EXTRACTS: British War Comics Illustrators Special © 2018 The Book Palace (144 PAGES in Full edition)

14 illustration. Whilst comic strips were declining by the mid-‘60s, book illustration was on the rise. Since many of the artists from his agency had either found work back home or elsewhere, Dami thought it was time to start his own publishing house and, with Carlo Porciani, founded Produzione Editoriale Dami in Milan. His first major work was ‘Cosa Fanno gli Animali’ (‘Things Animals Do’), followed by the 22-volume illustrated encyclopedia about animals: ‘Guarda e Scopri gli Animali’ (‘Watch and Discover the Animals’). Rinaldo Dami, known in the comic industry as Roy Dami, died on February 14, 1979 in Milan. However, the publishing house Dami International, which he helped to found, is still producing books (mainly for children). In 2008 Dami International joined Giunti, and is now part of Giunti International Division. The Dami art agency was an important player in British comics, providing much of the artwork for the from working earlier for the Milan publishers, many Argentinean artists would also be added to the list. The better wages they enjoyed and a very favourable exchange rate providing an additional stimulus. Dami, besides being an agent, would also take on work himself, scripting Little Scooty (based on his previous Scuterino strip done for Corriere dei Piccoli ), drawn by Antonio Lupatelli for Jack and Jill Annual. He also drew some comics for War Picture Library and Battle Picture Library . However, in 1960 a quarrel between the Dami brothers put a dent in the agency. In addition, the competition they were getting from the Spanish artists forced many of the agency’s artists to look for work elsewhere, mainly in their country of origin. His brother Piero then founded another art agency called Eurostudio in Milan. Meanwhile, Roy Dami’s interests in war comics started to wane and he switched over to natural history ABOVE: Self portrait of the artist in his studio with a comic page he was working on. RIGHT & FACING PAGE: More examples of Dami's action-fuelled art. 'The Valley of the Mists' and a cover for Fox comics featuring Ill Sergente York.