Late artist may get credit, but not cash

When Marvel Comics’ newest superhero flick, “Fantastic Four,” opens Friday, Lisa Kirby hopes to see her father’s name in big, bright letters. Her father was artist Jack Kirby, who, along with Stan Lee, created Marvel’s flagship foursome.

Comic book fans may also remember Kirby, who died in 1994, as the co-creator of such icons as the Hulk and the X-Men. Yet many accounts of the Marvel movies manage to focus solely on Lee’s contributions to the Marvel universe.

“I have mixed feelings every time one of these movies comes out,” Lisa Kirby said. “My dad would be amazed that they’re making these superhero movies -- that his characters are still alive and that people are still enjoying them. Then again, it’s disheartening that he isn’t getting as much recognition as he should.”

Also, while Marvel reaps the rewards of Lee’s and Kirby’s creations through licensing and profit agreements, Kirby’s heirs see nary a dime. Because Kirby was considered “work for hire” when he was drawing for Marvel, the company has complete ownership of the characters.

(Any doubt about Kirby’s employment status was put to an end in 1987, when, in exchange for the return of his original art, Kirby signed a document giving up any rights he might have had in the characters he created.)

And though Marvel began offering royalties to artists based on the sales of their comic books in the 1980s, the policy was not retroactive, meaning the estate gets nothing from the multitudes of Kirby-created comics reprinted as movie tie-ins

For his part, Lee signed a lucrative contract with Marvel that pays him $1 million a year. On top of that, litigation regarding a profit-sharing clause in that contract recently resulted in a settlement estimated at up to $10 million.

Since no money is in the offing from Marvel, the best the estate can hope for is that Kirby gets his due in the movie’s credits.

Marvel Studios Chairman Avi Arad promises that his name will be prominently featured in “Fantastic Four.”