GALLERY

See the Von Sholly Turoks

When I was a wee lad, I was always fascinated with dinosaurs and fantastic creaturesof the imagination. I'm sure that's what attracted me to the comic book TUROK Son Of Stone. It turned out to be the only comic book I would get with any frequency until I became a teenager. Today, Valient Comics has resurrected Turok, given his story a modern twist with powerful hi-tech weapons and incredible adversaries. There's even Turok computer games you can play, allowing you to blow away all kinds of dinosaurs. Now he is Turok: Dinosaur Hunter. But this isn't the Turok I remember.

Turok was a brave Kiowa warrior living some time in the 1800's before the arrival of white men. He and a young companion, Andar, wander into a savage prehistoric land they call Lost Valley and find themselves cut off from their homeland and people. They wander around Lost Valley, encountering cavemen and hungry dinosaurs (which they call "honkers"), searching for a way out. Fortunately, on their journeys, they discover a poisonous plant with highly toxic berries. They smear the tips of their arrows with these berries and now even the biggest, nastiest honker is no longer a threat.

I don't know who all of the artists who worked on Turok were, but the one who is best known is probably Alberto Gioletti. He was the artist for a large number of the books. He was not the artist from the beginning, however. As for the writing, that was done by Paul S. Newman. He was a very prolific comic book writer, and Turok became his longest running series, lasting 26 years. I wish I knew more facts and history of Turok Son of Stone, but for the most part I only know my history with the comic. If anyone can help me in this area, it would be greatly appreciated.

As a child, the stories thrilled me, and I was able to overlook flaws, such as calling herbivores "flesh eaters." It also seemed to me that the poison arrows worked a little too quickly, killing the targeted dinosaur virtually on contact. Flaws and all, Turok remains one of my fondest memories, and I've taken up collecting back issues of the comic. I've created this cover gallery for anyone who may share my interest. I lack quite a few cover images, and if anyone feels the urge to help me fill it out, I would be very grateful. I have a plan in the works to make a short Turok story of my own, which I will post upon completion. One of my ambitions as a youth was to be the artist drawing Turok's adventures. Now that his comic no longer exists, this will be my only opportunity to realize that ambition.