Alfredo Alcala

Alfredo Alcala's lifelong interest in comic books began in childhood. He dropped out of school in his early teens to pursue a career in art, initially as a sign painter and commercial artist. Subsequently he took employment in an ironworker's shop, designing lamps and household furniture, as well as a church pulpit. During the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II he drew revealing pictures of their gear and position for the American forces.[4]

Inspired by the work of Lou Fine and other cartoonists, Alcala commenced his comic book career in October 1948, beginning with an illustration in Bituin Komiks (Star Comics). By the end of the year he was drawing for Ace Publications, the Philippines' largest publishing company. Ace was the publisher of four titles (Filipino Komiks, Tagalog Klassiks, Espesial Komiks, and Hiwaga Komiks), each featuring his work. Ukala (1950) was one of his first major comics.

Though his career rapidly expanded, Alcala never used assistants to complete his work. He said, "I somehow felt that the minute you let someone else have a hand in your work no matter what, it's not you anymore. It's like riding a bicycle built for two."[5]

He eventually became a star of the Filipino comics scene, so famed that a periodical bore his name, the Alcala Komiks Magasin. In 1963 he created the comic book Voltar whose titular character predated Frazetta's interpretation of Conan the Barbarian which bore a more than passing resemblance. Voltar became an award-winning success at home and abroad. Alcala's mature artistic style reflected his interest in the woodcuts and etchings of Renaissance master Albrecht Dürer and the drawings of Australian illustrator Walter Jardine and U.S. illustrator Franklin Booth which bore the look of engravings. He has also cited the work of British artist Frank Brangwyn as a major influence.

Fellow cartoonist Tony DeZuniga was the first Filipino artist to relocate to the United States to work for DC Comics in 1970, followed by Nestor Redondo and Gerry Talaoc.[6] In 1971 Alcala began a decade of work for both DC and Marvel Comics on horror and fantasy titles,[7] eventually moving to New York City in 1976.[4] He was one of the artists on the licensed movie tie-in series Planet of the Apes[8] and also helped recruit up-and-coming Filipino artists such as Alex Niño to U.S. publishers. In 1975, Alcala and writer Jack Oleck created Kong the Untamed for DC Comics.[9] Later that year, Alcala drew Marvel Treasury of Oz, a comics adaptation of The Marvelous Land of Oz.[10] Alcala joined Warren Publishing in 1977 and drew 39 stories for that publisher from 1977–1981. His series Voltar was reprinted in issues #2–9 of The Rook.[7] Alcala executed 12 five panel comic strips for the men's magazine Adam. The strip, Terra O'Hara, was written by Donald (Don) F. Glut and it appeared in 12 successive issues of Adam from December 1979, through November 1980. In the early 1980s he penciled the Star Wars newspaper strip.[11] In 1983 he teamed with the penciller Jack Kirby on Destroyer Duck from Eclipse Comics. and around that same time he also inked comic books such as Conan the Barbarian over John Buscema's pencils and inked Don Newton's pencil artwork in Batman.[7]

With the failure of DC's and Warren's horror titles in the 1980s, many of the Filipino contributors turned to the field of animation in California, and in the 1990s Alcala followed suit. He also illustrated the novel Daddy Cool written by Donald Goines. His last work in comics was for Paradox Press' The Big Book of Thugs in 1996.[7]

On April 8, 2000, Alcala died from cancer[4] in Southern California. He is survived by his wife Lita and two sons, Christian Voltar and Alfred Jr.

Alcala received an Inkpot Award in 1977.[12] In 2021, he was awarded the Inkwell Awards Stacey Aragon Special Recognition Award (SASRA) (2021).[1][2]

Comics work (interior pencil art, except where noted) includes:

• Alfredo Alcala at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
• Alfredo Alcala at Mike's Amazing World of Comics
• Alfredo Alcala at Wizards Keep Ltd.
• Tulad, Victoria Camille (March 23, 2012). "Pinoy comics pioneers celebrated in new docu". GMA News. Archived from the original on May 8, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2012.

• McDonald, Heidi and Philip Yeh. Secret Teachings of a Comic Book Master: The Art of Alfredo Alcala (IHAC, 1994; reissued by Dover Publications, 2015)