glycon ([info]glycon) wrote,
@ 2008-06-16 12:27:00
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From Hell Major Arcana
From Hell started life by being serialised in Steve Bissette's groundbreaking Taboo (SpiderBaby Grafix & Publications), with chapters 1 to 6 appearing in issues #2 to #7 between 1989 and 1992. Besides these six installments of the story, there were also three illustrations by Alan Moore which appeared on the inside back covers of issues #2 to #4. These illustrations featured various characters and places from From Hell, and were entitled Major Arcana. It seems probable that Moore intended this to be a longer series, but these three are the only ones that I know of. The first of these also appears on the cover of Book One of From Hell: The Compleat Scripts, and it is possible that subsequent volumes were intended to feature the other illustrations on their covers.

All images appear exactly as the are on the page, and the apparent poor quality of the third image and the poor framing of it are as they are in the original publication.

From Hell Arcana 1


Major Arcana: The Lovers and the Star (Eddie - Annie - The London Pentangle) by Alan Moore, 1989 (Taboo #2, 1989)
Oil pastel, collage, construction paper


From Hell Arcana 2


Major Arcana: The Magician, the Tower and the Devil (Gull - Christchurch - Hawksmoor) by Alan Moore, 1988, 1989 (Taboo #3, 1989)
Oil pastel, collage, construction paper


From Hell Arcana 3


Major Arcana: The Hermit and the Hierophant: Merrick and Ganesa by Alan Moore, 1990 (Taboo #4, 1990)
Oil pastel, construction paper, collage


From Hell Scripts HB


Front cover of the hardback edition of Book One of From Hell: The Compleat Scripts by Alan Moore, with illustrations by Eddie Campbell. Published by Borderlands Press and SpiderBaby Grafix in 1994.

There were to be 1000 signed and numbered hardback copies of this book, but far fewer than that were produced, and the limitation sheets appeared on eBay for a while. Originally I believed that there actually was no hardback edition, but I know own a copy, numbered #20, so I must believe the evidence of my own eyes. Still, it is possible there are far less that one hundred of these actually in existence, making it one of the rarest Alan Moore collectables out there.

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[info]saikoutron
2008-06-16 12:14 pm UTC (link)
Very impressive additions, this site of yours is awesome.

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[info]slovobooks
2008-06-16 12:34 pm UTC (link)
Thank you very much. I can assure you that it cost me an absolute fortune to accumulate all the stuff I have!

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[info]chinaboatman
2008-06-16 02:42 pm UTC (link)
A fortune wisely spent Paidrag! And very generously shared with everyone.

I wasn't even aware of these, not having seen a copy of Taboo. Alan Moore really isn't a bad artist.

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[info]katelaity
2008-06-16 03:59 pm UTC (link)
Pick up some Taboo! It's a brilliant series with all kinds of wonderful stuff. Every issue is just packed with amazing stories and illos. Go by Bissette's store for a deal. You won't regret it.

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[info]swintek
2008-06-17 08:37 pm UTC (link)
I've always found it curious that these From Hell related A.M. art pieces from Taboo are not more widely, and deeply appreciated for thier pure artistic merit, and imperative connection to (arguably) the finest and most ambitious work from (increasingly inarguably) the mediums finest writer. They are genius, IMO, and should be viewed, pondered, and collected with the book proper.

To clarify: There was a full run of the 1000 copy hardcover signed/slipcased edition of the Scripts book volume 1 (as well as the trade paper that follwed later). The loose signature sheets that float around on Ebay are from the aborted Volume 2, which Disney squashed as a result of the rights being sold to them for the movie. The sheets were signed, the book proofed and ready for press when Disney threatened legal action. There were to be 4 volumes, which would've given us all the scripts.

Ron Swintek

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[info]slovobooks
2008-06-17 08:48 pm UTC (link)
I'd certainly have liked to see him continuing with the series of Major Arcana.

Thanks for the extra information on the volumes of scripts, which adds considerably to what I knew. Were you involved with this at some point, if you don't mind my asking?

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[info]swintek
2008-06-17 10:06 pm UTC (link)
No, not involved at all, but I have talked with both Eddie Campbell, and Tom Monteleone of Borderlands press who published the first volume. I had a long phone conversation with Monteleone at the time of the Disney fiasco, and he was very, very distraught over it. Basically, the first volume slipped by without anyone noticing any rights had been breached, including Alan, Eddie, et al, who didn't realize at the time they had signed over rights to virtually everything with "From Hell" in the title.

Disney's lawyers came down so hard and fast on Tom that it put a good press out of publishing for the next decade! He was the one selling off the materials from volume 2 (including, the original art piece from Taboo 3 that was indeed supposed to be the cover to volume 2!) in order to try to recoup some of the heavy investment he made on the series.

I've asked Eddie (via his blog) about someone doing the scripts again (Tom wants nothing to do with it, last I heard), but it's even more complicated now because Steve Bissette was shepherding the project...

What I originally wanted to post, though (before I got sidetracked!), is thanks so much for putting these up! Indeed, the whole site is a truly great resource. Thanks a million.

Ron

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[info]slovobooks
2008-06-18 08:40 am UTC (link)
Thanks very much for the extra information, and the kind words. really just started this to have someplace to unleash my inner Moore fanboy, but it quickly decided that it wanted to be a repository of my collection of unpublished Moore oddities. I did an interview with him recently - the first part is online here, with the second part due to go up before the end of the week - and I specifically asked him if he was OK with putting this kind of thing online, and it seems he is, so I'm feeling particularly happy with myself!

If there's anything of his you're particularly interested in seeing I'll see if I can find it in the collection, and put it up here.

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(Anonymous)
2008-06-18 10:37 pm UTC (link)
Do you have any of the St. Pancras Panda strips from Back Street Bugle? They would be most appreciated, I've only read "The nose in the pyramid" and "Dat old time religion". Also, I've never seen the original "Another suburban romance" from Negative Burn 9 with art by Ken Meyer Jr. And thank you for posting all this wonderful stuff!

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[info]glycon
2008-06-19 10:56 am UTC (link)
I'll have to check the St Pancras Panda strips, which I've only got reproduced in other books. None the less, I'll put up whatever I have at some point.

I posted an article here about all of his Negative Burn pieces, and I know I have #9 around here to hand, so I'll get to that shortly.

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(Anonymous)
2008-06-19 07:47 pm UTC (link)
Looking forward to it – and nice interview with The Great Man. The Avatar questions made me think about Alan's remaining Glory issues. I emailed Avatar about them years ago and they replied cryptically that "they certainly plan to publish them, but certainly not soon". So I emailed them again about it to see if anything is happening. If they reply I'll post it here or at the AM mailing list.

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(Anonymous)
2008-06-21 12:31 am UTC (link)
Well, here's Avatar's reply about publishing Alan's remaining Glory issues:
"We'd love to, but it doesn't appear we ever will."
Too bad. Unlike Youngblood, Supreme, Big Numbers and 1963, I thought this actually had a shot at being finished.

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[info]chinaboatman
2008-08-13 05:08 am UTC (link)
I agree that these should definately be included in the From Hell trades. I suppose they are omitted because they were not completed.

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[info]swintek
2008-08-14 11:45 pm UTC (link)
Does anyone have any knowledge of Moore's intention (at that point in time, anyway) to do any more than the three images? I could be way off base, but I've never been under the impression that he intended to complete an entire rendering of the 22 Major Arcana cards in From Hell iconography. I think he just happened on a few that worked for a couple of cool art pieces..

In any case, I've always thought it a shame that there wasn't at least one more piece done, as they would make superb enpapers in the collected edition; something I mentioned to Staros when he was putting together the first collected edition- to no avail, alas.

By the by- don't hear much about the "Painfully Limited From Hell" leatherbound, with original painting and traycase edition that Eddie put out years ago. Has this thing vanished from the Moore landscape? I could send pictures in for this site if anyone has an interest...

Ron

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[info]chinaboatman
2008-08-15 02:24 am UTC (link)
I'm definately interested in seeing them Swintek and i'm sure others are too. It would be amazing if you could scan them.

Idoubt Moore planned to do all of the Major Arcana but I assumed he planned to do one for each cover. It is just that though, an assumption. I could be totally wrong.

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