Paul Dini remembers Dan DeCarlo

On his livejournal, Paul Dini reflects on the recently released Innocence and Seduction: The Art of Dan DeCarlo, and his relationship with the former Archie Comics artist:

I was very fond of Dan and his wife Josie and it was my pleasure to contribute some art and a few stories to the book. Bill reproduces several pages from one of my few professional collaborations with Dan, a short Harley Quinn story. Dan pencilled the story and Bruce Timm inked it on an overlay, not wanting to, in his words, "mess up" Dan's artwork. When Dan received his pencils back from DC, he was disappointed. He wanted to sell the finished pages, hoping Bruce's inks would make them "worth something." That was Dan, unassuming and self-effacing to a fault. Bruce too, actually.

The book is not only a document of Dan's published work, but also a moving chronicle of his relationship with Josie. A series of charming illustrated envelopes sent by Dan to Josie during WWII (and written in French, which Dan learned for her) shows the depth of his feelings for his bride to be. A post-war photo of a young Josie and Dan beaming with love and optimism as they hold their twin sons Dan Jr. and James is especially poignent. I'll leave it to you to read the book and find out why.

You can purchase the book from Amazon.com.