Marvel is coming under increasing pressure for its stance on the work of Jack Kirby, who co-created many of Marvel’s most important characters, with a boycott of The Avengers movie and an online petition stirring the pot.  An article by comic writer James Sturm on Slate this week gave the boycott of The Avengers more momentum.  Citing earlier calls for a boycott by cartoonist Stephen Bissette (in a post on his blog titled “Honoring a Fallen King”) with additional support from blogger Tom Spurgeon and artist Seth, for inspiration, Sturm said he’d be boycotting The Avengers.  He expressed doubt that it would be widely accepted, but said he would choose not to attend regardless. 

Also this week, a petition drive was launched on Change.org to give Kirby credit and his heirs royalties on his creations. 

This has been a slow motion process, prompted in part by a judge’s ruling last summer that Kirby’s work for Marvel had been work for hire, meaning he had no rights to it.  An appeal has been filed (see ‘Kirby Heirs File Appeal”), but the prospect of a legal defeat for the Kirby heirs seems to be motivating some to seek to pressure Marvel directly on behalf of Kirby and his heirs.