Jack Kirby's Grandson Reveals The Legendary Artist's First Sketch Of BLACK PANTHER
Earlier this week, Black Panther became the first superhero movie in history to earn a "Best Picture" nomination at the Oscars and Jeremy Kirby has now shared his grandfather's first sketch of the hero.
Black Panther made his comic book debut in the pages of 1966's Fantastic Four #52 but T'Challa could have had a very different appearance.
As you can see below, legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby's first take on the hero was a lot more colourful and if you're wondering why there's a "T" on his suit, it's because Kirby's original concept named him "Coal Tiger."
That was ultimately scrapped and he obviously became known as Black Panther instead, but the cape was carried over into the final design (it's easy to forget that the King of Wakanda used to wear one of those on a regular basis).
The Black Panther movie picked up an impressive seven Oscar nominations earlier this week, including "Best Picture" which is a first for a superhero movie (not even The Dark Knight managed to land a spot in that category back in 2009). It's a shame that neither Stan Lee or Jack Kirby are here to see that, but you just know they're smiling down at that news.
What are your thoughts on this early Black Panther design? Share your thoughts in the usual place.