Jack Kirby was the "King" of comics, but if you look at his massive catalog of gods, aliens, and super-soldiers, one orange, rock-skinned pilot stands out. Honestly, it’s not even close. The Thing wasn’t just another character for Kirby; he was a mirror. While Stan Lee brought the "smarts" and the snappy dialogue to the Fantastic Four, the soul of Benjamin Jacob Grimm came straight from Kirby’s own rough-and-tumble upbringing on the Lower East Side.
The Secret Jewish Identity of Ben Grimm
For decades, fans suspected it, but it wasn't officially "on the page" until much later. Jack Kirby was born Jacob Kurtzberg. He grew up on Delancey Street, a place where you either had fast hands or a fast mouth. He gave both to Ben Grimm. He even named the character Benjamin Jacob Grimm after his own father, Benjamin, and himself.
You’ve probably seen the famous 1976 Hanukkah card Kirby drew. It shows The Thing wearing a yarmulke and a tallis, looking like he just stepped out of a synagogue. Kirby used to tell people, "It's a Jewish Thing." He wasn't kidding. He viewed Ben as a modern Golem, the mythological clay protector of the Jewish people. Like the Golem of Prague, Ben was a monster built to protect those who couldn't protect themselves, trapped in a body that people feared at first sight.
The tragic irony of The Thing is that he thinks he's a monster, but he’s actually the most human member of the team. That was Kirby’s life. A guy who fought in World War II, saw the worst of humanity, and came back to draw wonders.
Why the Design Kept Changing
If you go back and look at Fantastic Four #1 from 1961, The Thing looks... weird. He doesn't have those clean, rectangular rocks we’re used to. He looks more like a lumpy, melted candle or a pile of orange mud.
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Kirby’s original intent was for Ben to have "dinosaur hide." He wanted him to look prehistoric and primal. But the evolution of the character's look is one of the coolest parts of comic history. As Kirby’s style got more "blocky" and architectural in the mid-60s, Ben changed too.
- The "Lumpy" Phase (1961-1962): He looks like a horror movie creature. Very little definition.
- The "Pineapple" Phase: The skin starts to break into distinct plates, looking a bit like a fruit or a tiled roof.
- The Iconic "Heavy Brow" (1965-1970): This is the Kirby peak. The brow becomes massive, the jaw gets square, and the "Kirby Krackle" starts appearing in the background of his fights.
A lot of this was actually thanks to the inker Joe Sinnott. When Sinnott started inking Kirby on Fantastic Four #44, he brought a slickness that defined the "Marvel Look." He took Kirby’s raw, energetic pencils and turned them into the polished, rocky Ben Grimm we recognize today.
The Thing is Jack Kirby (Literally)
Stan Lee once said that while he was the voice of the characters, Jack was the "action." But with Ben, Kirby was the voice too. Kirby’s speech patterns—the gruff, working-class New York "dese and dose" style—were exactly how he talked in real life.
"If you'll notice the way the Thing talks and acts, you'll find that the Thing is really Jack Kirby," Kirby once told an interviewer.
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He didn't see Ben as a "superhero" in the traditional sense. He saw him as a guy who got a raw deal and decided to do the right thing anyway. It’s a very blue-collar approach to being a god. While Reed Richards is dreaming about the Negative Zone, Ben is worrying about his Aunt Petunia or the Yancy Street Gang.
The "Kirby Krackle" and Cosmic Trauma
You can't talk about Jack Kirby and The Thing without mentioning the "Kirby Krackle." You know those clusters of black dots that represent cosmic energy or explosions? That was Kirby’s way of visualizing the un-visualizable.
When Ben gets hit by cosmic rays, it’s not just a "power-up." It’s a trauma. Kirby’s art made that energy feel heavy and dangerous. He used those dots to create a sense of vibrating power that felt like it was going to leap off the newsprint. For Ben, that energy was a cage. He was the only member of the team who couldn't turn his power off. Johnny Storm could stop being a torch, but Ben was always The Thing.
That sense of being "trapped" was something Kirby felt in the comic industry. He was creating billion-dollar ideas for a page rate, often feeling like a cog in a machine he built. He poured that frustration into Ben’s eyes. Even when Ben is smiling, there’s a weight there.
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Actionable Ways to Experience Kirby’s Thing Today
If you want to really "get" what made this collaboration special, don't just watch the movies. You have to see the ink on the page.
- Read Fantastic Four #51 ("This Man... This Monster!"): Many consider this the greatest single issue in Marvel history. It’s a solo Thing story that perfectly captures Kirby’s art and the character’s internal struggle.
- Look for the "Kirby Museum" Exhibits: The Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center often hosts digital galleries that show Ben Grimm’s design evolution through original pencils.
- Check out the 2025 movie "Fantastic Four: First Steps": The filmmakers have openly stated they are leaning into the 1960s Kirby aesthetic and Ben's Jewish roots. Watch for the "Yancy Street" details; they are direct nods to Kirby’s childhood.
- Study the Inking: Compare an early issue (inked by Dick Ayers) to a mid-run issue (inked by Joe Sinnott). You’ll see exactly how much the "rocky" texture of The Thing was a collaborative evolution.
Jack Kirby didn't just draw a guy made of rocks. He drew a guy with a heart of gold who happened to be covered in them. He proved that even the most "monstrous" looking person could be the most relatable hero in the room. That’s the legacy of The Thing, and it’s why, even 60-plus years later, we’re still talking about the King’s favorite creation.
Next Steps for the Collector:
Start by hunting down the Marvel Masterworks: The Fantastic Four volumes. They collect the original Lee/Kirby run with restored colors that make Kirby's "Krackle" and Ben's rocky texture pop exactly the way the creators intended back in the sixties. If you're more into the history than the stories, pick up Kirby: King of Comics by Mark Evanier; it has a massive section on how Ben Grimm’s personality was modeled after Jack’s own war stories.