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A prelim hand-drawn by Frank Frazetta for an illustration known as "Attack" from the promotion of Glen A. Larson's Battlestar Galactica. The sketch, a partial tracing of a previous Frazetta drawing rendered in graphite on vellum, depicts Capt. Apollo (Richard Hatch), Lt. Starbuck (Dirk Benedict), and Lt. Athena (Maren Jensen) beneath the Battlestar Galactica and a group of Cylon Raiders.
This drawing was completed at the peak of Frank Frazetta's career while he was creating other book covers, illustrations, and promotional artwork for genre classics such as Robert E. Howard's Conan, Ralph Bakshi's Fire and Ice, and Clint Eastwood's The Gauntlet. Frazetta rose to fame in the 1940s and 50s for his elegant pen and ink comic book illustrations. He illustrated Western and sci-fi comic book covers and stories for publishers such as EC Comics, and also created a classic run of Buck Rogers covers for Famous Funnies. He also worked on newspaper comic strips including Johnny Comet and Li'l Abner.
In the 60s and 70s, Frazetta focused his attention on painting, becoming a pop culture phenomenon after widespread distribution of posters of his painted works helped him to become a household name. In 1978, he created a small number of paintings for the Battlestar Galactica marketing campaign, which were first published in that year's Sept. 16-22 edition of TV Guide and later in novelizations of the series. Frazetta was previously approached by George Lucas to create artwork for Star Wars: A New Hope, but chose to work on BSG instead, in part to retain the rights to his artwork.
This preliminary sketch for the "Attack" painting is hand-marked "Battlestar Galactica ('78) Sketch #4" and "plate 1 (redo) change ship and planet." Also included is a copy of the TV Guide featuring the final "Attack" advertisement in black-and-white. The sketch shows evidence of minor edge wear consistent with handling and age, while the letter shows fold lines.
Today, Frank Frazetta is considered the 'Godfather of fantasy art', having inspired a generation of acclaimed artists including Boris Vallejo and Ken Kelly. In recent years, prices for original published Frazetta artworks have escalated to new record highs for fantasy art, with the sale of one of his painted Conan paperback covers breaking the $10,000,000 mark in 2025. Dimensions: (drawing) 13" x 10" (33 cm x 25.5 cm)
Additional Provenance: A photocopy of a letter signed and sent by renowned Battlestar Galactica miniature and effects unit supervisor John Dykstra to David Scott, a fellow miniatures artist at visual effects group Apogee. The letter, which is addressed to "Dave" on Apogee letterhead, describes how Frazetta left this prelim with Apogee as a "get well soon" gift for Scott's motorcycle-induced injury, as well as Frazetta's input on the creative similarities between effects work in Battlestar Galactica and A New Hope.
Sold without copyright; see notice in the Buyer's Guide.
Estimate: $6,000 - 12,000
This item comes with a Propstore Certificate of Authenticity.