One can say that Steve Leialoha is an odd choice for an SGCC guest for Fat Snake Comics. But then again, taste and interests are so diverse now that anything goes. So why not Steve?

Steve is a veteran of American mainstream comics – he inked the original Star Wars adaptation back in 1977 drawn by Howard Chaykin. He has worked with artists like Jim Starlin (Warlock) and Mark Buckingham (Fables) and writers like Chris Claremont, Neil Gaiman and Bill Willingham.

I first met Steve through the late Trina Robbins, an old friend. They have been a couple for the longest time and this is Trina’s account of how they got together:

Steve was there, among the many guests, and he had taken his ponytail down and his long black hair flowed down past his shoulders. He was also about seven feet tall, and suddenly he looked very good to coked-out me. I thought, “What the hell. I’m not gonna sleep tonight anyway,” so out of the blue I invited Steve to come home with me and have sex. I was a babe in the ‘70s, and I knew that any of the male Bay Area cartoonists, even if they didn’t like my comics or take me seriously, would jump at the chance.

But Steve took his time. He thought about it. He considered it. He weighed the positives and negatives while I was devouring my nails, and he finally said yes.

I soon learned that Steve always think things through before doing or saying anything, which continues to drive me up the wall, and makes him the slowest person on earth. I am the opposite, impulsive and given to leaping before looking. Steve has saved me more than once from being hit by a car.

(Last Girl Standing, 2017, pp. 170-171)

Okay, you get an idea of the kind of person Steve is. So let’s get on with the interview:

This is how Trina described you, you take your time to think and decide (and how it saved her life from being knocked down by cars!).

I was the navigator on our travels; pretty good with maps! Trina did a lot of interviews for her books about female comic artists and I was often the driver, so I also got to meet a lot of interesting people, as well.

You worked on many significant stories and comics – Warlock, Star Wars, Fables, and even Jessica Drew / Spider-Woman. But sometimes, inkers get forgotten. Would you rather have drawn more than to be an inker? 

I’ve hopped onto a title or two to help out on a deadline crunch. I started out as an inker at Marvel on Warlock and Howard the Duck, then the Star Wars adaptation. My first penciling was for Spider-Woman, a character I liked from inking her earlier issues over Carmine Infantino. I like collaborating with other pencillers so I made it a point to try my pen and brush with as many of my favorite artists as I could. It was also a great way to learn, working over art by Jim Starlin, Frank Brunner, the Buscema brothers, Gil Kane, Jack Kirby and Gene Colan, to name just a few! I liked to switch between penciling or inking every six months or so. There were never any plans one way or the other, outside of having fun on interesting projects. I was lucky enough to be offered a lot of unexpected things at Marvel, DC, Dark Horse and many others over the years.  I like the fantasy genre as well so ended up working on DC/Vertigo projects for a very long time, particularly on Fables. I was the regular inker of the main storyline over Mark Buckingham pencils for twenty years! I also found time to draw a few issues and illustrate the Fables novel: Peter & Max by Bill Willingham.

It’s in her book, but let’s hear it from you. How did you meet Trina?

There weren’t a lot of people making comics in San Francisco in the early 70s, when I met most of them, including Trina. After a few years we actually met up and she asked me out!

Was it really like what she said, you weighed the pros and cons and thought for a long time before deciding to go home with her?

Well, I must say, outside of the fact that she really didn’t like the typical Marvel superhero comics (like the ones I was working on!) there were no real cons. It turned out we had a lot in common. We were both science fiction and EC comics fans, liked a lot of the same music, but different enough to make it interesting. We were both working professionals and understood the demands of deadlines. It became an almost fifty year relationship. It amazed even us!

I met you through Trina – in Kyoto in 2010 and in London in 2013. (not sure if we met in SF in Dec 1997 – I remember having a meal with Trina and she was telling me her daughter was in India) Did you ever collaborate with Trina on a comics project?

(The Manga Museum in Kyoto is a great place!)

We mostly had very different projects so we only collaborated a few times, some pin-ups and things like that. I did draw a story for “A Minyin Yidden”, a graphic novel adapted from stories her father wrote in the 1930s.

I miss Trina. Any special memories of her that you can share with us?

We did like to travel! We were able to visit a lot of places, visit museums and historic ancient locales.

It’s in other interviews, but let’s hear it from you. How did you get into the comics industry?

My first professional work in comics (as in, actually getting paid) appeared in 1972, but I count my start when I began working regularly in 1975. A few established Marvel comics artists had moved to San Francisco (where I was) and were looking for artists locally to work with, particularly inkers. In those pre-digital days, everything had to be mailed and with the Marvel offices in New York, mailing things took up a lot of time. Getting everything done in one place ie. San Francisco and saving a lot of time was the goal.

Anyway, I worked up some inking samples for Jim Starlin and Frank Brunner who liked what I did and asked me to work with them on Warlock and Howard the Duck. Fortunately they were both bi-monthly books with alternating deadlines. I’ve been working steadily ever since!

Would it be possible that instead of working for Marvel, you became a full-fledged underground comix artist in the 70s, contributing stories to Arcade and Weirdo in the 1970s and 1980s? 

Stylistically, I wasn’t really part of that group, though I did a few things for Last Gasp Comics, one of which was reprinted in Metal Hurlant (in French). I also contributed to Star Reach, a “ground level” comics company.

Did anyone comment that you have Leia in your last name

Strangely enough, no one has. I certainly noticed it. One of my few regrets was that I never got to meet Carrie Fisher. I saw her at a lot of events but never actually met her.

How did this gig to Singapore come about? What do you look forward to seeing / doing?

Renee Witterstaetter has been getting me to conventions for a few years and invited me along for this one. I went to one in China with her and Trina and many around the US.

I’m up for anything in Singapore, time permitting!  

What food are you looking forward to in Singapore? And places you like to visit

It’s all new to me. My former studio mate, Eric Larsen visited recently and posted a lot of pics of his wandering around so that was a nice preview. I’ll do some better research…

I just flew to SF  a few months ago to watch Iggy Pop at the Mosswood Meltdown Festival (curated by John Waters). It was a long ass ride there and back. How are you preparing yourself for the 18-20 hours flight? (hope that they are not flying you in in coach!!)

Ha! I’ve learned to take it easy. It’s impossible to get any real sleep.

Are you going to Tokyo Con after Singapore?

Yes! It will be my first Tokyo convention, but I have visited a few times, all comics related. The first was a visit to the Tezuka Museum in Takarazuka.

Okay, see you soon in Singapore, Steve.

Steve is a really nice guy. When I heard he is coming for SGCC, I wanted to do an email interview to help promote his appearance at the Fat Snake Comics booth. So don’t be shy, go say hello to Steve at SGCC, buy his comics, and get a commission from him.