Frazetta Shows His Fanny to the World!

Dallas, Texas: "It's hard to believe that Frank Frazetta ever had to prove that he could draw pretty girls," said John Petty, Director of Auctions for Heritage Comics (HCA), "but that's exactly what happened in the mid-1960s."

"Harvey Kurtzman was working on 'Little Annie Fanny' for Playboy at the time," continued Petty, " and he desperately wanted Frazetta's help on the strip. Kurtzman had no doubt about Frazetta's ability to render beautiful women, but Hugh Hefner wanted a sample of the artist's talents. The rest is history. Frazetta created this beautiful painting of the titular star of the strip, in a lush and detailed style, adding a lot of beautifully blended colors, wonderful sexy energy, and a perfect 'on model' rendition of Annie. The story goes that Hefner was so impressed with the original art that he added it to his own collection. Years later, Harvey got it from him as part of a contractual settlement and kept it until his death. At that point Denis Kitchen obtained it from the Kurtzman estate and sold it to Alex Acevedo of the Alexander Gallery. Subsequently, Dave Winiewicz showed the original art to Frazetta and verified the above story. Frazetta was quite amused that Hef needed proof that Frank could draw women!"

Beautifully framed and matted, the art, which measures approximately 12" x 7.5", will be offered in HCA's upcoming Signature Sale, to be held June 11-13, 2004 in Dallas, TX. The piece can be seen here

For more information about Heritage's auctions, and a complete record of prices realized, along with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit www.HeritageComics.com.

HCA specializes in rare, high-grade comic books, as well as vintage comic and animation art, illustration art, classic toys, movie posters and comics-related collectibles.

Prospective consignors and sellers of top-end comics material, toys, and original art are invited to call Ed Jaster at 214-252-4288 or Fred McSurley at 214-252-4293 to discuss their rare comics and original illustration and comic art. Or visit www.HeritageComics.com and click on the "consign" tab. Or simply email Ed Jaster at EdJ@HeritageComics.com or Fred McSurley at FredM@HeritageComics.com.

Movie poster consignors, please call Grey Smith at 214-668-6928 or email GreySm@HeritageMoviePosters.com.