“Billy was the main artist on that first major Black Panther series,” said Mr. Simmons, who helped out when Graham and Mr. McGregor were designing maps of Wakanda. He was already on to something else.”In a sense, Graham’s Black Panther contributions were just one chapter in his larger body of work exploring his heritage. Billy Mitchell, who acted in some of Graham’s plays, remembers seeing the Black Panther and Luke Cage illustrations hanging on the walls of his apartment. “This was a Renaissance man who very much lived his life to the fullest,” Mr. Simmons said. Black Panther, leaping through the air, flanked by the words “Black History.” They liked the movie and stayed through the credits, but again the name they wanted to see was missing.

Source: New York Times March 07, 2018 15:00 UTC