Bill Ward : The Fantagraphics Studio Edition Hardback

Bill Ward's glamour girls were the staples of countless men's and humour magazines, where they shared the pages with cult models like Bettie Page, Tina Louise, and Julie Newmar, and cartoons by fellow 'good girl' artists such as Archie's Dan Decarlo and Playboy's Jack Cole.

What set Ward apart - and above - his talented contemporaries in terms of sheer image-making was his use of the conte crayon.

When drawn on simple newsprint stock, this potent combination created Ward's trademark gossamer sheen on his women's thigh-high stockings.

This Fantagraphics Studio edition showcases the best of Ward's Humorama work and includes a healthy number of what became known as his 'telephone girls.' Tame by today's standards, Ward's telephone girls were always caught in candid moments when they just happened to be talking on the phone dressed in gossamer lingerie in innocently provocative poses.

The majority of the images in this volume were drawn between 1955 and 1965 when Ward was at the height of