Will Eisner - Michael Schumacher [72]
It was different with Ann’s father.
“At first, my father was suspicious that Will was after my money—which I didn’t have,” Ann remembered, “and he wasn’t going to give us any, either. We found out later that my father had Will investigated. One of his customers was in the magazine or newspaper business, and my father had him look Will up. Was he a reputable person? Did he steal? Whatever you looked into. I was furious when I found out, but Will said, ‘Why not? Let him look me up. I haven’t done anything bad.’
“After we got married, my father went to Will’s office one day and said, ‘This is what you do?’ He was very gruff. Will showed him around the office. My father said, ‘Don’t you want to be in a gentleman’s business?’ And Will said, ‘No, I’m happy. If I’m going to lose money, I’m going to lose it my way.’ When Will came home and related this to me, I said, ‘If you had said yes, I think we would have had a divorce immediately.’”
The were married on June 15, 1950, at the Temple Immanuel in New York City, with a reception at the Harmony Club attended by three hundred people. Ann had wanted a much smaller affair, but her father wouldn’t hear of it. He was going to send his daughter off properly, with his most highly regarded clients in attendance. There was great food, spirits, music, and dancing. Neither bride nor groom could dance three good steps—each accused the other of having no rhythm—but that didn’t matter. They had a good time.
The Eisners—Fannie, Sam, Will, Rhoda, and Pete—pose for a family photo at Will’s wedding. (Courtesy of Ann Eisner)
Will and Ann Eisner dance at their wedding reception. (Courtesy of Ann Eisner)
And they never looked back.
Leaving their wedding, June 15, 1950. (Courtesy of Ann Eisner)
Eisner’s daily routine, sedate to begin with, became utterly domesticated. Weekdays could be long and grueling, but Ann insisted, then and always, that he reserve weekends for her. There would be an occasional exception, but Eisner made a point of trying to honor the arrangement.
The marriage—and, later, the arrivals of their two children—also appears to have had a subtle yet powerful effect on Eisner’s work. By the time of his wedding in mid-1950, Eisner was losing interest in The Spirit. The weekly installments were still creatively strong, but Eisner’s passion had been redirected to American Visuals and the prospects of discovering new venues for educational comics. The novelty of the newspaper comic book insert had worn off for Eisner, his newspaper clients, and readers. Eisner, who hoped to move out of his New York apartment and into a house, raise a family, and in general enjoy the rewards of all the hard work of his youth, was convinced that American Visuals, more than The Spirit, would take him down that path.
“I felt there was a whole new world to conquer,” he said later. “The Spirit was nice and safe, but at that point there was nowhere to go with it. I wanted to leave while the show was still a success.”
The project with the greatest potential for long-term business turned up unexpectedly when Eisner heard from Norman Colton, an old contact from his Army Motors days. Colton, along with another civilian named Bernard Miller, had worked on the publication from its early days as a mimeographed sheet, through its growing pains with Eisner, and on through its expansion in Detroit. Army