Here’s a portrait of Shel by Dave Stevens from August, 1974. (Scanned image of portrait provided by Charlie Roberts.)
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A page from the 1979 Comic-Con program book with Shel’s note to David Scroggy at the bottom. Shel’s note to David reads: “It’s wonderful how much good fun we all had in the 70’s! The work put into these drawings reflects the spirit!”
David Scroggy writes, “If you read my Guest Book entry, you’ll see I make reference to a watercolor portrait my father, Hal Scroggy, did of Shel. My dad is a prominent watercolorist – he is a member of the prestigious American Watercolor Society, for example, and has won many awards. A number of people have written me expressing curiosity to see the piece.”
Ken Krueger passed away on Saturday, November 21, 2009. He will be sorely missed by family and friends. As a teenager, Ken Krueger attended the first-ever science fiction convention, the 1939 Worldcon. As an adult, thirty years later, he helped create what has become the premier comics and pop-culture convention, Comic-Con International, for which he served as chairman of the first full convention in August, 1970. In the intervening and subsequent years, Ken was active as a mail-order book seller, book store owner, small-press publisher, periodical distributor and distributor’s rep, and all-around friend to fans and fandom, serving as mentor and life coach to many young fans and aspiring professionals.
I came to know Shel through his attendance at Cinecon, the annual classic film convention/festival that takes place Labor Day weekend in Hollywood. Shel was an enthusiastic movie fan and came every year to sit in the dark and watch rare films from the silent and early sound era.
Artist Matt Lorentz remembers Shel Dorf as the great connector, bringing together artists and fostering careers. Matt accompanied Shel on many of his legendary field trips, including visits with Chuck Jones, Mel Lazarus, and Forry Ackerman. At Comic-Con 2009, Matt Lorentz took a poster-sized greeting card around for many artists to draw on for Shel.
Artist Brent Anderson remembers Shel Dorf’s unwavering devotion to promoting the comic arts. He recounts a very funny anecdote about an art show by way of example. Thanks to Shel, Brent was able to meet Milton Caniff, Charles Schulz and Jack Kirby, Neal Adams, Will Eisner and Burne Hogarth, Daws Butler, June Foray, Bob Clampett and Sergio Aragones, Forry Ackerman (and his incredible Acker Mansion), Ray Bradbury and Joe Shuster, Chuck Norris, Kirk Alyn, Walter Koenig, Harlan Ellison and George Clayton Johnson.
Links to video and text media coverage of Shel Dorf’s passing and his legacy as Comic-Con’s founder. The links were good as of November 14, 2009. They may, however, not be “permanent” links and may be in effect for only a relatively-short period of time.
Picture of Shel Dorf and his brother, Michael Dorf, with Chester Gould in 1949 taken outside the Gould family farmhouse. The picture is accompanied by an audio clip of Michael Dorf telling the story of the Dorf-family visit to see Chester Gould in Woodstock, Illinois. (A transcript of the recording is included.)
On Sunday, November 9, 1969, Shel Dorf led a group of San Diego comic fans on their first pilgrimage to the home of Jack Kirby, who had recently moved from New York to Irvine in Orange County, California. Travelling with Shel were the rest of the first Comic-Con committee – Richard Alf, Barry Alfonso, Dan Stewart, Bob Sourk, and Mike Towry – a young friend of Barry’s named Wayne Kincaid, and Barry’s mother, Sylvia Alfonso. We all piled into a rented station wagon and Shel drove us to our rendezvous with destiny.
Jack Kirby (left) and Shel Dorf — Nov. 9, 1969