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Do you reread what you write before posting?

Valentino was one of the first to actively rewrite the history of Image. When, at the end of their first year, COMIC BUYER'S GUIDE printed a list of the top selling comic publishers, and put Malibu in first place, Valentino fired off a letter declaring it was Image! Image! Image! that was Number One!

Don Thompson responded by pointing out that Image had been created as an imprint with Malibu, not an independent company. (Recall my comment that it was Malibu that was taking any and all financial "risk".) Therefore much as the founders of Image might wish it otherwise, it was not Image that was the best selling comic company, but their "home base", Malibu.

Not long after, now certain of their success, Image themselves further contradicted Valentino's claim, by formally separating themselves from Malibu and announcing that they would, from then on, publish their own material. The cautious and conservative, and pretty much risk free birth of Image Comics was complete.

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This is how you "entered the conversation":

" I happen to know Jim Valentino. Was sitting in a bar when we had him at our con in St. Louis last summer and he was telling me all about the founding of image and how they were all breaking it to their families they were leaving a great paying gig with Marvel to take this huge risk. He said all of the founding of Image stuff in the book is b.s. and from what I read in the book and what he told me I know that's the case."

Apparently, like Valentino, you are now embarked on a rewrite of your own history.

John Byrne wrote: ...I still think the best "history of Marvel" book is Stan's ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS. It was written long enough ago that memories were still fresh, and Stan -- contrary to popular mythology -- gave all due credit where credit was due...

I point out to people every chance I get that the first person I recall giving credit to other creators at Marvel over Stan Lee was Stan Lee, himself. It was ORIGINS OF MARVEL COMICS where I first learned that Jack Kirby came up with the Silver Surfer because he thought that "God" needed a herald, and Stan liked the concept and went with it. ORIGINS was published in the mid-1970's, at a time when the anti-Stan crowd wasn't so well-known (I didn;t know about them, at least), or so vocal, so Stan certainly wasn't giving credit to appease them.

And here's an ironic thing to me about those that bash Stan Lee for "hogging" credit: Stan Lee was the guy who made credits in comic books the standard! And the funny and creative way he did it brought attention to those credits, with the nicknames and such. Most publishers rarely gave ANY credit in the comics at all before the Marvel Age of Comics. And that was Stan's decision to have those credits in the comics Marvel published.