Jack Davis Two-Fisted Tales #30 Cover Original Art (EC, 1952)....

Description

Jack Davis Two-Fisted Tales #30 Cover Original Art (EC, 1952). An EC masterpiece by any measure, this Jack Davis cover stands as one of the grittiest and most atmospheric images of the pre-Code New Trend era. Davis captures the split second when a soldier's unintended mistake becomes fatal -- no heroics, no glory, just the brutal consequences of a single flicker of light. It's the essence of EC's war revolution: war not as propaganda, but as horror.
Under editor/writer Harvey Kurtzman, Two-Fisted Tales and Frontline Combat rejected the "rah-rah" mythmaking of earlier war comics. Kurtzman refused to glamorize conflict, calling that "a terrible disservice to the children", and instead delivered a raw, unflinching realism unmatched at the time, made possible only in the final years before the Comics Code tightened the noose in 1954.
Davis pushes that ethos to the limit here, shoving the "camera" into the trenches for an extreme close-up that's almost too much to bear. The terror in the soldier's eyes, grit ground into the lines of his expression, the exhaustion etched into his skin, all rendered with Davis' obsessive detail. No heroes, just men trapped in circumstances far beyond their control.
Long hailed as Jack Davis' greatest EC cover, and by many as the finest war comic cover ever produced, this image has been reproduced endlessly in histories of the medium. An undisputed classic from one of comics' most versatile and unforgettable artists.
Created twice-up scale in ink and white paint highlights over graphite on Bristol board with an image area of 13.5" x 19.5". There is a strip of Bristol board affixed to the bottom margin. Light toning, stat logo/trade dressing paste-ups, missing price paste-up, glue residue and production oil staining, smudging/soiling, issue number, months, and text paste-ups are done by hand, red keylines, whiteout corrections, and minor handling wear. Hand-signed by Davis on a paste-up in the lower right image area. In Very Good condition.
From The Richard Pujol EC Art Collection.

More Information: All of us here in the Comics department take a great deal of pride in handling the scores of incredible collections we’re privileged to offer—and while the quality of our highlights over the last two decades is as mind-blowing to us as anyone, I think it’s safe to say that those that continue to resonate the most come from collectors with whom we’ve developed a personal relationship.

In terms of pure objective quality, Rich Pujol’s legendary collection of EC original art is truly without peer. He bought virtually all of it directly from Russ Cochran’s initial 1970s-80s EC auctions, becoming the first—and up to this point, only—owner of some of the greatest examples from publisher Bill Gaines’ vault. The combination of impeccable art by every major artist in the EC stable, staggering overall depth, as represented by dozens of covers and complete stories, and the fact that none of this art has really ever been seen (much less offered for sale) but only whispered about by even the most advanced collectors, make this collection unrivaled and without a doubt the best and largest "first generation" group of EC art remaining.

Paying tribute to and setting record results for such a world-class selection of comic art is of course what Heritage is built for, but my personal connection to Rich makes this offering all the more special, as I first met him when I was a young teenager in the 1980s, not only making my earliest art acquisitions but also getting a crash course in comics history. Back in those early, heady days of original art collecting, Rich was in an absolutely ideal position: he possessed a discerning eye for quality spanning the entire history of comics, from the earliest Golden Age artists to contemporary masters, thus immediately realized what an incredible opportunity those EC auctions represented; he was a passionate fan, who basically never sold once a choice item entered his collection; he ran, along with his brother Bob, a pioneering and thriving comic shop in St. Louis, Missouri—B&R Comix—so had the disposable income to devote to his art collection; and crucially, St. Louis was in close enough proximity to Russ Cochran’s home base of West Plains, Missouri that he was able to visit and view virtually all of the EC art in person prior to each auction (there were no hi-res scans back then!). This allowed him to prioritize his want list based on the beauty and condition of each page and cover, an opportunity very few collectors could have taken advantage of at the time. Being able to handle these amazing originals not only greatly expanded Rich’s appreciation for the artistry that went into the finest comic art but also changed how he ranked various artists and directly informed how aggressively he pursued examples for his collection. It was a once-in-a-lifetime window to evaluate and acquire the best of the best in considerable depth—which is the opportunity we’re now pleased to present to you.

The six lots that follow are a characteristic sampling of the kinds of treasures Rich focused on—primarily key covers and stories, among the most memorable ever published by EC—and selections will continue to be offered in our Signature Comic Art auctions in 2026 and beyond. We’re all incredibly honored to be entrusted with such a jaw-dropping and important collection. And I’m incredibly honored to be working directly with Rich, a truly great collector and my earliest comic art friend and mentor.

—Todd Hignite


More information about Jack Davis. See also: Davis, Jack, Jack B. Davis, Jack Burton Davis Artist. Lookup the Comic Book in our Guide