Jim Holdaway
Encyclopedia
Jim Holdaway was a British
illustrator, who was famous for his illustrations of numerous comic strip
s. His most famous contributions was to the Modesty Blaise
comics written by Peter O'Donnell
.
from 1945 with the East Surrey Regiment
, Holdaway went to Italy, Austria and Greece before returning to art school on an ex-Serviceman's grant.
Jim Holdaway eventually left to work in France where he secured numerous advertising opportunities. Returning to England soon to take care of his widowed mother, Holdaway went to work for Scion Books in Kensington, doing a variety of artwork, book jackets, comic books and advertising. He then became freelance, working from home. He was drawing for Odhams and Farringdon Press doing 64-page comics including: Captain Vigour, The Football Comic, Steve Samson, Dick Hercules, Reveille
, Tit-Bits
, Comic Cuts
, Junior Express (The Red Rider and Joanna of Bitter Creek, 1955), Mickey's Weekly (Davy Crockett, 1956), and Swift
("The Red Rider", 1956).
In 1957, Holdaway replaced the artist Alfred Mazure
on the strip Romeo Brown
, leading to the key association of his career with writer Peter O'Donnell. The two were a perfect match and in 1963 Holdaway started drawing for O'Donnell's Modesty Blaise comics strips.
Jim Holdaway died in 1970 from a heart attack (leaving a Wife: Audrey and Daughter: Joanna), midway through illustrating the Modesty Blaise story arc "The Warlords of Phoenix". O'Donnell enlisted Enrique Badia Romero
to complete the strip and Romero succeeded Holdaway as the strip's full-time artist. Years later, a painting of Modesty Blaise by Holdaway was used as the cover art for O'Donnell's final Modesty Blaise literary collection, Cobra Trap
.
Holdaway's work on the Modesty Blaise strip has been reprinted on many occasions, most recently between 2003 and 2005 in reprint volumes published by Titan Books
.
Footnotes
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
illustrator, who was famous for his illustrations of numerous comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
s. His most famous contributions was to the Modesty Blaise
Modesty Blaise
Modesty Blaise is a British comic strip featuring a fictional character of the same name, created by Peter O'Donnell and Jim Holdaway in 1963. The strip follows the adventures of Modesty Blaise, an exceptional young woman with many talents and a criminal past, and her trusty sidekick Willie Garvin...
comics written by Peter O'Donnell
Peter O'Donnell
Peter O'Donnell was a British writer of mysteries and of comic strips, best known as the creator of Modesty Blaise, a female action hero/undercover trouble-shooter/enforcer...
.
Art career
Jim Holdaway was born in 1927 in Barnes Common, London. On completing schooling in New Malden, Surrey, Holdaway attended the Kingston School of Art. After spending two years of National ServiceConscription in the United Kingdom
Conscription in the United Kingdom has existed for two periods in modern times. The first was from 1916 to 1919, the second was from 1939 to 1960, with the last conscripted soldiers leaving the service in 1963...
from 1945 with the East Surrey Regiment
East Surrey Regiment
The East Surrey Regiment was a regiment in the British Army formed in 1881 from the amalgamation of the 31st Regiment of Foot and the 70th Regiment of Foot...
, Holdaway went to Italy, Austria and Greece before returning to art school on an ex-Serviceman's grant.
Jim Holdaway eventually left to work in France where he secured numerous advertising opportunities. Returning to England soon to take care of his widowed mother, Holdaway went to work for Scion Books in Kensington, doing a variety of artwork, book jackets, comic books and advertising. He then became freelance, working from home. He was drawing for Odhams and Farringdon Press doing 64-page comics including: Captain Vigour, The Football Comic, Steve Samson, Dick Hercules, Reveille
Reveille newspaper
Reveille was a popular British weekly tabloid newspaper during the Second World WarUnion Jack, A Scrapbook, British Forces' Newspapers 1939-45 HMSO & Imperial War Museum, 1993 and the post-war years....
, Tit-Bits
Tit-Bits
Tit-Bits was a British weekly magazine founded by George Newnes on 22 October 1881 until 18 July 1984, when it was taken over by Associated Newspapers' Weekend, which itself closed in 1989. The last editors were David Hill and Brian Lee...
, Comic Cuts
Comic Cuts
Comic Cuts was a British comic book. It was created by the reporter, Alfred Harmsworth through his company Amalgamated Press . It was published from 1890 to 1953, lasting 3006 issues, and in its early days inspired other publishers to produce rival comics. It's first issue was an assortment of...
, Junior Express (The Red Rider and Joanna of Bitter Creek, 1955), Mickey's Weekly (Davy Crockett, 1956), and Swift
Swift (comic)
Swift was a weekly comic published by in the UK as a junior companion to the Eagle. It was founded by the Rev. Marcus Morris and launched by Hulton Press in 1954...
("The Red Rider", 1956).
In 1957, Holdaway replaced the artist Alfred Mazure
Alfred Mazure
Alfred Leonardus Mazure was a Dutch cartoonist, writer, and filmmaker.-References:* at Lambiek's Comiclopedia-External links:...
on the strip Romeo Brown
Romeo Brown
Romeo Brown was a British comic strip written by Peter O'Donnell and drawn by Alfred Mazure and Jim Holdaway . It was published in the Daily Mirror from 1954 to 1963. It featured the adventures of Romeo Brown, a dashing private detective and ladies man....
, leading to the key association of his career with writer Peter O'Donnell. The two were a perfect match and in 1963 Holdaway started drawing for O'Donnell's Modesty Blaise comics strips.
Jim Holdaway died in 1970 from a heart attack (leaving a Wife: Audrey and Daughter: Joanna), midway through illustrating the Modesty Blaise story arc "The Warlords of Phoenix". O'Donnell enlisted Enrique Badia Romero
Enrique Badia Romero
Enrique Badía Romero is a Spanish comics artist, best known to English-speaking audiences for his work on Modesty Blaise...
to complete the strip and Romero succeeded Holdaway as the strip's full-time artist. Years later, a painting of Modesty Blaise by Holdaway was used as the cover art for O'Donnell's final Modesty Blaise literary collection, Cobra Trap
Cobra Trap
Cobra Trap is the title of a short story collection by Peter O'Donnell featuring his action/adventure heroine Modesty Blaise. The book was published in 1996, and is the thirteenth, and final book in the Modesty Blaise series which began in 1965. Cobra Trap was released 11 years after the previous...
.
Holdaway's work on the Modesty Blaise strip has been reprinted on many occasions, most recently between 2003 and 2005 in reprint volumes published by Titan Books
Titan Books
Titan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London, England's Bankside area. The Books Division has two main areas of publishing: film & TV tie-ins/cinema reference books; and graphic novels and comics reference/art titles. The...
.
Sources
- Jim Holdaway page sayyide.de
Footnotes
External links
- Jim Holdaway biography on Lambiek Comiclopedia
- Jim Holdaway artwork at Illustration Art Gallery