“Black Panther 10 p 2” (July 1978)
by Jack Kirby (1917-1994) and Mike Royer (1941-)
11 x 17 in., ink on paper
Coppola Collection

The current success of the Black Panther movie is driving up the price of Black Panther original art… particularly pages done by the legendary Jack Kirby.

From The Hollywood Reporter (February 15, 2018)

Created in 1966 by Lee and Kirby, Black Panther was revolutionary as the first African superhero in mainstream comics. Considered by Kirby as one of his most important creations for its message, T’Challa was a black man with brawn, brains, wealth and advanced technology introduced in the middle of the civil rights movement.

“Fifty years ago, he could have never envisioned the statement that this movie is making and the way it is being embraced by everybody,” Kirby’s son, Neal, says of the legendary artist. “In terms of a message, that was always his intention, but he could have never envisioned reaching this size of an audience.”

Neal Kirby, a high school senior when Black Panther first appeared in Fantastic Four No. 52 in summer 1966, remembers his father talking to him about introducing the character.

“I recall during the winter or early spring he asked me what I would think of a black superhero in the comics. Of course he was very much for it, as we all were at the time,” Kirby says. “My father was a very social liberal person. He would have been the Bernie Sanders of his day. He very much believed in social justice and equality, so he honestly thought it was time. Why shouldn’t African-Americans have their own superhero?”

THIS ISSUE (1978): “This World Shall Die!”

The Black Panther hijacks the plane of the Sudanese officials in order to quickly return to Wakanda in spite of the potential diplomatic ramifications.