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[Dalek]

Cashing In On Comic Books: How Creator Page Rates Have Changed Over Time

John Romita sits on exalted perch in the comic book industry today as an elder and beloved statesman. The artist drew Amazing Spider-Man for broad swaths of the 1960s and ’70s, and as Marvel Comics’ art director for many years, his style and demeanor set the tone for an entire company. But we all have to start somewhere…

“I got my first check from Steve Douglas of Famous Funnies in 1949,” the artist tells Newsarama. “It was $270 for a 12-page romance pencil job. It was never used; it was pretty bad, but he helped young artists all the time.”

Romita’s stock grew down the line. That spiked romance story (wonder where it is today?) led to romance work at DC Comics, and soon Marvel Editor-In-Chief Stan Lee nabbed the artist. The rest, as we say, is history.

Back in 1949, Romita’s $22.50 rate per page was a nice, healthy rate. By today’s standards (all figures courtesy the Bureau of Labor Statistics), it translates to $225.30—still a good rate.

Want to see how rates have changed through time? Here’s a sampling:

DAN JURGENS

“The Man Who Killed Superman” got his pro start in 1982, penciling Warlord #63 for DC Comics at $40 a page.

IN 2015 MONEY: That $40 is $98.78.

DAN BRERETON

The Nocturnals creator launched his career penciling a back up story for an Eclipse Comics's The Merchants of Death #1 for $50 per page.

“Drew most of it on my grandmother's kitchen table one summer in 1988,” Brereton says.

IN 2015 MONEY: Brereton would be making $100.73 per page on granny’s kitchen table.

DAN SLOTT

The long-running current Amazing Spider-Man writer got $30 a page for a Mighty Mouse Marvel story in 1990.

“A few months later I got bumped up to $40 a page, which, I believe, was the minimum rate for a writer who was also on staff,” Slott says. But Slott also had a trick up his sleeve.

“Back then I did a lot of letters pages—reading the fan mail, picking my favorite ones, answering ’em, and typing it all up. I did that for three or four books, because at 50 bucks a letter column, it paid more."

IN 2015 MONEY: Slott’s Mighty Mouse would have got him $54.70 per page, and those letters columns? $91.17 per page.

FRANK QUITELY

Poor ol’ Frank Quitely started at what it likely the lowest of low rates. “When I started working on Electric Soup 27 years ago, I wrote, penciled, inked, lettered and half-toned five pages per issue for a curry, which almost invariably gave me diarrhea,” he says.

IN 2015 MONEY: Alas, diarrhea is still diarrhea.

More of these at the link. I guess this is why these guys make the autograph circuit!

 

[TAJ]

Seems like they're cherry-picking low figures. Some colorists I knew were making at least $80 a page in 1995 and they weren't even doing work for the big two yet. Both were pretty green, too.

 

[maxcriden]

Really confused by the excerpted article. Does it say how much they're being paid now, or only what they made back then?