm showing this issue of THE PHANTOM, drawn by Newton in 1976, as an example of what I liked about his work, pencils and inks. The splash page is a classic image of The Phantom. Newton painted the covers of his PHANTOM issues during his time at Charlton.

Newton went on to Marvel Comics and then DC. He was 49 in 1984, had throat cancer, which led to a stroke and then a massive heart attack. Don Newton's early death robbed us of a major talent who should have been amazing us for decades to come.

THE PHANTOM #71, July 1976. Copyright © 1976 King Features Syndicate