Alter Ego #140 Preview by TwoMorrows Publishing

Roy Thomas’ Standing-Room-Only Comics Fanzine

CELEBRATING GOLDEN AGE GREAT

IRWIN HASEN FROM THE JUSTICE SOCIETY TO DONDI— AND BACK AGAIN!

8.95

In the USA

No.140 June 2016

82658 00052 1

Characters TM & © DC Comics.

Ir win Was Here!

Vol. 3, No. 140 / June 2016 Editor

Roy Thomas

Associate Editors Bill Schelly Jim Amash

Design & Layout

Christopher Day

Consulting Editor John Morrow

FCA Editor

P.C. Hamerlinck J.T. Go (Assoc. Editor)

Comic Crypt Editor Michael T. Gilbert

Editorial Honor Roll

Jerry G. Bails (founder) Ronn Foss, Biljo White Mike Friedrich

Proofreaders

Rob Smentek William J. Dowlding

Cover Artists

Contents

Shane Foley (adapting the work of Irwin Hasen)

Writer/Editorial: Chasin’ Hasen . . . . . . . 2 Hasen—The Documentary. . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Cover Colorist Tom Ziuko

With Special Thanks to: Neal Adams Aaron Allen Heidi Amash Sergio Aragonés Bob Bailey Robert R. Barrett Alberto Becattini Rick Beyer Christopher Boyko Alan Brennert Aaron Caplan Janice Chiang Shaun Clancy Comic Book Plus website Craig Delich Sean Dulaney John R. Ellis Jules Feiffer Michael Feldman Danny Fingeroth John Fishel Shane Foley Henry G. Franke III Bill Gallo Janet Gilbert Grand Comics Database Jay Harford

Steve Harford Brett J. Jim Kealy Robert Kennedy Michael Learn Paul Levitz Art Lortie Jim Ludwig Dan Makara Doug Martin Chellie Mayer Wallace McPherson Michael Norwitz Charles Pelto Steven Rowe Randy Sargent Tom Sawyer Elizabeth Sayles William Sayles Sheila Shapira Anthony Snyder Mark Squirek Dann Thomas Jim Tyne Michael Uslan James Van Hise Hames Ware Steven G. Willis Eddy Zeno

This issue is dedicated to the memory of

Irwin Hasen, Murphy Anderson, & Leonard Starr

A transcript of Dan Makara’s unseen film about (and starring) Golden Age artist Irwin Hasen.

Mr. Monster’s Comic Crypt! The Wallace McPherson Interview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Michael T. Gilbert presents Shaun Clancy and the fan who may have created MLJ’s Black Jack!

Comic Fandom Archive: Gordon Belljohn Love Changed My Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Part 4 of Bill Schelly’s multi-issue tribute to G.B. Love, founder of the RBCC adzine.

Tributes to Murphy Anderson and Leonard Starr . . . . . . . . 51 re: [correspondence, comments, & corrections] . . . . . . . . . 57 FCA [Fawcett Collectors Of America] #199 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73 P.C. Hamerlinck completes his study of artist Ray Harford & the Ghost Army of WWII.

On Our Cover: Several years ago, as an illustration for an “alternate history” in which M.C. Gaines’ All-American Comics Group had taken over National/DC instead of vice versa, Shane Foley created what is basically a sort of “alternate inking” (which included altering four characters into four different ones) of Irwin Hasen’s classic cover for All-Star Comics #37 (Oct.-Nov. 1947), with Superman and Batman standing in for Johnny Thunder and The Atom—and The Joker and Luthor replacing The Gambler and The Thinker. (Shane also re-positioned Dr. Mid-Nite, to help Superman and Batman be spotlighted more clearly.) Not only was All-Star’s “Justice Society of America” one of Irwin’s major comic book assignments—and not only was one of the JSA the Golden Age Green Lantern, the hero for whom he was a regular artist both before and after his Army service in World War II—but Hasen even seems to have drawn the “Superman” and “Batman” chapters in All-Star #36 (Aug.-Sept. ’47). That made this well-executed adaptation illo ideal for the cover of this edition of Alter Ego. The photo of Irwin was taken by Mad artist Sergio Aragonés. [JSA heroes & villains TM & © DC Comics.] Above: The most noteworthy of several 1940s heroes that Irwin Hasen co-created was “Wildcat,” in All-American’s Sensation Comics, behind cover heroine Wonder Woman. These dramatic panels are from Sensation #14 (Feb. 1943). Scripter unknown. Hasen always maintained that the initial concept of the series was his, but that Bill Finger was brought aboard by editor Shelly Mayer to write the early stories. Thanks to Doug Martin. [TM & © DC Comics.] Alter EgoTM is published 8 times a year by TwoMorrows, 10407 Bedfordtown Drive, Raleigh, NC 27614, USA. Phone: (919) 449-0344. Roy Thomas, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Alter Ego Editorial Offices: 32 Bluebird Trail, St. Matthews, SC 29135, USA. Fax: (803) 826-6501; e-mail: roydann@ntinet.com. Send subscription funds to TwoMorrows, NOT to the editorial offices. Eight-issue subscriptions: $73 US, $116 International, $31.60 Digital Only. All characters are © their respective companies. All material © their creators unless otherwise noted. All editorial matter © Roy Thomas. Alter Ego is a TM of Roy & Dann Thomas. FCA is a TM of P.C. Hamerlinck. Printed in China. ISSN: 1932-6890 FIRST PRINTING.

HASEN –

The Documentary A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great IRWIN HASEN by Dan Makara

I. Twin Introductions by Dan Makara

A. My Friend Irwin

have many “best” friends. My wife is my best friend. My son, my dog, even my cat… we are best friends.

Irwin Hasen was my Best Friend. I’d wanted to meet him because I thought All-Star Comics was the numero uno comic book of All Time… and Irwin had drawn the best of the best All-Star stories.

Irwin Was Here! Irwin Hasen (on left, above) and Dan Makara a few years ago at the Wonder Woman Museum in Bethel, Connecticut; it was founded by the family of WW co-creator William Marston. Also on this page are a Hasen re-creation of his very first “Justice Society” cover, for All-Star Comics #33 (Feb.-March 1947)—and a classic color sketch of the comic strip waif Dondi atop a duffel bag. The latter image was used as the cover of Classic Comics Press’ collection Dondi by Gus Edson and Irwin Hasen, Vol. 1 (2007); courtesy of Charles Pelto. That series’ two volumes are still in print; see ad on p. 3. The All-Star re-creation is courtesy of owner Mark Squirek. [JSA & Solomon Grundy TM & © DC Comics; Dondi TM & © Tribune Media Services, Inc.]

Hasen—The Documentary

IRWIN – A NEW YORK STORY A Documentary Film by Dan Makara Transcribed by Sean Dulaney

[Images from early Dondi comic strips.] CHILD’S V/O: The story of Dondi. A little war orphan found cold and starving by two kind-hearted G.I.s. They feed him and treat him with affection. For the first time in his life, Dondi has a home and finds real happiness. But then, suddenly, the bottom drops out of his world. Word comes that his G.I. buddies are to be sent back to America. But the resourceful lad hides aboard a troop ship. After an arduous journey, the little refugee secretly enters the United States. DONDI: [seeing the Statue of Liberty from the ship] I know you, Big Lady. You Miss America! IRWIN HASEN: I was born in Harlem. I weighed a pound and a quarter. Pound and a quarter, and the doctor at the hospital, the Women’s Hospital in New York, said, “If he survives he’ll be a genius.” They said, “Don’t count on it.” My earliest memory is when my mother and father, after I was born, after about two years, began to measure me against the wall. You never forget a thing like that. “Why are they measuring me?” And I think it stayed with me. My father came from Russia. He came from the old country where, if you have a son, you put him out in the fields… to work. And he was a little nonplussed by having a little son. My parents, whenever they moved—they moved four or five times a year, terrible—and they’d put me in a little room in the back of the apartment. And I’d sit there with the radio—the radio was my life’s blood— and I’d sit with my drawing board in a lonely room. I don’t know how the hell I did it. I don’t know. When you think about [it,] almost all cartoonists did it. A lonely room. Cartoonists are like little children. Even when they’re 80. They’re not children. They’re old children. They never lost that spell of being young. Cartoonists. Even the word “cartoonist” is a funny word. I collected the most beautiful bunch of friends. Not being in the business world, but by being a cartoonist. I was there at the beginning. I just walked into it. A little kid with a portfolio. That’s how the whole thing started… how the world started.

Dondi Esta… Montage of 1955 Sunday and daily panels from Dondi, by writer Gus Edson & artist Irwin Hasen, as glimpsed in screen saves from the doc. Ye Editor has always wondered if Edson got the name from the Spanish word “Donde,” meaning “Where”… since the lad was lost from his homeland, then lost for a time in the New World. As a kid, Roy—and, he’s since learned, lots of other people—thought Dondi was Korean, since the war on that Asian peninsula had ended only two years before, in an uneasy truce that still endures. [TM & © Tribune Media Services, Inc.]

A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great Irwin Hasen

Because… maybe I did lead a lonely life. I don’t think so. Maybe Dondi was a part of me and I was Dondi. The kid—and I use the word “the kid”—it’s like I was gonna say “my kid.” I look at him as though he’s my kid. Like a little son of mine, you see? It was like I never had a real family. My parents, my grandparents… they fought and screamed a lot. When you’re surrounded by anger and depression all the time, to survive, you find ways to escape. I think I wanted to become an entertainer to make them laugh, or even love me. Maybe that’s why I became a cartoonist. To make them laugh.

Ellis Is Wonderland Irwin on his way to Ellis Island, at the start of Makara’s engaging documentary. That island, of course, was where his immigrant parents, like millions more, had entered the United States in the early 20th century. [© 2016 Dan Makara.]

I wanted to be loved by everybody, unquote. Even women. I was doing everything a little guy does to prove that he’s tall. I was always aware I was short, and I used to wear elevator shoes. We had a terrible family life. Awful… just disgusting. Terrible. That’s probably why I may have been crippled a little bit about getting married, having a family, and all that. I was never able to get close. And now that I’m 90 years old, [it] doesn’t matter anymore. So what! But the point is, I don’t even feel sorry. I don’t even think I missed anything. That’s what’s scary. And that’s what’s a little sad.

We lived all together in a little house in Bensonhurst. And we had a chauffeur and his wife. His wife was our cook. And I could never understand the dichotomy of living in a two-story white, stucco little house and having a chauffeur… a liveried chauffer. And that’s how we lived for about five years. Ten years, maybe.

My grandfather was a very wealthy man. Furniture dealer. He owned the building down on 315 Grand Street. In a six-story building. And while I was typing letters to his sister in Boston… I would be learning how to type. That’s where I learned how to type. I was five years old. And I used to hear noises from upstairs. [imitates the sound of squeaking bedsprings] It was my grandfather… schtupping his female customers on the sixth floor. The mattresses. He was in the furniture business and I often wondered about that sound… the noise. My grandfather had great taste. [shows pinky ring] This is his ring, [which] I took off his finger when he was dead, when he died, so the undertaker shouldn’t take it. ‘Cause I

You Make Me Feel So Young! (Above & right:) Irwin playing Charlie Chaplin at age 6—and at, age 15, with an unidentified girl about the same age. Thanks to Dan Makara.

A View With A Room (Above:) Irwin gazes out of his apartment window in New York City (where he lived for nearly 60 years) at the street below—or maybe he’s remembering himself in 1923 at age five, as in the photo just above. Two screen saves from the doc. [© 2016 Dan Makara.]

A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great Irwin Hasen

you know? You ate or didn’t eat. It was a tough life. I think “Superman” and “Batman” were the only things that survived the time. But even they were hurt very badly. HASEN: [narrating] The super-hero books began to lose money. As a result, a lot of cartoonists lost their jobs. In 1950, in fact, I lost mine. [Cut to:] INFANTINO: He was told at DC Comics he should take a vacation, as they were hiring these kids. He thought it was wonderful. [laughter] When he got on the Queen Elizabeth, he found out he was fired.

For What It’s Wertham! Dr. Fredric Wertham, author of the 1954 anti-comics book Seduction of the Innocent. ’Nuff said?

HASEN: [narrating] I went to Israel, and that’s where I became Jewish. That’s when I knew I was Jewish. Because when I went to Jerusalem, the cab driver dropped me off at the top of the mountain. You look down into Jerusalem and you see the lights in the sky, and all of a sudden, I started crying. And I said to the driver—his name was Tzvee, all the cab drivers are named “Tzvee” in Israel—I said, “Tzvee, why am I crying?” He said, “Mr. Hasen, they all cry.”

[Continued on p. 29]

“Look Out, Axis—Here Come Green Lantern & Doiby!” (Above:) Green Lantern and Doiby did their part for the war effort in this twopage special feature from All-American Comics #44 (Nov. 1942). Scripter unknown. Thanks to Michael T. Gilbert. [TM & © DC Comics.]

in only one paper, and having made no money, we were cancelled. However, it was a terrific experience. Later that year, as I left my newspaper family, I returned to my comic book family, DC Comics. Soon, I was back to work with “The Green Lantern,” “The Flash,” All-Star Comics… and my new assignment. The regular cover artist for Wonder Woman. Shelly knew, I think, that I loved drawing tall, statuesque women. And even going out with a few. And on every cover, the Amazon princess battled a plethora of thugs, pirates, space aliens, and 3-D monsters. But after the war, times changed. DR. FREDERIC WERTHAM: [archival footage] The real question is this. Are comics good, or are they not good? [Cut to:] INFANTINO: They were destroying comics. They said children were being destroyed. Kids were jumping off rooftops. Killing themselves. Drugs. Women. Sex. Violence. They blamed every sin, every problem in the world on comic books. And the comics got slaughtered. We were the people doing these things and we’d be ashamed to even tell people we did them. As I said, that’s the reason we did pseudonyms—for myself, and the other guys did, too. We didn’t know day to day if there’d be work or not work,

Irwin As Don Juan The cover of Hasen’s 2009 graphic novel/memoir Loverboy: An Irwin Hasen Story, from Vanguard Press. [© Estate of Irwin Hasen.]

Hasen—The Documentary

Caught In Charlotte’s Web (Top left:) Irwin at the 1996 Heroes Con in Charlotte, North Carolina, flanked by his late-1940s editor Julius Schwartz (on right) and artist Murphy Anderson. Photo courtesy of Bob Bailey.

[Continued from p. 24] And that’s when I became a Jew. Simple as that. Back in the States and being out of work, my friends at the National Cartoonists Society got me on a USO tour to entertain the troops. Again, my two loves. The stage and cartooning. In 1952, a bunch of us were sent overseas to Germany. And yes, Virginia, there was a Holocaust. One night I slept in a German general’s bed. I wasn’t in it [the Holocaust]. I would’ve been in an ashtray in the morning. And then we went to Dachau. [chokes up] Then we went to Dachau. And that’s where we got the shock. Gus Edson [writer & artist on The Gumps comic strip] and I were the only Jews among the cartoonists. And Gus Edson and I, the only Jews, came back on the bus, didn’t say a word. We got back to Berlin and we all got drunk. And it was quite an experience. One moment of the trip, Gus said to me, “Are you doing anything? What are you doing?” About my work: when you’re broke and you’re out of work, you say

Also seen are a cover by Hasen, probably drawn for Julie after JS took over full editorial chores from Sheldon Mayer—that of All-Star Comics #44 (Dec. 1948Jan. 1949), with his Wonder Woman having a very H.G. Peter look—and, also for Julie, a splash page (inked by Bernard Sachs) of an SF story in Strange Adventures #47 (Aug. 1954); Sid Gerson, writer. [TM & © DC Comics.]

you’re in advertising. So I said I was doing some advertising work. I hadn’t done any work in four years. So he said, “Would you be interested in doing something?” This comes to the end of my life where I became not an itinerate, but a “star.” He sends me a picture of Dondi when we get back to New York. The picture is like this. [displays Edson’s original Dondi drawing; see p. 31] That’s the picture. It was not as ornate. It was on WaldorfAstoria stationery. Black-&-white. And I looked at the picture and said, “Gus”… I called him up and said, “Gus, this is going to be the best strip in America.” It’s like looking across a crowded room, seeing a woman and saying, “That’s going to be my wife.” [The song “Dondi” plays, sung by popular recording artist Patti Page.] I did this, right at the very beginning, six days a week, possibly sometimes seven days a week. Sometimes ten hours a day.

A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great Irwin Hasen

Dondi—Rhymes (More Or Less) With “Sunday” The first Dondi Sunday, dated Oct. 2, 1955—reprinted in black-&-white from Classic Comics Press’ Dondi, Vol. 1. [TM & © Tribune Media Services, Inc.]

As a result of his popularity, Dondi became attractive to Hollywood. Gus Edson had a friend, and he said, “We have a movie being made.” I said, “That’s nice. Who’s going to be the producer?” He said, “Kid, nothing to do with you. Don’t worry about it.” And then I knew I was—[makes throat-slashing gesture] And I said, “What about me?” I’d like to go to Hollywood. He said, “Irwin, you know you’re going to have to pay your own way. You want to spend that?” I looked at him and said, “Gus, I’m your partner.”

There was a lot of merchandising from the movie. They put out dolls. They put out belts. They put out everything. And… “Gosh!” as Dondi would say, “Gosh, Misters, why didn’t you tell me about the merchandising?” One perk I did get was a trip to Miami. I was asked to be a judge at the Miss Universe competition that year. In 1960. It was to

In his mind, “You’re not my partner. You’re a schmuck cartoonist who I hired to get—” And I shut up. Anyway, I went to Hollywood. I paid my way. This is a sad story. A rotten story. It’s a terrible story. Because he did everything behind my back. And he put me in that movie, [in] which I’m a police artist. I did a drawing of Dondi when he was lost in America. Do a drawing of Dondi. Gus drove home in a white Lincoln Continental car, plus whatever he got from the movie.

Yes, Virginia, There Is A Dondi Claus! Hasen (on left) with Gus Edson in 1956, at a time when Dondi became, for a time, one of the most popular comic strips in the U.S. Screen save from doc. [Screen save © 2016 Dan Makara; Dondi art TM & © Tribune Media Services, Inc.]

A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great Irwin Hasen

GALLO: Who killed it? HASEN: Somebody at the News. Well, the News was our biggest client at that time. GALLO: Yeah. HASEN: And then we lost papers. It fell out of favor, you know, after 30 years. New editors come in. New advertising and all that. First of all, when it stopped, I was okay. I didn’t feel bad. GALLO: Why? HASEN: It wasn’t making a lot of money. Very little money for the work I had to put in. That’s the reason.

End Of An Era (Above & below:) Hasen looking at the final Dondi Sunday strip (for June 8, 1986)—and a contrast between the ever-young Dondi and a photo of young Irwin in 1923. Both screen saves from the doc. [© 2016 Dan Makara.]

DAN MAKARA: [off camera] Plus you got your run, didn’t you? HASEN: I had my 30 years. Jesus! GALLO: It was very popular. HASEN: Absolutely! I have no complaints. And also, I started to teach. [Cut to footage of Hasen looking over the work of his students at the Joe Kubert School]

HASEN: The story of Dondi is about the American dream. Some people ask me why Dondi was an Italian orphan. But that didn’t matter. Dondi could have just as easily been German, or Jewish… Arab… or anything. In America, everybody has a chance. But you’ve got to work your tail off. GALLO: Dondi… I fell in love with Dondi right away. It was a great strip. Why it’s not running today… It—It could be. It— HASEN: It should’ve been. It could’ve been. GALLO: Yeah. Beetle Bailey, for crying out loud. Gasoline Alley. Dondi could’ve grown up to be… HASEN: He couldn’t grow up. I didn’t grow up. Why should Dondi grow up? GALLO: [laughter] But it should’ve been… HASEN: I know. GALLO: I don’t know why it was cancelled. Why was it cancelled? HASEN: I think the Daily News finally didn’t like it. GALLO: Why? HASEN: I don’t know why. Nobody ever told us.

days back at DC Comics.

HASEN: [narrating] I taught at the Joe Kubert’s School of Cartoon Art for nearly 30 years. I began when I was still doing Dondi and then 22 years after Dondi ended. And Joe Kubert, who runs the school—oh, what a great guy. And a great artist. He’s been my friend since my comic book

[Cut to Irwin, Joe Kubert, and other faculty having lunch… joined in mid-conversation, probably about the New York Comics Convention] JOE KUBERT: That’s a wild place, also. And the convention gets wilder and wilder. HASEN: I heard last year they had like 60,000. KUBERT: Yeah. Yeah. HASEN: I’m a little bit leery of that, really. [Cut to Irwin in car, going to New York Comics Convention] MAKARA: [off camera] So, what do you think going to these comic book conventions, Irwin? HASEN: I love it! MAKARA: Yeah? HASEN: Yeah. I make a couple’a bucks. Tax-free. [pauses a beat] Keep this off the record. Jesus. [Irwin walking into the building where the convention is being held] [Continued on p. 42]

A Film—& Soundtrack—About Golden Age Great Irwin Hasen

Irwin Hasen’s Four-Play Whether Irwin Hasen will be remembered more for his comic book work, or for Dondi, is a question perhaps not yet decided—but we hope his spirit won’t mind if Alter Ego honors him for both! Seen on this page are the “Wildcat” splash from Sensation Comics #8 (Aug. 1942), his covers for Green Lantern #31 (March-April 1948) and Wonder Woman #44 (Nov.-Dec. 1950)… and an early Dondi strip, for Sunday, 10-30-55, as repro’d on the back cover of one of Classic Comic Press’ Dondi volumes. Thanks to Doug Martin for the “Wildcat” art (with script by Bill Finger) and to the Grand Comics Database for the covers. [Comic book art TM & © DC Comics; Dondi art TM & © Tribune Media Services, Inc.]

Hasen—The Documentary

IRWIN HASEN Checklist [This checklist is adapted from information found in the online edition of The Who’s Who of American Comic Books 1928-1999, established by Jerry G. Bails. Names of features that appeared both in comic books with that title and in other publications, as well, are generally not italicized. Some of this information was probably supplied by Hasen himself via questionnaires sent out in the 1970s in conjunction with the original print version of the Who’s Who. Key: (w) = writer; (a) = full art; (p) = pencils; (i) = inks; (d) = daily comic strip [Monday through Saturday]; (S) = Sunday comic strip.] Name: Irwin Hanan Hasen (1918-2015) artist, writer

Award was seen in Alter Ego #132.]

Pen Name: Zooie

Syndication: Dondi (d & S)(a) 1955-86, Chicago Tribune-New York News Syndicate (writer of daily 1966-67)

Education: National Academy of Design; Art Students League

Comics in Other Media: gag cartoons, sports cartoons

Influences: Willard Mullin, Henrik Kley, Gustav Dore Member: National Cartoonists Society Print Media (Non-Comics): Artist contributor: Book, How to Draw – Tips from Top Cartoonists. Also was advertising artist Other Career Notes: Teacher – Joe Kubert School of Cartooning and Graphic Arts (c. 1980-92); teacher – School of Visual Arts (dates uncertain) Honors: Inkpot Award (San Diego Comic-Con) 1999; National Cartoonists Society – Best Story Strip 1961, 1962; Eisner Hall of Fame Award 2014 [NOTE: A photo of a proud Irwin with his Eisner

Non-Mainstream Comic Books: Old Town Publishing – Dr. Wonder (a) 1996; Renegade Press – covers 1986, Revolver (a) 1985; Rip Off Press – covers (a), Ms. Samson (a), science-fantasy (a) all 1986 Co-Creator: The Fox (MLJ); Harvey (DC); The Wildcat (DC) Promotional Comics: “Bazooka, the Atom Bubble Boy” (a) 1948-49 for Bazooka Bubble Gum Comics Studio/Shop: Bert Whitman Associates (p)(i) c. 1939-40; Harry “A” Chesler Studio (p)(i) c. 1939-40; Funnies, Inc. (p)(i) c. 1939-40 – all three freelance

Fill ’Em Up! Fillers by Hasen in rare outings for: (Left:) MLJ’s Top Notch Comics #1 (Dec. 1939), signed. (Right:) Fawcett Publications’ Captain Marvel Jr. #89 (Dec. 1950), for which he drew—and reportedly also wrote—this humor feature. Thanks for both scans to Steven G. Willis. [© the respective copyright holders.]

At Ease (Left:) The inscription on the back of the photo on the left says: “AA78 Bancroft San Diego, Ca. 1940 – Wallace McPherson ‘Boy Scout’– 1936 Ford.” (Above:) An ad introducing MLJ’s Black Jack, From Top-Notch #20 (Oct. 1941). [© 1941 MLJ Publishing]

The Wallace McPherson Interview

Introduction by Michael T. Gilbert

ast issue, we featured an interview between Shaun Clancy and a comic fan whose winning contest entry was published in a 1941 issue of MLJ’s Top Notch Laugh Comics. Well, detective Shaun is back at it again! This time he’s found a forgotten piece of comic history in which a young fan may actually have helped create a classic MLJ super-hero! And now, without further ado, we present…

The Wallace McPherson Phone Interview (10/1/10) by Shaun Clancy SHAUN CLANCY: I saw your name in print in a 1941 publication which had you listed at 4478 Bancroft Street, San Diego, California? WALLACE McPHERSON: You got that right. That’s me. SC: This publication is called Pep Comics [#22, Dec. 1941], and this issue actually features the first ever appearance of the character Archie Andrews. McPHERSON: Oh? SC: Your name is mentioned as a fan who wrote in on the super-heroes that the comic featured before Archie was created. McPHERSON: I remember when I was a little kid… getting one person who contacted me from that. I wrote that person one letter but I never heard back. I also never saw the mention of me in the comic or what title and issue it appeared in. SC: I thought I’d track you down and verify that the mention of your name in this comic was legit and that MLJ wasn’t just posting fictitious names. I have heard of some publishers doing that. McPHERSON: I did send a letter and, as I recall, I even sent a drawing of a super-hero that I did.

Two Of A Kind! Steel Sterling introduces the latest MLJ superstar, Black Jack, on the cover of Zip Comics #20 (Nov. 1941). Art by Irv “The Nerve” Novick! [© Archie Comic Publications, Inc.]

And from what I can remember, he had a big spade on his chest. At that time, everyone was drawing Superman and Batman because we all read comic books when we were that age. In 1941, I would have been 12 years old. [NOTE: Wallace McPherson was born in 1929.]

SC: The character that they mention in the letter column would be in reference to the superheroes The Shield and The Hangman. Those were the super-heroes that were appearing in this comic book title at that time. In fact, there was a Shield GMan Club that you could join. Do you still have your comics?

SC: Do you remember if the editors for that comic ever personally responded to your letter?

McPHERSON: No, I don’t. That was so long ago. I think that the hero that I designed and sent in was a character that I called “The Ace of Spades.”

McPHERSON: Yes. In those days, prior to World War II, there were little book stores that moms and pops ran right on Elkahorn Boulevard, and if you took in two used comic books they would let you get one new one out of the stack. That’s how we kept circulating the comic books. That’s the way it worked in those days. You took two in to mom and pop in the little house they lived in, because they’d do it out the front room in San Diego, and we’d get

McPHERSON: No. I only had the one response from a fellow fan that had seen my name in the comic, just like you just did. The publisher never contacted me. In 1941, we moved out to another area in Spring Valley, which is where I still live in right now. That comic would have come out around the time of that transition and at the start of World War II, so it’s possible that they may have sent something to our old address, which may have never been forwarded. SC: Did you continue to read Pep Comics after they introduced “Archie” in it?

Comic Fandom Archive

G.B. Love. (1939-2001) Photo by Robert Brown.

Alter Ego’s Multi-Part Tribute To G.B. Love & RBCC – Part 4 Gordon Belljohn Love Changed My Life by John Ellis

ntroduction: The first two parts of our look at G.B. Love and his influential ad-zine, Rocket’s Blast-Comicollector, appeared in A/E #133-135, which included the first half of an interview with James Van Hise, who was Love’s assistant editor on RBCC before assuming full editorship of it in 1974. But Jim came along only in 1970. For a picture of G.B. Love that begins even before Van Hise entered the scene, we reached out to John Ellis, who graciously agreed to tell the story of how he met the Big Name Fan and participated in various SFCA (South Florida Comics Association) endeavors, including the first comic collectors club in Florida. John is a prime example of someone who benefited greatly from G.B.’s generosity and tutelage, one of the reasons he was able to go on to a multifaceted career in the popular arts. I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know John as you read more about the editor and publisher of the Rocket’s BlastComicollector, the estimable Gordon Love, whose life and fanzine we are celebrating. Special thanks to Jim Van Hise and Aaron Caplan for help on some of the visual aspects of this piece. —Bill Schelly.]

ordon Belljohn Love published fanzines for almost 13 years. I knew him well for the latter half of that period, and he changed my life.

To tell G.B.’s story, I need to tell mine. I was born in March of 1955 in Wilmington, Ohio. One of my earliest memories, from the late 1950s, is of my brother Larry teaching me to trace Donald Duck from his comic books. In the early 1960s my mom would bring home comics occasionally, mostly funnyanimal comics. One day in May 1964 she brought me a Blackhawk and a Magnus Robot Fighter from El Blackie’s Party Store and “set the hook.” My new quest for more comics led me to discover the comics display in the Wilmington Drug Store. Then came the historic moment in June 1964 when I turned the corner in the store to see a spread of Marvel comics for the first time. I still have the Marvel Tales Annual #1 that I bought that day. My one close “comic book pal” was my sister-in-law Carol Day, who was several years older than me. We were

Amazing, Man! John Ellis in 1970, not long after meeting G.B. Love and helping form the South Florida Comic Club—and the cover of the first issue in Ellis’ subscription to RBCC: #61 (1969), which featured John Fantucchio’s extraordinary Amazing-Man drawing. Fantucchio contributed many outstanding cover illustrations to G.B. Love’s fanzine. Photo courtesy of John Ellis. [Art © the respective copyright holders.]

Gordon Belljohn Love Changed My Life

Hatchet Job (Above:) G.B. Love’s first step in establishing a comic book club in Florida was placing this announcement in the classified ad section of RBCC #65 (1969). (Right:) According to the caption in RBCC #77, where this photo appeared: “Ye editor welcoming local fan John Ellis to the SFCA offices. Proof-positive that fans are always welcome.” Photo by Andy Warner. John Ellis adds, “G.B. just got his C.C. Beck ‘Conan’ battle axe and wanted to try it out... on me!!! Note C.C. Beck ‘Buck Rogers’ blaster on the wall above our heads. It was actually only half of the gun, to be able to fit flat against the wall for display.”

comic book fanatics. We copied drawings from the comics. I remember drawing Sgt. Fury and talking about becoming a comics artist. My only other comic book pal was Frank Kelley, who lived in Kentucky and sometimes visited his relatives (our neighbors). Frank knew about Golden Age comics and further opened up my world with tales of ancient comic book lore. In the summer of 1966, when I was 11, my family moved from Ohio to South Florida for my mother’s health. In West Palm Beach in 1967 I made friends with Larry Calvert, a schoolmate who was a Marvel collector and a talented artist. Larry, Carol, and Frank were really it for me, in my world, the lonely comic-collecting secret universe. I had also made friends through the mail and over the phone with Howard Rogofsky from his ads in Marvel comics. Howard sold me “less than perfect” Golden Age comics cheap (on my budget). He was really nice and honest and probably didn’t make any money from me, but made me one happy kid. I was 13 in December 1968. As a Christmas gift, Frank Kelley

Let’s Call This Meeting To Order! First meeting of the Southern Florida Comiclub, at Andy Warner’s house, September 1969. Clockwise from front left corner: unknown fan’s head, G.B. Love (adjusting his collar), unknown fan, Andy Warner (white shirt, leading meeting), fan artist Mike McKenney, Gary Brown. Photo courtesy of John Ellis.

bought me a subscription to something called RBCC, the Rocket’s Blast & Comic-Collector, and my world began to change. My first issue was #61, with the great John Fantucchio’s Amazing-Man cover. The ads for old comics, articles, and artwork really blew my mind. Three more issues arrived through the summer of 1969. It was hard to wait the two months between issues, each one better than the last. In RBCC #65, I saw an ad for the “South Florida Comics Council,” a club forming in Miami. I excitedly called the phone number and talked to a guy named Andy Warner. The next day, Andy and artist Jon Farwell made the drive all the way up to West Palm Beach to meet me. They dropped off a Care package of EC comics, fanzines, Witzend, Graphic Story Magazine, and a whole bunch of stuff that filled me with a new sense of wonder. I was in awe, seeing those beautiful pro-printed fanzines with Wood, Frazetta, Crandall, and Bodé for the first time. Truly a “gosh-wow golly-gee-whiz” moment for me. Later that month, on a Saturday morning, I took a Greyhound bus to Miami to the first club meeting and met a whole slew of fans. It was something I never imagined: a group of people like me, openly into comic books. Attending were Jon Farwell and Andy Warner (of course), artist Mike McKenney, fan editor and publisher Gary Brown... and G.B. Love. Andy led the meeting, and we decided to put on a one day convention in December. It was very gratifying to be accepted by this group and to actually be made a board member. Andy and his family invited me to stay over, and I was surprised when G.B. asked if I wanted to come to the SFCA offices the next day (Sunday) and work in the office. I remember saying, “What does that mean?” and G.B. and Andy chuckling. Andy said, “You’ll get paid for it. I’ll be working too, I work for G.B. all the time!” G.B. laughed and said, “What, you think I’d make you work for free?” It was an amazing thing: my first paying job ever, and for working on a fanzine. I had quite an experience at G.B.’s place the next day. We listened to an audio recording of the Adventures of Captain Marvel movie serial, and I typed subscriber addresses on file cards and helped open mail. There was always a lot of mail to open, as well

Fawcett Artist RAY HARFORD & The Ghost Army Part II From War To Wendell Crowley by P.C. Hamerlinck

Ray Harford 1942, before his stint in the U.S. Army—and its Ghost Army. A fuller version of this photo was printed last issue.

The Ghost Army

NTRODUCTION: Last issue, we began the story of Ray Harford (b. 1920), who attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, where he met fellow aspiring artists Bob Boyajian, Vic Dowd, and Ken Bald. These “Four Musketeers” also became friends with young Kurt Schaffenberger. In 1941, the five of them were among several others who went to work for already-veteran artist Jack Binder at his comic book studio, a converted barn in Englewood, New Jersey. While that “comic shop” produced material for several companies, it increasingly concentrated on turning out artwork for Fawcett Publications’ burgeoning comics line. [NOTE: Interviews with Boyajian, Dowd, and Bald appeared in Alter Ego #55, still available from TwoMorrows Publishing.] By 1942, Harford and Boyajian were working in Fawcett’s own art department to help meet the demand for more tales about the company’s ultra-popular feature “Captain Marvel.” Harford proved to be so good at drawing the World’s Mightiest Moral that some of his art has been mistaken for the work of Marc Swayze, the primary artist who drew the “Captain Marvel” material not penciled by the hero’s cocreator, C.C. Beck. But World War II was raging, and there were more important things to do than draw comic books….

“We Shall Both Return!” (Above:) Ray Harford’s original artwork for the cover of Whiz Comics #31 (June 1942) featuring General Douglas MacArthur, which he later watercolored for a presentation piece in his personal art portfolio… and (at left) a small thumbnail scan of the printed cover. [Shazam hero TM & © DC Comics.]

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ALTER EGO #140

Golden Age great IRWIN HASEN spotlight, adapted from DAN MAKARA’s film documentary on Hasen, the 1940s artist of the Justice Society, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Wildcat, Holyoke’s Cat-Man, and numerous other classic heroes—and, for 30 years, the artist of the famous DONDI newspaper strip! Bonus art by his buddies JOE KUBERT, ALEX TOTH, CARMINE INFANTINO, and SHELLY MAYER! (84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95 http://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=98_55&products_id=1234

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Words To The Wise From Wendell Fawcett editor Wendell Crowley gave sound advice, and a referral, in this 10/15/48 letter to Ray Harford, who had sought to re-enter the comic book field in the post-war years. Seen above is its first page.

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