From Cody Starbuck in the pages of Star Reach to American Flagg!, from The Shadow to Wolverine/Nick Fury: The Scorpio Connection, and from Star Wars to Hey Kids, Comics!, Howard Chaykin’s distinct style of storytelling has infused comic books and graphic novels with his cinematic approach, ranging from the intimate to the bombastic.

Pages from three of Chaykin’s earliest DC Comics work, a key page from The Scorpion from Atlas-Seaboard, and examples of his Star Wars issues, and one page each of Monark Starstalker Solomon Kane from Marvel, have all found their way to Hake’s Auctions. The pages are featured in the company’s Auction #243, which closes Wednesday, March 26, 2025.

Among his earliest work, the offerings include Page 2 (the title page) and Page 4 from DC’s Forbidden Tales Of Dark Mansion #7 (October 1972, with inks by Tony DeZuniga), Page 9 and Page 20 from Sword Of Sorcery #3 (August 1973, inks attributed to Bernie Wrightson, Michael Wm. Kaluta, and Walt Simonson), and the Page 1 title splash page of Weird Worlds #8 (December 1973).

Although his stint on his creation at Atlas-Seaboard, The Scorpion remains a favorite of many collectors and lead directly to him creating Dominic Fortune at Marvel, pages from this series rarely change hands. Page 1 of The Scorpion #2 (May 1975, inks credited to Michael Wm. Kaluta, Walt Simonson, Bernie Wrightson, and Ed Davis) might be the sleeper of the Chaykin offerings in this auction.

While not nearly as high profile as their Star Wars counterparts, the artist’s Page 14 from Marvel Premiere #32 (October 1976, Monark Starstalker) and Page 17 from Marvel Premiere #34 (February 1977, Solomon Kane in The Mark of Kane) are both noteworthy.

Chaykin’s original art for Page 16 from Star Wars #1 (cover dates July 1977 but actually released ahead of the first movie) features seven panels, all of key scenes, with key characters in six of them and one favorite vehicle in the other. Art from any of the original six-issue adaptation of the first movie is incredibly rare.

Likewise, two pages from the same issue from the adaptation coming to auction at the same time is just about unheard of. Chaykin’s Page 15 and Page 16 from Star Wars #5 (November 1977) are also offered in this auction. They’re followed by Page 7 from Star Wars #9 (March 1978, inked by Tom Palmer), the third issue of original material following the adaptation.

Another Star Wars rarity is a page from Marvel’s Pizzazz #5 (February 1978, inked by Tony DeZuniga). “The Keeper’s World” was serialized across nine issues of Pizzazz and more importantly was the very first story set outside the scope of the original films in any media.

Editor’s note: The Star Wars offerings in this auction go beyond Howard Chaykin’s work and include some other true rarities as well. They were featured in last week’s Scoop.